Online Buy Review

We frequently receive emails from readers who want to know why a particular product isn’t reviewed on our site. Although ConsumerSearch covers more than 400 product categories, we can’t review every single make and model available (though we wish we could!).

But even if you can’t find a specific item on our site, chances are there is a report that touches on the product category you’re interested in. All of our reports offer shopping tips and links to additional research resources — not to mention details on products that earn positive reviews from experts and owners alike.

Read on for a selection of recent reader emails.

Dear ConsumerSearch: I have a 1997 Isuzu Rodeo with it’s original tires still on it. Well over 80,000 miles on the vehicle (and all four tires).  Some dry rot now evident and I will be replacing them soon. Just wondered if anyone wanted to investigating what was done “right” to get that kind of mileage out of those tires. — Pete

Dear Pete: Like any durable good, some tires will last longer than their manufacturer’s mileage lifetime estimate (though tires that age are unusual and a potential safety hazard). Other tires won’t last as long as the manufacturer says they should. In any case, you will probably find our report on SUV and truck tires of use as you begin looking for replacement tires for your Isuzu. – Ed.

Dear ConsumerSearch: I see no ratings on wood deck waterproofing materials. Always heard Cabot’s was the best but want to know about others, like Olympic from Lowes. — Al

Dear Al: We do not currently have a report on deck waterproofing materials specifically. However, we do have a report on exterior paint, which discusses house and deck stain (including a Best Reviewed pick). We’ll be updating this report later in the year, but you may find the current report of some use. – Ed.

Dear ConsumerSearch: I am looking for a review of the Brother CE8080PRW sewing machine, but I couldn’t find one on your site. — Colbey

Dear Colbey: Our report on sewing machines is admittedly outdated, but we do have plans for updating it later this year. In the meantime, you may find some information in the report of use because we do discuss a couple Brother sewing machines. — Ed.

Dear ConsumerSearch: We currently have 4 full-grown Rottweilers and we feed them Exclusive large-breed dog food.  It is from Aubachaun Hardware.  It is their name brand and is all natural.  Two of our dogs have started to have skin issues and I am interested in switching brands. — Mary

Dear Mary: Our report on dog food is a good resource for pet owners such as yourself who are interested in changing their pets’ diets. We discuss a number of dog food types, both canned and dry. We’ll be updating this report in the coming weeks. — Ed.

Dear ConsumerSearch: Can you do a review on Simplicity ZT2652 (52″) 26HP Zero Turn Mower — Ryan

Dear Ryan: Our recommendations are based on a consensus of professional reviews and owner feedback. As such, a product needs to receive positive reviews from a critical mass of pros and owners if it is to be considered. In some cases, such as this, products either do not earn sufficient positive reviews to merit inclusion in our reports, or there is simply a lack of reviews available to get a clear idea of how well the product performs in relation to competing models. If you are in the market for a new zero-turn mower, you might find our report on lawn tractors useful. The accompanying full report has a small section devoted to these mowers. Also, we’ll be updating this report in the coming weeks. — Ed.

Dear ConsumerSearch: I was wondering if you could review Essential Oxygen Organic Brushing Rinse. It’s sold at Whole Foods and other natural food stores. — Julie

Dear Julie: We do not currently have a review of this particular product, nor do we plan to review it in the near future. That said, we do have reports on toothpaste, teeth whitening and electric toothbrushes, all of which you may find of use. — Ed.

http://www.consumersearch.com/blog/our-reports-can-be-resources-even-if-the-product-you-seek-isnt-reviewed

New York, NY — (SBWIRE) — 05/19/2012 — What is internet marketing? It is a question asked by millions of searches on Google every month, and now expert online marketer George Cha has a new website that helps new online marketers with finding the information and resources that will help them succeed. IM Examiner Review provides honest and accurate reviews and recommendations of internet marketing courses that help people make money online.

George Cha has been involved in the internet marketing (IM) world since 2009, and at first he faced many challenges, he says, the chief being how to find internet marketing products and how to find good affiliate products: “When I first started, I was directionless as I was overwhelmed by all the information on the web.” After finding his dream salary in online marketing, Mr. Cha has now created this site to give advice to others, and says “By setting up this site, my sole purpose is to provide you the most honest reviews and verdicts on products that I have personally tested.”

