The Consumer’s Corner

The anti-energy drink business was a category that I really thought might take off awhile back when I reviewed Mini Chill and Drank. Both seemed to do their job really well, but I never see Mini Chill anymore, and only spot Drank in the seediest of convenience stores.

The folks at ‘Relaxzen‘ still have hope for the segment though, and they shipped me over a few samples to try out. One, a day time formula, and the other, for bed time. Tried the night time version first, as I was most confident it would work, and it didn’t disappoint. Never made me drowsy so to speak, that’s not it’s job, but it slowed my mind down enough that I could just chill out, and nod off without my mind running at full speed. If you’ve never used a product like this, the sensation is like that ‘where’s the couch’ feeling after Thanksgiving dinner. You can go ahead and nod off if you want to, but it’s not going to force you to sleep.

‘Relaxzen‘ Day I was a bit more skeptical of. The main idea is to calm you, and improve focus. I found it helpful, but not extremely so. Granted, I consume a lot of things during the day that would offset many of the benefits of this product, so I’m not holding that against it. In fact, I’m sure that people who consumed a more sane amount of caffeine and other stimulants than I do would great benefit from the day time formula.

Both tasted quite medicinal, but they’re shots. We should expect that by now. Not great, but certainly not so unpleasant as to deter you from wanting to use one. Overall, I give them a ‘Win!’ and look forward to seeing them in more stores. The night time version worked better than Mini Chill, and will be what I reach for when searching for a non-pill sleep aid.

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–Jeremy Hobbs

A morbid curiosity for sure, but I’ve always been very fascinated by infomercials, and the ‘as-seen-on-TV’ product lines. Some have been great, like the Clever Clasp. Some have been not so great, like the product this review is dedicated to.

The MICROforce shaver. It’s a compact wet/dry electric microfoil shaving system, designed for mowing down that 5 o’clock shadow. It’s advertised as being able to be your only shaver, but I’m not even that gullable. I was just hoping for something to knock off some of my stubble in between real shaves.

What I got in the MICROforce was a product that would cut every three or four hairs, leaving the rest far behind. Length of hair didn’t matter much at all, it cut longer hair every bit as poorly as the short stuff, and left my face irritated to no end. Also, this is the very first electric shaver that I’ve used that left a blood trail; that just should not happen.

Final grade? Miserable failure. Wasn’t worth the two triple-A batteries I used to power it. Waste of money ($10)

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–Jeremy Hobbs

Swallowing large pills can be difficult for me at times. Even though I know of their benefits, I’ve always found myself avoiding multi-vitamins for that reason. I’ve tried the adult chewable varieties, but they taste… bleh… at best. That after taste really, really lingers.

While fiddling through the supplement section at Target one day (I have odd hobbies), I saw these One A Day VitaCraves. They have gummie, and sour gummie varieties, and are designed for adults. The price was a tiny bit higher, and the bottle doesn’t contain a whole month’s supply, but I was intrigued enough to try them anyway.

They still have a touch of that flavor that exists in the hard chewable product, but it’s covered up pretty well by the gummie candy. I suppose it also helps that the grit doesn’t stay stuck in your mouth forever, so the aftertaste is much more agreeable.

I try not to critique packaging often, but One A Day did an amazing job with these. I see the bottle and want to try one, versus seeing it and cringing. What was once a chore now feels like a treat, and that’s half the battle.

Despite the price premium, and reduced supply, I give these a ‘Win!’ Should they decide to level off the price with the rest of their lines, and give me the full 30 days, VitaCraves would make it onto my list of this year’s best new products.

Nutritional Info

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–Jeremy Hobbs

Alright,‭ ‬here’s something for the deserted female readers.‭ (‬Males pass by freely.‭) ‬Any woman who wears make-up knows that to actually get a decent foundation is like trying to find a specific road sign in a foreign country.‭ ‬The majority of the commercial make-ups sold at Walgreens,‭ ‬CVS,‭ ‬Target and other similar stores are never quite the shade of your skin tone,‭ ‬or the make-up it self always seems to have problems.

Those problems include being the wrong texture,‭ ‬too oily or sometimes creating the always attractive‭ “‬orange‭” ‬face.‭ ‬I know some of this comes from technique,‭ ‬but you need to have the right materials to even have a chance at proper application.‭ ‬Now I,‭ ‬like most women,‭ ‬have tried many a product and have had them all fail on me in one way or another.‭ ‬I think though,‭ ‬I might have finally found something that actually works‭!

