Reviews Archives

ezcap 261 / AGPtEK / MYPIN USB3 – Game Capture Review

by

I’ve recently discovered an incredibly cheap HDMI capture device that promises 1080p60 capture for around $80. That’s quite a feat, and exactly what I’ve been looking for to get started with handsome looking game streaming. It’s known by several names, such as

  • AKPtEK VG0061
  • MYPIN
  • ezcap U3 / ezcap 261

But does it deliver? How would it work? What’s the catch? Why isn’t this thing flying off the shelves? And are the occasional zero-star reviews telling the whole truth and nothing but the truth?

I had to find out for myself and ordered one. After much testing, firmware upgrading and more testing, I’ve ordered another one. Let me tell you the whole story in this article.

Read more

Podcast: Download (Duration: 24:43 — 22.6MB)

The RUIPU 121 – 24000 mAh LED Power Bank Review

by

I can’t get enough of the RUIPU series of power banks. You can never have enough charged-up external batteries around, especially during hurricane season. Hence I’ve decided to invest into another model by the same company, namely the RUIPU Model 121 as pictured above.

Like my other RUIPU power banks, the 121 is a 24,000 mAh large and heavy external battery, with a micro USB input for charging and two USB outputs to power other devices. It’s about the size of an iPhone Plus / Max or equivalent smart phone with a 5″ screen, just over 1cm or half an inch in thickness. It weighs about one pound, so it’s on par with the other RUIPU models I own (such as the solar Q90 or the white quad-output Q80), maybe even slightly slimmer.

The noticeable and interesting difference with this unit is that it has a large blue LED panel at the top instead of the small blue dots, which lets us take a more accurate look at the remaining amount of power in the bank. That’s a very nice touch.

Read more

Beauty meets Endurance: Ruipu Q80 Power Bank Review

by

Ruipu have released a new 24,000mAh Power Bank. Being extremely satisfied with their other Solar Power Banks, I though I’d give this one a spin. It has some interesting features that I though were worth exploring.

First of all, the Ruipu Q80 is a thing of beauty: it’s made of white plastic with a faux leather pattern ingrained. It even has “stitches” embossed on the sides, as if it’s made of white leather. It’s not though – it’s standard plastic, but it just looks gorgeous.

Features

The Q80 has FOUR USB outputs, and all of them can be used at the same time. That’s right!  You can charge up four devices at once. Even better, ALL ports support fast charging, delivering up to 2.1A if a capable device can handle this much power. The iPhone 6 and above for example and several other gadgets all support fast charging.

Read more

Western Digital My Passport Ultra Review

by

After several months of use, here’s what I found out about the WD MyPassport Ultra external USB 3 hard drive. Mine is the White/Gold edition with a whopping 4TB of storage.

In the box was a matching white USB 3 to SATA cable, a leaflet with extremely small writing on it, and the drive itself contained some software to do backups and encryption – all of which is available from the Western Digital website.

I bought this drive in May 2018 from Amazon to exchange large amounts of data between my Mac and my Windows system. Therefore, I chose to format the drive in exFAT so that both operating systems can read and write to it without issues, and to accommodate long video files in excess of 2GB.

Read more

Blue Yeti vs ZAFFIRO – Microphone Comparison ASIN B07BVRQD8G

by

I was looking for another desktop USB microphone for my second desk. Currently I’m using a wonderful Blue Yeti with my Mac on my main desk (or Studio A as we like to call it), and every time I do a screencast or podcast on my Windows workstation (or Studio B as we’d like to call it), I have to bring over the Blue Yeti.

So I discovered the ZAFFIRO Desktop USB Mic, for over $100 less. I thought I’d give it a spin – and I really like it. Here’s what I found after a couple of weeks of working with it.

Read more

Podcast: Download (Duration: 10:35 — 9.7MB)

Ruipu Power Bank Review: 24000 mA⋅h with Solar Panels (and how to use it)

by

Last year, in September 2017, I ordered a RUIPU 24,000 mAh Solar Power Bank in preparation for Hurricane Irma here in Florida. I’ve had a whole year’s worth of experience with this gadget and decided to buy another one.

This thing rocks! Let me tell you all about it, and how to use it in this review.

Read more

Podcast: Download (Duration: 22:05 — 20.2MB)