What do you do when you move to a new house and have to endure numerous days without the Internet? Write a diary about how you are managing to cope without the Internet. Our friend Raj from www.idontquiteknow.com has been keeping a diary of the fun (or should I say pain) of not having an Internet connection. A must read for all geek’s who fear of loosing the Internet and have no idea what they would do without it.
Archive for the 'Geek it up!' Category
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Calling all gaming geeks!
The eGames show is on again from Friday 16th November to Sunday 18th at the Melbourne exhibition center. For those unaware this event is a sneak peak showcase of some of the blockbuster titles that will be coming out before the end of the year.
The following is a short list of some of the games on display over the course of the event;
Crysis, Assassin’s Creed ,Call of Duty 4, Guitar Hero III, Counter-strike 1.6, Counter-strike Source, Unreal Tournament 3 ,Quake 4 , Resident Evil: The Umbrella Chronicles and Super Mario Galaxy
There will also be the opportunity to play some of these titles and compete in tournaments for Guitar Hero 3 and Halo 3 among others. A good selection of door prizes will also be up for grabs.
Tickets are $16 for one day or $22 for a two day pass and are available at the door.
Check the official website for further details.
http://www.egamesexpo.com.au/
So Hels and will be getting new iPod Nanos and Apple offer free engraving if you purchase online.
Hels will be getting the PRODUCT (RED) version of the Nano and has already decided on getting ‘Red Rubin’ (explanation) engraved on the back.
When I got my Shuffle I had ‘The Truffle Shuffle’ engraved on the back.
This time round I’m not to sure what to get engraved so I open it up to you guys for suggestions.
Apple will not engrave offensive words so be creative…
Word on the street is that the next installment of Apple’s OS X ‘Leopard’ will be available from 6pm the 26th of October 2007.
I for one will be in line to purchase my copy. Clicky
Update: Single user pricing is $158.00 and even cheaper with an education discount which makes Vista look very expensive (because it is)!
Also Apple has posted a complete list of the 300 new features to be found in Leopard. Clicky
I was watching TV last night and saw an ad that was promoting the Australian tour of Honda’s ASIMO humanoid robot.
Being a little bit of a geek myself I got excited and and it’s a day later and I’m still as giddy as a school girl.
So I’ve checked it out and you are able to see ASIMO at Chadstone shopping centre between the 17 – 21st of October. (clicky)
What could be a once in a lifetime experience the question is: Who wants to come with me?
Hi all techheads, apple fans or just plain geeks,
Well here’s my review of the new 80 gb ipod classic for those that might be interested. This is the first apple product that I’ve purchased and while I didn’t have any major preconceptions going in I must admit that I’m actually not a fan of apple computers as I have to use one for work and they shit me up the wall. Don’t get me started on why as I could write a whole post on it.
I’m not going to do the whole pictures of me opening the box and looking at it from 50 different angles, but check this link if your interested in seeing what it looks like (Flicky Flicky).
I think it’s best to begin by talking about the new interface that’s been introduced in the new ipod range. While the old music menu lists are still present there is now an option to view your music collection via ‘cover flow’. This allows you to browse your music according to album art and I must say it looks a treat.
I’ve been a big fan of this feature since it was incorporated into itunes last year and I definitely prefer it to the old plain music lists. Mind you while it looks impressive if you have a big music collection it can be rather a chore scrolling through it in this view as there is no search feature available. If you’re not as anal as I am you probably haven’t organised your cover art correctly and therefore there may be a lot of missing items, which can look quite ugly.
The main differences between this model and its nearest equivalent the iPod video are an increased screen size (2.5 inch) which is slightly indented. The main body is now curved around the edges and has a slightly slimmer build coming in at 103mm X 61.8mm X 10.5mm. The new brushed metallic finish is more durable and should alleviate the problems with previous models which were said to be magnets for smudges and scratches. It’s still probably a good idea to stick on a plastic cover over the screen for protection but at the moment there’s none available that will fit perfectly due to the slight indentation.
