Epinions Recent Reviews for tcchou71

Optically sharp, but focus errors at 200mm on distant objects

Wed, 2 Jul 2008 16:33:00 GMT

rating: 4/5 by: Epinions Author tcchou71 - I am resubmitting this review, with some revisions, because for some reason, my original review no longer appears under the product listing for this lens. This has happened at least a half-dozen times over the last year, and seems related to Epinion's...

Cheap, lightweight, and decently sharp. Autofocus not ideal for wildlife

Mon, 30 Jun 2008 22:10:32 GMT

rating: 4/5 by: Epinions Author tcchou71 - This is the THIRD time I have submitted this review to Epinions. My first review somehow vanished, only to reappear under, of all places, the Epinions listing for a SanDisk flash drive. I never reviewed that drive, and have no idea how my lens review...

Not everyone will (or should) thrive here...

Tue, 28 Aug 2007 13:42:38 GMT

rating: 3/5 by: Epinions Author tcchou71 - This page is based on my experience at MIT at the undergraduate school, as opposed to the graduate school, which is a very different environment. In particular, undergraduates often arrive needing both social and intellectual development, whereas...

Comparison with Sigma 80-400, Sigma 50-500 and Tamron 200-500

Wed, 27 Jun 2007 16:20:30 GMT

rating: 4/5 by: Epinions Author tcchou71 - Note: I originally reviewed this exact product two years ago, and it has been one of my more popular reviews. For some reason, the original review disappeared from Epinion's search engine results. Hence, I've resubmitted it with minor corrections and...

Sound quality depends on type of music

Fri, 22 Jun 2007 14:02:45 GMT

rating: 3/5 by: Epinions Author tcchou71 - I have an older pair of MDR-V600 headphones (a predecessor to this model) which I like a lot - they are extremely comfortable, even after hours of use, they sound good, and they do a decent job reducing ambient noise. So when I wanted another headphone...

Sharp lens, but focusing requires a trick

Fri, 22 Jun 2007 13:47:33 GMT

rating: 4/5 by: Epinions Author tcchou71 - Note on 9/2/2008: A year after submitting this review, I'm noticing that it now appears under the wrong product listing. I wrote this review for the lens in CANON mount, but my text has somehow migrated into the product listing for PENTAX mount. This...

Pocketable10x zoom. Had to change color settings for best results.

Wed, 27 Dec 2006 05:44:49 GMT

rating: 4/5 by: Epinions Author tcchou71 - 10x stabilized zoom. Fits into shirt pocket. If you want these features, your only choices are to buy this camera, or its successor the TZ3, which also has a 10x zoom, but starts with a wider field of view - 28mm versus 35mm. (The TZ3 wasn't...

Surprise! A decent circular fisheye for digicams

Fri, 22 Sep 2006 15:45:17 GMT

rating: 4/5 by: Epinions Author tcchou71 - This is the best circular fisheye adapter I could find for my small digicam. Actually, for all practical purposes it was my only choice, as the other fisheye adapters on the market are either very cheap (under $50) and very awful, or expensive heavy...

Dalai Lama, My Son: A Mother's Story: Even the Dalai Lama had a mom.

Tue, 12 Sep 2006 14:26:22 GMT

rating: 5/5 by: Epinions Author tcchou71 - Even the Dalai Lama had a mom. Though this sounds obvious, most of us probably never gave her a second thought. Even though the current Dalai Lama (the 14th individual to hold that title) is one of the world's most recognizable 70-year-olds, an...

Semi-fish not as fun as full fisheye

Sat, 17 Jun 2006 20:06:25 GMT

rating: 4/5 by: Epinions Author tcchou71 - Good fisheye lenses are surprisingly expensive. If you own a DSLR, a Sigma 8mm circular fisheye is over $600, and Canon/Nikon models run even higher. The only relatively cheap option that is any good is the Russian-made Peleng 8mm fisheye, for about...

Does not do justice to the paintings

Thu, 11 May 2006 04:00:26 GMT

rating: 2/5 by: Epinions Author tcchou71 - This CD is a disappointment, despite having all of van Gogh's 871 known paintings and drawings. Image quality is worse than a good printed book, with resolutions around 500x700 pixels (roughly that of a 1980's era computer display). Although van Gogh's...

Turbulent life, beautiful paintings.

Mon, 1 May 2006 04:59:35 GMT

rating: 5/5 by: Epinions Author tcchou71 - This book is a shorter version of "Van Gogh: The Complete Paintings", by the same authors. Diehard fans should probably get the longer book (about $65 hardcover, $30 softcover), but for a much lower cost (used hardcovers start at $1) this book still has...

Cheap. Mostly works.

