3 Important Pieces of Technology

For me at least.

Found all 3 of these pieces of technology for bargain prices on Amazon.



First is a GE AV23294 A/V & Game Switch which is exactly what is says: an A/V switch that lets me easily move between my DVD player, PS2, and laptop. With this switch, I no longer have to pull out the component cables in the back of the television and reinsert the new cables for the device I want to use. I simply plug all my component cables (up to four) into the back of this switch and when I want to use a device I press the number on the front of the switch that corresponds with the cables. Bingo! No longer have to rotate my TV, unplug and replug any component cables (except when I plug them into this switch :) Found this on Amazon, which was offering it through Beach Audio. It was cheaper on the actual Beach Audio site ($17.99) but I wanted to consolidate all my items into one purchase through Amazon. Price: $22.39.



Second is a Grandtec Ultimate XP Pro PC to Video Component Converter. Yet another extremely confusing name for a simple product. Well, not really that simple. This component converter is supposed to be my answer for getting picture on my laptop converted onto my television set. I have tried this before but to no avail. Went to MicroCenter and was informed that I need to tell my laptop to output the signal to the TV through the graphics card settings. You can get to these settings by right clicking the desktop, clicking properties, settings tab, and then the advanced button. What was confusing for me (and what took so long to make a decision) is whether I should use the S-Video or VGA jack on my laptop for the best picture. My television, as well as every other one we own, is component cable only. There is no S-Video jack, which is available in newer TV's. I was told that VGA would be better than S-Video for my laptop so I decided to buy the converter, which comes with an S-Video cable also, but I think that might be for the Television and not the computer. I am still a little shaky about buying this product though. I mainly want it to play movies saved on my external hard drive and am hoping there will be very good picture quality. I won't know until it comes. Also, the component shown on Amazon does not show or list the device as coming with cables or a remote, as it is offered at RadioShack. However, on their website, and as the customer service guy at ComputerGeeks.com (the company that is offering the device through Amazon) said, it is only pictured with the cables and remote; not shown individually. At nearly half the price they offer at RadioShack I figured it's worth a shot. A man at RadioShack told me that I would want to buy the Grandtec Ultimate XP Pro to convert the RGB laptop signal to the NTSC and PAL signals of the TV but I wasn't willing to pay $100 for the device. Luckily, searching Amazon, I found it cheaper, being offered through ComputerGeeks.com. Price: $52.99.



Thirdly is a Logitech MX518 Gaming Optical Mouse which I need because my Microsoft optical mouse's right click button just decided to stop working. Frustrated with the defect I decided to buy a Logitech mouse, which I heard was more reliable. The mouse has a cool ergonomic design with a nice looking metal cover. It was a little more than I was willing to pay since I don't plan on using it for gaming or anything, but I was sold on its quality and performance. Plus, I like its multiple buttons that are programmable to do different things on different applications. It will be especially helpful with web surfing, having 'back' and 'forward' click buttons right next to my thumb. The mouse is corded... I already have a cordless mouse for travel, plus cordless mice tend to falter sometimes in their response. Price: $39.99.