Review Bunker is a review blog where the goal is simply to review everything. Below are the latest reviews. In the About section you can read more about this blog and it's author. Comments are always appreciated, so if you've got something to say, please feel free!
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It should be obvious by now, I am on a bit of a review hiatus. Should my muse return in the near future, I will begin writing again.
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A while back I was contacted by a representative for JavaFit Coffee, who offered to send me a few samples of their coffee for review. I gladly accepted the offer, and a few weeks later I received a duffel bag full of Coffee sample packs. I don’t drink a lot of coffee, but I do enjoy a cup every few days, so in addition to sharing with family and friends, I slowly tried each of the different “flavors” I received. JavaFit has a concept on coffee that is somewhat unique and a bit odd - they have added supplements, vitamins, and other useful additives to regular coffee, and they promote their coffees as companions to a fit and healthy lifestyle.
I was sent five different flavors or “functions”as JavaFit likes to call them - original, energy extreme, diet plus, focus plus multi-vitamin, and immune plus multi-vitamin. Each of the non-original flavors/functions contains a variety of supplements geared toward a specific goal: increased energy, appetite suppressant, mental clarity, or an immune system boost (you can read about the specific additives on their website). I am far from a coffee aficionado, but I would describe their coffee as average. It tasted very similiar to other mid-range pre-ground coffees I’ve had in the past. I generally add a decent amount of sugar and milk to my coffee, but for this review I tried each of the coffees without sugar/coffee, and with, to gauge the flavor. Here are my thoughts on each flavor:
Extreme Energy: this one has a slightly odd flavor, maybe it’s the green tea extract? It also has an unfortunate slight aftertaste. Extreme Energy tastes decent with enough sugar and cream. This flavor/function gave me a definite energy boost for a few hours - I drank two cups in a row one day, and it gave me jitters. This might be a good alternative for people who use energy drinks to get them through the day, or if you prescribe to the marketting materials, a good way to jumpstart a workout.
Diet Plus: I didn’t detect and weird flavors in diet plus, and it tasted pretty much the same as the original. I didn’t really follow the scientific process, but I don’t think this flavor/function supressed my appetite for very long. I am not sure if any of the other additives had any beneficial effects on me, but they very well may have.
Mental Clarity: It is very hard to determine whether the additives in this coffee had any effect on my mental clarity, so I have to evaluate it based on taste alone. I thought it was odd, that after opening the package, this flavor/function didn’t really smell enough like coffee. Despite the weird lack of aroma, this flavor tasted pretty decent, and had no aftertaste. I was pleased that it didn’t taste like vitamins - although it did taste slightly different than the original.
Immune Support: This flavor was basically the same as mental clarity as far as taste, and once again, it is very hard to tell whether it had a real impact on my immune system health.
I don’t generally associate coffee with exercise or fitness, especially given that coffee dehydrates me, but I do find that JavaFit has a good angle on the supplement market. By selling to offices, workout centers, and other places that want to promote coffee with benefits, JavaFit is finding it’s target market, and gaining customers who enjoy coffee with the added health benefits. Since I generally take a multivitamin every morning, and I only drink coffee every few days, I don’t really see a need to drink coffee with vitamin additives, especially if they alter the flavor. Also, I don’t find that I enjoy the high/low cycle of energy supplements, and I don’t have a need for an appetite suppressant, so I am really not one of JavaFit’s “target” customers. Despite that, their product has the potential to provide real benefits for people who are willing to pay the slightly higher price tag (about $1 per pot of coffee, if buying at their online store). I probably won’t ever buy their coffee again, but I enjoyed it for what it was, as did the people I gave samples to. I didn’t derive any specific benefit from the special blends, but I can see how they would be enticing to some. Assuming the cost isn’t prohibitive, you may want to try it.
JavaFit Brewed Coffee from JavaFit.com: 
Thanks to JavaFit for sending me these coffee samples for review, if you have a product that you would like me to review, please check out the ‘Get Reviewed‘ page for details on how to contact me. Have you ever tried JavaFit coffee? What do you think of the supplemented coffee concept? Is $1/pot too high of a price?
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A few months ago, I realized that I had quite a few old/broken/used laptops piled up around my office, and I went on a quest to get rid of them. I have heard quite a bit about recycling old computer equipment in the past, so I knew that was an option, but being the thrifty/cheap/profiteering person that I am, I first looked for ways to cash in. I quickly found that there is indeed a market for old and used laptops, even the incredibly old or incredibly broken. In my search, I found a number of brokers online that promised to send me a check for my laptop computers, based on my evaluation of the laptop’s quality.
