`thew's reviews

Panasonic Lumix G 20mm F1.7 ASPH.

2012-01-29T22:50:00.004-05:00

Concept: 4 out of 5 Execution: 3 out of 5 Yeah, but: So what took me so long? The Long Version: This is the second review of this lens. Matthew wrote the first, an excellent review when he purchased his copy over a year and a half ago. Rather than repeat what he wrote, I'll refer you to his review. I'll wait here while you go and read it. I first considered the 20mm when Matthew wrote his

M.Zuiko Digital ED 40-150mm f4.0-5.6 R

2012-01-27T20:35:00.017-05:00

Concept: 3 out of 5 Execution: 3 out of 5 Yeah, but: It's just dandy for what it sells for. Background: Olympus has a habit of re-introducing two zoom lenses repeatedly. One lens is the 14-42mm 1:4-5.6 kit lens. The other zoom lens that Olympus has released repeatedly is the 40-150mm zoom. It first appeared along with the 14-45mm when the Olympus E-300 was introduced. It was a rather large

Panera Bread, Yonge Street Location

2012-01-26T23:31:00.001-05:00

Concept: 2 out of 5 Execution: 4 out of 5 Yeah, but: My very first Review By Proxy. The Long Version: I've never eaten at the new Panera Bread location on Yonge street at Edward, and based on what I've heard from other people, I never will. Despite only being open for one week, I've had four of my co-workers spontaneously start to rave about it, and I hear people talking excitedly about

TT Pocket Tools: Chopper, Keeper, and Simple

2012-01-21T15:12:00.005-05:00

Concept: 4 out of 5 Execution: 4 out of 5 Yeah, but: Who doesn't love little bits of metal? The Long Version: To give credit where it's due, I learned about TT Pockettools because of a review on the excellent Every Day Commentary blog. The author of that site is phenomenally hard-working, and there's a fair bit of overlap in our interests. If he starts getting into cameras, I may have to

SOPA/PIPA

2012-01-17T21:48:00.004-05:00

Concept: 0 out of 5 Execution: 0 out of 5 Yeah, but: If it's pro-business and the Globe And Mail still hates it, it's really bad. The Long Version: I have an odd relationship with American copyright law. I'm affected by it without being subject to it, but Canadian copyright law – at least under the Conservative government – will eventually aspire to match it. So I've only been paying

Fujifilm GA645Zi

2012-01-16T20:46:00.010-05:00

Concept: 3 out of 5 Execution: 3 out of 5 Yeah, but: Despite its large size, it's a very small camera. The Long Version: Fujifilm makes good cameras, and always have. While their most recent renaissance has surprised everyone, including Fuji, they have a long tradition of making quirky cameras that are genuinely designed for photographers. That must be why they also release more cheap

Canon Powershot S100

2012-01-11T21:51:00.017-05:00

Concept: 4 out of 5 Execution: 4 out of 5 Yeah, but: I never say "Highly Recommended"… The Long Version: I've never been a stickler for image quality from a compact camera. I simply categorize them as acceptable or unacceptable, and to a large extent that also takes their other abilities into consideration. Everything in photography is a compromise. It's normally enough that a little

Fred Cutting Board

2012-01-06T20:34:00.001-05:00

Concept: 3 out of 5 Execution: 1 out of 5 Yeah, but: Funny, yes. The Long Version: Sometimes you might as well just write my name on something. Penny bought me this after she caught me measuring the carrot sticks – I wanted to ensure that I cut the celery to the same size. After all, I don't want one settling to the bottom of the container when I'm packing my lunch. This cutting board

"Toronto Rocket" LED Subway Maps

2011-12-30T20:30:00.017-05:00

Concept: 3 out of 5 Execution: 1 out of 5 Yeah, but: Just look at how shiny it is! The Long Version: Toronto has been working hard on its transit system recently. Just this year the city has decided that transit is so essential that the workers who run it lost their right to strike, but not so essential that the system should actually be properly funded or given priority in transportation

Drink Toque

2011-12-24T19:07:00.000-05:00

Concept: 4 out of 5 Execution: 3 out of 5 Yeah, but: Quick, guess which country it's from. The Long Version: Humour counts for a lot, and The Drink Toque makes the most of it. It's really just a can cozy, but it's knitted instead of being made out of the ubiquitous neoprene and foam rubber. It's perfect for lounging around in our typical Canadian weather. To compliment this fairly

Domke Camera Straps

2011-12-20T21:14:00.001-05:00

Concept: 2 out of 5 Execution: 3 out of 5 Yeah, but: Yeah, they're hard to be excited about. The Long Version: Domke Camera straps come in two main varieties: swivel and non-swivel. Me being me, I own both, which has given me a good opportunity to compare them. While there's also a model that's 1.5" wide, I prefer the 1" wide strap. The centre of the strap is just like the ones on Domke

Helle Viking

2011-12-12T21:12:00.002-05:00

Concept: 3 out of 5 Execution: 3 out of 5 Yeah, but: I'm admiring its vintage feel. The Long Version: Certain things are so ugly that they're attractive. This is an understandable evolutionary advantage, as anyone who has seen a newborn baby can attest, but product designers and pug-dog breeders also put it to good use. And since I try to acknowledge good design, Helle deserves my

One Weekend with the Epson 3880

2011-12-09T10:15:00.002-05:00

Concept: 2 out of 5 Execution: 2 out of 5 Yeah, but: How interesting can setting up a printer be? The Long Version: There's not a lot that I can add to the existing reviews of the Epson Stylus Pro 3880; over the past two years it's been in solid use by people who are better printmakers than I'll ever be. All I can really report on is the experience of upgrading to it. After all, as my

