After announcing it during Nokia World 2010, the Nokia C7 gathered a lot of fans, thanks to its slim profile, elegant looks and impressive features. However, I have to admit that I wasn't charmed personally. So when I got the first C7 in my hands, the Charcoal Black one, I was anxious to see how the press release picture would translate into a real device, and it simply left me annoyed. The whole device looked like a black rock that has been squished and smoothed, or a Nokia E66 (which I like) that has been thinned by a rolling pin (which I don't). Plus, the all-black look was so bland with no charm and no character. It's safe to say that I wasn't a fan.
But as luck has it, I got to exchange my review unit and the second one ended up being the Frosty Metal version of the C7. And boy does a simple color change make a difference! I love the "white" C7, absolutely love it. It's classy in all the right ways, and the silver/white mix gives it an incredible icy cool feel. The photo gallery here is to share with you all the beauty of this awesomely crafted device.
The Nokia C7 is part of Nokia's new arsenal of Symbian
Last December we reported that legendary, long-time game developer Jeff Minter of Llamasoft had fixed his sights on the iPhone, adding it to the extensive list of platforms for which he has developed games over the past 30+ years. We recently checked back in with Jeff to see how things are coming along and were pleased to hear that his first App Store release is just weeks away.
In our earlier story, Jeff shared his feelings about working with the iPhone platform.
I enjoy working on the iPhone because it's capable and interesting and the ergonomics make you rethink things a bit. I really don't like games that just try to replicate analog thumbpads on the touch screen � although some of those controls are very well done nonetheless I always feel a bit awkward sliding my thumbs around with no accompanying tactile feedback. Plus there's the added and inevitable disadvantage of having to obscure the screen you're trying to play on. I'm interested in developing stuff that's playable with the accelerometers and uses touches appropriately but sparingly and in a way that doesn't upset the view too much.
At the time, Jeff was working on a Time Pilot-style multidirectional shooter which was serving as a testbed for the general iPhone game engine he was in the process of putting together. Since that time, he has taken his impressive Neon "light synthesizer" engine, which powers the XBOX 360's music visualizer and excellent�Space Giraffe title, and taken it to the next level in the form of the new Neon 2 engine for iOS.
According to Jeff, Neon 2 is much improved as compared to the original, featuring a much cleaner framework and much more bang-for-the-buck in terms of shader usage. (Neon 2 exists for the PC and soon the Mac as well, so let's cross out fingers for Mac App Store goodness from Llamasoft.) And, it is upon this new engine that Solar Minotaur Rescue Frenzy, Llamasoft's first iPhone game release, has been built.
Solar Minotaur Rescue Frenzy can be succinctly and quite accurately described as: Asteroids meets Spacewar! on an Atari VCS. With minotaurs. While seeing trails. I could really stop there, as far as the game's description. Of course, the drippy trails part is pretty standard for Llamasoft games, but the minotaur element � that's a new twist. (It's usually llamas or giraffes.) But, I'll share a bit more detail in the interest of thoroughness.
The game, which is a Universal app that natively supports both the iPhone and the iPad, consists of an active starfield play area with a sun at the center. In its core gameplay mode, you control an ever-firing ship that can fly about this starfield (wrapping at the edges) and is affected by the intense gravitational pull of the aforementioned sun. And so, too, are the asteroids closing in from the edges. Your job is to blast apart these asteroids (as opposed to slamming into them), some of which contain minotaurs that must be rescued before they drift into the sun. The closer to the sun a minotaur gets before you rescue him, the more points you gain for said rescue. The more minotaurs you rescue and the closer you are to the sun, the faster your auto-fire tosses out rounds. The occasional enemy saucer passes through, shooting at you and dropping mines, to mix things up. A touch-anywhere control pad puts you in the pilot's seat.
In addition to the core gameplay mode,�Minotaur Rescue features three other playmodes, as well. There's Deep Space Minotaur Madness which is like the above, but with only the Asteroids elements in place (plus minotaurs) � no sun and associated gravity. And, perhaps oddly, there's also the Tanks! and Jets! modes, which are like the simple, core playmodes of the pack-in Atari VCS cartridge Combat. But, of course, with minotaurs to pick up along the way.
I've spent quite a bit of time with the ad hoc build Jeff provided us and have been loving it. But that's in solo play. The iPhone version also offers a two-player mode (on the same device) while the iPad version allows four people to get in on the action at once. If only I had four friends.
