Michael Jackson MMO Planet Michael announced
SEE Virtual Worlds and the Michael Jackson Estate have announced they are teaming up to bring a new MMO based on Michael Jackson to the PC market.
In news which can only be filed under 'WTF?', Planet Michael will "celebrate Michael Jackson's life as an artist and humanitarian" and "allow everyone, from the hardcore fan to the novice, to connect and engage in collaborative in-game activities with people worldwide."
It turns out that this new "planet" should see the light of day at some point in 2011 and, "will be an immersive virtual space themed after iconic visuals drawn from Michael's music, his life, and the global issues that concerned him."
Off the wall...
As this is part of the Michael Jackson Estate you will be surprised to hear that the game will actually be free to download.
However, there will be ways that this cash cow will be milked, including: "the real world in-game economy features gameplay monetisation that allows players to take on dozens of different occupations and, in certain instances, contribute to a charitable cause at the same time."
As Jackson put it himself: "And when the groove is dead and gone..."
 |  |
Read More ...
Review: HP Pavilion dm4-1050ea
HP has just refreshed its entire laptop range, with the Pavilion series receiving several updates and a new model in the Pavilion dm4-1050ea. At £649 including VAT, this is a mid-range laptop that packs a satisfying amount of power and some great features into a dependably solid ultraportable frame, although it's not quite perfect.An attractive brushed aluminium chassis mimics that of the HP Pavilion dm3, and it gives the Pavilion dm4 a premium appearance.
A subtle lined pattern decorates the palm rests and the lid, while the bottom corner of the Pavilion dm4's lid features HP's logo, which glows when the laptop is powered on – a pointless feature, but a nice touch regardless.
Thankfully the Pavilion dm4 feels just as solid as it looks. This is a laptop you'd happily throw in a bag and carry around all day, without worrying about it getting beat up. We only noticed some slight flex around the DVD drive, certainly nothing too concerning.
The brushed aluminium surface is also scratch resistant and can withstand a few knocks, which is perfect for regular commuters.
Even better is the weight. The Pavilion dm4 just squeezes into the ultraportable category, as it weighs a shade under 2kg.
We're seeing an increase in the number of ultraportable laptops lately as components shrink in size, and you no longer have to spend thousands on a powerful machine that weighs a little less than a pregnant hippo.
While the Pavilion dm4 clearly isn't as light as a netbook, and there are other laptops at this price point that weigh considerably less – the Asus UL20A, for instance, which costs £499 and comes in at 1.6kg – this machine can definitely be carried around in a rucksack without wrecking your shoulders.
The Pavilion dm4 is also refreshingly compact, with a 14-inch screen and a thickness of just 32mm when closed. We found it would fit with minimal hassle in any reasonably sized satchel or bag.
Although the Pavilion dm4 is a well-built laptop, there's a serious usability issue that almost threw us into a murderous rage. The problem is the touchpad, which had integrated mouse buttons along the bottom edge.
This may seem harmless enough, but you should definitely seek out a display model and try it for yourself if you're considering buying a Pavilion dm4.
We found that we naturally rested our thumb on the buttons when using the touchpad, but because the buttons are sensitive to touch, this caused the cursor to go berserk and hop across the screen.
We also suffered from erratic cursor hops at times when we pressed the mouse buttons, which led to incorrect menu selections and severely increased blood pressure.
The Packard Bell EasyNote TX86 also had integrated mouse buttons, but those buttons weren't sensitive to touch. This prevented the crazy cursor syndrome, and we wish that the Pavilion dm4 followed the same design.
Still, at least the keyboard fares a lot better. The Pavilion dm4's keys are all well-sized despite the compact chassis, and an isolation-style design is used, with each key poking through an individual hole cut in the frame.
The resulting gaps help to separate the keys, which makes this an excellent board for touch typing. And because the gaps are covered, there's little chance of crumbs and dirt invading the Pavilion dm4's insides.
Our only complaint is that the keys feel a little plasticky compared to the rest of the build, although at least they're fairly quiet.
A 14-inch screen is in place, and it's superbly sharp thanks to the 1366 x 768-pixel resolution. Contrast levels also impress, so images are crisp and the display is perfect for working on intricate spreadsheets.
HP has used a glossy Super-TFT screen coating, and the result is more vibrant and realistic colours. Photographs and movies are pleasing to the eye, although the screen is slightly more reflective so you'll be squinting if you take the Pavilion dm4 into the garden.
HP has also crammed some excellent features into the Pavilion dm4. For starters, a fingerprint scanner can be found on the right side of the chassis.
These scanners can be used as an extra security measure or as an alternative to a password, so only users whose fingerprints are recognised are able to sign onto Windows or access certain private files.
Networking is also strong. 802.11n Wi-Fi allows for fast connections to wireless networks, while speedy Gigabit Ethernet is also available for wired networking.
Three USB ports can be used to hook up peripherals including a mouse to the Pavilion dm4. One of these ports doubles as an eSATA port, which allows faster data exchange with external hard drives – perfect if you need to regularly back up your files, or want to increase your storage space.
The Pavilion dm4's 320GB of storage is a little over the minimum we expect out of laptops this size, and provides enough room for a decent-sized media collection, stretching to many thousands of songs and hundreds of movies.
However, bear in mind that not only does Windows take up a decent chunk of space, but a section of the Pavilion dm4's hard drive has also been dedicated to a factory image of the hard drive for restoration purposes – something we're seeing on most modern laptops.
This reduces the amount of storage space available for your personal folders and application. Finally, there's a VGA and an HDMI port for connecting an external display or projector.
In 2009 Intel released its new Core i3, Core i5 and Core i7 processors, with the Core i3 providing impressive levels of power at a budget price, and the Core i7 proving to be the most powerful home-use processor you could buy.
An Intel Core i5 processor is the brains of the Pavilion dm4, and performance sits right between the Core i3 and the Core i7. We found the Pavilion dm4 provided the same level of power as the Asus K52JC, which costs £730 inc. VAT, and the Medion Akoya, costing £589 inc. VAT.
Office tasks are despatched with ease, and you can comfortably multi-task with a variety of intensive applications. We witnessed very little slowdown even with several programs such as Microsoft Office and Photoshop Elements open at once.
Unfortunately, the Pavilion dm4 only features the integrated graphics provided by the processor. The lack of a dedicated graphics card means that multimedia performance is limited, so you won't be able to play any of the latest games or run video editing suites.
That said, the new Core processors compare favourably with other processors when it comes to integrated graphics. Older games and simple web-based games run fine on the Pavilion dm4, and you can even watch HD video.
Battery life exceeded our expectations, with the Pavilion dm4 lasting 335 minutes between charges. This is well above average for a Core i5 laptop, most of which manage just under four hours.
The only notable exception we've seen lately is the Acer Aspire TimelineX 4820TG, which survived for 661 minutes.
The HP Pavilion dm4 is a mid-range laptop that just squeezes into the ultraportable category, weighing a shade under 2kg. HP has packed a lot of features and a Core i5 processor into the compact chassis, and finished it off with a premium metallic design.
We liked
The HP Pavilion dm4 is a solidly built laptop, which can easily withstand some punishment on the road. The slim and light chassis is great for regular commutes, while the 335 minutes of battery life mean you can leave the charger at home.
A sharp and colourful 14-inch display is in place, great for browsing your photo collection or lengthy work sessions. HP has been generous with its features too, including plenty of ports on the Pavilion dm4 and a fingerprint scanner for added security.
Performance is also strong, with plenty of power for multitasking. We witnessed little slowdown even when several memory-intensive applications were open at once.
