Epinions Recent Reviews for jvolzer

nuvi 780 -- a top notch GPS

Sun, 10 Aug 2008 15:55:57 GMT

rating: 5/5 by: Epinions Author jvolzer - I upgraded to the nuvi 780 from a Street Pilot 2620, and wow, what an improvement! This is a great little device that’s easy to carry with you when you travel and easy to use. Garmin has really honed in on ease-of-use in their interface. I’m...

Great QWERTY keyboard phone

Thu, 17 Jul 2008 10:28:25 GMT

rating: 4/5 by: Epinions Author jvolzer - Here’s a great little phone for those who need a full QWERTY keyboard. At less than $50 on “new every two” it sure beats Windows Mobile phones or Blackberrys. I mainly purchased this phone for accessing office e-mail when traveling...

Impressive recorder for DVD and DVR use

Tue, 12 Feb 2008 23:16:25 GMT

rating: 4/5 by: Epinions Author jvolzer - The Philips DVDR3575H is a DVD recorder and a 160 GB hard drive DVR in one unit offering 1080p upconvert capabilities and a digital/analog tuner. Background: I’ve stepped up to the DVDR3575H from an older Philips recorder, the DVDR75...

quick kit to make a car you can play with

Sat, 19 Jan 2008 14:07:07 GMT

rating: 5/5 by: Epinions Author jvolzer - We purchased this as a Christmas gift for our 9-year-old son, who is "new" to K'Nex this year. We purchased it because it would make a toy that would "go" and because he was just beginning to use K'Nex. We thought it would go together quickly (it did),...

skin improved then worsened

Fri, 18 Jan 2008 15:07:49 GMT

rating: 3/5 by: Epinions Author jvolzer - My wife tried the Proactive 3-step system for about 7 months when she was suffering from adult acne at age 34. Her acne was somewhere between moderate and severe, I'd say. In the past, antibiotics and prescription sulfur cream had helped clear up these...

Reed Bingham State Park: nice small park for camper camping in fall

Fri, 18 Jan 2008 13:40:18 GMT

rating: 5/5 by: Epinions Author jvolzer - My family and I have been to Reed Bingham several times in the fall. The children have been ages 5-8 on our visits. Our purpose camper camping is to get away together, relax, and do some fun activities outdoors. This park gives the added benefit of...

fun, compact travel version saves storage space at home, too

Fri, 18 Jan 2008 13:18:55 GMT

rating: 5/5 by: Epinions Author jvolzer - This is typical Yahtzee but in a small format. We bought it in January 2008 for our family of four, which includes 2 children (7 and 9). I wanted to be able to take this on our camper-camping trips. WHAT IT IS: Yahtzee is a classic dice-throwing...

not good tool for memorizing math facts

Fri, 18 Jan 2008 12:04:21 GMT

rating: 1/5 by: Epinions Author jvolzer - My wife picked this out for our 7-year-old daughter who has been working on math fact memorization in second grade. She thought it would break the monotony of always having to do flashcards, worksheets, and on-line flashcard activities. The "Wrap Up"...

stick to old-fashioned flash cards

Fri, 18 Jan 2008 11:59:13 GMT

rating: 1/5 by: Epinions Author jvolzer - My wife picked this out for our 9-year-old son who has been struggling to memorize the multiplication tables in third grade. She thought it would break the monotony of always having to do flashcards, worksheets, and on-line flashcard activities. The...

Wii Play¿ for Nintendo Wii: Wii Play silly games

Tue, 15 Jan 2008 22:44:22 GMT

rating: 4/5 by: Epinions Author jvolzer - Wii Play makes a nice little add-on for the Wii system. This is no hardcore gamers game by any means! It’s an amusing little collection of games that can provide some goofy fun competition against anyone who might want to sit down with you to see...

overpriced dust collector; exciting to receive but low quality

Tue, 15 Jan 2008 12:20:19 GMT

rating: 2/5 by: Epinions Author jvolzer - Our 6-year-old daughter saw this at Kmart and decided it was just what she wanted for Christmas. She didn’t ask for anything else. So, my in-laws purchased it for her at Kmart for about $45. Our daughter was THRILLED to open it up. It is colorful...

classic fun with a pogo stick designed for lighter weights

Tue, 15 Jan 2008 11:56:47 GMT

rating: 5/5 by: Epinions Author jvolzer - Our 7-year-old daughter asked for this pogo stick for Christmas, and she loves it. We purchased it from Highlights.com, but it is available at a wide variety of stores. My wife and I like simple, old-fashioned toys that give our kids exercise. A...

simple, fun toy that really does soar

Tue, 15 Jan 2008 11:43:08 GMT

rating: 4/5 by: Epinions Author jvolzer - We bought this product for my son for a Christmas present. He is 9, and he loves things that soar and fly. We bought the launcher, which comes with two mini-Zylos to be launched, at REI for $14.95. The launcher is made of plastic, foam and elastic...