As mentioned previously, graphically, everything looks (and sounds) like an Atari VCS game. And that's by design. In fact, Jeff has rather strong feelings about the modern-retro aesthetic, and had this (and a lot more, actually) to say about it in the game's About screens.
The goal of the Minotaur project is to make new games in the style of the old hardware, but with none of the limitations of the original platforms and a thoroughly modern heart inside giving gameplay sufficiently rewarding and involving for today's players.
We've begun in the VCS-era and this first game is presented on the entirely fictional 'Ataurus TVC 2605' which uses primitive graphics shapes but allows for an effectively unlimited number of them on screen, and also for some fullscreen feedback effects. Things that would have been entirely impossible back in the day.
The fact that so many games try to look like Geometry Wars, a game whose look was designed specifically to evoke the sparsely abstract games of old vector systems, shows that there is still a desire of players to play once more in that pure, symbolic space, deliberately far from any though of realism.
As suggested, Llamasoft's intention is to develop and release numerous titles featuring retro gameplay, progressing forward from the Atari VCS aesthetic to the VIC 20, Commodore 64, and beyond. Future games would be based on the Neon 2 engine, as well, but offer perhaps more dynamic graphical effects, as Jeff indicates that they took it fairly easy on the eye-candy in this first iOS release out the gate. A forthcoming iPhone 4-specific, Neon 2-based "toy" that Llamasoft will shortly be releasing will go a long way towards showing us what this new visualization engine is capable of. It's all basically a dream come true for retro junkies like myself.
Have a look at Jeff demonstrating Solar Minotaur Rescue Frenzy on an iPad, an iPhone, and a big-screen PC in an interview with Retro Gamer magazine's Darran Jones.
The developer indicates that there's about a week of work left before Minotaur Rescue gets submitted to Apple. In that time, online leaderboards will be added and there's a chance that a one-ship survival mode will make its way into the game. Minotaur Rescue should be available for download just about at the turn of the year.
Now, while what I've presented here is a somewhat longwinded song of praise for Llamasoft's first iPhone release, it's true that it will likely only appeal to those who can appreciate the retro aesthetic. And that's certainly worth noting. But, I would encourage causal gamers who might be curious as to why I would run on so about a game that looks 30 years old to try and appreciate what the developer was going for in designing this title. There is a purity and a distillation of enjoyable gameplay to be found here and also, I expect, in the forthcoming titles we should be seeing from Jeff Minter in the coming months.
And as for the Time Pilot-like game we saw demoed a year ago? A Neon 2-based rework of it should be among the coming Llamasoft titles. Stay tuned.
<!-- PHP 5.x -->Mac App Store will be launched soon and all of us are well aware of this fact but nobody is sure about the exact launch of Mac App store other than Steve Jobs probably. If the inside sources of AppleTell are to be believed then Apple is working hard to launch the AppStore for Mac by 13th December so as to tap into the Christmas Holiday period although they have already missed out on the well famous black Friday.
An inside source has just told us that Apple is targeting a Monday, December 13th launch of the Mac App Store. The company apparently told developers to have their software prepared for a launch as early as Monday the 6th of this month, but our contact would be shocked if that happened at this point. Apple has made no official announcements regarding this, and delays could always happen, but there's a push to be launched before Christmas, well ahead of the previously estimated January release.
Mac OS X 10.6.6 will be the minimum requirement for end users so as to use the Mac App Store and Apple is pushing it hard to have this up and running as soon as possible.
[via MacRumors]
There are several ways to transfer your files from one computer to another, and the simplest and fastest way to do so is to use a USB flash drive. If you're looking for a new flash drive you might be interested in this latest model from SuperTalent.
The main factors of a USB flash drive are its speed and capacity, SuperTalent is using USB 3.0 for file transfer but it's cully compatible with USB 2.0. As for capacity, this USB flash comes with 16GB, 32GB, and 64GB. Besides that, SuperTalent USB 3.0 drive comes equipped with self-contained virtual PC and it combines the power of Creedo Personal with SuperTalent's USB 3.0 Express RAM Cache. This feature is great because it allows you carry your data, along with your files and applications that you use, whenever you go. This is great, because with this technology you can plug in this USB drive at any PC, and you'll have your entire desktop and applications available at all times.
This is an amazing flash drive and if you want one 16 GB, 32 GB, and 64 GB models are priced at $79, $139, and $229.
