Reviews

Movie and Game Reviews, and Such

  • April 25, 2025

    I Bought, and Kept, the Soundcore Sleep A20 Earbuds by Anker

    Back in January, I wrote about how I Bought, and Returned, the Ozlo Sleepbuds. I was excited to try a pair of headphones specifically made for sleep, as my AirPods Pro usually hurt my ears (I’m a side sleeper) and fell out.

    The TL;DR of that post is that they are an incredibly disappointing product that also happens to cost $300.

    At the behest of other folks who had trouble with the Ozlo Sleepbuds, I decided to give the Soundcore Sleep A20 Earbuds by Anker a try.

    My criteria were simple:

    1. They must fit nicely in my ears without falling out overnight
    2. I need to be able to take them out of the case and immediately start listening to audio on them.

    If you didn’t read the full Ozlo Sleepbuds review, My biggest issue with them is they require the app to work at all.

    That was a dealbreaker.

    So how do the Soundcore A20s measure up?

    My Soundcore Sleep A20 Earbuds by Anker next to my AirPods Pro 2

  • July 9, 2022

    Edison x Goldspot = Fantastic Pen (Fountain Pen Review)

    Note: This pen was provided at no charge by Goldspot Pens for this review.

    When I first got into fountain pens 10 years ago, there were a few pens on my “grail” list — pens I really wanted but couldn’t pull the trigger on. I had a Sailor and a Platinum, naturally, but Edison made a few of the pens on this list.

    As time went on, I made the other purchases ahead of anything from Edison, and well, that particular grail pen has never made it into my connection…until now. I’m happy to say that a decade-long dream has been fulfilled; I now own an Edison. Specifically the Edison x Goldspot Pens Newark Fountain Pen.

    So now the question is: can it possibly live up to my expectations? Let’s take a look.

  • May 17, 2022

    3 StoreBuilder Features That Make it the Best eCommerce Solution

    Ah, the age-old question: do you want ease of use, or the freedom to do with you want with your eCommerce store? Shopify is easy but expensive (especially since they take a transaction cut). But WooCommerce and other self-hosted platforms are hard to set up and harder to maintain…until now.

    With Nexcess’ StoreBuilder, you can have the best of both worlds: the ease of use from Shopify, and the freedom and flexibility of WordPress/WooCommerce. Here are my Top 3 features of StoreBuilder:

    1. A simplified WordPress Dashboard menu. The Dashboard can get extremely messy – especially when you add in WooCommerce. With StoreBuilder, the team rebuilt the menu to make it more simplified, which in turn makes it easier to find the crucial areas you need to run your online store.
    2. A vastly improved Setup Wizard. The WooCommerce wizard is fine, but the StoreBuilder wizard is next level. You can choose from tons of great designs, make customizations, and set up your shop in a few clicks. Plus, you don’t have to worry about upsells! It even includes helpful videos from WP101 directly inline, to help you along.
    3. Access to lots of premium plugins. One of the great things about StoreBuilder is that you get access to premium plugins you’d otherwise need to pay for. From security and backups, to abandoned cart plugins, you get everything you need without any fuss.

    Try StoreBuilder risk-free for 30 days. Then it’s just $19/mo.

  • July 10, 2017

    My Thoughts on the iPad Pro 10.5″

    So I’m a bit of a technophile and an early adopter. Always have been; I had a Palm M100 in 9th grade because it looked cool. Plus it helped me keep my busy schedule of drama club and homework straight. Since then, I’ve tried to get new tech sooner rather than later. Sometimes I write about it. When the iPad Pro was announced, it wasn’t something I was able to buy. But I’ve been looking for a good way to draw on a screen since my first “tablet” in 2005. Well, I was able to get the iPad Pro 10.5″ this year; so how does it stack up?

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  • September 25, 2013

    My Thoughts on the Dexter Finale

    I’ve been discussing the Series Finale of Dexter with a lot of people lately and now that the dust has settled a bit, I figured this would be a good place to put all of my thoughts.

    Warning! There are Spoilers ahead! If you haven’t seen the finale, do not click on the link to continue. 

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  • June 10, 2013

    My Thoughts on the Galaxy SIV

    SamsungGalaxyS411

    Since the Samsung Galaxy SIV was announced, I was pretty much waiting on baited breath for its release for Verizon customers; I was so excited I went out and picked it up the day after it was released, the soonest I could (I had actually pre-ordered it on May 18th through Amazon, but due to some issues I cancelled the order and picked it up at my local Best Buy). I really liked the form factor, features, and of-course, the amazing 13MP camera it touted. So does the phone live up to my expectations? Let’s see.

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  • April 9, 2013

    April 9th: Articles Round Up

    Since I’ve been travelling and sick for the last few weeks I haven’t really done a good job of promoting some articles I’ve written across the web. In-case you missed it, here are some of my better works!

    Redesigned USA Today is Better than Ever: I review USA Today’s latest release for Android, focusing on a new design and some really great features! (@droidappstorm)

    Manage Your Information Securely with Dashlane: Dashlane has quickly become one of my favorite apps. In this review I take a look at the Android version. (@droidappstorm)

    Do Just About Anything with Freshbooks for iPhone: I review my favorite accounting software’s new iPhone app. Spoiler: It’s pretty amazing. (@iphoneappstorm)

    Keep Tabs on New Movie Releases with eTrizzle: This interest little aggregator for Android could use some finness but has a lot of potential!  (@droidappstorm)

    Also, I’ve been tapped for a weekly spot over at Android.Appstorm, so be sure to check back there every Tuesday for my latest article!

  • December 31, 2010

    Favorites of 2010

    Happy New Years Eve! As tradition for the last couple of years, here is a list of my favorites from 2010.

    • Favorite Tech Toy: Amazon Kindle. Competition was pretty stiff this year with all of the new gadgets I got- an iPad, a new Macbook Pro, and most recently, the HTC Incredible. I also broke from choosing my cell phone as my favorite tech toy. I got the Kindle for Christmas last year and love it. I’m including it in the 2010 running because most of the use came in 2010. The reading experience is superior to the iPad, the book selection is huge, it’s lightweight and very portable, and I love that you can make notes and annotations on it. I feel like I read more in 2010 because of the Kindle.
    • App/Website: Dropbox. This is another thing I had in 2009 but didn’t start really using until 2010. Dropbox makes it amazingly easy to sync across all of my devices (Mac, PC, iPad, Android Phone). I’m considering upgrading so I can try some of the neat advanced things you can do.
    • Favorite Book: The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. My friend Katie recommended it, and even though it’s a fairly long book, it’s a quick read because of the fast pace of the story. I highly recommending it. I’ll be starting the next one soon!
    • TV Show: Dexter. I was lucky enough to start a series this year that I’ve been missing out on. Dexter is an awesome show about a good guy who’s also serial killer. The show is thrilling and intellectually stimulating, and the acting is rock solid. I highly recommend it if you’ve never watched it.
    • Movie: Inception. Leo DiCaprio had a great 2010. For a while, I though Shutter Island would be the best movie of the year. Then Inception came out and blew my mind. Cause for a lot of discussion and speculation, it’s a movie that keeps on giving, and an original idea at that.
    • Music: The Gaslight Anthem. My brother Phil and friend Danny told me about them in August/September and I’ve been listening to them daily since. I love their classic alternative rock sound (non of this new-alternative Nickelback crap) and the lead singer’s vocals are awesome. I highly recommend them. As far as new in 2010, Mumford and Sons is pretty awesome. You should check them out too.