Author Archive for taro

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Soda C: Sony Action Cam vs GoPro HD3 Silver

Published on February 3, 2013 in Gear and Review by taro. Closed

So I’ve had these two long enough to play with them a bit and take some side by side footage. The Sony is their recent foray into the compact, self contained, HD POV video camera market dominated by GoPro. GoPro has such a strong hold that the name is becoming a verb among the action sports crowd, “Are you going to gopro that?” “I hope you were goproing that!” So it’s interesting to see what one of the big electronics names brings to the table.

I’m going focus on how it stacks up against the GoPro. Continue reading ‘Soda C: Sony Action Cam vs GoPro HD3 Silver’

Sony Dead Cat

Published on February 3, 2013 in Gear by taro. 1 Comment

So I bought the accessory door pack for the Sony Action Cam, $50 for the flat underwater door and the “enhanced” audio door, ouch. The audio door is what I wanted, it has two openings in the waterproof case door where the built in stereo mics are. But over the two holes is a membrane, it is most likely a GoreTex like membrane found in the LifeProof iPhone case. It allows air to pass, but not liquid water. So it should improve audio recording while maintaining waterproofness to a Sony claimed 10 meters. It still suffers from wind noise so I decided to do the Dead Cat treatment to it also. Continue reading ‘Sony Dead Cat’

I Like the Crakka

Published on January 23, 2013 in Gear and Review by taro. 1 Comment

A few posts ago I showed you the “Dead Cat” I made for my GoPro for a couple bucks. This weekend I did a Soda A, Soda B comparison test. You can watch it here:

My conclusions after the break. Continue reading ‘I Like the Crakka’

Pucker Factor 3 – Koko Crater Rim

Published on January 21, 2013 in Review by taro. Closed

Chris having some free time this weekend, we decided to check out the Koko Crater rim trail. The man who put the bug into my brain couldn’t make it so it was just the two of us parking at the botanical garden. This isn’t an official sanctioned trail so you wont find any marker. Suffice it to say that as soon as we turned left through the plumeria we were heading the wrong way. A pit stop at a stinky porta potty and it was looking pretty obvious this wasn’t going the way we wanted. We turned around and took the path less travelled. Continue reading ‘Pucker Factor 3 – Koko Crater Rim’

Beer Is Good – Samuel Adams Alpine Spring

Published on January 20, 2013 in Food and Review by taro. Closed

Latest SA seasonal, pours a somewhat cloudy yellow with fairly strong head that quickly subsides. Faint floral with a citrusy brightness. A little bitterness comes through, but not strong and does not linger long. I can detect a touch of skunkiness that I did not taste in the first bottle I had a couple days ago. Carbonation is not too strong, mouth feel actually a touch heavier than I would have expected from a beer of this color, but not heavy by any means. A very easy drinking beer. Oddly this second bottle doesn’t fill me with as much joy as the first one I had. I was almost ready to give the first bottle a 4, I really can’t now. Hm, actually seems better as I get near the bottom of the glass and it has warmed up a touch. It will have to settle for a solid 3 of 4 Alpine monkeys.

Daruku!

Published on January 15, 2013 in rant by taro. Closed

Yah! Power outage! Good thing I finished my bike ride, although it’d be kinda neat to ride around without any city lights. Wonder what the heck the cause is, no rain, no wind, very nice night actually. I wonder if I walk down to Bubbies they’ll give free ice cream! Looks like the UPS I just bought recently works too!

OK, it came back on as I was standing outside looking at the night sky. I see someone hiking down the Koko Crater stairs, wow that’s pretty late! I was just about to go raid the fridge and grab a bear and sit out in the driveway sky gazing. Oh well, guess I’ll grab a beer and watch anime on the computer instead!

GoPro Dead Cat

Published on January 13, 2013 in Gear by taro. 3 Comments

Huh, what? Apparently “dead cat” is an industry term, much like Monkey Sh*t. It’s those furry microphone wind muff screens. I was browsing Amazon and came across one for the GoPro on sale. However $10 seemed a bit much so I decided to make one myself. The hardest part was sourcing the synthetic fur. The lady at Calico Cat in Kaimuki said she had some, but when  I went to look it was really short pile stuff. BTW, if you’re into knitting and fabric stuff, you should stop in there, she’s a really nice lady.  What to do? Continue reading ‘GoPro Dead Cat’

Bing Bastards

Published on January 13, 2013 in rant and SUAR by taro. 1 Comment

WTF MicroShaft?! A little while ago, Bing somehow became my default homepage. Used to have it set as Google. And when I went to try and change it using the easiest common way to change your homepage with the homepage icon I’d get a popup saying an attempt to change your homepage was blocked. Had to go to Tools-Internet Options.

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Beer Is Good – Blue Moon Winter Abbey Ale

Published on January 8, 2013 in Food and Review by taro. Closed

Pours a moderate dark brown, moderate head that quickly goes away. Roasty aroma, but not strong, nutty tones, well tempered finish, a bit of lingering bitter. Smooth mouth feel, but not heavy syrupy. An easy quaffing beer.

Solid 3 out 4 touch of wheat monkeys.

Beer Is Good – Widmer Brothers Winter Seasonal Ale

Published on January 7, 2013 in Food and Review by taro. Closed

Pours clear medium amber, small head, light carbonation. Aroma is bam, floraly hops! Can smell it before even taking a taste. Flavor wise the hops is dominant, however not skunky. There is a bit of light roasty malt in the middle, strong lingering bitter finish. Mouth feel is medium, there is a touch of syrupy feel, but not objectionable. For how hoppy it is, I don’t find it offensive, however the bitter is a bit too much for me. I can drink it, but want strong food to go with it. On its own it’s a bit hard for me to drink. Oh, and it’s not my imagination, this does pack a bit of buzz, over 7% ABV is higher than your average beer.

2 out 4 hoppy monkeys.