Clinique Clarifying Make-up actually covers your skin well and isn’t bad to put on.‭ ‬I know I may sound like an annoying infomercial,‭ ‬but this make-up actually works.‭ ‬It goes on smoothly,‭ ‬doesn’t leave streaks,‭ ‬and doesn’t cake on like most other foundations.‭ ‬It covers those gross areas you don’t want showing,‭ ‬and I know there is one other huge problem with foundation as well.‭ ‬Zits.‭ ‬Often times,‭ ‬though make-ups job is to cover up zits,‭ ‬it creates them as well.‭ ‬Clinique’s‭ “‬clear skin formula‭” ‬actually does what it says.‭ ‬It doesn’t exactly gets rid of zits,‭ ‬but it doesn’t cause them either,‭ ‬and for someone like me,‭ ‬who’s skin breaks out with the contact of simply air,‭ ‬this product is some kind of phenomenon.‭

Alright,‭ ‬I won’t say it is a miracle worker,‭ ‬but it is a product that keeps your skin even,‭ ‬doesn’t streak,‭ ‬appear orange or make you break out.‭ ‬This product may be two or three dollars more than the average foundation,‭ ‬but it lasts long and is worth the deal‭!

‭Official Site

-Milly Lass

Yeah, vitamins themselves are kind of difficult to review; there are rarely any immediate signs of change in your body that you can document. They are just supplements that help you maintain good overall health; to be honest I’ve never been able to tell much of a difference from one brand to another.

These Nature Made Softgels are similar in that; I feel the same taking these as I do OneADay vitamins. So what’s the deal, and why am I writing about these? It’s the way Nature Made delivers the ‘goods.’

This time last year, I had a scary incident in which I aspirared a large amount of fluid into my lungs. I had the be put on a ventilator and everything; the whole nine yards. Since that time, I’ve had a great amount of difficult swallowing some larger pills. As most vitamin takers can attest to, most multivitamins are a bit on the big side. Nature Made Softgels are big as well, actually bigger than my usual brand, but the super slick coating and over all ‘softness’ of the pill makes them much easier to get down.

As an added bonus, even if it doesn’t go down the first time, the Nature Made Softgels will not start disolving in your mouth. I can tell you, very few things in this world taste worse than a vitamin disolving in your mouth.

These are an easy recommendation for vitamin takers, and you can try them risk free right here. I expect that I’ll keep these stocked in my mediciine cabinet for the forseeable future!

Official Site

–Jeremy Hobbs

Female readers of Consumer’s Corner often get short changed around here when it come to female-specific product reviews. That would only be because all of our contributing writers are male, and we just don’t use your ‘stuff’ (all that often). As the lead editor and contributor here, I’m going to make a concentrated effort to make this site more ‘unisex’ over the summer, starting right….. now!

The folks at Schick were kind enough to send out a review sample for their Quattro For Women line of razors. Yeah, I could’ve shaved my face with it and called it a job done, but that wouldn’t be fair to you guys… er…. girls. My friend Jayme was willing to offer up her legs, arms, and other unmentionable parts for experimental purposes, so she was my guinea pig.

Her opinion of the shaving system was mostly positive. She had been using lower quality disposable razors, and she really noticed the difference in quality, claiming it was one of the better shaves she had ever had. Cleaned up all of her stubly areas with the greatest of ease, no nicks or cuts, and left a very smooth surface behind that lasted longer.

After she said it was ‘one of’ the best shaves she’s had, I asked what the closest competition was in her opinion, and that would be Gillette’s ‘Venus’ line. All things considered, if she had both handles, she wold choose the one that provided the better value.

Overall, the Schick Quattro for Women is recommended. I didn’t use it myself, but I trust her opinion. Look for more female oriented products in the future; I have a writer or two that is ready to come on board very soon that should be able to provide a greater variety of reviews for you!

Neat little widget maker provided by Schick; Dream Date

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–Jeremy Hobbs (with help from Jayme Moore)

Great idea, poor execution. Airborne Power Pixies are designed for kids who may not otherwise be all that keen on taking vitamins or supplements. Being a kid at heart, and not wanting to test anything health related on a geuine specimen, I tried these out myself.

