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With $99 XBOX Subscription Bundle, Microsoft REALLY Enters the Smartphone Gaming Era!

Game Diary, Gear Bits, News

With $99 XBOX Subscription Bundle, Microsoft REALLY Enters the Smartphone Gaming Era!

Image courtesy GamesLive OK, so maybe the title is more than a bit of a stretch, but look at it this way: what product costs more to make than what you pay to buy it, but that lowered cost is subsidized by a two-year monthly contract? A cell phone … and now an XBOX360 bundle including the Kinect according to a report from TheVerge. Check out the details (emphasis mine): Microsoft is planning to launch a $99 Xbox console package with a monthly subscription as early as next week, according to our sources. The software giant will offer the 4GB…

Dell Unveils High Performance XPS and Vostro Computer Series

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Dell Unveils High Performance XPS and Vostro Computer Series

Dell keeps working hard to add value to the lines of desktop and laptop computers for home and business use, and as part of that initiative today Dell has announced new entries into the XPS and Vostro lines. These new desktop and laptop computers offer options targeted towards pretty much everyone – families, multimedia users and businesses. The new systems start as low as $549 and are available through Dell.com now. Here are the details from Dell: The XPS 8500 Desktop: Advanced Performance for CreativesThe XPS 8500 desktop delivers a superb user experience for creatives who demand uncompromising performance, whether…

Mother's Day is Almost Here, and You Know that Mom Loves Her Gear!

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Mother’s Day is Almost Here, and You Know that Mom Loves Her Gear!

Still debating what you should get the woman who loved you first for Mother’s Day? Look no further; we are here to help … Eers PCS-150 Eers PCS-150 are “high-end headphones with a special twist”. Carly reviewed these amazing headphones and loved them. The music-loving parent will too. Here’s what they offer… Custom-fitted earphones in only 4 Minutes! Single driver, dynamic speaker Single button in-line microphone compatible with all mobile devices Crisp, detailed sound Excellent Frequency response with hard driving bass Safe and Comfortable SonoFit™ Fitting Process. Custom-fitted shape creates Sound Isolation “Acoustic Seal” Secure fit so earphones do not…

Spotify (Finally) Launches iPad App!

Music Diary, News

Spotify (Finally) Launches iPad App!

Spotify today announced and released their app for the iPad. And it is pretty much what you would expect – the same core functionality, but optimized for the larger screen. But based on my limited playing around I find that – as is true with many apps – the user experience provided by the larger screen opens up already existing functionality to entirely new possibilities. Here is the press release: Today we’re extremely proud to present our native iPad app in all its green-hued glory. Features include: • Retina graphics for iPad – dazzling display, razor sharp images, richer colours…

Hands on with Motorola Droid 4 Pre-ICS ROM Update!

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Hands on with Motorola Droid 4 Pre-ICS ROM Update!

Verizon and Motorola are notoriously slow at getting updates, which was something I knew when I bought my Droid 4. They laid out their plans for the Ice Cream Sandwich Android operating system for their various phones, which is reportedly about to start. As a preliminary step, Verizon has started seeding updates to several phones getting the ICS update in the coming weeks. A friend at work just got the update for their Droid Razr earlier this week, and I subsequently got the one for my Droid 4. As usual, the download showed up on Android fan-sites well before most…

Are eInk Holding's Earnings a Sign of a Non-Tablet Reader Slowdown?

eBooks, News

Are eInk Holding’s Earnings a Sign of a Non-Tablet Reader Slowdown?

Here’s some news to file under the “maybe a concern” category. It looks like eInk Holdings, the company that makes those beautiful eInk screens for NOOKs and Kindles, had a bad quarter. According to DigiTimes, this was their first set of poor earnings in over two years, and the company is saying it was due to “inventory adjustments”, aka they had fewer orders for new screens. This isn’t good news, but I wouldn’t hold a funeral for eInk just yet. Yes, we are coming off a holiday season where the hot items were the NOOK Color and Tablet and the…

Geode on Your iPhone Could Equal the End of Wallets As We Know Them

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Geode on Your iPhone Could Equal the End of Wallets As We Know Them