We disliked
Although the Core i5 processor is a strong performer, the lack of a dedicated graphics card means multimedia performance is limited. The Pavilion dm4 is capable of basic tasks such as photo editing and playing simple games, but video editing and other complex tasks are beyond this laptop's capabilities.
More serious is the flawed touchpad, which features infuriating integrated buttons. Resting your thumb on the buttons makes the cursor go crazy, as does clicking them at times, leading to incorrect menu selections.
Verdict
The HP Pavilion dm4 is very nearly a solid all-rounder, and a laptop that we'd heartily recommend. Unfortunately, that ropey touchpad regularly ruined our mood, and conjured forth a stream of expletives.
Still, there's plenty to like, from the slim and light form to the excellent Core i5 performance, and few other flaws. If you can try out the Pavilion dm4 in a store then we'd recommend you do so, to see if you can tolerate the touchpad.
Related Links
| |
Read More ...
Review: Acer Aspire One 533
Since Asus unleashed its first Eee PC three years ago, almost every laptop manufacturer on the globe has come out with its own brand of netbook. However, while it's great to have a huge selection, many netbooks are difficult to differentiate from each other as they use near identical components.The main factors to consider are therefore battery life, build quality and usability, as well as the quality of the display.
Acer was one of the first competitors to release its own netbook range, the Acer Aspire One series. The Acer Aspire One 532 was the most recent entry, and while it impressed with a decent build and strong display, it was beaten for features and battery life by the likes of the MSI Wind U160 and Packard Bell Dot S2.
The Acer Aspire One 532 has just been updated, and the result is the Acer Aspire One 533. Quite a lot of the Aspire One 533 is borrowed from the 532, with a couple of additions or tweaks that build on a solid and likeable foundation.
One of the main draws of netbooks is their compact size and featherlight weight, which makes them perfect to slip into a bag or rucksack and take on a trip. Combined with the low cost, this makes them great secondary or backup machines.
The Acer Aspire One 533 is certainly light at just 1.2kg, while the chassis is small enough to fit into almost any bag – even oversized handbags. It's a little chunky for a netbook thanks to the battery, which juts out at the rear, but a thickness of 37mm isn't going to make much of an impact during transport.
Acer has a reputation built on quality, with its Aspire range of laptops and Aspire One series of netbooks proving solid and dependable. The Aspire One 533 is no exception, featuring a firm chassis that can withstand a few bumps on the road.
The glossy lid is just as rigid to protect the display. It's attached by two solid hinges that enable the screen to be tilted almost horizontally, for a comfortable viewing angle.
Although the Aspire One 533's glossy surface is attractive, it does pick up smudges ridiculously easy. Keep a cleaning cloth handy if you're fussy about dust and fingerprints.
The Aspire One 533's excellent build quality means usability is also impressive. A reasonably responsive touchpad is integrated into the palm rest and given a textured finish to differentiate it, which works well.
A separate scroll bar to the right enables quick and simple scrolling through web pages and documents, while gesture support means you can zoom and rotate when viewing photographs and other documents.
Unfortunately the Acer Aspire One 533's pad is rather confined, a common problem related to the compact nature of netbooks.
Netbooks also often suffer from cramped keyboards, but the Aspire One 533's keyboard stretches the full width of the chassis to maximise the space on offer. It's a firm board, although travel is limited.
The Aspire One 533's keys are mostly well-sized and logically laid out. The only casualties of the reduced space are the left-hand keys such as the shift and tab, which are quite narrow, and the arrow keys which are packed into the bottom right corner.
Acer's usual flat design is in place, with no key definition at all, but this proves surprisingly good for touch typing. We can type almost as fast on this as any full-sized laptop keyboard, helped by that bulky battery which tilts the board at a comfortable angle.
A 10.1-inch screen is standard for a netbook, and the Acer Aspire One 533's display is near identical to the one found on the Aspire One 532. The 1024 x 600-pixel resolution is suitably sharp with excellent contrast – perfect for viewing photos as well as working on complex spreadsheets.
To enhance vibrancy, a glossy Super-TFT coating has been used. Images look more realistic as a result, although this also makes the Aspire One 533's display highly reflective.
You won't notice the difference indoors, but try taking the Aspire One 533 outside and you'll be bobbing your head like a madman to make out what's on screen.
250GB of storage is what we'd expect of modern netbooks, and that's what you get with the Aspire One 533. For something that is likely to be used as a secondary computer, this should prove to be more than enough to carry all your important documents as well as thousands of songs and photos.
Netbook features are almost always limited, and the Aspire One 533 is no exception. You'll find a typically sparse number of ports, including three USB ports and a VGA port for hooking up an external display. There are also mic and headphone sockets and an Ethernet slot for wired networking.
While 10/100 Ethernet provides standard networking, the Aspire One 533 also includes built-in 802.11n Wi-Fi for connecting to a wireless network either at home or via a public Wi-Fi hotspot. This is the fastest wireless standard currently available, perfect for speedy web browsing.
Bluetooth is also on board for sharing files with compatible portable devices such as mobile phones.
Almost every netbook we've seen is powered by an Intel Atom processor, and the Aspire One 533 again sticks to tradition in this respect. An Atom N455 processor provides the juice, notable for its support of speedy DDR3 memory that is found in most modern laptops.
Although 1024MB of DDR3 memory is present, we noticed very little improvement over the Aspire One 532. There's enough power for basic tasks such as browsing the web and fiddling with your spreadsheets, but don't expect to get any more out of the Aspire One 533.
Only basic integrated graphics are available, which uses the main system memory due to a lack of on-board video memory. Multimedia ability is highly limited, as with all netbooks, and even playing HD video will cause the Aspire One 533 to stutter and grind.
Gaming is also out for all but the most basic of titles. Games that are a few years old run fine, as do simple web-based games, but running anything more complex than Peggle will make the Aspire One 533 hate you.
The combination of low-powered processor and substantial battery unsurprisingly aids the Aspire One 533's longevity. On a single charge we managed 480 minutes of productivity away from the mains, enough for a full day's work on the move.
However, while this is over two hours longer than the Acer Aspire One 532's battery life, it is bettered by several netbooks already on the market. The Lenovo IdeaPad S10-3T has a similarly bulky battery and survives for over ten hours, while the Samsung N220 lasts 575 minutes on one charge.
While the Acer Aspire One 533 is basically an updated version of the Aspire One 532, at least the original machine was a dependable and likeable netbook with very few flaws.
The Aspire One 533 adds an improved processor with support for speedy DDR3 memory and extended battery life, but is it enough to set this netbook apart from the vast number of mini portables currently available?
We Liked
Acer's usual high build standards are evident, and the Aspire One 533's compact chassis is solid as well as light. It'll take more than a few knocks on the road to bother this netbook.
Usability is strong, with a firm and well-sized keyboard in place. Touch typing is a breeze despite a flat key design, and the only flaw is the cramped arrow keys.
The Aspire One 533's screen is sharp and vibrant, perfect for checking out your holiday snaps, and the display bends back to a near-horizontal angle so it's comfortable to work on while rested on your lap.
Networking is also strong, with 802.11n Wi-Fi providing fast wireless connectivity and Bluetooth available for quickly swapping files with compatible mobile devices.
We Disliked
480 minutes of battery life is enough to keep you going on even tediously long commutes, but is outdone by several other netbooks. The Aspire One 533's bulky battery also adds to the machine's thickness.
Performance is typical for a netbook, with no real advancement compared to the Aspire One 532. Only basic tasks are possible, such as web browsing and word processing, and multimedia potential is highly limited with HD video struggling.
