Comments for Auto Parts Reviews

Comment on Life Hammer & Res-Q-Me Kit – Orange keychain by J. C. Gomez

J. C. Gomez — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 04:13:17 +0000

7 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

50% failure rate, lack of support from manufacturer, October 2, 2009

J. C. Gomez (New Port Richey, FL USA) -

This review is from: Life Hammer & Res-Q-Me Kit - Orange keychain

After reading other posts of the ResQMe not working I decided to test the two that I had. Only ONE worked; the other did absolutely nothing! Wanting to give the manufacturer an opportunity to remedy the issue I contacted them and asked to have the defective item exchanged (nothing else was asked). I was told to send it back to Amazon. When I let them know I tested as a result of reading other posts of the device not working I was told "About the review, this comment is not objective and is not very relevant.". Not "objective" and/or "relevant"? One of the Amazon reviews clearly stated two of six did not work correctly (33% failure rate) and only one of my two worked (50% failure rate). That seems pretty clear, concise and objective.

I want you to think about something for a minute. How would you feel if you were ever trapped in a submerged vehicle, go to use this device and it failed to function? If you have a child, factor in the fear of not being able to get them out of the vehicle because this device failed.

I would suggest NOT buying this item or purchasing any product from the manufacturer as they do not stand behind their product.

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Comment on Res-Q-Me Keychain Escape Tool – ORANGE by Anonymous

Anonymous — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 06:50:43 +0000

0 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

Necessity in Florida, January 17, 2010

Kelly Scholz (Boca Raton, FL United States) -

Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)

This review is from: Res-Q-Me Keychain Escape Tool - ORANGE

This is a handy, easy-to-spot device to help in rescue efforts if you are driven off the road into water for whatever reason. Small, it can be on your keychain or in an easily accessible area of the car (like the ashtray or dangling from the gear-shift). I live where there are a lot of canals paralleling the roads. The news always has someone who drowned in them, even though there is only a few feet of water in them. Getting out is imperative.

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Comment on Res-Q-Me Keychain Escape Tool – ORANGE by Kelly Scholz

Kelly Scholz — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 05:55:16 +0000

Great!!, February 4, 2011

Trevor Smith (Mesa, AZ) -

Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)

This review is from: Res-Q-Me Keychain Escape Tool - ORANGE

I bought these for safety for me and my whole family plus the orange make it easier to find your keys.

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Comment on SoulCalibur: Broken Destiny by KyleisMr.Smiley

KyleisMr.Smiley — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 08:16:22 +0000

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

Over all is a quick pick up to play on the go., September 5, 2009

KyleisMr.Smiley (Houston, TX) -

= Fun:

This review is from: SoulCalibur: Broken Destiny (Video Game)

Essentially there is no one player story mode, what there is is a long drawn out tutorials mode. You don't unlock characters, weapons, or costumes. Everything is available right from the get go, so if you liked or played SoulCalibur 4 this has everything you could want on a portable scale; minus the Star Wars characters (replaced by Kratos and a new to the series guy) and minus the actual story line concept.

Me being a college student this games fits up to my needs of being able to take out at school or home and play for a short time while having fun at the same time, and be ready to save and stow away quickly.

Even though there is no campaign (one player) story mode like in the others in the series, the graphics are beefed up and the character creation is awesome, just like the previous game SoulCalibur IV.

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Comment on SoulCalibur: Broken Destiny by Aaron

Aaron — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 07:36:18 +0000

13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

Technical Masterpiece with One BIG Piece Missing, September 2, 2009

Aaron -

= Fun:

This review is from: SoulCalibur: Broken Destiny (Video Game)

I have been a fan of the weapon-based series Soul Calibur since I first bought it on the Dreamcast. I played it for hours, and it was especially fun against friends. So when I saw it was coming to the PSP, and purportedly was as faithful a port as possible of SC4, I had to hear more. Unbelievably, Team Soul and Namco were able to achieve their goal.

First off, the graphics are the best on the PSP (just above God of War) and are very high-res with large, detailed character models, great lighting, and beautiful arenas. This is a game that will make anyone seeing it on a portable screen go "Wow." There is no stuttering or slowdown whatsoever.