The screen displays a 320 X 240 pixel resolution and is capable of playing 640 X 480 videos. Images and video’s look brilliantly crisp and bright and the ability to manual adjust the brightness is useful for reducing glare while viewing outside. However the screen size just doesn’t do it for me but this could be the fact that I’m used to looking at images on my psp screen, which is vastly superior to the iPods. I also get the feeling that viewing anything apart from short videoclips or movie previews over a prolonged period is liable to give you a headache. Speaking of headaches watching movies or T.V shows from a DVD is a hassle. It first requires them to be decrypted from .VOB files into one format and then from this file into mpeg-4. However since movies or shows can be downloaded in this format it’s not a big deal. Playback time of at least 30 hrs of audio or 5 hrs of video is offset by the fact that when the battery goes completely flat the iPod will need to be sent off to get a new one fitted in.
Now a little discussion on the actual sound quality. First off Apple has to learn to stop providing shitty quality headphones with their iPods as these buds are shit. As I don’t have a real good set of headphones yet I can’t accurately comment on the audio quality. I don’t know if it’s because I haven’t found the correct equalizer setting on the iPod but I must admit that the music on my psp sounds better.
As I’m an avid gamer I was interested to learn that apple is now in partnership with the one of the biggest game company’s in the world EA games. While the lack of any real controls is a bit restrictive simple games like tetris, pac-man, soduku are said to work rather well. Each of these games comes in at $7.50 Au on the itunes site. One of the games you get free with the iPod classic is called iQuiz. This give you a selection of movie,T.V show or music trivia. The music quiz is rather interesting as it goes through your own music collection and asks a number of questions such as which song does this album come from, what year was it released and so forth. However some question are a bit odd like when it asks which band released this album after showing you the cover art. This is pretty stupid as nearly every album has this stamped right on the front. Anyway it’s a lot of fun and is a pretty interesting way of learning more about your music.
Since the whole ipod/itunes interaction is rather new to me I thought I would give a little overview of the updated software. Unfortunately I couldn’t rush into playing with my new toy as it isn’t quite plug and play friendly. Following a compulsory installation of the new version of itunes (7.4.2.4), an overnight charge, a 4 hr synch of my music (34 Gb) and installation of the ipod software I was ready to go. As the only documentation provided in the box is a piss poor guide I would suggest that people download the real manual from the apple site before getting started. After ticking a checkbox in itunes I was happy to learn that the ipod can act as a hard drive which could be useful in transferring, videos, documents, podcasts, etc amongst computers. While the ipod will automatically synch and update any new music there is also the option to manually manage your playlists and movies by directly dragging files from your itunes collection. Unfortunately you can’t have the manual and automatic synch features active at the same time. This means that when you try to switch back to automatic synching again the whole iPod contents are removed and replaced again which is a royal pain in the arse as it can take 2 hours or longer to synch a lot of music. Also I don’t know if it’s my computer but the itunes software seems to run a bit slow at times. Just clicking on items on my iPod seems to cause the software to briefly freeze sometimes which is a minor inconvenience.
I’m not quite sure if this is a new feature but the ability to copy your address book contacts, calendars or notepad text files from your mac or PC is a boon to busy people on the go. It would be good to alter these lists directly from the iPod but considering it wasn’t designed to be an organizer it’s nothing to complain about. Additional features include multi time zone clocks, sleep timer (automatic shutoff) stopwatch and an alarm (The internal speaker is crap so hook it up to a stereo if you really want to wake up).
The only major disappointment that comes to mind over this new iPod is the omission of wireless internet access. I guess the ability to stream music, videos or radio is left to those who can afford the iPhone or iTouch. Damn your genius marketing apple! While it may be a bit presumptuous considering this is the first major update from them in about 3 years there are some other missing features that I would like to see in future versions. Being able to delete and organize music directly from the ipod would be useful while a manual equalizer options would improve the sound for some of the cheaper headphones out there.
While I think every product in the new iPod range is missing certain features (more space needed in the iTouch, faster internet speeds for the iPhone and less flab on the nano) the iPod classic is near perfection.
If you’re looking for a portable jukebox able to carry all the music, videos and photos in one slimline sexy package then look no further.
Final Remarks
Looks: As a lot of people are likely to buy the ipod on looks alone its slim line aesthetics don’t disappoint. The new 2.5 inch screen is more than adequate for playing short videos but is no substitute for ones found in other portable video players (psp I’m looking at you). Best summed up as sleek, sexy and svelt.
5/5
Features: While the interface has had a nice overhaul with the cover flow feature its best to stick to the old menu lists if you haven’t got your cover art sorted or if you’ve got plenty of music to browse through. The addition of calendar and contact information is a nice touch but doesn’t compare to the features found in the iPhone or itouch. Absence of wireless internet connectivity would have made this the killer iPod.
