Our blog focus on tech

Video Game Consoles The Battle Has Begun

techeditor — Sun, 08 Nov 2009 17:56:26 +0000

Many of you may not know that video game consoles came into being around the mid-seventies, but did not fare very well at that time, as video games crashed and the market was very slow. That was the fate of the first generation of video consoles that included games by Atari and Magnavox. However, the video game consoles made a comeback and among the companies making video games in the 1980's, Nintendo proved to be most popular with their ground breaking game "Super Mario Brothers." This proved to be the start of many more video games with better sound and picture quality, in the years to come.

The current crop of video game consoles has completely taken the world by storm. Be it the XBOX 360 by Microsoft, Playstation 3 by Sony, or Wii by Nintendo, I'm sure you will agree with me that gaming will never be the same again. Each console offers superior quality of sound and graphics, and you can actually get into the skin of the central character in the video game. They are so realistic, that you feel that you are actually in that situation.

You probably might have a personal favorite, as far as video game consoles are concerned. So do I, but let me tell you about the three main consoles available in the market today. Although, Nintendo has been in the gaming business for a very long time, Sony was the company that paved the way for the latest video game consoles with the Playstation launched in 1994 in Japan.

The Major Video Game Consoles

* Sony came out with the Playstation in 1994. After that, Playstation 2 was launched in 2000 and it was the fastest selling home video game console. Playstation 3 was launched in March 2007 and thanks to its predecessors, is selling like hot cakes all over the world.

* The Wii by Nintendo has a wireless controller which enhances your gaming experience. With this controller, you move your hands, the way you want the characters to move theirs. It is like a virtual reality experience and is very easy to use. This has made it extremely popular amongst gamers worldwide.

* The newcomer in the video games business is the Xbox 360 by Microsoft. When the original Xbox was launched in 2002, it was meant to capture the market share that Sony's PS 2 enjoyed. However, that was not to be, as Sony was too popular and much better at the time. So the new Xbox 360 was launched in 2005 and this proved to be a huge success.

The so-called "Console War" is on and it's difficult to figure out a clear cut winner. In the meantime, all we can do is sit back and enjoy this whole new experience of video game consoles.

Different Things You May Want To Ask Yourself Before Deciding Which Camcorder To Purchase

techeditor — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 02:15:26 +0000

With having so many different camcorder's to choose from it can be very difficult to make a decision, because of all the many great digital camcorder's available for you today. They are all awesome in their own way, they all have different functions and offer great features, so that you can truly enjoy your camcorder experience. It is an amazing experience, no doubt about that.

Having the opportunity to use a digital camcorder will make you feel like one of the pros because when you look into your LCD screen to view the images you have helped create, you will have the feeling of so much control as to what you like, you can choose to keep that image or try for another one. You can view and edit your images as you please. You can also download these images onto your computer at home, to save the images and view them for as long as you like. It is the coolest thing ever. Every time I turn around I hear about another great new camcorder that has hit the market and is available for you when you are ready to take the plunge.

There are some things that you need to remember to ask yourself when you go out to purchase your new digital camcorder, because these things are vital in making the right decision for your camcorder. Some of the things you need to ask yourself are, what will I be using this camcorder for regularly, does it have to have great quality audio for my purposes, do I want a big camcorder or a more compact one and what accessories will I really need to get the most out of my camcorder experience? These things are important to answer to yourself before purchasing a camcorder because it will make the difference on which type of digital camcorder you should purchase and it will make a difference as to how much money you can be expecting on spending when going out and purchasing your new digital camcorder.

Get online and do some research on the many different types of digital camcorder's that are available in most electronics stores or by purchasing them on the internet. You will be able to view other peoples reviews they have posted on the specific camcorder, which is a real important deciding factor to go by. Those opinions do count and you should always take the time out to read over some of them. When you have in mind what kind of camcorder you are indeed looking to purchase, it will make you feel more confident when making the choice. Having so many digital camcorder's to choose from should make you feel better, instead of making you feel more stressed out because your options are pretty much limitless. It really all just depends on how much you are wanting to spend on your new digital camcorder and what kind of results you will be expecting from the camcorder that you purchase.

