The O-Duster from O-Ceder is described as a robotic floor cleaning product, and at a price range of $20-$50, it's hard to resist the impulse buy. I mean who wouldn't buy a robot for under 50 bucks that cleans your floor. In reality, however, the O-Duster is a pretty simplistic device. And there are some things to consider before buying. Let's review what you need to know.
Be Realistic: If you expect the O-Duster to be a cheap alternative to a $400 Roomba, You will be very disappointed. It does not have a vacuum component. It simply picks up dust, dirt and and pet hair by sweeping it up with its disposable microfiber cloth. Also, the O-Duster does not have sensors to keep it from going down the stairs or to focus more attention on more dirty areas. It uses a simple grid pattern making its way over the entire floor.
How does it work?: The underside of the O-duster has two wheels on a rotating axle meaning that the whole device spins sweeping the floor with the microfiber pad while the wheels propel it across the room. It picks up dirt quite well as it moves, and when it encounters an obstacle it will usually self-correct and change direction after struggling for a few seconds.
What you should know: The O-Duster picks up quite a lot, but if you use it on a floor with a lot of pet hair and dirt, the cleaning pads will need to be replaced quickly. Also, if you have a lot of dog hair to deal with, you may encounter the problem I did. The axle and wheel housing is not sealed, so you may have to do some maintenance to remove pet hair that jams up the wheels. After a few uses, my O-Duster stopped moving. It would sit in one spot and spin. I found that the wheel assembly is easily removed and that, in my case, dog hair had become wound around the axle stopping it from moving. After cleaning, the O-Duster went right back to working like it had.
Overall: I'm pleased with my purchase of the O-Duster ($20 impulse buy at ALDI.) It picks up well, cuts down on the sweeping I have to do and gets problem areas like under the couch. It won't replace your broom and dust pan but it certainly helps. It won't perform miracles, but it will save you time and energy around the house, and for a low price, it's a pretty good deal.
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Sunday, March 9, 2014
Sunday, January 5, 2014
Furinno 10025 Simple Design Coffee Table Review
The Furinno 10025 Simple Design Coffee Table is very affordable and has a functional design, but it may not live up to high expectations. Let's review.
First let's talk price. This Furinno table is $36.39 on amazon. This is much cheaper than the hundreds of dollars you could spend on a higher quality table. The important difference is that more expensive tables are not made of particle board and are designed to last. This is a cheap table made from cheap materials. However, cheap doesn't necesarily mean poor quality and if you don't plan to subject it to great abuse, this table might not be a bad idea.
This table is attractive and features a nice finish and lower shelf for remotes, magazines, etc. One notable problem is that while the finish looks good it is not durable and will chip off rather easily. You could say that this is more of a decorative piece than a functional table as it can damage easily.
One really annoying yet easily adjusted problem I found was that after assembling, the legs were uneven creating a wobbly table. This was due to an issue with the little plastic feet installed to the bottom of the table legs. No one likes a wobbly coffee table, but a penny placed under the offending foot quickly fixed the problem. Installation was pretty quick and simple requiring little more than a screw driver. After about 20 minutes I had a decent looking coffee table.
So to review, the Furinno 10025 Simple Design Coffee table is not great but not bad. If you just want something to hold your remote and TV Guide, get it. It will do the job well. If you are buying for decorative purposes, make sure that the finish durability issue won't be a problem, and then give it a shot for under $40. If you want something to stand up to heavy use for years to come, you may want to consider spending the extra cash for something better. With reasonable expectations for a cheap piece of furniture, the Furinno 10025 Simple Design Coffee Table is a pretty good buy and probably the best you'll find in the price range.
Wednesday, January 1, 2014
Perfect Pushup Power 10 Advance DVD review
Perfect Pushup Power 10 Advance is a quick workout targeting upper body muscles. Essentially this is a cheap simple fifteen minute workout utilizing the perfect pushup bars (sold separately.) Let's review:
The price: The Perfect Pushup Power 10 Advance DVD is a whopping 6 bucks on Amazon.