As with all netbooks, there are also few features to get excited about. The glossy screen coating also highly limits outdoors use.
Verdict
The Acer Aspire One 533 takes few risks, with just a couple of notable updates over the Aspire One 532. It's a well-built and highly usable netbook, and reliably portable, if not particularly exciting.
However, there are netbooks out there with longer lasting batteries, so regular travellers may want to consider something like the MSI Wind U160 or the Lenovo IdeaPad S10-3T instead.
Related Links
| |
Read More ...
Video: Aardman creates world's smallest stop-motion movie
UK animators Aardman have successfully managed to create the world's smallest stop-motion animation using a Nokia N8 smartphone.The animation features an 0.35-inch model fittingly named Dot who has to flee a world made of fabric which is being unstitched.
The animation was filmed through a CellScope - microscope for mobile phones - which was attached to the N8 and its 12MP camera.
The models used were so small that they had to be created using a 3D printer, then hand painted through a microscope.
Viral magic
According to popsci.com, the directors of the film were Ed Patterson and Will Studd and the whole thing was created as a viral to promote the Nokia N8.
While we are not ones to big up promotional campaigns too often, Nokia has certainly stumbled on to something special here.
Given the size of the models used the short film is a remarkable feat and one which has got Aardman into the Guinness Book of Records.
Unfortunately, it doesn't seemed to have stopped the Nokia N8 from being delayed once more. The smartphone was pencilled in for a 23 September UK release date, but this has seemingly been pushed back due to the amount of "preorders exceeding expectations".
Expect to see the Nokia N8 in shops mid-October instead. The delay, according to Nokia, will "ensure a great user experience".
Whatever that means.
| |
Read More ...
SXSWi 2011 first keynotes and panels confirmed
The organisers of the SXSW Interactive Festival (SXSWi) which next takes place from March 11-15, 2011, have given a first peek at the 2011 programming.The annual event, held in Austin, Texas, has previously seen speakers from Google, Microsoft, Twitter, Spotify and The Pirate Bay, and TechRadar has covered the festival for the last two years.
SXSWi 2011will feature keynotes by Christopher Poole, Founder of 4Chan and Canvas, and closing remarks from futurist Bruce Sterling.
The initial list of confirmed SXSWi sessions include panels from Yahoo, Opera, eBay, Microsoft, Sony and a host of web design stars.
The full list of confirmed panels can be found on the SXSW website.
| |
Read More ...
AMD announces new six-core Phenom II X6 1075T chip
AMD has announced the price and availability of its latest CPUs, with the headline act the six core AMD Phenom II X6 1075T weighing in at just under £200. The latest AMD chips are part of the expanded desktop processor line-up, and range in price from £192.41 down to the Athlon II X3 450 priced at £58.45.
"AMD today announced new arrivals to its processor line giving more reasons than ever to upgrade to the visual experience of a new PC featuring VISION Technology from AMD, explained AMD's release.
"These processors join AMD's award winning AMD 8-series chipset and ATI Radeon HD 5000 series graphics for PCs that combine stunning high definition video and 3D graphics with multi-tasking performance."
The UK pricings are:
AMD Phenom II X6 1075T - £192.41
AMD Phenom II X4 970 BE - £144.49
AMD Phenom X2 560 BE - £80.56
AMD Athlon II X4 645 - £97.10
Athlon II X3 450 - £58.45
"The AMD Phenom II X6 1075 processor slots in just below our flagship 1090T model, offering high-end features like Turbo CORE acceleration technology and six-core performance for less than $250," continues AMD
"The AMD Phenom II X2 560 Black Edition processor is an affordable alternative for enthusiasts looking for performance tuning capabilities for more performance or lower power consumption."
| |
Read More ...
In depth: 10 best Freeview HD boxes in the UK today
If you've bought yourself an HDTV in the last couple of years, chances are you haven't actually been watching any HD content on it.However, with free HD broadcasts available on both Freeview and Freesat, HD TV from the BBC, ITV and Channel 4 is just a Freeview HD box away.
With around 18 million HD Ready flatscreens TVs sold in the UK, there's a potentially huge market for these Freeview HD receivers, though arguably the appearance of the Freeview+HD recorder could significantly shrink it.
For all the excitement, Freeview HD won't be broadcast to absolutely everyone until the end of 2011 and, due to bandwidth restrictions, consists of only three HD channels.
The whole of Britain receives subscription-free access to BBC HD and ITV 1 HD, while Scotland gets STV HD, Wales S4C Clirlan and England sees Channel 4 HD. That's on top of the other 50 or so standard-def Freeview channels, of course.
What's more, the BBC will soon be launching BBC One HD channel.
What makes the best Freeview HD box?
Although there have been some real winners in the Freeview HD box market, there's also the usual dross to trawl through. Boxes that freeze and with poor remote controls have been cast far from our top ten, though what suits you exactly will depend on your priorities.
Virtually all Freeview HD boxes indulge in some upscaling of SD channels to HD, though how successful they are varies wildy.
The electronic programme guide is crucial, with speed and responsiveness a critical skill. Don't underestimate the importance of that, though you can treat the Dolby Digital Plus logo on the front of many boxes with a touch of cynicism; it means that the box could decode 7.1-channel soundtracks that could eventually be broadcast on Freeview HD channels.
Sadly, this is merely a future-proofing footnote for now, because although it's technically possible to broadcast Dolby Digital Plus across the new Freeview HD framework, it's not actually being used by any TV channels yet.
Dolby Digital Plus is basically a compressed version of Dolby Digital; Freeview HD currently uses a brand new audio format called HE-AAC, which can only provide stereo – some Freeview HD boxes can transcode HE-AAC to Dolby Digital, but this is often subject to a software upgrade.
Other features to look for in the best Freeview HD boxes include a Common Interface slot (for adding Top-Up TV viewing cards), DivX and MP3 playback from a USB stick, access to IPTV services like BBC iPlayer and Sky Player, and USB recording (to an attached USB pen drive or external hard drive), though finding exciting extras on this first generation of Freeview HD set-top boxes is hard work.
Humax HD-FOX T2
The Humax HD-FOX T2 was the first ever Freeview HD receiver, but it's more 'home hub' than set-top box.As well as receiving sparkling HD broadcasts, this Humax also acts as a half-decent media streamer – it's capable of playing DivX, XviD, MP3 and JPEG files stored remotely on USB or over a network.
Sadly, there's no Wi-Fi and its file-compatibility list could be written on the back of an ant, but for those only just getting into the world of DLNA, it's a doddle to set up and provides a happy, user-friendly experience.
Much like the box as a whole; upscaling (to 1080p), the graphical user interface and general ease of operation are a genuine highlights. What's more, in early October, this box will get a firmware update that will turn it into a PVR using USB storage. BBC iPlayer and Sky Player access is also on the way.
Review and price check: Humax HD-FOX T2 review
TechniSat HDFV
With a generally polished interface and only minor rough edges, this is one of the best – and certainly the best value – pieces of Freeview HD kit on the market; plug in an external USB hard disk and this competent receiver grows into a competent (though very basic) recorder that's mostly a joy to use.It may lack the flourishes of others, but the HDFV's interface is the quickest and easiest we've seen on any Freeview HD receiver or recorder.
It's almost impossible to get confused. Picture quality is impressive from SD and HD channels – either live or recorded – and playback of digital media from USB or streamed from a PC is slick, though limited.
Video file playback is restricted to MPEG files, though that does mean all recordings can be manually transferred to a PC and accessed on the HDFV.