Among the products that he recommends and is reviewing for new marketers are the upcoming launches of Massive Passive Domains and AffiloBlueprint 3.0 by Mark Ling. These two products are designed to teach people how to find financial success in internet marketing, based on the experiences of the teachers that present the material. Internet marketing strategies are an important part of today’s marketing world and Mr. Cha understands this as he presents the affiliate marketing reviews and internet marketing reviews.

Mr. Cha is reviewing Massive Passive Domains in preparation for the lauch on May 24th, 2012. This product is aimed at monetizing aged domains, which for the internet marketer can be a real gold mine, Mr. Cha explains. “The benefit of an aged domain is that it can often already have many backlinks to it and will have been already indexed in Google. By registering a domain that has already been used before, you get the history benefits of that domain, such as Google preferring older domains and any backlinks that already exist,” he says.

“AffiloBlueprint 3.0 is coming live on May 29th 2012. This is the latest affiliate marketing product brought to you by reputable internet marketing teacher, Mark Ling,” Mr. Cha explains. The AffiloBlueprint course covers affiliate marketing. A common question typed on Google search is “what is affiliate marketing,” showing the interest and also the confusion about this exciting opportunity. Mark Ling covers all aspects of this important business and at the IM Examiner website, George Cha is currently reviewing this product and will be offering bonuses and discounts looking forward to the launch on May 29.

“An affiliate review and make money reviews can help with your own success,” Mr. Cha explains. The internet marketing reviews provided on IM Examiner Review website are written by Mr. Cha, who has been recognized for his moral integrity and honesty in wanting to help people succeed. Money making reviews are aimed at helping readers succeed in internet marketing by generating money and answering the question “how to do online marketing?”

For those interested in generating money online, the value of these affiliate product reviews is huge, says Mr. Cha. He aims to present the best internet marketing reviews and internet marketing ideas on the website IM Examiner Review.

To read the AffiloBlueprint 3.0 review, Massive Passive Domains review, or other important reviews on internet marketing products, visit IM Examiner Review by George Cha at www.imexaminerreview.com.

About George Cha And IM Examiner Review
George Cha is a successful internet marketer and the creator of IM Examiner Review, where he reviews internet marketing products to help people find more success in internet marketing.

http://www.sbwire.com/press-releases/internet-marketing-expert-george-cha-offers-help-and-reviews-to-new-marketers-via-website-im-examiner-review-143191.htm

When it’s done correctly, the effect can be striking, funny, or occasionally creepy. Flixel isn’t the first or only cinemagraph app — Cinemagram and Kinoptic are two other options. These three are duking it out for dominance in this space.

What it gets right

The interface for animating regions of the images is easy and intuitive. Users just “draw” over the portion of the image that should move, and it generates a real-time preview. Simple. The starting and ending frames can be hand-selected (out of 20), and looping effects can be adjusted.

Like just about every current photo-sharing service, Flixel has its own social network. Users can create profiles, add friends, highlight their favorite flixels, leave comments and browse the best of what the network has to offer. Direct sharing to Facebook, Twitter, and Tumblr is supported as well.

What it could do better

This isn’t a problem with the app itself, but you really need to hold the camera steady to produce a decent cinemagraph. Stabilization can smooth out some slight movement, but if you’re shooting freehand, the final product will have some perspective problems.

As intuitive as parts of the interface can be, the total package should be fleshed out a little better. Some aspects of editing are laggy and unresponsive, like selecting the first and last frames of a cinemagraph. Users should be able to import their own pre-shot videos, but it’s limited to in-app capture only. We ran into a few bugs, including a crash during image processing. There’s room for improvement in the social aspect as well; a wider variety of Flixels, for example, and some sponsored contests, like GifBoom has.

Worth a download?

Flixel is fun and free, but so are its competitors. We haven’t checked out Kinoptic yet, but in the few minutes we spent with Cinemagram, we could tell that it’s a slicker, more user-friendly version of the same thing. Animating the images is the only aspect that’s clunkier, since there’s no live preview—but that could be a deal breaker. Flixel needs some tweaks and refinements before it’s a top-tier app, but it’s off to a decent start.

