Tag Archives: “review”

Review – Jurassic World Chomping T-Rex

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I’m a Jurassic Park fan and general dinosaur enthusiast. I make that no secret. I have a collection of Jurassic Park toys that is likely physically larger than any of my other toy collections. Every time I hear that new toys are coming out in the line, I get excited. Unfortunately, so many toys that I want come out so often and I have less money to spend on them, especially since I’ve shifted my “toy” purchasing to that of the electronic and tool kind, so that I can justify them as being “useful”. This means I have to be selective about what toys I buy. And after looking at the mostly uninteresting Jurassic World toy line, I chose the Chomping T-Rex figure.

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I won’t say I’m really that disappointed with it. I’m just underwhelmed. For a $15 kids toy it’s great. But I’ve seen Hasbro do so much more at that price range as well. And I’m not sure it’s worth the regular $20 price and definitely not the $30-$40 it can be found for on eBay already. I’ve never found the Jurassic Park toys to be great toys, but they were far and away the best dinosaur toys out there. And that’s what I’m really disappointed in: the state of dinosaur toys now and always. They never get better, even though it’s been proven that every single kid loves dinosaurs. As far as “toys” (The Papo models are awesome, but they have almost no movement, so I wouldn’t call them toys) go, Jurassic Park (World) is still the best. Now, getting back to this toy. I like it. The articulation is limited (another thing I wish dino toys would improve on: a little less scaly skin, a little more joints in the knees.) The limbs rotate at the elbows and hips. There is a button on the top and pressing it opens the mouth. The action is solid and looks good, but is unsatisfying.

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The detailing is good, the scales look nice and it’s fairly dino-looking, if not scientifically accurate. The paint is lackluster, and it is sparsely applied. And many of the sculpted details (the finger claws are the most noticeable) are not painted at all. It could have been done much better, but it’s adequate. I’d say the play value is fairly limited as it only really stands one way, so the movement in the limbs isn’t very useful, and the jaw action prevents the jaw from being held open for roaring, but it does aid in holding figures in its mouth. The entire thing is pretty solid, though the spring is the weakest link, so it’s good for rampaging.

Overall, pretty much everything could be improved, even for $15. The detail, paint, and articulation are above the bar, but the bar is really low. The jaw mechanism is uninspired, but it works, as does the overall design. As a kids toy it’s fine; as a collector’s model to display there are better looking ones, but this one is branded, and a bit cheaper in some places. I don’t really have much reason to recommend it, but no reason to hate it either; I’m meh on the review side. (But on the personal side I’m very happy with it, and I’m not entirely sure why.)

Review – Sanford Peel-off Magic Rub

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These days most pencils have their own erasers, but some still don’t, especially older models that have been in production for years and are still very good at their jobs. And even many of the new pencils don’t have enough eraser for the life of the pencil. Separate erasers are still a large market. But what if the eraser came in a more convenient package? The Sanford Peel-off Magic Rub intends to solve that problem.

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The main body is simple: it’s a tube of paper that is continuously wrapped around itself and sealed with a sticker. On the sticker is the main information for the product. There is a string attacked to break the sticker seal and allow for the paper to be peeled back when the product is used. The paper and eraser tip can also be sharpened, but I wouldn’t recommend this. The core of the utensil is a tube of Magic Rub, which is a very good white eraser. Sanford’s Magic Rub erasers are easy to use, resist drying out, remove quite a bit of graphite, and aren’t as hard on the paper as some other erasers. They aren’t the best erasers out there, but they are very good ones.

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And that’s really it. The entire “pencil” is slightly thicker and shorter than a standard pencil. But it fits in most of the same places and works very well. If you have a lot to erase, and don’t like the potential of breaking mechanisms with a mechanical eraser, I’d give this one a shot.

Review – Casio Label-it KL-60

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What? How can I review a label maker? It makes labels. If it doesn’t, it’s not a good one, right? Pretty much. And with that being said, let’s take a quick look at the Casio Label-It KL-60 label maker.