The Apple Ipod

techeditor — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 06:54:26 +0000

The Apple iPod has left a mark on the music scene. In fact, many people have posted favorable reviews of the Apple iPod on the Internet. In addition, there are now variety of free iPod videos, iPod hackings and more that you can find on hundreds websites. Below are some facts about the Apple iPod.

1. The standard apple iPod contains a hard drive that has a capability of holding over 5000 songs. Or, you have the ability to store music files, video files and images on your Apple iPod. However, video files and images generally take up a lot of space and cut back on the number of songs you'll be able to store on your iPod.

2. The Apple iPod was specifically manufactured for an ergonomic experience and ease-of-use. The control buttons are simple and easy to operate, and also are sleekly designed to look cool. By using the click wheel, it is very easy to browse through your different songs and videos, as well as use different controls.

3. The battery life of the Apple iPod is such that it can usually play for 12 hours continuously before needing to be recharged. To recharge your Apple iPod, simply plug it into the USB port on your computer. The iPod will come with the necessary adapter.

4. The Apple iPod also comes with a shuffle feature, allowing you to play songs and videos at random. This is perfect if you want a variety of songs or are working out and don't have easy access to change the controls.

5. The Apple iPod has an outstanding warranty, which has the option to be upgraded. In many cases, if something goes wrong within the first year, your Apple iPod will be replaced with a brand-new one.

Free Ipod Downloads

techeditor — Sun, 01 Nov 2009 16:53:26 +0000

There are a variety of third-party manufacturers that create covers and skins for iPods to dress them up and protect them. They come in a variety of different styles to fit all the generations of iPods. To gain a competitive advantage, they have also created software programs for the iPod and offer free iPod downloads at their website, or on the apple.com website.

In addition, there are tons of free iPod downloads to get from the apple.com website. I will share with you some of the top free iPod downloads that you can use. These sites usually offer freeware, shareware or demo software you have to install to get the free iPod downloads.

ISquint is a video converter for iPods that offers free iPod downloads for a video converter application. This free iPod download works quicker than QuickTime Pro and works for a variety of different video formats. It's easy to install and use, and you can even determine the quality of the video, so you don't take up too much disk space.

Another free iPod download is podcast mixer. This allows you to create your own podcast where you can filter music in between the podcast, or make your podcasts more professional. Also, with this free iPod download you can compile individual playlists from your iTunes and podcast to customize things even more.

The last free iPod download discussed in this article is iworkout. It is a way to enhance your exercising. There are 42 different workout routines created by a certified personal trainer. Once installed on your iPod you can view and listen to them. It's very easy to install this shareware and it can be evaluated for free.

You can find this free iPod download on the apple.com website. While there you can view a variety of other free iPod downloads as well.

The Newest Update For The Nintendo Wii

techeditor — Sat, 31 Oct 2009 10:23:26 +0000

The Nintendo Wii is such a hit partly because it is more than just a vidoe game console. With email, internet, news, and weather capabilities, the Wii appeals to more people than just your average gamers. Nintendo hopes to keep the Wii's appeal alive by offering regular updates to these features. Not even a year after its release the Nintendo has updated the Wii's features twice. If you own a Wii updating it is easy. After you set up your internet connection, select Wii System Update from the main menu. Your Wii will then automatically download the latest update. The third and current update includes changes to the Menu, message board and the Wii shop channel. A new channel was also added to the Wii menu in February.

On the Wii Menu the weather forecast is now displayed on the Forecast Chanel icon so you can easily see at a glance what the weather will be like on any given day. News headlines are now displayed on the News channel icon so users can quickly see which stories are of interest to them. The current time has also been added to the Wii Menu and incoming messages will be announced with a flashing border around the message board. All these updates to the Wii menu enhance the user experience.

