I bought the SE210’s in July 2007, before heading onto a plane bound for South Africa. The included cord did not fit into the headphone jack of the first generation Apple iPhone, which I had intended to use them with, so I used a small knife to shave the plug down so it would fit into my iPhone. Since then, Shure has redesigned the plug to fit the old iPhone and the iPhone 3G has no problems with any headphones.

I love the SE210s. Using the medium black foam inserts, they fit my ears perfectly and provide excellent noise cancellation, especially because they’re not actively canceling. Its not quite the battery powered block-all that you get with the Bose QuietComfort, but its close and not even close to as bulky. That leads me to the next point, size. The SE210s are earbuds, not on ear or over ear headphones, and they’re small. When I’m listening to music, I’m almost constantly traveling and full size headphones were getting in the way. With the Shures, I can just coil the cord up and stick them in my pocket.

I touched on sound quality earlier, but let me reiterate that they sound great. I prefer the sound from the Shure ‘buds to what I got from my Sennheiser HD595, amped and unamped. Sound is a very personal thing and everyone’s ears are different, so take that with a grain of salt - but once you’ve found which tip fits your ear best and you’ve got a good quality source, these earphones put out some excellent sound.

Support is the best part. Shure offers a 2 year warranty with the SE210’s and its an excellent warranty. I lost sound in one ear and I sent the headphones in. They were delivered overnight, and I had them back in 5 days; brand new in a retail box. A week total turnaround time is just about as good as it gets, and they’re very friendly people to deal with. They told me that I hadn’t cleaned it well enough and a build up of wax was the problem, but they still sent me a new pair of earphones for nothing, not even shipping. On that note, be sure to clean them regularly. Even if you can’t see earwax, clean it with the included tool to keep them performing ideally.

If you’re looking to spend $150 on headphones, you can’t do a whole lot better than the Shure SE210. They’re a great balance of price, performance and size - not something you see too often.

Bookmark this page to check back in the future - it is automatically updated. If the percentage reads 0, then cashback is temporarily disabled.

If you use a RSS reader or live bookmarks program, adding this feed will allow you to check the current amount in real time without having to navigate back to this page.

Now that the iPhone 3G is out, I need to find all new accessories and one that really has my attention is the DLO Jam Jacket iPhone 3G case. The first thing I noticed when I opened the package was how it felt. It feels “different.” It doesn’t have a rubbery, grippy texture, more of a smooth; very interesting feel. Combined with the rubber niblets along the side that provide as a grip, it has a very unique texture all around.

DLO also includes a 3 pack of their “Surface Shields” (reviewed here) with the Jam Jacket, which provide protection for the screen.

First things first: Price. The JamJacket is very reasonable. With a list price of $19.99 and a street price of $15 or so (Amazon), that sure beats the $35 I spent on the Incase Slider. Combined with the screen protectors ($15 for a 5 pack), its a major bargain. I have no hesitations recommending it based on price.

Next up are the physical attributes: Its definitely well built, DLO is not new to the business and has the mold figured out. Its very easy to put on and remove if you need to, but snug enough that it will never come off without your permission.

The things I don’t like: I’m a fan. Its a unique case that does its job well. However, there is one thing I’m not a fan of - the silence switch. The thick rubber is great for protecting the phone, but it also keeps you from being able to use the silent/normal mode switch on the left hand side of the phone. The depth of the switch hole is so great that it is nearly impossible to change modes, something I do a lot. You really have to dig in with a fingernail or even peel the case off to change. It really is a bit of a pain. If you don’t use the silence/vibrate switch a whole lot, then you’re fine - all the other controls work perfectly. If you are switching frequently, this is something to consider.

In conclusion, DLO has a real winner on their hands. Its well made, has a great feel and does its job - protecting your expensive (and impossible to replace) iPhone 3G.

The contenders: BestSkinsEver, Bodyguardz and InvisibleShield. I also tested other front-only products, but that’s a story for another time.

I’m going to break them up based on their relative merits.

Price: BestSkinsEver is uncontested in this department. They cut costs by removing the frills offered by other companies, shipping their product in regular letter envelopes and with no instructions or application solution. The cost for a full body skin is $7.99. Bodyguardz comes next, with a 2-pack of their fully body skins running $24.99 ($12.50 each). They do go big on the frills though, with a full size box including a spray bottle of solution and application instructions printed on the box. Invisibleshield is last in the price department, with a single skin running $24.99. They offer the same “frills” as the Bodyguardz.

