wonderwhatif
Member Since: January 26, 2015Reviews
Cudy AC750 Dual Band WiFi Range Extender
The initial setup for this WiFi Booster should be easy, but I had a lot of trouble. There are two methods you can use, but in both cases you must first plug it in near your existing wifi hub. Once you do that, you can either connect it to your... +
The initial setup for this WiFi Booster should be easy, but I had a lot of trouble. There are two methods you can use, but in both cases you must first plug it in near your existing wifi hub. Once you do that, you can either connect it to your existing network with the help of a computer (manually entering the info yourself) or you can use the WPS buttons on the booster and your router to make them sync automatically. Unfortunately, no matter how many times I tried, the booster simply could not connect. After a half-dozen attempts, I decided to give up on that option and simply set the whole thing up manually using the other method.
Once you’ve done your initial setup, you simply move the booster to an area which is just on the edge of your current wifi area and plug it in. The result should be that your wifi area will be boosted, allowing you to maintain a strong connection in other areas of your house. I had pretty good results with this, and found that overall the booster did what it advertised. I did notice a slip in total speed when connected to the booster, but not a major one. I usually get 20-25 Mbps, and the booster reliably gave me 18-22 Mbps. I personally have no problem with that, as being able to extend the reach of your home wifi network is a very useful thing, and an issue that is difficult to solve without a device like this one.
By default this booster will allow you to connect to it by either a 2.4 or 5G channel, which is useful if you’re using a newer smartphone or smart TV which can access 5G, though it’s also limited by whatever your internet speed tends to be. Seeing as mine hovers around 25 Mbps, the two channels are virtually identical for me.
The directional antennas on the booster are a feature I’ve seen before, but I can’t say that I noticed any difference when I tried to point them. Initially, I left them in their default position and had no issues, and found basically the exact same thing when I made the point of trying to direct them for better coverage in a particular direction.
One thing that did not help clarify the some of the issues I was having at the time is the fact that the instructions are in somewhat broken English. They’re mostly readable, but it’s clearly been poorly translated, and in some parts, it’s very difficult to understand what it’s supposed to say. Following the directions incorrectly because of this forced me to do a factory reset on the device and set it up all over again.
Something that can make it difficult to find a good spot for this wifi booster, aside from needing a plug that is not too far from your router, is its size. The booster itself isn't huge, it's easy to hold in one hand, but plugging it in is an absolute chore. If you're plugging it into a wall outlet you will be unable to have anything else plugged in to the second socket. If you're using a power bar it will take up at least 3 or 4 spots on that power bar because it's so bulky and requires a ton of room.
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Epson Expression Premium XP-7100 Wireless Color Photo Printer
If you’ve purchased a printer sometime in the last five years, you’ll know that almost all the standard all-in-one printers from companies like Epson cover a lot of basic feature these days. This printer ticks all the boxes you can reasonably... +
If you’ve purchased a printer sometime in the last five years, you’ll know that almost all the standard all-in-one printers from companies like Epson cover a lot of basic feature these days. This printer ticks all the boxes you can reasonably expect, plus it has some impressive features for anyone who wants to print out their photos.
This is a wireless, all-in-one printer small enough to fit on your desk or side-table, or under your computer desk if you’re like me. You can print on both sides, in colour or black and white. You can also scan or make photocopies. The wireless features allow you to print from any nearby computer on the same wifi network, or connect with your smartphone and print from mobile.
Initial setup is very easy and painless. Peel off the plastic and follow the instructions to start the printer, insert the ink, and then let it go through a short set-up process. Connect it to your wifi, let it download a quick update, and you can be printing within ten minutes of unboxing the printer. It does come with a CD with drivers, but if you connect to the internet I found the installation would download them all automatically for me.
The printer itself has a small touchscreen interface which is easy to navigate and well-labeled. You shouldn’t find yourself getting lost or confused, as everything is clear and straight-forward. The screen also tilts upwards about 45 degrees, so if the printer is low to the ground you can still see the display. If you’re printing while the computer is off, it will start itself up, deploy the paper tray, and tilt the display on its own before printing. Sadly it will not undo those same steps when turning off, but it’s still a neat feature.
If you print your own photos, you can use regular paper or specialty photo paper to print very clear and crisp copies of your pictures. The photos looked great to me, and printed almost as fast as your standard documents. One thing I did notice is that the tray for regular paper only holds about 30 pages, so if you print in bulk you may find yourself refilling that frequently. The upside to this is that the printer is much smaller than models which come with paper trays able to hold hundreds of pages.