The Wii Message Board has also been changed in the most recent update. You can now rearrange the order of your friends in your address book. You can also easily get into the friend registration scren by pressing the A button on any blank spot on the address book screen. Message icons in the form of little envelopes will now only appear on the dates when a message was received. Youe message history will also be displayed on the today's accomplishments screen and you will be able to scroll through messages using the B button. Being able to send and receive messages right from your game console was a great idea for the Wii and continued updates will only make the experience better for Wii users.

The Will Shop Chanel has also undergone improvements. The search function on the Virtual Console has been improved making it easier for Wii users to find their favorite old games. On the Wii Shop channel users can buy Wii points and use them to buy their favorite games form old Nintendo systems like the original Nintendo Entertainment System, Super Nintendo Entertainment System, Nintendo 64, and TurboGrafax16. Improved search functions mean this process is easier than ever.

Along with system updates, Nintendo will also make new channels available on the Wii menu. The Everybody Votes Channel was released in February as a sort of Valentines gift from Nintendo to its users. More fun channels will be released and more updates will come. Updates for the Wii occur regularly and every time the Wii experience gets better for its users. Nintendo will keep the Wii console on the cutting edge with updates and the Wii users will benefit form additional features and innovation.

Playstation 3 A Perfect Gift For All Occasions

techeditor — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 01:12:26 +0000

PlayStation 3 makes an ideal gift. It is especially a hit amongst kids. Those who know a little bit about video games, would love to be gifted a PS3 on their birthdays or on Christmas. Even when you are looking for a gift for an adult, PlayStation 3 is the perfect choice.

Complete Media Center

It is an ideal gift, because it is more than just a game console. PlayStation 3 is also a media center. It has a Blu-ray digital disc drive. Therefore, now you can enjoy high definition entertainment on your game console. Being backward compatible, you can also enjoy your DVDs on your PS3.

You can play music CDs and even connect to the internet to seek information about the album. You can even store your personal digital photo album on your PS3. The fun does not stop here. You can use your PS3 to surf the internet. You can chat online or even join your friends in multiplayer games. Its internet browser can download pages reasonably fast. Therefore, now you can understand why PlayStation 3 is called a complete media center.

Finding a PlayStation 3 will not be as hard as X-Box 360. Sony has done a marvelous task of ensuring that there is enough supply in the market. This means that you can find a PS3 in a local electronic store near you.

Games

Now let us talk about games on PlayStation 3. When PlayStation 3 was released in November in US, it came with fifteen game titles. Resistance: The Fall Of The Man soon became a very popular game. MotorStorm, Elder Scrolls IV, Heavy Rain, Metal Gear Solid 4, etc are some of the popular PS3 games.

With all its unique and wonderful features, PlayStation 3 does come with a hefty price tag. It would cost you around $600 for a 60GB model and $499 for a 20GB model. Now, this can be quite an expensive gift. You might be thinking, do I need to bestow such an expensive gift upon a child. However, when you take into consideration that it comes with a Blu-ray player and HDMI capabilities, you would not mind paying the price.

Many people are buying PlayStation 3, because it has one of the best Blu-ray disc players in the market. In fact, a Blu-ray disc player alone would cost more than a PS3. Therefore, buying a PlayStation 3 is actually a smart thing to do. In addition, when compared to Xbox 360 and Nintendo, PS3 is far ahead. Thus the price tag is justified.

In fact, PlayStation 3 is an ideal family gift. It is something that the whole family can enjoy together. Moreover, I mean, not just play games together, but also watch movies, and share photo albums.

Playstation 3 Way Ahead Of Its Competition

techeditor — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 18:36:26 +0000

PlayStation 3 is the latest attempt by Sony, to offer a game console that is different from all others. To be precise this is Sony's seventh attempt. The question is, have they succeeded in offering something unique? The answer is invariably yes.

Priced at around $600, PlayStation 3 is far ahead of its competition. It offers features that are not found in any game console in the market today. PS3 has set the standards that others would need to follow, if they want to be in the race.

