Advantages: Good quality; quiet operation; very affordable
Disadvantages: Rather high CPU usage

...I bought the Samsung/Toshiba SH-D162C in Germany for EUR 13, which makes it a very affordable drive. As we will see though, it offers quality of operation equivalent to much pricier drives from established manufacturesrs like Plextor etc. First impressions: pretty heavy, sturdy built, eject button operation requires quite a bit of finger muscle action :-) The tray slides in and out very quietly. Spin-up fairly quiet - I'd say around 5 on a 1 to 10 scale. DVD playback (1x) very quiet - practically indiscernible from other computer-associated noise (fans etc.) Testing with Nero CD/DVD Speed: I used my Plextor PX320-A for comparison. Tests were performed after firmware upgrade to version TS03. Transfer rates were up to 43x (data CD-R) and 11x (data DVD-R). Thus, both fall short of the spec'd 48x / 16x. In practice though... Read review

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Advantages: Strong Construction, Long battery life
Disadvantages: Doesn't display names in text messages

...I have the Ericsson SH888 for a couple of years now, and have had any reason to fault it! The call timer is sitting at around 900 hours total call time, without a single fault! The phone has all the features you want, and none of the rubbish you don't. It has built infra-red, a reasonable sized number memory (can't remember exactly how big), fully functional built data modem (as far as I know Ericsson are the only phones I have found to implement this via the IR port correctly!), and a battery life that is ridiculous! To be quite blunt Ericsson were daft to stop producing phones with a magnesium alloy chassis, the phone is one of the toughest I have seen, after roughly two years of, to be quite frank abuse, it has NEVER developed a fault. The call quality is the best I have heard on a phone of this age, and beats... Read review

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Advantages: High spec, good price. Very easy and quick to fit
Disadvantages: None found so far.

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Advantages: Excellent sound quality, good bass, great compatibility
Disadvantages: Some superfluous features. Bottom speakers are for show.

...LG Electronics are a more well known company than they used to be. Over time they have gained reputation through their sales of excellent quality goods at very competitive prices. Because LG make their own components, you're guaranteed the stuff that's going into the goods you buy are going to be good. The LG Electronics FA-162 is no exception. The gloss finish makes the stereo look very classy, the touch sensitive panel glows red and the LCD display welcomes you with a plethora of easy to read information such as radio information, CD track, equalizer, clock and different bass modes. Indeed, the front panel is a wonder in itself and is very easy and intuitive to use. Let's deal with sound quality. This hifi pumps out 160w of sound which is quite a lot of ''oomph'' for a home stereo. The tweeters and speakers on the front... Read review

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Advantages: Great for working families, Price, Easy to clean
Disadvantages: None

...Having thought about getting a slow cooker for a little while know we thought that the sales would be the perfect time to start looking. We didn't have a specific model in mind so thought we would just see what was on offer. We went to Comet and was greeted by quite a range of slow cookers, some were on sale, others were not. We chose the cheapest option as we were not sure if a slow cooker would be just what we were looking for, and did not want to lose a lot of money if it wasn't right. The Home-tek HT162 has a 3 litre capacity, 3 Heat settings and a removable ceramic crock-pot and glass lid for easy cleaning. It is not too bulky so does not take up too much room in the kitchen. Easy to read instructions make using the slow cooker an enjoyable experience. The main reason for getting a slow cooker is so that you can prepare... Read review

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Advantages: Relaxed and comfortable; Good selection of products
Disadvantages: Location; Prices

...There’s a little known shop in a run-down backstreet of London that provides an essential service to women of all persuasions, lifestyles and ages. A shop that promotes the liberation of sexual freedom: the non-repressive, non-Victorian values of a modern world that is obsessed by SEX, SEX and SEX! And don’t we love it? Sh! Women’s Erotic Emporium is exactly what it suggests: a shop selling a range of sex related merchandise FOR Women. On a recent visit to London, I decided to take the plunge and visit this little rarity. At last! I’d only lived in London for six years but never had the ‘bottle’ to take a trip to the shop (Coward!). So, here it goes. Are you sitting comfortably? Are the men in the audience ready to be titillated? Very well, I’ll begin… Sh! is located... Read review

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Advantages: funny lyrics, poor/funny music
Disadvantages: poor/funny music

...Quorn Bellow - Foreplay A roll with it - Po Fasis Horny - Chocolate Mousse Tea Feel like Sh*te - Doofergrass Country Spouse - Blurb Tony - M&M featuring Birdie from the canteen Planet of sound - The Pixiedancers The idea is that the band has moved through time changing their name as they went along. I say this because on the CD-extra’s, there are three videos - A roll with it, Feel like sh*te and country Spouse - and Radcliffe talks about this. They then accuse bands of doing songs very similar to theirs, and taking names similar also. - A big joke, which does kinda work. The bands who did the ‘real’ songs are guessable, and are follows: If you tolerate this your children will be next - Manic Street Preachers No surprises - Radiohead Angels - Robbie Williams Why does it always rain on me - Travis Coming... Read review

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Advantages: Interchageable frounts/bezels
Disadvantages: Firmware updater very annoying

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Advantages: Head noises, huge bass, acid squealing
Disadvantages: No MIDI, tuning can be tempramental

...What is it with Roland, there was a point in their history when they seemed incapable of producing a synth that wasn't destined to become a dance classic. Anyone would think that they invented techno all by themselves. The SH101 is a single oscillator analogue monosynth which can produce the warmest, most meaty bottom end outside of a Minimoog or a Juno 106 both of which cost way above the avarage asking price for a secondhand 101. The SH101's single oscillator can produce both square and sawtooth waves which, unlike many synths, can be mixed in different proportions as required. The 101 also has a major bonus in the form of a sub oscillator which produces a square wave tone either one or two octaves below the main oscillator. This is what gives a 101 bass sound it's massive chunky weight and explains why the 101 is the bass producer... Read review

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Advantages: Slim, sexy(?), great picture, good sound, easy to setup, value
Disadvantages: None ..... yet

...A few months ago I was fortunate enough to receive a nice bonus from work. With a relatively new baby, an outdated wardrobe and many household repairs needed, you can imagine what a difficult job it was to assign these funds to a specific project or product. The Better Half desperately needed new clothes, the house needed a major decoration and the baby required everything! Obviously there was only one thing for it … er …buy a new TV! Well, to be fair, we had just bought some lovely new white furniture for the bedroom and then realised that the black portable TV didn't look good on it. The answer - in the interest of aestheticism, of course, was to purchase a new silver 17 inch Widescreen LCD television! Dogs gonads! Following some extensive research (basically dependent on price), we opted for the Sharp LC-17SH1E, a gorgeous... Read review

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