Review and price check: Technisat HDFV review
Linsar FHD1
If the interface on this basic box from British company Linsar is generally user-friendly, the pictures are something of a love-in.It's not just HD channels that impress – standard-def programmes are upscaled well, with little blocking or feathered edges.
The BBC HD channel, meanwhile, is pin-sharp with enticing smooth motion and comfortable camera pans. Nicely coloured in shades of purple and red, the EPG's graphics are a touch too soft – we spotted some feathered edges and text that's not quite as sharp as it could be – but it's the EPG's responsiveness that's of most concern; cue overlapping commands and the occasional freeze-up.
A good, if not great Freeview HD box that will bring you a basic Freeview HD upgrade – and in great quality – though little else.
Review and price check: Linsar FHD1 review
Icecrypt T2200
Icecrypt's maker Turbosat has gone out of its way to give its diminutive, yet powerful, digital box some tempting attributes to extend its appeal.Forget high definition – this is one of the fastest and finest Freeview set-top boxes we've seen. Boasting DivX and even DivX HD playback from its USB slot, the T2200 will, we're promised, soon be able to record programmes to an external hard drive or USB stick.
Its Freeview HD/DVB-T2 tuner is highly sensitive and built around an excellent user interface, delivering good levels of close-up detail with a cinematic feel. The T2200 is future-proofing defined.
Review and price check: Icecrypt T2200 review
ABD i-CAN Easy HD 2851T
Most new brands dip a foot in the UK consumer market, but Advanced Digital Broadcast's (ADB) debut product is full-throttle Freeview HD – and with BBC iPlayer in HD, to boot, the i-CAN is a mighty tempting piece of kit on paper.Smaller and lighter than other Freeview HD boxes we've tested, the i-CAN's picture from iPlayer is not a patch on the live hi-def TV channels from the Freeview HD tuner.
The smooth interface is class leading, with an excellent eight-day EPG and Freeview HD channels that are sumptuously detailed, though the regular standard-def channels do disappoint – the i-CAN seems bereft of upscaling tech, which leaves the likes of BBC One sprinkled with blocking. A terrific product, but there are cracks.
Review and price check: ABD i-CAN Easy HD 2851T review
Goodmans GDB300HD
A trusted budget British brand for yonks, it was only a matter of time before Goodmans issued its first Freeview HD receiver.And for 'budget' read 'basic', but both the hardware and software make this an initially stunning attempt at Freeview HD. But is it a slight case of Emperor's new clothes?
The GDB300HD boasts a good-looking interface and delivers good clarity from the three hi-def channels, but its struggle with standard-def is a letdown – as is its predilection for making its on-screen menus tricky to wander through on first use.
There's no getting away from the fact that the GDB300HD is yet another slightly overpriced Freeview HD set-top box. The glossy interface and oh-so-simple setup – as well as HD channels – may look the part, but there's enough oddities within to put serious question marks over its price.
Also from Harvard International – owners of the Goodmans brand – is the near-identical Grundig GUD300HD.
Review and price check: Goodmans GDB300HD review
Manhattan Plaza HDT-700
Basic, though it does include multimedia playback from USB drives (a rarity on Freeview zappers).This box from Manhattan certainly looks good, with a two-tone black and silver colour scheme that should co-ordinate nicely with most people's living room AV setups.
The remote is better than that found with many of the Manhattan's contemporaries and the software is attractively presented, using a row of six labelled icons as the main jump-off point.
The receiver generates crisp-looking pictures from both HD and SD channels and while upscaling (up to 1080p) via the HDMI is a nice bonus, it won't do wonders for repeats of Murder, She Wrote.
Review and price check: Manhattan Plaza HDT-700 review
Philips DTR5520
Philips has enlisted the help of renowned set-top box maker Pace to deliver its entry-level receiver, the DTR5520.Dressed in a reflective though fingerprint-hungry gloss black fascia, the diminutive box sports a classy blue LED display and the option to convert Freeview's audio to Dolby Digital if you connect it to an amplifier using the coaxial digital audio output.
Now that is rare. Broadcasts on BBC HD feature a vivid image with well saturated and nuanced colours, though skin tones can seem a little peachy.
Upscaling – a crucial skill for any Freeview HD box – the DTR5520 gives the many standard-def channels an pristine polish. That same rich colour and deep contrast (and ripe skin tones) continue on Pirates of the Caribbean on BBC3, with the slight drop in detail the only clue that you're watching SD – the DTR5520 is as clever an upscaler as any Freeview HD box we've seen.
Review and price check: Philips DTR5520 review
Sharp TU-T2
A basic, but very small and easy to house, black box is what you get, but its glossy fascia is interrupted by a rather brave lightbox studded with eight blue LEDs that twinkle and refresh every time a command is issued from the remote control.The BBC HD channel looks simply awesome through the TU-T2, with loads of close-up detail and some stunning, pristine colours; the TU-T2 puts in a faultless performance with high definition.
A blast of ITV in SD reveals that the TU-T2 doesn't have bad quality 1080p upscaling – but we've seen much better. An excellent EPG takes the guesswork out of high definition; it displays a 'HD' logo next to anything that's broadcast in hi-def.
Review and price check: Sharp TU-T2 review
Metronic Zapbox T2 HD
The Metronic T2 HD Zapbox is a rather rudimentary take on DVB-T2 Freeview HD.A tiny, no-frills Freeview HD box, it sports a bog-standard black shell with a central red LED display that's flanked by simple standby and channel up/down controls.
The main 'menu' and 'guide' buttons both take more than a second to bring up the interface, which is nicely styled in purple, lilac and red, but not quite hi-res enough for our tastes.
The EPG, a seven-day affair, is not transparent so blocks out the programme you're watching. It's hard to argue with the T2 HD's picture quality – both HD and SD channels look crisp and clear – but its basic interface and lack of add-on features means there are better value examples available.
Review and price check: Metronic Zapbox T2 review
| |
Read More ...
BlackBerry Storm 3 outed in spy shot?
An image has leaked of a new BlackBerry handset which looks like it could well be the upcoming BlackBerry Storm 3.The Storm series of BlackBerry phones are touchscreen-only devices and the BlackBerry papped by a reader of BerryReview is just that - coming eqipped with a 3.7-inch display.
Other specs are in short supply, but the tipster does reckon that the BlackBerry Storm 3 comes with a meaty 8GB of internal memory and has mobile Wi-Fi hotspot connectivity.
A touch sensitive
RIM still hasn't quite got touchscreen nailed with the BlackBerry Storm and the Storm 2.
The SuprePress click-screen function may have been tweaked for the Storm 2 but it was still a turn-off for many.
Here's hoping that the BlackBerry Storm 3 is a decent enough touchscreen device to match the iPhone 4's and HTC Desire's of the world.
| |
Read More ...
Orange 'San Francisco' Android phone announced
Orange has announced the 'San Francisco' phone – a sub £100 entry to the Android platform. Orange insists that the San Francisco Android phone is the 'first in a series of Orange branded affordable Android devices' and has a UK release date of this week.
The own-brand touchscreen phone is available for £99 on Orange pay as you go, and offers a 3MP camera, built in FM radio, GPS and 2GB microSD card (and it supports up to 32GB cards).
Affordable
"The San Francisco is the first in a series of affordable Android devices we have planned for Orange," said Phil Roberson, Orange Director of Devices.
"Combining its great functionality with our pay as you go price plans, really does offer users tremendous value for money."
The phone is on Android version 2.1 – or Éclair – and also offers 3G, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth connectivity.
| |
Read More ...