—

To read some of Reviewed.com’s reviews of other apps for iPhone and Android, check out DigitalCameraInfo.com. Reviewed.com is a division of USA TODAY.

http://www.usatoday.com/tech/products/story/2012-05-19/flixel-photo-app-review/55063292/1

Bringing you a quick look at some of the news related to Apple this week.

Still chasing $1,000? Yes. China Mobile, the country’s largest mobile phone operator, said it’s talking with Apple to bring the iPhone to its subscribers — though no word on when. “We’ve been actively talking to Apple on how we can cooperate,” said China Mobile Chairman Xi Guohua at a shareholders’ meeting in Beijing this week. “I can’t give you too many details, but I’d like to repeat that both sides do hope to boost our cooperation.” Apple analysts are counting on a deal with China Mobile (China Unicom and China Telecom already offer the iPhone) to spur iPhone sales — and deliver the kind of earnings that would support a share price of about $1,000. Says Katy Huberty of Morgan Stanley, “Today the average China household spends $136 on Apple products, just 31 percent of the U.S. average household spend of $444. But…the greater average spend relative to income suggests that the ratio should be close to 64 percent or $284 per household in China.” In the meantime, Apple shares ended the week at $530.38 — down from an intraday high of $644 on April 10. My colleague Eric Savitz compiled some of the reasons for the recent pull back, adding that the company may still be a better buy than Facebook.  ”Facebook might be having trouble monetizing its mobile traffic – but that’s no problem for Apple.”

Apple CEO Tim Cook meets with Speaker John Boehner in D.C. (Photo credit: Heather Reed)

Mr. Cook Goes to Washington. Apple CEO Tim Cook met with U.S. Speaker of the House John Boehner at the U.S. Capitol to talk about — well, Boehner, who released two photos of the meetings didn’t say, though it’s a safe bet that tax repatriation was discussed as Apple has a big chunk of cash overseas. How much? About $74 billion of its $110.2 billion was offshore at the end of its quarter in March.

Steve Jobs at the movies. The first photographs of Ashton Kutcher as a young Steve Jobs made their rounds on the Web, thanks to TMZ which snapped the actor in black turtleneck, jeans and New Balance sneakers. Kutcher is playing a young Jobs (who as I recall didn’t really wear a black turtleneck back in those earlier days) for a biopic tentatively called “Jobs: Get Inspired.” In other movie news, Sony said this week that screenwriter Aaron Sorkin (who won an Oscar for his screenplay of “The Social Network”) will write the script for a Jobs’ movie based on Walter Isaacson’s best-selling biography. “I know so little about what I am going to write. I know what I am not going to write. It can’t be a straight ahead biography because it’s very difficult to shake the cradle-to-grave structure of a biography, ” Sorkin told Reuters in an interview. Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak will be an adviser to the movie. Can’t wait for the movie? There are lots of Steve Jobs’ videos floating around the Web, including this compilation and the 1984 spoof of Ghostbusters with cameos by Jobs and Wozniak.

The iCar. Apple board member Mickey Drexler, who is also chairman of retailer J. Crew, told the crowd at a recent Fast Company conference that Steve Jobs liked to reimagine all sorts of products. “Steve’s dream before he died was to design an iCar. It would’ve been probably 50% of the market. He never did design it.” Drexler said that Apple, which has 10 products, will be taking on the living room sometime in the near future.  Sounds like a TV is on its way because I doubt they want to get into the couch business.

iPhone5.com. The World Intellectual Property Organization terminated the iphone5.com domain name, which had been run as an iPhone discussion group by a group that was not affiliated with Apple, after Apple filed a complaint earlier this month. The domain now belongs to a group called Corporation Service Company, which may be a company set up by Apple to hold the domain name. In any case, WIPO decision adds to the fodder that a larger-screen iPhone will be released sometime around October and that it will be the iPhone 5.

Apple defends Siri. In response to a series of lawsuits claiming that the Siri voice recognition technology in the iPhone 4S doesn’t work as advertised, Apple — through its law firm Gibson, Dunn Crutcher — defended the technology in a 32-page filing on May 10 and asked that a request by iPhone buyers for a class action suit be dismissed. The iPhone 4S, released in October 2011, is “the most successful iPhone launch of all time” and it includes Siri, “a cutting-edge technology still under development” which remains in beta, the lawyers wrote.

