Replacing Failing Equipment

My MP3 player started going out on me the other night, not on dates, it was about to fail... I seem to go through one about every 1.5 to 2 years. I can hear at least one person groaning about me living off grid with all these gadgets... yup I do live off grid and yup, I do like my gadgets. I have given up quite a lot of modern conveniences, such as TV, landline phones, cell phones, smart phones, full size desktop computer, most appliances that people can't seem to live without like a flush toilet, OK a toilet isn't considered an appliance, but you get the idea... I fell in love with the fact that I could listen to podcasts and audiobooks while doing other things, like working (on the job as well as doing chores)... so groan if you must, but please do it quietly. :)

The part that seems to fail on me is where the earbuds plug into the unit, it seems to develop a short, it will at first seem like the earbuds are not working anymore, if I move the earbud wire the sound will get better and worse. When I get out another earbud that I know works and it still does the same thing, that's when I know it's the player with the problem. I would normally take something like this apart to see if I can fix it, but this particular player doesn't have screws or any obvious way to disassemble it, it's not meant to be fixed.

They don't make the one I really like anymore, it was made by Coby, was fairly inexpensive and did everything I needed it to do, including having 16 GB of space, more than enough for the little bit of music I play, but more importantly, the audiobooks and podcasts I enjoy. I can listen while doing other things, I don't really have time to dedicate to reading anymore, with the audiobooks and podcasts, I get my books, interviews and such and can still do the things I need to do.

So since I can't get my old standby anymore, I went with Sony this time, it apparently has all the features my Coby had, but it has a ton more battery time, my Coby had 8 hours playing time, of course that goes down with time, I probably had to recharge it every couple of days with moderate use, with heavy use, nearly every day, yes I listen to it that much :)

I want to thank those of you who make your Amazon purchases through my blog, your support helped me to pay for this replacement MP3 player.

Here is the one I purchased

Product Features

• Digital music, video & photo player with FM radio
• It has 2-Inch QVGA (320x240) highbrightness, color LCD
• Rechargeable battery with up to 50 hours audio playback
• Formats Supported Audio: MP3 / WMA / AAC-LC / L-PCM, Video: MP4 / WMV, Photo: JPEG, Text: Lyric (.lrc)

Technical Details

• Brand Name: Sony
• Model: NWZE465BLK
• Digital Storage Capacity: 16 GB
• Color Name: Black
• Battery Average Life: 50 Hours
• Display: LCD
• Display Size: 2 inches
• Weight: 0.20 pounds

The 50 hours of audio playback was what really sold me, that and the 16GB size, that might not seem like much to you tablet and smart phone users out there, but I didn't want or need all the bells and whistles, I just needed something that would play music, audiobooks and podcasts.

Another thing that was important to me is the ability to create folders, I put different music and whole albums in different folders, each audiobook get it's own folder since there are usually multiple files for one audiobook, I don't want those files getting mixed up with the music or other audio files. Bookmarking is also important, if I'm listening to a song, it doesn't matter where it picks up again, but if I'm listening to an audiobook or podcast, if I stop the player, I need it to pick up right where I stopped, I believe most players will do that now. I still have a working MP3 player that wouldn't do folders or bookmarking, it worked for me but the limitations were really hard, I had to rename each and every file with a number in the beginning of the file name to put them in numerical order so they would play in the order I needed, again with music it didn't matter, but for audiobooks and podcasts, it made a huge difference. That old player still works but the battery is low, it doesn't last more than an hour. When I first got it though, it was the bees knees. :)

So I'm sitting here now, charging up this player, I have high hopes for it, I've read really good reviews, it charges fully at about 3 hours, I'll let it fully charge up, copy some Coast to Coast and some Chuck Missler to it and give it a run for its money. I'll probably put some music on it too, after all that's what it was made for.

I'll post an update in a few days and let everyone know how well it works.





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Wretha,

Thanks for visiting!

More “As Seen On TV”

The other day I was talking to a friend and we touched on the subject of the Pump-n-Seal gadget, I have had mine for a while, but I must admit that I haven’t been using it as much as I should. So I pulled it out and waited for an opportunity to use it. I didn’t have to wait long. Yesterday, I was cutting up an apple and only ate half of it, I needed a way to store the other half. You know what happens to apples, without chemical intervention (an acid, lemon juice, vitamin C…), apples quickly begin to turn brown, they oxidize.


Read the rest of the story here:
http://www.off-grid.net/2009/06/09/more-as-seen-on-tv/

To read all of my messages on Off-Grid.net, click here:
http://www.off-grid.net/section/wretha/


Wretha

Thanks for visiting, Please leave all comments on the Off-Grid site or the EarthPower site instead of here, thanks!
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Dreaming...

Ahhhh, decisions, decisions... I still haven't located my digital camera, I know I have it packed away in a box that is in the middle of a pile of boxes that is sitting outside, wrapped in heavy builder's plastic and wire, it is battened down against the sun, wind, dust, rain and hopefully animals. The problem is, each time we have disassembled this package to get things out, it is nearly impossible to put things back, the plastic is becoming more and more brittle, things get disturbed and the boxes become less able to protect our stuff. We have done this once or twice in the time we have been here, the next time we break into the package needs to be the last time. We will need a place to put all of this stuff because I don't think we will be able to leave pack it back up and leave it out again. This means waiting until Bob is finished working on the cabin so that we will have a place to put all of this stuff and get it out of the elements.