  We’ve all heard of (and many of us use) eWallet software and alternative methods to pay electronically; these apps and methods have been around for years. In our move towards convergence and the ultimate goal of lifestyle simplification, it seems that in the last few years there has been a push to eliminate our wallets and get all of our financial tools onto our cellphones. As Travis has pointed out several times, people are more likely to forget their wallet than they are their phone, so perhaps there is something to that. But understandably, security concerns are what keeps many from…

Ellen Reads from '50 Shades of Grey'

eBooks, News

Ellen Reads from ’50 Shades of Grey’

If you follow pop culture and popular books at all, you have heard something about the novel 50 Shades of Grey. If not, I’ll catch you up quickly: it was a Twilight fan-fiction which gained interest from publishers but needed a change of characters, which basically puts a young college student and a rich older man together … but rather than vampires and werewolves we have whips and chains. In fact, Christian Grey makes young Anastasia Steele sign a contract allowing him to subject her to his every BDSM whim. And if you don’t know what BDSM is … chances…

Line2 for iOS Gets Updated with MMS and Location Sharing

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Line2 for iOS Gets Updated with MMS and Location Sharing

  I’m a big fan of the Voice Over iP service Line2. The company’s iOS app is clean, fast and lets you make clear calls, especially when you are in a high-speed WiFi network. (They also offer an Android app and I’m hoping to see a version for Windows Phone soon but I have not heard anything about that… Yet.) I use the app all the time and, now that Elana has gone all Apple I’m encouraging her to do the same. Why? Simple! If we use Line2 enough we will be able to drop down to a lower bucket…

No More Windows Phone App Shopping from Zune PC Suite

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No More Windows Phone App Shopping from Zune PC Suite

Well, it had to come sooner or later. As many users discovered the other day when Zune launched on their PCs, a message appeared asking users to restart the app to update the Zune client with new changes, Microsoft has officially nixed buying software apps for Windows Phone from the desktop PC Zune client. In his Windows Phone blog posting, Mazhar Mohammed stated Until today you could shop for Windows Phone apps and games in three places: on your phone, on the web, and via the Zune software on your PC. But we know—probably not a huge surprise here—that most…

Striiv Fitness Motivating Pedometer Gets Smart, Gets Social

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Striiv Fitness Motivating Pedometer Gets Smart, Gets Social

Back in January Judie and I found ourselves in an unplanned competition of sorts. Judie was using the FitBit fitness device and I was using the Striiv Smart Pedometer. The devices could not have been more different. The FitBit was black and the Striiv white. The FitBit clipped to your cloths and has a small LED readout to let you know what was what. The Striiv has a large, touchscreen face reminiscent of a tiny smartphone. The FitBit had a USB dock that, when the device was synced to your computer, tracked your progress and even offered the ability to…

Monsanto, Already 'Most Evil Company of 2011', Buys Bee Research Company to Hide Ills

Editorials, News

Monsanto, Already ‘Most Evil Company of 2011’, Buys Bee Research Company to Hide Ills

There are few insects as critical to just about every part of the ecological cycle as the bee. Some estimates say that one-third of naturally grown food requires pollination by bees, including most fruits, vegetables and nuts. Coffee, soy beans and cotton are all dependent on pollination by bees to increase yields. It is the start of a food chain that also sustains wild birds and animals. And yet in recent years the bee population has been in freefall, with reports stating that a decline of 90% or more has occurred over the last few decades. The reports are not…

Skype Now Available for Windows Phone 7.5 Devices

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Skype Now Available for Windows Phone 7.5 Devices

Windows Phone users rejoice!  Microsoft has at long last released Skype v1.0 into the Windows Marketplace for supported devices. So now owners of Windows Phone 7.5 devices sporting at least 512MB RAM can now make and receive Skype calls as well as chat with contacts/friends on their handsets over 3G and 4G and of course Wi-Fi. A few important caveats, however: As previously mentioned, currently only 7.5 devices with 512MB of RAM are supported** Skype calls cannot be received if the Skype app isn’t running in the foreground (i.e., Skype must be the “active” task) Skype currently does not support…

Want Better Sound From Your iPad? Foco-ize It! Kickstarter Project

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Want Better Sound From Your iPad? Foco-ize It! Kickstarter Project