Overall this is a good all-in-one home printer. It may not suit an office environment, or a small business which needs to do a lot of printing, but for your personal use or for your photos this should be a small and versatile option for you.
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Burt's Bees Vanilla Bean Moisturizing Lip Balm
My fave, I consider this to be the actual 'neutral/natural' one (as opposed to peppermint), because it has an extremely faint smell and a taste that quickly fades. It does have a bit of a plastic taste on first application, but it only lasts less... +
My fave, I consider this to be the actual 'neutral/natural' one (as opposed to peppermint), because it has an extremely faint smell and a taste that quickly fades. It does have a bit of a plastic taste on first application, but it only lasts less than 10 seconds before it's a light vanilla flavour. If you want an unscented/unflavoured chapstick this comes the closest.
Good hydration and extends fully.
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Burt's Bees Ultra Conditioning Lip Balm with Kokum Butter
I like many of the other Burt's lip balms (vanilla is my fave), but I found this actually seemed to dry my lips out. Maybe my skin just didn't react well to it. I also wasn't a fan of the strange scent/flavour. My least fave of this line.
I like many of the other Burt's lip balms (vanilla is my fave), but I found this actually seemed to dry my lips out. Maybe my skin just didn't react well to it.
I also wasn't a fan of the strange scent/flavour. My least fave of this line.
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Burt's Bees Wild Cherry Lip Balm
Not my favourite flavour, but still pretty good. Has that standard 'cherry sweet' taste with a light cherry scent. I find the taste a little stronger than I'd like, but cherry isn't my favourite to begin with and it's not so strong that I'd avoid... +
Not my favourite flavour, but still pretty good. Has that standard 'cherry sweet' taste with a light cherry scent. I find the taste a little stronger than I'd like, but cherry isn't my favourite to begin with and it's not so strong that I'd avoid this.
It hydrates well and feels comfortable on the lips. I love that it extends fully instead of giving you less product.
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ALLMAX Nutrition IsoFlex Whey Protein Isolate - Vanilla
As someone who has tried a pretty wide variety of protein powders, I’ve found in the past that their taste and their nutritional value can vary pretty wildly from one to the other. Trying to find the right one for you can involve a lot of... +
As someone who has tried a pretty wide variety of protein powders, I’ve found in the past that their taste and their nutritional value can vary pretty wildly from one to the other. Trying to find the right one for you can involve a lot of considerations, but for me, most important is how it tastes, how nutritional it is, how easy it is to use, and what’s in it.
To start with, the taste of this particular powder from Allmax is definitely among the best I’ve tried. The vanilla flavour is a lot easier to drink than the more traditional chocolate powders, and it’s not nearly as overpowering when mixed with milk or as part of a smoothie. It’s also not so subdued that it lacks flavour. If you follow the recommended guidelines (one scoop per ¾ cup milk) it’s a bit stronger than I would like, but add a little extra milk or add it to a smoothie and it’s actually very tasty. It’s not so sweet that it comes across as a drink for kids, but for adults it’s still sweet enough. More dessert style drinks obviously taste better, but for a protein powder that isn't full of garbage this is the best vanilla taste I've tried. It does taste more like 'real' vanilla and less like fake flavouring, so if you don't like real vanilla taste, it might not be for you.
In terms of nutritional information, I’m happy with what I found here. One scoop is 54% of your daily protein, and you can easily fit two scoops in with a large glass of milk to get all the protein you need. It also comes in at 110 calories per scoop, which is low enough that it shouldn’t be a problem even if you’re someone who watches your calories very carefully. Having zero grams of sugar is another bonus, which I’ll talk about a little later on.
In terms of ease of use, this powder is a bit difficult. No matter how much I tried to mix it by hand, I kept finding lumps in my drink. Using a blender or electronic mixer is an easy way around this issue, and a shaker cup helps a lot, but you have to shake it really hard. I'd really recommend a shaker cup for it.
Finally, what is and is not in this powder will probably be very important to some people. There’s no sugar, as I said before, and also no stevia. I know some people don’t like sucralose in their drinks, but considering sugar has many downsides, and stevia has a taste that I find really hard to stomach, I’ll gladly take sucralose. It not being “all-natural” might bother some people, but for diabetics and people like me who cannot stand stevia that’s a trade I’ll happily make. There’s also no soy, and no gluten, which should be a relief for anyone who has trouble with either of those.