[via Techchee]
If you've got a taste for peg legs, hook hands, fine vintage grog, the open sea, loot, and refined civilization simulations, this is your afternoon. Free-to-play specialist ngmoco has released the evolution of We Rule [Free] on the App Store this afternoon. The game is called Adventure Bay [Free / HD] and it's a curious blend of all the above with a touch of slick art and your typical F2P annoyances, such as long wait times.
Perhaps the coolest thing about Adventure Bay is its quest system, a component that ngmoco has added to We Rule since its initial release. When you're waiting for crops to grow or a building to finish being built in Adventure Bay, you can take off in a ship to an island with various bits of loot. This, of course, isn't an instantaneous thing � trips take time and the adventuring itself takes place on a dull grid with limited moves available to you � but you can grab a few friends to speed up the process. The loot you fetch, in turn, can be cashed in for gold, buildings or items when combined with other bits of loot.
Adventure Bay is fresh, fun, and above all, free, so give it a shot if you need another title in your freemium rotation. Lord knows I need a couple more.
<!-- PHP 5.x -->Though it has been quiet some time when Windows 7 for phones was actually launched but ASUS still seems to be interested in launching a smartphone which will come loaded with WP7. We are not sure why ASUS did not tap into the newly popped in Windows Phone 7 market but they surely are ready to do the same now with their E600 available seen at FCC.
The handset has also been found running well at 3G speeds which is surely a good sign for the United States market. The upcoming E600 is said to have 1300 mAh battery, 5 Mega pixel camera, LED flash and 4 inches of screen.
Though the images and various sources confirm that this model was present at the FCC as early as April and it is being suspected the that ASUS E600 might never get the chance to see the face of today's market. This model might just turn out to be a testing bed for the upcoming models that ASUS might launch for Windows Phone 7 platform.
If somehow this phone is released then it should be sold via At&T as is being suspected by different sources. We will have to wait and see if ASUS WP7 phones turns out to be a reality or not.
[via WMPoweruser]
iPhone App Store has plenty of apps and we need to not discuss the amazing functionality that these offer but the upcoming SlowDown iPhone app is surely all set to make a buzz out their amongst those parents who don't want their kids to overspeed their cars. This app slows down your iPhone music unless you actually slow down your car to the set limit.
SlowDown is the product of Belgian Organization OVK, which happens to be a collection of Parents of those children who were killed in road accidents. The app runs on the very basic idea of forcing you to stop when you are overspeeding your car with music running loud on your iPhone.
People usually tend to listen to loud music while driving fast as it helps them stay pumped up. Henceforth, this app slows down your loud music whenever you start speeding up your car. It even tends to shut down your music if you cross some stipulated�threshold. The music will be turned back to normal when you slow down your car.
We are not sure if this works with every 4 wheeler but this surely happens to be an attractive concept.
[via Killer Startups]
Sony Ericsson has just launched three experience packs for the XPERIA X10, X10 Mini and X10 Mini Pro handsets. They are bundles of accessories that will enhance your XPERIA handset.
The three experience packs are:
The Fitness Experience Pack XP110 comes with Sony Ericsson LiveView, Clip, Wristband, microUSB Charger and User Guide for the XPERIA X10 Mini and X10 Mini Pro smartphones.
The Business Experience Pack XP120 comes with Bluetooth Noise Shield, VH700 Handsfree, EC300 microUSB Cable, Wave Secure and Office Suite Pro applications for the XPERIA X10, X10 Mini and X10 Mini Pro handsets.
The Design Experience Pack XP130 is a package that comes with 3 Snap on designer covers for the XPERIA X10 Mini. You also get lanyards, charms and some applications.
via Xperia X10
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Google recently announced its first Android 2.3 powered smartphone, the Nexus S. On the other hand, Google is said to be rolling out the Gingerbread update to Nexus One owners. According to the guys at Engadget, few Nexus One owners are reporting that they have already started receiving the the much awaited Android 2.3 update. This is definitely a great news for all the Nexus One owners who were eagerly waiting to try out the Google's latest operating system on their powerful smartphone.
The Android 2.3 update is expected to come with new features such as improved keyboard text entry, improved power management, application usage, new internet calling feature and improvements to the UI. We are still not sure, if the news is true or not. If you own a Nexus One, and already received this update, do let us know in the comments below.
Update: Okay, so we have a bad news for the Nexus One owners. The Gingerbread update is not rolling out yet. Keep your fingers crossed! We just heard from Matt Cutts and Reto Meier of Google on twitter that the OTA update for the Nexus One will be coming in a few weeks.