I thought I found the box the camera could have been in, I found the accessories for the camera, but not the camera, bummer! So I have been looking for alternatives, I have found a probable replacement. This is an all in one, MP4 player with video (and still) camera. This device would allow me to snap pix and record videos (wiping drool off chin), it also records audio. It has a touch screen viewer so I could see the images and/or videos I take. It is a MP3 music player, MP4 video player, video camera, still camera, and digital audio recorder, it has 8 GB of internal memory, expandable with mini-SD memory (up to 2 GB). Here is the device in question

The thing that is holding me back is the money, now don't get me wrong, the price is really right, it's actually very inexpensive for what it is. In my "old life" I wouldn't think twice about dropping this amount on something like this, but now that I living my new life, well lets just say that it might take me a month to scrape up this much cash. I just emailed the company to ask them for clarification about the frames per second, I expect to hear back from them in a day or so. They have the model listed above, and they have an upgraded model, the difference being the amount of internal memory. While studying the two, I noticed on their site that the 8GB model states that it records 30 FPS for the video, the upgraded 16 GB model states that it records 10 FPS, this makes no sense to me, everything else is the same (except for the memory), I am hoping they made a mistake with the more expensive one and it is really 30 FPS, not the other way around, that is a huge difference for video recording.

Well, you know what they say about wishing for things, "Wish with one hand and sh*t in the other and see which one gets filled quickest"... now, I can't say that is entirely true, I have received and achieved some amazing things, I believe in planting seeds for the future and it has worked for me pretty well, so I'm planting positive seeds now, life is good!

Happy Easter everyone!
Time to get to bed, it's getting late. :)

To read all of my messages on Off-Grid.net, click here:
http://www.off-grid.net/section/wretha/

To read all of my messages on Earth Power News, click here:
http://www.earthpowernews.com/

Wretha

Thanks for visiting!
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Looking For Inexpensive Security Electronics?

Hey everyone, I'm not ashamed to admit that I have been checking out different ways to earn a few dollars with this blog without it becoming obnoxious for you, I found this wholesale company several years ago (they aren't newbies, they have been around for a while, at least 5 years on line), this company sells mainly electronics stuff.

Right now one of my favorite gadgets that they carry is an IR (Night Vision) high definition mobile video/audio recorder, full color, it can record down to 0 lux, it uses a SD memory card, up to 2GB, it has no internal memory so you will need to get a SD memory card but those are cheap enough to get, or maybe you have some laying around now. You can record your local wildlife, see what animal is getting into your trash or garden, you can catch who has been raiding your fridge in the middle of the night... :) You can spy on your neighbors (just don't do anything illegal!), use your imagination, there are hundreds of things you can record, day or night.

This company also carries many other security related items, all types of cameras, IR night vision, motion detection, button hole sized (tiny), corded and cordless... and they have many more electronics at super great prices.

I know that some of you will groan because this company is in China, but in all honesty most electronics ARE made in China, like it or not, even the gadgets that say they are made in the USA, where do you think they get the components? Yes, in China, so let's take advantage of the low prices and get these electronics while the gettin' is good! Who knows when things might get sticky between our 2 countries and bargains like these will vanish...

Another of my favorites is an all in one, touchscreen MP4 player with camera (stills and video), it has 8 GB of memory so you'll be able to take lots of pix and videos. You can watch movies & videos and listen to your favorite MP3s and more. Right now this is less than $60.00 (+ shipping). Get one for yourself, get one for your teenager who is going off to college, why spend hundreds of dollars on something that might get lost or stolen while they are at school? Get one for your sweetie without breaking the bank. This is highly rated on the site.

You will save hundreds of dollars buying from this company, check them out, order a few items, save yourself some $$$s and help support this site at the same time. They have an affiliate program so you can earn some money too (it's free to join), that is what I am doing here, this way you can get the same great deals that I get. They also have a drop shipping program (I believe that's free to join as well), so you can create your own store, sell on eBay or Amazon, you set your own prices and make even more money. I'm not ready to do the dropshipping thing yet, I used to do that, so for now, take advantage of the super low prices available directly from the company. You can also buy in quantity (you save more money that way), and you can resell the electronics to your friends, family, at flea markets and such, the prices are low enough to be able to make a nice profit.

They don't rape you on shipping either, the MP4 player above costs about $11.00 to ship to my location in west Texas, they ship airmail, UPS, FedEx, and DHL, with tracking, you choose which carrier you want to use!

Thanks for looking. Check out the "store" on the right side of the blog, I put up a few items that I thought might be of interest to you survival minded folks. :)

Already have one of these gadgets? Let me know what you think.




To read all of my messages on Off-Grid.net, click here:
http://www.off-grid.net/section/wretha/

To read all of my messages on Earth Power News, click here:
http://www.earthpowernews.com/

Wretha

Thanks for visiting!
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