One of the limitations of the product reviews I do is the short time I have to use the products, and the ability to draw accurate conclusions within that time frame. That’s particularly relevant to durability and reliability over repeated use and how quickly one tires of the product. So I thought I’d go back and follow up on several reviews I did, in which I did have the opportunity to use them beyond the review time.
The first product is the Breville Dual Boiler espresso machine (model BES900) that sells for $1,195. While expensive, its promise was that it matched the performance of Italian-made semiautomatic machines that cost nearly twice its price. I found it to do just that, as well as to be full of little extras, such as retractable wheels, an illuminated water gauge, a front loading water tank, and an easy-to-use control panel that turns the machine on at a preset time. As a coffee and espresso enthusiast, I liked it so much I bought one at Williams-Sonoma. How has it worked out? The quality of the espressos and cappuccinos has been very good. I use it to make several drinks each day.
But after six months it suddenly stopped working. While the machine went through its cycle, no coffee came out. I called Breville’s customer service department, and they attributed it to a defective part that regulates the water pressure that, they said, afflicted many of the early production machines. They offered to replace it, but I chose to exchange it at Williams-Sonoma. Recently, the replacement machine is showing symptoms of failing again. The pressure gauge needle occasionally makes wild gyrations, but the coffee is still flowing. Fortunately, both the company and Williams-Sonoma have stood behind the product, and they may have to once again.
The third-generation iPad from Apple continues to work as well as when I first reviewed it, and has proven to be reliable and even more useful as more apps — which take advantage of the high-resolution display — have become available. I also use it regularly with the Logitech Ultrathin keyboard that works well. But I’m not sure the better display is worth the tradeoff of its extra weight and bulk and an additional $100 compared to the iPad 2.
The one annoyance I found is that the Smart Cover, a $39 or $69 option, that covers the display and turns the machine on and off using magnets, can cause problems. The cover can slip off the iPad while in a bag and inadvertently turn the iPad on, causing the battery to drain. Apple has come up with another accessory, called, not surprisingly, the Smart Case ($49), that covers both the front and back. This solves the problem, and Apple willingly took back the original cover.
In my recent review, I was quite critical of the iPhone 5 for its poor maps app. I’ve continued to use it and continue to find problems. I’ve used its turn-by-turn directions, one of its new heavily promoted features. When it works it’s very useful, working much like a Garmin or TomTom stand-alone personal navigator. But it shows much less information along the route, such as side streets or points of interest. Sometimes what it shows is out of sync with where you are. And on several occasions it directed me to make turns that were illegal. On a recent occasion, I didn’t turn and expected to see the device provide an alternative route. But it recalculated for the next 10 minutes until I shut down the app.
Lastly, I’ve encountered some problems with Bluetooth headsets and the iPhone 5. People I am speaking with complain of dropout and scratchiness, even when using several different models that have worked well on my iPhone 4.
When I reviewed it two years ago, the Canon PowerShot S95 was one of the best performing pocket-size cameras. I’ve continued to take thousands of pictures with it, and it's worked perfectly. While it’s no longer available, it has been replaced by the S110 with built-in Wi-Fi for $449, $50 more than the S95. But now it faces stiff competition from the Sony RX100 that cost $200 more, and takes even better pictures.
The Nest thermostat was a marriage between Apple-like aesthetics and a mundane home appliance that rarely evokes emotion. I reported how beautiful the Nest looked and how simple it was to install. It’s designed to learn your behavior over time, detect when you’re away, and even consider outdoor temperature.
It promised to reduce energy usage by up to 20 percent. I loved its looks and admired its beautiful user interface, but my wife, Jane, never could adapt to using it. In a few instances it sacrificed flexibility for simplicity, and she struggled to figure how to change certain settings. We think it did save energy because it informed us that it turned off the air conditioner when we were away.
But sometimes it shut down too soon, which, on the hot days we have had this summer, meant a very hot house when we came home a few hours late and several hours to cool the house back down. I could have used my iPhone to turn it back on remotely, but rarely remembered.
Although we did experience a significant energy savings of about 30 percent, it’s hard to know how much to attribute to the Nest or to the large double-pane windows we installed around the same time. Our use of the Nest came to an end when we replaced our air conditioner with another model and it was no longer compatible.
I have been using an 11-inch MacBook Air since October 2010, when Apple first launched a new generation. A few months later it slid off a table about 2 feet high onto a marble floor. Other than a slight nick on the edge of the aluminum case, it was none the worse. Over the past two years, it has suffered more abuse, and even has some dents in the case, but continues to work well. I had to bring it in to an Apple Store on one occasion to have it checked when I received a message that its solid-state drive needed repairing. When I was unable to do it myself with the built-in utility, the Apple genius ran a program that repaired it on the spot and at no cost. The one disappointment has been that I got only about three hours of runtime between charges, compared to Apple’s rating of about twice as long.
This past week I decided to upgrade to a 13-inch model with an easier to read display, four times the hard drive capacity and four times the internal memory. I really appreciated using Apple’s built-in utility that let me copy everything from the first computer to the second automatically, ending up with an exact duplicate of the 11-inch on the 13-inch. It’s all done over your home Wi-Fi without the need for any cables.
ShopWell and Time to Enjoy are two iPhone apps I reviewed this past June. The first provides advice on the suitability of packaged food, based on your dietary restrictions, and the second on finding activities in your spare time. I continue to use the first and am finding it to be very useful and revealing as it directs me away from the questionable foods and to the healthier choices. Time to Enjoy I use rarely, maybe because I don’t have enough time.
Baker is the author of "From Concept to Consumer" published by Financial Times Press and available at Barnes & Noble, Amazon and other booksellers. He has developed and marketed consumer and computer products for Polaroid, Apple, Seiko and others; holds 30 patents; and is an Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year. Baker can be heard on KOGO AM the first Sunday of each month. Send comments to phil.baker@sddt.com. Comments may be published as Letters to the Editor. Baker's blog is blog.philipgbaker.com, and his website is philipgbaker.com.
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