“Plaintiffs seek to recover some unspecified portion of their purchase price because Apple’s breakthrough Siri software—which uses cutting-edge speech-recognition technology that enables users to do things like make calls, send text messages or emails, schedule meetings and reminders, make notes, search the Internet, find local businesses, and get directions with voice commands—allegedly “does not perform as advertised.” Plaintiffs do not tell the Court how Siri’s operation allegedly differs from any particular representation they relied on in purchasing their iPhones. They offer only general descriptions of Apple’s advertisements, incomplete summaries of Apple’s website materials, and vague descriptions of their alleged—and highly individualized—disappointment with Siri. Tellingly, although Plaintiffs claim they became dissatisfied with Siri’s performance “soon after” purchasing their iPhones, they made no attempt to avail themselves of Apple’s 30-day return policy or one-year warranty—which remains in effect. Instead, they seek to take an alleged personal grievance about the purported performance of a popular product and turn it into a nationwide class action under California’s consumer protection statutes.

What does Siri think about lawsuits challenging its performance? I asked. Here’s what I got back. “It’s nice of you to ask, but it really doesn’t matter what I think.”

http://www.forbes.com/sites/connieguglielmo/2012/05/18/apple-loop-the-week-in-review-5/

http://www.modernhealthcare.com/article/20120518/NEWS/305189984/fda-employee-evaluations-consider-timeliness

Stoner MacGyver.Now and then, companies send us medical marijuana-related products ranging from vaporizers to board games. We showcase them in our quasi-regular product review section, Stoner MacGyver. The latest? Aqua Lab Technologies Mini Showerhead Vapor Tube

What is it, dude? A hefty little bubbler for smoking concentrates, from Aqua Lab Technologies. It’s dubbed the “Mini Showerhead Vapor Tube.”

How much coin will it run me? It’s not cheap, bro. Two Benjamins, a Jackson and a Lincoln ($225).

Where can I get one? From the Aqua Labs Technologies website.

The folks at Aqualab Technologies in California gave Stoner MacGyver this bubbler about a year ago for a possible review, and it’s taken us that long to pry the thing away from our blowtorches and gobs of concentrates and actually sit down to write. Basically, the thing was so at home in our collection that it felt like it had been there all along. So while the nail cools down, we’ll get this review out.

First thing about the Vapor Tube is that it is an oil rig, not a flower bubbler. For starters, the 18 mm ground joint coming off the reinforced stemless downtube is male and designed for a vapor dome to sit on top. You can get a reversed-joint flower bowl for pipes like this, but I tried it and was not pleased with the results.The flower hits are extremely thick and harsh and the water gets dirty after only a few hits.

But oil is a completely different story, and this pipe excels at that function. The smoke doesn’t condense as much and the filtration is just perfect for the low amount of tars and oils left over from doing dabs. Though there’s only a third of a shot-glass worth of water in the thing, water stays clean for days.

Blown by artist Dirty Rico out of Washington state, this ten inch, five millimeter thick chunk of glass has some weight to it even without water; it’s sturdy. The 18 millimeter glass-on-glass fittings put this in the larger range of oil bubblers, but also allow for a lot of air flow into the small chamber. Whereas a lot of bongs and bubblers have a removable stem running down into the water from the bowl, this design eliminates that and has a reinforced glass tube leading directly to the lower chamber of the Vapor Tube, where the diffusion occurs. The result is a much sturdier piece, with fewer removable parts, that’s easy to clean.

For those who don’t know, the diffuser at the bottom of the chamber is called a showerhead due to its resemblance to bathroom shower heads and the way that water is forced through them. Whereas traditional bongs have one tube for bubbles to flow into a reservoir of water, this design allows for multiple exit points that create more even smoke bubbles through the water — producing a much smoother hit.

