Lowyat.NET: Latest topics by ronaldkwok

JOI 10 Flip 32GB

ronaldkwok — Fri, 02 Sep 2016 21:43:32 +0800

Good things must be shared! This is info for those of you looking for a 10" Tablet. The JOI 10 Flip 32GB is now on offer at RM599 (usual price RM799) at many Aeon (Jusco) stores. I got one a few days ago and personally think that this is value for money. Just bear in mind that this runs Windows 10 and their apps Store has much less apps compared to Google Play for Androids so this is not for fans of Androids. A dedicated keyboard is included and when attached to the tablet, it becomes a functional notebook. It is good for those wanting to try out Windows 10 or just need a general purpose tablet.

Stick-on UV Filter

ronaldkwok — Mon, 10 Feb 2014 23:02:19 +0800

This is just to share my experience in getting a stick-on filter for my Canon camcorder. Since the lens barrel of my camcorder do not have threaded edge, I cannot use the usual screw-on filter and I need to look for the stick-on type. The one I found is by GGS DC Pro. There was a big difference in prices when I asked in Sungai Wang and Low Yat that ranged from RM35 to RM100 for the same model, the one meant for Canon G11/G12. The cheapest at RM35 was quoted by Edar Photo at Sungai Wang, the shop at LG floor near BB Plaza. Thus if you are looking for such filter, you should visit this particular shop but it has only a few sizes. The local online shop ShaShinKi is even cheaper at RM25 but they have only the smaller sizes and if you add shipping, it will come to RM35. Hope this is of help to those looking for such filters. BTW, I am not connected to any of the shops mentioned, just to share with fellow forumers.

Aerotrain in KLIA

ronaldkwok — Mon, 25 Apr 2011 09:19:46 +0800

Just like to ask recent travellers using KLIA. Is the aerotrain back in operation or still closed for maintenance work? Need to advise new user of KLIA. Thanks.

Buying Region B Blu-Ray player locally

ronaldkwok — Wed, 30 Mar 2011 11:04:20 +0800

As prices of some BDs from Amazon UK are cheaper than those from Amazon US, it is very tempting to buy from Amazon UK. The only problem is that some of them are locked to Region B and thus cannot be played on BD players available locally that is for Region A. One solution is to get a region-free BD player such as Oppo or Dune (or at least can play Region A and Region B) but the cost is too high for peasants like me and the less fortunate. Since most of us already have a Region A BD player, why not just buy another Region B player? This should definitely be cheaper than a Dune or Oppo and should last twice as long theoretically since we will have two machines instead of one. The PQ and AQ may not be as good as an Oppo but the difference will only be seen or heard in high-end equipment so for normal users, it does not matter.
The only problem is where to get a Region B player locally. Maybe some enterprising and rajin forumers can bring some in and if they don't plan to make too much profit, there should be some buyers. At least I will grab one if not too costly. Or maybe bro Andrew (hope he is reading this) can pop over to S'pore and bring one in every weekend (assuming they are available there) as service to his fellow BD collectors here! Any takers?

Budget Classical Music CD suggestions

ronaldkwok — Tue, 01 Mar 2011 09:56:02 +0800

From what I can see, there are two classical music threads in LY Forum. A general one in this section and another more specialised one under Audiophile in Home Entertainment section; correct me if I am wrong. Thus I feel there is a need to start another thread dedicated to budget classical music CD avalable locally mainly for reference by beginners in classical music. I am no sifu but based on my collection of classical CDs and guide books over the years, I hope I can give some suggestions to overcome the confusion of beginners to classical music. But follow at your own risks! Anyway, it would have served its purpose if this can bring classical music to a wider audience.
For this thread, I would classify a bugget CD as anything that cost under RM30. To kick off, I feel the best value for money at the moment for classical CDs that are available widely is the EMI Best 100 series. You'll get 6 CDs that usually last at least 7 hours in total for RM43.90 so this works out to be about RM7.32 per CD. These are collection of excepts (sometimes complete movements) of recording taken from the EMI label by famous orchestras, conductors and soloists. They have a wide range arranged by themes or by composers but for starter, you can go for the Best Classics 100 or Best Classics 100 Vol.2, both general collection of popular classical music.
You can get them at most music stores like Speedy, Rock Corner, Popular, etc and do not pay more than RM43.90 for each set as I have seen some priced more in some shops. BTW, I do not work for EMI or any other music lable. Enjoy.

The official LG BD550 Blu-ray Disc Player thread

ronaldkwok — Wed, 26 Jan 2011 19:54:41 +0800

I bought an LG BD550 BD player from Best Denki last week for RM399. Here are some of my findings for my set but not sure if it is the same for others since it was the last unit when I got it. For BD it is for Region A which is normal for all BD player sold here while for DVD it is for Region 3 only where usually it is region free for other brands or hackable. Worse still, I could not find any region hack for the DVD on the net for the BD5500 so it may be a problem if you have plenty of DVD that are not region 3. Also the local BD550 does not have any Netcast Acess to things like Youtube, Facebook, Picasa, etc while the same model sold in UK/US has this feature.
When I first tried to play Avatar BD from the 3-disc Speedy steelbox, it could not play but luckily it can played after I have upgrade the software from version BD4.598 to BD5.012 and I am just wondering if the problem is only with my unit or common with other units sold at this price. Can other owners of BD550 share their experience here?
Luckily, it can read HDD formatted in FAT32 or NTFS but there is no Audio or Subtitle buttons on the remote so you need to acces these by pressing the Info/Display button, a bit inconvenient. So potential buyers please be aware of the above or check if these are true of all the BD550 sets. Will share other findings later.