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The device itself is a relatively small, but certainly not pocket-sized, boxy shape. But it’s that rounded off type of boxy that makes it hard to store in many places. The keyboard is scrunched in the center of the device with a lot of room around it that I think would have been better used by a larger keyboard. The screen also has conspicuously little space. It’s one of the tiny, split-pixel LCD screens that aren’t very good but will generally last forever. It only displays about 4 characters at a time but it gets the job done. The very prominent cutter button is easy to find and depress, as well.

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Batteries and tapes go in the back. The batteries last for a while, but not too long, and the tapes are fairly easy to install, though I would recommend using the instructions. The keyboard is hard to use because of its size, but everything is clearly labeled. And the UI, while confusing on first use, gets easier to understand when one understands the limits of the hardware. The character selection is nice and the screen is easy to read. Printing and peeling the labels takes longer than I would like it to, but I think that’s just larger printers giving me unrealistic expectations. The device comes with a black-on-clear tape, which sticks to a lot of things but not nearly as many things as the black-on-white tape, for some reason, and that’s the style I would recommend. The letters are blocky but readable and small enough that at average reading distance they don’t look unattractive.

Is it a good labeler? Yes. It works. It has a few quirks but it gets the job done and if one wants an easy way to label many (not slick) items I’d recommend one over a printer. It has the same limitation most other labelmakers do, with maybe a bit more restrictions in the font category, but it’s much quicker and more fun to use. If you have a lot of things to label I’d look into this or a similar model to get it done. They’re less gimmicky than they look.

Review – Staedtler AllXwrite

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I’ve looked at a few all-graphite pencils in the past, but they were only sold in art supply stores and were thicker than the average pencil. The Staedlter AllXwrite is a #2 all-graphite pencil that is much more widely available. How does it hold up?

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The body of the pencil is unsurprisingly plain. It’s a standard hexagonal pencil design, all grey with silver lettering. The information printed on it is enough to get by. At the end of the pencil there is a standard metal eraser holder, and a fairly standard white eraser that works well.

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The graphite is quite hard, but still writes with the same pressure as a normal pencil. There is a coating on the outside to prevent major marks, but it is still possible to mark with it. Sharpening is easy, but wasteful, and if one adjusts their writing or drawing in such a way as to re-sharpen the pencil as they write with it, it requires none and will last for a very long time, far outstripping the eraser. Other than that, it’s a standard HB, suitable for taking tests or notes, and making lists and art.

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I like this pencil a lot. They’ll last forever and write well. I’ve flattened the ends of one of mine to make it easier to shade large areas. This, coupled with a few others at varying degrees of flatness leads to a ton of artistic options. While these pencils are a bit more fragile than wooden ones, I think that with normal use they will hold up just fine for someone interested in getting a long-lasting or quirky writing implement.

Review – Monster DNA Headphones

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I’m not a real headphone kind of guy. All of my on-ear phones are gifts, like the one I’m reviewing. And all of my earbuds break super fast so I just get the cheapest I can find. But I already have the Monster DNA headphones, so I thought I’d give them a review.

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The have a compact and sleek design. I’m not really a fan of the overall looks, but they function well enough. The head strap (? What do you call that?) is flexible and quite comfortable, with a bit of rubber on the interior to prevent the uncomfortableness of straight plastic-to-hair contact. Each side is capable of receiving input from a standard audio cord. They also fold up, which I find unnecessary and silly. Each side is adjustable, to allow the headphones to better fit the head, and I find that the various positions they click into are at short enough intervals that the majority of people will be able to find a comfortable position for themselves. They come with two audio cables: one standard aux cord, and another with a 90-degree bend for devices. The device cord also has controls for volume, and the pause/skip forward or back button.

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The performance is great. The bass is clear and the cushions around the edges conform to one’s ear allowing one to listen with fewer outside distractions. Many even slight sounds can be picked up but the main parts of the music (or whatever audio is being listened to) isn’t interrupted or detracted from. The cables are sturdy and hold in the devices well, and the buttons are well constructed.

Overall I’m happy with them. They were a great gift, and are my primary, non-travel headphones. Not to say I haven’t traveled with them: they can become very compact and are quite sturdy for traveling purposes. And they’re just nice headphones. They’re all I, a standard music and entertainment enjoyer, will ever need out of headphones. I know there are likely better ones, but I’d still give these a shot.