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Blessings of Autumn - Authentic Artwork Print by Thomas Kinkade




Lamplight Inn Authentic Artwork Print by Thomas Kindade




Hometown Christmas Authentic Artwork Print by Thomas Kinkade




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Sony PS4 and Microxoft Xbox - PS4 vs Xbox One: which is better? Part One Introduction and Design - buyetail.com

Sony PlayStation 4 sells 22 million, but Microsoft has backward compatibility

Update: Watch the new Xbox One vs PS4 comparison video we put together

Our incredibly in-depth Xbox One vs PS4 comparison is more meaningful than ever after GamesCom 2015. It considers Microsoft's backward compatibility news and previous price drops, and how it all contrasts with Sony's powerful specs, exclusive games and graphics power.

Now a year and a half since the two consoles launches, Sony's sales numbers prove that PS4 is more popular with early adopters of the next-generation of video games. Fact.

PlayStation 4 is outselling Xbox One 2-to-1 right now, surpassing 22.3 million systems sold worldwide, while Microsoft's sales numbers are at 12.8 million.

Who cares? Those are overall sales statistics - all meaningless, as the Xbox One price drop and surge in popularity are starting to make the debate a little more even. Being able to play Xbox 360 games on your Xbox One starting in November is going to guarantee that trend will continue.

Xbox One full review

Microsoft's come-from-behind campaign consists of adding exclusive games likeHalo 5, full DVR capabilities, readying an Xbox Elite controller and, further out, experimenting with HoloLens. In addition to Xbox One backward compatibility,Windows 10 presents exciting game streaming possibilities in a forthcomingNovember update. It's already the only console with EA Access and Sling TV.

Sony is preparing PS4 for a streaming and virtual reality future, too, withPlayStation Now, PlayStation TV and Oculus Rift-rival Project Morpheus. In the meantime, it's readying Uncharted 4 for its delayed 2016 release date and tweaking its console with feature-filled firmware updates and PlayStation Plus games.

PS4 full review

Both consoles are getting Fallout 4 and Star Wars: Battlefront, as is the ever-popular PC, and both are rumored to be getting a 4K hardware refresh for the coming months, with HDMI 2.0 able to deliver 4K resolution at 60fps. For now, we have to settle for 1TB refreshes.

Whether Sony's PS4 will get the new Ultra HD Blu-ray standard as part of this upgrade is still open to debate, but it would make sense as a key differentiator between the console upgrades if and when they do drop.

"We have have the advantage in powering gamers through the next decade," say both companies. To see if that's true, our Xbox One vs PS4 comparison needs another update.

Xbox One vs PS4 hardware design

Deciding between PS4 and Xbox One is like peeling back an onion, and it starts with the outermost layer, the hardware design.

Xbox One's dimensions make it a menacing gaming beast that measures 13.5 in x 10.4 in x 3.2 in. It's also riddled with vents, a design decision to avoid another Red Ring of Death overheating scenario.

Xbox One is a monster console with lots of vents, but at least it won't overheat

It towers over every other device (though Microsoft advises not to stand it up vertically), and completely dwarfs our smallest home theater gadget, the app-filled Chromecast.

PS4 has a more distinctive angular shape with an overall stylish design. This half-matte half-gloss console measures a slimmer 10.8 in x 12 in x 2 in at its widest regions.

These dimensions make Sony's machine more media cabinet-friendly, at least next to Xbox One. The new Xbox also weighs a heftier 3.56 kg vs PS4's 2.75 kg.

PS4 is smaller and a little more stylish

PS4 has the advantage of hiding ports too, though as we illustrated in our video comparison, this can actually make it harder to plug cables into the back of the system.

In this way, Xbox One represents functionality over form. A lot of the internal specs are comparable, but Microsoft and Sony really diverged when it came to the designs of Xbox One and PS4.

That may matter since you're buying into an expensive console that's going to sit front and center in your living room entertainment system for the next ten years.