The DVD: Workouts are broken into three five minute categories of chest, arms, and shoulders. Each section uses multiple exercises to work the body from different angles.
The Good: The Perfect Pushup is a really great tool and power 10 Advance offers some really great ways to use it. these are the kind of workouts where a little definitely goes a long way. It's a solid workout in a small burst. It should be noted, however, that this is not a complete system and you can't expect huge results from 15 minutes a day.
The bad: Alden Mills is the creator of the Perfect Pushup which is awesome, but he is also a really annoying host of this DVD. If you're one of the people who thinks Tony Horton is a D-bag, then you will hate this guy. If you like Horton and P90X, you still may hate this guy. Just a little over the top macho jock gym coach crap that gets annoying fast. But I guess being a Navy seal and creator of Perfect Pushup, I can let it slide.
The Value: Gotta say it's good. Clearly it is not in the same category as the 60 day and 90 day workouts out there that cost an arm and a leg, but for $6 I wouldn't expect it to be. The workout's are good, and it's less than a meal at Burger King, so in conclusion...drop the sandwich and do some pushups.
The price: The Perfect Pushup Power 10 Advance DVD is a whopping 6 bucks on Amazon.
The DVD: Workouts are broken into three five minute categories of chest, arms, and shoulders. Each section uses multiple exercises to work the body from different angles.
The Good: The Perfect Pushup is a really great tool and power 10 Advance offers some really great ways to use it. these are the kind of workouts where a little definitely goes a long way. It's a solid workout in a small burst. It should be noted, however, that this is not a complete system and you can't expect huge results from 15 minutes a day.
The bad: Alden Mills is the creator of the Perfect Pushup which is awesome, but he is also a really annoying host of this DVD. If you're one of the people who thinks Tony Horton is a D-bag, then you will hate this guy. If you like Horton and P90X, you still may hate this guy. Just a little over the top macho jock gym coach crap that gets annoying fast. But I guess being a Navy seal and creator of Perfect Pushup, I can let it slide.
The Value: Gotta say it's good. Clearly it is not in the same category as the 60 day and 90 day workouts out there that cost an arm and a leg, but for $6 I wouldn't expect it to be. The workout's are good, and it's less than a meal at Burger King, so in conclusion...drop the sandwich and do some pushups.
Thursday, April 4, 2013
Ginseng Up Natural Energy Review
The tagline for Ginseng Up is "The Root of All Power." Obviously, this plays to two markets, hitting both the energy drink fans out there and those seeking all natural products attracted to the natural root aspect. Firstly we have to look at Ginseng itself. Ginseng is a very popular supplement which is found in many energy drinks and sports supplements because of its energy production. Also, Ginseng is believed to have many overall health benefits. As a supplement, it can be found in pill forms, drink mixes and teas.
The product we're looking at today is more like a natural Ginseng soda which makes it a lot different from other products on the market. It is sold in 12 oz glass bottles and comes in 13 flavors including Original, Grape, Pineapple, Cola and others. As far as taste, I can only testify to Original and grape, as they are the only one's I've tried. The taste however, is very good in both. The drinks are sweetened with natural cane sugar; there's no high fructose corn syrup here. I also like that the Grape version has 28 percent real grape juice. That's significantly more than some "Grape juice Cocktails" commercially sold.
In terms of nutrition facts, Ginseng Up is comparable to other sodas in that it has a lot of sugar and calories. This is not a low-carb, low-cal health drink, but it does have good things in it while leaving out some of the preservatives in other beverages. The grape variety provides 30 percent daily value of vitamin C, 37 grams of sugar, and 150 calories. Original flavor is about the same but ten calories less, fewer carbs and more Vitamin C. Now, for effectiveness, I give Ginseng Up a high score! In my experience, The energy production seems to be stronger for me than with energy drinks while not making me jittery or anxious. It seems to be a clean good feeling energy. This of course could be the result of my body not being used to real sugar, or even an example of a placebo effect. All I can say for sure is it seems to work well for me.
