Peripherals

[Stringy Pete]

Sitecom USB Bluetooth Adapter
http://www.julie.spooner.btinternet.co.uk/reviews/bt_box.jpg

Cost £19.99 - Maplin (http://www.maplin.co.uk)

I recently bought a new phone with that new fangled contraption called 'bluetooth'. After having been assured that this would make my life heaven on earth, I decided to purchase a USB Bluetooth adapter, so that I could magically zing pictures from my phone to my Computer. Upon entering Maplin, I proceeded to pick up the cheapest one, safe in the knowledge that if it was pants then I'd get a refund. However, this was quite a find.

Upon returning home, I opened the box and was pleasantly surprised at the bundle that came with it.
http://www.julie.spooner.btinternet.co.uk/reviews/bt_bundle.jpg
It comprised of the Driver CD, an instruction manual (in 6 different languages) a USB extension lead, and the Adapter itself. The only downside to this bundle was that the extension lead was a little short (under 2 feet) and as such I had to free up a valuable front USB port.
The device itself was shockingly small, once plugged in it protrudes no more than 2 inches from the computer chassis.
http://www.julie.spooner.btinternet.co.uk/reviews/bt_size.jpg

Setup of the bluetooth device took minutes, and after very little anguish and heartache, I was up and running.

Pairing the Computer with my phone took very little time, and I was impressed with the amount of options on offer. Not only can you send files from the computer to the phone and vice-versa, but from the computer you can remotely access files on the phone itself. This means that if you've got pictures that you've taken previously on your phone and you wish to transfer them to the computer, the phone doesn't even have to leave your pocket.
On top of this you can synchronise your Outlook address book with your phone (phone features permitting) and you can use your phone for dial up internet access.

The device seemed quite physically capable as well. Although the connection between the computer and phone seemed to be thwarted by brick walls, it managed to exchange files through 2 wooden doors, and was also able to send/receive through the ceiling/floor. I am yet to test the strength of the signal with anything other than my phone (motorola v500) but I am hoping to test it with a Bluetooth PDA as this should yield better results.

To sum up
Pros
-Cheap
-Impressive Bundle
-Small Size
Cons
-Short extension cable
-Thwarted by brick walls
-Fed my addiction of Mobile Picture taking

I would heartily recommend this to anyone who wishes to bluetooth their PC.

9/10

P.S. All pictures were taken with Motorola v500 and bluetoothed to PC. Snazzy

[wyrd_fish]

Another USB bluetooth adapter

MSI Bluetoes Bluetooth adapter

My dad bought it under recommendation, and at around £20 it's not too bad

Box Contents
The case contained a driver disc, piece of string for carrying it around, instruction leaflet, a manual and the actual dongle.

Nouthing fancy like an extension cable, but I don't see the need.

Aesthetics
The device it's self is very swish, its matt silver with a bright blue led to tell you when it's working.

The string is really a piece of narrow webbing which is very comfy and white.

Functionality
The device it's self works well, has little trouble with floors and manages, just, with walls.

It has a range of around 10m, unobstructed, which is good, as that’s what the box said.

The instruction leaflet is little more than "Put the damn disc in", but the manual, that of it i read ;) , seems quite nice.

The strings attachment to the dongle is by the actual USB jack and fits quite snugly. I'd quite happily swirl it around my head with out fear of it coming loose and breaking a window..

So far so good...

But alas there's a rather large fly in the ointment, I'd go so far to say a bluebottle :eek:

The drivers that came with it are incredibly buggy, I had to download some new one as the original one were unusable.

Conclusion
Nicely made by a reputable brand, but the drivers (still) need work :(

Worth the money I'd say as it's fine for my uses :) ie. finding the temp of my phone battery... *mental note: get life*

[sidneylopsides]

I just had one of those MSI ones, the manual was huge! Gave you exact details of how to use each funtion with specific devices like the Sony Ericsson T68i.

One feature missing off the MSI one which prompted me to get a Belkin one instead is the HID profile, for BT mice, keyboards etc.

Belkin USB Bluetooth Adaptor
£25
The Belkin Bluetooth adaptor is longer than th MSI one, about 4.5cm. It is matt black with a blue LED. Installation is the same as any other dongle, the WHQL drivers don't exist yet or Bluetooth, MS are still working on it.
The connectivity is very good, qorks with everything straight away so far. I wanted the HID profile for my Sony Ericsson K700i, which can control my laptop through this. It can be used as a remote control for media player etc.
The best BT adaptor I have used yet!

[MONKEY050]

Sorry I started a new thread for this review. I missed this thread for peripherals. However, I've remedied the situation, so whenever Ash gets to deleting it, fine.

Today I got the Wacom Graphire3 4x5 graphics tablet. Our school is currently using either the 1 or the 2.

Anyways, I'll cut to the chase.
The 4x5 Graphire3 is great for Flash animators and integrates wonderfully with Flash MX 2004 Pro. It has 512 levels of sensitivity and requires no batters whatsoever for operation. The tablet is run off of USB power, and the drivers are available from the Wacom website (www.wacom.com). That shows that the company cares well for its customers, from what I can tell. The Graphire3 is a great tablet if you are a bit mobile and now features an in-tablet compartment for the pen. Operation is simple and customizable from how much sensitivity you want for the pen to how fast the mouse should move in accordance to the pad.

In my opinion, it's a great tablet to have now that I'm taking Computer Graphics and Computer Animation at my school, and soon they're upgrading my computer room to Graphire3's, so I'll be familiar with it.
I give it 9/10 stars.

Oh, and I can't forget it comes with the following bundled software:
- Adobe Photoshop Elements 2
- Corel Painter Essentials 2
- nik Color Efex Pro 2 GE

Edit: OK, it seems as if I've missed some things.
There's a new top layer on the Graphire3, made of a durable plastic rather than a stupid flap that gets filled with static electricity, and it's more convenient. Also, and as long as you don't lose it, it comes with an extra stand-up pen holder, like a little inkwell with the Wacom logo. Another pro is the mouse now has a nice soft pad on the bottom rather than plastic that way it doesn't scratch the tablet surface too much. Wacom greatly enhanced this tablet in the series and I'm happy with it. Picture coming soon.....

edit: now.
http://img385.imageshack.us/img385/5408/wacom3wc.jpg