surprisingly disappointed...
922791
I was so excited when i purchased this gift item, and was soon disappointed thereafter. This case doesn't fit as the description says.  The top left corner doesn't snap and I am afraid that this weak point may compromise the other corner, and the tab won't have the protection needed. Also, I wrote the Pc Micro Store sometime ago and I am yet to get a response.
215850
I wasn't expecting much, but this under-delivered completely.

I was expecting poor build quality and an uncomfortable fit, both of which it delivered -- but it also failed completely on functionality.  I like to do things cheaply when possible and I thought a wired solution with a simple sensor may be bulkier than most people are willing to deal with, but would suit my directed meditation purposes well, and maybe allow use as an exercise tool if I'm lucky.

It almost worked.  It certainly detected something, but the unit may have been calibrated poorly?  I tried it with the recommended Fitbeat free app (which is the only app I could find capable of using this type of sensor at all -- all others are for bluetooth devices).  When worn on my ear, which is listed as the primary location, it would get a very clear reading -- but counted each heartbeat twice (maybe?).  It was roughly twice my heart rate, but I can't be certain that's what it was doing.  Worn on my finger, it would count about 4 out of 5 twice, but 1/5 the proper amount...  even less useful.  So for it's intended purpose this unit isn't possibly useful.

It also is definitely not USB.  I didn't expect it to be, given the pictures, but I figure while I'm railing against how bad it is, I may as well help anyone looking to possibly purchase it understand all of it's shortcomings.
942434
I was excited to get this - I know the brand and equate Onkyo with high quality. But, in the end, my expectations were not matched by the reality.

First, I had a problem noted by a few other reviewers.  I could not get the speaker to connect to my wireless network. I tried dozens and dozens of times with the clunky menu and data input interface that is present for setting up the network. I am confident that the problem is not my router - I have close to 10 devices in my house that all recognize and connect to my Netgear router without a problem. After two days of trying to connect so I could use Airplay and listen to internet radio, I gave up.

After giving up on the network connection, I connected my iTouch to the dock, selected Pandora, and waited. And waited. And waited. Turns out the system would not recognize the Pandora audio stream. I quickly swapped out the Onkyo and plugged my Sony dock back in, connected my iTouch, and verified that Pandora was indeed working.  Once again, I was stumped.

The Onkyo did recognize and play the music in my iTouch library without a problem. Once I could get sound quality, I was left with a firm "meh" regarding the sound quality. It wasn't bad, but it wasn't what I was expecting for the asking price, nor the brand. There are superior (and cheaper) docking stations available elsewhere on Amazon.

In the pure looks department, the Onkyo is a stunner. It has a modern design, a sleek brushed metal overlay that slides away to reveal the docking station and menu, and solid construction. It is true that the pictures does not do it justice. But this beauty compared to the quality of its intended function brings a saying to mind: "Big Hat, no cattle." In other words, looks can be deceiving.
2890993
I looked forward to this book.  I've really enjoyed the previous books in this series.  But, as a couple other reviewers write . . .whoa!  It felt as though the book just abruptly ended?!  I actually thought for a moment that something was wrong with my Kindle?!!  I will hope, that the next book in this series, when it is released, the huge amount of questions I had as well as loose-ends, will be addressed.  I enjoy Joanne DeMaio's writing, but this book, in my opinion, left this reader disappointed.  I will probably purchase the next book in this series because I hope that it will 'answer' so many of the questions that I had when reading this book.  I do feel a little duped and I did not expect this from Joanne DeMaio's writing.
2932017
Yeah, I'm a chick and yeah, I love DT. I have also been listening to Yes, ELP and Black Sabbath since I was 10. That being said, I am very disappointed in the latest release from DT. I have been a fan since I woke up on the couch at 1 a.m. to MTV's Headbanger's Ball and there was the DT video of "Pull me Under". I went out the next day and bought Images and Words and was blown away by the songs and the musicianship. I have turned a lot of friends on to DT over the years, including people that weren't even into metal. It's hard not to respect such amazing musicians no matter what kind of music you're into.

