Thursday 17 December 2015

Kingston Data Traveler G4 USB 3.0

Now this review was quite a quick one, lets be fair here. With a usb drive, sometimes waiting for things to be copied over like Windows installers can take time and after a recent purchase of a 64GB usb 3.0 drive for £15 (this was for my smart TV to help record and actually teach my farther that pausing live tv is as common as a deal in morrisons tempting to purchase), I felt it was needed and since i've used Kingston before and was impressed by the USB 3.0 speeds on the other drive, I hoped that it would be able to compete, which sadly i was a bit mistaken, but i'll get into that later.
There was a video recorded but reviewing a usb drive isn't really that popular so i'll put it off for now.

But they are nice to look at so if you want one, they are quite good value.


The Packaging and stick itself

Well with most USB drives, the packaging is thin but clear for the most part, and Kingston is no exception, with its famous statue face (I actually saw something similar in outrun 2006 C2C, but different colour) and a clear font to show the Size and Model as well as the Speed along with the Drive itself. taking up the width of the packaging. 

the Front of the drive packaging


The back however, now that is quite unclear and full of text it puts alot of people off reading it, sure its important to have this documentation on there but it seems too filled, there is info like Warranty, Social Media and Operating system support which is a plus. Also barcodes and various translations are there too :). 

The back of it with much writing

Now one thing with the inside (when you have to use scissors or teeth to tear it open, is that there was MORE small print,  of course since a USB drive is simple and common, no manual was included but its not not not not that hard to use a usb drive to copy things to and from the thing. But a platic holder for the stick is nicely presented. 

So much writing

So much more writing



But as we get to the stick, with a lovely white coast, embedded Kingston logos on the back, a blue USB port, covered with the white cap and a yellow big hook, it was a really well crafted drive from its outside, the cap is quite stiff which is good for safety in one way but stressful in another way when using it it often, but wear and tear over time will fix that. 


A nice design

The bottom of it with a imprinted kingston logo

The standard USB Connector

Th bottom of the usb connector

The testing. 


Now this is where i was going to learn a truth of some speed. Since using CrystalDiskMark is a very good idea with testing devices, I installed it once again since i didn't when i used the Toshiba Canvio to backup. The drive was picked up in windows within seconds and I could access it in a similar fashion, but then I ran the tests and i was in for a suprise. The speeds were different than what I would expect. 

The speeds for the drive in a usb 3.0 Port
I was a bit holy um..... The wriste speeds were just poor, especially with the 4k read and write, i mean 0.003 MB/s is WORSE than a Toshiba TransMemory USB 2.0 and that was a 2 MB/s write speed. The Read speeds however were pretty impressive, like more than what i would of guessed


Then it was time to just do a test of how Rufus will perform with it, since I had decided that this will be use many a time (before this review) that i would be copying Windows to it quite a lot so i can get friends and customer's laptops and devices installed with windows. But after how long it took in the USB 3.0 Port, that changed my mind. 37 Minutes and HOLY fuck that is slower than actaully INSTALLING windows to a device FROM a USB Drive.

The 2.;6GB file was actually the quickest part of it

This was near the end. but these small files are a terrible problem for it


So with that in mind...

omracer's Rating: 4/10

The good points:

  • The value is good
  • The read speeds is pretty impressive
  • The design is nice and easy to attach to a keyring

The bad points: 

  • THOSE WRITE SPEEDS ARE ABYSMAL
  • It can burn young children due to the heat causes from a copy such as windows isos or a film.

Well that sums up a quick review. More reviews in 2016 to appear

Wednesday 2 December 2015

Vidonn X6 Smartband

Another review, this time this was a review my mum actually inspired me to do since she was intrested in smart bands and fitness wrists, now since i do cycle and run everywhere, this was to keep an accurateish trail of how i actually perform since mytracks is not as easy.

Only costing me £25 from Banggood. This seemed like too good to be true, but my mum got hers, and 2 weeks later, I ordered mine and my sister's (christmas present). Its a nice concept and from what my mum has with hers, it actually works nicely.

The video Review is below:



The packaging: 

I'll admit. the size of the box is smaller than what most would expect, but its a decent modern design, white background, simple text on the front. But the back is actually nicely laid out if you can understand Traditional Chinese. Showing off the band, the product features and also the requirements to use the product, But sadly it is NOT compatible with my phone, since thats android 4.1 not 4.4.4. My mum had the same problem but flashing CM11 onto her phone did the trick.

The packaging does explain the product nicely so i can't really complain.

