After the wonderful experience we had at Craftworks in Vegas, we decided to try out the Craft in Los Angeles, or more specifically, in Century City.

The ambiance here is good but not as nice as the one in Vegas. I like the large open space, but it felt colder, perhaps because of the lighting.

Octopus

We tried out the octopus appetizer and it was delicious. It was a little different from what you would get in a Japanese restaurant (Takotsu) but that’s what it reminded me of. The slices were paper think so it wasn’t chewy at all.

Steak

We had the same main course as in the Craft at Vegas but for some reason, I liked the seasoning better with the Vegas version. Not exactly sure why this is.

Custard Desert

Unlike the deserts in Vegas, our picks were somewhat forgettable and I don’t even remember what we ordered. I think it was some type of custard.

All in all, good ambiance and service but I think the food was better at the Vegas location.

10100 constellation Boulevard
Los Angeles, California 90067
310-279-4180
craftrestaurant.com

After my epic fail with the Archerfish security system, I went looking for something better. One thing that I noticed was that the WiFi connection that Archerfish was using was very unreliable and would go down a lot. So this time, I looked for a wired solution.

What I came up with was the new Logitech Alert Security System. Logitech had an older system which apparently they are slowly killing off to move to this new system.

AC power (left), Camera (center) and and Network adapter (right) - $300

This new system uses HomePlug network which uses your electrical wiring and makes it a wired network. Basically, you plug the HomePlug box into the power outlet, then plug a cable from this box to your router. Next, you plug the AC power box/HomePlug to the wall where you want your camera to go, and plug a cable from that box to your camera. There are no extra cables for power as the network cable is also used for power.

Each of the HomePlug boxes have a power and active LED lights which can be turned off with a switch on the side. This is a good feature to have because the flashing lights can become very annoying after a little while.

Indoor camera

The indoor camera shown above looks more like a webcam than a security camera. There is a microphone, a very wide angle lens and an LED indicator at the bottom. The LED is programmable to be off, on, or blink when motion is detected. If you are using this to see if your nanny is doing something wrong, you might turn off the blinking LED.

The camera comes with a desktop plastic base/holder, mounts that allow you to put it on the wall (like a traditional security camera), and suction cups to stick it to a window. I’ve used both the base and the wall mount with some problems. The base only allows for a small up/down positioning so basically you’re stuck with the angle that it forces upon you. The wall mount also does not allow for all positions depending on how you use the mount. You can force the mount to work but it’s not clear if that’s the way it was designed to be used.

Unlike the Archerfish, installation was fairly easy. After installing the software from CD, I followed the instructions everything worked the first time. The included software is the Alert Commander which allows you to look at live video streaming from the camera. You can have up to 6 cameras, including outdoors cameras with night vision (IR lights) which automatically switches modes as needed. One quick note is that there is a click sound when the IR lights come on and off. This should not be a problem for most people but I wanted to mention it.

Alert Commander

This app also allows you to set up to 16 areas for the motion detection and emailing a photo plus SMS messaging alert when motion is detected. This feature is not as sophisticated as the Archerfish which has smarts to detect the difference between cars, people and pets. In the Logitech system, you can set the sensitivity and the area, but it will not know the difference between a car and the delivery guy, or a human (intruder) and your cat.

Timeline close-up

Each camera comes with a 2Gig microSD card (expandable to 23Gigs) which can store up to about a week of video. When you launch the Commander app, it downloads all the videos from the cameras to the hard drive for backup. Once it’s on your computer, you can view any of the videos which are arranged by date/time as shown above. At this point, you can also save or delete a clip. This is one of the functions that I was not able to get working on the Archerfish.

One big thing to note is that as of this writing, the system only works with PCs. This could be a deal breaker for many people but not for me.

The add on indoor camera costs $230 and outdoor camera costs $280. It’s cheaper for the add-on than the entire system because they only come with the camera side without the computer side. Those prices are not cheap because there’s brains and memory inside each camera and the data is digital, and not analog sent over a network.

Since getting my initial camera, I’ve added one outdoor camera and a second indoor camera. When I moved cameras around, I did have a little problem setting up the new cameras and had to reboot the cameras to get the time to be correct. Also, initially it can take a while for your computer to “find” all the cameras that are connected. Once done, it’s only a few seconds at most.