That said, the game play is as solid as the console versions, provided you're playing in Versus mode against friends via ad hoc or Quickmatch. Sadly, if you are looking for a "story based" single player arcade mode, you will not find it. This severely hampers the SP longevity of the game, as you may quickly grow bored playing against CPU "created" characters not taken from the in-game roster. The SP campaign that is present is nothing more than a long, glorified tutorial. Basically you are asked to learn how to guard, low-guard, grab, etc. These "chapters" literally last no more than 3 seconds. So after about 30 minutes, I had had enough, and an actual battle was nowhere in sight. Perhaps it does happen, but after so many tutorials, I couldn't go on.

There is a Trials mode as well, which tasks you with performing certain moves/actions to win, such as "Block your opponent ten times," "Win with a ring-out," "Defeat your opponent with a Critcal Finisher," etc. Again, it adds to the things to do, but it's not as fun as an arcade mode.

I know this may sound like the game sucks, but it does not. This PSP edition gets the addition of guest-fighter Kratos from the GoW series, and he fits in very well into this game. The ad hoc against friends (who also must have a copy of the game--there is no "game sharing" feature) is very smooth and without lag. So if you have PSP-owning friends, you could enjoy a great fighter wherever you are. The omission of an infrastructure online mode is big, but not as big as the missing SP arcade mode. Moreover, you can install some of the game files onto your Memory Stick (the install is 256 MB) and it reduces the load times to Nintendo DS levels, which is a great feature.

With a huge roster (the same as SC4, minus Vader or Yoda), the addition o f Kratos, superb graphics, responsive controls that mirror the big consoles, great music and Japanese/English voiceovers, and a lag free ad hoc mode make SC:BD a worthy purchase, and a good time waster in Quickmatch/Trials. It's such a disappointment that a SP arcade mode and online are omitted, but fans of the series looking to take their favorite fighting series on the road will not be disappointed. Those who are SC4 owners may not find anything new here, and it may be a good idea to see how Tekken 6 PSP turns out (and which modes make the cut) before laying down your money here.

Pros:

-Beautiful graphics, the best the PSP has to offer
-Smooth frame rate
-Responsive controls/full moves list
-Music, voice overs
-Full roster of fighters w/ alternate costumes
-Kratos
-Ability to create your own fighter
-Install option drastically reduces load times
-Ad hoc against friends works flawlessly

Cons:

-No SP arcade mode
-Included SP "Gauntlet" campaign is a joke
-Quickmatch uses too many "created" characters
-No online infrastructure mode
-Longevity for players w/o PSP owning friends is questionable
-Friends must have their own copy, no game sharing

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Comment on SoulCalibur: Broken Destiny by A. Llamas "Aurora"

A. Llamas "Aurora" — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 06:57:36 +0000

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

Much improved AI, September 5, 2009

A. Llamas "Aurora" (Crestwood, Illinois USA) -

= Fun:

This review is from: SoulCalibur: Broken Destiny (Video Game)

The first reviewer already said most of my points so I will simply add one more point that was not mentioned. I believe one of the biggest improvement I felt was the better CPU AI for Broken Destiny. Here is why:

- I noticed that the AI is more "human like" as it mimics both the good and bad habits of players. When playing the game I noticed the more advanced AI do intricate combos and tricks that I only seen when playing with my buddies when playing the PS3 version of Soul Calibur 4.

- The computer (at least those with the higher difficulty levels) adapts to your movement which means, you cannot use one set of moves over and over to defeat the AI opponent. I noticed that they tend to change their patterns. So if you start throwing a lot, the computer will start ducking to avoid your throws.

- The computer AI itself will check what moves are effective against you and they will spam that move over and over until you block it or you lose the battle. So if the computer notices that you always get hit by low attacks then it will keep attacking low until you change you pattern.

- I do not know how significant is this but if you follow the competitive soul caliber scene you will noticed that a lot of the AI names were taken from real life famous Soul Caliber tournament players such as famous French player, Kayane. Most of the AI moves mimic the style of the these players.