So what does all that have to do with the new release? Well, exactly, where is the song writing? Where is the musicianship? As I was listening to this disc, I found myself fast forwarding through the songs hoping for something, ANYTHING interesting. I actually said to myself out loud, "Did they run out of ideas?" Oh sure, Panic Attack and Never Enough are typical shredding DT metal but they sound like everything else they've ever done and nothing new, fresh or interesting.

I wasn't expecting another masterpiece like 6 Degrees (my personal favorite) nor was I expecting another Train of Thought but I hoping for a lot more than the mediocre songs on this disc. I don't feel that this is the end of DT or that they've lost it, just that maybe this was a more personal and experimental disc and that they will come back, stronger than ever on their next one. Rock on Dudes, I'll always love ya!
3011351
Possible Spoilers (but vague):

Like many others I am a HUGE fan of the Bound Hearts series and "The Club".  And like many of the other reviewers here, I have been a huge Kahlid fan from the first time he was introduced a couple of books ago.  Back in October when I saw the release date for Guilty Pleasure and found out it was going to be Kahlid's story, I immediately pre-ordered!  I couldn't wait for Kahlid's own brand of seduction and "middle eastern" style sensuality.  I hate to admit this, because I am a fan of LL, but I too was disappointed in this book.

There was absolutely NO seduction here because Marty was trying to "bed" Kahlid from the very beginning; so Kahlid didn't have to "work" at this relationship at all.  Also, I felt like Shayne's character was extremely weak.  It was kind of sensuous for him to be their third and having Marty know him as a only a friend, but that wasn't enough; and unfortunately he wasn't "involved" in the "scenes" as much as I would have liked.  So I think it will be hard to get excited about the next book if it's about him.  We know absolutely NOTHING about him.

With all of that said, the truly interesting character in all of this "unorganized" plot was Kahlid's twin brother Abram!  When I first read about him I thought "oh, now this WILL be interesting"  thinking he would end up being the third, but unfortunately no.  I would, at the very least like to see Shayne hook up with Kahlid's brother as a third in the next book.

I too felt as if this book was rushed, the love story was non-existent, the love-making scenes were at times rehashes from other books (I literally saw a line in this book that was word-for-word from a previous one), and the "danger factor" was uninteresting at best.  This was almost as if someone else wrote it while LL supervised and worked on something else.  I hope it doesn't happen again.

I DO want to see the Bound Hearts series to go on!  I love it!  There just needs to be some variations: maybe revisit a couple and bring in a totally different third (I'm thinking maybe Chase and Kia after they are married).  I LOVED Forbidden Pleasure - that was GREAT stuff - that and Only Pleasure (Kahlid plus Chase in a limo!!  Holy cow!) are my faves!
4809363
Although I have tried my best to follow the specific "rules" for using the card reader portion of the device, I cannot get it to read a SD card into either of my I-Pads.  Although I had previously had the correct folder on the card and the photos were in the correct format, it just won't read it.  I even reloaded the card with the folder and new photos.  Still no luck.

I did get the device to connect with a cable directly to the camera and load up photos to the I-Pad.

My biggest disappointment is that I could not find any website or other means of getting any technical help.  The 1/8 page instruction booklet was useless.  Further disappointed in the evidently the same device (same picture of the device anyway) is listed with about 15 different "product names" to it, with much, much variety in pricing.  Overall not very pleased, but spent only a little money to start with--not worth sending it back.
2567415
To start with, I was beyond excited for this book. I'd randomly check my order history, just to be sure it was still preordered and hadn't disappeared into cyberspace somewhere. I contemplated going out to a store on the day it was released and buying a copy, because I didn't want to wait.

But the actual book, the juicy bits inside? It hurts to think this, much less type it, but I was actually...disappointed. That feeling wasn't there, not like the previous installments. I read the first three books back to back to back within a couple of days. This one actually took me over a week to finish it. It just didn't engage me like before, and it didn't draw me in.

One of the reasons I think this happened is the constantly skipping point of view. Every couple of pages we were in a different character's head. I've never had a problem connecting with multiple POV's before, but this time, they were so abrupt, I just couldn't really sink into the story. It almost felt like a television series or something, or a movie even, constantly skipping to a different scene with a different cast. Each segment ended with a cliffhanger as well, almost making the novel read like a script rather than a true novel.

