You Should Read This Before Buy Milwaukee 2691-22 18-Volt Compact Drill and Impact Driver Combo Kit

I recently owned a Makita set so I will compare the two. I use the tools every day in remodel and new construction work.

• The Milwaukee is slightly heavier, but still easy to use.
• The belt clip on tool base is very useful. Makita doesn't have same feature.
• Battery life seems to be the same. I love the charge level indicator on the battery, but when it is dead, it stops immediately, no gradual loss.
• The hard plastic carry case will last much longer than the Makita cordura bag, which was pretty beat up after six months of use.
• Both brands have a use light above trigger but Makita's will glow for a short stretch after trigger release whereas the Milwaukee turns off immediately.
• Makita also has the glow ring on the impact driver that makes finding it in the dark easier, very handy.
• The Milwaukee impact driver has a rubber bumper strip on both sides of the nose for friction protection [nice] but one end on both sides come unattached with very little use [annoying]. I had to super glue them in place and they have held for several weeks.
• I anticipate no difference in tool life and durability having used both tool brands for many years. 

And if you offer this here now, you can save 64% :)


Matthew S. Malone (Boston MA) says :


After owning two of the white Makita lith-ion drills I had to return both of them because the charger kept killing the batteries dead. From what I have read this is a known problem.

Here is what I like better about the Milwaukee.

First the charger does not kill the $80 batteries no matter how long you leave them on the charger. Second, the Milwaukee has a great battery charge indicator right on the battery. This is very important with Lith-Ion batteries as they have full power right up to the end and quit without warning. With is level gauge you know exactly how much battery life you have when you grab your drill. Third, the Milwaukee drill has bit storage on board, handy for philips and reg bits. Lastly the red color holds up much better then white.

Hope this helps.

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You Should Read This Before Buy Braun SE7281WD Xpressive Body System Rechargeable Wet & Dry Epilator

I have been using an epilator for years, so for 'newbies' just a few comments-
YES- the pain gets better. Stick with it. I use it for everything- upper lip, underarms, legs, bikini- and I don't need any special soothing creams or gentle 'caps' or anything. I barely even feel it. You can get there.

It definitely beats shaving.

But I would say that the "hair free for 4-6 weeks" claim is bunk. If I go more than 2 weeks or so, it's noticeable. Now, the hair is softer and lighter so even if it's there it's not awful- but if you are expecting to be totally silky smooth for a month- no.

And on that note- I'm not sure I'm EVER 100% silky smooth. there are always a few little fine hairs it can't get, or a few that break. It's not like that JUST shaven feeling. (but, that just shaven feeling only lasts what, an hour?)

But the reason I'm writing this review-
I've had several epilators, and have tried pretty much every model of the silk-epil. I was so excited about two things on this one: the rechargeable battery, and the wet/dry ability.

First re: the wet/dry- I tried it in the shower- It didn't work NEARLY as well. missed tons of hairs. I think the fact that you can get it wet is meant more so you can clean it- not use it in the tub. But, maybe that's just me, maybe I should try it again.

And the battery- I honestly wish I had saved money and gotten the corded one. The charge doesn't last long enough, and it gets wimpy at the end. Even if I plug it in, it's wimpy until the battery gets some charge back. And worst of all- if I use it too much, I think maybe it overheats- it gets really hot and seems to strain the battery, and it will just totally die. I have to leave it alone for 5-10 min, and then I can go again just for maybe 3 minutes.

I really think this has to do with the battery and charging system.

So my recommendation would be to save money and get the corded version. After all- where are you going to be using it that it's so hard to be near an outlet?

And now you can save 18% if you offer this at here!

S. Cohen (Atlanta, GA) says :

I was really really really hesitant to get an epilator...in fact, I had been scared to get one my whole life. IF I had only known then, what I know now!! (the irony of life, right?)

I have very pale white skin and very thick black body hair, thanks to some not-so-good luck with the gene pool. :-) Been shaving all my life, and not only would I get razor rash EVERY time, but the regrowth would be evident within a matter of hours. Yuck! So, a few years ago, I started getting waxed, which wasn't horrible, but was very expensive and not something I could afford in the long-run; this lead me to purchase my own at-home wax warmer and I started waxing myself. Things I loved about waxing: regrowth was slower; no razor rash or tiny purple dots at each hair follicle(!!!). The things I hated about waxing: very messy; very time consuming; have to wait until a good portion of hair has grown back AND until hair growth is at least 1/2 inch or so before waxing EVERY time, which is ugly and makes me feel self-conscious. So:

I decided I needed to find a longer-term solution. Looked into the No!No!, but it has horrible reviews by just about everyone who doesn't get paid by the infomercial company (certainly a few exceptions, but not enough to make me comfortable dropping nearly $300 on it!). Then I saw epilators... and I decided I may as well try one because it's no more expensive than one round of waxing (less, actually); plus, I've undergone waxing so many times, so it couldn't possibly hurt more than that! Right? I hoped.... Many epilators get great reviews, so I had a hard time deciding on one. I ended up going with this one (Braun SE7281WD) because (1) It had some of the best and most thorough reviews; (2) I wasn't sure if I'd prefer to use it in the shower or dry, so I wanted the wet/dry feature to test all the possibilities; and (3) I liked that this came with several "heads" so I could work my way into it with the massaging head, and use the precision head for special areas, etc. I made the purchase, even though I was still really nervous.

It's been about 5 weeks and I don't regret the decision one bit! The first go-round was a little painful and awkward, I must admit (I tried it in the shower first which was way too awkward, so resumed after shower with dry but warm skin and it was still a little painful, but not as awkward). The 2nd time I used it (dry only) was about 1 week later - only a little hair was present and it felt like almost nothing. Same with 3rd week. Last week, I had a little more hair growth than the previous weeks, and I made a leap and decided to not use any of the heads at all, but just the bare epilator (dry as usual). It took the hair off so well, and was nearly painless (honestly, at this point, it feels like the skin is getting "a good scratching"...I can't explain this, but it doesn't hurt...*almost* feels good in a way, but not quite).

I love this epilator. I usually charge it up on a Sunday morning when I wake up, and by the time I'm done with my coffee it's ready to go. I use it on my armpits, arms, legs, bikini (need to be careful around the creases - I did knick myself once when the skin was too tight and had a slightly elevated/pinched-up area...ever since, I have used the precision head for the bikini area!), and stomach below the navel. There's always a charge left when I am done. It is pretty fast and easy. Hair regrowth seems to be slowing down and thinning out...since my hair is so thick, I do get a few ingrowns, especially near the thicker skin at the knees, but that's WAY better than the MANY ingrowns I got during waxing; and a deep salt scrub always helps the problem (I make my own: fine sea salt mixed with almond or grapeseed oil and 2 drops of lavendar aromatherapy oil). Oh, last week I also discovered that for some ingrowns (those causing a little bump on the surface of the skin and therefore not deep), I can move the epilator several times over the bump in different directions and it'll remove the excess skin and pull out the hair! Much better option than me trying to dig it out with tweezers and making myself bleed!!

Oh, and the best part is: I don't have to wait until most of the hair has regrown before I use it...in a similar fashion as shaving, I can epilate anytime I need to and have soft, smooth skin!! However, different and much better than shaving, the hair won't regrow within a few hours...or days!

