Comcast has announced that it will launch its own streaming service that will compete with Netflix directly. The service will be called Xfinity Streampix. Comcast will bundle the service with its existing cable offerings and will have a price point set at $4.99 a month which is lower than Netflix’s current $7.99 a month offering.

We have known for some time that Comcast was making something to compete with Netflix and Hulu’s streaming services. Streampix will provide shows such as “30 Rock,” and “Lost” and movies like “Ocean’s Eleven”. The offering will be very similar to Netflix’s current offering of previously aired TV shows.

Comcast will be able to offer media from their current contracts with companies already broadcasting on their TV network. If done correctly Comcast has the potential to have a much larger library than that of Netflix and should pose great competition against Netflix. Other competitors include Redbox and Verizon, as well as Amazon Prime instant streaming services.

Comcasts current subscriber numbers keeps them in the number 1 position currently with Netflix at 21.7 million subscribers on its online-streaming service. It will be interesting to see if any subscriber shifts occur between the two services when Streampix launches.

Netflix also loses all of their Starz content on the 28th of this month which will dramatically cut away from their Movie selection for instant viewers on the service. This was due to a failed deal between Starz and Netflix late last year.

The new Xfinity Streampix service will launch February 23rd for Comcast Subscribers.

The Casio Signature XJ-M145 and their other projectors in Casio’s new “Signature” line use their new hybrid LED light source. Casio’s new light source can essentially last for the life of the projector also it is mercury free. The XJ-M145 is just over the $1,000 price point, so it is a little expensive for your average Joe. Casio had a little brother called the Green Slim, for under $1,000 but it contains more features. Read on for the nits and grits of the projector.

Lens
The XJ-M145’s light source is rated at 2,500 lumens. It lacks in resolution at only 1,024 by 768. The projector produces red color with LEDs, blue with lasers, and green by shining the blue laser light on a phosphor. This light is then directed through the DLP chip then out through the lens. An outstanding advantage of the hybrid LED light source is its gigantic 20,000 hour lifetime. And that is long enough to run it 8 hours a days, 5 days a week for 10 years. For comparison for a standard lamp can last from 2,000 to 5,000 hours, and costing up to $500 per bulb to replace. The projector has an intelligent brightness control which automatically controls the brightness of the output of the lens. The lens is able to project a nice image even in a decently lit room.
Size and Connectivity
The XJ-M145 measures 3.3H by 12.2W by 9.6D inches weighing in at 8.2 pounds which is on the large side of today’s projectors. It comes with a soft carrying case, with pocket for your cables. Some of the great hookup capabilities include USB connectivity. It is able to read JPG and AVI files from a USB memory key. Which is great if you need to show a presentation at work but you do not want to bring your laptop. All you have to do is plug-in a USB stick and it automatically switches to USB input. The feature that made me really smile was its capability to connects wireless to Wi-Fi-enabled Android, iOS, and Windows Mobile devices. This also includes computers running the MobiShow software. Other connectors include a HDMI port for a computer or video source; a VGA port for a computer, S-Video, composite video; audio in, audio out, a serial port, and an Ethernet LAN connection. With the built-in 5-watt mono speakers you can get a decent amount of volume. For the use of the 3D projection you will need active-shutter DLP-link compatible 3D glasses.
Conclusion
This is a great projector. It is a little pricey but you get a lot of new features that will make you not regret making this purchase. I give the projector 4 out of 5 gears

A lawsuit was filed against Apple in July of 2010 against the signal degradation better known as “Antennagate” on the iPhone 4.  The settlement in the lawsuit has received preliminary approval. The case sought damages for owners of the original iPhone 4 which said that ”the case and antenna design has led to a substantial degradation in signal quality and dropped calls when the phone is used in a normal and foreseeable fashion by users.”

What does this mean for owners of the original iPhone 4? One of two options, either a $15 check will be sent to each user or a free bumper case for their iPhone 4.  Once Apple brings up the site consumers will be able to visit www.iPhone4Settlement.com to find out more information and what steps they need to take to be compensated. It is not yet known what will happen with consumers that already have partaken in the free bumper case offered originally when the iPhone 4 released. The original suit is below:

Complaint Tietze Apple FINAL

Foxconn is the company that is responsible for assembling most of Apple’s latest and greatest products and has been at the center of the news lately. The Fair Labor Association who monitors the working conditions of facilities that product Apple products has started investigating Foxconn. They have found “tons of issues” when visiting Foxconn Technology Group plant in Shenzhen, China, FLA Chief Executive Officer Auret van Heerden said.

Foxconn has been in the news numerous times for unsafe working conditions and worker suicides. The investigations are in place to make sure that the unsafe working conditions are corrected and unneeded deaths prevented.

The FLA found tons of issues and they plan to release their findings in the coming weeks on what was found at the Foxconn plants. They also stated that the company is cooperating fully with the inspections and plans to make corrections where needed. Foxconn released the following statements to BusinessWeek:

“Foxconn is cooperating fully with this audit and we will review and act on all findings and recommendations,” Foxconn said in an e-mailed statement today. “This is a very professional and thorough review and any deficiencies the FLA might find in the implementation of customer or Foxconn policies will be addressed.”