Backward Compatible

PlayStation 3, like its predecessors, is backward compatible. In fact, the compatibility issue has no problems whatsoever. Therefore, if you own PlayStation 1 and 2 games, you can play them on your PS3, without making any modifications. The Central Processing Unit is the star attraction. The CPU is capable of running at a speed of 3.2 GHz, which means that it offers performance at par with top-of-the-line computers.

PlayStation 3 is designed to give complete entertainment to its owner. That is why; it is also equipped with a Blu-ray disc drive, which is also backward compatible. This means that you can also play your DVDs, CDs, and SACDs on your PS3. Is this not a unique combination? – Blu-Ray plus a game console. Therefore, when you are not playing games, you can use your PS3 to watch the latest movies.

SixAxis

PlayStation 3 controllers are almost similar to PS2. The big difference is in the fact that PS3 controllers are wirelessly connected. A wireless controller is cool, as it does away with tangled wires. PS3 is compatible with Bluetooth technologies. The Bluetooth for PS3 is capable of supporting upto seven wireless controllers, at a given time. The wireless controller, the SixAxis, can also be switched from wireless to being wired. Plus the SixAxis is capable of offering 30 hours of play time between charges.

PlayStation 3 comes with a Cross Media Bar (XMB) dashboard. It is horizontally divided into 8 icons: Settings, Users, Photo, Music, Game, Video, Friends, and Network. It is easy to navigate and very user friendly.

Games

The games offered by PlayStation 3 are definitely rated on the high scale. For example, Resistance: Fall Of Man has excellent graphics and audio quality. In addition, it has a good game play and a decent storyline. If you look at the games offered by Xbox 360, which had a year head start over PS3, only Gears of War comes close to Resistance: Fall Of Man. So you can see that PS3 is ahead of its competition in this field also.

Buying a game console and getting a complete media center, is unique in the world of game console. Moreover, this is where PlayStation 3 has beaten the competition. However, the end result as always would be decided by the consumers.

Going Broke Playing Games

techeditor — Sun, 25 Oct 2009 00:03:26 +0000

You Don't Have To And Here's How

If you haven't looked at the cost of new computer or video games and gaming systems as a whole recently, you might be in for a shock. Today's games and gaming systems can run from a meager $30 all the way to a whopping four hundred dollars or more. To a loving mother of a game obsessed teenager, the costs can be astronomical and nothing short of frightening. Fortunately the cost of buying quality computer or video games (including the systems that they run on) can be significantly reduced once you know what to do and where to look.

One alternative to funding a gaming pursuit with a second mortgage is to "go old." By "going old," we mean buying last month's or year's games and game systems. If you could admit the one truth that we all know, but never readily face, you could literally save hundreds of dollars in an instant. This truth is that unless you're a millionaire, none of us can afford to buy the latest toy on the market. The ugly fact behind that truth is that within a relatively short amount of time (say, 60-90 days?), that latest toy will be replaced with a new and improved system, which consequently, grants access to what was wanted in the first place – at half the price! So go old and have a little patience. Within about three to four months, you will have made a tremendous saving.

When it comes to computer gaming, you could also come out better by upgrading games rather then an entire computer. It can take anywhere from a year or more for a gaming company to release a new version and chances are, the upgrade doesn't require new hardware – it just requires a new payment. Remember, the gaming industry can't really keep up with the computer industry either (no one can), so there's no reason to panic or worry. Concentrate on keeping your game current rather than your system. Only in rare instances, such as if your computer is archaic to begin with, will you need to upgrade your hardware. Shop wisely and you can catch a new soundcard, joystick, or graphics card on sale. But if you have a high gigahertz processor and Direct X 9 installed, you'll do fine for quite a while.

Here's a whopper of an idea and one that probably won't take as much of an effort to convince younglings to do as you might think. But to curb the costs of gaming, perhaps a group of families could pitch in and share the finances together. Depending on the number in a group, the cost of a new gaming system – and 5 or 6 of the most popular games – could diminish to 20% or more of their original costs.

And since gaming consoles are getting smaller and smaller, there's no reason why a group of families couldn't band together and trade gaming space within their homes every week or two. This way the kids in the neighborhood can enjoy one or two of the new systems on the market that they could never otherwise afford, and they can enjoy them without their parents having to shoulder the burden of funding them alone.