I know this review is long, but sometimes I think it's really important to share the whole story. I hope it will help someone else out there. :-)

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You Should Read This Before Buy

There are large, loud, and passionate debates about QB on the web, and many of the complaints people have are well-founded. But I've used just about every sort of accounting program out there and keep coming back to QuickBooks despite its shortcomings.

First of all, I'm not a trained accountant. While I do understand basic accounting concepts, and can look at a P&L without my head spinning, I can't really say the same about things like trial balances and general ledgers. So for ME - QuickBooks gives me the framework to keep close tabs on my business without feeling frustrated and stupid.

Entering information is extremely easy, and the import facility from Gmail is great - I decided to start a new company file from scratch for 2012 (I got a bit... sloppy about keeping up with an older file on my Mac, and figured out new and simpler ways to keep track of what was important), and it was a neat time-saver. While I'm on the subject, by the way, the Mac version doens't have all the features of the Windows version. If you have the option of either, make sure you choose carefully.

Entering information starting in Q4 of 2011 also went smoothly, and any time I made a mistake, or decided I'd like to keep things sorted a different way, it was easy to fix - something I always found could be a PITA with some other programs. Reports are easy to run, and connectivity with online banking is easy to do as well. I'm not using it for payroll, so I cannot speak to that.

But it does fall down in some places. First and foremost, they really need to stop trying to sell their additional (and IMO overpriced) products and services from within a paid piece of software - or at least making it so intrusive. The pop-ups are a total drag (though they CAN be turned off in preferences if you look hard enough or Google it) and things like a "Do More With Quickbooks" menu (which sells their services) that can't be removed from the Main Navigation screen is a bit of an insult.

As for missing or broken features, I've found two that are particularly irritating: the first is a lack of real price levels for products. In this version of QuickBooks, you CAN set a discount level for wholesale customers (we manufacture soap that's sold both retail and wholesale), but it's a blanket discount. What I'd like to do (and could in competing programs at the same price point) is set multiple price levels, and each product could have a pre-set price at each level, not just a blanket percentage. Seems to me if you're doning price levels at all, you should just do them right. The feature exists in QB Premier, but it's literally the ONLY feature I need from it and it's next to impossible to figure out how to upgrade (and likely wouldn't be worth the cash anywasy).

The customize forms section had some issues as well - I spent quite a lot of time working on customization, and it all appeared great until an invoice was emailed (they printed fine) at which point the entire layout came apart and it was unreadable. Awful that I couldn't see this unless I tested the send (which thankfully I did before sending one to a customer), and it took forever to figure out what was broken: turned out that it couldn't handle using Helvetica Neue for a font. I stuck with Ariel and had no such problems.

There are other issues here and there that make me unhappy: I can't change the default font size for program itself without a hack (it was just too small stock), whenever I go to the reports page I keep getting a popup telling me about the "New! Contributed Reports" that I can't turn off, and other minor customization issues.

In the end, I'll confess that if there was an accounting program that was as easy and flexible at the same price point, I'd consider it due to issues I've mentioned. But QB really does have the market to itself so that's not an option. But it's not so bad: the issues aren't killer (they're just the sorts of issues I, were I their interface consultant, wouldn't abide) and the positives for me make up for the negatives.

And now you can save 41% if you offer this at here!

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You Should Read This Before Buy PetSafe Deluxe Little-Dog Remote Trainer for Pets

We bought this for our Rat Terrier. He's very smart and was learning all his basic commands but not "Come". When he got lose he refused to come when you called him. I worried about his safety. With the kids in and out of the house all summer, something needed to be done. As a animal lover I was really torn about the idea of a "shock" collar. What sold me was that this one could be set low and could also be used with a "beep". It only took him three times before he got it. The first time he left the yard I called him, he did the typical "Ha-yeah right", and took off! I gave him the command "Come Cosmo!" and then zapped him. He did yelp, I won't lie:-( He stopped and started to take off again, I repeated. He came running to me. I praised him and gave him treats. Next time I "beeped" him first with the command, followed by a second beep (still didn't come) then a zap, then he came...more praise. Last time I just "beeped" him and he came instantly!!. Now he wears it and we don't even have it turned on! It comes with a book on training for other bad habits like chasing cars, trash raiding, and digging. Along with basic training. It was worth the money. He got out the other day without the collar on, I panicked but opened the front door and called him. He came running to the door!! Also we have neighbors walk their dogs by our house, we just tell him to "sit" and "stay". They just walk right by without any trouble. Perfect! In less then a week he was trained. We could have spent a couple hundred dollars and a month or more on classes for basic training. All of which we didn't have the time or money for. This was easy and worth it!

And if you offer this now, you can save 42%. Check this offer here!


D. Blankenship (The Ozarks) says :

I have owned dogs and been with dogs since birth. The majority of these wonderful animals have been pets, but I have also spent years working with hunting dogs; raising, training and working with. Until recently I have always been rather smug, and must admit to having done a bit of bragging that I have never had a dog or known a dog that I could not train. Now of the literally hundreds of animals I have been in contact with and worked with over the years this has been true. In addition I can truthfully say I have never hit a dog, lost my temper with a dog, and other than firm voice command and gentle authoritarian use of a leash, used any other training aid. I had very mixed emotions and must admit to have had strong reservations in using such a device as being reviewed here. I have had friend who have had excellent results with their hunting animals with the use of "shock collars," and swear by them, but still and all.....

Well enter Ivan (as in Ivan the Terrible) who is a small terrier who may be 13 pounds soaking wet, although I am convinced he thinks he is the size of a timber wolf. Ivan is about one year old and was "dumped" at our place and was in horrid condition when he came to our door. Being the stern fellow I am, and already in possession of three house dogs, I did the only thing I could do...yup, took the little fellow in. After several trips to the groomer, healthy diet, being checked out an neutered by the vet, given lots and lots of love, he is doing just great. That has been eight months ago.

Ivan is actually a very good little dog. It took two days to house train him, he is well mannered in the house, and is a perfect lap dog. He sleeps in my lap while I read and lies across the top of my head when I go to bed. He gets long with the other animals perfectly. Ivan though has a typical terrier attitude. i.e. a hard head. No method I tried could keep him from bolting from the door, giving a "you and the horse you road in on" look over his shoulder when called, and just keep on going. Now we live in the woods and about 200 yards from the road. Ivan was in great risk of being run over as he loved to chase cars, or being eaten by coyotes as he loved to chase the feral cats who inhabit the woods surrounding us. He would spend hours, day and night, in the pursuit of his feline "enemies." I spent many late nights tromping the bush trying to catch this little critter and bring him home. What to do? The cats are able to avoid (or sometimes not) the coyotes by climbing trees...Ivan does not posses that skill.

Well, as a last resort I ordered one of these wonderful PetSafe trainers for small dogs. I began by testing it on myself...several times, by fastening it to my arm and allowing my wife to zap me...using the high mode....I actually suspicion she enjoyed it...go figure. Anyway, I can promise you that the pain is not all that bad. It does instantly get your attention and is very uncomfortable, but the actual pain is not really all that bad.

