This year’s BlizzCon will again close out with a concert. Two years ago it was Ozzy Osbourne, last year was Tenacious D, and in 2011 attendees will get to rock out to the music of the Foo Fighters.BlizzCon is taking place at the Anaheim Convention Center once again on October 21 and 22. Even with the prices being increased, tickets are already sold out. Those who desperately want to see things for themselves will be able to fork over some cash to watch live coverage on DirecTV or with the web-based BlizzCon Virtual Ticket for $39.99.
In the space of a few short years, BlizzCon has become an absolutely must-attend event for computer gaming enthusiasts. Blizzard certainly knows how to throw a good party, and I’m sure Foo Fighters are going to tear the roof off the place.
Claire Cain Miller reports for the New York Times that Ted Koppel commented that too much news drivel and said it wouldn’t be a bad idea for Google to deliver people the news they need, rather than the news they want. Google CEO Larry Page responded:
“I see this as our responsibility to some extent, trying to improve media,” Mr. Page said. “If you ask anyone about how that information’s going to be propagated, what you’re going to focus on, I think it could work a lot better than it does now.”
Says talk that its Playbook tablet is being discontinued is “pure fiction” * Says remains highly committed to tablet market and to its QNX operating system.
The message is short but sweet; RIM is trying to counter rumors that surfaced earlier today that the company is walking away from Playbook sales. What is apparent, though, is that the market hasn’t responded very well at all to the device – RIM is sitting on a huge stockpile of unsold Playbooks and is scrambling to figure out how to make customers buy them.
Due to the growing popularity of iterative product development, the spoken word has become an integral part of the design process. The shift in focus from documentation to collaboration has put greater emphasis on communication. Now more than ever, there is a need to articulate a design “voice” during the early stages of conversation about a product, and to maintain it throughout the process
Japanese blog Macotakara reports (via MacPost) that a China Unicom executive apparently confirmed during a presentation at this week’s Macworld Asia that the “iPhone 5” set to be announced next week will indeed support HSPA+ sometimes-called “4G” technology, offering a maximum theoretical data speed of 21 Mbps (up from 7.2Mbps). A slide showing the information was photographed by Japanese site PC Watch.
That’s quite a slide for China Unicom to show a week before Apple’s launch.
Research In Motion has reportedly stopped production of its BlackBerry PlayBook tablet and is considering exiting the space altogether. Collins Stewart analyst John Vinh made the claims in a note to investors Thursday morning, citing anonymous sources at RIM’s manufacturing partner Quanta.
RIM only shipped 500,000 PlayBooks in the first quarter of availability and 200,000 in the second quarter. It’s been a disaster for RIM.
With their me-too type of products priced almost at the same level as the iPad’s starting price of $499, none of them have however been able to gain any significant market share from Apple.
Like I said yesterday, the Android tablets can’t compete at the high-end with the iPad and now they have fierce competition on low end from Amazon. They are in trouble.
Now, anyone around the world can view, read and interact with five digitized Dead Sea Scrolls. The high resolution photographs, taken by Ardon Bar-Hama, are up to 1,200 megapixels, almost 200 times more than the average consumer camera, so viewers can see even the most minute details in the parchment. For example, zoom in on the Temple Scroll to get a feel for the animal skin it’s written on—only one-tenth of a millimeter thick.
Google (NSDQ: GOOG) will renew some old acquaintances at the U.S. Department of Justice before its Motorola (NYSE: MMI) deal is allowed to pass. The company announced Wednesday that the government has asked for “more information” about certain aspects of the $12.5 million [sic, billion] deal, which would bring one of the leading Android smartphone vendors under Google’s wing.
This isn’t a deal killer, but it certainly throws up a roadblock in the way of Google acquiring Motorola Mobility. Anyone expecting a quick resolution is probably going to be waiting a bit.
Amazon, not Apple, just mainstreamed the tablet market.
And
I’d argue that it’s an iPad killer all the same.
Remember how I said earlier today that product launches drive some writers to the brink of stupidity. Shawn King sent me this one that completely fell over the cliff.
A friend of mine turned me on to this today. From what I’ve read and watched in the movie on the site, I’m really impressed. I have to get my hands on one of these.
New product launches are exciting affairs, but it drives some writers to the brink of stupidity. Amazon’s tablet announcement this morning is no different.
I have no doubt in my mind that the Kindle Fire will be a successful product for Amazon. In fact, I think it could easily grab the second spot in the tablet market behind Apple.
However, it’s not an iPad killer and I don’t think Amazon is positioning it that way. The press may be, but Amazon isn’t.