The showerhead in the ALT piece sits low in the tube, decreasing the amount of water needed to bubble. In fact, it takes about one-third of an ounce of water to fill the small chamber and cover the showerhead completely. More traditional showerheads work in reverse, pulling smoke into the top and then filtering out through glass slits at the bottom into water. This reverses that flow, pulling air into the slits cut in the circular disc and then up into the chamber.

The combination of the reverse air-flow and the tiny amount of water needed give the tube almost no resistance when smoked — and it also produces a very unique barking sound, as opposed to the traditional gurgle of a bong. The bent-neck design helps keep most of the water where it is supposed to go, but things do splash around in the chamber a lot and pulling too hard will get you a kiss of bongwater.

Dome is a simple, clear glass top-loader with a large enough hole to drop a dab of oil from your fingertips. The piece sports a glass nail with a divot in the head and I have yet to crack mine after a year of steady, regular use as my daily oil-powered engine. But enough talking about it. For this week’s Completely Unscientific test, we put the ALT Mini Showerhead Vapor Tube to work on video:

At $225, this is not a cheap bubbler by any means — especially given that it is very much a use-specific pipe. Again, if you’re looking for a dual-use bubbler, this isn’t one for you; it wasn’t designed to smoke flowers. And to be real: if you aren’t into only smoking oils, getting a nail and dome set to throw on your glass-on-glass bubbler is probably more economical.

But if you are in the market for something specifically for smoking your concentrates, this pipe delivers. For the quality of the design and thickness, it’s a bubbler that will last, as long as you don’t go throwing it down on concrete. Mine has been tipped off tables, slammed by a dog tail, passed around at parties and even been on top of mountain peaks and has survived unscathed. It is nothing fancy in terms of worked glass, but the design itself is elegant enough to be the focal point of the tube.

We can’t guarantee all products sent in will be reviewed here at Stoner MacGyver, but if you’ve got something you think is the greatest invention since sliced pot-bread, send us an e-mail at marijuana@westword.com.

More from our Stoner MacGyver archive: “Stoner MacGyver marijuana review: High Times cannabis cookbook.”

Like this Story?

Sign up for the Weekly Newsletter: Our weekly feature stories, movie reviews, calendar picks and more – minus the newsprint and sent directly to your inbox.

http://blogs.westword.com/latestword/2012/05/aqua_lab_technologies_mini_showerhead_vapor_tube_stoner_macgyver.php

(EW.com) — “Battleship” is a special-effects-heavy movie invented to extend the brand of a commercial board game — suitable for ages 7 and up! — in which two players move imaginary boats around a simple grid.

That part’s not newsworthy. The surprise, for this veteran of board games, is that “Battleship” is also the rousing, engaging, and emotionally complex action war picture the silly 2001 action war picture “Pearl Harbor” only wished it could be. It’s “Pearl Harbor” with greater intelligence, less hokum, and more aliens. For every line of howler dialogue that should have been sunk, there’s a nice little scene in which humans have to make a difficult decision.

For every stretch of generic sci-fi-via-CGI moviemaking, there’s a welcome bit of wit. Under the direction of Peter Berg — the talented, ever-maturing filmmaker behind “Friday Night Lights” and “The Kingdom” — “Battleship” is a sound vessel floating in Hollywood’s oil-slick sea of “Transformers” sequels and vampire riffs.

The object of the original game is simple: Attack an opponent’s ”fleet” through a combination of mental strategy, deductive logic, and luck. The movie doesn’t forget these low-tech roots. There’s a nifty sequence in which sailors track incoming alien fighters using similar X-marks-the-spot skills. But before getting to the hardcore blow-’em-up portion of the humans-versus-aliens warfare entertainment, we are given time to invest in the relationship between Stone Hopper (“True Blood’s” Alexander Skarsgård) and his younger brother, Alex (Taylor Kitsch from TV’s “Friday Night Lights”) — the former a courageous Navy officer of great character, the latter a corner-cutting showboater who is about to have his character entirely re-welded through the Navy challenges that await him. (Kitsch does an admirable, controlled job of steering his character from screwup to leader.)