Well we then put the devise on Ivan. To make a not so long story even shorter, this thing worked perfectly and it only took three days and about six zaps. Ivan no longer heads for the woods, has stopped chasing cars and stays within his five or more acre area. He comes instantly when called. I can truly say that this thing has probably saved him from being squashed or eaten.

The device is very easy to use. It has 10 settings, 10 being the most powerful. It has been through rain, ice and snow and keeps on working. It is easy to fasten it on the dog. The antenna is buried in the actual collar so there is little chance of it breaking. The batteries seem to have a very long life.

There are two modes on this collar. There is a "beep" button and there is a "zapper" button. It does, as advertised, reach for at least 100 yards. We found that by giving Ivan warning (two) with the beeper before we actually gave him the mild shock worked out quite well. He now instantly returns when he hears the beeping noise. Actually, at this point, he instantly responds and returns at a verbal command.

Some things to note:

Ivan is a bright dog and it did not take him long to associate the collar with the shock. After three times of being hit he behaved well but the first time we let him out without the device in place he headed for the tall timber....back on the collar went. We did this a few times and finally purchased a regular collar, a cheap collar, and when it is on Ivan thinks it is the "bad" collar and behaves perfectly. We are in the process of weaning him from the non-shock collar as I write this and all is working out quite well.

Second: I read at least one review here that stated the collar burned holes in their dogs' fur and skin. This is an absolute blatant untruth...there is no way this device is capable of doing such a thing. The people who wrote those reviews either left the collar on too long and the studs wore a hole in the fur of the dog, or they are misguided individuals trying to "save" the dogs from these "dreadful devices." Hey folks, better startle your dog a bit than have him killed. I am a bit surprised that Amazon has allowed these untruthful reviews to stand. These misguided "do-gooder" reviews could cost many pets their lives and the people who wrote them should be ashamed of their selves.

Third: Even if you get overly enthusiastic with your zapping, the device will automatically stop the shock after eight seconds. This is important when dealing with over zealous children using the device.

Forth: If there are buildings, large trees and shrubs and such in the way, the collar is less effective.

Fifth: the device on the collar should be turned off when the dog is in the house our training time is over as it will prolong the battery life. Also, the collar should not be left on the dog for over eight hours per instructions.

Sixth: These devices should never ever be used as a form of punishment for your pet; a pox on your house if you do so.

I could not be happier with a product than I am this one. It was with every penny I spent and it is much less expensive than many of these devices I have seen.

Now I have a grandson, 17 years old, who is having problems staying focused on his German lessons and British Literature assignments,...I wonder......????

Don Blankenship
The Ozarks

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You Should Read This Before Buy Seagate FreeAgent GoFlex Desk 3 TB USB 3.0 External Hard Drive

I purchased the 4TB Seagate GoFlex Desk external drive with the intent of consolidating all my media files onto a single central drive. Straight out of the box, impressions were good. The newer generation drive offers a sleeker high gloss alternative to the previous Seagate Desk models. The drive comes equipped with a USB 3.0 base dock, which features five white LEDs on the front to illustrate power as well as indicate the capacity used on the drive in 25% increments. In addition, it also comes with the AC power adapter and a 4 foot USB 3.0 cord, which is significantly more convenient than the 1 1/2 foot cords that were supplied with my 1TB Seagate GoFlex Ultra Portable Drives.

Right out of the box I plugged in to my Windows 7 laptop, had the drivers automatically installed, and was off and running in about 30 seconds. Simple enough. Actual available space on the drive (due to conversion) is about 3.63 TB, which was an expected reduction.. but is worth noting for those who aren't aware there will be less memory actually available than what is advertised.

An initial letdown was the noise. The drive emits a low frequency hum when powered, as well as airflow noise from the vent holes on the top of the enclosure. Overall, the sound is somewhat noticeable, but not loud. Nothing I'd really complain about.. I think I'm just spoiled by my virtually silent USB powered portable drives. Also, one thing you don't want to do is tilt this thing on its side or move it around haphazardly while transferring data - you'll get a kind of faint and unnerving buzz-saw sound if you tilt it at an angle or jostle it roughly. Best to leave it stationary or keep it straight up and down when moving the drive while it's running.. learned that the hard way.

I did run diagnostics to determine the read/write speed of the drive, but since I only have a USB 2.0 motherboard in my laptop, my personal results are not at all accurate to the true capabilities of this drive. However, I have read reviews of users with USB 3.0 technology benchmarking the drive at approximately 190MB/s read and 160MB/s write speeds. When I gain access to a USB 3.0 PC, I'll run the tests and update with personal results.

Additional details from the diagnostic show the GoFlex Desk houses a SATA III 6Gbps 7200RPM 3.5" hard drive with 5 platters (800GB each). Temperature is around 47°C on idle startup. After 8 hours of running transfer, temperature maxed at 55°C. Pretty happy with the drive thus far - will update with any encountered problems over the next few weeks.

And if you order now, you can save 8%. Check this out here!

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You Should Read This Before Buy PlayStation Vita - WiFi

A few hours since delivery... I'm impressed. Just about everything about the PSV: display, controls, features, the games - top of the line. This is a gaming machine that shouts "quality" and, after the first few hours of playing Uncharted and a couple of small games off the PSN, I can say that I've had the best portable gaming experience ever - we currently have a PSP and a DSi in the house plus a couple of tablets and smart phones.

Briefly - and I will update my review as I experience more of the PSV - these are my findings so far.

HARDWARE AND FEATURES

I'm not going to get into details because Amazon's page has it all. Yes, it's quad-core this, and super-high-rez display that but what counts is that it translates into a super-smooth gaming experience with a bunch of non-gaming capabilities on top. I'm surprised how immersive playing a game on such a small screen with such tiny speakers can be. And it is so for a couple of reasons.

- the sharpest, best looking display I've seen on a portable
- the dual analog sticks make all the difference - Sony learned from past mistakes
- the back touch panel are something that it's better to experience because it's the one clear innovation on this machine and it won't give you headaches (sorry Nintendo :) )
- games can be either downloaded or purchased and shared on physical media - like I said, Sony is learning from past mistakes (sorry PSP Go)
- seamless integration with the PS3 and the Playstation Network
- a bunch of great multimedia apps including Netflix - I'll have more to say about these after I stop playing Uncharted :)
- cameras - more later but I heard that some games allow you to build characters that look just like you

THE GAMING EXPERIENCE

Anyone who has a PS3 or a PSP should feel very familiar with the PSV. All the PS3 controls are there although some of the buttons are smaller. Add to that the 'touch' capabilities on both front and back with support for gestures and the gaming possibilities are almost endless. Because of its high resolution, there can be a lot happening at the same time on the PSV's screen and, don't forget, you can also feel the action while playing.

I don't feel like doing comparisons at this time but anyone who claims that the PSV is no big deal because we can play games on our phones should experience the PSV and then consider revising their statements. Vita can easily play any one-dollar game that a phone can play and I'm sure we'll get a couple of those and Vita can do just about everything a smart phone or tablet can do and most of the time do it better, but no phone or tablet can play Uncharted and no 'next generation' phone or tablet is likely to be able to play Uncharted or Little Big Planet. And, let's not forget that the Vita costs a less than most smart phones.