The price at my local Health Food Store is $1.99 a bottle which is about the same as many energy drinks, and a lot less than a few of them. The ingredients are great, and the energy boost is notable. Overall, I have to say Ginseng Up is a really great product!\
The product we're looking at today is more like a natural Ginseng soda which makes it a lot different from other products on the market. It is sold in 12 oz glass bottles and comes in 13 flavors including Original, Grape, Pineapple, Cola and others. As far as taste, I can only testify to Original and grape, as they are the only one's I've tried. The taste however, is very good in both. The drinks are sweetened with natural cane sugar; there's no high fructose corn syrup here. I also like that the Grape version has 28 percent real grape juice. That's significantly more than some "Grape juice Cocktails" commercially sold.
In terms of nutrition facts, Ginseng Up is comparable to other sodas in that it has a lot of sugar and calories. This is not a low-carb, low-cal health drink, but it does have good things in it while leaving out some of the preservatives in other beverages. The grape variety provides 30 percent daily value of vitamin C, 37 grams of sugar, and 150 calories. Original flavor is about the same but ten calories less, fewer carbs and more Vitamin C. Now, for effectiveness, I give Ginseng Up a high score! In my experience, The energy production seems to be stronger for me than with energy drinks while not making me jittery or anxious. It seems to be a clean good feeling energy. This of course could be the result of my body not being used to real sugar, or even an example of a placebo effect. All I can say for sure is it seems to work well for me.
The price at my local Health Food Store is $1.99 a bottle which is about the same as many energy drinks, and a lot less than a few of them. The ingredients are great, and the energy boost is notable. Overall, I have to say Ginseng Up is a really great product!\
Beachbody TurboFire Review
TurboFire is an exercise program from Beachbody, the same company behind Insanity and P90X. This program utilizes some of the same strategies featured in both of those programs while taking a slightly different approach. Is TurboFire worth buying or is it just a repeat of Beachbody's previous offerings? Let's review.
What is TurboFire?
Much like Insanity, This is an intensive cardio workout. These workouts are aimed primarily at burning calories and shedding weight. One distinction between TurboFire and Insanity is that this is a 90 day program as opposed to Insanity's 60 day. Additionally, this one is clearly marketed more toward women. For those women trying to lose weight and feeling like Shaun T doesn't represent their goals, Charlene Johnson is easier to identify with. Furthermore, where Insanity and P90X use more of a military drill style to their presentation, TurboFire uses more upbeat music and energy.
What's included with TurboFire?
The program includes 5 DVDs featuring different cardio workouts at different levels. One positive point is that the workouts range from 10 minutes to 55 minutes. There are four cardio disks containing multiple workouts including low impact and max intervals, and one stretch disk for post-workout. Of course it's Beachbody, so you can also get bonus items at check out to enhance the experience.
How much does TurboFire cost?
The price is around $80 for the DVD set itself, but after shipping, the total price is around $100. More if you opt for extras.
Claims VS. Reality: Is TurboFire worth it?
Beachbody claims that TurboFire is "the best workout" with "the best music." They also claim that TurboFire burns "more fat in half the time." The fact is that the science is there and the exercises here will burn calories, but there are other things to consider. The system TurboFire uses is high intensity interval training. This kind of training is excellent for burning calories, but it is not exclusive to these DVD workouts. The key is maintaining a high heart rate while exercising at max for one minute intervals. This is the same system used by other workout programs or by independent training. It is a good workout, but you don't have to have the DVDs to do interval training. The main selling point is the music. This really is a big factor, because motivation is key, and it's hard to stay motivated doing these exercises without something to keep you going. The upbeat music definitely keeps things moving. In the end, TurboFire has a lot good to offer, but really depends on the customer. If you can do the high intensity intervals on your own without getting burned out, that's great, but for most of us who need a little more motivation, TurboFire is a great tool to achieve our fitness goals.
Related Reviews:
Bowflex Uppercut Review
Insanity Review
Tower 200 Review
\
Empower Cardio Core Fitness Hoop (Google Affiliate Ad)
What is TurboFire?