Xbox One vs PS4 front and rear ports

More clear cut is the wireless connectivity situation. PS4 makes room for gigabit ethernet and 802.11 WiFi bands b/g/n, while Xbox One includes all of that plus the older 802.11a band.

Xbox One also supports both the 2.4GHz and newer 5GHz channels that are compatible with dual band routers. PS4 limits connections to 2.4GHz, which is likely to have more interference.

Both systems launched with 500GB hard drives and now have 1TB variants, but only PS4 allows user-replaceable internal drives. An Xbox One teardown found a standard-looking drive inside, but replacing it voids the warranty. Be careful.

Instead, the Xbox One June update finally allowed gamers to add external storage to the monster-sized system. There are strings attached. The drive needs to be 256GB or larger and USB 3.0 compatible.

External storage isn't an option that Sony supports in its "go big or go home" internal approach.

PS4 vs Xbox One rear ports

PS4 and Xbox One are void of remarkable characteristics on the front. There's a Blu-ray/DVD combo drive to the left and their respective, muted-color logos to the right. PS4 has a pair of USB ports tucked between its sandwich-like halves next to where the disc drive is located.

It's party in the back Xbox One connections. That's where it has two USB ports, HDMI in, HDMI out, S/PDIF for digital audio, a proprietary Xbox One Kinect port, an IR blaster connection and an Ethernet port. To the far right is a K-lock in case you want to lug this system around to LAN parties.

Sony went with a minimalist approach when it came to PS4's rear ports. You'll only find an HDMI out, S/PDIF, Ethernet and PS4 camera port (marked "AUX") around back.

Xbox One is more feature-packed in this area thanks to its HDMI in and IR blaster connections used for its TV cable or satellite box functionality. But are you really going to use this feature? PS4 lacks this pass through technology, opting to stick with gaming as its top priority.

source: http://www.techradar.com/us/news/gaming/consoles/ps4-vs-xbox-720-which-is-better-1127315

by Matt Swider

http://www.buyetail.com

Refurbished Apple iPhone (Internationally Unlocked) - Should You Buy A Refurbished iPhone? - buyetail.com

We all like to save money. After all, we work hard to get it, and we don’t want to waste it away, putting it in the pockets of large corporations. So of course, when you see that refurbished iPhone, you may want to go for that instead of a more expensive, new iPhone. But is that a good decision? Should you buy a refurbished iPhone? 

 What Is A Refurbished iPhone?

Before deciding if you should purchase a refurbished iPhone, it’s important to know what a refurbished iPhone is. A refurbished iPhone is an iPhone that has been returned after it’s been purchased for someone else. Just because it’s been returned does not mean it’s necessarily been broken, or had any sort of problem. Often times, the previous owner has just decided that the iPhone was not right for them, so they returned it.

After it’s been returned, it’s put through a series of quality tests to make sure it’s running just as it should. Remember, a company wouldn’t sell you a product that didn’t work. That’d be bad business. Once they ensure that the iPhone is working as it should, they put it back up for sale, for a discounted price.

Price Of A Refurbished iPhone

The most appealing thing about refurbished iPhones is their price. Refurbished iPhones can be anywhere from $50 to $150 cheaper than its brand new counterpart. Is this discount worth it? That’s for you, as the consumer to decide. In my opinion, every dollar you can save is good, but when it comes to consumer electronics, sometimes it pays to be cheap.

Quality Of Refurbished iPhones

Whether it’s worth buying a refurbished iPhone will depend a lot on the quality. Because refurbished iPhones are checked for function and quality before they are put back on the shelves, they will almost always work just fine.

source: http://iosuniverse.com/general/buy-refurbished-iphone/

by James

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Refurbished iPad and iPhones - Three Things Apple iPads Do Well For Seniors - buyEtail.com

My 4 year old grandson is facile and very  adept with his Dad’s iPad.  His generation knows nothing of clunky desk top machines that weighed 60 lbs. out of the box.  He knows only of a slick one pound device with brilliant color, great sound and video right at hand that can transport him to wonderful entertainment, challenging games and great educational opportunities for 10 hours without a plug. 

