lafuma Trek Jr. Kids Sleeping Bag

The Good: The lafuma Trek Jr. is a warm bag for children who are ready to enjoy camping. It is a quality bag rated for temperatures as low as 30 degrees.

The Bad: The head opening is too small for a normal size pillow (not really bad, but the only thing that comes close).

Rating:

• Overall Experience: 10
• Features: 10
• User-Friendliness: 10
• Style: 10
• Quality: 10
• Value: 10
• Total: 10

To see how I rate each category please click Rating Breakdown

In the Box:

Children's Sleeping Bag
Stuff Sack
Warranty Card








Overview: When we decided camping could be a fun family activity, we also decided that the best way to make it fun would be to have good gear that would keep us comfortable, warm, and dry. Most important was keeping our kids warm. We considered the idea of using the sleepover type of bag and supplementing it with blankets, but in the end decided that we'd rather be over-prepared. We can always zip the bag open a little if it turns out to be a warm night. I was glad I decided on the mummy bag. My almost 3 year old wiggled out of this one a little so I can only imagine what would have happened with a lightweight sleeping bag. He probably would have been at the far end of the tent and freezing.

Overall Experience: This mummy bag is certainly worth every penny. It is compact and a good size for kids. It kept my son warm...except for the hand that he pulled out of the bag, but I can't blame the bag for that. He was really excited to have his own sleeping bag, so I guess that's a bonus. I had absolutely no complaints about this bag, hence the perfect rating.

Features: The one feature that stands out on this bag is so simple it seems obvious, but I don't think all bags have it; the Velcro flap over the zipper. It is just at the top to cover the zipper when the bag is closed. I just think it's a simple, but great way to ensure that the child inside doesn't kick open the bag and freeze the rest of the night. It worked great. As I said, my son got his hand out, but he's a pretty wiggly sleeper, so it was nice that the bag kept him relatively contained. The head cover is too small for a standard pillow, but that is simply because it is a child's bag, and the head cover needs to wrap around the head. It didn't lose any points for this, I just mention it so you can make sure you have a smaller pillow if you get this bag.

User-Friendliness: This is one thing that actually surprised me about this sleeping bag. Seeing how small the stuff sack is and how "big" the bag is brought back flashbacks of my youth and trying to shove a mummy bag into a sack that just didn't seem big enough. What surprised me was how easy it actually was to pack the bag. If you fold it in half and roll it up tight it will slide right into the stuff sack without a problem. My wife and I both did it easily. I was very happy about that. I don't want to wrestle with the sleeping bag every time we go camping.

Style: I really like the color scheme of these bags. I also saw a red and black version that looked just as good. I suppose style doesn't keep you warm, but the bag looks really nice. There are plenty of plain solid color mummy bags, so this one seems like a nice, fresh design.

Quality: After getting up close to inspect this bag I was immediately impressed by the quality. The materials are excellent and the stitching is very well done.There are no loose strings and the zipper is thick and durable. My impression is that this bag is going to hold up through a lot of use and for many years.

Value: I purchased this bag for $30. I think MSRP is $39, so it was a little bit of a discount. At $30 it's $10-15 more than a slumber party bag. If you plan on camping in even semi-cold conditions I would say it's worth it. I don't know that you'd find a bag much cheaper that is such high quality and rated to a relatively low temperature.

Final Thoughts: I am very pleased with this sleeping bag. I was a little hesitant to pay more money rather than just piling up blankets, but I am much more satisfied knowing that my son won't easily kick off his sleeping bag. I would (and probably will when my next son is older) buy this bag again. It is well worth the money.

Transcend RDM2 USB Memory Card Reader

The Good: Compact, simple reader that takes a variety of memory cards.

The Bad: The SD slot can be a bit tricky.

Rating:

• Overall Experience: 9
  
• Features: 9
  
• User-Friendliness: 9
  
• Style: 8
  
• Quality: 8
  
• Value: 9
  
• Total: 8.7
  

To see how I rate each category please click Rating Breakdown

In The Box:

Card Reader
USB cable
Instruction sheet and CD-Rom

Manufacturer's Website: Transcend







Overview: The Transcend RDM2 is a pretty basic USB memory card reader. The nice thing about it is being able to plug memory cards directly into your computer rather than searching for the cable to connect your camera, PDA, or whatever device happens to hold the memory. This model accepts the following types of memory cards: SD, MicroSD, MiniSD, Compact Flash I and II, CF Microdrives, a variety of MMC cards, Sony Memory Sticks, and xD. I mostly use the SD and microSD slots, but I have had a compact flash card in it also. It is a simple device that says it will transfer at 480 MB per second. I have a built in card reader on my computer, but found it was extremely small. In my own "non-scientific" tests, this card reader was about 4 times faster than the built in reader. I learned my lesson...I won't pay extra for the built in card reader next time. It's worth the extra speed to have the external reader. Although Transcend no longer lists this particular model on their website, there is a model called the RDM5, which is practically identical except for the case color.