(Bodyguardz Packaging)

Ease of Application: Bodyguardz takes the crown here. With less folds, flaps and individual pieces than any of the other products, it is definitely the easiest to install. They also include a spray bottle of solution, so you don’t have to make your own. Invisibleshield is #2, with solution included as well and a more straightforward installation of the back with their single piece design. Since my review, BestSkinsEver created a single-piece back that should make things better, but I haven’t had a chance to try it. Through process of elimination, that puts BSE at #3.

(BestSkinsEver Corner Application)

Quality: Frankly, they’re all about the same. BestSkinsEver and InvisibleShield both use the same basic skin. Invisibleshield claims that they use some special “nano coating” but that’s just marketing speak. I haven’t verified what skin Bodyguardz uses, but my guess is that its similar enough. They all have about the same clarity, but your own application quality will be the deciding factor (how much solution you use, what temperature you put it on with, how you align, application environment) and so fourth.

(Bodyguardz Back Application)

Customer Service: Believe it or not, this does matter. Bodyguardz and Invisibleshield both offer lifetime warranties (replacements if you ever screw yours up) and while BestSkinsEver doesn’t advertise this, they do offer it (from my experience, they’ll send you a new one if you ask nicely). In numerical order, I would place BestSkinsEver at #1 because they have a very “down to earth” attitude and they’re very nice people. Bodyguardz at a close #2, very nice people to deal with. InvisibleShield is #3 by far, I would consider them at the rank of sleazy. You don’t want to have to deal with IS customer support, and that’s not just my opinion. Its so widespread that its practically fact.

(BestSkinsEver Front Application)

Conclusion: I’m afraid there is no cut and dry conclusion. You have to make your choice based on any number of factors that matter to you, but I’ve tried my best to outline the differences. If you’re really strapped for cash (what are you doing with an iPhone?), BestSkinsEver is cheap and a fine product. If you’re looking for some nice “extras,” my nod is to Bodyguardz. You won’t have to make your own special sauce to get it to stick and you get a proper instruction manual in the box. I cannot in good conscience recommend Invisibleshield because of the serious problems with Zagg.

August 5th & 6th: Live Cashback is down/gone for the time being, but eBay reports that they will continue the program and it is only down for upgrades.

Its too early to tell now, but it looks like the wonderful eBay/Microsoft Live Cashback is done for. As of July 31st, 2008, Live.com is no longer offering eBay cashback in any amount.

Its a sad day, but nobody can say that it wasn’t long in the making. This must have been costing them a fortune. I’ll update this if it comes back up, but I wouldn’t hold my breath.

Find an item you want to buy. Make sure that it is using the “Buy It Now” option, not bids. Once you’ve found it, its very easy. Just go to Live.com and type in a simplified version if what you’re looking for. If you want Nike Air Max shoes, type “nike trainer” into live. You’ll see an image like this at the top of your results:

Click the link, and then find your shoe on eBay. Click buy it now and purchase like you normally would. You should see a small icon saying that you are eligible for Live Cashback. After you purchase, you’ll get a link in your email or eBay “My Messages” to claim your cashback. In 60 days, they will pay you by PayPal or check for the amount you’ve earned.

Cashback amounts vary day to day, from as high as 35% to as low as 10%. Its usually around 25%, and the maxium amount is $250. So far, I’ve earned $350 from two purchases.

It is packing a 12.1 megapixel full-frame sensor, with the same sensor cleaning that the D300 employs. It supports ISO 100 to ISO 25600 in boost modes, with 200 to 6400 naively. Features a DX mode like the D3 that automatically crops to 5.1mp images when DX lenses are mounted. It has 14 bit image processing and features the EXPEED processor. It has the same shutter lag and starter times as the high end D3.

An big surprise here is the Kevlar/carbon fiber composite shutter, which should expand the life beyond older models. It has 95% viewfinder coverage and basically shares the D300 body, except for the D3-esque viewfinder.

Comparison photo thanks to DPReview.

I used a combination of eBay’s 10% off (up to $100) coupon and Microsoft Live’s Cashback (I got 20%, for the max amount of $250) on a brand new in box Nikon D300, listed at $1500.

With the 10% coupon, I was down to $1400, which was the price I paid out the door. However, I also got the max cashback ($250) bringing my price paid down to $1150. I’ve never seen a deal like that for a brand new D300, this is almost as low as the Canon 40d! I couldn’t resist. Earlier that day, I actually missed a far better deal, $1075 for a brand new in box D300 WITH the MB-D10 battery grip. You win some, you lose some.

If you’ve been looking to get a camera but are waiting out a good deal, this is the time to do it. With the cashback and coupon going on now (which is stackable), you can get $350 off pretty much anything over $1000.

The retail price is $1299 with the 18-105mm VR kit lens.