But, then again, I loved seeing Simon more prominently featured. The dialogue is flawless, as always, and laugh out loud hilarious when it comes to the boys (Simon, Jace, and Kyle/Jordan) interacting with one another, and playing off one another. In fact, those scenes with those three, and all the snappy comebacks dripping in sarcasm were probably my favorite scenes from the whole book.

And Simon's love life? I love that the nerdy boy who never got any attentions has two hot girls interested in him, but I just didn't feel a spark with either of them. While I do prefer Simon with Isabel if I had to pick, there's no real spark to me. There's no chemistry, no draw. We see a bit of emotion from Isabel at the end, but I think I'll need a lot more to really get behind this couple. The same with Simon and Maia. I didn't feel it, despite how much I loved the characters individually. I do prefer Maia with Kyle/Jordan, but again, it just fell flat for me.

And of course, the star couple, Clary and Jace. I was always a Clary and Jace fan, even when it felt so wrong to want them together. I feel like they were still just as steamy as ever, but it almost seemed like they were going through drama for the sake of drama. This couple has already been through hell and back together, why not just leave them alone? Let this be the couple who is happy, and maybe a little more in the background. Let the secondary characters from the previous books take center stage, and just let Jace and Clary be sappy and romantic and crazy in love. This new obstacle for them just feels almost unnecessary, and honestly, I'm a little tired of them not just being able to be together. We suffered and cried and pined with them through three whole books of torment, why add more?

Needless to say, though, I love the characters and I love the world. I will never get truly tired of any of it, even if 100 more books come out. Did I feel the way this book went was almost unnecessary? Yes. Did I feel the writing wasn't quite as up to par? Yes. Am I actually way more excited about the next Infernal Devices book now? Yes. Was I disappointed and under whelmed? Yes. Am I still giving it five stars because I love this world so much? Yes. But I will read City of Fallen Angels again and again, and I will be a squealing fan girl when the next one comes out. Cassandra Clare has a devout fan for life, no matter what she does.
3536624
I was genuinely disappointed for the first time reading one of the breed books. I not only disliked the main characters but found myself annoyed with characters I had already come to love from previous books. I read 3 other books while having to force myself through this one on the chance that there's something in there I will have to have for the next one.

The heroin is indecisive, too weak to truly stand up for herself and to traumatized to just get with the program.  The hero is tolerable and may have been interesting with a better partner but as is, he is underdeveloped  and underwhelming. Characters like Cassie, Hope, and Dash are also disappointingly  unempathic  and at times cruel. Characters that we expect the best of have let us down. Jonas is probably the only character in the book I didn't find myself disenchanted with simply because Jonas is expected to act like a dictatorial tyrant.

Altogether I desperately hope that this won't be the new direction she takes the series in. But... I do love this series so I wait with bated breath for the next one.
3594736
I've been a fan of the Civilization series since its inception (except for civ3 - a waste ...). I expected a lot of Civ5.., then maybe the (few) defects of the great Civ4 would be corrected? Disappointment..!! The leader's animations  seem infantile film, the music is incompatible, the limited sense of the wonders of the world, even the total absence of religion (which has always been an annoying thing!) is lacking. The excess of children's drawings, on screen, too far-fetched ...
Anyway, it looks more like a bad sequel of Civ3 than an evolution of Civ4 (not to mention Civ2 too...)!
Sorry, but I was frustrated..! And I can only wait for the 6 ...!!
Tks!
ps: forgot!! the Steam.., too!!
2699068
I love Sophie Kinsella and have been reading her for years. Her 2017 release, My Not So Perfect Life was one of my favourites of last year (you can read my review here if you missed it). Because I adored it so much, I had really high expectations for Surprise Me. I don't know if it was my high expectations, my mood (it wasn't great when I was reading it), or the book itself but...I did not like this book.

I think my big problem with the book was I was bored. The story got itself set up and then...boredom. It just seemed like the same sort of things were happening. Sylvie and Dan tried to surprise each other and it went totally wrong. Repeat. Repeat. Repeat. There was nothing new being added and it seemed like it was, dare I say it, sloppy storytelling.