Overall Experience: This has been very easy to use. It has only one main downfall. The first is that the SD slot seems to stick a little. It's not a huge problem, you just have to make sure you have the card lined up just right to get it to slide in easily. I have consistently seen fast transfer rates and I have never had it fail (unlike the very cheap no-name one that came in my camera bundle...it failed after one use).

Features: As far as features go, it would mostly be the speed, which as I said before is much faster than the built in reader in my computer. The other is the variety of memory cards it accepts. That's pretty standard on card readers. It would be pointless to buy a different device for every kind of card you may own. There are some card readers that are faster and accept a few more types of cards.

User-Friendliness: This Card reader has been very easy to use. It was as simple as plugging it in, inserting a card, and finding the correct drive on the My Computer screen (Windows users...don't know for Mac) That can be the difficult part since it will show 6 or 7 new drives representing the slots on the reader. I named the drives I used to make it easier. For example one drive is now called "SD Card."

Style: Overall I like the look of this card reader. The reason it loses points is I feel like it could be a little smaller, or at least put all of the slots on one side so I don't have to turn it to plug in different cards. This is probably a personal preference, but I would prefer if all of the slots pointed to the front.

Quality: The Transcend RDM2 loses quality points because of the sticky SD slot. There is no reason it should be difficult to slide my card in. My camera, phone, and PDA have no problem sliding cards into them. I don't know what causes the problem, but I'm sure it doesn't have to be that way. Perhaps not all of the readers do this, but in my opinion none of them should.

Value: This card reader is a good value. I purchased mine for $14 (which is MSRP) plus shipping. I considered some that were rated faster, but they were more than twice the price. This reader is plenty fast for transferring a couple gig of pictures or files, so I don't feel it would be worth it to pay twice as much for a faster one.

Final Thoughts: The RDM2 card reader is a good value. It's very simple and works correctly every time I use it. I wish it didn't have the problem with the SD card slot. It would have rated a little higher if the cards slid in without problems. For the money, I wouldn't hesitate to buy the same one again. As I said before, I would definitely pass on the built-in readers for my future computers. Although it's nice to avoid one more cable, the speed is far too slow.

Cabela's Self-Inflating Sleeping Pad

The Good: Very Easy to set up and quite comfortable for those who don't think camping requires rocks destroying their back all night.

The Bad: They may be too large for someone who is looking to hike to their camping spot.

Rating:

• Overall Experience: 10
• Features: 10
• User-Friendliness: 10
• Style: 8
• Quality: 9
• Value: 10
• Total: 9.5

To see how I rate each category please click Rating Breakdown

In The Box:

Self-Inflating Sleeping Pad
Stuff Sack
Patch Kit

Manufacturer's Website: Cabela's

Product Link: Cabela's Self-Inflating Sleeping Pad

Overview: Self-inflating sleeping pads are designed to be a relatively compact way to create a comfortable sleeping surface for camping. They are easier to set up and more compact than air mattresses and they don't require a pump. They are larger than the basic foam sleeping pads used by more intense outdoorsmen. I own two of these pads, one for my wife and one for myself. Initially these pads required me to blow air into them to "break them in." It was quite easy and took less than ten minutes for both. After that they inflate automatically when the straps are removed and the valve is opened. It is a matter of a few minutes to have the pads ready to sleep on.

Overall Experience: About a year ago my wife and I swore off camping after having 2 air mattresses fail miserably at keeping us comfortable. They both deflated during the night leaving our butts grinding the rocks on the ground. It was a miserable experience that we pledged to never repeat. Now a year later we are back in the camping mindset, but decided that we needed a better mattress for camping. When we saw the self-inflating pads at Cabela's we immediately saw the advantages that they could have over an air mattress. Our biggest concern was whether something so thin could be sufficiently comfortable. Originally we were looking at name-brand pads that seemed comfortable when we tested them. Then my wife stumbled upon the Cabela's brand pads. I am glad she did. They are thicker, more comfortable, and less expensive. We ended up getting a much larger pad for the same price as the smaller name-brand pad. After taking them camping I couldn't be more pleased. The setup was incredibly easy...It almost hurt to see two sets of friends struggle with air mattresses...pumps need power after all. The comfort exceeded my expectations also. I didn't have an achy back or neck in the morning. I don't know if that diminishes the camping experience, but I appreciated feeling so nice. Putting them away is easy enough, but slightly easier if you have two people.