EVERYTHING ELSE

I haven't had time to explore all of Vita's features yet but, they're all in there. Multimedia, wireless connectivity, music playback... it's all in there. Add to that one of the best laid out, intuitive and responsive user interfaces and even non gamers should be happy to have a Vita around.

WHAT I DIDN'T LIKE

A couple of things. The most annoying is, of course, the hyper-overpriced memory card. You can't play 'big games' without one and Sony decided to make lots of money on this proprietary 'must have' add-on which is anything but optional. Then there's of course Sony not making the Passport program available in the US. We have a PSP and lots of games on UMDs. Not being able to play them on the Vita is very frustrating.

Other than that... perhaps I should have titled my review 'gamer changer' because the Vita is likely to change me into a more active portable player. I used to prefer the PS3 over the PSP but I'm not sure this will always be the case in the future. I know that I won't put the Vita down until I'm done with Uncharted and once I complete that there are at least half a dozen games available on lunch date that I'd like to play.

Oh and... I don't really like sharing our Vita with the kids at this time but I have to :)

____________________________________________

NOTES OF CAUTION

Before deciding whether you want to buy a Vita and as you are budgeting for one, keep the following in mind:

* SINGLE-USER SYSTEM - or so it is meant to be at this time. Like the PSP, the Vita will recognize only ONE account. Unlike the PS3, you can't have other members of your family or friends log with a sub-account. If you are planning to share the PSV, Sony suggests that individual users keep their game saves on separate memory cards but you will still be logged on the Vita as the one user who 'owns' it.

* TROPHIES - A Sony representative confirmed to me that only the 'owner' will get credit for the trophies, no matter who may be earning them during gameplay because the PSV only recognized one user.

* DOWNLOADS - If you buy a 'download' you will have to download that game on each of your family members memory cards who wish to play that game individually.

* MEMORY CARDS SIZE - see above for the multiple users scenario. In addition, get the biggest memory card you can possibly afford. The size of downloaded games tends to be enormous. Uncharted alone is 3.2 GB which is just about all that a 4 GB card can hold. Most games I care about seem to be 2 GB or larger.

* DON'T PLAN ON BUYING MANY DOWNLOADABLE GAMES - see above. Half a dozen downloaded games would fill up your 16 GB memory card with little room for anything else. I would buy games on physical media whenever possible.

You can get it on here (Amazon Shop)

Grayson Andrew Vickery (Arlington, VA, US) says :
The PSVITA in a nutshell

The Vita overall is an exceptional piece of gaming hardware.

PROS:
-OLED is clear, vivid, and best of all pretty resistant to finger prints.
-PSN is responsive and easy to use.
-Dual analog stick 100% functional (unlike the nub).
-Rear touch pad is innovative and very responsive.
-Front touch works as well as any apple device I've ever owned.

CONS:
-Battery life (5-6 hours with brightness down).
-No PS1 classic support as of 02-23-2012(there are plans to add support down the road per SONY).

I believe that the Vita is where Sony finally got it right, this is the first handheld from them that I love almost as much as I did my GBA.

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You Should Read This Before Buy Death Note Box Set 2

Death Note returns with this Second Set containing the final remaining 17 Episodes, D.N. has such great animation and amazing suspenseful music that make the scenes feel truly epic. Packed with twists and turns that will keep you guessing until the very end. It's Anime at It's finest, A must have Even if your not a fan of anime, this series is definitely worth a try.

Death Note follows The story of A high school student (Light) who discovers a supernatural notebook, the "Death Note", dropped on Earth by a Shinigami (death god) named Ryuk. The Death Note grants its user the ability to kill anyone whose face they have seen, by writing the victim's name in the notebook. Light's attempt to create and rule a world cleansed of evil using the notebook.

Soon after, the number of deaths of reported criminals catches the attention of the a mysterious detective known only as "L". L quickly learns that the serial killer, dubbed by the public as "KIRA" is located in Japan. L also concludes that Kira can kill people without laying a finger on them. Light realizes that L will be his greatest Enemy, and a game of psychological cat and mouse between the two begins.

Volume 2, Description:
THROUGH THE POWER OF THE DEATH NOTE, LIGHT YAGAMI IS CLOSE TO CREATING A WORLD IN WHICH HE HOLDS ULTIMATE AUTHORITY OVER RIGHT AND WRONG. BUT MANY OBSTACLES REMAIN, INCLUDING A SECOND DEATH NOTE USER WHO HAS HIS OWN NEFARIOUS GOALS, AND THE TWO BRILLIANT PROTEGES OF L, THE GENIUS DETECTIVE WHO ONCE VOWED TO EXPOSE THE IDENTITY OF THE DEATH NOTE'S OWNER. LIGHT IS CONFIDENT THAT HE CAN PREVAIL, BUT AS THE SURVIVING PLAYERS IN THE GAME CONVERGE FOR A FINAL SHOWDOWN, WHOSE NAME WILL BE THE LAST ONE WRITTEN IN THE DEATH NOTE?

Death Note Box Set: 2 includes the following 17 Episodes on 4 Discs plus a bonus disc:

21 "Performance"
22 "Guidance"
23 "Frenzy"
24 "Revival"
25 "Silence"
26 "Renewal"
27 "Abduction"
28 "Impatience"
29 "Father"
30 "Justice"
31 "Transfer"
32 "Selection"
33 "Scorn"
34 "Vigilance"
35 "Malice"
36 "1.28"
37 "New World"

Special Features" On The Volume 2 Box Set:

* Disc 6 - Behind the Scenes with Colleen Wheeler "Rem" and Kavadas "Higuchi"

* Disc 7 - Behind the Scenes with Alessandro Juliani "L", and French Tickner "Watari"

* Disc 8 - Behind the Scenes with David Hurwitz `Mello and Cathy Weseluck "Near"

* Disc 9 - Behind the Scenes with Heather Doerksen "Kiyomi" Kirby Morrow "Mikami and Brad Swaile "Light"

*Disc 10 BONUS DISC- Behind the Scenes with the Japanese voice actors.
*Original Japanese Death Note interstitials.
*Interview with animation director and character designer.
*Conversations with the Japanese cast and crew.
*Expanded art gallery.

Like The Previous Season Set, They Are Released In a 5 Disc Box Set and Presented in Full Screen Format. Also Contains, Both The Japanese and English (Dub) Language with Optional Subtitles. (Region 1) 

You can save 14% if you buy it now only on amazon shop, and you can go here for check this out.

Morgan "Knower of Stuff..." (Philadelphia, PA USA) says :
I'm not posting this review in order to discuss death note specifically, rather, I want to clear up some inaccuracies in the item description and the description given in the first review so that customers can make a more informed purchase. This set is as described save one thing, it is NOT in fullscreen (4:3 aspect ratio); it is in fact widescreen, just as death note has always been (16:9 aspect ratio). This may seem like a minor error (one that occurs in Amazon's description and the reviewer's description) but it is pretty important since death note was made in 16:9 and a full screen set would be slicing off the sides of the image in order to force it into 4:3 and thus delivering a less than complete experience of the series. I am not getting this information from outside sources either, as I imagine the other reviewer got his, I actually own this set and a widescreen TV and have confirmed that it is in fact widescreen, as it should be. Furthermore, it is anamorphic widescreen, meaning that it will appear with letterbox on a normal tv (in order to maintain the series original 16:9 aspect ratio) and will appear without the letterbox on a widescreen TV capable of displaying it properly...Enjoy 

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You Should Read This Before Buy Death Note Box Set 1

I first caught "DEATH NOTE" on television. I've heard so many impressive things in regards to the storyline and also saw the series featured on NPR. To get the critical acclaim that it has worldwide, this series must be special.