There is also a smart phone app (for iPhone and Android) that allows you to see live streaming video from anywhere. However, I’ve found that about 50% of the time, at least one of the 3 cameras that I have setup does not connect properly and cannot be viewed.

If you pay monthly, you can also change settings like in the Commander app remotely and watch recorded video (as opposed to live video). So far, I’ve haven’t needed any of these extra features and have not signed up. However, I could see how you  may need to watch recorded video remotely.

For people that want to check on their kids, nannies, or delivery guy, this is a perfect solution. There are no wires to lay in your house but the power line connection is a lot more reliable than the WiFi solutions. However, this may not be the perfect solution for people who are trying to catch burglars in the act if they are familiar with your security system. Of course, any security system can be circumvented with the right knowledge.

As for me, I’ve been very happy with my system so far. I like that fact that I can add cameras without having to do any wiring and getting SMS text messages when motion is detected for free, and being able to watch live video from my phone.

So far, the only small gripes I have are that even after playing with the sensitivity, you do get many more false positives than my old system. However, I prefer this to the opposite of missing something important, which was happening with the Archerfish.

Until I find something better, this will be my system of choice.

There was a Best Buy check in my mailbox yesterday for $1.98.  Apparently, this is another one of those class action lawsuits where Best Buy was forced to return the tax that was charged for their “Ask an Agent” service. I guess they forgot services don’t have sales tax.

What’s interesting is the check date of 7/05/2011. Either the post office is in bigger financial trouble than I thought or Best Buy was earning interest on all this money for months.

With direct deposit, paypal and other high-tech electronic non-paper methods, I rarely have to actually go to the physical bank. Is my time to go to the bank branch worth $1.98? Oh wait. Let me try that cool Chase mobile app.

Boeing 787

After years of delay, Boeing is set to deliver their newest long range, 2 engine jet-liner, called the “Dreamliner” to ANA in Japan on September 28, after leaving Everett, Washington the day before. Let’s hope there will be no more delays or this plane will be known as the “Vaporliner” instead.

Because the entire plane is made from composite material, it is lighter and uses less fuel, is quieter and has special automated controls for a smoother ride during turbulence.

787 Interior lighting

There are tons of cool gadgets on this plane including LED mood lighting to simulate natural lighting, and super large windows that can be tinted darker by the passenger. On top of that, they have new technology to keep the air cleaner than older planes.

Boeing is pretty much betting their future on this plane, at least for the next decade. If this doesn’t fly, they will be in serious trouble.

For a gadget freak like me, this plane has everything to entice me to fly. I may have to travel to Japan just for that reason.

Readers of this blog know that I’ve been trying to get rid of body hair without much success. Since the laser was too painful for me, I’ve decided to go back to the old fashioned methods of shaving.

In trying to find the best body shaver for me, I picked 2 popular ones. Shown below are the contenders: Norelco Bodygroom Men’s Total Body Grooming System (left – $40 at Best Buy) and Braun Cruzer 5 Body Cruzer 5 Body Shaver (right – $60, $50 on Amazon). Both can be used in the shower and on your body.

Norelco (left) and Braun (right)

As you can see below, the Norelco has 2 trimmers with a flat shaver in the middle. The trimmers are okay but the flat shaver really works well and is the best part of this shaver.

Top of Norelco

Shown below is the top of the Braun shaver. As you can see, the bottom is the trimmer and the top is a traditional multi-blade razor that can be adjusted up or down. The razor is actually the Gillette Fusion, which sells for about $15 on Amazon. In the down position, it does not get used. In the middle position, both the trimmer and the razor are used simultaneously, saving time. In the up position, you can just use the razor without the trimmer.

For body hair of short length, using the trimmer and razor together works best.

Top of Braun

Shown below is the Braun power button and the LED indicating when it’s being charged. The Norelco does not have an indicator when being charged.

Braun - LED

As you can see below, the Norelco’s charger is much larger and has metal contacts, whereas the Braun’s charger is tiny in comparison and uses induction without any contacts. Also, the Norelco is super light and falls over a lot and the cord is unnecessarily long. The Braun is heavy and will not fall over and the cord is the right length.

