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Machine Guns Vegas
Article by: Dan Keener
Sean and Dan start their CES week with a bang by visiting Machine Guns Vegas! READ FULL ARTICLE...
In defense of the Day One patch
Article by: Charles Husemann
Chuck talks about one of the industry's biggest problems and offers up a few solutions. READ FULL ARTICLE...
The history of Star Trek games Part 2
Article by: Sean Colleli
In part 2, Sean trains his tricorder on the rise and fall of Star Trek gaming, and how the future might be even brighter thanks to dedica... READ FULL ARTICLE...

Weekend News Roundup - 01/13/2013

by: Jeremy - posted: 1/14/2013 7:52 AM - Add a Comment
01/11/2013
01/13/2013

CES 2013: Dual Play TVs

by: Dan - posted: 1/13/2013 5:51 PM - Add a Comment
When we visited both Sony and LG, each company was prominently displaying their dual-play TV capabilities.  The technology essentially lets two gamers (or viewers depending on content) view a single 3D TV and see two different images by using different polarity 3D glasses.  Although both companies were using the word “first” on their demos in their respective booths, the technology has been around for some time and we have seen it as prototypes the last few years from both companies.  If you view the screen without the 3D glasses, there is a "ghosting" of the two images that appear on top of each other.

The Sony version is called SimulView and was being shown off on an 84” 4K (3,840 x 2,160) television.  We were treated to a little Gran Turismo 5 racing action for the demo and depending on which glasses you chose (left or right eye) it does truly work.  In addition, PS3 titles such MLB: The Show and Battlefield 3 that support 3D will also work in SimulView.

Sony SimulView of Gran Turismo 5

LG’s technology didn’t appear to have an official name, but was released on their Smart TVs using Mini Motor Racing.  The game was originally released on to Android and iOS, but did not have the dual play option that LG showed off.  To play this particular game, we used the LG Magic Remote, but going forward the technology can be used with any type of controller, as it is independent to the TV and glasses.

LG Dual View Smart TV demo of Mini Motor Racing

One thing to keep in mind is that neither Sony nor LG was using active shutter glasses to showcase their technology.  Sony plans to ship to SimulView glasses along with four traditional glasses in their 4K TVs that support the tech.  Additional glasses can be purchased for $299.99 ro $99.99, or you can have any optical company order a pair for you to get something a bit more comfortable.  LG is compatible with any third party passive 3D glasses, so that means you just need to track down a comfy style and get one in polarity for both the right and left eye.

As for the tech itself, it is a cool concept, and if 3D survives to the point where it is just another option available in all TVs I can see where this could possibly take hold.  However, like any technology it is always about cost and content, and at this point, it seems like we may be a few years out for dual Play TVs to make much of a foothold.

CES 2013: Tomb Raider Limited Edition Controller

by: Dan - posted: 1/13/2013 5:39 PM - Add a Comment
There was one last news bit in addition to John's impressions and our multiplayer video that came out of our time spent with the folks from Square Enix and Microsoft regarding Tomb Raider.  When the game comes out on March 5th, you can expect to find a limited edition Tomb Raider Xbox 360 controller also available for purchase.

The controller will retail for $59.99 and feature custom Tomb Raider artwork, a transforming D-Pad and an exclusive downloadable character.  You can check out the overview at the official Xbox 360 page for it or try to win the one of the five that Major Nelson is giving away if you enter before January 18th.

CES 2013: Tomb Raider multiplayer video

by: Dan - posted: 1/13/2013 5:38 PM - Add a Comment
Last Friday, John posted his thoughts on our sit down with the folks at Square Enix for our first look at the new Tomb Raider multiplayer modes.  During the sit down, I shot about five minutes of video as Sean and John were getting hammered by the developers (who they had no idea they were playing against.)  Also, I grabbed a few still of the in-game, after-party menus and splash screens.  Take a look and let us know what you think.

GamingNexus staff getting hammered by developers in Tomb Raider multiplayer

CES 2013: LG IPS Monitors

by: Dan - posted: 1/13/2013 4:26 PM - Add a Comment
LG was showing off some spectacular In-Plane Switching (IPS) 21:9 monitors in their booth, and we had a chance to take a look at them.  The E93 is a 29” ultra-wide monitor featuring the LG Cinema Screen design with the ultra-thin bezel.  It can connect any number of devices as it has the LG dual-link feature that allows simultaneous connectivity of two external devices.   In the booth, we saw a smartphone, an Xbox360 and an external laptop all hooked up.

Sean spent the better part of five minutes testing out Forza Motorsport 4 on it and was pleasantly surprised at how well the extra real estate enhanced the game.  From a bystander’s perspective, the image was incredible sharp and smooth and it felt natural seeing more area within the game itself.  Unfortunately, retail price and availability were not announced at the show, so we will have to wait for additional announcements in the future.

Check out the short clip below of Sean testing Forza 4 on the monitor and just how well it looked.


LG EA93 IPS monitor Demo

CES 2013: Tomb Raider

by: John - posted: 1/11/2013 12:02 PM - Add a Comment
Square Enix was kind enough to invite us to their meeting room at CES to check out the multiplayer feature of the new Tomb Raider game coming March 5th. Multiplayer is rather new to the franchise, if you don’t count the Guardian of Light since that’s a radical departure of the traditional Tomb Raider games.
 
What Sean Cahill and I played though was the rescue mode where it puts two teams against each other with two different goals. One team’s tasked to find a health pack and take it to a certain point on the map. The other team’s task is to eliminate them at all costs.
 
You’ll earn experience and can upgrade your weapons as you play more and more, like in most multiplayer games these days. We were presented with characters in the level 30 range with a lot of options already purchased so we were able to try out a few different loadouts and upgrades.
 