In lieu of recent explosions at the Foxconn plant related to the polishing of Aluminum Foxconn has installed better ventilation to help prevent dust buildup. Buildup which lead to the deaths of 3 workers and injured at least 70. The FLA group will intervew 35,000 employees about their working conditions at Foxconn. However they are finding it very hard to get workers to talk about the more sensitive topics.

The changes that Foxconn have made to the conditions at the company are “dramatic” says Van Heerden. Foxconn will now need to improve its image to the world and its consumers this will be a difficult task.

The iPhone released in Argentina and was quickly met with steep Government Restrictions that prevent the sale of the device. Now the iPhone is not banned in Argentina in any way. Argentina has actually blocked the import of the iPhone because it does not meet their restrictions for devices that are built outside the country.

The government is trying to encourage consumers to purchase products that are created in the country rather than outside it.  President Cristina Kirchner is advocating that the block could create more jobs which doesn’t make all that much sense to me.

Join Andrew as he lives the life of a Mob Boss with a deadly powerful monster living inside him that murders everything in sight with the Darkness 2. For-Warning, there is going to be a lot of blood and gore, so you might want to avoid this if you are privy to that sort of thing.

First we start off in a nice looking restaurant, where we are to meet some fine young ladies before all goes to hell with the Brotherhood crashing the party and causing some unfortunate pain upon Jackie. Afterwards we finally get to see the Darkness do it’s thing as Andrew realizes he might like murdering people a little to much.

Next, Andrew begins to chase down the people who hit the restaurant by running down the town as it is filled with chaos, murdering all who stand in his way before going down into a Subway Station where the small confinements create an exploitative disadvantage for the enemies until we are almost hit by an on-coming train to which we doge.

Next we have a serious talk with Aunt Sarah who tells us that Jenny isn’t real and just a delusion. Afterwards we cruise the Mansion and shoot some bottles with Dolfo, before finally getting down to business and following up on a lead with the Brotherhood.While searching we find out that Swifty was a prime suspect and hunt him down at a bar only for him to get away and a bloody chase ensures.

We finally get to Swifty as he is trying to use a crane to kill us, after a few well thrown propane tanks Swifty bolts for a warehouse where we eventually corner him and find out what he knows before the Darkness kills him.

Western Digital, the world’s leader in external storage solutions, showed off their My Book Thunderbolt Duo drive a few weeks ago at MacWorld 2012. Thunderbolt technology is capable of producing up to 10 gigabits per second of throughput on each of two channels in both directions. The external drive connects to your computer via a 10Gbps thunderbolt port. The device harbors two 3.5-inch drives in either 4TB (2x 2TB) or 6TB (2x 3TB) variants. Actual transfer rate tests conducted by Western Digital, yielded results for thunderbolt of >250 MB/s on the 6TB systems and >225 MB/s on the 4GB drives. They were also able to display how a daisy-chain of 6 My Book Thunderbolt Duo drives would look.

Western Digital states the “Thunderbolt technology will improve workflow speed and efficiencies for enthusiasts and professionals dealing with large digital files such as video, audio and still photos.” This drive definitely looks to be setting a new height in storage, speed and backup capabilities that would really lend itself as a great tool for many consumers, especially video professionals. Could you imagine being able to transfer a full HD movie in 30 seconds or backup nearly 9,000 hours of music in just over 10 minutes? Well that is a connected world that we want to be apart of in the future as a standard. As we stated above the Western Digital My Book Thunderbolt Duo will be available in 4 TB and 6 TB hard drives and availability and pricing have yet to be announced.

Hasbro and Blizzard Entertainment have partnered up to release a fresh take on two classic board games. Monopoly: World of Warcraft and Risk: StarCraft, both are built with previous foundations with new designs and gameplay elements inspired by Blizzards populat gaming universes. This is just another way to expand two already popular universes into the offline world.

World of Warcraft Monopoly will involve a legendary adventure to battle for control of iconic WoW locations, featuring custom graphics from Blizzard’s talented artists and desginers. The game featured land grabs include Twilight Highlands, Grizzly Hills and the Swamp of Sorrows. In a fight to rule over the faction capitals of Orgrimmar and Stormwind, players use old school monopolistic tactics until one player controls all the lands and forces your friend to throw the board over in anguish.

The game will also come with custom sculpted houses (Warcraft Towns) and hotels (Warcraft cities) plus a red and blue die representing the Horde and Alliance factions.

For those interested can see a sneak peek at the World of Warcraft Facebook page and have an opportunity to vote on the game’s iconic tokens. Ten options are up for vote, including Murky, Chen’s Keg, Mechagnome, and a spellbook, the six most popular tokens will be represented in the game when it launches this May in North America for $39.95.

Next is Risk: StarCraft, which should whet the appetites of StarCraft players, who will once again find the StarCraft universe in jeopardy. Players can choose from the Terran, Protoss or Zerg factions and six unique heroes to ultimately bring order to the galaxy. The struggles and conflicts portrayed in the original game adapt perfectly to classic tabletop Risk gameplay, and the winner will be determined by astute deployment of military might and strategic field tactics.