I was also really frustrated with Sylvie and Dan. It reminded me of how I'd get annoyed with Becky in the Shopaholic series (and why I stopped reading them awhile back). I love chick lit and contemporary stories so humourous and awkward scenarios are common. Maybe it's just me but it drives me up the wall when the character is just so incredibly clueless and can't see what she's doing is totally bonkers.

That's not to say I disliked Sylvie and Dan. I really did like them. I'd love to have Sylvie as a friend and Dan seemed fantastic. But I just couldn't see why I was reading about them. They were just another couple facing a little bump in the road of marriage.

I did finally get interested at about 80% of the way through the story. Finally things were actually happening and Sylvie was becoming the woman I was sure she could be. Did the interest I had in the last part of the book make up for the boredom during the rest of it? No, not really. I'm happy with the way the story ended, I can say that much.

I'm so bummed I didn't love Sophie Kinsella's new book but my dislike of Surprise Me won't dissuade me from reading her books in the future. Have you read Kinsella's latest? What'd you think? I'd love to hear that other people disagree with me!
763394
As many of you, I was an instant Dan Brown fan after reading the DaVinci Code.  Soon there after, I read his previous novels in reverse order of publication only to be more disappointed with each novel.  My thought then was, and it should stand to reason, that The Lost Symbol would be amazing.

I am sorry to report, however, that The Lost Symbol rates below Angels and Demons on my "Liking" scale.  Question: What went wrong? It was all there; the story line, the research, the protagonist, the antagonist, the urgency - Everything!  Answer: the presentation and execution were almost; terrible.  While there were moments where I found myself in a "DaVinci-like" trance and unable to set the book down, those moments were far too few and far between.

There was a real sense of disconnection within the text.  It is almost as thought there were three separate writing/creative sessions if you will.  The first part of the novel was slow to develop and not very captivating from a reader's perspective.  The middle section - which is by far the best from a flow and interest perspective - had a very different feel than the other two.  And lastly, the third section, or last 60 - 70 pages, were completely disparate and could be omitted.  I would even be so bold as to say the experience would have been more pleasing to me had they not been included.

This is not the first time my expectations were not met; shame on me, I just was expecting more...
3882166
I was really excited to get this case mostly because my phone needs a case as I'm, admittedly, really hard on electronics.  I chose to get this case based purely on looks and cost.  I hadn't heard much about it but I knew it was made by Zagg and I've had VERY good luck with their screen protectors.  I wanted to like it... I really did but it fell very short of my expectations.

When I put the case on the phone I was still really positive.  It fit my phone well (I read another review that the top button no longer worked, I had no problems with buttons working) and the case seemed really sturdy.  After a day of use though, it's going back.  The case was on my phone for less than an hour when my wife pointed out that the silicon rubber was very loose, it did not fit tight to the plastic hard shell.  From experience with other cases I know that these silicone pieces only stretch over time, if it started loose it was only going to get looser.  I was willing to overlook that - or at least that's what I told myself.  When I went to plug in headphones... I was again disappointed.  Out of the four pairs of headphones I had accessible only one would fit while the case was on.  The bottom flap that covers the Lightning port, speakers, and headphone jack is incredibly loose, but the plastic portion only has a 1/4" opening while my headphone jacks are all >3/8".  Again I told myself if that's the worst thing this case does I think I can live with it.  Well, I pulled my phone out so I could use the headphones I wanted to use and low and behold my phone was scratched.  I inspected the case and found a loose piece of plastic that must have been rubbing on the phone.  My phone was in the case for less than 18 hours which included 8 hours of sitting on my dresser while I slept and now it's scratched.  I take a bit of blame for not checking the case to make sure everything was proper before putting the phone in, but a loose piece of plastic should have been caught by a decent quality control system.  All-in-all I'm disappointed and now have a scratched phone.

Pros:
Looks neat!
Fit my phone well

Cons:
Silicone loose to start
Headphone jack slot too small for most (in my case) headphones
Quality control seems to be lacking - loose plastic piece rubbed on phone until scratch developed
4164157
Oh my. I am so disappointed with this book. I had such high hopes for Alessandro's story, and I'm seriously feeling like A Little Too Much was a huge letdown.