Super Mario Galaxy for Nintendo Wii: Newbie gamer gives Super Mario Galaxy thumbs up

Mon, 14 Jan 2008 23:10:55 GMT

rating: 4/5 by: Epinions Author jvolzer - We’re about as far from hard-core gamers as a family can get, but our family of four agrees that Super Mario Galaxy is a hit! The last Mario game we’ve played prior to Mario Party 8 was Super Mario Brothers (yes, SNES), so we can’t give much...

Good Sony DVD Recorder, but no tuner

Sat, 29 Dec 2007 20:49:31 GMT

rating: 4/5 by: Epinions Author jvolzer - General The Sony RDR-GX255 is a mult-format DVD recorder with upscale HDMI output (720p/1080i). The unit will record to and playback a variety of DVD formats including the plus and minus variations. It will also record to dual layer (DL)...

Mario & Sonic At The Olympic Games for Nintendo Wii: Olympics is not Wii Sports, but interesting

Sun, 23 Dec 2007 16:39:27 GMT

rating: 3/5 by: Epinions Author jvolzer - I’m reviewing this game after several weekend's worth of game play, having rented it. We don’t have an instruction manual. We're a two adult, two kid household. Olympics can be played by 1 to 4 players. Many of the events use the nunchuck...

S5 IS makes a great mega zoom camera - many features

Tue, 18 Dec 2007 22:41:55 GMT

rating: 5/5 by: Epinions Author jvolzer - Overview The Canon S5 IS digital camera is an 8-megapixel 12X “super zoom” camera with an SLR-like body, and is the successor to the S3 IS, sharing the same lens and many similar functions. The S5 IS uses Canon’s new DIGIC III...

TV game play doesn't transfer well to family board game

Mon, 17 Dec 2007 17:58:11 GMT

rating: 1/5 by: Epinions Author jvolzer - The popularity of the television show will likely make this game a popular gift item this year. For us, the game was a bust! My wife played this board game with my children, who are ages 9 (third grade) and 7 (second grade). It was a birthday gift for...

Carnival Games ( Nintendo Wii ) for Nintendo Wii: Carnival games are cute, but not enough to keep you coming back

Wed, 3 Oct 2007 23:54:22 GMT

rating: 3/5 by: Epinions Author jvolzer - Carnival Games tries to recreate the experience of an old fashioned carnival or fair with all of the various “midway” type games. “Three throws for a dollar and you could win a prize!” While the concept is neat, the graphics fairly well...

ViewSonic PJ256D DLP Projector: PJ256D was a disappointment

Fri, 7 Sep 2007 22:59:03 GMT

rating: 2/5 by: Epinions Author jvolzer - I purchased this projector as a possible replacement for my PJ250. The PJ250 is an awesome little projector, but it could be a little brighter and even a little zoom would be helpful in some situations. My first disappointment when I received the...

FinePix S600fd is a winner in my book

Fri, 15 Jun 2007 04:34:38 GMT

rating: 4/5 by: Epinions Author jvolzer - I’ve been using this 6.3 megapixel camera for over six months now and have been enjoying it from day one. Full reviews including camera specs exist, so I’ll stick to talking points that are most noteworthy based on my experience. I’m no...

PowerShot A560 makes great gift

Sat, 26 May 2007 10:18:18 GMT

rating: 5/5 by: Epinions Author jvolzer - I purchased this camera as a gift for my dad, who has never used a digital camera before. So I’ll be writing this review from the standpoint of someone looking for a good gift. Some of the key factors were price, size, optical viewfinder and...

SD700 IS great ultra-compact with IS and more

Sun, 11 Feb 2007 23:05:48 GMT

rating: 5/5 by: Epinions Author jvolzer - Last year I purchased the SD700IS after having been a huge fan of the SD400 (see review at h
ttp://www.epinions.com/content
_213019233924).
I didn’t necessarily need the extra megapixels, but was wanted to try a camera...

Kodak P850 not for my flash photography needs

Tue, 3 Jan 2006 23:47:38 GMT

rating: 3/5 by: Epinions Author jvolzer - This camera has some nice features and a good price, but did not fit the need for my situation. I needed another camera to use primarily for indoor flash photography. In the end, I think I’m going to sell this on E-bay and try something different...

The best 5.0 mp ultra-compact - easy to take anywhere!

Mon, 5 Dec 2005 10:27:37 GMT

rating: 4/5 by: Epinions Author jvolzer - After comparing all the top ultra-compact digital cameras in the 5MP range, I decided on the PowerShot SD400 Digital Elph and have not been disappointed. I love this camera! About the closest camera by comparison was a Sony 5MP. One of the determining...