Chargers - Norelco (left), Braun (right)

After a few months of testing, I’ve come to the following conclusion. Generally, the Braun is a much better designed product. The Norelco retains water inside the head and will leak out and would not be good for traveling, along with all the other design flaws this has.

Basically, it’s a no-brainer in picking which is better. The Braun wins except for one small difference. The flat shaver on the Norelco does work well. This is no different from any other regular flat electric shaver but the Braun does not have it. It only has the trimmer and a traditional razor.

So for now, I’m using the Braun but sometimes I’ll use the Norelco if I really need to be smooth. But if I had to choose only one, the Braun wins hands down.

A tiny home-style Japanese restaurant named Tenryoan opened up in Westwood next to the Disney owned theater but I ignored it for a while thinking that it’s probably going to fail and shut down. Well, after a few months, it was still open so I decided to check it out.

The day I visited was very hot so I decided to get the Hiyashi Chuka. For those not familiar, this is a cold plate with ramen style noodles topped with vegetables and meat.

Interestingly, even though this place tries to look like a home-style place, this dish was far from traditional home style. Almost none of the topping they put is what would normally be on this dish. The noodle itself was okay but otherwise, I did not like the strange mixture of toppings. However, keep in mind that I was expecting a more traditional version.

Hiyashi Chuka

Next, I got some Nigiri Sushi to see how their sushi was. Although the freshness was acceptable, some of the fish was cut too thick, kind of reminding me of the ridiculously thick salmon at California Roll Factory.

Nigiri Sushi

Since this was just a quick trip, I’ll reserve final judgement on this place and will return at least one more time. However, my first trip was not memorable and I’m not in any hurry to return.

Update:
Since I wrote this review, I returned there one more time and they are closing as of November.

Tenryoan
1248 Westwood Blvd.
Los Angeles, CA 90024
310-474-1600
Lunch (Mon-Fri) 11:30am-3pm
Dinner (Mon-Sat) 5pm-10:30pm
Closed Sundays

At the Century City Mall parking, they are getting ready to open up electric car charging spaces soon. Apparently, it’s to promote these Coda cars which they are showing in the mall. I’m assuming any electric car can park there but I’m not sure.

Parking spaces for Coda electric cars

While in Vegas for the WSOP, I had a little time to checkout a new Sushi place at the new Cosmopolitan. Actually, it took us a little while to find the place because it was not on the ground floor and you would not accidentally find this place.

We tried the Wagyu Tataki for an appetizer and although the sauce was a little heavy for my taste, the meat was fine. We also had the Edamame ($8.50) which was slightly over cooked. Normally, I wouldn’t think much of it, but at these prices, I expect better.

Wagyu Tataki - $28

My friend had the Sushi and Sashimi combo (shown below), which was average at best.

Sushi Sashimi Combo - $76

To be different, I had the Sushi Deluxe, which was also just average. Don’t get me wrong. There was nothing specifically wrong and the fish was acceptable, but again, at these prices, I wanted to be wowed. Instead, I was left feeling like we should have gone to a steak place instead.

Sushi Deluxe - $48

It’s surprising how hard it is to get really good sushi in Las Vegas. It’s a lot easier to find good sushi in Los Angeles. That’s for sure.

All in all, for the price, I’m not impressed.

Blue Ribbon Sushi Bar & Grill
3708 Las Vegas Boulevard South
Las Vegas, NV
877-893-2003
cosmopolitanlasvegas.com

Since my last trip to Mori Sushi, they have changed their menu from the 8 course meal to 7 courses. This is very interesting because I felt that the 8 course meal was a little too filling for me. So we tried the 7 course meal and it’s basically the same dishes are the 8 course meal as far as I can remember.

Nigiri course

As you can see above, the nigiri sushi looked pretty much the same as before, except for the plate that it was served on. Otherwise, everything was basically the same as my last trip, including the waiter coming to swap out my green tea almost every time I took a sip.

Mori Sushi
11500 West Pico Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90064
(310) 479-3939
morisushi.org