Review

With a plethora of guitar effects pedal manufacturers producing an increasing number of beautiful looking and sounding pedals, the average pedal board has little real estate to accommodate all that you may want. Hotone Audio has responded with some very aesthetically appealing and fun sounding pedals that are priced friendly and take up about 1/3 of the space that your average stompbox requires. This blog will look at the EKO (delay), Grass (overdrive), and OCTA (Octave effect) from the company’s Skyline product line.

House of Marley is one of those audio brands that’s always on the fringe of mainstream. Not everyone is familiar with the company’s products, which is a shame because they tend to perform well against the competition and the line-up is quite extensive. HoM gear—which has a close association with the family of late reggae star Bob Marley—combines high quality audio with sustainable practices. The result is wireless speakers like the Chant Mini and Liberate, that don’t just deliver House of Marley’s “signature sound” but also stand out in a crowd thanks to use of natural and recycled materials.

2015 is the first year where there are more 4K TVs being introduced than HDTVs, and Sony is following suit. Sony has just launched their X series TVs, which are 4K Ultra High Definition that are also some of the first sets that come with the Android TV operating system. Sony delivers some of the best technologies to enhance picture quality and have done great things for improving the sound using their innovative wedge design. The X series of 4K UHD TVs has something for everyone.

LG has proven that it can manufacture a really good smartphone, much like it already did with devices like the Nexus 5 and G3. Last year’s G3 made considerable improvements on the software side of things, improving the user experience in tangible ways, yet it still didn’t go far enough in standing out from the crowded Android pack. The G4 deviates little from an overall design standpoint, but offers an excellent camera upgrade and simpler software for a compelling contender.

It’s sometimes hard to qualify what can be described as a “family tablet”, and yet, that is precisely how Samsung sees the new Galaxy Tab A. Large enough to enjoy video or to be productive, this is a tablet that attempts to mix a little business with pleasure, albeit in a way that caters to the average consumer. It’s really supposed to be a tablet for the everyday user, but how does it perform on a day-to-day basis?

I have a confession to make. I don’t own a Blu-ray disc player. In fact, I don’t think I’ve even powered on my DVD player in well over two years. It’s not that I don’t love movies. It’s just that I’ve become far too reliant on good ol’ Netflix and its overabundance of chick flicks and ocean-related documentaries to bother with anything else. Needless to say, I was a little concerned when I was sent two new Sony Blu-ray Disc players to review. Was I the right person for the job? I don’t even own a Blu-ray disc! Turns out I had no reason to worry. It also turns out that I want one of these little guys for myself.

I put the new Energy Connoisseur CS-30 Sound Bar and Wireless Subwoofer up against my four-year-old quad speaker system to see if the new generation of home theatre surround sound systems will make me want to upgrade.

Splatoon, one of Nintendo’s most anticipated titles of the year is here, and is available exclusively on the Wii U. Challenge friends and family in this “inkcredible” colourful third-person action shooter, where you play as Inklings, unique creatures who can transform between humanoid and squid form. Let’s dive in and take a look at this highly anticipated third-person action shooter, shall we?

Sony’s new swimmable mp3 sport headphones are waterproof. What does that mean? You can take it anywhere you do your exercise without leaving your music behind, including the pool! With features like a tangle-free wire, 4 GB internal memory, quick charging and easy music importing, you can get into your workouts faster without worrying about where you’re going to stick your usual mp3 player.

The price-performance ratio is hard to beat on this piano—you really can’t go wrong. It is a solid product with a good feature set that will enable the beginner or intermediate player to really enjoy the instrument. If you’ve been wanting to take up piano or you’ve been looking for a reason to buy a piano and cost has been a factor, check out the CDP-130CS at Best Buy Canada.