I was a late adopter of anything Apple and only came into the fold earlier this year.  One reason I bought my iPad was to be able to read many magazines on line and the weekend newspapers when on my boat and away from a newsstand or home delivery options.  Another was the amazing array of tide and weather information available through NOAA websites and those of others who take the NOAA data and massage it in meaningfully useful ways to form independent and very useful weather predictions.  There is no longer an excuse to be out in a bad storm when you can tune into radar displays that show storm cells as they form and head in your direction. That means plenty of time to get your sails down and head for a safe port in a bad storm.  All you need is the telecom carriers to support your device while you are out on the briny.  Unfortunately, that isn’t always a given in the Northeast. 

I was quite surprised at the advantages Apple and its tablet competitors offer to senior citizens with diminishing senses. That includes people with reduced mobility. It is also user friendly for those whose hands, wrists, and fingers, twisted with arthritis,  no longer want to cooperate to open doorknobs or to secure or open buttons or shoe laces.  For sure, Apple’s fine designs have made Motorola, Dell, and Hewlett Packard retreat from their early efforts in this product category. Amazon and Barnes & Noble have had more success with their book readers, Nook and Kindle which cost a fraction of the price of an iPad even if they can’t do all the same tricks.

 The Three Things Apple Got Right:

1. As eyesight fades and it becomes harder and harder to see the printed page, what a wonderful facility tablets offer to their users to simply expand the type to a size that is easy for you to read.  There is no embarrassment to have to ask for a large type newspaper or book. You can simply push your fingers apart and make the type whatever size works for you.

 2. If the senior is comfortable with the internet, it is still possible for them to easily read email from siblings, children and grandchildren who want to keep in touch with them.  Even if they cannot type themselves, they can at least receive and enjoy communications from their friends and loved ones.

3. Friends and family can load in large photo albums of old photos or new ones that can be easily viewed by the senior.  I recently met a woman who had just been to Florida to visit her 89 year old father, now in a nursing home.  His hands are gnarled with arthritis and he surely cannot type but he could easily swipe his hands across the pictures he was viewing to move along to the next one.  He was thrilled to be able to control the device by himself on this simple level and asked if he could have one of his own.

source: http://www.forbes.com/sites/joanlappin/2011/09/28/three-things-apple-ipads-do-well-for-seniors-and-the-one-huge-error-its-design-failed-to-consider/

by Joan Lappin

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Thomas Kinkade Cobblestone Village - You can buy at buyEtail.com

Thomas Kinkades "Cobblestone Village" Gold Framed Canvas Painting 25.5 X 34

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Thomas Kinkade Library Edition:

This is an authentic fine art reproduction from the original painting by Thomas Kinkade, Americas most collected artist. Printed with archival inks, and matched in color and brushstrokes to ensure the quality and accuracy of the reproduction, this textured lithograph from the Library of Thomas Kinkade replicates the original painting in exacting detail.  It is the “closest thing to an original” - and gives the impression that you are viewing the original painting, with all its detailed brushwork and ornate beauty.

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"Weve lived here, Nanette and I. Not in this precise village, Ill grant you, but in many like it, during our long and lovely stay in the English Cotswolds. Cobblestone Village conveys the qualitative difference between life in an English village and an American small town. The pace of life in Cobblestone Village seems a century removed from what we typically find in our fast-paced culture. English country life is slow, rich, satisfying. Activity centers on the village to an extraordinary degree.
People come daily for the bakery, dairy, green grocery, butcher shop... as well as the warm conversation and fellowship that truly sustain life. The gathered town folk in Cobblestone Village are as natural, as informal as the overgrown hedges of flowers that line the lane."
—Thomas Kinkade 

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Refurbished Apple iPad Mini - Best iPad Mini Cases - buyEtail.com

The original iPad mini is still a solid tablet and worth checking out if you want to save a few dollars. But if you want an uncompromising iOS experience in a petite form-factor, the iPad Mini With Retina Display is the way to go.