There are 3 play modes and over 290 custom playing pieces. More details will be released as it moves closer towards its release date. It launches this summer and will be available in local comic book shops and other specialty stores throughout North America for around $49.45.

As a huge fan for this newly released title, Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning, I was rather upset to find out that the strategy guide has been pushed back again. Originally scheduled to release on February 7th with the game, it was posted on Facebook today that players will be able to recieve the strategy guide “in the next couple of weeks” with no offical set date. After not releaseing on the original date with the game, retailers had been told that the new release date would be this Friday, February 17th, and are now saying that it should be in stores Friday, February 24th.

Curt Schilling updated fans early yesterday morning on the game’s forums page

“I’ve just received confirmation from our partners at Future Press that the Reckoning strategy guide has been sent to the printer. The printing process will take about 10 days, and then they go straight into the mail…I’m sorry that they weren’t available on launch day.”

As a “thank-you to everyone who purchased the strategy guide and stuck with us” Schilling promises they will be holding a “fun” contest soon on their fourm page to win prizes. With any luck, a prize will be the ability to purchase the next strategy guide they release one time. Let’s hope that no one gets frustrated to the point of no return, and gives up on this amazingly dense RPG too soon while they await the release of the helpful book which is sure to carry them throughout the entire game. Highly doubtful since the game is a complete blast with beautiful graphics and outstanding gameplay. Schilling later reports

“Our goal is to never make the same mistake twice. We absolutely believe you are going to love the guide, it has every ounce of quality and quantity that our collector’s edition items had.”

For myself the promised love for this guide is not only believable but adds to the antipacition since Future Press posted on the game’s Facebook page that

“We have increased the page count from initially 400 to now 600 pages to make justice to the massive content that the game delivers. We could have easily deleted entire chapters just to be in time (and the guide would have still been decent), but that’s not what we do.”

This claim shows that the massive guide of Reckoning challenges to rival the Elder Scrolls Skyrim strategy guide which has 655 pages of full detail to escort you the snowy Nord lands of Skyrim. I, for one, will continue to play Reckoning while I wait in anticipation to see if this delayed strategy guide lives up to the long wait for it’s release.

You heard right, you can now get your hands on the beautiful iPad 2 for just $429. It is a good bet that the prices have been lowered because the upcoming refresh of the iPad line will update it for the iPad 3. The iPad sale is being held at various retailers with this ad being specifically found at Meijer. The sale on the iPad 2 is only valid from February 12th to the 18th.  Check out your local Meijer store for the deal and be on the lookout at other stores competing.

Ubergizmo

Codemasters announced on February 9th that there is scheduled to be a complete edition of the rally racing game “Dirt 3″ released sometime in March on PC, PS3 and Xbox 360. Joystiq reports that

“The $39.99 release will include the full game, 12 new tracks in two different new locations and lots of new cars and liveries to play around with.”

In the press release it is stated that “Dirt 3 itself features over 50 years of iconic rally cars to be raced through the snow, rain and dirt.” Dirt 3 already has amazing graphics that carry you across the globe.

“From the forests of Michigan to the infamous roads of Finland and the national parks of Kenya, gamers take on a wide range of disciplines including Gymkhana, Rallycross, Landrush, Head 2 Head and Trailblazer, plus the most amount of Rally content in the series yet.”

Dirt 3 can be played alone or with a friend, either online or with split-screen. Dirt 3 complete Edition expands the game by adding 7 different add-on packs containing various cars for both single and multiplayer gameplay, as well as the previously stated tracks and locations.

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Plot:

The Darkness 2 picks up loosely where the first game left off. I say loosely because unlike the previous game, Darkness 2 decided to focus more on the storyline from the original comic series, namely the main villain, Victor, who is leader of the Brotherhood, a secret organization dedicated to harnessing the power of the Darkness.

First you begin at a nice diner as Jackie Estacado, two years after the events from the previous game. While at dinner you are interrupted by a van driving through the window and burning your leg to which causes your friend Victor to drag you out from the restaurant, but before you can get out of the kitchen, it is blown up causing you to release the Darkness once more and begin to go onto a killing spree.

Throughout the game you spend your time trying to find the people who came after you at the restaurant before finally figuring out it is the brotherhood, whom have come to collect the darkness on the debt your father promised them once they found the syphon needed to separate the Darkness from its host. After fighting your way to Victor through henchmen after henchmen you finally get to the final fight which ends with you killing Victor and using the Syphon to kill yourself so you can save Jenny’s soul which has been trapped inside the Darkness.

After fighting the Darkness and reclaiming Jenny’s soul, you come to find she has been possessed by the Angelius which had been previously trapped inside the Darkness along with Jenny’s soul.

Personally, I find this story to be a lot better than the previous game, there were more moments that got my immersed into the game than the previous and although the ending felt like a gimmick to make another one (it just seems to convenient to have her soul trapped, freed and then possessed) but otherwise, the plot felt more deep than just cardboard people doing horrible things to your cardboard girlfriend.

There was also more understanding brought to the players attention than the previous ones. While there was an attempt to explain the Darkness in the first game through the memories of your great grandfather while you were trapped within the Darkness this time around there was a greater understanding of how much of an impact the Darkness has had over history overall, even including relics you find within levels that have lore to them.