4/5
Quality: The overall build quality feels quite solid; however I wouldn’t like to test this out by dropping it. The hardrive isn’t likely to skip but I often feel it clicking and whirling when being held and therefore care should be taken not to shake it around too much. Audio quality could be better but can be improved with a proper set of headphones.
4/5
Final Verdict: 4.5/5
Just a quick post to remind those that own an Xbox 360 to save the pennies.
The following games are out in the next month.
- 27th September 2007 Skate
- 27th September 2007 Fifa 2008
- 4th October 2007 Sega Rally
- 14th October 2007 Project Gotham Racing 4
- 18th October 2007 Half Life 2 The Orange Box
- 24th October 2007 Guitar Hero 3
- 26th October 2007 Eternal Sonata
All these games are high on the list of games that I want. Which of the games above are you getting? Will you get them on the day they come out or wait until you have finished the last one you purchased?
I went and bought the XBOX 360 Chatpad (above) and have been playing with it over the last 24 hours and thought I’d post my thoughts…
- Fits like a glove and once attached feels like it’s part of the original controller.
- Could be pretty hard to remove.
- Adds a little bit of weight to the controller but nothing to worry about.
- Even though the chatpad is raised and fills in the bottom of the controller you don’t even know it’s there. In fact the raised area provides a good place to rest your palms.
- Keypad has a great feel with the buttons big enough for fat fingers.
- Backlight is a nice and unexpected feature.
- Integration with XBOX while playing a DVD or game is superb. Totally adds a new level to messaging on the 360.
- Got yet another headset bundled to add to the pile however this one is a little different due to the input on the chatpad.
- Bundled headset sucks as the volume and mute function is now under your chin meaning that you now have to move your hand from the controller which is further than you used too. I just don’t get it. Lucky I have a wireless headset.
Sure there are lots of features in Leopard that are great but this one will have people thanking the big fella upstairs.
iCal’s icon will now show todays date even if it’s not open!
Goodbye July 17!
Apple released their iPod offensive for the holiday season and that’s them above.
iPod Shuffle
The same iPod Shuffle but with fresh new colors. Move along people nothing to see here.
iPod Nano
From the pictures I’ve seen I consider the Nano to be the ‘Ugly Duckling’ of the family however I don’t think pictures will do the new ‘FattyPod’ justice until it is in your hands in the flesh. It’s definitely a great upgrade on features which include larger storage space, video playback, games, new UI (user interface) and a host of other goodies that will make what is already the most popular iPod of all time a massive seller.
iPod Classic
From what I can see the only reason the iPod Classic exists is due the fact that it is the only iPod which will store your music library in your pocket which was the original tag line for the first iPod. Coming in at a very impressive 160GB of storage (the only iPod which still uses a traditional hard drive) and also sharing the same new UI and features of the Nano the only reason I see the Classic sitting in the current iPod family is due the ‘restricted’ storage of the new iPod Touch which I will go into more detail next.
iPod Touch
This is the iPod that a lot of people had been wishing, expecting and hoping for. It’s basically an iPhone minus the phone and with some cosmetic improvements like a smaller form factor. It has built in WiFi which is used for the new wireless iTunes store and also for Safari which will let you browse the net wherever you want (as long as you are in a wireless hotspot). Running OS X like the iPhone I would expect the hacking community to come out with additional applications and modifications in the very near future to take full advantage of the Touch’s awesomeness. I was just about to enter my credit card details and lay down some hard earned green for the iPod Touch until I saw the storage specs… 8GB and 16GB. This is and will be a deal breaker for a lot of potential buyers. Frankly this is not enough space. I know they could have squeezed in more but the reality is that if they did it would cock block the iPhone which comes with 8GB of storage also. Expect that the revision 2 of both the iPhone and Touch will include increased storage and I would expect a minimum of 30GB when the time comes. Is it worth buying the new iPod Touch? Well it really comes down to storage. If you are content with a maximum of 16GB then go for it as that is the only reason why I won’t be buying one. If the iPod Classic and Touch had a sexy love child that could hold 80 – 120GB I would have already bought two.
On a side note the iPhone has dropped US$200 which is great news if you haven’t bought one and bad news if you have.
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