 
There was a machine gun, shotgun, crossbow, bow and arrow, and you’ll have both a primary and secondary weapon. A third object can be carried such as a mine, that I used to place in a few high traffic areas. I mostly played with the machine gun, but Sean used the bow and arrow a few times. From what the developers said, the bow can be very deadly once you get used to how it worked.
 
The map we played had various traps that could be set. Go and set up a snare to string your enemies upside down. Set a wall trap that will squish your enemies to a bloody pulp. Throw up a sandstorm to obscure everyones view. These traps are littered throughout the map and really keep you on your toes when moving around.
 
When playing as part of the rescue team, teamwork is the key. See, when a person is carrying the health pack, they can’t fire their weapon. Also, they can’t run or they will drop the health pack. Now, they can throw it and I found that to be a pretty good strategy to try and move the health pack at a quicker pace or when I was confronted with someone and needed to switch to my weapon.
 
The rescue team needed just five health packs moved to the designated location while the attacking group had to get 20 kills to win. Now, downing a rescue person isn’t as easy as just shooting them until their health ran out. You had to run up and melee them and finish them off before the score counted. This was to help balance out the scoring as it’s a lot tougher to try and get the health pack to the designated area then it is to shoot someone. With the melee finisher, it gave the rescue team a fairer chance to win the game.
 
Multiplayer Tomb Raider felt a lot like Uncharted sprinkled with a little bit of Gears of War. You can do this melee charge that can take people out with one shot. Action is a little bit slower and more methodical. You could zip line around various areas on the map and that seemed to be a pretty quick way to get around provided a rope was there. 
 
 
It took a little bit to get the nuances of the game and the controls, but after 30 mins we started to really get the hang of traversing the map and working together on the objectives. Shooting the enemies was easy, but doing the melee finish took a little bit of practice because the downed rescuer can fire back with their secondary weapon. It led to a few times where I got a little frustrated at trying to notch a score only to be killed right before I was able to go and finish the person off.
 
Of course, it didn’t help that we were facing off against some of the developers, which we didn’t know until the end. As with most games, it can get frustrating facing off against a team that knows what they were doing. Sean and I were put into that position and we had a fun time picking on the “camping” devs after the session was over.
 
Graphically, the game looked really solid. The single player portion was pretty fantastic and while I don’t think the multiplayer maps have the level of detail that the single player does, they still looked pretty solid. The sandstorm effect was pretty cool to experience and the team really pulled off the effect with some impressive particle effects.
 
I liked what I experienced with the multiplayer portion of Tomb Raider. While we only played Rescue, it had some really fun moments and I can see myself going back to it with a good group of folks. As an aside, I was able to spend 20 minutes playing the single player mode and it’s a ton of fun, very cinematic and with a lot of great little puzzle solving situations. March 5th will be the date everyone can experience the new, re-imagined Tomb Raider.
 

CES 2013: Thrustmaster

by: John - posted: 1/11/2013 10:59 AM - Add a Comment
Thrustmaster makes some really, really solid stuff and Dan and I stopped by their booth in the Central Hall to take a look at what they had for the show. 
 
First up were some brand new Xbox 360 controllers. The GPX LightBack is a high performance Xbox 360 controller with vibration technology licensed from Immersion Corporation. Immersion’s been around for a long time and they make solid force feedback technology. The motors on the gamepad felt strong, but not overpowering. As with all third party controllers, it’s not wireless. 
 
 
On top are two rows of LEDs, one for each trigger. They display how much you press down on the trigger so if you want a visual cue as to how far you are depressing them, the LightBack gives you that. You can turn the LEDs off if you wish. 
 
Thrustmaster has gone and made the two analog sticks more accurate and provide double the rate of information back to the Xbox 360. The example given out was say you had a box on the screen. With a traditional Xbox 360 controller, if you place your palm on the sticks and rotate, it would go to each for corners of the box. With the LightBack, rotating the sticks would generate a complete circle rather than just hitting the corners. That means more precise movements for games like shooters and racers.
 
The GPX LightBack also comes branded in a Ferrari Edition as well with a nice red and white paint scheme.
 
Pricing was not announced, but Thrustmaster says it will be comparable to the 360 controller. 
 
The other new item being showcased at their booth was the Y-250C headset. Featuring 50mm drivers, the Y-250C produces some pretty great sound and it’s backed by the expertise Hercules provided with all their years of audio experience . 
 
 
They have a generous amount of padding for comfortability so you should be able to wear these for long gaming sessions.
 
A long adjustable mic is included for voice communications. Should you want that out of the way, just go ahead and detach it from the left earcup. 
 
The line from the headset runs into a control unit that can adjust various audio functions. Here you can turn on or off your mic should you want to mute yourself. Volume and mic gain controls are also present in the control unit.
 
The Y-250C is compatible with smartphones as well, even for calling. 
 
With great stereo sound, the Y-250C sounds like a nice little headset from Thrustmaster all at an affordable price of around $90.

News Roundup - 01/10/2013

by: Jeremy - posted: 1/11/2013 8:20 AM - Add a Comment

CES 2013: iFrogz Caliber Advantage

by: John - posted: 1/11/2013 12:25 AM - Add a Comment
ZAGG’s probably best known for their screen protectors (I use one on my Note II.), but they acquired iFrogz a few years ago to help expand their product line. With that, I met with them at CES to go over the Caliber Advantage.
 
The Caliber Advantage is a nicely designed gamepad accessory for the iPhone. The iPhone attaches to the Advantage like a case and looks just like it’s part of the back of the phone. When you slide it out from either side though, that’s when the magic happens. There are two analog sticks, a D-Pad, four top buttons, and two shoulder buttons. The analog sticks are pretty unique for this type of accessory. 
 