Aesthetic:

The game had a different look to it this time, mostly cel-shading. The game had a very unique visual style, attempting to create the look and feel of a comic book; the game was made by having the games main assets hand-painted instead of relying on computers to emulate a comic style.

As usual the graphics are a step up from the previous game, with a new look and feel to the Darkness and Darkling. There were also a few new faces on your team as well as some you might remember which have all seamlessly blend in perfectly with the new cel-shaded look.

Gameplay:

One of the things that made the Darkness unique was its constant dual welding, in the first game, you were given two pistols for your birthday, pistols that seemed to be your very life and soul in the game since you couldn’t seem to use anything else, nor did anyone else in the world for that matter. Pistols seemed to be the only thing everyone in the previous game used.

In Darkness 2 there are a range of new weapons you can equip, ranging from pistols, SMG’s, shotguns to assault rifles. The new mechanic also allowed you to switch between a one or two weapons depending on your ammo or what type of gun you were carrying.

The newest feature included quad-wielding, which allowed you to hold an object with one of the Darkness hands, two guns in yours and whipping enemies with your other Darkness hand. This made murder all the more manageable as the game puts you in more complex fighting situations where you might be forced to fight a guy with a shield and another running at you, so while you take the shield away with one of the Darkness hands you can shoot another running at you then whip the guy you just stole the shield from.

Another feature is ‘dark essence’ which are points you can use to unlock skills or powers for the Darkness to bring greater devastation unlike the previous game where powers were unlocked during certain parts of the campaign. The skill trees were broken up into 4 parts; Execution powers, Gun Powers, two separate Darkness powers.

This added skill tree made your preference in combat more fit to how you play, so if you personally don’t use certain attacks or skills you are not forced to dump points into them, it also made eating hearts or performing certain execution kills worth the effort.

Multi-player:

The coolest feature added to the game was Vendettas which is a multi-player mode where four hit men who each have specific Darkness powers go on missions for Jackie which take place behind the main story, so they fit together with what was going on during the single player campaign. The main story behind Vendettas is securing certain Darkness relics that the Brotherhood is trying to use to bring down Jackie. The campaign can be played offline alone or online co-operatively with other people; however there is no option for local co-op.

There is also a spin-off of Vendettas called Hit List where you can replay previous Vendetta missions or new mission’s specific for Hit List mode. However, some of the levels in Hit List can only be played with two or more people while the others can only be unlocked after beating certain Vendetta missions.

Overall the Vendetta campaign only takes around an hour to complete and each character has their own skill tree they can upgrade as well as special skills only certain characters have.

Overall:

While the game features a more in-depth and creative storyline, it does suffer from some typical flaws. One being that light in the game used to be an environmental element, where you had to look where you were walking where Darkness 2 decided to make lights more of a hassle than they needed to be, everywhere had lights, cars, lamps, and even enemies. Instead of taking that element and making it into a tactical option where you had to choose between hiding in cover where lights were or fighting the onslaught of enemies but instead you are forced to take time away from fighting enemies to take out certain people who run at your holding lights on their shoulders which just hamper both your ability to see and fight which can be overwhelming and overly frustrating when it doesn’t need to be.

Boss fights were a nice addition as well as the skill tree which made the option for a ‘New Game +’ all the more enticing. The multi-player also added a nice sense of replay value as well as a fun option to share your bloodlust with your friends or random people. While the campaign was a tad short and most of the levels a bit too linear, but overall the game definitely felt like a sequel and it lived up to its previous game even with a new development studio and game engine fueling it.

Judgment:

If you were a fan of the previous game, I would suggest playing the game, either by renting or purchasing the game, there is a lot more depth to the story and the new Darkness powers are worth checking out.

If you are new to the series, it is worth renting just to get some murderous bloodlust out of your system, but unless you are really into cel-shading or the story itself there might not be much for you here, there are a lot of exposition so whether you like it or not.

NVIDIA and Rambus have come together in friendship after plenty of time bent on legal war. Rambus, for those of you who do not know, is a company that holds many patents related to chip interfaces for RAM. They have been in legal battles with NVIDIA since 2008 regarding patent infringement. Earlier this week, the 2 companies announced they have settled outstanding patent infringement claims along with signing a patent license agreement. The deal will allow NVIDIA to use patented Rambus technology in its products for the next 5 years without any repercussion.

Rambus already had such licensing deals with Toshiba, Intel, Sony, and AMD. We are not sure why NVIDIA has not been included in that ring until now, but at least innovation can now be let free to run wild.

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HTC says Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich (ICS) will be coming to some existing devices in an update form by March. They have confirmed on their Facebook page that the HTC Sensation, HTC Sensation 4G, HTC Sensation XE, and the HTC Sensation XL will be getting their updates to ICS in March. Users of the HTC Vivid, HTC Amaze 4G, HTC EVO 3D, HTC EVO Design 4G, HTC Incredible S, HTC Desire S, and HTC Desire HD will also get updated to ICS, but will have to wait a bit longer as they will be coming “later this year.”

Mobile World Congress may unveil a newer version of the Sense UI for Android that coexists with ICS. We are anxious to see how well that relationship will work out in the long run.