And special is what "DEATH NOTE" truly is. From beginning to end, this series has just grabbed my attention because of its well-written cat vs. mouse storyline.

"DEATH NOTE" is a 37-episode TV series that was created by Studio Madhouse and featured on Japanese television in 2006-2007 and featured in the US in 2007-2008. The series has spawned a popular manga series, a novel, three live action films and has captured the attention of anime and non-anime fans worldwide.

The series focuses on the character of a very smart high school student named Light Yagami. Bored with his life, he comes across the "Death Note" that has special instructions that if one was to write their names on the Death Note, the person would die. They would die of a heart attack if there were no instructions on how the person is to die. Or die the way the person possesing the Death Note wrote down.

The Death Note is from a Shinigami (death god) named Ryuk who seems to be bored in his own world and thus starts to enjoy how a person like Light starts to use the Death Note.

For Light (who goes by the name Kira), starts out using the Death Note by writing the names of criminals. He starts to win supporters due to his ideology of creating a new world without these criminals. But with so many deaths occuring, the police and the International community begin to fear this serial killer. And along the way, Light is suspected by the police as a person of interest (a person who could be "Kira") and then Light starts to use his Death Note on those who are onto him.

Thus a mysterious detective named L is assigned to the case and the series becomes a compelling storyline of will L find a way to catch Light Yagami or will Light Yagami kill L first? Two geniuses trying to outwit the other in a thrilling storyline that is so unique, I'm confident in saying that it's one of the most original anime to come out in the last decade.

The volume 1 box set features on the first half of the series (twenty episodes, five DVDs, four episodes per disc) as Light Yagami (Kira) moves forward to create his new world, while L and the Kira Task Force try to stop him. Also, that there may be another person in the world who may possess a second Death Note as well.

AUDIO & VIDEO:

"Death Note" was a TV series and I found the animation to be quite cool as it showcased a dark, stylish feel to it. Featuring a good dose of J-rock and style to it's overall presentation, Studio Madhouse did a wonderful job in this series and bringing out the illustrations of Takeshi Obata and the storyline of Tsugumi Ohba to television. The dark atmosphere really is well displayed in this anime series.

But the most appealing part of this series is the awesome voice acting. Being the Japanese language purist that I am, I watched the series with Japanese voice acting and it was done very well. But I have to admit that I was really impressed by the English dub voice acting.

Brad Swaile as Light Yagami, Battlestar Galactica actor (Felix Gaeta) Alesandro Juliani, Brian Drummond as Ryuk and Shannon Chan-Kent as Misa did a tremendous job. As did the other English voice actors. A job well done!

SPECIAL FEATURES:

Personally, I wasn't sure what kind of "special features" would be included on the DVD box set but you do get a really awesome behind-the-scenes interview with the English voice dub talent. Here are the special features featured on the Volume 1 Box Set:

* Disc 1 - Behind the Scenes with Brad Swaile "Light", Clean Opening and Ending
* Disc 2 - Behind the Scenes with Alessandro Juliani "L", Japanese Director and Character Designer Interviewer
* Disc 3 - Behind the Scenes with Brian Drummond "Ryuk"
* Disc 4 - Behind the Scenes with Shannon Chan-Kent "Misa"
* Disc 5 - Behind the Scenes with Chris Britton, Vincent Tong and Trevor Devall "The Kira Task Force"

And on each disc, production art and trailers are featured on each disc. What I enjoyed about the behind-the-scenes footage is that they were lengthy and not super short. You really get a good insight on the actor's take (from the beginning of the series) of their character, the challenges they faced in doing the vocal work and much more. So, it was very cool to have these extras included on each disc.

I can't tell you how awesome this TV series is. "Death Note" is truly special as it really show how power can corrupt but taking that cat versus mouse type of storyline of two geniuses trying to outwit each other.

There are literally so many twists and turns in this anime series that it really captures your attention and has you on the edge of your seat.

As for the DVD box set, I think it's just great that Viz Media chose to feature 20 episodes of the series and sell the box set for a great price! I definitely like Viz Media/Shonen Jump Home Video really doing anime fans a great service by following a US TV Season Box Set style of pricing instead of selling the episodes as separate volumes. You're definitely getting your bang for the buck.

Overall, a well-acted anime series (on both the Japanese and English side of things), cool characters, well-written episodes, stylish animation and a unique, compelling anime series that I highly recommend! A+ 

You can save 41% if you buy it now only on amazon shop, and you can go here for check this out.

Blitz Patel "Anonymous Rex" (Napa, CA, USA) says :
The hugely popular anime from Japan comes to the U.S. in this season 1 set. I started watching this show when it replaced Bleach in the Saturday night line-up last year and I was really surprised. I can confidently say that this show has the best story of any anime I have ever seen (and will be within the top few of any anime-fan's list). When buying seasons of shows I'm kind of cheap so I try to go by the rule of (at most) $1 per episode. Animes are a little more expensive so I go by $2 per episode. Amazon has lowered their price to allow for it to fall into my range so I was quick to pre-order it; that's just how good it is. The whole series is pretty short, probably 3 or 4 seasons but it definitely ranks within my top three animes (and I'm not a huge fan of anime so even people who aren't will enjoy this series; an awesome story about doing the right thing and stretching its limits to the point that it becomes a threat to the world). 

K. Coover says :
This show is a must see not just for anime fans but for anyone who enjoys well written and well thought out drama. The story follows the young and brilliant Light who happens upon a notebook with the power to kill people. With the best of intentions at heart he sets out to use this new power to create a better, safer world. Unfortunately for him not everyone agrees with his methods and Light soon finds himself under investigation lead by the world's premier super detective know only as "L".
The intellectual struggle between Light and L is nothing less than riveting. I was stuck helplessly watching episode after episode because I couldn't wait to see what these two boys were going to come up with next. I also found that Light's decent from good natured student to sociopathic mass murder was really well done and an interesting look at how power corrupts.
I'm always reading these reviews to see what people think before I buy stuff but this is the first time I've ever bothered writing one myself. I was just that impressed with this one. Warning though, it is pretty dark and somewhat depressing so if you're looking for happy,happy,feelgood this is probably not your cup of tea. But, if you're looking for a great original storyline that will keep you on the edge of your seat from start to finish then I highly recommend you give this one a try. It's one of the best shows I've seen.