 
Magnets on the Advantage can detect when its slid out, thus turning the unit on.  There’s no on and off switch as the Advantage knows when it’s closed up and it will also turn itself off after about 5 minutes of inactivity, saving battery life.
 
The Advantage connects to the phone via Bluetooth, but not in the traditional way. Games have to use the the hooks provided by the SDK in order to use the Advantage. That means the product pairs with the game, and not with the phone. You may be used to pairing a Bluetooth device with the phone in the traditional manner, but here it only pairs to the Advantage when a game supporting it is launched. Yes, it’s a little bit different and you can’t just go and use it on any game, but the reason being is that for the analog sticks to truly work as intended, developers have to use the SDK.
 
Where the phone sits, it can rotate to portrait or landscape mode. This way, you can use it in games that don’t support one or the other, which is really nice. With the phone’s headphone placement, it can get in the way of the analog stick on the right side. Thankfully, iFrogz has included a 90 degree adapter so you can plug your headset into the iPhone when using the Advantage as well without interfering with the controls
 
You can even use it with an iPad. Just launch the game on the iPad while the phone is inactive and the Advantage will automatically pair up with the iPad. 
 
I’ve been told companies such as EA and Epic are really bullish on the Caliber Advantage. So much so that Epic is thinking about releasing some games for the Apple platform that they haven’t yet due to the lack of a good analog stick in the mobile area. Perhaps if this takes off, we’ll see some of those “unreleased” games come out from Epic.
 
Coming in the first half of 2013 at around $70, the Caliber Advantage with its 10 hour of battery life for gaming might be the gaming product that drives some new games for the iOS platform.

CES 2013: Mitsubishi

by: Dan - posted: 1/10/2013 10:31 AM - Add a Comment
I stopped by the Mitsubishi booth to take a look at the lineup of home theater projectors that they had announced at CEDIA last year.  The flagship is the HC8000D, which is a DLP based 3D projector.  I was shown a demo of Despicable Me that really showed off the 3D depth and clarity with very crisp images that popped off the screen.  The glasses were also very comfortable and there was very little change in the lens color when looking through them.  Most active shutter glasses look significantly darker looking through them but these were much clearer.  One of the biggest selling points of the HC8000 is the 2D to 3D conversion.  It offers five settings so you can find the perfect one that provided the proper 3D depth and look for you and your family.  Another nice option is that if you get the HC8000 calibrated by a third party, there are custom settings so you can always go back to the calibration once it is complete.

Mitsubishi is running a special right now where you can pick up the HC8000, 3D glasses, emitter and an extra lamp for $2995 MSRP.  If you want to pick up an extra pair of the Mitsubishi glasses, they will run you $199 each.  However, the HC8000 is also compatible with many third-party glasses makers, so you can find an alternative pair based on comfort or budget.  We are hoping to get in a review unit of the HC8000 in the near future in order to see how well it performs in our review setting.

Also in the booth, primarily for entertainment purposes, was one of Mitsubishi’s commercial grade CyberTouch panels that had been turned into horizontal game table.  When I was there (see image below) there was a virtual air hockey style game being played.  I believe it will retail for over $10k, so not exactly for the home, but you could find it in your local bar or hang out in the near future.

CES 2013: Archos GamePad

by: Dan - posted: 1/10/2013 9:53 AM - Add a Comment
My first appointment yesterday was to swing by the Archos booth and get my first look at the GamePad, their android-based gaming tablet.  We saw a lot of information come out on the European version over the summer but I was able to get some of the specs confirmed for the U.S. version during my visit. 

I met with Steve Cederberg, Archos Product Manager, and he was able to fill in some of the information gaps regarding the U.S. version of the GamePad.  It will have the dual-core CPU along with the quad-core GPU running the 7” screen.  The GamePad memory includes 1GB of internal RAM, 8GB of internal storage and up to 64GB of external storage via micro SD.  As previously reported, it will ship with Android 4.1 Jellybean and the unit is fully Google certified, which means access to Google Play store and well as being able to be upgraded.

I spent some time playing Trial and the GamePad handled the game really well.  The screen was bright, the controls responsive and easy to get too with my fingers and thumbs.  The tablet is also incredibly light, so there isn’t much chance of getting fatigue while playing it or that awkward feeling you get when holding onto larger tablets for extended periods.  I was told that it will most likely ship with copies of Angry Birds, Trial and the usual suite of applications that Archos includes on its tablets.

The GamePad mapping tool has been tested compatible with over 6,000 games so far, and there are over 2,000 that are pre-mapped.  So if you happen to come across titles that needs mapping, the system to do this works very easily.  Steve was able to demo this live for us on the show floor, so take a look at the video below of just how easy it is to map controls of games for the Archos GamePad. 


Archos Product Manager Steve Cederberg demoing the GamePad control mapping


Archos expects the GamePad to ship this February with an MSRP of $169.99, which is very competitively priced for the combination of size, processing power and memory.  The great thing is despite the gaming form factor, it is a fully functioning touchscreen tablet, so it can seamlessly switch between a recreation product and a productivity tool just by changing the apps you are running.

News Roundup - 01/09/2013

by: Jeremy - posted: 1/10/2013 8:41 AM - Add a Comment

CES 2013: Stern Pinball

by: John - posted: 1/10/2013 12:44 AM - Add a Comment
While not console or PC related, I did stop by Stern to check out their line of consumer pinball machines. I love pinball games and I was interested to see what Stern had for the consumer.
 
The lineup is called Pin and they are smaller, low maintenance pinball machines for the home. At half the price of full sized machines, these consumer versions are more affordable and less of a sticker shock should one be interested in a real pinball machine in their home. They are priced at around $2499.
 