Sun, 30 Apr 2006 02:38:18 GMT

rating: 3/5 by: Epinions Author tcchou71 - Most of the time, this low-cost ($29) wireless mouse works well, with good tracking ability, convenient built-in charging dock, good battery lifespan, and included NiMH batteries. However, when the batteries run low, it becomes temperamental and...

Stabilized long lens for < $850!!!

Wed, 12 Apr 2006 07:04:47 GMT

rating: 4/5 by: Epinions Author tcchou71 - Epinions doesn't allow embedded images, which is a shame for camera/lens reviews. Hence, I've posted some images taken with this lens here: http://www.geocities.com/tom_j
hou/tamron_200_500.html
I previously tried this lens on a Canon SLR, and...

Netgear MA111 802.11b Wireless USB Network Adapter - MA111 (MA111FR): Small and convenient. Must update drivers for old models

Sat, 18 Feb 2006 13:47:15 GMT

rating: 4/5 by: Epinions Author tcchou71 - I have used this adapter for two years. I bought it because of its small size, which is perfect for a cramped room. The adapter can just poke out of the computer's USB port, without occupying any table space anywhere. However, when I first set it...

Don't throw out the VCR yet...

Mon, 13 Feb 2006 21:56:05 GMT

rating: 4/5 by: Epinions Author tcchou71 - I first used BTV when it was version 3, and recently upgraded to version 4, because it supports recording/compressing to DivX format, and also allows retroactive capture of previously watched material in the timeshift buffer. Version 4 also adds support...

Fun with night photography.

Mon, 13 Feb 2006 04:13:34 GMT

rating: 5/5 by: Epinions Author tcchou71 - This camera is the smaller, lighter, and cheaper version of the Minolta 7D. If you're already familiar with the 7D, you only need to read the first section of this review, which summarizes several main differences between the two cameras: What's...

Best old beat-up car I've owned...

Mon, 30 Jan 2006 21:00:05 GMT

rating: 4/5 by: Epinions Author tcchou71 - I don't drive old beat-up cars by choice. I drive them because I don't have extra money and don't have kids whose life or death depend on me and my mobility. Having said that, this car (which is now 12 years old, and hasn't been reviewed on this site...

My favorite travel camera

Sat, 14 Jan 2006 15:05:10 GMT

rating: 4/5 by: Epinions Author tcchou71 - Epinions does not allow me to embed images in reviews. This is rather sad for camera reviews, which really benefit from photos. Hence, I've also posted a photo-enhanced version of this review at the following link:...

Good scanner, lousy printer. 100-page document feeder is very nice.

Fri, 21 Oct 2005 16:14:39 GMT

rating: 4/5 by: Epinions Author tcchou71 - I bought this product when I was looking for a scanner-copier-printer that also had a document feeder. I wanted the feeder in order to scan stacks of pages automatically. Unfortunately, Canon, Epson, and HP don't put document feeders on their cheaper...

Autofocus with rebel XT can't do flying birds

Fri, 26 Aug 2005 01:38:05 GMT

rating: 4/5 by: Epinions Author tcchou71 - Update: I recently traded the Canon version of this lens for the Minolta. The Minolta's anti-shake greatly improves handheld performance, though autofocus speed is about the same. The Epinions search engine doesn't seem to find the Minolta version...

Aberrations galore, though at least it focuses correctly.

Tue, 16 Aug 2005 08:03:59 GMT

rating: 3/5 by: Epinions Author tcchou71 - This lens has a very convenient focal length range for digital SLRs. Its design is based on the very popular Tamron 28-300mm lens for film cameras (and full-frame digital cameras). But this convenience comes at a significant optical sacrifice - this...

Cheap board makes me wish I'd paid a little more.

Sun, 24 Jul 2005 18:45:09 GMT

rating: 3/5 by: Epinions Author tcchou71 - This is a pretty basic AMD socket 754 motherboard. I wanted a cheap but solid motherboard with fast, albeit not state-of-the-art performance. I hoped this board would do the job. It does not support some of the latest features like dual channel RAM,...

Canon EF 35mm f/2: A very good deal.

Fri, 22 Jul 2005 07:57:49 GMT

rating: 4/5 by: Epinions Author tcchou71 - This lens hasn't gotten nearly the attention it deserves. It is often overlooked, relative to the Sigma 30mm f/1.4 lens, which was very eagerly awaited when first introduced. However, the 35mm f/2 is a very good value for the money, even though it...

Amateur optics at professional prices ...

Sat, 2 Jul 2005 18:52:10 GMT

rating: 4/5 by: Epinions Author tcchou71 - Update: This review was written a few years ago when the lens first came out. In the meantime, the lens' high price has fallen by about 25%, reducing one of my main objections that I wrote about. However, there are also more alternatives,...