We understand that Alex loves a bombshell physical therapist named Sam (Brooklyn Decker), and that Sam happens to be the daughter of crusty U.S. Pacific Fleet commander Admiral Shane (Liam Neeson, barking but not biting). We see the emotional-zeitgeist logic in the special interest that Sam has taken in the physical rehabilitation of an Army veteran and amputee, authentically played by real-life Army vet and amputee Gregory D. Gadson. We appreciate the pop culture traffic jam that has musical glam girl Rihanna passing muster as a tough (yet cool!) fellow sailor. And we know to keep an eye on the conflict that rumbles at first between Alex and a Japanese officer (Tadanobu Asano) because Japanese-American hurts and fears left over from the real Pearl Harbor will be worked out before the movie is over for the benefit of boomers and assorted granddads in the audience.

It’s only once we know all these things — carbon-based touches not found in the Hasbro product — that “Battleship” gets down to the business of hotshot combat between brave U.S. Navy fighters and aggressive alien visitors. (The invaders, by the way, appear to have studied “Transformers” fashion magazines to design their space-metal wardrobes.) Amid this fracas, there’s a welcome mood lightener in the form of a gentle comic-neurotic turn by Hamish Linklater (“The New Adventures of Old Christine”) as a deep-space scientist who has reason to regret his search for extraterrestrial life.

“Battleship” is gratifying that way. At the story’s center are all the clanging fireballs a kid could want to watch whizzing across a computerized sky — not to mention naval strategy and a fact-based demonstration of real destroyer-ship capabilities. And surrounding the alien rumpus, the filmmakers have built an unexpectedly sincere salute to the awesome responsibilities of today’s U.S. Navy as well as to the heroic work of veterans who came before. For all that, the captains of this movie deserve a medal. B+

See the full article at EW.com.

CLICK HERE to Try 2 RISK FREE issues of Entertainment Weekly

© 2011 Entertainment Weekly and Time Inc. All rights reserved.

http://www.cnn.com/2012/05/18/showbiz/movies/battleship-review/index.html?eref=rss_showbiz

“Natural Selection,” an intriguing and intelligent first effort from indie filmmaker Robbie Pickering, digs deep into the heart of Texas for its soulful tale of small town saints and sinners and a road trip to redemption.

Laced with humor and regret, the film rests on a finely textured performance by Rachael Harris, a prolific character actress especially memorable as the harpy of a fiancée perpetually haranguing Ed Helms in “The Hangover.” Here she’s dialed it down to a bare whisper for the 40ish Linda White, whose quiet life of desperation is about to be dissected.

Linda lives in a nondescript house in a nondescript Houston suburb. She’s barren, which is burden enough, but her conservative church only condones sex for procreation, which means she and husband Abe (John Diehl) do a whole lot of praying. Repressed by her past, her husband and her religion, Linda’s lifetime of anguish can be seen in the slump of her shoulders and every limp strand of that dishwater blond hair.

Her small corner of the world, which writer-director Pickering, director of photography Steven Capitano Calitri and production designer Michael Bricker have filled with so much that is mundane, from the curtains on the windows to the knickknacks gathering dust on the shelf, is one of those places so mind-numbing that it’s tempting to scream, even if Linda won’t.

When Abe has a stroke, the secrets of a lifetime start spilling out — starting with the fact that he suffered the stroke at the local sperm bank where he’d apparently been making weekly donations for the duration of their 25-year marriage. She’s still reeling from that when Abe wakes from a coma long enough to ask for the 23-year-old biological son Linda never knew he had.

Thus begins her pilgrimage to find that son, to grant that final wish. Raymond (Matt O’Leary), the product of one of Abe’s weekly “gifts,” turns out to be a druggie and a drifter hiding out in Tampa, Fla., just one step ahead of the law. From the moment that Linda and Raymond encounter each other — a shouted conversation through the screen door of a rundown shack — the movie really settles in.

O’Leary and Harris turn out to be perfect counterpoints. O’Leary uses his lean frame to create a wiry and wired raw nerve of a young loser living on the edge. If Raymond represents untethered bad, Linda is deeply rooted goodness through and through. In Harris’ hands, Linda is guileless but believable, her smile so worn and wary that it almost hurts to see it.

Though O’Leary (“Brick,” “Spy Kids 2″) has been acting since he was a kid, in “Natural Selection” he really stretches, bringing Raymond to surly, wounded life, exposing a world of hurt in his eyes. It helps that there is such grit to the dialogue, such darkness to the humor, distinctive enough to land the screenplay on Hollywood’s Black List of the best unproduced work in town a few years ago.