HTC Facebook

We have been holding our breaths for TiVo to work with DIRECTV in releasing a compatible HD DVR to the masses nationwide, since the release of the TiVo Premier line of set-top boxes. Well the wait is finally over as DIRECTV customers from any area can now get their very own “DirecTiVo” for $199 along with an additional monthly service fee, HD and DVR access fee. We are sorry to say that this new box will not be supporting some premier features such as 3D support, multiroom support, as well as the Premier UI and live streaming iPad apps. The new box will allow users to record up to 100 hours of HD content or 400 hours of shows in standard definition.

TiVo and DIRECTV had initially deployed units in an initial 10 market test back in December 2011 that must have been successful enough for them to launch these devices nationwide. Check out the press release below for more details.

With the recent CES conference in January, television manufacturers unveiled both their television models for the coming year and concept designs for the future. With this conference and other announcements, we’ve got a clear view of some of the new technologies manufacturers plan to include in their sets.

Among these cool technologies are ultra-thin displays, improved 3D technology and a vast improvement on current HD standards. Everyone from the end-users to television networks such as DirecTV should be interested in seeing where television manufacturers are guiding the industry.

Displays

Displays have been slimming down for years, but 2012 so far has seen displays get thinner than some smartphones. LG has demoed displays with screens larger than 55” that are less than 10 millimeters thin.

At that point, the displays showed off by LG are thinner than most consumers’ smartphones. One of the benefits of these big displays is their increased mobility. A large screen no longer needs to be mounted and mostly left in one room for its lifespan.

3D

Even cooler than thin television sets, though, is the new 3D technology showed off by Toshiba and other manufacturers. Previous 3D displays required users to wear cumbersome glasses, but in the past year 3D displays that don’t require glasses started to hit the market.

The drawback to these displays, though, is that they require users to sit in a “sweet spot” to get the 3D effect. Toshiba has shown off a display that uses an embedded camera to track user movement. This stops users from having to sit in a certain spot, and the 3D effect can be experienced from virtually anywhere.

4K

Finally, one last technology that’s been shown off is the 4K resolution. Right now, the best HD content is at a 1080p resolution. 4K resolution is roughly four times as clear as 1080p, and is more comparable to 35mm film than any current TV standard.

These displays will start to hit the market in 2012, although they will have to rely on upscaling until television providers such as DirecTV start to provide native 4K content.

2012 is set to be a year of change for television sets. With improved technologies both in resolution and the way 3D content is delivered, the market might be on the verge of a major evolution.

The next generation of HDTVs, with its 4K displays and glasses-free 3D technology, is something that people should be looking forward to. Make sure you have all the latest programming available for your new set, and check out www.directstartv.com for details on what you could be viewing in HD or 3D.
Note: This post is a guest post by one of TekGoblin’s avid readers

Intel has released their new 520 Series Solid State drives with increased performance and durability. These new solid state drives support up to 80,000 4K random Input-Output operations per second or IOPS. And up to 50,000 4K random read IOPS per second. Read operations from 550 MB/s and up to 520 MB/s write operations sequentially. Intel tested the drives 5000 times before providing those benchmarks.

The new solid state drives will be available starting at 60GB for $149, 120GB at $229, 180GB at $369, 240GB at $509 and 480GB at $999. Each drive also comes with a 5-year limited warranty. More information at www.intel.com/go/ssd.

There are two Downloadable Content packs now available for Final Fantasy XIII-2. The first is a Coliseum battle with Lightning and Amodar, and the second is an alternative “Warrior” outfit for Noel.

Upon defeating Amodar and Lightning in the Coliseum, a crystal will be obtained and you will be able to fight alongside them much like with any monster obtained in the same manner. I have 29:57:48 into the game at this point and was able to initiate the battle and stagger Lightning, but once Amodar joined the battle my party went down fairly quickly, so I cannot give any firsthand accounts as to what it is like to have them battle by your side. While it is obvious that it will take a fairly experienced party at a late stage in the game to defeat them in battle, I have to say that I like the opportunity this presents because it has been fairly disappointing not to be awarded the rich cast of characters that one might expect when playing Final Fantasy titles. It is not typical that you play through the entire game with just two player characters as in XIII-2.

Each Downloadable Content pack is available now in the PlayStation Store for $2.99 a piece.

We reported previously that Redbox and Verizon had entered into a joint venture to bring a new video rental service option to consumers that could rival Netflix. Well, it looks like Coinstar’s Redbox was not done there as they have purchased the entertainment division of a company called NCR for $100 million. NCR is in the business of operating self-service solutions such as ATM machines, point of sales and retail systems, airline check-in systems, and even the kiosks that are branded as Blockbuster Express kiosks. The purchase will include DVD kiosks, certain retailer contracts, and DVD inventory from NCR’s entertainment line of business. This move will bring Redbox to more consumers nationwide by re-branding all Blockbuster Express kiosks to Redbox kiosks.

In addition to the $100 million purchase of assets from NCR, Coinstar and NCR also will enter into a strategic supplier agreement where Coinstar will purchase product and services from NCR that will earn them $25 million in margin for the next 5 years. Blockbuster was already having a hard time with stiff competition from Netflix and Redbox, not to mention companies like Hulu, Amazon, Vudu, and CinemaNow nibbling away at its marketshare. A Blockbuster spokesperson had the following to say regarding the move between NCR and Redbox.

