jerryc41 Loc: Catskill Mts of NY

Gadgets are great, but not when they're expensive and not very useful. I don't agree with everything on his list, especially, DSLRs, but he does make some good points.

http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/13-tech-purchases-youll-probably-regret/

http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/smart-products-really-smart-just-gimmick/

Tracy B. Loc: Indiana

Yea, good points. I think the "not needed" desktop is needed, especially if you have the "not needed DSLR". Lol

jerryc41 Loc: Catskill Mts of NY

Right: two nots = a big need. I agree about the netbook, though. I got one for traveling a couple of years ago, and it's very slow. it gets the job done - but it takes its time. I much prefer a Chromebook.

rmorrison1116 Loc: Near Valley Forge, Pennsylvania

I agree with some of it and some of it, not. I know folks who rush out and get the latest smartphone or smart watch. I still use my Galaxy S 3, still works. A coworker was so proud of his expensive new Iwatch or what ever it's called. Personally, I don't wear a clock on my arm.
The author made a good point about digital photography but a blanket statement about DSLR'S is just grasping at something to be negative about. The author was quite wrong about GPS devices. I usually only use a GPS when I'm driving my motorcycle. Its GPS is a dedicated built in unit. I really don't believe using a cell phone GPS app is a good or smart idea while driving a motorcycle.

jerryc41 Loc: Catskill Mts of NY

Right. A separate GPS is a great accessory. When I was riding, I had a waterproof GPS and waterproof satellite radio. Both sounds came into my helmet headphones separately, one cutting out when the other came on. I also had telephone - very convenient.

rmorrison1116 Loc: Near Valley Forge, Pennsylvania

That is how it is with my Goldwing, satellite navigation & radio plus MP3 player. I'm still waiting for the comm gear maker to come out with a module that ties the CB radio into the comm link. With my comm gear I can wirelessly (is that a word) converse with my wife's helmet whether she's on my bike or her own, listen to the tunes and the CB but there's no link between the push to talk button and the microphone. To speak on the CB I need to use a hardwire link. Kind of stupid for 2016... Honda really needs to upgrade the electronics on the Goldwing. It's as if they're still in the previous Bluetooth Era. Great engine, great frame, great seat, great handling, outdated factory comm system. You'd expect better from the Japanese.

jerryc41 Loc: Catskill Mts of NY

Except for the radio and CB, my electronics ('95 Gold Wing) were all add-ons. I forget the name of the company, but they specialized in motorcycle electronics. My wife rode a Helix, and I had a concealed CB in that so we could communicate. Fun times.

rkramer1

anyone know what a digital motor is? dyson has them in most of their vacuum.

sb Loc: Florida's East Coast

I have a pair of $50 Koss headphones which are fantastic in audio quality - AND - they have a lifetime guarantee. I have had them for 15 or 20 years - They replaced the earpiece padding when it wore out for a $5 shipping fee. I could never imagine paying $200 for headphones.

Warrantees - I don't get them except for certain items. The Keurig coffee makers frequently end up having the water pump die on them. When we bought our second one at Best Buy I bought the extended warrantee - when the water pump died eight months later I simply brought it back in, they advised me to get another one off the shelf, and I had a new one just like that.

Desktop - well - I do use my laptop a lot more. But the desktop is where most of us do our photo editing (and yes, we have DSLR's!) and storing of our images. It is unfair to criticize small-capacity SSD drives - until recently large-capacity drives were very expensive, and you could put your operating system and frequently used programs on a small SDD drive and leave your files on an HDD drive. Now with 500GB SSD's being affordable, it makes more sense to just get one unless saving $100 is necessary. You still need the HDD if you store thousands of photo files!

jerryc41 Loc: Catskill Mts of NY

I've been reading about them, and they want about 30% free space to work properly. Also, they have an unusual way of dealing with deleted files, so the drive gradually fills up, slowing it down. I've decided to get a 512 SSD, rather than a 256 for my new computer.

Wingpilot Loc: Wasilla. Ak

Jerry, that's probably J&M you're referring to. When I was riding, I had a J&M headset, including microphone, in my helmet. It plugged into the Gold Wing and worked well. Unfortunately, the onboard intercom was a hot mic set up, so you could always hear a wind rushing sound. On my non-Gold Wings, I had a J&M add-on CB that the headset plugged into. It had a separate audio section built in for listening to an audio source, or GPS. I miss my GL1800.

EdJ0307 Loc: out west someplace

I tried opening both of these links but all I got was the whirly thingy. They didn't open, just a white page. Could be because I was using my Toshiba laptop with the AMD processor which it synonymous with "piece of crap". I'll have to try again with my desktop a little later.

Or maybe it's the website since dirtpusher's link opened OK.

John_F Loc: Minneapolis, MN

Both opened nicely on my iPad Air 2. So the URLs and web server are okay. I would look into your browser and/or conputer op system. There may be some 'setting' that is awry.

EdJ0307 Loc: out west someplace

As I said, a couple links from dirtpusher opened OK so I don't think it is the browser and/or computer op system.

I just now tried them again and they opened just fine. I'm going with a temporary website problem the first few times I tried.

tainkc Loc: Kansas City

That was a waste of my time. I am going to buy a G7 so that I can sue Samsung when my ass catches on fire. What I am trying to say is that this is all common knowledge if one reads the newspaper. This guys opinions are just that; opinions. Some of these; he is just copying what others had to say about a particular item. I read all this crap in the Wall Street journal.