Weighing at 125 pounds, they are designed to be maintenance free with only some upkeep needed in some of the rubber that’s in the machine. The lights are LED so that consumers won’t have to worry about changing out light bulbs since they last a lot longer and they produce a more accurate color than traditional light bulbs.
 
 
I asked about what would happen if there was some mechanical failure and how they would handle repairs. First off, all the machines comes with 60 days parts and labor and 6 months parts warranty. Stern has partnered with over 250 service centers around the US, over 300 in the world, whereby they will send a technician to your house to try and fix any problems. If they can’t fix it, they will send it back for a replacement. 
 
The two on display were Transformers and Avengers. The board layouts are simpler than arcade level pinball machines, but still features some nice ramps, bumpers, and special effects. If you play a lot of pinball, you can tell its’ a little more simplistic and the rules of the game are more simple as well. This is to help not discourage new players or casual players of pinball games. Even the scoreboard’s has been simplified. 
 
I played a bit of Transformers and found the action to be fun. It’s a real pinball machine so the flippers, bumpers, lights, etc all look and feel exactly how an arcade pinball machine should. Some of the recreations of characters such as Megatron and the Hulk look great and give the machines a nice visual appeal. The decals on the sides and scoreboard look high quality and while the machine’s size might be smaller than arcade pinball machines, Stern’s craftsmanship makes them look like they belong in a public setting.
 
I asked how many different types of machines Stern wants to put out in a year. They hope to do 2 or 3 different types of machines and are even looking to branch into other areas such as sports. I won’t lie, I’d pay for an Ohio State pinball machine. 
 
If you’re looking for a real pinball machine, but don’t want to spend the big bucks to get one, the Pin series looks like a great line to pick up and put in your home.The look and sound just like the real thing because, well, they really are but in a smaller package.

CES 2013: NVIDIA

by: John - posted: 1/10/2013 12:29 AM - Add a Comment
NVIDIA had a big showing with Project Shield and that was the emphasis of my meeting today with them. Before we get to that, we talked about what powers the handheld in the Tegra 4 chipset.
 
Tegra 4 is NVIDIA’s next generation mobile chipset. It sounds like it’s got some nice speed improvements over Tegra 3. For starters, the 4-1 CPU setup, meaning 4 A15 CPUs with one “ninja core” for low power operations, which by the way, is also an A15 CPU, makes its return here in Tegra 4. You can expect more than 2X performance in each core over the previous generation. 
 
We now have 72 GPU cores versus 12 in Tegra 3 allowing for 6X the shader performance and a real world improvement of 3X to 4X in games. That should make for some pretty nice graphics for games taking advantage of Tegra 4.
 
NVIDIA’s i500 LTE modem sounds pretty promising. It’s software based, meaning that if there are bugs that need to be fixed or improvements to be made, vendors can issue an OTA update to the LTE modem. 
 
Now, let’s talk a little bit about one of the only items announced so far to use Tegra 4, Project Shield. This handheld features a 5” 720P LCD touchscreen that is attached to an Xbox 360 like controller, although the stick placement is similar to the PlayStation controller. It runs Android so you’ll have access to all the games in that ecosystem.
 
 
But, something really cool is that it will have the ability to connect with a GeForce based computer in your house and stream content and games to it. As long as you have desktop GeForce of at least a 650 and a laptop GPU of at least a 660, you can wirelessly stream to Project Shield and play your PC games on the handheld. Steam’s big picture mode was an example of an interface that can pipe down to Project Shield whereby one can select the game from their library and fire up the game as though they were on their PC. Some folks can do it now if they have a Tegra 3 laptop using Splashtop THD with their PC, but this features a built in controller, of course.
 
Project Shield is also pretty versatile in that you can also use it as a remote to control say a PC that’s being broadcast on a TV with something like Miracast. You’ll also be able to use it with some cloud gaming services. So it’s not strictly a handheld gaming system as there are a few more functions it’s capable of.
 
There are the usual connectors such as HDMI and headset so you can output Project Shield to a big screen TV and chat with folks who you are gaming with.
 
Currently, you can expect about 5 to 10 hours of gaming if you’re using it straight as a gaming machine. For those that stream from the PC, they are aiming for 20 to 25 hours of battery life since it’s only being used to display the stream of the game rather than any computations from running one natively.
 
I asked about storage options and they are coming in 16 and 32GB flavors as well as a microSD slot for expanding the memory even more. That’s pretty good as some folks, like me, can fill up internal memory and cards quickly with content.
 
Since it’s an Android device, I asked NVIDIA what their thoughts are on folks rooting the device. They replied that it’s completely open on that side of things so do as you wish. They don’t care if you decide to root Project Shield, which is great news.
 
While just a codename for now, Project Shield is expected to ship in Q2 from both online stores as well as retail and it’s going to be a NVIDIA branded product. Pricing is now announced yet, but the tech looks very cool and I can’t wait to get my hands on one to try it out.

CES 2013: Ubisoft and Lenovo

by: John - posted: 1/9/2013 7:30 PM - Add a Comment
Over at the Venetian’s Aquanox, I met with representatives of both Ubisoft and Lenovo. Lenovo developed a tabletop computer and partnered up with one of Ubisoft’s studios, RedLynx to create some nice casual and social games for the IdeaCentre Horizon Tabletop PC.
 
The Intel Core i7 processor powers the massive 27” 1920x1080 backlit display. It’s actually got its own battery, which is kind of interesting and it can last up to 2 hours unplugged. For space, there’s 1TB of hard drive space and 8GB of memory is on board.
 
 
Powered by Windows 8, you’ll have the ModernUI when the whole thing sits upright. There’s a sensor that knows when it’s tilt down to a table top mode and that’s when a different, more social UI is presented with a radial dial in the middle to choose various types of programs to run. It’s pretty impressive when you sit next to it and I didn’t feel any heat emanating from the setup.
 