The impeccable 2,048-by-1,536 LCD is the centerpiece here, but the diminutive mini also packs the same 64-bit A7 processor you'll find in the iPhone 5s and iPad Air, which delivers significant upgrades in performance and efficiency over previous generations. And while the resolutions are the same between the full-sized Air and mini, the advantage in sharpness lies with the smaller iPad. Packing all of those pixels into a smaller 7.9-inch display yields an impressive 326 pixels per inch, which trounces the original mini's 163ppi and even outdoes the Air's 264ppi.

In typical Apple tradition, this second-generation iPad mini looks and feels basically identical to its forbearer. It's imperceptibly thicker and heavier by 0.01-inch and 0.8 ounces, but even the most discerning critics will likely fail to find any real difference here. And even so, those slight changes are undoubtedly worth the new high-resolution display and the powerful new processor.

With that beautiful display, though, a case to protect your iPad might be more important than ever. Luckily, since both models are nearly identical, there's already a wealth of cases out there to choose from, and pretty much all cases made for the original iPad mini will fit the newer Retina model.

In addition to protection, many cases also add functionality. Folio cases are a popular option that work as a case when in transit and a stand once you're ready to start browsing the Web or catching up on your favorite TV shows. Then there are shells, sleeves, skins and everything in between.

When you're an iPad owner, the world is your oyster—pretty much every major accessory maker has cases made just for your tablet. If all the choices have your head spinning, we've rounded up some of the best iPad mini cases out there, so hit the slideshow to check out some of our favorites.

Lego fans will definitely get a kick out of this playful case from Belkin. TheLEGO Builder Case adds protection with a twist, providing a blank Lego canvas on its back. You can snap on actual Lego bricks for endless fun and customization.

The iPad mini's petite form makes it a great tablet for kids, but before you hand over the pricey iPad, you'll probably want to protect it with something like the Belkin Air Protect, which features closed-cell foam to shield the mini from bumps and drops.

If you're looking to accessorize your iPad mini—and not just protect it—theBelkin Quilted Cover has a unique look that stands out from the crowd. The quilted exterior should provide good protection, while the adjustable stand inside allows you to read, type, or watch movies comfortably. The magnetic tab closure helps keep the case closed and your iPad out of harm's way when not in use.

Maybe even the Smart Cover is too bulky for your taste. In that case, a thin film like the BodyGuardz Armor Carbon Fiber could be exactly what you're looking for. This PVC-based film is easy to apply (and remove), and will keep your iPad safe from scratches. Available in black, red, or white, the Armor Carbon Fiber includes a screen protector and comes with a 30-day money-back guarantee.

http://www.pcmag.com/slideshow/story/304634/best-ipad-mini-cases/5

by Eugene Kim

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Refurbished Sony Playstation - PlayStation 4 is a fantastic next-gen console that's homing in on a must-have game - buyEtail

A lot has changed for the PS4 since its release back in November. We've recently updated this review to include information about the PS4's 1.7, 1.71 and 1.72 firmware updates. Original review by Alex Roth.

The battle for the living room isn't a cold war any longer. Sony's PlayStation 4 has gone thermonuclear, launching on store shelves9

Housing some of the most powerful hardware ever to sit before a television, Sony's new console is two sleek slabs of industrial design fused together for one purpose: living room dominance.

Since it was first announced at E3 2013, the PS4 has been in hot contention with Microsoft's Xbox One. When its rival stumbled with a now-reversed "always online" policy that had gamers fretting, Sony jumped at the chance to win hearts and minds and rack up pre-orders.

Manufacturer messaging aside, both systems have the same goal: to become your sole source for movies, music, TV and gaming. After a hefty day one patch, the PlayStation 4 will be begging for you to pack it to the gills with streaming media apps and any of its twenty-two launch titles, which range from mega-budget AAA titles to download-only indie darlings.