I decided after a quick overview of the available brokers that LaptopsIntoCash.com looked like my best option (despite the annoying sounds on their website). They quoted me a higher price than some others, as well as offered to send me a pre-paid shipping box for the laptop, so I decided to try them out. As a test, I first sent them my oldest and most broken laptop - for a promised price of $10. That may sound like a horrible deal for me, but this was a very old computer with few working components, so it was better than giving it away at a recycling drive (or allowing it to continue to gather dust in the corner of my office). The pre-paid box showed up on my doorstep within two days of submitting my shipping address and laptop specs on their website, and I had my $10 check within a few weeks of dropping off the box at a FedEx/Kinkos location. The first successful transaction gave me the confidence to send them 2 more laptops over the past few months. Each of those two transactions was successful, with LaptopsIntoCash.com sending me the quoted amount for each computer, without any delay or argument. All communications I’ve had with the people at LaptopsIntoCash.com were courteous and friendly.
I have one more laptop to send them, and their service has been perfect so far. I recommend them to anyone holding onto an old laptop that’s taking up space. I can attest that they do in fact send out checks, and they haven’t yet tried to lower their bid once they have my equipment (a common problem people often run into when trying to sell old electronics to brokers online).
LaptopsIntoCash.com Laptop Buying Service: 5/5
Have you ever sold a laptop or other electronics to an online brokerage? What was your experience?
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The first destination on our recent cruise was Oranjestad, Aruba. Based on recommendations of past cruisers we decided to book the Jolly Pirates snorkel tour available in Oranjestad. Unfortunately, a private tour was not available on the day we were in port, so we ended up booking the same tour through Royal Caribbean excursions (Jolly Pirates provides the service for RCI’s ‘Sail, Snorkel, Swim, and Swing!’ excursion) . The tour included a few snorkel locations, a place for guests to swing off of the ship’s rope swing into the water, and alcohol bar service on the way back to port.
In short, the tour did not live up to it’s reputation. Things started out badly when the transportation bus to the pier was over-filled, forcing me and my companions to stand during the entire drive through the city. We were unable to see any of the countryside or sites that the driver pointed out during the ride. It also did not help that the bus-line was touted as a “party bus” service, and the driver was a bit crazy - making it even harder to stand in the narrow bus aisle through 10-15 minutes of his erratic driving.
Once at the pier, we met the Jolly Pirate ship’s lackluster crew. While some may describe them as laid back, I think it is fair to say that the crew of the ship didn’t really put any energy into their jobs, and they didn’t try to create the atmosphere described by many pasts guests of fun and excitement. Instead, I felt more like one of the herd, shuffled onboard, issued equipment, and transported to each snorkel location with no visible enjoyment from the crew. Even after they opened the bar and started serving drinks, things didn’t really pick up. Also, part of the tour description was that the crew would give us a mini-show by doing tricks off of the rope swing - which they didn’t. Given their overall attitude I didn’t really expect the rope tricks, but it would have been nice to see, and would have increased the entertainment value of the trip.
Being out on the open ocean was nice - as was most of the ship - it was a large ship, with plenty of space for everyone. The one part of the ship that was not enjoyable was the bathroom. I wasn’t expecting anything wonderful, but the bathroom was disgusting. If you go on a Jolly Pirates tour, try as best as you can to avoid the bathroom, and focus on the rest of the ship instead.
The snorkeling locations weren’t incredibly exciting. We were looking forward to snorkeling at the shipwreck of the Antilla, a World War II ship sunk off of the coast of Aruba - but the water was very rough, and the shipwreck turned out to be hard to see, and not a fun place to snorkel. The other locations we stopped at were picturesque, but also were not good places to snorkel. There was very little ocean life available for us to see, and venturing far from the ship looking for interesting snorkeling sites wasn’t really an option, because we spent a minimal amount of time at each location. I didn’t try the rope swing, but the guests who did said it was fun.
The snorkeling equipment worked well and fit nicely, and the bar service on the way back to port was good. The excursion did have good qualities, but overall, I can’t recommend it. There were too many negative qualities for the price, and I won’t go on a Jolly Pirate’s trip in the future.
Aruba Jolly Pirates, Sail, Snorkel, Swim, and Swing! (RCI Shore Excursion): 2/5
Have you been on a Jolly Pirates trip? What did you think? What other trips would you recommend in Aruba?
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We kicked off our cruise vacation last month in the booming city of Miami. Shortly after flying into MIA, we caught the free shuttle to our hotel for the night, Whitelaw Hotel in South Beach. We had booked ahead of time for our one night stay at the Whitelaw, and our check-in process was completed quickly and efficiently with the friendly front desk staff. We were happy to arrive in our room, and quickly got settled in.
In general, I liked our room and the hotel a lot. The decor at Whitelaw is very unique, and gives the hotel and each room a specific personality that is refreshing when compared to the usual drab Holiday Inn or Marriott. The first thing I noticed after walking through the door was how hot our room was. Much to my dismay, the thermostat revealed that the air conditioning was already set on the lowest setting, and we would have to live with the current temperature. I did acclimate to the somewhat humid and warm atmosphere after about an hour, but I am not sure I could stand the underperforming A/C during one of the summer months. The room had two double beds separated by a mini-fridge/nightstand, with both beds facing a 42 inch LCD TV mounted on the opposite wall. The TV was a great feature, but we didn’t spend much time in the room watching it. The dresser under the TV had a stereo with an iPod dock, which was also a nice feature that we didn’t get a chance to use. 