Guide: How to back up programs and settings
We cannot overstate the importance of backing up your precious, irreplaceable data. But what about your programs – and in particular those settings, preferences and tweaks you've painstakingly set up over the past few months or even years?The good news is that it's possible to back up just about any program setting, ensuring all your chosen program preferences survive your next Windows recovery or reinstall.
All you need to know is where to look and what to add to your backup job. For the purposes of this tutorial we're using the excellent free GFI Backup Home backup tool as it's user-friendly, offers simple plug-ins for common applications and is capable of backing up specific Registry entries as well as files and folders.
Just click New Backup Job at the main screen and work your way through the wizard – when it comes to selecting what to include, all the options you need are on the Source tab.
Below we reveal the settings required to back up 20 popular applications, but if your program isn't covered, don't worry: we'll show you how to track down the settings yourself.
Some of the folder locations listed below are in hidden folders – to bring them into view, click Start > Computer, and then either choose Tools > Folder Options (XP) or Organize > Folder and Search Options (Vista/Win7) and switch to the View tab. Select "Show hidden files and folders" and click OK.
How to back up email settings
1. How to back up Outlook Express
The simplest way to back up Outlook Express is through GFI Backup Home – click the Email button on the Source tab and either tick the Outlook Express box to back up everything, or expand it followed by the {identity} string to restrict your backup to selected items like signatures, mailboxes and account details.
2. How to back up Windows Mail
Again, GFI Backup Home has an email plug-in with all the options you need to back up Vista's email program – again, expand Windows Mail to choose exactly what you want to back up, whether its settings, accounts, mail, rules or more.
3. How to back up Microsoft Outlook
There's a plug-in for Outlook in GFI Backup Home too – Outlook settings just tick the box or expand it to pick exactly what Outlook settings to back up.
4. How to back up Windows Live Mail
If you want to back up Windows Live Mail settings, the GFI plug-in allows you to back up the calendar, contacts, mailboxes and other program settings.
5. How to back up Thunderbird
Again, GFI Backup Home has a plug-in, but it only offers two options: mail and settings. If you want more control over exactly what gets backed up, try MozBackup instead.
How to back up browser settings6. How to back up Internet Explorer
Click the User Settings button on the Sources tab in GFI Backup Home and you'll find Internet Explorer in the Internet Browsers section. Tick the box to back up everything, or expand it to choose from Favorites, settings and cookies.
7. How to back up Firefox
You can back up Mozilla-based browsers using MozBackup – this tool can also back up SeaMonkey, Mozilla and Netscape settings – or use the plug-in found in GFI Backup Home.
8. How to back up Google Chrome
There's no back-up option in GFI Backup Home – the simplest option is to synchronise your Chrome settings with your Google account (click the spanner icon and select Options > Personal Stuff tab to set it up). This will cover your bookmarks, themes, preferences, extensions and auto-fill settings: click the Customise button to select exactly what to back up.
9. How to back up Opera
Once again, GFI Backup provides backup for Opera through the User Settings button – this plugin covers your history, bookmarks, cookies and settings. If you want more control over what gets backed up, this page will tell you what files you need to manually add to your backup to cover specific settings.
How to back up office suites10. How to back up Microsoft Office
Office XP and 2003 users should click Start > All Programs > Microsoft Office > Microsoft Office Tools > Office Save My Settings Wizard to quickly back up or restore their important settings. Office 2007 and 2010 have no free and easy option to follow; instead, you'll need to do the following.
Press [Win] + [R], type %appdata% and press Enter, then open the Microsoft folder and back up the following sub-folders: Office, Proof, Templates and UProof. If you have plug-ins installed, back up individual program folders from here, like Word and Excel. When it comes to the Registry, browse to HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office and back up the entire key.
11. How to back up OpenOffice
Launch OpenOffice and select Tools > Options > OpenOffice.org > Paths – you'll see where templates, graphics and the like are stored. By default they use the OpenOffice\3 folder inside AppData\Roaming (Application Data in XP) – backing up this entire folder protects all your OpenOffice settings too.
How to back up image editors12. How to back up Google Picasa
Many settings can be found in two folders – Picasa2 and Picasa2Albums – which are stored inside C:\Users\{Username}\AppData\Local\Google (or C:\Documents and Settings\{Username}\Local Settings\Application Data\Google in XP). Other preferences can be found inside the following Registry key: HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Google\Picasa.
13. How to back up GIMP
The GIMP stores most of its settings in two locations – the .gimp-2.6 in the root directory of your personal User folder, and inside its own Program Files folder. To verify what folders these are – so you can add them to your backup, open The GIMP, choose Edit > Preferences and expand Folders to verify the locations you need.
14. How to back up Paint.NET
Paint.NET offers a very clean install – back up the Effects and FileTypes folders inside C:\Program Files\Paint.NET to protect any third-party plug-ins you've installed. If you've made changes to the default tool settings (click the Tool button on the toolbar and select Choose Defaults, then click Save), these are stored in the Registry along with other user settings: add HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Paint.NET to your back-up plan to protect them.
15. How to back up Photoshop Elements
Browse to the %Appdata%\Adobe folder and back up both Elements Organizer and Photoshop Elements folders you find inside – repeat for the hidden C:\ProgramData\Adobe folder too, which is where your catalogues are stored. Complete the job by backing up the Elements Organizer and Photoshop Elements Registry keys, which you'll find inside HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Adobe.
16. How to back up Windows Photo Gallery
Back up Windows Live Photo Gallery by adding the Windows Photo Gallery live folder at C:\Users\{Username}\AppData\Local\Microsoft\Windows Live Photo Gallery (C:\Documents and Settings\{Username}\Local Settings\Application Data in XP) to your backup job. You should also back up the HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows Live\Photo Gallery key too.
Miscellaneous programs17. How to back up Apple iTunes
Your iTunes library can be backed up in its entirety (including playlists and other preferences) by opening iTunes, selecting Edit > Preferences > Advanced tab. Verify "Copy files to iTunes Media folder when adding to library" is ticked, click OK and then choose File > Library > Organize Library. Tick both boxes and click OK again. Once complete, close iTunes and add the iTunes folder (it's inside your Music folder) to your backup job.
You'll find numerous Apple Computer folders inside C:\Users\{Username}\AppData (Win7 and Vista), while XP users should back up the Apple Computer folder found inside C:\Documents and Settings\{Username}\Local Settings\Application Data instead.
18. How to back up Windows Media Player
There's a plug-in to do just the job in GFI Backup Home under User Settings, which backs up all the folders and Registry settings you need to cover everything, including skins, playlists and preferences.
19. How to back up Skype settings
Again, GFI Backup Home provides a plug-in under User Settings, which backs up both the Registry and the Skype folder inside C:\Users\{Username}\AppData\Roaming or C:\Documents and Settings\{Username}\Application Data.
20. How to back up FileZilla settings
Point your backup tool to C:\Users\{Username}\AppData\Roaming\FileZilla (Vista/Win7) or C:\Documents and Settings\{Username}\Application Data\FileZilla (XP).
Program not covered?
If your program hasn't been featured above, don't despair. You'll have noticed a number of patterns forming when looking for program settings to back up: here's where to look for your target program settings:
%AppData% - basically C:\Users\{Username}\AppData\Roaming in Vista and Windows 7; C:\Documents and Settings\{Username}\Application Data in XP
%LocalAppData% - C:\Users\{Username}\AppData\Local (C:\Documents and Settings\{Username}\Local Settings\Application Data in XP)
C:\ProgramData
C:\Program Files and – 64-bit systems only – C:\Program Files (x86)
Other settings can be found inside the Registry – most are held under HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\ and HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\
If all else fails, visit your program's website and look for a support option or forum where you can looks to see if someone else knows where your elusive settings are held.
| |
Read More ...