The taste was just horrible. I’ve used the adult version a time or two, and they’re palatable as far as medicine goes, but these taste far worse. That is so odd to me; you have to make things taste good to get a kid to not pitch a fit. They could care less about artificial sweetners, non-imported herbs, no artficial colors, etc. And for most parents, when it gets down to it, they could also care less if it means having a healthier child. Maybe you could use these to threaten the little creatures into eating right, and solve a couple problems at one time.

Not recommended. If you’re worried about lil’ Johnny, the Flinstones have been making effective vitamins forever. And teaching him to wash his hands will go a long way in preventing commonly spread communicable diseases.

Free Sample

Official Site

–Jeremy Hobbs

A few days after I wrote an article complaining about my oily skin, I received this product in the mail. Someone is paying attention to what I write, apparently! Thanks, who ever you are! Hope it was someone I knew; kind of freaky thinking someone has my address.

This blogger is a big fan of body washes; haven’t bought one bar of soap since these became popular. Never tried anything real special; just what was on sale that didn’t smell like flowers. I figured ‘soap is soap.’ I was wrong!

Popped the cap on this to wash my face one morning (rest of my epidermis is actually ‘dry’), not at all buying it’s claim that it could control my oily skin, and proceeded to scrub. My mug remained shine free for the entire day! Might not sound like a big deal to many of you, but it was nice not having to soak my face in irritating chemicals 2-3 times the rest of the day! It did wear off after about 8 hours, but that was more than I could have asked for, and far more than I expected!

I found very little info on the web about this, and I haven’t seen it in a store yet, but I’ll update this article with more details at a later date. Unless it’s ridiculously high priced, this will be a permanent fixture in my bathroom. Highly recommended for other people with ‘well lubricated’ skin

Gillette Has An Official Site, But It’s All Shaving Stuff

–Jeremy Hobbs

My skin is oily. Each one of my pores is registered with OPEC; I’m not kidding. I expect the current administration to declare war on me for control of my natural resources at any moment. It’s hard to sleep at night.

All kidding aside, I’ve gone to extreme measures to keep my face from looking like an oil slick. Peroxide. Alcohol (the strong kind you’re not supposed to use for such purposes), witch hazel, dish detergent. Everything. These little salicylic acid pads are the only things to every really do much good.

Me, ever the bargain hunter, decided to try the store brand version, as they were a whole buck cheaper than the name brands. A buck is a buck, right? 1/5 of my web hosting fees! Did they work? Very well. The pad was a tad smaller than I’m used to, but it had plenty of ‘juice’ on it, and was more than willing to do the job.

This one gets a solid recommendation from me if you use this type of product; aside from the horrible razor fiasco, I’ve been quite pleased with CVS’s offerings. Add in their customer reward programs, you could end up saving a good bit of money over time.

Official Site

–Jeremy Hobbs

After my little store brand ‘value’ experiment, I realized that sometimes you really do get what you pay for. Check out my review of CVS M3 in the Health & Beauty section.

So, needing a clean shave (I’m pretty picky about that), I did what any sane person would do. Instead of buy the cheapest handle & blades on the rack, I went to the completely opposite end of the spectrum and bought the most expensive package I could find.

Got a little lucky, and found a promotional pack that had a ‘free’ can of Fusion Hydra Gel. So, even at $12, it was a somewhat decent deal. I didn’t buy the replacement blades yet, that’s where these companies really rape you, I wanted to make sure it was worth it first.

Hands down, the Gillette Fusion gave me the best shave that I’ve ever had. There’s none of that back tracking to get those couple pieces of stubble left behind; one swipe is enough. My first time using it, my face was as smooth as the day I was born, and the performance of the Fusion has not backed off in the least. It’s a five blade system, and if you flip it around, there is a handy little trimmer blade. Everything is easy to clean, doesn’t clog up, and is very comfortable.

This is one item I recommend splurging on. Even with blades that are twice as expensive, they last twice as long, so you’re coming out pretty well. And if you’re a good consumer, you can find some deals; check your weekly coupon books and what not. Do enough searching, you may find a free handle offer; that would be an amazing deal!

Official Site

–Jeremy Hobbs

gillette, gillette fusion, razors, shaving