Dear Valued Customer,

NCR, which operates your Blockbuster Express kiosks, has entered into an agreement to sell its kiosks and other assets to Redbox. Until the transaction is completed (we anticipate in the third quarter of 2012), you will continue to enjoy the convenience, choice, and value you’re used to from BLOCKBUSTER Express. Until the sale is completed, we will continue to run the business as we have been, focused on bringing you the latest New Release movies with most titles only $2 for the first night. You’ll also notice that we’ve increased our In-Stock Guarantee value so you will now enjoy a movie night on us with a value of up to $3 if we don’t have the New Release movie you want in stock.

As a reminder, we still have 100s of great movies available at $1 and additional nights of all movies are still only $1, all part of preserving an exceptional value for an affordable night of entertainment.

We’ll continue to provide you with information on any changes that result from this recent announcement but for now we just wanted to say thanks for being our customer.

Sincerely,

Justin Hotard
General Manager

This can be seen as a power week from Redbox, but could their rout of Blockbuster kiosks be seen as an anti-competitive move as Blockbuster could be viewed as their only true competition in the video rental kiosks business. The transaction is subject to regulatory approval and if the deal goes through, expect your neighborhood blue and yellow Blockbuster Express to be a bright red Redbox kiosk by Q3 2012. Check out the Redbox press release below for more details on the acquisition.

The GreenSmart Puku is an earth friendly messenger style laptop bag made out of 30 recycled plastic bottles, which is promptly displayed on the bottom right corner of the bag. The bag itself measures H 13”xW 15”xD 4.5” It has a zippered top closure with padded bay that can fit up to a 15.4”

laptop in it as well as two mesh pockets measuring H 5.5”xW 8”. A quick access half flap front pocket held closed with a magnet, inside it has three slots to put either business or credit cards, two pencil slots, and a H 4.5”xW 9.5” mesh pocket.  A zippered pocket of the bottom front that is approximately H 6”x W 12” I couldn’t get a perfect measurement due to the fact that this pocket curves slightly on either end. There is also a pocket located on each side of the bag both of which are large enough to fit a standard size water bottle, and finally a back pocket that is the full width of the bag.

If you’re looking for a bag with lots of pockets for storage then this one is great, you can fit so much in it, and it also has an adjustable shoulder strap that at its smallest is 29.5” while at its largest is 54.5”. This particular bag comes in three separate colors; black with a burnt orange interior, olive green with a grey interior, and burnt orange with a grey interior.

The Puku Messenger Bag is available now for $49.95.

The next product I received from them was the Kimono, a 10” netbook, tablet, or e-reader sleeve. It is black with a grey printing of the ‘green cred’ on the front left and back right side of the sleeve, as well as, the GreenSmart logo and the word ‘neogreene’ on the front right bottom corner.

This sleeve has a specially designed gusset and mesh interior to help your laptop breath and cool down quicker. It is made of neogreene which means the outside of the sleeve is waterproof, so if you accidently spill something on it, no problem, just wipe it off and you’re good to go. Neogreene itself is an ecofriendly version of neoprene, which is the most commonly, used fabric in wet/dry suits.

The zippered opening isn’t just at the top either it goes half way down each side of the sleeve giving you a wider opening and easier access to your item. Another thing I really liked about this sleeve is that it has two zippers, unlike most other sleeves you’ll find on the market, the pulls on them also have a good wide opening so if you’re super paranoid you can lock the sleeve closed so people can’t get to it.

The Kimono Netbook Sleeve is available now for $24.95.

Both of these products are named after endangered animals. In fact all of GreenSmart products are, and they support these animals by donating 10% of their profits to the WWF and other organizations.  This company also stands behind their products they will repair or replace any bag if you are to find a defect in the materials or the workmanship when you receive your item from them.

To find these products and more just go to http://www.greensmart.biz/

Sony Network Entertainment International (SNEI) has announced that their PlayStation Network Service (PSN) will have its name changed and join its existing Sony Entertainment Network (SEN). Sony has wasted no time to attempt to really unify their online services not long after naming Kazuo Hirai, former PlayStation head, as head of all Sony Corporation. Sony states the change is only in “name-only” and that existing PSN customers and future subscribers can expect the same services. The news comes as a part of SNEI’s updated Terms of Service (TOS) and privacy policy and they will both take affect on February 7, 2012.

Sony claims that this name change and TOS update will help them “get closer to our goal of establishing a global comprehensive network platform of services across games, movies, music and more, all accessible from one convenient account. The Sony Entertainment Network account also enables use of Sony’s compelling non-game services such as Music Unlimited, Video Unlimited and PlayMemories Online (currently called Personal Space) across a variety of network-connected devices.” We took a look at the new SNEI TOS and everything appears to be in order and we do not see anything to worry about here. Check out press release below for more details.