[ Image Credit ]
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Google has just officially launched the first Android 2.3 phone , the Nexus S and the price for the unlocked handset without a contract is out.
The Nexus S will be available unlocked at all BestBuy outlets in USA for just 529 USD starting from Dec 16 , 2010 which is barely a week from now . The handset will also be available on T-Mobile USA for $199 with a two-year contract.
Our friends in UK will be very disappointed about the price of the unlocked handset across the seas. It will be available for 549.95 GBP or roughly 862 USD which simply does not seem right !
It will be also available on select pay-monthly plans starting from 35 GBP per month at Carphone Warehouse and Best Buy from December 20
If you plan to buy a Nexus S , getting it from USA seems a wiser idea at this point.
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NVIDIA has lately been tagged as the organization that goes on to rebadge its hardware without introducing anything new. Looks like NVIDIA is all set to give up on that dirty image with the launch of GeForce GT 540M notebook GPU which will obviously be the successor of 435M mobile GPU series.
With GeForce GT 540M, we are taking an already proven architecture and using the maturity of the manufacturing process to create GPUs with higher clock settings while staying in the same power envelope. As a result, the GeForce GT 540M delivers a significant increase in fill-rate and memory bandwidth, which ultimately translates to better overall performance.
The GT 540M chip comes up with similar 96 CUDA cores and 128 bit memory interface as compared to 435M. The 540M GPU takes lead in graphics display as it cranks up the numbers like anything. The graphics touches 672 MHz while processor clock touches 1344 MHz which should be considered exceptional. The on-board memory will touch the max speed of 900 MHz which again is exceptionally exciting. Also, the power requirements haven't been changed thus making the GT 540M notebook GPU from NVIDIA a must have for the upcoming laptops.
[via Engadget]
Here are the first official photos of the just announced Google Nexus S developed by Samsung featuring the latest version of Android � 2.3 Gingerbread. The phone looks really attractive and features 4 inch Contour Display with a curved glass screen as rumored.� It also features� Near Field Communication (NFC) and is powered by a 1 GHz Hummingbird processor . Enjoy the pics below
The first pic shows the curved display. The microUSB port and 3.5mm audio jack sit at the bottom.
There are 4 keys below the display.
You can see the curves more evidently on the side.
It has a 5 MP camera with flash on the back
How do you like the Nexus S ?
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The long-awaited Universal update for Carcassonne [$4.99] is going to be submitted to Apple for approval on December 7, developer The Coding Monkeys has announced. And as the studio declared months ago, the price of the App will raise alongside with this release. With the onslaught of submissions, it's hard to say when it will actually be approved, but we've got our fingers crossed we'll see it before the holidays.
Currently, the game is setting at $4.99, a veritable steal considering the depth and quality of the German board game turned touch screen App, but soon it'll be hiked to $9.99 on the US store. It almost goes without saying, but if you've been planning on making a purchase, grab it now it at its regular, non-Universal App price. Save some cash for some other games and Christmas gifts, eh?
The Coding Monkeys has shown off the enhanced UI for the iPad version of the game before. Built from the ground up for the larger screen, Carcassonne on the iPad looks and sounds like a faithful port. We'll give it a go both privately and with friends just to make sure, but the developer has yet to let us down, so there's no reason to think it'll stink up the place.
On a related note, following this release, the creators will now start to focus on updates and add-on packs for the game. Give us "Inns & Cathedrals," first please! Thanks!
<!-- PHP 5.x -->We just brought to you information regarding the launch of the Google Nexus S. Now here are a few videos that promote the Nexus S which is developed by Google and Samsung.
The first video is titled: Do You Like Gingerbread and it is the teaser to the Nexus S
The second video highlights a few of the features of the Nexus S in a video that quite different from any other phone ads.
Here is a video that shows the Nexus S in a slow motion 360 degree view
Here is a funny video showing the navigational features of the Nexus S
Here is the YouTube 2.0 application shown on the Nexus S
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Google and Samsung finally announced their much awaited smartphone, the Nexus S. It is the world's first handset to feature the latest Android 2.3 (Gingerbread) Operating System. Nexus S comes with a 4 inch WVGA SUPER AMOLED display, 5 megapixel camera with HD video recording and so on. This handset allows you to access more than 100,000 apps from the Android Market. Check out the complete specs of Nexus S below.