Features: There aren't many so-called features on something as simple as these, but I would consider the main feature to be the self-inflation. It worked seamlessly; no hitches whatsoever. Remove the straps, open the valve, and over the next few minutes the bag will unroll and inflate. Close the valve and you are ready to put your bag on it and sleep.

User-Friendliness: I guess the features section explained the user-friendliness as well. Really it takes almost no effort to use or pack these pads. They slide easily into the stuff sack, so there is no frustration like the mummy bag that seems like it will never get back into its sack.

Style: Style isn't terribly important for these pads. You won't show off the sweet lines to your friends. However I did deduct two points mostly because the name brand pads had nicer colors and textures. To me it doesn't matter much since it will be under my sleeping bag, out of sight, but some people might want something a little flashier.

Quality: The overall quality if these pads is excellent. The material seems to be durable and able to resist a reasonable amount of poking and scraping. The only reason it loses a point is because of the finish work around the edges. It looks like the edges were just cut and not treated. I don't know if this will be an issue, but I think it may fray slightly. It won't affect the pad in the long run because they are sewn further in from the edge, but I'd prefer if the edge had been folded and sewn to prevent frays.

Value: Comparing this pad to the more expensive pads, I think it is a great value. MSRP is between $39.99 and $59.99 depending on the size. I bought the large pads for $59.99 each. This is the same price as the regular size pads in the name-brand. The Cabela's large pad is five inches wider and a few inches longer. I could have got away with the regular size Cabela's pads, but they were out of stock and we were in a bit of a hurry to get them...otherwise they would have ordered them for us.

Final Thoughts: If you want to camp comfortably without the hassle of an air mattress you should definitely buy this pad. I've seen far too many air mattresses with leaks to ever consider one for myself. This is an excellent alternative. A side note about Cabela's: the Cabela's brand products I have purchased have always been excellent quality. They also excel at customer service. We are fortunate to have an actual store nearby and I have been consistently impressed each time I am there...plus the wildlife scenes in the store make a great day trip for the kids (and adults).

Sandisk Cruzer Micro USB Drive: 4GB and 2GB

The Good: This is a nice jump drive that has a few features that most similar devices don’t have.

The Bad: Sometimes it doesn’t want to eject.

Rating:

• Overall Experience: 9
• Features: 10
• User-Friendliness: 9
• Style: 9
• Quality: 10
• Value: 9
• Total: 9.3

To see how I rate each category please click Rating Breakdown

In The Box:

Sandisk Cruzer Micro 4GB or 2GB

2GB came with Lanyard, 4GB didn’t, don’t know why

Manufacturer’s Website: Sandisk

Review: I own 2 Cruzer Micros. The first is a 2GB that I handed down to my wife since her old jump drive recently failed. The second is my new 4GB. I guess the fact that I was willing to buy a second one tells you how well I like this jump drive.

Overall Experience: Sandisk's Cruzer Micro has been a great addition to my key chain, and my collection of electronics. I store most of my very important files on it including my résumé, work files, and a few pictures that I like to have with me. It has easily been recognized by any computer I have plugged it into.

The only real complaint I have is very small. Sometimes when I try to eject the drive it comes up with a message saying the device cannot be stopped and to see if any programs are still running. I have overcome it with two approaches. The first approach is just waiting for the Cruzer’s light to stop flashing, and then I merely pull it out. As long as the light isn’t flashing there is no activity and it won’t harm the drive. You will get a message the next time you plug it in saying that it was ejected improperly. The second "fix" is that I go into the task manager and end a program called "Winword.exe." I don't know why, but it has always worked, and doesn't do anything to my computer.

To me the Cruzer Micro seems plenty fast, but I don't have other drives to compare it with. For every day use it should be sufficient for most people.