What’s that sound? It could be the future sound of Netflix possibly losing some market share with the official announcement from Verizon and Coinstar’s Redbox that they will be coming together to offer a new rental service that will offer both physical and digital streaming media content to consumers. Subscribers to the service will be able to rent DVDs, Blu-rays, and have access to on-demand streaming and download service from Verizon. The service will launch sometime in Q2 2012, at which time we should hear more information about what devices will support the streaming services. Verizon will be holding a 65 percent ownership share and Redbox holding a 35 percent ownership share at the outset, we cannot say we like the sound of Verizon having more say in this service than the usually consumer friendly Redbox.

According to Verizon and Coinstar, “flexible and affordable service that will allow all consumers across the U.S. to enjoy the new and popular entertainment they want, whenever they choose, using the media and devices they prefer.” Based on that, we can infer that the service will be apparently limited to the United States and that there will be some widespread device availability of the streaming service. We still would like some solid information on as to which set-top boxes, tablets, phones, gaming consoles, and connected HDTVs will actually get the service, but we assume Verizon and Redbox want to go everywhere that Netflix can be on. Verizon and Redbox both have unique attributes to offer to this partnership that includes plenty of Hollywood studio content deals and they could stand to finally offer consumers a much more better choice to Netflix than what other companies have attempted so far.

I’ve encountered the strangest phenomenon in recent years that I find difficult to explain. Gamers around the world have been suckered into either awkwardly plugging in codes or paying additional fees for each game. A publisher’s decision has cost them both time and money while offering nothing in return, and oddly enough the consumers defend and even encourage the practice.  Second hand buyers deserve what they get! That’ll show them for having the nerve to show interest in your project over someone else’s!

Let’s try and analyze what an online pass is for a moment. Once upon a time a publisher known as EA decided it was time to charge a portion of the market a fee in order to play their game online. The consumer would get nothing in return, but EA defended their move by saying that “we think it’s fair to get paid for the services we provide and to reserve these online services for people who pay EA to access them.” You’ve probably heard this sort of argument before when a company condemns the act of pirating their games, and in that context it can be perfectly reasonable. The problem here is that used games are not stolen or conjured from the aether through some dark art of witchcraft.

A used game is a disc that was fully paid for through legitimate means and has merely changed hands over time. Companies would love to justify additional fees by acting like their poor servers are being bogged down by the big bad used market, but the fact is that every single one of those used games originated in an actual sale. If one person plays a game online before transferring ownership to another the end result is still just one person playing online. You’ve probably heard the horror stories about how Super Modern PC Game VII‘s servers are almost entirely occupied by dirty pirates that drain the company’s resources, but used games contribute to such problems in no way whatsoever. This means that the entire point of an online pass when going by EA’s own explanation is a moot point.

The original silly explanation of an online pass becomes even more meaningless once you look at the series of entirely single player experiences that have been given the same or comparable treatment. Remember when Dragon Age: Origins and Dragon Age II each had an entire playable character and quest chain that was locked behind a code? When it happened for the first time I was ready to dismiss it as a gimmick, but before long it became clear that this was the future for all games published by EA: cut features from a finished game, only giving it to buyers once they jump through an inconvenient hoop or shell out the extra cash. What, were all of those nonexistent servers costing them millions each year?

This hulking party member was reserved exclusively for the fans EA deemed worthy.

Once the online pass concept has been applied to games that feature no online features it becomes apparent that it exists to attack all used games, regardless of context. I find it odd just how oblivious EA and any company with similar behavior seems to be to the function that the used game market serves. For the sake of being able to continue I’m going to assume that we can agree that the two most likely used game customers are the ones that are unwilling or unable to pay full price for a title and those who are on the fence about buying something that they see as a risk.

For a gamer that is short on funds or stingy with their purchases the $60 starting point for a new game seems incredibly expensive. This makes both ends of the used games market seem incredibly appealing. Those who take the full plunge on day one can do so while knowing that they can trade in a bad game immediately for most of their money back. A financial pillow, if you will. Those who are looking for something a bit cheaper can then pick up the game second hand while taking less of a blow to their wallets. Both sides of this equation are important! The ability to get some cash back for your purchase and the opportunity to take the edge off the the lofty asking price both play a significant role in increasing the number of games that a customer is likely to buy each year. They can feel more confident in their purchases because a system exists that makes the retail price easier to swallow.

This becomes especially important when dealing with customers that are unsure about your game and are hesitant to invest. Die hard fans of a series will dive head first into things on day one while those who couldn’t care less will ignore a game entirely. A company doesn’t need to worry about these two groups and their ironclad stances, so are best served by paying special attention to the crowd in the middle. A gamer that is still on the fence about a product is still a potential customer but needs that extra little bump before they make a purchase. This little bump can be the ability to buy the game second hand, which allows them to take a risk.

There sure are a lot of other fish in the sea...

The risk detailed above is no small issue once you apply it to the scale of an entire market. Through the used game option a developer or series is able to gain the attention of many players that had previously remained undecided. Someone can simply pick up a used game on a whim when they know that they have seven days to bring it back for a full refund, and those are seven days that can completely win over the player. Seven days that they would have otherwise never had. The developer and publisher may not make any money on the sale itself, but it opens the door to the creation of brand new fans that eat up the downloadable content and pay close attention to future releases.