Now, with this type of product, Lenovo was looking for some good content to utilize it when it ships. They went with RedLynx, who created three little games that allow for folks to gather around and play like on board games.
 
Raiding Company was shown first to me and it’s a dual stick top down shooter, similar to Smash TV.. Four people can play at once as you go around shooting enemies and gathering up treasures and upgrades. 
 
Lenovo was nice enough to make some peripherals though to enhance the experience. There’s a suction cup jostick that you place over any of the controller areas onscreen and you can use that to move around or aim where you shoot. It gives it a more arcade feel and makes moving a lot simpler than trying to use the touch screen.
 
 
DrawRace2 was a nice little casual racing game whereby you draw your path around the track and use a button to simply turbo when needed. It was rather fun to see the different paths each person took and to strategically turbo to try and get into the lead.
 
King of Opera is a very simplistic game where there’s a spotlight and up to four opera singers running around the board. They constantly rotate and only move forward when you push a button. You try and get into the spotlight or bump the person out of the spotlight. Only when you are in the spotlight do you earn points. 
 
All the games have a good high quality look and use propriety or the Unity engine to power them. Each game is also easy to jump in and play, making it so no one gets frustrated into figuring out how to play well. These games were made to get people together and enjoy playing simple, yet fun games with a unique setup in the IdeaCentre Horizon Tabletop PC. 
 
In conjunction with the peripherals that Lenovo is creating for the computer such as the joystick I mentioned and even some dice, you have a very unique and fun experience that can be had by people sitting around it together. With RedLynx and Ubisoft, they also have some good quality software at launch to boot.
 

CES 2013: Razer Edge

by: John - posted: 1/9/2013 6:47 PM - Add a Comment
Project Fiona is coming and it does look good indeed. Officially named Razer Edge, this gamer's tablet has a ton of flexibility and power for hard core gamers on the go and at home.
 
Razer Edge is an Intel third generation Core 10" tablet running a Windows 8 Pro OS. That means it will run both legacy and new Windows 8 programs as well. That's not all though. It's got a fully discrete NVIDIA GPU in it. Think about that for a second. It's a tablet with a dedicated GPU. I don't think there's a tablet out there that has that right now that. The GPU is a NVIDIA GT 640M LE, which when I was watching games from Steam being demonstrated, ran really, really well.
 
On the CPU side, there will be a few variations. The base model will have an i5 processor with 4GB of RAM and a 64GB SSD. Going Pro will net you an i7 with 8GB of RAM and either a 128GB or 256GB SSD. You're getting some fast CPUs here so I'm having dreams of running things like Visual Studio and Photoshop when I am out on the road and don't want to use my laptop to work on.
 
The screen looked great even though the resolution was 1366x768. At the 10" size, I was quite happy with how it looked. Thought it might not be as clear as say my Transformer Infinity for reading books, gaming wise it was more than acceptable. The resolution was picked for performance and power usage, but there's no stopping Razer from going to higher resolution panels for future iterations of Edge.
 
It's not just the power of the tablet that's impressive. There are some well thought out accessories being developer for it as well. You've no doubt seen the controller that the tablet sits in the middle of. It's comfortable and the controls feel responsive. Inside the controller dock is an area to hold an optional extended battery for longer gaming time.  $249 is the price of the controller and $69 will be the price for the 40Wh extended battery.
 


 
Keyboard docks are now pretty prominent and there will be one as well for the Edge, but released in Q3. The keyboard's design was still being finalized, but it was able to take the same extended battery that fit into the controller dock and extend the life of the Edge. The dock also folds up so you can keep the tablet and computer closed up into a nice tidy package. The one at CES seemed a little bulky, but we'll see how it ends up when it's finally released.
 
If you want to hook the Edge to a monitor or TV and use it as a computer, Razer is also releasing a docking station. While the Edge itself has a USB 3.0 connector, the dock has three USB 2.0 connectors, which seems a little odd to me. I would think you would want to keep all the connections 3.0, but the docking station's going with the slower 2.0 connection. HDMI 1.4, mic in and stereo out round out the available connectors for the docking station which can be had for $99.
 
Razer's stating you should get up to 8 hours of standard, non gaming use out of it, which to me is a solid amount of time for a tablet. Gaming, though, is going to knock it down a ton making it 2 to 4 hours with the extended battery. 
 
It's also going to heat up big time, but Razer's done some  work in helping mitigate that heat away from the Edge. The right backside of the Edge was pretty toasty with a unit that was running an hour on games, so I wouldn't keep it on my lap if I was playing something from, say Steam.
 


 
Oh yes, the Edge was able to play various games from Steam such as Dishonored and Dirt. The combination of a third generation Intel Core CPU and the discreet NVIDIA GPU really lets you play some of the top titles without compromise. One unit was connected to a larger screen with two Razer Sabertooth controllers making it one very powerful "console"  for gaming. 
 
The Razer Edge isn't cheap, but it's got a lot of horsepower and a lot of cool accessories going for it. It's not made to compete with the iPads or Android tablets of the world. This is a "full" PC that's in a very small form factor. Base price is $999 and it goes up quick if you go with the Pro version and larger SSD. I finally might have find my perfect tablet to do work on the go, play, and watch movies on. The Razer Edge will be released in Q1 of this year.

CES 2013: NYKO

by: Dan - posted: 1/9/2013 10:16 AM - Add a Comment
With Nintendo the only company out with their next console, it was no surprise that NYKO pretty much focused on their updated Wii U lineup here at CES, with controllers, chargers and battery packs were the theme.