"Samsung was thrilled to work with Google to create the first device featuring the much anticipated Android 2.3 OS. Nexus S is powerful proof of Samsung and Google's commitment to bringing technology firsts to market and launching products that utilize the open and innovative Android operating system. Nexus S integrates Samsung's best-in-class hardware and technology with the exciting new features and upgrades of Android 2.3 Gingerbread to give consumers a breakthrough smartphone experience," said Omar Khan, chief strategy officer of Samsung Telecommunications America.
"Google is excited to co-develop Nexus S with Samsung, ensuring solid integration of hardware and software to deliver the lead device for the latest version of Android, Gingerbread," said Andy Rubin, Vice President of Engineering at Google.
Nexus S Specifications:
- 4 inch WVGA SUPER AMOLED display
- 800 x 480 pixels resolution
- 1 GHz application processor
- Android 2.3 OS (Gingerbread)
- 5 megapixel camera with Auto Focus
- VGA front Camera
- HD (720p) video recording
- NFC (Near Field Communication) Capability
- Wi-Fi
- USB 2.0
- Bluetooth 2.1 with EDR
- A-GPS
- 16 GB internal memory
- 512MB RAM
- Accelerometer
- Digital compass
- Proximity and Light Sensor
- Android Market
- 1500 mAh battery
Nexus S will be available online and in-store from Best Buy retailers in the U.S. starting after December 16 and at Carphone Warehouse retailers in the U.K. after December 20. The price of this handset is not announced yet. Are you planning to buy this amazing smartphone? Let us know your views in the comments below.
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This might be a bit late considering we are talking about the place where technology takes birth. In a recent press release Senator Snowe has introduced to the legislation the ideas to enhance the wireless coverage within Federal structures to fight the spectrum crunch.
"With over 276 million wireless subscribers across our nation and growing demand for wireless broadband, it is imperative that we take steps to improve wireless communication capacity and this legislation will make measurable progress towards that goal," said Senator Snowe. "Given that approximately 60 percent of mobile Internet use and 40 percent of cell phone calls are completed indoors, utilizing technologies such as wi-fi and femtocells will dramatically improve coverage."
The idea to make such installations mandatory can prove to be�revolutionary�for various centers in the United States if it is implemented successfully. It's argued that installing femtocells at those locations would improve reception indoors, lighten network loads in busy areas, and expand accessibility for more rural locales.
The Federal Wi-Net bill has requested for a $15 million budget for the installation and�maintenance�which includes future installs of various hardware. Well, any bidders who want to get lucky?
[view Engadget]
Back at E3 we got a look at the OnLive client running on the iPad, and were surprised by how well it worked. If this is the first you've heard of it, OnLive is a game streaming service that is trying to do to video games what NetFlix streaming has done to movies. There are a variety of different payment options, but it comes down to this: If you've got a solid internet connection (the connectivity requirements are stringent) you can play next-generation video games on any device capable of running the OnLive client, including a micro console they're selling that hooks up to TV's.
Unfortunately, the OnLive client for the iPad is only a viewer, and you can't actually play any games currently. Fortunately, the viewer aspect of OnLive is really cool, and totally worth checking out. Utilizing the iPad client (or any OnLive client) you can view any game that's currently being played by any player connected to OnLive. If you've never seen Assassin's Creed, all you need to do is scroll to someone playing it, and you're instantly watching them. The down side of all this is that much like playing games using OnLive, watching them also requires a considerable amount of bandwidth. Viewing games is much more forgiving, but you'll still need a substantial chunk of downstream to not see any video artifacts.
OnLive Viewer for the iPad is a free download, and currently is available in New Zealand. Much like the Wednesday night game releases, it will slowly become available to other regions throughout the day before finally making its appearance on the US App Store at 11:00 PM EST.
App Store Link: OnLive Viewer, Free
<!-- PHP 5.x -->Looks like lot of you from Mumbai had a great time at the Opera Meetup featuring Opera Co-Founder Jon Von Tetzchner this Sunday. Tushar was in Mumbai on behalf of FoneArena to quiz Jon about Opera's journey so far. Here are some pics from the event which proves that in India we love to discuss about tech even on a Sunday afternoon.
The audience constantly poured in their questions and Jon patiently answered them with utmost detail.
Check out the original pics on flickr and you can also check out Opera India's Album here
We should have Jon's interview online this week , so don't forget to check it out !
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