Features: Most USB drives are just standard mass storage devices. The Cruzer Micro is a little different due to a software program loaded on the jump drive. It is called U3, and I really like it. It gives you an icon in the task bar that you can click on to instantly access your Cruzer. It also puts a similar button on your desktop while the drive is plugged in. No more going through "My Computer." When you click on the task bar, it shows a list of programs, and a list of options, and even has an "Eject" button. You can download a lot of programs to use on your Cruzer. They have a pretty extensive list of applications. My favorite is the mobile Firefox web browser. I can save my bookmarks (favorites for Internet Explorer users), and my login/passwords directly on my jump drive. That way if I am on a strange computer I can quickly access the web pages I like to visit. If you do not care for the U3 software, Sandisk offers instructions on how to safely uninstall it to use the drive like a normal jump drive. Right here you can see a snapshot of what the U3 Launchpad looks like:

Another feature I find very useful is a built-in password protection. If someone picks up your drive and plugs it into a computer they won't be able to access your personal files. Keep in mind that if you lose it and have a password protection, people won't be able to find out who to return it to.

User-Friendliness: The Cruzer Micro is very easy to use. As I stated before, it always loads up on new computers without any problem. The U3 software has a quick tutorial and an easy to use interface. The only less user-friendly part is the above mentioned ejecting issue.

Style: You can only get so much style out of a device that is this small, but I like what they have done. It is just a rectangle, but it is small, and has a great retractable USB slot. I like not having a lid to break (been there), or lose (done that). It also has a loop to attach to a keychain; pretty standard on jump drives, but this one is a metal ring attached to a metal bar. It's not going to break like the key fobs for my keyless entry.

Quality: Before purchasing this I was cautioned that because it had a moving part that was made out of plastic, the retractable slot would probably break. After more than a year of ownership of my 2GB drive, I am happy to report that this is not a concern. The retractor shows no signs of breaking or wearing out. It works just as well as when I bought it. Keep in mind that I use these on an almost daily basis, and some of the USB ports I have plugged it into were extremely tight. I think it measures high on quality.

Value: The retail price of these drives looks quite steep. The MSRP on the 4GB is $69.99 and the 2GB is $39.99. Luckily they don't sell for anything near that price. I got both of mine as Black Friday door-busters, so you probably won't find a deal like mine, but the 4GB should be less than $35.00 normally, and maybe cheaper if you find a deal. Expect the 2 GB to be under $25.00. There are various similar models including the Cruzer Titanium, but I haven't used the others. At the real retail prices, these jump drives are a great value, at MSRP, not worth it.

Final Thoughts: The Cruzer Micro is a dependable jump drive with advanced features for those who would use them. I have recommended them consistently to family members, and several now own them. If you want a solid drive, that can be used daily, the Cruzer Micro is a great choice.

Rating Breakdown

Since I am just a real person reviewing products I don't have a lot of fancy measuring equipment. I merely strive to report my general perception in each category that I rate. I intend for real people to read this who will use the products on a daily basis the way I use it. If you have any questions about any product feel free to e-mail me at my e-mail.

Here is a breakdown of how I rate each category:

Overall Experience: This one is pretty self-explanatory. I put the item through normal use and attempt to describe my experience.

Features: I breakdown important features of the item; features that might set it apart from similar products. I then assess how well the features perform.

User-Friendliness: If an item has all of the features in the world, but is nearly impossible to use it is worthless. This category will rate how easy the item is to set-up, use, maintain, etc...

Style: Although style is not the most important consideration in some purchases, it can influence our purchase decisions. With that in mind I determine whether I feel the item is styled in a way that is pleasing to use and own.

Quality: This might be the trickiest rating. I can only evaluate the initial quality of products. Some items appear to be high quality, but fail quickly. I will give my initial impression of quality. If I find a major flaw in the future I reserve the right to update the rating, and I will note the before and after ratings.

Value: Price is a big factor in almost every purchase. Prices are also ever changing. I will list the manufacturer's suggested retail price (MSRP) along with the price I paid for the item. I will then rate whether the item is worth the price it can be purchased at, putting a money element to the quality, features, etc.

Total: The total is merely the average rating of the above categories. I use a scale of 1-10 for all categories and the total. 1 would be an absolutely horrible product, while 10 would be reaching perfection meaning that nothing could improve the product.

Canon SD850 IS Digital Elph

The Good: The Canon SD850IS offers great pictures, 4X optical zoom, and excellent battery life in a very compact package. The image stabilization makes it possible for anyone to get blur-free shots. It is an excellent point-and-shoot camera that is easy to pack around.

The Bad: The flash can only do so much to help in poorly lit rooms. Somewhat prone to red-eye.

Rating:

• Overall Experience: 10
• Features: 10
• User Friendliness: 9
• Style: 9
• Quality: 8
• Value: 9
• Total: 9.2/10
  

To see how I rate each category please click Rating Breakdown

In The Box:

Canon SD850IS
Wrist Strap
Battery Pack
AC Powered Batter Charger
Audio/Video Cable
CD-ROM with Canon Software
32MB SD Card

Note: At this time I don’t have pictures of the camera. I will post them shortly when I borrow another camera to take the pictures.

