Cheap computer storage options and realistic expectations
Storage is getting cheap, and changes have been made.
Recently I found out that a 512GB flash drive in USB 3.0 stick form is under $70, and the teeny tiny Ultra Fit form factor with the same capacity in USB 3.1 spec is a hair over $75.
Also, as it stands right now in August 2020, 256GB microSD cards can be had for under 30 bucks. The 512GB size for those is right around $80 at cheapest.
I put a 256 in my phone (which is the maximum capacity it will support) and am glad it's in there, particularly for video recordings. Videos by far make for the biggest files on my phone.
Some words of wisdom from a cheap-ass computer user
I compute cheap and have been for years. My main rig right now is a Dell Latitude E6430 laptop (bought as a refurb) with an Intel Core i7 CPU, 8GB RAM and a 500GB Samsung SSD. The laptop is connected to a dock, and I use a full size regular keyboard and mouse along with a full size monitor over HDMI. I literally use my laptop like a PC.
This year I decided to do a few things, and I recommend you do the same.
I stopped using USB 2.0 connected storage
This is literally 1990s technology. It works, but it's so slow compared to USB 3.0/3.1 or a Class 10 memory card.
I made the mistake of getting a 256GB USB stick that was 2.0 spec. Nice to have the space, but when you have to copy more than 5GB of data, that's when the reality of how slow 2.0 speeds really are.
Don't buy USB 2.0 connected storage. Works, but again, real slow.
I'm getting my last volley of 32GB memory cards soon
In the photo at the top of this article you can see I have a few 32GB cards, and I plan on buying a few more. The reason for this is 32GB is the maximum capacity a FAT32 file system will support. I have a few old pieces of tech (some Garmin GPSes and a digital camera) that use this spec, meaning they will not recognize anything over 32.
Something I learned the hard way is that computer memory standards don't stick around forever. I had this happen a while back when I specifically needed a 2GB memory card for an old Garmin StreetPilot i3. That thing uses the FAT16 file system where 2GB is the max it will recognize. I had to buy two cards because the first one didn't work. The second was a used card and that did work. As for finding a 2GB microSD new, those are pretty much all gone now. You can find new-old-stock, but nobody is manufacturing those new anymore and haven't for years.
If you have anything that is FAT32-limited to 32GB, buy a 5-pack of those cards now while they're still being made new, because they may not be available new next year.
I set a new 64GB limit for archive file sizes
I use WinRAR to archive my stuff. It has a feature (7-Zip also does this too) where you can split large archives into individual smaller files, and you can set the split size to whatever you want. I used to use a 4GB split. Now I use 64GB.
Given that my data backups are bigger these days, it made sense just to make the jump straight to 64 from 4. I chose 64 for two reasons. First, the amount of time it takes to transfer that amount of data over USB 3.0 or to a Class 10 memory card is not that much of a bother. If it were USB 2.0, then oh yes, it definitely would be a bother. But not for 3.0. Second, I'm only going to use my 32GB stuff for older tech hardware I have. Everything else starts at 64, so again, it made sense just to go with that.
If you use Windows and know your way around a command prompt or PowerShell, I strongly suggest using robocopy to copy large amounts of files from drive to drive. Robocopy is built-in to Windows and is far more reliable than copy, xcopy or using the GUI.
You're going to make big files from time to time and need to copy them elsewhere for backup. Use robocopy to copy those files. Believe me, it's worth learning how to use it.
It's still a low-res world on the internet
While I bumped up the data sizes for things I store locally, I'm standing pat with data sizes of stuff I post online.
It's still a 2-megapixel/1080p online world. Not much has changed from 2015 to 2020. The tech is certainly cheaper as there are $30 smartphones now that can take 8MP photos, but the absolute maximum resolution you see on social media is about 4MP. Again, maximum. The average you see more often than not is 2MP, be it photo or video.
Maybe someday the online world will have 12MP-or-greater photos and super-high-res videos everywhere, but I doubt that will happen any time soon.
Casio WS210H is possibly the best cheap solar digital watch
I talked about this recently, and decided to go ahead and buy one. This was a good decision.
Solar powered watches have come a long way. Back when I was a little kid in the early 1980s, I did in fact have a Casio solar watch. I don't remember the exact model but it was probably a Casio W-15 or W-27. You could easily see the solar part, and if I remember correctly it worked just like a solar calculator from that era where holding your finger over the solar cells caused the display to dim.