 It's very unfortunate that the author chose to write A Little Too Much from Hilary's POV. Experiencing this story through her eyes made it less appealing to me. I thought Hilary was really lacking any personality traits that I found pleasing, and giving her so many problems didn't make me have any feelings for her other than dislike. I never really connected with her at all, and I spent most of the book wishing I wasn't reading about her.

 I was introduced to Alessandro in A Little Too Far, and I thought he was a fascinating character and I absolutely loved him. I couldn't wait to read A Little Too Much and spend more time with him. He completely captivated me and left me wanting to dive deeper into his story. I wanted to get inside his head and see what he was thinking and feeling. Alessandro was such a tortured soul in A Little Too Far, and I felt that he was just a shell in this book and only there to give Hilary a love interest. The previous version of Alessandro that I adored was nowhere to be found. I needed for him to have a stronger presence in this book, and for him to be able to clear up his past so he could move forward, and that didn't happen.

 Despite their past together, I couldn't see or feel any kind of emotional attachment between Hilary and Alessandro. They had zero chemistry in my opinion, and their interactions were completely bland. I also couldn't understand what Alessandro saw in Hilary. I wanted Alessandro to be happy and loved like he deserved, and I didn't feel that Hilary was the right person for him. Even though this book had a HEA, I couldn't get behind it because it seemed really forced and I wasn't feeling it.

 The writing itself was fine, but the plot was so slow at times that I really wanted to skim and get to the good stuff. That's never a good thing. So overall, this was a huge let down. I had such high hopes and I was really looking forward to getting to know Alessandro more. Obviously, there are things that could have made this story more enjoyable for me. But I am sure that some will like this story just as it is.
2050906
Let me start off by saying, I am a HUGE KK fan! I have over 20 of her books, and have absolutely loved all of them!! Until this series. I feel so disappointed! This is not the same Bailey that I have been reading about the past few years. Here are a few reasons why I dislike this series.

1. I do not like that Cody is suddenly made out to be a coward, after all that he has been through. Cody and Bailey had a special kind of love (much like Landon and Ashley) and I am disappointed that it suddenly came to an end. And for reasons that just did not make sense.

2. I do not like Brandon, the character is way too fake, and shallow. Bailey is being swept off her feet by someone who has millions of dollars, and will fly across country at the drop of a hat just to see her for a short time. Very obsessive, and worldy. I think that as a new Christian, he should have been more interested in developing a closer relationship with God, and allowing God to grow him first, before thinking of pursuing Bailey.

3. I did not like the part where Bailey and Brandon were in an apartment alone together. The couple that Bailey lived with had a strict rule about that, but made an acception for Bailey. Why? Is she so above others that she could not possibly be prone to temptation? I did not think that it sent a good message at all, to young readers, especially.

4. With Brandon and Bailey, it's all about surprises and luxuries, it all seems very self indulgent, and not a deep kind of love, like Cody and Bailey had.

These are just a few of the many things I am not liking about this series. I can't express how disappointed I am, and very surprised to be honest. This series is not at all like Karen's other books, which contain characters that are very relatable, and have a deep faith in God. I'm sorry to say that I don't plan to read Loving. I am less excited about future books, which is sad, because she has always been my absolute favorite.
4043957
As a technology-loving person, I was intrigued on what promised to be a fun and new way of approaching the fun game of Pictionary.  I was disappointed to say the least.  This electronic version of Pictionary seems poorly conceived.  A white plastic figure and "magic" pens that one can use to draw clues.  An electronic clue-giving window seems kinda cool.  Unfortunately, as my teenage daughter and her three friends reported, the clues are hard to draw -- and, worse, there is absolutely no connection to the plastic figure on which one is supposed to draw. It all feels rather ...random.

This is one case where the non-electronic version of the game seems like a whole lot more fun than the electronic version.  There is, really, no reason that I can think of to spend the extra money for the electronic version of the game!
1506321
A huge disappointment...a thin, random collection of dialogue snippets from the original series and some bits of trivia, all of which will be familiar to even occasional fans. This could have been so much richer and more fun. Plus, errors: misspelling Roddenberry and calling an episode "Balance of Power"--it's "Balance of Terror." I'm also very saddened that a similar review/comment I posted on startrek.com was taken down. Did I hurt someone's feelings, folks?