Right out of the gate was the NYKO Charge Station U, which is an all-in-one dock system for storing and charging multiple Wii U controllers.  You can put a Wii U GamePad and two Wii remotes on it simultaneously inn a very small footprint.  It will come on both white and black to match your Wii U system, and has an adjustable cradle for the GamePad to change your viewing angle so you can charge it while watching content on it.  The Charge Station U will ship in February with two NiMH batteries and rubberized covers for a suggested MSRP of $34.99

Next up and the most impressive Wii U accessory was the PowerPak, which is a replacement batter pack for the Wii U GamePad.  It uses the entire space provided (not just where the Nintendo OEM pack sits) allowing it have 3x the battery capacity of the standard GamePad battery.  Bets thing is that you can recharge it with the Nintendo first party docks and cables and comes with a mini screwdriver for ease of use.  It is slated to hit retail around February 2013 with an MSRP of $24.99.

The Pro Commander is NYKO’s answer to the Nintendo Pro Controller and works with any title that the Pro Controller is compatible with.  It connects wirelessly with the Wii U and features an analog stick layout and triggers like the Xbox 360 controller.  It was very easy to handle and felt good in my hands.  It is scheduled to have an MSRP of $34.99 and release in February in both white and black colors.

Other new Wii U accessories were the Power Stand, which will charge your GamePad using the original GamePad power cord.  The Charge Base Pro which uses a magnetic NYKO patented dongle to charge two Wii U Pro controllers and the U Boost, which is a clip-on battery pack that adds double capacity to the GamePad and doubles as a viewing stand.  All of these are also scheduled for a February release.

The last items we took a look at were the new Android-compatible Playpad lineup of controllers that started shipping right around the holidays.  Both the Playpad and Playpad Pro were available to demo and they worked really well.  The Playpad comes in both black and white and has a storage case that isn’t much larger than an eyeglass case.  The Playpad Pro is a full-sized controller that seemed more geared toward tablets and larger displays.  Sean mentioned that the Playpad felt a bit small in his hands, but I thought it was comfortable enough.  We did ask NYKO if any of the Playpads might work with the any of the Android-based consoles that have recently been released, but they were unable to comment at this time.  Based on where they are at and what would need to be done, I do not think it would be hard for NYKO to retool the Playpads, or refresh them to work with any new Android consoles in the future.

News Roundup - 01/08/2013

by: Jeremy - posted: 1/9/2013 9:48 AM - Add a Comment

CES 2013: Westinghouse

by: Dan - posted: 1/9/2013 9:24 AM - Add a Comment
Westinghouse had several new products this year to show off including their UHDTV (4K) lineup, edge-lit LED TVs and Bluetooth wireless speakers.  The UHDTV sets will come in 50, 55 and 65 inch models; have 3840 x 2160 resolution and 120 Hz and the ability to up-convert to 4K from 1080p.  We spent some time watching a true 4K feed of a Cirque de Sole program on the 50” model that looked really good.  Expect a Q1 release of the models, with the 50” retailing for ~$2,500 and the 65” for ~$4,000.  Last night, I posted about the 110" prototype, which can be checked that out here.

In addition to the UDHTVs, Westinghouse also brought in a full lineup of new edge-lit LED TVs.  The sizes ranged anywhere from 28 – 60 inches and had excellent picture quality.  One item of note is that Westinghouse changed the design of the backs of their sets, to create a smaller contact plate from the stand to the unit, and also create space to allow for better TV speakers.  Too many times, thin TVs mean lack of even adequate speakers, so it was nice to see this, especially for smaller TVs that are more apt to not have surround systems attached to them.

The Bluetooth wireless speakers, dubbed the “UNPLUG” series, were also impressive with a lineup consisting of five speakers in various sizes and shapes.  They all feature built-in microphones so you can use the speakers for hands-free calling.  The units are the AIO ($129.99 MSRP), 300 ($229.99 MSRP), 200 ($179.99 MSRP) and 100 ($99.99 MSRP).  The demo we listened to for the AIO showed it was capable of producing a nice range of audio, including quality bass, due to its passive radiator contained in the tiny box.  The 100 is currently available, while the other three are scheduled for a Q1 2013 release.

Overall, I like the lineup that Westinghouse brought to the show, as their TVs continue to offer some of the best value for your dollar.  The Bluetooth speakers options are also a nice addition and the UDHTV units looked amazing.   Once pricing becomes available and they hit retail, it would be wise to take a look when shopping for your next TV to see if a Westinghouse should be on your list.

CES 2013: Innovations on the floor

by: Dan - posted: 1/9/2013 1:13 AM - Add a Comment
We stopped by Westinghouse yesterday, and came across a very large television, which we have seen before at the show.  However, this wasn’t just any TV, but a prototype of a 110” Ultra High Def (4K) set.  In the image below, you can see just how beautiful this TV can look and how it just dwarfs Sean.  Because the 110” is still a prototype, pricing wasn’t available and we were told that the size would likely be around 98” due to cost and engineering considerations.   The Westinghouse press release does state that the largest UHDTV (when a size is finalized) will be available in Q1 as a custom order only.

CES 2013: Roccat Gaming Power Grid

by: Sean Cahill - posted: 1/8/2013 11:42 PM - Add a Comment
Finishing up the visit to Roccat on the first full day of CES 2013, we turn our attention to the much anticipated Power Grid, a software that is downloadable to both the iPhone and Android-based smartphones.  It's best to think of the Power Grid as an all-in-one accessory to do all of the things a gamer wished he could do with a single touch.  The video below will explain some of the in-game additions as an example, using The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim as the base title.  It's important to note that the Power Grid is designed to basically help out in all aspects of computer usage.  Colors on the keyboard and mouse can be changed on the fly, timers can be utilized for anything that one can think of, and macros can be quick accessed.  The iOS version of Power Grid will be available within the next four to six weeks, with the Android version just a few weeks after.  Enjoy the video to see how quick the reaction is from the software on the iPhone and the in-game action. 