X-rite ColorMunki Display

2011-12-04T20:46:00.001-05:00

Concept: 2 out of 5 Execution: 3 out of 5 Yeah, but: It's better than the Huey… The Long Version: It's been three years since I reviewed the Pantone Huey, and boy does that ever make me feel old. The Huey was a seriously first-generation device, while the X-rite Colormunki Display – a bad combination of words if I ever heard one – is so much more capable that there's absolutely no

Generic Lens Caps

2011-12-02T23:46:00.001-05:00

Concept: 2 out of 5 Execution: 3 out of 5 Yeah, but: Name-brand pharmaceuticals are next. The Long Version: After my Zeiss C-Sonnar review I promised Bill that I'd try to avoid inspirational photography products for a while. Reviewing lens caps seems to fit the requirement, since they're one of those little usability design things that can either go unnoticed or be an ongoing irritation

Nikon 35mm f/2 AF-D

2011-11-27T20:48:00.004-05:00

Concept: 2 out of 5 Execution: 2 out of 5 Yeah, but: No, I didn't inadvertently use one photo twice. The Long Version: I've never really liked the Nikkor 35/2 AF-D lens, but I bought it anyway. Simply for the sake of versatility I wanted something wider than my 50/1.8D for my F-mount cameras. As always with SLR lenses, price ramps up very quickly as the focal length and apertures

Rain Alarm (Extended) for iPhone

2011-11-24T00:16:00.002-05:00

Concept: 4 out of 5 Execution: 3 out of 5 Yeah, but: Chicken Little eat your heart out. The Long Version: I enjoy planning. I like to know what to expect, and I like to have some idea what to do if that's not what happens. One manifestation of this is that I really want to know if it's likely to rain. Rain Alarm is a useful little application for iOS. It taps into publicly-available

RoboSport

2011-11-19T16:50:00.003-05:00

Concept: 5 out of 5 Execution: 3 out of 5 Yeah, but: Mario, schmario. The Long Version: I don't usually review things that I haven't used for almost twenty years, but one of the lingering injustices of electronic gaming is that the 1991 Mac/PC/Amiga classic RoboSport has never been reissued for a modern platform. I started to play Robosport on a friend's Mac SE, long before I had a

Twelve South BookBook for iPhone

2011-11-16T19:24:00.001-05:00

Concept: 4 out of 5 Execution: 2 out of 5 Yeah, but: Perhaps PhoneBook is too obvious a name. The Long Version: It's a clever gag – a classic-looking leather book-shaped object that actually houses an iPhone. Twelve South – the makers of my BookArc laptop holder – have been making their BookBook laptop cases for a while now, but the iPhone model is the first one that includes the ability

Canon PIXMA Pro9000mkII

2011-11-11T17:34:00.005-05:00

Concept: 3 out of 5 Execution: 2 out of 5 Yeah, but: It's meant to be low-end. The Long Version: First of all, I'd love to meet the person who came up with the name "PIXMA Pro9000 Mark II". It's a gem. And naturally there's another printer that takes completely different inks but with a name that's only different by one character. For the purpose of this review, I'll simply be calling it

Carl Zeiss 50mm f/1.5 C Sonnar

2011-11-08T23:09:00.006-05:00

Concept: 4 out of 5 Execution: 4 out of 5 Yeah, but: There's no middle ground on this one. The Long Version: Carl Zeiss makes good lenses. In the same way that exceptional photographers can create wonderful photographs that would look like mistakes if they came from a novice, Zeiss has intentionally broken the rules. They could have created a technically perfect 50mm lens, but instead

Xootr Ergo Pin

2011-11-06T11:46:00.002-05:00

Concept: 3 out of 5 Execution: 1 out of 5 Yeah, but: Even the Mona Lisa's falling apart. The Long Version: I've had a long and happy relationship with my Xootr kick scooter, with only one exception: the Ergonomic Locking Pin that holds locks the deck/handle joint in place. The design of the Ergo Pin is quite elegant. There's a spring-loaded plunger that releases the pressure on two

Sena Ultraslim iPhone Case

2011-11-03T21:03:00.003-04:00

Concept: 3 out of 5 Execution: 5 out of 5 Yeah, but: Sometimes a case is just a case. The Long Version: Some things improve with use and time. Products that are designed to accept the patina of age gracefully can develop a wonderful character from scuffs and wear, and never really need to be replaced. Natural materials like wood, leather, and canvas are the best for this, but Leica has

"Info Pillar" Sidewalk Billboards

2011-10-31T21:04:00.011-04:00

Concept: 0 out of 5 Execution: 0 out of 5 Yeah, but: Aren't pillars usually round and narrow? The Long Version: It's not commonly known, but Toronto's current mayor is a shy, considerate, and intellectual man. He's even a published and award-winning poet, but writes under a pseudonym for the sake of modesty. So it's no surprise that when there's a sensitive flourish that improves our

Olympus XA

2011-10-30T19:59:00.002-04:00

Concept: 5 out of 5 Execution: 4 out of 5 Yeah, but: What digital compact will still be used 30 years from now? The Long Version: The Olympus XA is small. Very, very small. More than thirty years after it was introduced, it's still the worlds smallest rangefinder camera that takes 35mm film. The XA has a non-collapsing 6-element 35/2.8 lens that covers the full 24x36mm frame, and has a