The only other piece of furniture in the room was an antique-style chair next to the bathroom door, which made a good place for a laptop bag, or bathroom supplies. The floor length mirror mounted on the wall was useful and decorative. The white-painted hardwood floor, bright colored walls, and interesting drapery helped round out the eclectic style of the room. Right inside the door was a giant closet, the perfect place for storing luggage. The closet featured a very roomy electronic safe (big enough to fit my 13 inch widescreen laptop!), a feature I love to see in any hotel room. The beds in the room were very comfortable, although seemingly shorter than a normal bed, as my feet didn’t quite fit. The bedding was also very comfortable, and I slept reasonably well (despite the lack of adequate A/C).
The bathroom was very modern with large limestone tiles covering the floor, walls, and shower, and a glass vessel sink. While the bathroom looked nice, it unfortunately wasn’t 100% functional. If the sink faucet was turned on more than half way, the water jettisoned out of the sink, creating a very unpleasant puddle on and around your feet. The shower seemed high-scale at first glance, but had a shower curtain on a rod rather than a glass shower door, which wasn’t very fitting for the shower configuration. Because of the shower curtain issue, it was impossible to take a shower without once again soaking the floor of the bathroom (If all of the rooms have these water related issues, I imagine the housekeeping staff spends a majority of their time in each room mopping up the bathroom). Also, the shower was quite small and had no storage for shower necessities like soap and shampoo, so we had to use a portion of the already limited floor space to store our supplies. The bathroom door didn’t shut easily, possibly due to swelling of the door frame, or bad carpentry. When opened, the bathroom door made a loud high pitched squeal - which wasn’t conducive to un-interrupted sleep at night. Despite the problems, the bathroom was manageable, and it fit well with the style of the rest of the room.
The amenities provided at the Whitelaw were nice - starting with the free shuttle from the airport (despite the somewhat grumpy driver). The room had nice robes and toiletries available, as well as a good selection of mini-bar items including snacks on a shelf next to the bathroom door, and drinks in the mini-fridge. Free wifi Internet was available throughout the hotel. Free drinks were offered to hotel guests between 7 pm and 8pm in the lobby/bar, and the atmosphere at the bar during the “happy hour” was fun (obviously, tipping the bartender was highly encouraged).
The Whitelaw has somewhat of a reputation for being a party hotel, and the music in the lobby definitely had the potential to be too loud for rooms located near the front of the hotel - we were luckily in the back, and we weren’t disturbed by the volume and late hour of the music. Unfortunately, we were disturbed early in the morning by a trash truck in the alley outside our window, making more noise than I thought possible by a simple trash pickup. Yet another trash truck showed up about an hour after the first, making nearly as much noise as the first. The lesson learned was that noise pollution is a consideration for anyone planning to stay at Whitelaw Hotel, and if you are a light sleeper, you should probably ask for a room far away from the lobby (or party late enough every night so that the lobby music is no longer an issue).
The hotel is in an ideal location - 2 blocks from the beach, and centrally located in the art deco shopping area of South Beach. We were happy to go exploring around this unique and fun area in the evening, without having to travel more than a few footsteps out of our hotel lobby. We had fun looking around at a few stores and walking to the ocean before succumbing to hunger. As you can see in my previous review, we found a great pizza place in the area, and had a good dinner back in our room. I was also able to quickly locate a CVS pharmacy, in order to purchase 11 days worth of soda to take aboard the cruise ship. Unfortunately, we only had the one night to check out South Beach, and I am sure we missed a good portion of the night-time sites and experiences - I look forward to going back at some point to explore the area more in the future (we did find the time to walk to the beach in the morning before heading to the port of Miami, and it was beautiful (see pic)).
Overall, our stay at the Whitelaw Hotel was good, and I would recommend the hotel to anyone interested in staying in a unique South Beach hotel - as long as you can secure a cheap enough price (we paid $79 for the night), and deal with a few quirks in your room. Also, I have to warn you ahead of time that I was charged $19 for mini-bar items that we never used, after we left the hotel. After a few phone calls I still haven’t received a refund for these charges, but I am confident that I will in the next few days. If I don’t receive this refund, I will update my review to reflect the fact that I was ripped off and accordingly drop my rating, as well as contest the charge on my credit card - let’s hope for Whitelaw’s sake that they do the right thing.
***UPDATE***
I have decided to lower my rating for the Whitelaw Hotel from 3.5 to 1, because I never heard back from the man who was supposed to be looking into a refund of my $19. I called and left him messages, as well as sent him emails, with no response. I have since had to file a dispute through my credit card, instead. Any hotel that mis-charges for minibar items, and then never responds to their customers about the issue, isn’t worth staying at - if I had stayed for a week, how much extra money would they have tried to squeeze out of me?
Whitelaw Hotel (Miami Beach, FL): 1/5
Have you ever stayed at the Whitelaw Hotel? Have you visited Miami Beach? What hotel did you stay at? What did you think of the area?
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