CES 2013: Roccat Gaming Ryos Keyboard

by: Sean Cahill - posted: 1/8/2013 10:33 PM - Add a Comment
CES 2013 is in full swing, and appointments have officially started here in Las Vegas.  My Tuesday started out at the Las Vegas Hotel to visit with the good people from Roccat.  Last year, Roccat made their North American debut at CES with a solid line of products.  This year, there were two primary products in focus:  The Ryos Keyboard and the Power Grid.

RYOS KEYBOARD

The meat and potatoes of the visit focused on Roccat's first mechanical keyboard, the Ryos.  Bearing a very similar look to the Isku from Roccat, the Ryos is designed to be more customizable than any other keyboard available.  As with most keyboards today, all of the keys are illuminated, but are also changeable based upon the user's preferences and current needs.  For instance, if a user is currently operating Adobe Photoshop, a change in the macro will illuminate specific editing keys that the program uses.  Of course, it wouldn't be proper to have this feature without really having it in mind for gamers.  Various settings are available to illuminate the standard keys used in games, such as the WASD keys for movement, macro keys, and so on.  The macro keys on the left hand side, upon pressing them, will also show the keys on the primary keyboard that are already coded, that way a gamer won't forget which one he or she set up for a specific macro.  Little things make a good product that much better.

The spec-sheet for the Ryos Keyboard is as follows
- Per-key illuminated mechanical keyboard with 113 keys
- Advanced anti-ghosting with N-key rollover
- Choice of four CHERRY MX key switches
- 3 programmable thumbster keys
- 5 programmable macro keys
- 94 other programmable keys
- 1000 hz polling rate, 1 ms response time
- 1.8m rear-exit braided cable
- 1 x audio in, 1 x audio out, 2 x USB 2.0 ports
- 2MB on-board memory
- Two 32-bit ARM Cortex Processors

MSRP for the three models, the Pro, the Glow, and the standard MK, are $149.99, $129.99, and $99.99 respectively.

Expected release date is April 2013.

CES 2013: SteelSeries

by: John - posted: 1/8/2013 10:32 PM - Add a Comment
My annual trip to SteelSeries’s suite yielded two new keyboards that they just recently announced. The Apex and the Apex [Raw] are new membrane keyboards coming from SteelSeries that are geared towards gamers, of course. Let’s start with the more feature packed Apex.
 
The Apex is a low profile keyboard priced at $99.99. Any of the 504 keys can be programmed, giving you plenty of flexibility in how you want to setup the keyboard. You can see from the images that the Apex has a very oversized space bar. It’s actually a nice design as you have a large area for your thumb to press. There’s a set of macro keys on the left side as well as above the function keys. The ones above the function keys are slightly angled to you so you can tell that you are pressing a macro key instead of a function key.
Now, many gamers want mechanical keys, but SteelSeries decided to go with membrane here to keep costs down and they will see if in the future there’s a market for mechanical keys in the Apex line. Personally, I don’t mind membrane keyboards and can do with either or when gaming and working.
 
An emphasis on the Apex is the 5 zones of colors you can program. Say you got some different profiles for your character in a game. You can setup profiles on the keyboard to match them and select a color so you can visually see when you change a profile and to what profile you have decided upon. As with most color changing keyboards, you get access to 16.8 million colors to choose from. Also, you have 8 levels of brightness along with the amount of colors selectable.
 
On the bottom are large rubber feet that can be interchangeable with feet at different angles. Two sets of feet, set at 7 degree tilt or 10 degree tilt are available and provided over the plastic clips that pop down as they are more robust and won’t break. 
 
The Apex also features two additional USB ports if you would like to plug some USB devices there rather than in the computer itself.
 
SteelSeries has also designed some nice software to help improve your gaming. The SteelSeries Engine has a cool recording capability that will keep track of all the keys you press. It will then generate a heat map to show you which keys you press a lot in the game you play. With the visual cues, the software can recommend some setups or you can use the heat map to create setups that you are more comfortable with. This is an example of how SteelSeries is trying to improve your gaming in not only making products easy to use, but to use software to provide information that maybe beneficial in improving your gameplay.
 
 
For those that want to spend a little less and get a few features removed, the Apex [Raw] is the keyboard for you. At $69.99, the [Raw] only shines white and has five less macro keys as well as two less profiles. Also missing are the additional USB ports and no dedicated media keys. The rest is pretty much the same and you do get support of the SteelSeries Engine as well.
 
Both keyboards seem well designed in both the hardware and software department. It’ll be interesting to see if gamers call for a mechanical keyboard option of the Apex, but SteelSeries believes that they have a great price point for a feature rich keyboard even without the mechanical key setup. We’ll be sure to have a review up once we get some time with the final unit.

CES 2013: PowerA MOGA Pro

by: John - posted: 1/8/2013 8:20 PM - Add a Comment
For mobile gamers out there, PowerA had the MOGA which was a great little Bluetooth controller to make gaming more comfortable on tablets and phones. Well, at CES 2013, they were showing off their next iteration MOGA and I’m lining up to get one when it comes out.
 
The MOGA Pro is a more traditional sized controller for those that want to hold something familiar in the hand. It’s modeled after an Xbox 360 controller’s layout with the placement of the analog sticks, D-Pad, triggers, and shoulder buttons. The standard size controller felt just right in the hand and all the buttons and triggers on the pre-production model had that optimum feel. The sticks had the appropriate resistance and the triggers’ springs were solid.
 