Modern solar powered watches are far superior compared to ones made in the '80s, and the Casio WS210H is one such example.
At the top of the display are the words TOUGH SOLAR. True on both counts.
The WS210H for all intents and purposes is G-SHOCK tough, although it is not a G-SHOCK model. The watch was built to handle its intended purpose as a tide and moon phase timepiece. This means if you wanted to take it out for boating or fishing duties, it can handle that easily. But even if you don't sail or fish at all, this is still worth getting just for the solar feature.
Imagine an AE1200 model that was built tougher, solar powered and had tide graph and moon phase function. That's what the WS210H is. Full time + date + weekday on the face with tide/moon info, 5 alarms, countdown timer, stopwatch and world time feature.
Now some notes on solar and why it matters.
What's the big deal with solar?
The big deal is that as long as the watch isn't shoved in a drawer (meaning not put in total darkness for extended periods of time,) it is totally possible for the battery to last 15 to 20 years.
In the photo at the beginning of this, note the PS at the bottom left of the display. That means Power Save, which is an option you can have enabled or disabled. It makes no sense to ever disable this. Turn PS on and leave it on. What this does is that if the watch is in the dark for long enough, the display turns off...
...which is exactly how I received this watch new. When I took it out of the box, the display was blank. But as soon as it detected light, the display came right back on. The way it works is that if the watch is in the dark for an hour, the display turns off but all other functions remain enabled (like the alarm and hourly signal.) If you leave it in the dark for over a week, the beep and night light are auto-disabled until the battery gets a proper charge again.
How to know the state of the battery charge is seen easily at the right of the display. H is high, M is medium, L is low.
But again, as long as PS is kept enabled and the watch isn't put in total darkness for extended periods of time, it is highly unlikely the charge will ever move from H.
Do other solar watches act the same?
Basically, yes. Any Citizen Eco-Drive watch is made like this. If you want something fancier than the Casio WS210H, get an Eco-Drive and follow the same rules as you would with the Casio. Just don't put it in the dark for long periods and the battery can last a very, very long time.
And do the tide graph and moon phase functions work?
WS210H is one of the easiest watches to set up for moon phase and tide graphing
Where moon phase is concerned, it's stupidly easy to set up. Just make sure the correct time zone is selected for where you are, the correct Daylight Savings is set (which is simply on or off,) and the date is correct. That's it.
Where tide graph is concerned, same thing. Have the correct time zone and date set and it will work. You can fine tune it if needed. The watch is set up out of the box to show approximate tide data for 6am and on from there. If that is not when a high tide occurs for where you are in your time zone, that time can be adjusted so the tide data is more accurate.
If you are nowhere near a coastline, just set the time and date and the moon phase and tide data will be mostly accurate without any further adjustment necessary.
The tide/moon data is not intended to be super-accurate, because after all, we're dealing with a small LCD panel here and not some full-screen monitor will all sorts of data to play with. But the data is accurate enough. The little moon you see on the display is pretty much how the moon looks in the sky at night. As for the tide accuracy, I wasn't able to test that because I'm currently not near an ocean coastline.
If you want a watch that's digital, solar, tough and cheap, you want the WS210H
I prefer digital to analog, and the solar feature is what sold me on this one.
It's just nice to know that there's a very good chance I'll never have to change the battery in this watch. With other digital watches you get 3 to 5 years or 7 out of the battery if you're lucky. This one can go to 10 and most likely well beyond that.
No, I don't plan on wearing the same watch for over 10 years. But with the WS210H, I actually could if I wanted.
Are there other versions?
Yes, there is the WS200 and WS220. Both of those are also Tough Solar models but do not have the tide and moon phase features. Instead they are runner's models that feature 120 lap memories - but still have the same solar features including Power Save mode and the battery charge indicator.
I label the WS210H as the best of the lot because you get the most for the least and it has the most interesting display. It just looks cool.
Ibanez GSR200 is the best value bass right now
Giving the cheap (but good) bass some love.
I just mentioned the best value electric guitar, so I figured it would be proper to also show the best value bass. And in this case, it's the Ibanez GSR200.
This bass is available in transparent red and a very cool looking soda blue. You can also find these sometimes in black or white, but those are currently all sold out. I consider that a blessing because the red and blue versions look so much better.