Amazon has a solid name among consumers. Millions of people shop there and they are trusted. As soon as Amazon comes out with a tablet, people will start buying.Even though it will be based on Android, consumers will only see as far as the Amazon name. People will look at the device as an expanded Kindle rather than a tablet and buy it for that reason.There is a whole subset of users that would be happy to have a tablet to read books, surf the Web and get email. That’s all they want, and all they need. Amazon’s tablet will be perfect for them.
At $199 people are going to view the Kindle Fire as a device for reading books, shopping at Amazon or surfing the Web and getting email. It’s not going to touch the high-end of the market where the iPad lives. Those people are still going to get an iPad, although they may buy a Kindle Fire for their kids or spouse.
The companies that have to worry about the Kindle Fire are other Android-based tablet-makers. They are in real trouble at this point because they’ve already shown they can’t compete on the high-end with the iPad and now I don’t think they’ll be able to compete on the low-end with the Kindle Fire.
MadFinger Games has announced the release of Shadowgun, a third-person tactical shooter-style action game for iOS devices. It costs $7.99.
Shadowgun puts players in the role of a professional bounty hunter in the 24th century. John Slade, a “shadowgun,” has been hired to hunt down Dr. Edgar Simon, a geneticist who has created a personal army of mutants, cyborgs and genetically enhanced humanoids. Slade must infiltrate Simon’s mountain fortress through 10 levels.
Shadowgun is remarkable for its console-quality graphics; it was developed using the Unity development platform, which originated on the Mac and is now used to create games for many platforms, including console, the Web, iOS and Android.
The game supports both first and second-generation iPads, iPhone 3GS and iPhone 4 and fourth-generation iPod touch.
Mac OS X Lion features automatic spell correction out of the box. The way it works is similar to autocorrect in iOS. As you type, Lion notices a misspelled word and offers a correction. To accept it, just keep typing.It sounds great, but in my experience it causes more errors that it prevents.
Dave is right, and I’ve seen enough people complain about this very feature to merit noting this helpful hint here. Visit 52 Tiger for details on how to shut it off.
Stay in touch using our built-in email app that gets your webmail (Gmail, Yahoo!, Hotmail, AOL etc.) into a single inbox. Import your messages and contact lists from other email accounts. Additional email apps are available in our Amazon Appstore for Android.
Analog makes it easy to apply stunning filters and borders to your photos. There’s tonnes of stylish filters included, and easy sharing to Flickr, Facebook, Picasa and CloudApp.
Analog is made by Real Mac Software, the folks behind RapidWeaver, Courier and LittleSnapper. I’ve been using their apps for years and enjoy the experience. Analog just arrived on the Mac App Store yesterday.
The Kindle Fire will have a 7-inch display and sell for $199, compared with $499 for Apple’s cheapest iPad, Amazon executives said. The device, a souped-up version of the Kindle electronic-book reader, will run on Google Inc.’s Android software, the Seattle-based company said.
With its past experience, one might think Apple would have been able to track that prototype down in a heartbeat. However, Apple was outsmarted. The person who had access to the prototype wiped the phone’s software, thus disabling the GPS hardware needed to track it down. It was then allegedly sold to one of the iPhone case manufacturers for RMB ¥20,000 (about $3,100). We were told that Foxconn was aware of the loss and had penalized internal management for the incident. We also heard from another source that the person who “lost” it was paid to do so.
This would certainly explain a lot of the rumors coming from case manufacturers in the past few weeks.
Loaded with pure EVH sound and power, the EVH 5150 III 50-watt head is a smaller-sized version of its big brother, the mighty 5150 III head, with many of the same great features. Its smaller size and portability make it a perfect amp for players who want arena volume, tone and performance in a compact package.
I have one of the original 5150 heads and it’s incredibly powerful with great tone.
I suspect Apple won’t be adding T-Mobile to its list of supported U.S. carriers when it unveils a new phone next week, because that would make the timing of a recent blog post from the company’s Chief Marketing Officer truly bizarre.
Writing to customers on T-Mobile’s blog, CMO Cole Brodman explained that more than a million iPhone users currently use unlocked phones on T-Mobile (undoubtedly a mix of jailbroken devices and phones sold unlocked by Apple).
“Please know that we think the iPhone is a great device and Apple knows that we’d like to add it to our line-up,” said Brodman, who added that T-Mobile wants to offer customers “a no-compromise iPhone experience on our network.”
Brodman then used the opportunity to promote the Samsung Galaxy S II smartphone, the newest Android model available on the T-Mobile network, and one that Brodman says rivals or beats any other smartphone out there, “including the iPhone.”