Review: This is my third digital camera. The first two served their purpose, and I was able to get pretty good pictures out of them. On the other hand I was constantly frustrated with the amount of time it took to take a picture after turning on the camera and in between pictures. My camera search led me to the Canon SD850IS. It fit my budget and had a lot of features I did not expect to find.

Overall Experience: After I opened the box and let the battery fully charged it did not take long to find myself taking great pictures. I mostly use the auto mode because it seems to work for almost all situations. I have tinkered with the scene modes, and except for the “fun” modes I don’t see much improvement over the auto mode in the camera. I like using with the macro mode, since I can get unbelievable levels of detail from close-up objects. The camera takes pictures quickly, and there is a much faster flash recycle time than I am used to. That means I can turn the camera on and take a picture in about a second; much faster than my last two cameras. The only real downsides are that, as with many point-and-shoot cameras, the flash can only reach so far, so indoor shots can be tricky, and it tends to create red eyes. This can be corrected using the redeye correction in the camera itself.

I have no regrets from purchasing this camera. Although I would love to have an SLR to have a fully functional manual camera, that isn’t the purpose of this camera, so I consider it an excellent point-and-shoot camera for anyone. I give it a perfect score for overall experience because the few shortcomings are easily overshadowed by the feature set and usability.

Features: The feature that was really the selling point for me was the optical image stabilization. I was able to test a display model before purchasing, and even while shaking my hands up and down I took a clear picture. It was enough to convince my wife in an instant. Now that I own the camera I am no less impressed. It takes clear pictures almost every time.

Another feature that is new to many digital cameras is Face Recognition. This camera does a good job of identifying faces and focusing on them. It will focus on several faces at once as long as the faces are looking at the camera.

This Camera has a nice big 2.5” high resolution LCD on the back, and also a small optical viewfinder, although the viewfinder is essentially “for emergency use” since it is very small and difficult to see through. The high resolution of the LCD was one of the selling points that attracted me to the camera in the first place. Another feature I like is the 4X optical zoom, a bit more than the 3X that seems to be the standard for compact point-and-shoot cameras.

The Canon features a proprietary rechargeable battery. It is a high quality lithium battery that Canon says will get 230 shots with the LCD on. I think this is pretty accurate as I seem to be getting over 200 shots including shots with and without flash.

User-Friendliness: Using the SD850 is pretty straight forward, and should be easy for anyone to pick up quickly. The on/off switch is located just above the LCD to the right of the viewfinder. There are 4 basic shooting categories; Auto, Manual, Scene, and Video. They are accessed with a small selector wheel found at the top right on the back of the camera. The top position is the playback for pictures and videos stored on the memory card (the camera has no built in memory, and the included 32MB card will only take about 3 pictures, so plan on getting a card that is at least 1GB. My 2 GB card will hold about 560 of the largest, finest quality pictures).

The menus and functions are relatively easy to find using the various buttons and directional pad. One cool feature of the directional pad is that if you press it lightly, it will show you on the LCD screen what would happen if you press it all the way down. The zoom ring, which is wrapped around the shutter button is easy to use and has a nice feel.

The camera has many modes and features. Since I don’t have room to write about them all I will direct you to Canon’s Website

Style: Overall I like the design of the Canon SD850 IS. It isn’t flashy or colorful, but it looks nice and fits nicely in my hands. People with large fingers may find some of the controls hard to get used to, but I think anyone could use this camera. One of the most important style elements to me is the large LCD screen. No more squinting to see if I got everyone in the picture. I like the directional pad, and from a purely “looks” standpoint I like the look of the lens with the chrome bezel.

Quality: The SD850 would have scored higher in quality except for one problem area. The mode selection wheel on the side is very cheap feeling. It is obviously made of a cheap plastic. I don’t think it will break or wear out, but for a camera of this price I would expect it to be a bit nicer. The icons on the wheel quite line up to their corresponding arrow. A minor annoyance, but definitely a quality issue.

Value: Canon lists the SD 850IS with an MSRP of $299.00. It can be found for less than that. I got mine for $245.00 plus shipping. For an excellent camera, that anyone can get great shots from, I consider it to be an excellent value.

Final Thoughts: The Canon SD850IS is a great camera to pack around. I haven't had to worry about the batteries dying or whether I am getting good shots. I can just turn it on and take the picture knowing it will turn out fine. I would recommend this camera without hesitation.