The Official Denon AVR1610 Owner's Thread

ronaldkwok — Mon, 25 Oct 2010 09:22:59 +0800

There is a general thread on Denon AVR and since I just got myself the Denon AVR1610 and there is no specific thread on this AVR, think I'll start one so that owners can come in to share their experience on problems, solutions, tips and views to get the most out of this entry-level AVR. I got mine from Desa Home theatre in Kepong for RM1299 over the weekend and I think it is very good value for money. Just a few points for those considering this AVR. This is Denon entry-level 5.1 channels AVR and is last year's model so is just HDMI 1.3 and is not ready for 3D video. If you want 3D video, you have to consider this year's model 1611 or Onkyo's entry level TX-SR308. Both have HDMI 1.4a for 3D video.
In fact the sales guy was trying to convince me to get the SR308 for an extra RM100 when I was there but since I don't care for 3D and the Denon 1610 has Audyssey auto calibration (which the Onkyo lacks) I stuck to the Denon. I cannot comment on the audio quality for both but I think they are lebih kurang since both are True HD entry level AVR with similar price. Sifu's here may want to tell us more about their pros and cons.
Hope other owners will share their experience with the 1610 in this thread.

The Samsung BD-C5500 BD Player owner's thread

ronaldkwok — Thu, 09 Sep 2010 23:19:59 +0800

Hi All, I just received my Samsung BD-C5500 blu-ray player from forum seller commomtan today. As far as I know, this is one of the cheapest entry level BD player at RM399, the other being the Philips BDP3100. So far it plays all the DVD, BD and CD that I have tested and I must say it is very good value for money. For those of you looking for a budget BD player, this is highly recommended. If you are looking for a DVD player with HDMI output to play your DVD collection on your HDTV, it is better to get this BD player since it cost just RM100 more than those branded DVD players with HDMI output at RM299 (like Sony, LG, Pioneer, Toshiba, etc.) and you can move up to BD later.
Anyway, there may be other issues so the purpose of this thread is for owners to share their experience, solutions and tips for this BD player so owners can get the most out of it.
For starters, here are two physical differences that I know for those considering either the Samsung BD-C5500 or the Philips BDP3100 to use with your old AVR without HDMI inputs. The Samsung has only optical digital output while the Philips has only coaxial digital output. The Philips remote does not have the eject (tray open/close) button while the Samsung has, if this is important for you.
Hope other owners will share their experience here.

The Official Toshiba 32AV700 Owner's Thread

ronaldkwok — Sun, 22 Aug 2010 08:39:52 +0800

Hi all, I just bought the Toshiba 32AV700, the entry level 32" LCD TV. I think it would be good to start this thread so that owners (or potential owners) can share information, tips, problems and solutions here. Owners of the Toshiba 40AV700 are also welcome since it is basically the same except for the bigger screen size. This is about the cheapest entry level 32" LCD among the branded ones.
After looking around, I bought mine at TBM, Cheras for RM1200 (self collect) for the convenience and you can get it at RM1199 at Desa Home Theatre and also at SS2 shops and probably elsewhere too so don't pay more than this (unless bundled with something extra). Cheers.

Samsung BDP1600 Blu-Ray player

ronaldkwok — Mon, 12 Apr 2010 23:28:45 +0800

Are there any owners of Samsung BDP1600 blu-ray player in he Forum? Please give your opinion of this player. I saw it on sale in Best Denki, KLCC for RM599. Is it worth buying?

Taken Cosmos Tours before?

ronaldkwok — Mon, 12 Apr 2010 23:23:48 +0800

Hi, has anyone in the Forum taken a holiday with Cosmos Tours before? Please share your experience here, both the good and bad points. Thanks.

The Official HDPro Media Player Owner's Thread

ronaldkwok — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 18:22:55 +0800

Since I've just got one unit of the HDPro Media Player from bro yangxi in this forum, I think I'll start this official thread so that all owners of this player can share their experience (good, bad and ugly; problems and solutions) all in one place for easy reference. My main purpose of getting this player is to view my HD 1920x1080, 60p videos taken with my Sanyo HD2000 camcorder and must now confirm that these can play without any problem on the HDPro. They could not be played on the PS3 and the older WDTV player (not sure about the WDTV Live, could not test). I suppose these 60p videos can also play on all media players using the same Realtek 1073DD chip. Anyway, this is just to start off as there are many other new features on the HDPro which I don't know how to use yet. So fellow owners of the HDPro, please chip in to make this your thread!

DVD to PC LCD monitor

ronaldkwok — Sun, 22 Feb 2009 16:43:50 +0800

Hi, I want to connect the output from my DVD player to my PC LCD monitor. I believe I need the RCA to VGA connector to do this. I looked for this in Low Yet but I could not find this cable. Does anybody know where I can get this or something else that I can use? Thanks for any assistance.