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You Should Read This Before Buy Kindle Fire

Wi-Fi, Full Color 7" Multi-Touch Display

The first and most important thing that should be said about the Kindle Fire is that this is not an "iPad-killer." It is not designed to be. I have seen so many articles and comments comparing this to the iPad, and surveys where people are asked if they will be buying a Kindle Fire over an iPad this Christmas. If you are expecting an iPad, or even a tablet, you will be disappointed. The main purpose of this device is to deliver Amazon content to you more effectively. It is designed for consumption, not creation. That is the reason it is so cheap and why Amazon is taking a loss on it. They are hoping to make up for that loss through sales of videos, music, books, and apps through Amazon's Web Services. You can also use it to view your own movies and media, but will find that it is more limited in that way than a regular tablet. Personally, as someone who has ordered several rentals from Amazon Video, and had to contact customer support for every single one of them due to problems with Amazon's Unbox player or purchases not appearing in my downloads, I can really appreciate this. But if you don't plan on using Amazon at all to obtain your media, you may want to take this into consideration before purchasing the Fire. Additionally, the reason this product is so hyped, and one of the reasons I like it so much, is due to the ridiculously low price. Amazon reviews shouldn't focus on price, but it is hard not to with this device. On price alone, this is a five star device. However when looked at the Fire overall, and when compared with other touch devices (what little there is to compare it to), I have to give it four stars, since there are a few areas I feel could use definite improvement.

FORM FACTOR - The Kindle Fire feels almost the same in my hand as my 3rd generation Kindle but it is a bit heavier. It might be difficult to hold it one handed and read a book for an hour or watch a movie. You're going to need to rest it on something. The display is made of Gorilla Glass, which is a highly damage-resistant. You can still crack it, but I have used a phone with Gorilla Glass for two years on it and it has zero scratches on it despite being kept daily in my pocket with my keys. The back of the tablet is rubberized, so it won't slide around and won't get scratched easily. It also feels good in my hand. Despite all the companies that will be selling them, I do not think you need a screen protector. I have scratched Gorilla Glass before, but it is very difficult to do.

CONNECTIONS/STORAGE - On the bottom are a headphone port (which will accept external speakers), micro-USB (for charging and file transfer), and power button. The Fire doesn't come with an SD card slot, with good reason. As mentioned, Amazon wants you to get content directly from them. It also reduces the production costs. You can transfer your own content to the device through the USB connection from your home computer. The Fire comes with 8Gb of storage, which is enough to hold about 8 downloaded movies, 80 apps, 800 songs, or 6,000 books. I filled mine up right away so I never checked it out of the box, but apparently it is closer to 6.5Gb as the OS is going to take up some of this. You have to really become adept at managing your content through the Cloud. Books won't take up much room, but magazines are around 250Mb and movies are a little under 1 Gb. Free videos available through Amazon Prime cannot be downloaded, only streamed. So unless you buy a movie from Amazon or transfer one of your own, you must be connected through a wi-fi connection in order to watch your movie.

AMAZON CLOUD - If you have not tried out the Amazon Cloud Drive, you will be pleasantly surprised. You get 5Gb (which they will probably increase in the near future) of free online storage to store anything you want, and you can access it from anywhere. This combines very nicely with the Fire. 5Gb isn't much for my collection, so I upgraded to a higher plan (rates are $1 per extra gigabyte per year). I can upload a playlist to it and listen to it on my home computer, then when I get to work the Fire can access it and pick it up where I left off. Any songs you get from Amazon Mp3 are automatically stored on the Cloud and don't contribute to the 5Gb storage space.

E-READER - This was going to be the big determination in whether I should get a Fire or the new Kindle Touch. Ultimately I ended up getting both since I prefer the E-Ink technology to the backlit display of the Fire. If you are the type of person who reads a lot and expect to spend at least 50% of your use on reading books, I don't think you will be satisfied with the Fire over your Kindle 3 or the Kindle Touch, Wi-Fi, 6" E Ink Display - includes Special Offers & Sponsored Screensavers. It just isn't the same, and after hours of reading, the display would make my eyes hurt a bit (just like with any tablet). However it is nice not to have to use a lighted cover to see my books in the dark. The Kindle Fire is difficult to read in bright sunlight or on the beach. The touch navigation is very nice, but it doesn't function as nicely or quickly as it does on the iPad or even the Kindle Touch. This can be a problem for me, and the main reason I am using the Kindle Touch for reading books. Additionally, the Fire doesn't support real page numbers, even though the Touch does. So you have to use that ridiculous "location 121 of 16077 - 2%" format. A year of that with my last Kindle and I still don't understand what that means. They need to fix this in an update. Being able to touch a word and have it bring up the dictionary is incredibly convenient and takes less than 2 seconds. But still, the Kindle Touch handily beats the Fire for reading.

MAGAZINES - The Kindle Fire can also handle magazines, however the display is just too small to be an enjoyable reading experience. I tried out several different magazines, and the main problem I had was with the formatting. I tried to read an issue of Bon Appetit and my eyes were straining after three pages. There is no way to read a single article without zooming. The Fire handles magazines two ways: with Page View, which shows the original magazine display, and with Text View, which attempts to just provide the text of the article. A lot of magazines these days have several things going on in one page, with multiple columns, little sidebars and boxes everywhere, etc. I couldn't view a lot of this without zooming, the text is just too small. So Page View did not work very well for magazines like this. It is especially tough with magazines like Entertainment Weekly, Men's Health, GQ, etc. I found magazines like that unreadable on the 7" display. Magazines that focused mostly on the article, like Nature, Wired, etc, were handled much better. Some magazines even come integrated with embedded video and audio, which is a very nice feature, and one I can see being very useful for things like Men's Health, but I haven't had as much of a chance to use it yet. Text View is a very nice feature that works mostly well, but seems to get a bit confused with magazines that have complicated formatting, so it pretty much defeats the purpose since those are the ones I need it for the most.

COMIC READER - This is one of the main reasons I purchased the Fire. Amazon has a fairly extensive collection of comic books available for the Fire, including an exclusive deal with DC to publish many of their books. In addition to a proprietary comic reader that comes on the Fire, Amazon also has a Comics by ComiXology app available to purchase issues and subscriptions through. Although I initially thought the 7" display would be too small, it is actually decent enough to serve as a comic reader. I would definitely prefer a 10" version if they came out with one in the future. A 10" tablet is still the way to go for comics, but if you're looking for a cheaper option and portability, the Fire isn't too bad, and definitely beats a smart phone. It has a "panel by panel" feature that lets you scroll through the issue by different panels, which it will then zoom in on. You tap the panel when done, and it moves to the next panel. This is great for getting a larger view and working around the size restriction, especially since some of the text in the comics is just too small to read. Although it is fairly decent, if you are considering the Fire just for comic books, and you are a Marvel fan, you may want to hold off and look at another retailer's device which I think has a few more options. You can load your own .cbr comic files on the Kindle, but you'll need to use a third party app, like Comicat to do it.

AMAZON MP3/VIDEO - Amazon hopes that you will get the majority of your content from them. That is why the Fire is so reasonably-priced. Amazon music is DRM-free. DRM is copy protection. That means that the record labels haven't locked down the music you buy from Amazon to restrict how you use it. Amazon MP3 music is playable anywhere, even on your Apple devices. It also has a very high bitrate so you are getting great quality. You don't have to worry about not being able to listen to your music 15 years from now if Amazon goes under. It's yours forever. As far as video, I have always disliked Amazon's Video services. The prices are very reasonable and they now have a huge selection, but obtaining the videos is a huge pain due to Amazon's terrible Unbox player. That changes with the Fire, as everything is native and streams/downloads beautifully. If you make a lot of purchases with Amazon, or if you have several Amazon customers in your household, you should take advantage of their Prime program. In addition to the large selection of free videos now available to Prime members, the shipping advantages are amazing. I once had a 200 lb exercise bike overnighted to my house for only $3.99. Everything I order I get within 2 days. The Prime program seems expensive but it has certainly paid for itself over the years for me, and now is even better that it is integrated more with the Fire. The only problem I have with video playback is that everything I watched did not fully expand to the screen, and was letterboxed. Considering the small 7" display size, this was an annoyance for me. I know shows have different aspect ratios, but some should fit the display, and I think many users will be annoyed that they can't zoom or stretch the display to fit.