The front of the box

The left and right side of the box

The bottom of the box with the shipping seal still on

Take the seal off and it sows the detail nicely.


Lets look inside...


The contents of the box was quite small, only the cable to charge it, the band itself and a manual, which actually it ideal from the getgo. The cable is a nice apple feel to it with the magnetic attaching by the battery. It does NEED a few HOURS to charge as the video didn't show turning it on easily but, thats like any eletronic gadget. Also the band looks very light and feels light but still solid and clear when lit. 
The look into the box

A look at the usb charging cable

A Closer blurry look at the band


The bottom of the band with the logo is actually metal, if you have skin problems this might affect you


The Manual


From the video, I actually reviewed and read both the English and Chinese parts, at least when filming the raw footage, it got me thinking there was only an chinese section, but its quite useful to know, such as the charging for a few hours and also how to pair and setup the notifications. Pics are only for the English Side. 

The first few pages of the Manual

The middle pages

The last pages

Getting it setup.


Now i had to delay myself a bit for this, well the battery was flat, but charging it is a breeze but NOT with a power bank, at least the solar one i had didn't get on with it. But using a normal mains charger did and after an hour and a half, it was up to 70% ish. It did feel light on my wrist eventually, its better than a normal watch, thats for sure.

Charging it through the power bank didn't work

After updating the Firmware after charging it to 65%
Then i connected it to the tablet, the onda's android is ideal for it. Since Vidonn do have a APK copy of it if the playstore isn't working for you. Which for me i actually just wifi transfered the apk from the playstore since i put it on my phone, which DOES NOT WORK WITH IT, which is because its android 4.2 which only 4.4 and BT 4.0 and higher work with it. I signed up a few days before so i skip the registration process for better use. 

Once its setup, it tracked 14 steps before i updated the firmware

It can set alarms (which buzz on the thing) 

I can set my sleeping times, i say 1:30 since i fap between 12 and 1:30

More details about the band 

The testing of the steps


Ok so now it was testing the thing, which is actually quite easy, but one thing you can do, is track a route manually, so holding the diamond (its a button) on the band for 3 seconds and a timer appears, which lets you record that distance, Well i ended up going with my mum to Lidls by walking with Rosie. We took an hour due to me not thinking where the cooking chocolate was, But for that hour, I took 3000 steps, luckily i could logon to the website  and check the stats. Which when i got back, it was about 5,000 total, so about 3700 steps and over 300 calories burned. 

The website shows the stats nicer. 

So it was even counting steps as i was walking, it was pretty cool. The only downside for me so far is the fact i have to use Android on the Onda v820w to sync the data. But later on i will have to check the other part of the app, the one that lets you measure the sleeping pattern you have and how the alarm feels. But that will be for tomorrow (this was done over 2 days).


The first full day


After a shave and haircut, i get to be about the 12:30 mark and then head off to sleep at 1ish, which was peacful, especially according to the chart, but i'l get to that later. Nearing the time though, I noticed my phone went off first and NOT the band, but the band had been 3 miutes out of sync compared with my phone, which means it wasn't the correct time from what devices I had with me, the buzzing was quite assertive, so it won't shock you but you will feel it in some way. 
Eventually i got up and got running to work. The day went meh and after a nice end with a home visit, but running home did help boost steps.

checking the time before running home

4,385 steps before running home

248 calories burned

2,986 m travelled. 
 Then after getting home and food and things, it was time to upload the data and see how i performed today. it was quite less than i thought with only 6,000 steps. But the sleep data, was interesting.

This showed how well i slept over that night. 

A better look of how it performed


Well the battery was quite weaker but i've not fully charged it yet. I'm proud of it and i might as well review the conclusion:

omracer's Rating: 8/10

The good: 

  • Good value
  • pretty accurate,
  • nice design
  • works with android and ios 
  • light on your wrist

The bad: 

  • Requires Android 4.3 or IOS 7 and Bluetooth 4
  • The battery needs to be fully charged before using it. 
  • There can be hard to fit if not fitted properly. 
  • The app isn't that easy sometimes, also no PC support.


Well reviews will be next year now


Sunday 4 October 2015

Toshiba 1TB Canvio Basics USB 3.0 Portable Hard Drive

A surprise written review again, but this one is something i might need before I even get the Goose Fair vlogs sorted which is still 2 weeks away. But with the Tesco in Tavi, there was an offer on these hard drives, a big offer that even suppliers could offer me, Normal ones are around £42 but if you are looking for this 1TB HDD.Amazon do it for just about that with FREE delivery which is not too bad in all honesty.There is no Video review of this yet again due to me feeling a litter better than last time but the flue is still in me which is a annoyance and the weather changes too.