I love my new iPad but I’m not a huge fan of the sound coming from it. Honestly, it is a bit too anemic for my taste. Sure, it gets the job done, but it could be so much better. And, in fact, it can be. Need proof? Just play something on your iPad and then cup your hand behind the speaker with the open part of your hand pointing toward you. The difference is… Amazing. By simply redirecting the sound that would otherwise go FROM you toward to the sound increases in both volume and quality. That’s the idea…

Boston's Fenway Park Celebrates 100 Years of Baseball Traditions

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Boston’s Fenway Park Celebrates 100 Years of Baseball Traditions

Even as the world was still reeling from the sinking of the ‘unsinkable’ Titanic, a new era dawned in Boston, and in sports history. On April 20, 1912 Fenway Park opened to the public with a capacity of 35,000 seats … and the Boston Red Sox beat the New York Highlanders in an extra-innings thriller to launch the storied baseball stadium. At this point, Fenway Park is the oldest professional baseball stadium. Chicago’s Wrigley Field is the only other ‘classic’ park remaining. It is also one of the most famous venues in all of sports, with many legendary moments transpiring…

Rush Streams New Song in Advance of New Album Release!

Music Diary, News

Rush Streams New Song in Advance of New Album Release!

Rush is no stranger to … well, just about anything at this point. Releasing their first album nearly 40 years ago, they have spent the decades remaining faithful to fans, providing some of the best prog-rock accompanied by impressive musicianship that complements without overtaking the songs. Now they are preparing a new album, ‘Clockwork Angels’ due out on June 12th. To build anticipation, they are streaming “Headlong Flight” for free in a variety of places, including an official version with lyrics streaming on YouTube. The song will be instantly recognizable to anyone with even passing familiarity with the band: Geddy Lee…

Alienware Discontinues the m11x 'Gaming Netbook'

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Alienware Discontinues the m11x ‘Gaming Netbook’

Just over two years ago, I wrote my first impressions of the initial Alienware m11x ‘gaming netbook’. I found the build quality and processor a bit lacking but the design and graphics performance were excellent. About six months later, Dell released the R2 version, this time with a low-power Core i7 processor, and I absolutely adored the updated laptop. Well, except that the Optimus graphics switching system was nearly useless at launch and took some time to get correct. I always preferred the manual switching of the original system (and the Sony Vaio S-series) as it gave better battery life and…

Music as Art ... Sheet Music Art, That Is!

Music Diary, News

Music as Art … Sheet Music Art, That Is!

An artistic duo called ‘People Too’ from Novabrinsk in Russia are known for their amazing papercraft that seeks to bring small scenes to life, but apparently they can also bring sheet music to life as well! We all know that music is art, and therefore sheet music contains art … but it is amazing when the sheet music ITSELF becomes art! The site linked below has more than a dozen examples of great art done in between the stanzas – definitely check it out. Take a look at this one! Head to the site and check out all of them!…

What to Do When You Lose 800k Customers? Change Your Spokesmodel's Wardrobe!

Editorials, News

What to Do When You Lose 800k Customers? Change Your Spokesmodel’s Wardrobe!

Or at least that seems to be the approach T-Mobile is taking! After reporting that they managed to bleed more than 800,000 customers in the US alone during the fourth quarter of last year, T-Mobile is calling 2012 a ‘building year’, meaning they will continue to lose money and bleed customers, and that hopefully someone will care when they get a REAL LTE network in 2013. And apparently part of the building strategy is playing ‘dress up’ with spokesmodel Carly Foulkes. Check out the new commercial from T-Mobile: Here is the text: Time To Set The Record Straight. What do you…

Musical Necrophilia Hits the Rap Era

Editorials, Music Diary, News

Musical Necrophilia Hits the Rap Era

It was only a matter of time before rap music started resorting to ‘Natalie Cole Syndrome’. Older performers such as the caricature ‘Snoop Doggy Dog’, the has-been Dr. Dre, and the self-parody Eminem who are seeking to show that they are hip and relevant — rather than out of touch middle-aged millionaires without a clue — have taken the EXACT SAME tactics as Cole when she sang ‘Unforgettable’ with her (late) father. I’m sure rap fans will deny it … but that is all just posturing. Sure, in typical rap fashion they inject language that shows their limited intellect and…