WEB BROWSING - This is another feature I was initially excited about. I like the idea of being able to use the Fire as a netbook. Amazon advertises "ultra fast web browsing" using Amazon's Silk browser. It is based off of technology that is designed to increase page loading times by pre-fetching part of the content. Sounds like a great idea, but doesn't work as well in practice. I tried out the Fire on several different connections and compared page loading times with other devices (all connected wirelessly). The Fire was one of the slowest. Amazon's own web page, which has actually recently been optimized to work with the Fire, takes an average of 7 seconds to load. Other major portals took a similar amount of time or slower. My iPad and my Xoom both load pages much faster. It is not slow enough to be a problem, but not fast enough to impress me or be worthy of Amazon's marketing regarding it. This needs to be improved. UPDATE - As of February 2012, page loading times are much improved. It can still be a bit slow and stutter at times, but you can increase this by following the steps at the bottom of this review. I am mostly satisfied with browsing now, although Silk still occasionally won't recognize it when I touch a link.

BATTERY LIFE - Amazon advertises 8 hours of reading or 7.5 hours of video playback. As an average, that's probably fairly accurate. During testing I got an average of 7.4 hours of continuous reading, and 7 hours of video playback over five tests for each. This is a big change over the roughly 30 days of continuous reading with the traditional kindle, so it may hamper you a bit if you're a voracious reader. I just got into the habit of charging it every night with my cell phone. You can shut down the Kindle or put it in sleep mode. I keep mine in sleep mode all the time because it is so efficient that it uses almost no battery. I can leave it in sleep mode for 2 days and come back and not notice any change in battery life, and since I don't have to reboot, it starts up immediately.

VS IPAD - As said, this isn't designed to be an iPad. I have an iPad and there is so much more I can do with it compared to the Kindle. The Fire serves a different (but sometimes similar) function. I just don't ever see Amazon building up the type of app store that Apple has, and that's where you're going to find the major differences. Additionally, the 10" display on the iPad makes a huge difference to me over the Fire's 7" display when it comes to watching movies and TV, and reading magazines and comic books. However, I think there is definitely room for the Fire to steal some of iPad's market share, as many people (I am one of them), will find the functions they want in a tablet can be covered by the Fire.

USER INTERFACE - The Fire uses a heavily modified version of Android. I really liked the interface, however I don't think it works as well on the Fire as it does on a full tablet device like the Motorola Xoom. Occasionally I would try to make a page turn and have it not register on the Fire, or have it register more slowly than I am used to. If you have a lot of experience with the iPad, you are going to notice that the software doesn't respond as quickly on the Fire as it does with other tablets. Although this is an inconvenience and something I definitely feel needs to be addressed, I can accept it given the lower price point. I will have a problem though if this is not resolved through a firmware upgrade in the future. The Fire's custom version of Android is very nice. The most recent applications or files accessed will display in a carousel format that you can rotate through. You can also set up commonly-used applications as favorites. If you want to access movies and pictures that you manually load onto the Fire, you have to open up the "Gallery" app, rather than accessing them from the "Videos" and "Photos" tabs. The gallery app does not very user-friendly at displaying these files. For instance, it just creates thumbnails for all your video files and doesn't let you view the file names when selecting a video. If you have dozens of videos from a single TV show, there is no easy way to organize them in the gallery. It's clear Amazon wants you to view their videos purchased from them rather than your own. I would really like to see them fix this through a simple firmware update but I doubt they will.

NEGATIVES:
- No bluetooth and no HDMI. I could really use bluetooth for integration with bluetooth-capable speakers and so I can use bluetooth audio in my car. As a media player, I feel this really should have been included, and I imagine it will with future versions. This is especially important since the audio from the speakers is a bit tinny and weak. I have been using headphones with all my media-playing, which significantly improves the sound. There is also no physical volume button, which is a pain when you need to silence the device quickly (EDIT: You can sideload the "Volume Control" app by RubberBigPepper" from the Android Market for a great software workaround to this). I also would like HDMI output so I can take my Amazon video purchases and watch them on my big screen TV. Another big disadvantage in a device that is made for media. This will also likely be included in a future edition, so at $200, I don't feel bad about possibly having to upgrade a year from now to get it.
- Only 8Gb storage space. As mentioned, this device is mainly designed to integrate with Amazon's Cloud, so 8 should be enough, but it would be nice to have at least 16. I imagine Amazon did this on purpose to force people to use their Cloud service.
- Touch capability can sometimes be sluggish. iPad and other tablet owners may be disappointed with the touch reaction time and some aspects of the software.
- Video doesn't include option to zoom or stretch the display to fit the screen.
- Very limited selection of apps from the Amazon App Store. Most of the apps are mediocre games. UPDATE - you can get around this by manually loading apps onto the Fire. Do a search for "sideload kindle fire." It is very easy.
- Web "Accelerator" is not as fast as other tablets.
- No Micro-USB transfer cable included with it. Another way for Amazon to discourage you from transferring your own files to the device. If you want to do that, you will need to purchase one separately, like the AmazonBasics USB Cable - 2.0 A Male to Micro B (6 Feet / 1.8 Meters).

SUMMARY: Bottom line, you will not find a cheaper device out there for streaming music, video, and books than the Kindle Fire. The reason that this device is so amazing is not for what it can do, but for what it can do at such a cheap price. The price tag, not the technology, is the story here. Although I definitely feel there is room for improvement and will be interested in seeing Amazon's second generation of this device (which I think will be significantly improved), the Kindle Fire is a solid start. If you can wait a year or more for Amazon to work out the kinks with the Fire (like it did with its 1st generation of the Kindle), you should definitely do that. The next version should fix a lot of the problems that keep the current Fire from being a "Five Star" product. Unfortunately, reviews shouldn't focus on price, so due to some issues with the form factor and touch interface, I can only give it four stars. It is just not "perfect" enough for me to say it is a five star product without taking price into consideration. But aside for that, there is really only one device you can compare the Fire to - The Nook. So for what it is, I would have no problems recommending the Fire to consumers who can take advantage of it. This product more than lives up to what it is DESIGNED to do. If you plan on getting most of your content from Amazon AND you have a Prime membership, I think you will really find this is a pretty incredible device for the money.

UPDATE 28 Dec 2011: After getting a new case for the Fire that makes it easier to hold, I'm starting to use it more for reading (although I still prefer my Kindle Touch for anything over about 45 minutes). Some magazines are now better adapted to the Fire liked my subscription to Wired, and some are still terrible and just compressed PDFs. An update released last week adds more privacy features so you can delete recent history form the carousel, and does improve noticeably on the touch sensitivity, although it can still be frustrating at times and not as smooth as something like an iPad. Browser loading times are still disappointing, but not as bad as they were at first release, and I don't notice them as much. I am continually impressed at battery usage for this device. Despite using it less than an hour a day, I never turn it off and only charge it a couple times a week. The rest of the time it sits in standby mode which is extremely efficient. If they could improve a couple more options I'd be closer to giving the Fire five stars.