 
MOGA features an integrated clip that pops out from the middle of the controller. It adjusts to the size of your phone and it had no problems holding my Samsung Galaxy Note 2 with the case on. That’s about the largest it’s going to accommodate though and I would think that it’s about the largest size phone that would be comfortable to hold. The clip held the phone very tightly and I didn’t once think it had a chance of falling out.
 
For usage with tablets, a folding stand is included that compacts nicely. You can, of course, use your current case stand if you have one like I do, but the inclusion of a folding stand is nice of PowerA.
 
One of the strengths of the MOGA is the free software called Pivot that helps ease of pairing with a device as well as easily finding games that are MOGA friendly. You don’t have to hunt around in the Google Play store to see what games are compatible right off the bat and you have the option of grabbing that game from multiple sources, in case you have a preference. The ease of pairing can be bypassed by those that are more advanced and want the MOGA Pro as a straight HID device. A switch on front can determine the mode it will be in, which is a nice touch.
 
Holding the MOGA Pro in the hand with a Galaxy Note 2 attached, it felt comfortable and responsive. I hate playing games using the touchscreen when a controller is an option and the MOGA Pro is a solid option. Just going through one of the demo games felt natural with the MOGA Pro and I was sitting there fighting the on screen controls that I tend to do. I can definitely see this as a product I would use on a constant basis when playing my emulators on the phone.
 
There’s no pricing announced yet for the MOGA Pro, but I think a lot of mobile gamers who are more hard core gamers will enjoy this product. It feels like a standard controller, is lightweight, and has solid buttons and sticks for extended gaming periods. 

CES 2013: Seagate

by: John - posted: 1/8/2013 7:30 PM - Add a Comment
Seagate had two items that I was really interested in this year at CES. The successor to the GoFlex Satellite, the Wireless Plus, made its debut at the show. Seagate has went and shaved  1mm off the thickness of the device but improved on many things.
 
Space has been doubled from 500GB to 1TB. That gives you plenty of room to hold some HD video as well as all your music and photos you want to share.
 
Battery life has been doubled at 10 hour for HD streaming. That's a lot of time to stream some high quality movies to your mobile device. Testing in their labs has shown that it can support up to 3 HD streams pretty well. There's no restrictions to trying to do more streams, but 3 seems to be the optimum amount for good quality. Of course, you can stream to more devices should you opt to go for lower quality standard definition video, but for those wanting just HD, 3's your number.
 
The Wireless Plus still acts as a hotspot for 8 devices and can share a single Internet connection amongst them. Seagate has gone and made some nice easy to follow instructions should you want to make funnel all the traffic through it.
 
Seagate has gone and improved on the iOS and Android app to be more robust. You can now wirelessly copy files to the device, something the GoFlex Satellite couldn't do. The interface to the app is pretty intuitive with the app aggregating all your videos, pictures, and files into one nice easy view. For those that want the folder view, it's there at a touch of a button. 
 
For videos, the app will let you choose the app to play them should you have a third party video app installed. That's nice for folks like me who record shows in WTV format from Windows 7 Media Center and want to have it play back on their Android device using MX  Player. 
 
If you're interested in streaming to other devices without using the app, Wireless Plus is DLNA certified so TVs, computers, media players, whatever can use DLNA will be able to stream from the Wireless Plus as well.
 
I've been an avid user of the GoFlex Satellite and I'm excited to see the follow up. It's smaller, sleeker, more powerful, and more space at the same price point.
 
For consumers who want a NAS like device but don't want to set things up, the Seagate Central is for you. Seagate's going so far as to not even call it at NAS. 
 
Central comes in three flavors: 2TB, 3TB, and 4TB. It's so easy to setup and install. There are three connections in the back: a power connector, ethernet, and USB. Once plugged in, you can use Seagate's app to set it up or just use the web interface. There's a public area and a private area for each user you put on the Central.
 
Seagate's software can setup auto back up routines whereby it will do a full backup initially and then do incremental backups there after. If you are a Time Machine user, Central's compatible for you guys as well. It makes doing backups pretty simple for those who might not be as tech savvy.
 
Central's going to be great as a streaming server as well.Seagate's gone and created a SmartTV app for Samsung TVs (others soon as well) where it can automatically find videos, photos, and music to stream. The interface will let you search and sort for items on the Central hard drive. It's also DLNA compliant so it can stream to many other devices as well.
 
For mobile devices, Central shares the same application as the Wireless Plus letting mobile users access to the files. And, if you're on the go, you can even use the software to copy files to Central, which is pretty convenient.
 
Seagate Central seems like a nice network storage device for those wanting something easy to setup to backup their files or stream media from. The three various size configurations can accommodate a lot of files and its ease of use should appeal to a lot of casual folks looking for something simple to use.
 
Seagate was also showing off their third generation hybrid drives. Now, you know I'm a big fan of Seagate's hybrid drives so it was good to see what they had in the pipeline. They had a 500GB 1 platter hybrid at 7mm for ultrabooks as well as a two platter 1TB 9 1/2mm drive.
 
Now, to show off some benefits for gamers, there was a demo station with two PlayStation 3s. One had a hybrid drive will the other had the standard PS3 HDD. An 11 hour Dragon Age session was saved on each one and a saved file was loaded on both at the same time. The one with the hybrid was able to load the game twice as fast as the one with the standard HDD. The Seagate rep was almost able to load the save game twice before the other one finished its first run. Pretty nice for those that want to save some time on the PS3 and it's easy to swap out HDDs on the system.
 
Seagate's got two nice products in both the Wireless Plus and the Seagate Central for storage and streaming operations. They also reaffirmed the benefits of a hybrid drive, this time for gamers on the console scene. I'm excited to try out Wireless Plus and see if Seagate Central would benefit me even though I have a pretty complete home network setup with Home Server.