Much like Insanity, This is an intensive cardio workout. These workouts are aimed primarily at burning calories and shedding weight. One distinction between TurboFire and Insanity is that this is a 90 day program as opposed to Insanity's 60 day. Additionally, this one is clearly marketed more toward women. For those women trying to lose weight and feeling like Shaun T doesn't represent their goals, Charlene Johnson is easier to identify with. Furthermore, where Insanity and P90X use more of a military drill style to their presentation, TurboFire uses more upbeat music and energy.
What's included with TurboFire?
The program includes 5 DVDs featuring different cardio workouts at different levels. One positive point is that the workouts range from 10 minutes to 55 minutes. There are four cardio disks containing multiple workouts including low impact and max intervals, and one stretch disk for post-workout. Of course it's Beachbody, so you can also get bonus items at check out to enhance the experience.
How much does TurboFire cost?
The price is around $80 for the DVD set itself, but after shipping, the total price is around $100. More if you opt for extras.
Claims VS. Reality: Is TurboFire worth it?
Beachbody claims that TurboFire is "the best workout" with "the best music." They also claim that TurboFire burns "more fat in half the time." The fact is that the science is there and the exercises here will burn calories, but there are other things to consider. The system TurboFire uses is high intensity interval training. This kind of training is excellent for burning calories, but it is not exclusive to these DVD workouts. The key is maintaining a high heart rate while exercising at max for one minute intervals. This is the same system used by other workout programs or by independent training. It is a good workout, but you don't have to have the DVDs to do interval training. The main selling point is the music. This really is a big factor, because motivation is key, and it's hard to stay motivated doing these exercises without something to keep you going. The upbeat music definitely keeps things moving. In the end, TurboFire has a lot good to offer, but really depends on the customer. If you can do the high intensity intervals on your own without getting burned out, that's great, but for most of us who need a little more motivation, TurboFire is a great tool to achieve our fitness goals.
Related Reviews:
Bowflex Uppercut Review
Insanity Review
Tower 200 Review
\
Empower Cardio Core Fitness Hoop (Google Affiliate Ad)
Saturday, March 30, 2013
Rocket Fitness Push Up Pump Review
Push Up Pump is a new exercise device you may have seen on the shelves of your local stores. It has a similar design to the UpperCut from Bowflex. Of course this is not a coincidence, as every new fitness device that comes out has a cheaper alternative in stores. Sometimes these are a good deal over the expensive items sold on TV, while others are sad knockoffs that don't live up to the claims. Does the Push Up Pump hold up? Let's review.
What is Push Up Pump?
Push ups are one of the best exercises for upper body strength and overall fitness. Companies have capitalized on this by releasing products that provide a greater range of possibilities and/or increase intensity to the basic pushup. Products like the perfect pushup, or standard pushup bars have found there way into homes around the world, and Push Up Pump is the latest product hoping for the same success. The device works as kind of a backwards bench press with your chest resting on a cushioned plank with hand grips extending from side arms. As you push down on the machines arms it moves the plank up as though you are bench pressing yourself. You have the option of three resistance cables which will add up to 65 pounds of resistance. In addition to the resistance, Push Up Pump provides options for different push up position. The arms have three hand grips for standard width, close, or wide.
What's good abut Push Up Pump?
The different handgrips allow for targeted workouts to focus more on triceps, shoulders, back, etc. The structure of the device positions the user in a way different than a traditional pushup creating a different kind of workout. The added resistance is nice and works well to target the arms.
What's bad about Push Up Pump?
First off, while it is sturdy and stable, some parts of the construction seam cheap and may not hold up so well over time. Also the design does not allow for very deep push ups. The fact that you can only move about halfway compared to a regular pushup almost cancels out the positives of the added resistance and makes the Push Up Pump a decent arm workout, but a poor tool for chest workouts. Furthermore, the $100 it goes for in stores is a little high for what you get.
Overall
The Push Up Pump has some good ideas and some good designs but it also has its flaws. The good aspects are simply not enough to justify the price. This would be a great product at $19.95 or pretty good if it was $30-$50, but for $100 you could definitely find something better. In the end, it's just not worth it.