The PlayStation 4 is already seven months old, but is still short on AAA titles. Like the Xbox One, it came out of the gate with some solid multiplatform releases, mostly uprezzed last gen titles like Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag, NBA 2K14 and Battlefield 4. As far as exclusives go, though, it really only has Killzone: Shadow Fall and Infamous: Second Son to brag about.

In an ideal world, every gamer would get to have both. The two consoles would share shelf space in living rooms worldwide, cats and dogs would frolic together, Apple and Android fans would laugh off their differences and everyone would have grown up with a pony.

The reality is that neither machine is cheap, and they're both vying for the same spot in your entertainment center, your heart and your hard-earned dollars. Even if you plan to eventually buy both, essential questions remain: what can the PS4 do that the new Xbox cannot, and vice versa? For the long and short of Sony's new system, read on, dear gamer, read on.

Design

One look at the PS4 and you know you're seeing Sony hardware. It's slim, sleek and jet black, roughly the size of a second generation PS3. The full measurements are 275 x 53 x 305 mm. It's a bit more compact than an Xbox One, which is longer and taller at 274 x 79 x 333 mm.

The PS4 is 6.1 lbs, about two MacBook Airs heavy. In a feat of engineering worth tipping your hat to, Sony has tucked the PS4's power supply inside the system, leaving no external power brick to trip over. Microsoft's system has held onto its power adapter, and weighs just a little bit more, tipping the scales at 7 lbs.

On its face is a slit of a mouth, a slot loading Blu-Ray disc drive free from the jutting and breakable disc tray of the Xbox 360. To its right are two powered USB 3.0 ports, which can charge your DualShock 4 controllers when the system is turned off, a feature the PS3 sorely lacked.

Sony claims that the PS4's overall performance is ten times that of the PS3. In an official FAQ, Sony also stated that the PS4's hard drive can be removed with a little tinkering, and can be replaced with a larger drive, or a solid-state drive for better performance. Sony says these do it yourself upgrades will not void the system's warranty.

With the PlayStation 4, Sony opened the door to the next generation of console gaming and put forth a serious challenge to Microsoft's Xbox One.

It's packed the system with future proof specs, improved the controller, lined up tons of great developer support and undercut the competition

We won't beat around the bush: it's a great machine. But is it worth diving into now, or should you wait for a that new Uncharted? Lets break it down.

We liked

Gaming on the PS4 is fantastic. The graphics are a big step up from last-gen consoles. It's not only the visuals, though, the performance of this machine is off the charts. There's hardly thirty seconds of loading time between the dozen launch titles we tested, and multiplayer sessions can get massive, like the 64 player showdowns on Battlefield 4.

The interface is fast too. Everything is speedy and responsive right from minute one, and the interface is full of clever design choices that speed things up. Games begin to install the second you pop in the disc, firmware updates download while the system is on standby and game patches do too if you have PS Plus.

The DualShock 4 controller is a significant upgrade. The most bothersome aspects of the DualShock 3 have been addressed, resulting in a comfortable controller that's more functional for games of all genres. The touchpad, while currently underused, is well built and nicely placed, the light bar makes player identification simple and the system can finally charge a controller while it's off or in standby.

PS Vita Remote Play works well over WiFi. Using it on a different network or 3G is a no-go, but being able to play Knack in bed or Killzone when someone else is using the TV was reliable and lag free over our home WiFi, plus a lot of fun.

The system looks great and has no power brick. On a purely aesthetic level, the PS4 is very cool. The asymmetrical design is striking, even if it makes it difficult to get at the rear ports, and it's also a restrained size. It makes you wonder how the Xbox One could be so massive and still have a power brick.

source: http://www.techradar.com/us/reviews/gaming/games-consoles/sony-ps4-1131803/review#articleContent

by Nick Pino

http://www.buyetail.com