The Packaging. 

Now this is quite a modern and clear package that does follow the Red and white which Toshiba use quite alot. With the Red at the top of the box along with a white Toshiba logo as well as a big "1TB/To"and icons to describe the features it has, like USB 3.0 Support and USB power (not powered for some reason). But there is a bit of smallish print which might not stand out unless its in your hand type text which is ok and its a multi language version from the translations into french and german below the english text. Canvio Basics is the model which gives an impression that is might be a needed thing. The bottom of the box has the serial and EAN codes and some locations as well as the Toshiba Storage website. 

The back is full of text, which none of it is in english except the top bit with the speed of transfer of usb 3.0 and 2.0. There was some small print related to the testing conditions and examples of photos and videos may vary, of course it will since a legit blue-ray rip will be a different file size to what was downloaded from a filehoster re encoded in x264 etc. 

The sides of the box are different each side which is a good thing. The left has the Toshiba logo, Canvio Basics and he 7 and 8 WHQL logos and the right has the english info that was on the back in different languages. Also "no software to install" is a new feature since HDDs like Touro Mobile put some backup software on there. But the pics should explain more.

The bottom of the box. Hiding the S/N but showing mostly how a bottom of a box usually looks

The front of the box, with the main features and the hard drive showing, you can see Toshibas colour scheme here very well

The left side of the box which does show the WHQL logos as well as Toshiba and Canvio Basics

The back of the box with the many translations for the product, which for the recent times of immigration for some, this is a useful feature for products to appeal to many. 

Opening the box

Well this is easily open from the top after peeling or slicing a sticker off which then its enclosed in 2 plastic shells and then the paperwork is here too. Now there was more documents than usual and it seems like it was imported since there were 2 eastern european documents which confuzzed me a bit and the manual and warranty was in many many languages too. Then a short usb cable and the HDD was shown which was in a Matt black as well as mini blue led near the connector piece for the HDD which i thought was cool. The weight of the drive was actually quite light for a HDD too, but i have this feeling that it was not one that could be taken out of the case and connect via sata due to the thinness of it, maybe if anything happens out of the 2 YEAR (yes 2 years normal warranty, check the booklet) warranty, I can take a peek inside. 

There was a advert for a wireless accessory  which technically i can do using the TP link W8968 which if i ever move out i might use more often. But the manual for english was a short page of just refer to the maunal on the hard drive itself, (i can upload if people require) and capacity and safety instructions, it was the same with the other languages too. 

The HDD Micro USB 3.0 connector

The bottom of the HDD with the info

A look at the micro usb 3.0 cable.


Time to Test.

Now this was simple to plug in, sure its usb 3.0 but it can still work in 2.0 (black usb ports) but this was testing and usb 3.0 makes life easier and faster for me. I plugged it in and saw the manual appear as a PDF on the root of the Canvio drive which i didn't really need to read since its a Hard drive, its not that complex to copy and paste to a degree.

But I ran the Crystal Disk Info and Disk Mark on the drive to give it a test, this is used in various reviews so its fair that i should do that same, it was around 113mbit/s. Which really when i copied 63GBs of Steam content over it never reached that point at any of it, but it took a 20 minute wait with chores and catching up with mum before just as she got out of the bath it was finished. The drive did feel a bit warm but then again the sshd in my laptop get past 50C at some stages which is really worrying.

The name of the drive and the PDF on the root of it

A crystal Disk Info check

The stats for reading and writing to the disk

The nice blue LED

The start of it and the speed was quite good

OK it then got a bit faster

Then the speed when down halfway

But then peaked at the last 25%. 



Well it was useful and fast so backing up before having to do a reinstall on my laptop before goose fair and managing files is going to be easier with this one, it actually backed up all of profile except the videos folder within 2 hours which is fast. With this in mind:

omracer's Rating: 8/10

The Good Points: 

  • Very good value 
  • Nice slim design for a Basics drive
  • USB 3.0 is useful 
  • 1TB is a decent backup size
  • No Backup software to make it easy to start copying and pasting

The Bad Points:

  • The languages inside might put off people. 
  • The cable might not be long enough (this can be sorted by ordering a longer cable)
  • No backup software (for people who are unsure how to copy and paste)

Now this really should be the last review before the Goose Fair tat is to be judged and reviewed on video by myself , See you then

omracer