Blog Assignment #5

For this blog post I decided to look up two product reviews about the artifacts that I can find in my own home.

The first product that I looked at was the iPad Mini, one of Apple’s most recent products, priced at around $329. The iPad mini in general appears to have received positive reviews. Scott Stein of CNET describes the iPad mini as a “really shrunken down iPad 2,” (Stein 2012) but in a good way.  The main perk for the iPad mini is that it brings all the utility of the iPads into a smaller size, making it more compact and comfortable to hold. In fact, “the iPad mini is thinner than an iPhone 5 at 0.28 inches thin and as light as a kindle at 0.68 pounds.” (Stein 2012) Its small size comes at a cost however. Stein’s review notes that the iPad mini’s display may seem blurry due to the 1024x768 pixel display being translated directly from the iPad 2, compared to other tablets of similar size such as the Kindle Fire HD which has a 1280x800 pixel display. Its price also appears to be $130 higher than other tablets of similar size, such as the Nexus 7. (Stein 2012)  Although the price might be justified by the extensiveness of Apple’s app store, critics disagree with the price, often comparing it to the Nexus 7 and other similar tablets, as seen in the comment section of Stein’s review on CNET.

The next product I looked at was the Logitech G300 Gaming Mouse. At $39.99, it is one of the cheapest gaming mice out there. As noted in its name, the Logitech G300 is mainly designed as a gaming mouse, featuring 6 extra customizable buttons. The buttons can be configured by downloading Logitech Gaming Software. Aside from its price, one of the positive aspects of the Logitech G300 is that it has a “symmetrical, ambidextrous design and black rubberized coating to help you get a grip during long or intense gaming sessions.” (Shoemaker 2011) Another interesting feature is that the G300 features on board memory, which allows the button configurations set to the different profiles to be used on different “PCs and play without having to download the software again.” (Shoemaker 2011) However, the G300 is noted to be fairly basic compared to the more expensive gaming mice. Macros assigned to the mouse buttons, for example, can’t be longer or more complex than Ctrl + Alt + Delete. Shoemaker concludes that the Logitech G300 makes a great mouse for casual play and beginners, thanks to its relatively simple customization. However, for a greater level of customization, Shoemaker commented that the Gigabyte M8000Xtreme or Razer Mamba may be better choices. (Shoemaker 2011)

References

Shoemaker, N. (2011, September 14). Logitech Gaming Mouse G300 . PCMag.com . Retrieved June 4, 2013, from http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2392964,00.asp

Stein, S. (2012, October 30). Ipad Mini Review: The Perfect Size, But at a Price. CNET . Retrieved June 4, 2013, from http://reviews.cnet.com/ipad-mini/