In summary, I have many more good things to say about this powder than bad things. The flavour and nutritional value is great, even though the lumps are hard to get rid of and require vigorous shaking, it's worth it for a powder of this quality and flavour.
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Magicfly Play Parachute Toy
This is a hard thing to test in winter in a small apartment, but we did our best! First, let's talk about the size. Compared to the massive parachutes of our youth (which were also real silk or something close to it and I do believe ours also had no... +
This is a hard thing to test in winter in a small apartment, but we did our best! First, let's talk about the size. Compared to the massive parachutes of our youth (which were also real silk or something close to it and I do believe ours also had no centre hole) this is a little smaller. In terms of size it covers a queen bed and more, so it's perfect for a garden party or small class of children, but perhaps not big enough for a large class of kids to play with at the same time.
I do like that they include a list of games for ideas, though as some have pointed out, some of the games cannot be done with a centre hole, but I wonder if it's a safety issue...regardless, lots of games can still be enjoyed with this. The fabric could have more colours, but it's plenty bright and the stitching is all good quality with no flaws. It's sturdy and won't rip apart or become damaged easily. The fabric comes across a little cheap, but durable, though I do wish it was washable as kids can get pretty dirty. One neat thing they've added is handles all the way around, which will help kids to keep a grip of it, but might inspire jealousy if there's more kids than handles.
It can definitely be put back in the bag, though not easily. Use two people and treat it like a folded sheet and you can get it roughly the right size and shape to be put away. Overall, I do like this and it's a lot of fun (will be moreso in summer), but I wish it was a tad cheaper. I feel like given the price, the fact that you can't do certain games, four stars is a fair rating, but it's still really fun!
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Pacifica Energized Glow Turmeric Spice Facial Mask
Won a pack of these in a contest and was a bit nervous about the 'Turmeric'. Well, I needn't have been! These masks are great. The smell is like 98% Watermelon, with perhaps a hint of some spiciness (I have an extremely strong nose though). When it... +
Won a pack of these in a contest and was a bit nervous about the 'Turmeric'. Well, I needn't have been! These masks are great. The smell is like 98% Watermelon, with perhaps a hint of some spiciness (I have an extremely strong nose though).
When it comes to the masks themselves I was so impressed. I've been using sheet masks for years (dare I say before they became popular and become a hipster beauty reviewer!) and these are fabulous. They have just the right amount of fluid, not too drippy and not too dry. The eyes holes are shaped like hearts! It's a really clever way to make them stand out without changing how well they work.
If I had to point out something for improvement (and if I notice it, I definitely have to) it'd be that they are a little smaller than many face masks I've used. If you have a big round face, like my husband, they won't cover the whole thing. The lip cut-out could be bigger too, I only have medium lips and they are a little small.
Both my husband and I's (mask night!) skin was glowing afterwards and felt super refreshed and beautiful. This has to be one of the best sheet masks I've used in a while. I love that they're a responsible company too.
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Morgan Taylor Professional Nail Lacquer Little Misfit
Shade: Little Misfit. I received this in a beauty box and I was excited. In the bottle the colour looks great, but sadly when applied it's actually not that impressive. One lovely thing about it is that it does change colours under different... +
Shade: Little Misfit.
I received this in a beauty box and I was excited. In the bottle the colour looks great, but sadly when applied it's actually not that impressive. One lovely thing about it is that it does change colours under different lighting, going more purple to a sort of lime green. Unfortunately, though under most lighting it's just a kind of washed out greyish purple.
I had to apply 5 thin coats (3 or 4 heavy coats) to get any kind of decent colour payoff and while it was easy to apply, it also had a pretty strong smell. It came off pretty easy with nail polish remover, but I just prefer a bolder colour that takes less coats.
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MaskerAide Crystal Clear Mini Masks
I like the idea of these mini masks from Maskeraide and the packaging is hella cute, but I think I look a bit like a kid who stuck stickers all over her face, plus I'd rather my whole face was hydrated equally. I felt like because they cover very... +
I like the idea of these mini masks from Maskeraide and the packaging is hella cute, but I think I look a bit like a kid who stuck stickers all over her face, plus I'd rather my whole face was hydrated equally.
I felt like because they cover very little of the face, the effect isn't really great. Even on the parts that were covered, my skin didn't really look or feel better. I think these are fun, but a bit overpriced considering and I probably wouldn't use them again.
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