The road trip back to Texas and the relationship that begins to develop between Raymond and Linda might have turned predictable with a less artful filmmaker in charge. Thankfully, “Natural Selection” is anything but. Yes, Linda is determined to get Raymond back home before Abe dies, and most certainly Raymond is out to con her, but that is just the starting point. They will both face many curves and crossroads, their course ultimately guided by the truths and the consequences of the choices they make.

Pickering is most interested in exploring the notion of choice, the way any one decision can shut down a life or open it up. Though he does a good job of keeping everyone guessing whether things will turn out for the best, it’s virtually impossible not to head into the final moments of “Natural Selection” with a lot of hope.

betsy.sharkey@latimes.com

http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/news/la-et-natural-selection-20120518,0,6438783.story?track=rss

Founded by a Pediatrician and Mother of Two, BabyGearLab.com Aims to Help Moms Find the Best Products for their Baby

Cheyenne, WY (PRWEB) May 18, 2012

A pediatrician’s efforts to find the best products for her own babies led her to launch a new and innovative web service, http://www.babygearlab.com, which aims to put science and objective rigor into testing of baby products. Announced today, BabyGearLab.com takes a uniquely detailed approach to reviewing baby gear, and testing each product side-by-side in comparison with top competitors.

According to Dr. Juliet Spurrier, the website’s founder, “BabyGearLab is focused on helping Mom’s gain crucial insights into how baby products will perform in use.” The website tests products on a category basis, taking a selection of top competitors such as the 22 video and sound baby monitors recently reviewed, and compares them side-by-side across a series of tests. “We test products on each key performance metric to develop our ratings, and then weight those metrics in proportion to their overall value to newborn parents. By rating products in a critical manner, a reader can see in detail how one baby product compares to one another. We test products in a lab environment, as well as in hands-on field tests. The combination of these tests provides a rich set of rating information that can help a Mom make informed purchase decisions.”

It was Dr. Spurrier’s own experience as a first-time mother that inspired the creation of BabyGearLab. “I was 8 months pregnant and running around trying to prepare for the baby’s arrival. I found the number of decisions I had to make overwhelming. It was very important to me to get the right products for my baby. But, I found myself frustrated reading reviews, since so very few reviews provide credible side-by-side comparison information. As a Pediatrician, I wanted to find a more data-driven and scientific approach to baby product reviews that was up-to-date and compared competing products side-by-side. I never found it. So, after the birth of my second child, I decided to start BabyGearLab.”

How BabyGearLab is different, explains Dr. Spurrier, is the rigorous testing process. “Our review process takes a lot more work than the typical reviews you find online. It’s not enough just to know if the reviewer liked or disliked the product. We want to know how it stacks up against all of the other top products out there, and why one product may be better than another. It’s the rigorous style of comparing and contrasting though objective tests pioneered by Consumer Reports magazine that we aim to bring in a focused, comprehensive manner, to the entire range of products you need in your baby’s first year. However, unlike Consumer Reports, BabyGearLab.com is a completely free web service, and requires no registration or subscription fee.

To learn more visit:

http://www.babygearlab.com

About BabyGearLab LLC

BabyGearLab was founded in 2012 by pediatrician Dr. Juliet Spurrier and is dedicated to offering the world’s best quality reviews of products needed in a baby’s first year of life.

Media Contact:

pr(at)babygearlab(dot)com

Phone: (307) 773-0408

http://www.babygearlab.com

Media Relations
BabyGearLab
307-773-0408
Email Information

http://news.yahoo.com/pediatrician-launches-innovative-baby-product-review-website-babygearlab-110236704.html

PALO ALTO, CA — TIBCO LogLogic, provider of the only scalable log and security intelligence platform (LSIP) for the enterprise and cloud, today announced that SC Magazine, the information security industry’s leading news and product evaluation publication, named the LogLogic® MX its only “Recommended” Product in the SIEM group test category for 2012. This is the fourth consecutive year the LogLogic MX product has received a perfect 5-star rating in the SIEM category.