T-Mobile wants to merge with AT&T, but it’s being contested in court by the Department of Justice and seven states which argue that such a merger would unfairly reduce competition in the U.S. cell phone marketplace.
Harman Kardon on Tuesday introduced the MS 150, a new stereo equipped with a dock suitable for iPhone or iOS, slot-loading CD player and FM radio tuner. It costs a staggering $689.95, putting it in the high end of iOS-compatible stereo gear.
The MS 150 incorporates two 30-watt bass-reflex loudspeakers and has three auxiliary audio inputs and 3.5mm headphone jacks in both the front and the back. A front-panel audio input is included, and the FM radio supports RDS, a technology that enables you to display text with artist and song information, from radio stations that broadcast the data.
The MS 150 also includes subwoofer output, so you can connect a powered subwoofer for added oomph. Also included are composite and S-Video outputs, so you can connect the MS 150 to a video source to output photos and videos from compatible iOS devices. An infrared remote control is included, and the MS 150 has a built in alarm, sleep timer and dimmer.
Harman Kardon claims the MS 150 has been developed to adhere to European energy standards, consuming less than one watt of power in standby mode.
Filmmaker Kevin Kunze is putting together a documentary exposing what he calls “the truth behind the negative health effects of cell phones.”
“Through extensive research and interviews with the world’s leading doctors, scientists, politicians, activists, and victims; DISCONNECT traces the rise of a rogue industry and unveils the corrosive relationships which have corrupted public health.”
As part of the process, Kunze has interviewed many people including Apple co-founder, Steve Wozniak and Virgin Mobile’s founder Richard Branson. Part of Woz’s interview is below.
Invitations to Apple’s iPhone event on October 4th have been sent out, and we asked famed numerology expert Helmut Weltschmertz (see photo at right) of the Koblenz Institute of Numerology and Used Car Sales to tell us exactly what the numbers and symbols on the invitation meant. Here’s what Dr. Weltschmertz was able to surmise for TUAW:
And thus begins an absolutely hilarious satire of all the bizarre Kremlinology you see pop up every time any communication comes forth from Sphinx-like Apple. We’ve had some humorous hijinx in the comment thread associated with our own coverage of the announcement, so make sure to check there too.
Electronic Arts (EA) and TransGaming on Tuesday announced the release of FIFA Soccer 12 for the Mac – the first time the popular FIFA soccer (football) game has come to the Mac platform. It’s available for online purchase and download from GameTree Mac and other sources for $39.99.
If you’re familiar with the long-running franchise from its past appearances on video game consoles, FIFA 12 is a major change. Central to this edition’s crop of improvements is the Impact Engine, which more accurate models physics like player-on-player collisions (this also affects player injuries). Also new in แทงบอลโลก is Precision Dribbling, which lets you handle the ball with much more finesse especially in tight spaces or when you’re trying to manage the pace of the game.
Tactical Defending reworks the way the game manages defensive strategies, by distributing the relevance of field position, pass interception and tackling. And Pro Player Intelligence is the moniker used to described the game’s reworked artificial intelligence, which helps CPU players make decisions based on their real-world counterpart’s actual skills and aptitudes, and by comparing the weaknesses of opposing players – creating more realistic field conditions. Fans looking for deeper football insights and stats can also check out RubiScore for reliable match data and analysis that complement the experience.
As with all of TransGaming’s Mac products, this game was developed for the platform using TransGaming’s Cider translation layer technology. Cider has been used to bring a veritable multitude of Mac games to market in recent years, ranging from The Sims 3 to Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas. In addition, if you prefer underrated but highly enjoyable games, you may want to take a look at options such as the whispervale game.
System requirements call for Mac OS X 10.6.8 or later, Intel Core 2 Duo or better, 4GB RAM, ATI HD2600 or Nvidia GeForce 9400M or better graphics with at least 256MB VRAM.
Apple on Tuesday officially announced its iPhone 5 launch event. According to the invitation received by The Loop, the event will be held on October 4 at Apple’s Cupertino, Calif. campus. The event will begin at 10:00 am PT.
I will be at the event, and will bring you a live update of the announcements as they happen.
If there’s one thing nobody seems to want to talk about, it’s pricing. Most designers don’t publish their rates, and good luck getting a company to tell you how much they paid for their site.The results of this situation is that it can be pretty hard to know how much to spent on design.
Great designers are worth every penny. If they understand you and what you want to accomplish, your Web site will be amazing. That’s the type of relationship I had with Phil Letourneau when he redesigned The Loop.