Opinion: 'Hardly anyone' agrees with Kudo's PC FPS BS
"Hardly anyone plays first person shooters on the PC any more," said Microsoft's Kinect creator Kudo Tsunoda, taking a motion-controlled plunge into a sea of controversy and bad-feeling, and once again raising questions about the Windows giant's dedication to its biggest gaming platform. Let's get something straight from the off, one Microsoft exec does not represent the views of the entire company. At least I hope that's the case – because, let's be frank, when it comes to PC gaming the software giant has hardly been jumping through hoops to make us believe they still care.
The party line is that the arrival of Fable III, a new Age of Empires and the next generation of Flight Simulator will rejuvenate the PC.
But it doesn't take a genius to spot that there isn't a first person shooter in sight.
Point or pointless?
So does Kudo have a point? For me, he is absolutely, unequivocally wrong, and here's why.
First of all, I challenge anyone to suggest that first person shooters aren't still popular after 20 minutes of trying to find a slot on a public server just after an update to Team Fortress 2.
When it comes to online gaming, first person shooters may not be in the same league as the likes of World of Warcraft or Farmville, but there are still hundreds of thousand of people playing each of the major shooters online at any given point.
Team Fortress 2, CoD: Modern Warfare 2 and Counter Strike, are all hugely popular at the moment. And the last title has been played by millions over a decade, influencing countless games on PC and console alike.
Indeed, early suggestions are that a little more than 700,00 people are concurrently playing the biggest online console game of the moment, namely Halo:Reach.
That's with a brand new game, in the flush of a massive marketing campaign.
Steam-ing on
And yet at its peak there were 2.7 million people logged onto Steam in the past 24 hours, with never less than 1.25m logged on.
You do, of course, have to carve that number up; many won't be playing FPS, many more won't be playing games at all.
But to describe numbers in the hundred of thousands as 'hardly anyone' is not only crass, but also downright deceptive.
Nobody is doubting that the Xbox is a brilliant, vibrant and hugely successful platform both online and for first person shooters, but the PC gaming market is still flourishing in both of these areas despite lacking a unified piece of hardware; success is not an either or.
Massive audience
Gaming events organiser Corin Cole is a fan of all the gaming platforms, but he insists that PC first person shooters still have a massive audience.
"Console games will always find an easier audience than their PC equivalents due to considerations such as price of platform and ease of access, however there are still large numbers of gamers who feel that consoles cannot compete with a keyboard and mouse, particularly when it comes to first person shooters," he said.
"Hundreds of thousands play multiplay online shooters on the PC every day, with many more enjoying single player games, and as the prices of computer components continue to drop, the hurdle over which PC gamers must jump will gradually be lowered."
The view is by no means extraordinary, HP exec and Voodoo founder Rahul Sood recently hit the headlines for suggesting that Microsoft had scrapped a dual Xbox/PC gaming online tie-up because having mouse and keys in first person shooters was so massively advantageous that the 'console players got destroyed every time'.
I am lucky enough to have access to all three major online gaming platforms – PlayStation, Xbox 360 and PC – and it is still the latter that captures the lion's share of my now limited time.
I love mouse and keys for first person shooters and I've graduated through most of the major players through the years: Counter Strike, Doom, Quake, RtCW, Call of Duty and Team Fortress.
Why did he say it?
What makes Tsunoda's comment even more galling is that it seems entirely unnecessary for him to express his opinion in the first place.
The interview – in Game Informer – was not pushing him into a corner and his comment was in response to the fairly tame: "Looking at first-party games and 360 exclusives in the future, are we going to start to see Kinect integrated in small or nuanced ways? Or is it a "go big or go home" approach to gameplay?"
Hardly an invite to slag off PC gaming is it?
CVG editor Tim Ingham agrees: "Perhaps the oddest thing about Kudo's statement is how absurdly unnecessary it was.
"If he'd have wanted a reference point for why building games 'from the ground up' is the best approach, he could have named a host of Xbox exclusives that have done the business.
"He was obviously trying to pay Halo a huge compliment – and let's not pretend that to some extent, that game didn't tempt over a big chunk of PC gamers to console.
"But he was so definitive in what he said, he risked upsetting the millions – and there are still millions – of FPS PC gamers around the world."
Still, the proof of the pudding will be when I'm sat with stunning Crysis 2 on my PC and Kinectimals on the (rightly admired) Kinect for Xbox 360.
Perhaps I'll be one of 'hardly any' Kudo Tsunoda – but I know which one I'll be firing up.
| |
Read More ...
Telegraph launches Apple iPad app
The Telegraph Media Group has released its first Apple iPad application, featuring the best editorial content from both the Daily Telegraph and the Sunday Telegraph. The free application allows people to stay in touch with all the latest news, sport and weather – as well as all the other key sections such as business, comment and features.
The app will download the paper from 5am every day and features a 'simple and easy navigation' and (our favourite bit) a Matt cartoon on the front page.
Delighted
Edward Roussel, Digital Editor, Telegraph Media Group (TMG): "We are delighted that iPad users will be able to enjoy the best journalism fromThe Daily Telegraph andThe Sunday Telegraph.
"This development demonstrates TMG's dedication to making its content accessible to the widest possible audience on all key platforms."
TMG is also working on an updated iPhone app and another iPad app in conjunction with US paper the New York Times.
| |
Read More ...
Review: MSI P55A Fuzion
We've already taken a look at MSI's mainstream AMD mobo fitted with Lucid's cross-vendor, multi-GPU Hydra chip, the 870A Fuzion. Now it's the turn of the Intel-powered stablemate, the P55A Fuzion, to be in the firing line. And wouldn't you just know it, it's based on Intel's P55 Express chipset. By pitching the P55A Fuzion at the consumer market, MSI has a motherboard that, thanks to the Hydra technology, offers multi GPU support as well as mix-and-match GPUs in a market segment where users would benefit the most from the ability to put AMD and Nvidia cards together in the same motherboard.
The only genuine alternative to be able to have the option of running either a CrossFire or SLI setup (but not mix and match) is to dig a fair bit deeper into your wallet and go for a high-end multi GPU-supporting board based around Intel's top-end, but ageing, X58 chipset.
Setting up the Lucid's Hydra 200 technology on MSI's P55A Fuzion poses very few problems, if any. Just install both cards, install both sets of drivers and then finally install the Hydra software and reboot.
On board
Even without the Hydra technology, MSI's P55A Fuzion is a hugely impressive board. It's certainly one of the best overall performing boards we have cast our eyes over that's based around Intel's mainstream P55 Express chipset.
Both the P55 and the Lucid Hydra chipset are passively cooled by modest looking heatsinks; they look almost inadequate after the spate of huge copper coolers we've seen on motherboards recently.
It may be a mainstream board, but that hasn't stopped MSI packing it full of goodies normally found on a high-end board; top quality components in the power circuitry, OC Genie – MSI's automatic overclocking technology, lossless 24-bit audio and a BIOS chip full of overclocking features. Needless to say, you also get SATA 6Gbps and USB 3.0.
Once again, MSI has split the two USB 3 ports, one is on the back I/O connector group as normal, while the other sits inboard just behind the audio connecting stack on the rear I/O.
One thing to take care with, though, is the 8-pin 12V power connector, because a capacitor sits very close to the connector on the board. It's mighty close for comfort.
Apart from that, it's a well laid-out board with plenty of room around its components. In particular, there's plenty of space between the two PCI-E x16 slots so you can fit a couple of cards with those large, non-standard coolers in without compromising the airflow going to them.
