Product Review Weekly Wrap-Up March 7-13

I have thoroughly enjoyed writing product reviews.  As I mentioned in a previous post, it allows me to indulge in my shopping desires and entertain my writing whims.  I thought I would share my review experience, week-by-week, by giving a recap of the products that I write reviews for each week.  This not a list of all of the products that arrived this week, as many still need to be tested, just the ones I made time to review.

I am providing links to my reviews.  Once on the review page, you will find a link for the product page in the far right corner.

This week was a really fun week for me to review.  I had several technical products that I had to really spend time with, and I learned a bit along the way.

The Retail value of the items I wrote reviews for this week was $485.87
My out-of-pocket cost for these items was $72.17

March 7th
The product that started my week was the Car Windshield Sunshade. This product retails for $11.95 and has an overall 4.5-star rating.  I have no idea how it was horrible!

The next two products worked together, hand-in-hand.  The Art Naturals Organic Argan Oil Shampoo and the Art Naturals Argan Oil Daily Hair Conditioner were both a hit with my husband.  The hair loss prevention capabilities are still up for determining, as he only started to use them last week.  As a hair care product line, we were quite pleased and will buy them again.

The enviHome Vegetable Spiralizer crossed an item off of my kitchen wish list.  I have been looking for ways to justify buying one of these for months, so when it came up for review I was thrilled to be chosen.  I was even more pleased to have a quality product.

I can never have enough Matcha Powder or Cocoa Nibs.  I hope that companies continue to select me as these are likely my most favorite products to test.  The Wild Raw Nibs did not disappoint, at all.

March 8th
Initially I was a bit disappointed that the seller did not disclose the shipping process for this Bamboo Pillow.  I received an email advising that I would need to undergo an almost-two-week process and I became quite agitated.  It turned out to be worth it, the pillow is great!

This Memory Foam Seat Cushion has been well-loved.  My husband had been complaining about his company-supplied office chair for nearly a year.  He has been sitting comfortably for nearly 2 weeks, thanks to this cushion.

March 9th
The Ideal Linens Bed Sheet Set has almost converted me to accepting microfiber sheets.  I still have a long way to go, as I love the feel of Cotton!

I have wanted a book light for some time, so when the chance to review the Lemontec Portable Reading LED Light became available for review I was quick to apply.  It turned out to be just so-so.  I foolishly assumed that I was going to be able to charge it and use it in a truly portable fashion.  It turns out that it is actually only as portable as USB ports.  Strangely, the seller requested reviewers to NOT include photos of the product.

March 10th 
I can never have enough cloths for my device screens, so applying for the Magicpro Microfiber Cleaning Cloths happened the moment I saw it was available.  Honestly, I would be just as happy with these cloths if I had paid full retail price.

I have amassed quite a collection of screen protectors of various types.  I apply each one, so I have now become quite proficient at applying them.  I had no problem applying this product to my trusty old Galaxy S3.

March 11th
Here is where the real fun began - a Wifi Doorbell Camera.  I often read product reviews before requesting a technical product, as I am not up for shelling out any amount of money for something that is going to fail me.  There were many reviews that vaguely cautioned against investing in this product, but there were a few reviewers who took the time to thoroughly test the product.  Those reviewers gave me the confidence that I could make this work for my needs, and it did.

I had high hopes for the Wifi Alarm Clock Camera, as it was by the same manufacturer as the Wifi Doorbell.  There were similarly helpful reviews, so I marched on with confidence that I could do it.  Nope!  I suspect I got an extra sour lemon in a product line of lemons, so Amazon was happy to refund this purchase.

March 12th
I thought I was being clever when I ordered this Triflex Mini Phone Tripod.  I thought, surely, my husband had never seen such a thing and would be excited to play with it.  Upon seeing it he proclaims "Yeah, the stores have these as cheap security camera mounts.  They just wrap the legs around exposed conduit or shelves and attach old smartphones to them. They run the phones over WiFi, so there is no service fee."  I have to admit - creative!

In the span of 8 hours, I went from over-the-moon happy with this Galaxy S3 Case, to completely frustrated.   I applied it to my phone, just a few hours before heading to bed.  I awoke for the day and as I grabbed the case I noticed some red debris.  Looking closer, the case had begun to disintegrate.  I have emailed the seller, who has agreed to replace it, but no tracking information has been provided.  This may be an opportunity to involve Amazon.

I am still over-the-moon with my TUDIA Klip Snap On Charging Cable Saver.  We have some older devices, and some Apple devices, that have cables without the integrated fortification of the juncture between the charging head and the cable.  I buy replacement cables in bulk (packs of 10 at a time) as they never seem to last.  This is one of those products that you look at and think "why did I not think of this?"

We have a few new family members, the most recent is a baby girl.  I find it difficult to control impulse buys for the little ones.  This set of Baby Girls Non Skid Cotton Socks was calling my name.

This Hot Water Bottle had me adrift in memory lane.  My childhood home had one of these (without the fancy sweater) under each bathroom sink.  Now my home has one as well.

In my mind, I am an expert Chef!  In reality, I have a food TV addiction.  If I had only paid as much attention in primary school, I could be a scholar of many sorts by now.  My culinary knowledge is put to good use, teaching others about the tricks of the home chef.  I always go on about sharp knives, but I cannot seem to teach people how to sharpen them with just the standard knife sharpening rod.  Enter the fool-proof sharpening device.  I have reviewed, and given away, a few now.  I was very impressed with the ChefStep Knife Sharpener.

March 13th
The Nestl Bedding Duvet Cover Set - Just NO!!!  I have cheap paper towels that are thicker.  I would be incredibly upset if I had paid $40 for this set.

This iPhone 6 Gold Wristlet is by the same company that manufactured my Galaxy S3 case.  I gave the gold case to a close friend and she has yet to mention that it is not holding up.  Fingers crossed that my experience was a one-off.

My husband had requested a phone mount as a gift during the 2015 holiday season.  He was unsure about the form factor for quite sometime, but eventually settled on a suction mount that he installed onto his windshield.  Now that I have the Geekee 3-in-1 Universal Car Phone Mount he is jealous.  And he should be!

Bringing the week to a strong close was my new favorite skin care product - Unrefined Shea Butter.  You have no idea what you are missing until you are introduced, and then you wonder how you ever lived without it.