What is Push Up Pump?
Push ups are one of the best exercises for upper body strength and overall fitness. Companies have capitalized on this by releasing products that provide a greater range of possibilities and/or increase intensity to the basic pushup. Products like the perfect pushup, or standard pushup bars have found there way into homes around the world, and Push Up Pump is the latest product hoping for the same success. The device works as kind of a backwards bench press with your chest resting on a cushioned plank with hand grips extending from side arms. As you push down on the machines arms it moves the plank up as though you are bench pressing yourself. You have the option of three resistance cables which will add up to 65 pounds of resistance. In addition to the resistance, Push Up Pump provides options for different push up position. The arms have three hand grips for standard width, close, or wide.
What's good abut Push Up Pump?
The different handgrips allow for targeted workouts to focus more on triceps, shoulders, back, etc. The structure of the device positions the user in a way different than a traditional pushup creating a different kind of workout. The added resistance is nice and works well to target the arms.
What's bad about Push Up Pump?
First off, while it is sturdy and stable, some parts of the construction seam cheap and may not hold up so well over time. Also the design does not allow for very deep push ups. The fact that you can only move about halfway compared to a regular pushup almost cancels out the positives of the added resistance and makes the Push Up Pump a decent arm workout, but a poor tool for chest workouts. Furthermore, the $100 it goes for in stores is a little high for what you get.
Overall
The Push Up Pump has some good ideas and some good designs but it also has its flaws. The good aspects are simply not enough to justify the price. This would be a great product at $19.95 or pretty good if it was $30-$50, but for $100 you could definitely find something better. In the end, it's just not worth it.
Bowflex Uppercut Review
Sunny Health And Fitness 2-Pk. Push-Up Bars (Google Affiliate Ad)
The Bowflex Uppercut is the latest exercise device to appear all over late night TV infomercials. Bowflex has a long history of success in the marketing and sales of Exercise equipment. Uppercut is their newest product, but is it worth the price?
What is Uppercut?
Bowflex markets this device as an all around workout. It's used to perform exercises such as flys, pikes and pushups. The product features two handles connected to a base buy moving arms and resistance bands with three adjustable resistance levels. The design adds resistance to pushup type exercises and allows for you to perform lower body and ab exercises against the same resistance.
What Does Uppercut Do?
Many exercises can be performed with the Bowflex Uppercut. The movements of the Uppercut allow you to work out with hands on the device for upper body exercises like resistance pushups and chest flys, or feet on performing abdominal workouts such as pikes, jackknifes and ab rollouts.
What are The Claims?
Bowflex claims that with the Uppercut, you will be doing "the toughest exercises on the planet" which will "activate 30% more muscles." This is typical sales jargon used to move products, nothing more. Don't buy the hype when a company tells you "Our product will build 50% more muscle…increase strength 40% faster…etc." notice that they don't say "than." That is to say that they don't tell you 30% more muscle than…what? There's a reason for this. It's just marketing hype that sounds good to people who aren't paying attention.
How Much does Uppercut Really Cost?
The infomercials and Bowflex website both say $14.95. This is, however, for a trial, and the total cost is significantly more. First let's take a look at the shipping. A 30 day trial is $14.95 , but the shipping is $19.95. Shipping is more than the cost of the trial. Also consider that after the trial ends you will be billed for the remaining cost of the product bringing your total to around $120 depending on options at checkout.
Is it Worth it?
Is the Bowflex Uppercut worth buying? The best answer I can give is maybe. It kind of depends on your priorities. One issue that I have with this piece of equipment is that, while it does have a somewhat unique design, the exercises it offers are not unique to it and many of them can be performed with alternate and often cheaper means. For example many of the ab exercises can be performed with a $10 stability ball or an Ab Wheel. Personally, I like the Power Wheel II from Lifeline for these kind of exercises. But, the Power Wheel sells for around $50 and cannot perform near all of the exercises the Uppercut offers.