I'm not saying that the AI are better then a skilled opponent, because if you play the AI enough times, you will noticed that the ability for it to adapt is limited and tend to forget your patterns after the match is over. But despite of which, this is the best AI I have seen compared to the past Soul Calibur games

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Comment on ScanGauge II Ultra Compact 3-in-1 Automotive Computer with Customizable Real-Time Fuel Economy Digital Gauges by Gregory G. "Gaget Guru"

Gregory G. "Gaget Guru" — Sun, 22 Jan 2012 08:48:06 +0000

48 of 50 people found the following review helpful:

ScanGauge 2 Works As Advertised, November 3, 2007

Gregory G. "Gaget Guru" (Queens, New York United States) -

This review is from: ScanGauge II Ultra Compact 3-in-1 Automotive Computer with Customizable Real-Time Fuel Economy Digital Gauges (Automotive)

I've had the scanGuage II for about 3 weeks at the time of this review. I had bought the unit because I was interested in finding out about how my car, a 2002 Toyota Solara was holding up and what the car computer might tell me.

First the cons:
1. The cord is too long. The total run from the ODB II port to where the unit is
mounted is about a 15 inches, top. It would have been nice to have sockets
on both the plug and the SG II. Include a long and short cord, or just have it
so that cat5e network cable could be used.
Why? Because storing the excess cable somewhere is a problem, I ended up
storing in inside the panel protecting the steering column, and may have
created a short in one vehicle lighting circuits.

2. The velcro is too weak to hold the unit in place. I ended up using Radio Shack
LockTite fasteners (the clear ones) instead.
3. The manual leaves a lot to be desired, especially the pictures which are so low
contrast and dark they are useless. I had to go online and download the
manual as a PDF file.

Pros: The ScanGuage works as advertised. To me this is the Holy Grail of
advertising. It barely is worth repeating the items for sale that deliver what
they promise.

1. The display is large and very legible, even at night (or especially at night).
2. The diagnostics (both realtime and stored) are comprehensive
3. The codes are easy to read.

The biggest pro for me is being able to monitor my actual Miles Per Gallon
*mileage* I've changed my driving style from constant foot on the gas
pedal to gas-and-coast. A tank of gas lasts SO much longer now, because I
now know how much a lead foot costs. In fact for any given trip I can tell
how much it costs not only in dollars and cents, but also by engine load and
how far (or further) I got just coasting along.

The unit is (in my black & gray interior) inconspicuous, and the slightly
cheap look to the unit works to it's advantage: no one takes it seriously as
"a thing worth stealing."

If I had any indication that someone would understand what it does, I'd be
recommending it left and right. As it stands, it is something of a specialty
item, except you soon wonder how you ever got along without it.

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Comment on ScanGauge II Ultra Compact 3-in-1 Automotive Computer with Customizable Real-Time Fuel Economy Digital Gauges by Charlie

Charlie — Sun, 22 Jan 2012 08:30:15 +0000

154 of 169 people found the following review helpful:

High Utility Factor, Intuitive Interface, but has bugs and issues, February 7, 2008

Charlie (MI, USA) -

Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)

This review is from: ScanGauge II Ultra Compact 3-in-1 Automotive Computer with Customizable Real-Time Fuel Economy Digital Gauges (Automotive)

The installation of the SG2 is simple: attach the OBD2 connector to the DLC port and attach the RJ-45 jack to the SG2 unit. Routing the cable is really up to the operator. I chose to do it in a crude manner because I don't plan to make it a permanent addition to the car. I zip tied the cable to my HVAC vents and anchored it to the empty traction control hole behind the glove box.

I used 1 of the provided velcro kits to affix the SG2 to the top of my steering column so that it is right below the instrument panel. It actually blocks my view of the shift indicator array, although I can still see it clearly if I lean forward.

The update rate set at FAST is still rather slow and that is to be expected with the outdated OBD-II network. The "fastest" aftermarket scan tool that I have seen is SCT's Live Link for Ford / GM / Chryslers. If you want anything faster, you are going to have to borrow an OEM's scan tool system.

The X-Gauge interface is a bit cumbersome since you are restricted to using 2 buttons to enter alphanumeric characters while if you pause for anything more than 10-15 seconds, the SG2 shuts down. According to Linear Logic, they are working on an updated SG2 with datalogging features so hopefully they incorporate a PC interface to speed up programming and setup times.

I have it set to monitor instantaneous MPG, RPM, Vehicle Speed, and a gauge that I frequently switch depending on my mood. I am monitoring the torque converter slip ratio. Whenever it reads below 1.00, it means the torque converter is "slipping". Above 1.00 means the output side of the converter is spinning faster than the input side and theoretically it could just mean engine braking with some torque converter slip. You can program custom X-Gauges to monitor gross engine horsepower or torque input at the transmission.