MSI's P55A Fuzion is a well thought-out motherboard that also happens to be one of the best performing P55 Express boards around. Add to that the Hydra technology and a very good list of features for the price point, and it becomes a very interesting option indeed.
Full marks to MSI then for pitching the idea of multi-vendor, multi-GPU support at an audience where it possibly makes more sense, and then adding it to a board that's already very good in its own right.
It also seems that Lucid's Hydra technology works a little better with an Intel chipset than AMD.
Related Links
| |
Read More ...
Panasonic GH2 announced, adds touch and 3D
Panasonic has announced the latest addition to its G-series range of cameras – the Panasonic GH2.A successor to the GH1, the GH2 has been given a slightly smaller chassis and touch-control shooting.
The sensor on the camera has been improved, offering 16.1MP Live MOS, up 4MP from the GH1, and ISO capabilities have also been substantially increased.
While the GH1 brought an ISO range of 100-3,200, the GH2 manages a whopping 160-12,800 ISO, which is the equivalent of a human eating a billion carrots and being able to see in the dark. Kind of.
Video shooting
Panasonic has decided to act seriously when it comes to video shooting on its G series.
It may have given both the GH1 and G2 HD video capabilities (720p and 1080i respectively) the GH2 has the added bonus to shoot 1080i at 24fps, which will make your movies much more cinema like and bump up the quality.
Unfortunately bitrate is still hampered by AVCHD but it is a significant improvement.
Other updates include 5fps continuous shooting and the addition of a new noise algorithm.
It's the kind of technology you wish they would create for children; the Venus Engine FHD brings optimal noise reduction so you can shoot on the stupidly high ISOs without the fear that noise will ruin the image.
Panasonic has also introduced the 'world's fastest' light speed autofocus, which will take a mere 0.1 seconds to capture an image.
Add to the mix touch control, which even allows you to release the shutter from the LCD, and what you have is a very smart camera.
3D ready
Panasonic has also announced the arrival of a new 3D lens, which will turn your Lumix GH2 into a three-dimensional wunderkind.
The Lumix G 12.5mm / F12 (H-FT012) has two optical systems installed within the diameter of the lens mount, creating stereo images from the left and right lenses. And it is compact, too.
The lens apparently shoots 3D images "without distortion or time lag between left and right images, even for moving objects."
The Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH2 has a UK release date of December with pricing to be announced.
| |
Read More ...
Review: AC Ryan PlayOn! DVR 1TB
We loved AC Ryan's first foray into media extenders. The PlayOn!HD Mini walked away with the PC Format gold award thanks to its intuitive, focused way of trivialising the whole process of getting media from your PC onto the big screen. Its latest box, the PlayOn! DVR of tricks takes that basic remit and bolts on digital video recording. Available as a bare unit or with a hard drive pre-installed, this could be the box you've been waiting for.
The unit boasts twin tuners, so you can record digital TV while watching another channel, or time-shift what you're watching. You can set up recordings for channels using the Electronic Programming Guide, or as this is essentially a PC in a lounge-friendly box, you can also use the web interface to set it to record whilst at work, on holiday or anywhere else where you have access to a browser.
Multi-tasker
There's nothing new about Digital Video Recorders, of course, but what's new here is that it does all that while enabling you to play back media from your USB sticks and from your home networks.
The unit supports a healthy number of video and audio formats, easily handling everything we threw at it without complaint. There's even a pass-through option, enabling you to plug in your DVD player or another device, although the composite audio and video connectors limit usefulness here.
The back of the unit is reassuringly packed with connectors, offering 1080p HDMI, composite and y/Pb/Pr video ports along with a judicious smattering of digital audio connectors. This is also where you'll find the eSATA port, which can be used to extend the storage of the unit beyond the internal drive.
You can also plug an optional USB wireless dongle into the machine to get it onto your network without stretching even more cables across your house. The machine can even be set up to handle torrents directly, although this is configured from a PC and not from the unit directly.
The unit's facia is home to an LED display and a surprising number of buttons, just in case your sofa eats your remote. We found the overall boot time a tad long (as it searches the drives you've connected) and the user interface can be a little small in some instances. Even so, on the whole the interface is consistent and most tasks are well covered.
The main problem we have with the PlayOn! DVR is not so much what it can do, as it actually covers its core functionality well, but rather what it can't.
There are no apps for viewing YouTube or the plethora of other sites that would be good to access from your TV. Of course, this isn't a media centre, but it's so close to it that you can't help wishing you could just pop online to watch a few music videos and the odd funny cat clip.
Despite these niggles, the PlayOn! DVR is currently the best option for any tech-savvy person looking to slide a box under the television and enjoy all of their media on the big screen. The ability to record digital TV while you're at it is the icing on the cake. We just can't help wishing that it did more.
Related Links
| |
Read More ...
COD: Black Ops straddles the uncanny valley
Activision CEO Bobby Kotick has praised the forthcoming Call of Duty: Black Ops for being a "watershed" moment for in-game facial animation technology as well as the "best game we've ever made."Speaking at the America Merrill Lynch Media, Comms and Entertainment conference, Kotick said that the games' characters look like those "you'd see in a pre-rendered film"
Crossover with linear media
The Activision CEO added: "The best video game that Activision has ever made will be out in November which is Call Of Duty: Black Ops."
Kotick adds that the publisher now feels that they have reached the place where audiences are "so broad, and the crossover between interactive and linear media would be so great, that you actually see famous actors delivering lines and dialogue" in ways that "actually make a difference" to the game experience.
"The facial animation, the mouth movement, the eye contact is so real, it looks like you'd see in a pre-rendered film," Kotick boasts of Black Ops. "The ability to tell stories and create characters is unlike anything you've ever had in video games.
"This has been the Holy Grail in a lot of respects for video games - the ability to have characters on the screen that you can have an emotional connection with. The medium for the last 25 years has been very visceral, interactive, immersive medium - but it was very hard to have characters to actually have empathy towards or an emotional connection with... or that might make you laugh or make you cry; be some catalyst for an emotional reaction.
"Call Of Duty: Black Ops is the first game where we've been able to perfect the facial animation, mouth movement technology so that the lines that re being delivered are believable. the facial animation looks like a real person."
Major tinseltown actors including Gary Oldman and Ed Harris are set to feature in COD: Black Ops, due for release worldwide on 360, PS3 and PC on November 9.
| |
Read More ...
Wolfram and Nvidia team up for GPU-powered maths
Wolfram has teamed up with Nvidia to provide integrated GPU programming within its next Mathematica program. Tapping into the parallel processing power of the GPU has become an increasingly important factor in computing, with browsers in particular beginning to show what can be done by utilising the computers hardware.
So it makes sense that a programme beloved by mathematicians and physicists should start to tap into the GPU, and Nvidia agrees.
Therefore Wolfram's Mathematica 8 will have support for CUDA GPUs to increase the application's performance.
Tap into the power
Tom Wickham-Jones, Wolfram Research's Director of Kernel Technology, said, "With Mathematica, scientists and engineers can easily tap the enormous parallel processing power of GPUs through a familiar high-level interface.
"Thanks to Mathematica's full-featured development environment and CUDA integration, users can focus on algorithm innovation rather than spending time on repetitive tasks, such as GUI design."
"Mathematica users with GPU-enabled systems from laptops to high-end Tesla super-computers will now be able to perform complex, data-intensive computations much more easily," added Andrew Cresci, general manager, vertical marketing solutions at Nvidia.