As far as chest workouts go, the Uppercut is pretty great, but again, there are other options. For flys and highly challenging pushups, I like Health Mark's "Torso Cross" and the "Ultimate Body Press" with Push up rings. However, Torso Cross runs about $40 while Ultimate Body Press sells for over $100. So what it comes down to is that there are better devices out there, but the Uppercut doesn't sound like too bad a deal when you look at the cost of these other pieces of equipment. Additionally convenience is a big selling point with the ability to perform different exercises with one relatively small piece of equipment. Whether or not this latest offering from Bowflex is a good purchase depends on your needs, finances and desire for convenience.
Overall
Overall, I have to say this is a good one, not amazing or revolutionary, but good. The price is a little high for what you're getting, but it's not near as high as many exercise products advertised on late night TV. In the end I have to give the Bowflex Uppercut a grade of B-.
You may also like:
Body By Jake Tower 200 Review
Ultimate Body Press Review
Iso7X Review
Insanity Workout Review
The Bowflex Uppercut is the latest exercise device to appear all over late night TV infomercials. Bowflex has a long history of success in the marketing and sales of Exercise equipment. Uppercut is their newest product, but is it worth the price?
What is Uppercut?
Bowflex markets this device as an all around workout. It's used to perform exercises such as flys, pikes and pushups. The product features two handles connected to a base buy moving arms and resistance bands with three adjustable resistance levels. The design adds resistance to pushup type exercises and allows for you to perform lower body and ab exercises against the same resistance.
What Does Uppercut Do?
Many exercises can be performed with the Bowflex Uppercut. The movements of the Uppercut allow you to work out with hands on the device for upper body exercises like resistance pushups and chest flys, or feet on performing abdominal workouts such as pikes, jackknifes and ab rollouts.
What are The Claims?
Bowflex claims that with the Uppercut, you will be doing "the toughest exercises on the planet" which will "activate 30% more muscles." This is typical sales jargon used to move products, nothing more. Don't buy the hype when a company tells you "Our product will build 50% more muscle…increase strength 40% faster…etc." notice that they don't say "than." That is to say that they don't tell you 30% more muscle than…what? There's a reason for this. It's just marketing hype that sounds good to people who aren't paying attention.
How Much does Uppercut Really Cost?
The infomercials and Bowflex website both say $14.95. This is, however, for a trial, and the total cost is significantly more. First let's take a look at the shipping. A 30 day trial is $14.95 , but the shipping is $19.95. Shipping is more than the cost of the trial. Also consider that after the trial ends you will be billed for the remaining cost of the product bringing your total to around $120 depending on options at checkout.
Is it Worth it?
Is the Bowflex Uppercut worth buying? The best answer I can give is maybe. It kind of depends on your priorities. One issue that I have with this piece of equipment is that, while it does have a somewhat unique design, the exercises it offers are not unique to it and many of them can be performed with alternate and often cheaper means. For example many of the ab exercises can be performed with a $10 stability ball or an Ab Wheel. Personally, I like the Power Wheel II from Lifeline for these kind of exercises. But, the Power Wheel sells for around $50 and cannot perform near all of the exercises the Uppercut offers.
As far as chest workouts go, the Uppercut is pretty great, but again, there are other options. For flys and highly challenging pushups, I like Health Mark's "Torso Cross" and the "Ultimate Body Press" with Push up rings. However, Torso Cross runs about $40 while Ultimate Body Press sells for over $100. So what it comes down to is that there are better devices out there, but the Uppercut doesn't sound like too bad a deal when you look at the cost of these other pieces of equipment. Additionally convenience is a big selling point with the ability to perform different exercises with one relatively small piece of equipment. Whether or not this latest offering from Bowflex is a good purchase depends on your needs, finances and desire for convenience.
Overall
Overall, I have to say this is a good one, not amazing or revolutionary, but good. The price is a little high for what you're getting, but it's not near as high as many exercise products advertised on late night TV. In the end I have to give the Bowflex Uppercut a grade of B-.
You may also like:
Body By Jake Tower 200 Review
Ultimate Body Press Review
Iso7X Review
Insanity Workout Review
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