Seeing that kids generally play games together anyway, a group effort of this sort satisfies game cravings at a significantly reduced cost and it keeps everyone happy.

Cheap Satellite Tv

techeditor — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 04:46:26 +0000

Satellite TV used to be considered a luxury just a few years ago. Cheap satellite TV was just a fantasy. The prices of a system with a satellite TV dish and electronic boxes ranged from $2,000 to $10,000. The installation cost was another few hundreds dollars.

With so many TV satellite companies competing for getting more customers, cheap satellite TV has become a reality, and guess what, the installation is generally free.

Satellite TV Systems

Here are the things you can usually get from a satellite TV company:

* A free satellite TV dish, as well as mounting stand

* Several free receivers and universal remote controls

* Free installation in several rooms

* Free digital video recording receivers to record your favorite shows

* Optional HDTV receivers for high definition reception.

In addition, some cheap satellite TV providers also offer a bonus gift, such as a DVD player and home theater system when you subscribe.

Cheap Satellite TV

In the United States and Canada, you usually pay from $32 a month for 60 programming channels and from $94 a month for 215 programming channels. Both DISH and DirecTV include the following features:

* Over 255 programming channels with digital picture and sound

* Digital video recording that allows you to skip commercials and record your favorite shows

* Up to 500 movies with no commercials each month

* High definition programming

* Up to 60 pay-per-view programs a day

* Local channels with digital-quality picture and sound

* Music channels with no commercials with digital sound

* Online and toll-free 24/7 customer service

Moreover, satellite companies also often offer some introductory programming packages at lower prices for new customers.

The Bottom Line

Cheap satellite TV services are available for everyone. The question is whether you want the cheapest package or the cheapest price per channel.

In the United States, DISH Network provides the cheapest satellite TV package. Their low-end package – America's Top Sixty – includes 60 programming channels (local channels as well) and costs $31.99 a month.

On the other hand, with Total Choice programming package at $41.99 from DirecTV you get the lowest price per channel, which is $0.31 a month. This package includes 135 programming channels, as well as 31 music channels.

If television is an important form of entertainment for you and you want high-quality and a wide range of movies, sports and shows to choose from, you might consider subscribing to a satellite service. You will sure find a cheap satellite TV service that can provide you with what you want.

Digital Audio Book

techeditor — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 17:33:26 +0000

Most of us enjoy reading a good book to relax and escape in a different world however; most of our life styles don't allow us to even read the newspaper anymore unless it is requirement at work. It is not that we don't want to read anymore; it is fact that we have become extremely busy and simply cannot fit the pleasure of reading a book into that schedule. Changing life styles and improved technology has its benefits too and one of them is that you can find today audio books in order to listen to them instead of reading. When we engage in reading a book or anything else for that matter you need the undivided attention of your eyes as well as your brain in order to follow the story line and not have to read the same page couple of times, which implies that you cannot do anything else besides reading. Audio books allow you to engage in other activities as well while listening to the book for example, cooking, commuting from school or work, cleaning the house, walking, shopping or even exercising.

What Makes Digital Audio Books Better

Usually audio books come on CDs and you will require a CD player in order to play them however, digital audio books can be downloaded on your ipod or MP3 player, which takes even lesser space than a CD player and can hold the whole book without you having to change the CDs when they are over to the next one. Digital audio books are the latest and best creation for the busy bodies of today who still want to hold on to their favorite authors and books. Online is probably the best place to shop for digital audio book because you will be able to download them straight to your ipod or MP3 player; there are many audio book stores to be found online that sell both audio books on CDs and also digital audio books for those interested.

Don't Go A Day Without Listening To A Book

Even though the advanced technology and the fast paced world has made us busier it has also provided us with some of the best devices to multitask and use all our senses in order to be able to enjoy the simple pleasure such as reading/listening to a book. Audio books are not only great for those who are busy and don't have time for books but also for those who cannot read because they are blind or any other medical condition.