"Mathematica's intuitive CUDA programming interface eliminates the need to write C/C++ or FORTRAN code to take advantage of GPU computing, making Mathematica a compelling choice for anyone looking to harness GPU high-performance computing capabilities."
| |
Read More ...
IE9 hits 2 million downloads in first 48 hours
Microsoft has announced that it had over 2 million downloads of Internet Explorer 9 in the first two days of its release, a huge increase on those that trialled IE8 at the same stage. Microsoft has been 'overwhelmed' by the critical acclaim that IE9 has reaped since it arrived last week, and is looking forward to more websites being built that take advantage of what it is terming 'the beauty of the web'.
"Last week on the 15th, we released Internet Explorer 9 Beta," blogged Microsoft's Roger Capriotti. "The initial reaction has been pretty overwhelming, and we are very humbled by the response our customers have had.
"2 million"
"In first two days, over 2 million people worldwide downloaded IE9 Beta," he continued. "By comparison, when Internet Explorer 8 Beta launched in August 2008, we had 1.3 million downloads over the first five days."
Capriotti went on to outline his hope that the early response would translate into people taking advantage of Windows and IE9 to bring greater functionality to their websites.
"All in all, we are encouraged about the very early response to the IE9 release this past week, namely because it signals that the emphasis on making websites shine through Windows is resonating," he added.
"We are looking forward to more and more partners building great experiences through Internet Explorer 9 to deliver a more beautiful web."
| |
Read More ...
Flickr now has over 5 billion photos
Flickr has announced that the 5 billionth photo has been uploaded to the site.The 5 billionth Flickr photo announcement on the Flickr blog claimed this shot of a building in Vancouver, British Columbia was the actual snap in question, much to the delight of the photographer in question.
Mr. 5 Billion
20-year-old snapper Aaron Yeo captioned his pic, boasting: "I am Mr. 5 Billion, and there ain't nothing you can do to stop me."
Facebook is still way ahead in the lead, in terms of actual numbers of photos uploaded, with over 15 billion to date added to the social network, and around 2.5 billion photos currently being added to the social network every month.
However, Flickr's steady and substantial growth indicates that there is a different type of user committed to the Yahoo-owned photo-sharing site, with the emphasis on quality photography over and above pictures of your drunken friends on a stag party.
"Going to Flickr is ideally like going to an art gallery," said Yeo.
Steady growth
Flickr has been steadily growing by around a billion photos a year for the last three years.
"In Flickr, you can give your friends, family, and other contacts permission to organize your stuff -- not just to add comments, but also notes and tags," outlines Flickr's about page.
"People like to ooh and ahh, laugh and cry, make wisecracks when sharing photos and videos. Why not give them the ability to do this when they look at them over the internet?"
| |
Read More ...
Microsoft exec: Hardly anyone plays shooters on PC
A Microsoft exec has courted controversy by suggesting that 'hardly anyone' plays first person shooters on the PC any more, because of console shooters like Halo. Microsoft's Kinect for Xbox 360 creator Kudo Tsunoda suggested that the PC is waning for first person shooters, something that is sure to raise the hackles of thousands of serious gamers.
"Halo did an awesome job of building a first-person shooter exclusively for the console, and now hardly anyone plays first person shooters on the PC anymore," Tsunoda told Game Informer.
"All about the console"
"It's all about the console," he added. "And I feel it is the same with Kinect stuff. If you are constantly trying to take something that is made for a controller and port it over to Kinect, it's not going to be a good experience because it is made for a controller.
"If you take the time to build it for Kinect from the ground up, however, you can make something that is a very new experience, but lots of times even more fun than it was before."
Mouse and keys is still considered the quickest and most accurate method for first person shooters, and recently Hewlett Packard and VooDoo man Rahul Sood revealed that Microsoft had killed a project for console and PC gamers to play against each other because "the console players got destroyed every time."
Certainly the likes of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare, Team Fortress 2 and classic Team Fortress are still phenomenally popular online, with packed servers full of enthusiastic gamers, and gaming giant Valve still considers the PC as the home of its games.
So, Kinect may be reaching out to hardcore gamers, but its creator is hardly endearing himself with one major section of the gaming community.
| |
Read More ...
Facebook privacy boss says fraud a 'major issue'
Facebook's head of privacy, Lord Richard Allan, has revealed that hacking of users' Facebook accounts to scam them out of cash has become a 'major issue' for the social networking giant.Allan reveals that Facebook is developing new ways of countering the threat of hacked accounts and stolen identities.
Lord Allan has detailed how Facebook is implementing new ways of detecting when a user's account has been compromised and is adding more warnings to users to let them know if and when their accounts are logged-into from different places or in different ways to how they are normally accessed.
Site integrity
Allan said of the problem: "The latest thing you'll see that is a major issue is people hacking into accounts. Now, if you're logging in from an unusual location you'll get extra security questions and if you want to login by a new device [Facebook] notifies you by SMS or email."
Facebook's "site integrity" project looks at new and better ways of tracking suspicious activity on the network, to ensure that user's accounts are secure.
Ronald K Noble, secretary general of Interpol, recently revealed how his Facebook identity was being targeted by cybercriminals.
Noble explained: "Just recently Interpol's information security incident response team discovered two Facebook profiles attempting to assume my identity as Interpol's secretary general. One of the impersonators was using this profile to obtain information on fugitives targeted during our recent Operation Infra Red."
Facebook is now using "name verification" as one way of ensuring hackers cannot access accounts, by simply asking the user to identify a friend from their network from that friend's Facebook photo.
"It is unfortunate that some people use the internet to maliciously target people either via scams or by compromising accounts on Facebook, over email or on fake websites," a Facebook spokeswoman said.
"However, unlike other websites, or email, or even the phone, we provide our users with robust reporting tools to report any content they are unsure of and anything which violates our terms, will be removed quickly."
Facebook recently launched Facebook Places in the UK and has over 500 million users worldwide.
| |
Read More ...
Microsoft announces Zune music and movie downloads for UK
Microsoft's Zune music and movie store will arrive in the UK this Autumn. The announcement means we'll get the Zune software, Zune Marketplace online store and Zune Passmusic subscription service which will cost £8.99 a month for unlimited downloads and streaming (take that, Spotify).
The content will be accessible through Windows as well as the upcoming Windows Phone 7 and Xbox Live.
"The integration between Zune, Windows Phone 7 and Xbox Live is an exciting advance in our entertainment offering," said Craig Eisler, corporate vice president of Microsoft's Interactive Entertainment Business Group.
"Zune enables users access to the entertainment they want, wherever they want it - and now, more people than ever will be able to enjoy the freedom and flexibility that the Zune service offers."
In terms of video, Microsoft is adding to the existing Xbox Live offering, enabling the rental of movies on Windows PCs which can be synchronised to Windows Phone 7. Movies will also be available for purchase which can then be viewed on any of the three devices.
The Zune PC software acts as the Windows Phone 7 synchronization client, much like iTunes for iPhone. Microsoft says the updated Zune 4.7 Software will also enable instant streaming of high-definition movies, allowing you to watch some Zune Marketplace movies in HD, with no download time, directly on a Windows PC.
Zune Pass provides unlimited downloads and streaming including music from Universal Music Group, Sony Music Entertainment, EMI Music and Warner Music Group, as well as as well as thousands of independent labels. Zune Marketplace also has movies from NBC Universal, Paramount, Warner Bros and others.
| |
Read More ...
1 comment:
I like looking through an article that can make people think.
Also, thank you for allowing for me to comment!
Feel free to surf to my web site: Mobile Biz In A Box
Post a Comment