There are a few very specific reasons why this is the best value bass.
First, price. 200 bucks.
Second, the most versatile pickup layout, the P/J, which means a staggered single-coil in the middle and a straight single coil in the rear. This gives you pretty much any bass tone you're looking for.
Third, four control knobs and not just two.
Fourth, absolutely no neck dive. The top horn is above the 12th fret, which is proper.
Fifth - SURPRISE! - this is an active bass. There is a battery in the back. While this isn't necessarily a desired thing for guitar, it totally is when it comes to the bass. In particular, this can make running the bass through a PA or at home through a DI sound a whole lot nicer. Active pickups work best with clean tones, and being nearly all bassists play clean, believe me, you're going to get some great use out of this.
With that active pickup setup and all the other goodies, how could you not want one of these for just 200 bucks? All the upgrades have already been put in from the factory. Just plug in and go.
Schecter C-6 Deluxe is the best value electric guitar right now
You can't beat what you get for this price.
The C-6 Deluxe, sometimes with model number represented by color 430 (black), 431 (blue) or 432 (white) is - for the moment - the best you can get for an electric guitar value right now.
I call this one the best electric guitar value because it absolutely destroys anything else right now selling for $300.
That's not a typo. This guitar at the time I write this in August 2020 is just 300 bucks. New. Not used. With free shipping. The only thing paid on top of that is tax and nothing more. So at worst, the absolute total price you pay for one of these with tax included is just shy of $325.
Given how stellar Schecter's build quality is, there is absolutely nothing Squier or Epiphone makes that even comes close at this price point. Again, remember, 300 bucks.
And let's talk about balance. I'm not talking about sound (which is good) but rather how the guitar physically feels playing seated or standing. Zero neck dive. Contours everywhere. Easy access to every fret. Ergonomically speaking, this is far better than other standard guitar shapes.
Now let's talk about sound. What you get is just a plain pair of humbuckers and they work, which is all you can really ask for what you get here. But given how little the initial cash spent is, this guitar would take very nicely to replacement pickups. And, thankfully, the pickup routes and cavities are standard-sized. If you decide to get replacement pickups, they will fit.
Tuner upgrade? Not necessary. Schecter uses good tuners on all their guitars.
Bridge upgrade? Also not necessary.
Pots or switch replacement? Again, not necessary unless you feel you absolutely need replacements.
The only thing you may change on this will be the pickups, but as for literally every other part of the guitar, just keep it as-is and you'll be good to go.
Once again, I'm going to remind you this is 300 bucks shipped, and nobody else is selling this much guitar for so little.
If you've never tried Schecter before, now is the time to give this brand a try while the C-6 is priced as low as it is just to get them out the door.
List of Casio watch measurements
I keep a document on my computer of Casio watch measurements for reference, as this helps to compare models both for current and future production models. I then thought this list would probably be useful to some people, so here it is.
The most important measurement for each below is the lug-to-lug width. Casio, thankfully, does release this information - but not on the USA web site for some strange reason. For several of these I had to dig around the internet just to find the measurement specifications.
This list is ordered from longest to shortest lug-to-lug. Each measurement below is lug-to-lug first, case diameter second, thickness third.
Obviously, this is not a list of every Casio model ever made because that list would be gigantic. But it does list the more popular models including some from G-SHOCK, including a few that are no longer in production.