UPDATE 7 Feb 2012: I have been able to update the browser significantly by doing the following: Open up the browser and select the menu button at the bottom, select the Settings button, and then change the following options:

Enable plug-ins: Change this to "off." This will disable Flash, so if you have any web sites that need it you can re-enable it (YouTube works fine).
Accelerate page loading: Uncheck this. If your wifi connection is decent, it's not really necessary.
Mobile (This one is optional, but I prefer to view everything in mobile mode rather than having Silk trying to force a desktop view on a 7" screen."


If you want to buy it, you can go here on the amazon shop

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You Should Read This Before Buy Bowflex SelectTech 552 / 1090 Dumbbell Stand

Be prepared for the most annoying, frustrating, complicated hour+ of your life. More complex then the solar system, this stand will arrive in pieces. Accompanied with instructions that not even God herself could understand. The only thing that kept me from reaching astronomical anger levels was the fact I received the stand for FREE. I have been in workout/diet mode since July, and finally decided to invest in some weights. I had remembered those tempting Bowflex infomercial's, and decided to YouTube some Bowflex dumbbell videos. Well, after about 30min of watching, I felt I really wanted a pair for my living room.
I visited the Bowflex website and decided on the 1090 model dumbbells. As I was about to go to checkout I noticed at the top of the website a "one day only" promotion the site was having.

With the purchase of the 1090 model (ONLY) you could get the Bowflex SelectTech stand FREE, + FREE SHIPPING AND HANDLING within the USA with the promotional code at checkout.
Needless to say I was very happy. I was planning on getting the stand anyway, so getting it free was great. And getting it all shipped to me free was even better. I pulled the trigger, my order went through.
From the time I placed my order, to the time everything arrived was about a week and a half. Bowflex uses FedEx so you can track it daily and know exactly when to expect the delivery.

Ok, so.. The dumbbells obviously come out ready to use. (BEAUTIFUL DUMBBELLS BY THE WAY).
However, the stand comes completely disassembled. Let me save you a whole lot of frustration.
Take the time to unwrap every piece and lay it on the floor. Even the screws.

NOTE: THERE IS 4 DIFFERENT SIZE SCREWS.
At first glance your eye will tell you there are only 2 size screws. This is because who ever packaged these screws didn't care to make it easy on the buyer by separating the screws. Take the time to put the screws in size order. And separate them.

Screw size from largest to smallest:

• 8 screws this size.
• 4 screws this size.
• 4 screws this size.
• 4 screws this size.

Ok for Step 1 and 2 on the assembly steps you will be using the 8 longest screws (along with 1 washer for EACH SIDE of the screw). I was confused by this at first, because the longest screws seemed to be to BIG for these steps (Steps 1 and 2).
Little did I know that you have to really really REALLY turn the screws tight.

NOTE: After you assemble Step 1 and 2 do not tighten the screws tight yet. Just get them on there by tightening the screws as tight as you can with just your fingers right now. Everything is going to feel very wobbly at this point.. I know, confusing, but you don't fully tighten them all until you complete step 3.
For step 3 you will be using the 4 second-to-last smallest screws. Meaning there will still be 4 screws left that are bigger then the ones you will be using for this step.

Once you have assembled step 3, NOW TIGHTEN EVERY SCREW YOU HAVE USED.
This took me at least 40min+.
I know, your thinking - but you only used 12 screws so far!
Like I said, The screws will all feel to BIG. You are going to have to hand tighten all 12 screws with a allen key and vise grip until each screw it TIGHT and no screw wobbles.
This is going to hurt your hand after about 20min. I suggest putting on some good music and expecting to hurt yourself.

Ok now that you have tightened those 12 screws. You feel incredible.
Not so fast...
Now you have to beat the next level. And if your hands didn't start to hurt yet, they will now. Step 4 and 5 you will be using the last 4 long screws you have left (LEAVING ONLY THE VERY LITTLE SCREWS LEFT). This step is for the dumbbell platforms. Get them on first. Meaning put all 4 screws in and then start tightening each one. This took me about 20min. Remember each screw must be tight. If you can wobble the screw, or move it in any way, you haven't tightened it enough.

Ok, now you have gotten to the last level. This is the King Koopa of the assembly.
Step 6 you are installing the towel bar.
Say sorry to your knuckles. Your fingers are also going to get a beating.
You will be using the last 4 sets of screws for this step. The smallest screws.

NOTE: I thought I had lost 4 washers. I spent 10min like a terd looking on the floor, and under the couch for 4 missing washers. Then realized that I had used 2 washers for each screw in this step (Step 6) when I only was supposed to use 1 washer for each screw. Step 6 is the only step you will be using 1 washer per screw. All other steps use 2 washers per screw.
After 20min+ of tightening the 4 screws in step 6 (until nothing moved), I went to the bathroom and ran freezing cold water and left my hands in there for 3-4min.. I'm not kidding my hands were beat up bad.
After taking a little brake to get the feeling back in my hands, I finished up step 7, attaching the straps to the platforms. Which was easy and took about 15sec per strap.
And finally, the final step... Using the caster wheels? Or foot pegs?
I have heard some people say to go with the foot pegs. Because they are going to leave it in 1 spot so why put wheels on.

However I went with the caster wheels. Only because I own the 1090 model, and if I wanted to move the equipment for any reason I would need to take off the dumbbells, and move all 3 pieces by hand.
With the caster wheels its easy to just roll them around. Like if you need to clean your home and need to move them for a min or something.
Plus, all 4 wheels lock.
Either way the stand comes with both options, and are easy to install/uninstall. Only takes about 4min. (NO PAIN) lol
So there you have it. Assembly complete.
Let me tell you, my hands are telling me to leave 1 star on this review, and throw the thing into a river.
But once you place your Bowflex dumbbells on this stand.. WOW.. This is suchhhhhhhhhhhhh a beautiful piece of equipment..
I mean, it even looks great in my living room. No need to put it away when I have company. I get complements on the dumbbells and stand all the time.
Not to mention I get a GREATTT workout every day.

Sure assembling the stand almost broke your hands, but its the closest thing a male will ever feel to giving birth. The pain and suffering was WELL WORTH it. This stand is just as nice as the dumbbells, they complement each other perfectly.

So in the end I'm giving this stand 5 stars only because once its completely assembled (properly) you will LOVE this thing. Its beautiful!
Like I said, I got mine for free, but I would buy this stand in a second.
Hope this review helps you with your purchase!

Steven Bernhardt says:
Vice-grip + allen wrench is the hard way. If you use the allen wrench and a socket wrench, its super easy. I tightened all the screws in 2 minutes with no pain.

M. Eliot says:
Yeah, got the whole thing put together...except the towel bar is too short by an inch or so. I've rechecked everything. Since I think the bar is there for support rather than towels, not sure about long term use....

If you want to get these product you can get them for nearly 60% off on amazon through this link here 

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