I had previously used a Garmin Forerunner 101 to check my GPS vehicle speed and compared it to my speedometer readout (2000 Ford Crown Vic with mechanical speedometer). It revealed that my GPS speed was about 2-3 mph slower than the speedometer indicated speed. The SG2's vehicle speed readout (from the Vehicle Speed Sensor PID in the OBD-2 system) is approximately 2-3 mph slower than the speedometer reading and I am assuming this is the same readout as my GPS (I didn't get a chance to verify this yet).

Some of the gauges I like to monitor are Coolant Temperature, Intake Air Temperature, Transmission Fluid Temperature (XGauge), Torque Converter Slip Ratio (XGauge), Gross Horsepower (XGauge), RPM, Vehicle Speed, and MPG.

I still haven't been able to figure out how to work the trip computer properly to display averaged fuel economy. The instantaneous MPG is more important to me because I want to see if anything is not working right on long cruises. I have often wondered if the torque converter was locking properly when I use cruise control or when cruising on the highway.

The data collection stability is impressive. I never ran into many problems with Car Code or SCT's Live Link, but SG2 is just more convenient and compact. The backlight colors are interesting as they allow you to choose 4 different values of each RGB component (or 64 possible combinations). I have it set to R=3, B=0, G=0 so that it resembles Pontiac's interior lighting (I drive a Ford).

My only real complaint is that there's not a better way of attaching the SG2 to the car. A suction cup mount for the windshield would come in handy since I could mount it near my line of sight without relying on adhesive-backed velcro. The interface is quite intuitive but I would have liked a way to program the X-gauge more easily, like via a PC interface.

Bottom line: The SG2 is a great deal if you are interested in data readouts for your car. There are cheaper ways of pulling DTC codes, so the only real usefulness of SG2 is the "realtime" PID monitoring and the trip computer for cars that do not have such devices. If you know someone who is a bona fide gearhead and drives a car made in 1996 or newer, they may appreciate the SG2 as a gift.

UPDATE:
While the ScanGauge II provided a useful feature for cars without trip computers or onboard monitoring for various PIDs, I have noticed that it began to malfunction more frequently. The gauge readouts began to "flicker" between PIDs. For example, monitoring IGNition, the IGN began to switch rapidly between HPR. Just recently, the entire ScanGauge II shutdown while I was driving. It would refuse to reconnect with the OBD2 network. When it did find a connection, a lot of the text was garbled and it lost all of my trip data except for the total mileage. My car normally maxes out on 300 miles per tank of gasoline, so I was bewildered when the SG2 said I drove over 4000 miles. Other SG2 readers have reported similar quirks, albeit not as serious as the self shutdown and data corruption... Read more

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Comment on ScanGauge II Ultra Compact 3-in-1 Automotive Computer with Customizable Real-Time Fuel Economy Digital Gauges by Thomas Mueller "tmspecial"

Thomas Mueller "tmspecial" — Sun, 22 Jan 2012 07:44:17 +0000

79 of 84 people found the following review helpful:

gives you all the information you want/need, August 29, 2005

Thomas Mueller "tmspecial" (United States) -

This review is from: ScanGauge II Ultra Compact 3-in-1 Automotive Computer with Customizable Real-Time Fuel Economy Digital Gauges (Automotive)

This little box is very useful. In my case it already paid for itself. I was able to clear some service codes (misfire of a cylinder). In the past I paid $69 for the mechanic to just look up and clear the code.
I really like the fact that ScanGauge displays all kinds of engine data in real time. Other devices such as the CarChip save it and then need to be connected to a computer in order to access the data.
In my opinion, the ScanGauge is worth every cent.

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Comment on Swiss+Tech TFCSCR-PS Transformer Xi KeyChain MultiTool with Flashlight, Screwdriver, Work Light LEDs by Anonymous

Anonymous — Sat, 21 Jan 2012 09:49:50 +0000

not solid, December 28, 2011

Nachele -

Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)

This review is from: Swiss+Tech TFCSCR-PS Transformer Xi KeyChain MultiTool with Flashlight, Screwdriver, Work Light LEDs (Automotive)

The way it opens + the plastic parts* make it not solid at all. Nice if you keep it closed most of the time.

If you use it as keychain, be careful when you open it, as your keys will separate from it immediately.

*If it was all made of metal, it would not suit the use as keychain due to its weight

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