GWM530A... 56.8 x 46.0 x 16.60 mm DW6900.... 53.2 x 50.0 x 16.30 mm SGW100B... 51.5 x 47.6 x 13.20 mm WV58...... 51.5 x 42.0 x 11.00 mm G100...... 49.6 x 47.8 x 15.70 mm DW9052.... 48.5 x 43.0 x 14.70 mm DW5600E... 48.9 x 42.8 x 13.40 mm WS1000H... 48.3 x 42.6 x 12.70 mm WV59...... 48.3 x 39.0 x 12.50 mm WV200A.... 48.3 x 39.0 x 12.50 mm AE1000W... 48.1 x 43.7 x 13.77 mm MRW200H... 47.9 x 44.6 x 11.60 mm G5600E.... 46.7 x 43.2 x 12.70 mm GWM5610... 46.7 x 43.2 x 12.77 mm LDF50..... 46.7 x 23.6 x 11.40 mm LX610..... 46.2 x 39.5 x 12.40 mm MW600..... 46.2 x 41.5 x 12.40 mm W213...... 45.5 x 40.0 x 11.70 mm WS210H.... 45.4 x 44.0 x 13.30 mm AW90...... 45.0 x 38.6 x 9.50 mm AE1200.... 45.0 x 42.1 x 12.50 mm HDA600.... 44.6 x 41.1 x 13.40 mm W218H..... 44.4 x 43.2 x 10.80 mm F108...... 44.4 x 42.6 x 10.30 mm AW80...... 44.5 x 38.5 x 11.00 mm F200W..... 44.1 x 40.0 x 11.50 mm W800...... 43.9 x 35.7 x 12.50 mm W96H...... 43.9 x 35.7 x 12.50 mm W215...... 43.8 x 40.7 x 10.90 mm W217H..... 43.1 x 41.2 x 10.50 mm AW49...... 42.0 x 36.0 x 9.00 mm CA53W..... 42.0 x 33.0 x 7.00 mm F201W..... 41.0 x 34.0 x 10.50 mm MW59...... 40.0 x 36.1 x 8.90 mm A500...... 39.0 x 34.0 x 9.60 mm FT600WB... 39.0 x 32.0 x 10.00 mm LRW200H... 38.9 x 34.2 x 11.50 mm AQ230..... 38.8 x 29.8 x 8.10 mm A168...... 38.6 x 36.3 x 9.60 mm F91W...... 38.2 x 35.2 x 8.50 mm LW200..... 37.9 x 34.9 x 11.90 mm A158W..... 37.5 x 33.5 x 9.50 mm
Certain models that fit best for most wrists
If shopping around for the best fitting Casio watch, here are a few models to pay attention to in particular.
Best fitting G-SHOCK square
The go-to model for most people is the DW5600. I suggest against this and to go with the G5600 or GWM5610 instead. The DW5600 measures at 48.9 x 42.8 x 13.40mm while the G5600 and GWM5610 measure at 46.7 x 43.2 x 12.77mm. The smaller G5600/GWM5610, while slightly wider than the DW is thinner and has less wrist overhang. Yes, it costs more but fits the wrist much better whether your wrist is small or large.
The main difference between the G5600 and GWM5610 is that the 5610 has atomic timekeeping. Otherwise, both are the same and solar powered (meaning in theory, the battery can last 15 to 20 years as long as the watch isn't in complete darkness for long periods of time.)
Best fitting, best looking model that's cheap, tough and readable
Model W218H. The 218 gets it just right where cheap + tough + readable is concerned. It has 50M water resist so you can shower and swim with it. The battery will last 5 to 7 years. Several colors available. Looks good for what it is. Very wrist-friendly whether skinny or large. Very easy to read. It's basically an F91W that's bigger, tougher and with a much better night light.
I can honestly say the W218H is an "everybody" watch. Good for kids, adults, seniors, everybody.
Cheapest tough solar that fits well
Model WS210H. This has a tide graph on it, but the big sell of this one is the solar rechargeable battery in a case size that isn't gigantic.
Most solar power watch models from Casio are too big and/or too expensive. The WS210H is one of the very few (if not the only) affordable solar models with a lug-to-lug that is only 45.4mm. While the case diameter sounds huge at 44mm, believe me, it's not. The actual LCD isn't that big. This is a "tough" model, so the case was fattened up and that's where the 44mm case diameter comes from. It's not goofy-big. And again, it's the lug-to-lug of 45.4mm that makes this fit so nicely on so many wrists. It's also nice that the buttons are big and easy to press.
Like the solar G-SHOCKs mentioned above, the WS210H can also in theory have a battery that will last 15 to 20 years as long as it's not kept in total darkness for long periods of time.
Best fitting Casio square that's not a G-SHOCK
Model AE1200. If you like square but want it cheap and feature-packed, AE1200 is what you want.
This model is a fan favorite and one of the most mod-friendly Casio watches ever made. But even if you have no intention of modding it, the plain black AE1200 looks right, has one of the best amber dual-bulb night lights (arguably even better than EL,) and while the day-date display is small, the time display uses big, thick digits for easy readability. The 45mm lug-to-lug width ensures this fits almost any wrist, and the 42mm case size is one many consider "just right" for a square.