Look at a series like Dead Space, Assassin’s Creed, Elder Scrolls, or Call of Duty. If you pay attention to the sales of each game in the first week you’ll notice that the number is getting larger with each sequel even though logic would dictate that the opposite happen. Out of all of the people who bought the first game some of them must have surely lost interest in the series, so where are all of these new buyers coming from? How does a game like Skyrim‘s first week amount to over 50% of the lifetime sales of its predecessor (using Xbox 360 statistics)? Somehow there is an entire group of fans that didn’t contribute to the previous total but is here in droves this time around. The answer is complicated, but it would be incredibly naive to pretend that the used games market and various other second hand practices had nothing to do with it. Over the years copies of Oblivion have lined the walls of GameStops across the country and have changed hands countless times, leading to massive numbers of people being exposed to the critically acclaimed Bethesda masterpiece. After a few years all that Bethesda had to do was put out a short and fairly useless teaser trailer for a sequel and people were already heralding Skyrim as their game of the year! It’s the long game, but it’s also something that cannot be ignored if a company wants their success to be anything other than fleeting.  Each new game experiences its greatest burst of sales in the opening week, a period where used games do not yet exist.  These used games then make it possible for there to be an even bigger opening week next time!

I cannot emphasize enough just how important it is to build up your fans. Companies like Grasshopper Manufacture (Suda51), Double Fine, Rockstar, Bethesda, and Valve have all reached their varying levels of success by appealing to an audience while constantly trying to innovate in a way that reminds people again and again exactly why they like the company in the first place. You get a finished product that confidently stands alone and might get supported by some cool DLC in a few months if it does well enough. People eat this up and never feel like they’re being manipulated or exploited by the group responsible for their fun. These developers and publishers understand the importance of getting every new fan they possibly can so they focus on making quality games rather than finding methods to punish a portion of that population.

Buy Me?

This is why I worry when I see a new IP such as Kingdoms of Amalur engage in such practices. The developer is so desperate to make it feel like an important game that is a part of a series that they even went so far as to include the “Reckoning” subtitle to imply that it is an episode of something greater. The game currently has no established fans because it has never actually hit shelves, but it already has a $200 collectors edition. Rather than letting the game speak for itself they seem to be trying to make the game a big deal by simply telling you that it’s a big deal. In reality the Kingdoms of Amalur property is still in its infancy and should be grateful for every new fan that it can possibly get a hold of, but instead they have decided to include their own version of an online pass where second hand buyers will be forced to pay a fee in order to access content that everyone else already has.

This sends the wrong message. Remember when I talked earlier about customers on the fence that you want to coax into coming down on your side? The second hand option is an excellent way to provide an avenue for their curiosity and potentially gain a new fan, but when you incorporate the equivalent of an online pass you remove that option altogether. Buying the game used becomes just as expensive (if not more!) as buying it new, so this bait for the gray area is entirely removed. Instead of luring in this particular kind of gamer you instead draw a line in the sand that they have no reason to bother crossing, so they simply walk past your game in the aisle to take a gander at the other hundred options. Rather than clinging to every new fan you could possibly get you tell a portion of them that their devotion is inferior. As a reward for taking a risk you borderline insult them for having the gall to show interest in your hard work simply because they didn’t choose your favorite route to the experience.

I was excited to try the demo for Kingdoms of Amalur: Subtitle because I had heard a lot of hype surrounding it and completely bought into everything the developers were saying about how incredibly innovative it is. Once I actually played the demo I realized that it was more or less a new Fable game with a skill tree and a different set of lore. This wasn’t so bad, but what really bothered me was how rough around the edges the demo turned out to be. Heads vanished during conversations, the geometry of corpses would randomly warp at certain camera angles, conversations started fast-forwarding themselves inexplicably, and I was forced to end my session prematurely when it completely froze and never recovered. As a consumer when I have this sort of experience and then look online to find out about the equivalent of an online pass and a freakishly expensive collector’s edition It’s hard not to be offended. When such an unstable mess is designed to sell me on the full product it becomes clear that Studio 38 and EA are more interested in making a profitable game than a good one, which immediately destroys any sympathy I could possibly have for an up and coming developer that just wants to make it in the world. This becomes especially clear when Mr. Schilling uses phrases such as “reward fans … when it benefits the company.”  Maybe if they worked on making a game that people wanted to keep long after release they wouldn’t have to worry about it clogging up the used game bins.  I still have my launch day Mass Effect disc on my shelf waiting for my fourth play through the story.  That was a nice game that hit the market without some cynical second hand fail-safe measure built into it.

All your cash are belong to me

And here we reach one of the biggest issues at work here. When a gamer defends online passes they inevitably talk about how you need to support the developer so that they can continue to make quality products. They’ll probably sprinkle in some phrase about helping the little guy fight against big bad Call of Duty or some other related and successful property. If you’re so concerned, dare I ask, why don’t you just start mailing your favorite developer money? When did it become your job to think about theirs? They should be focusing on putting out a quality product that appeals to an existing demand, and you should be purchasing experiences in whatever way is convenient to you. The company is there to serve the customer, not the other way around.  Video games aren’t the only industry that has a second hand market, in fact just about everything that isn’t a consumable with an expiration date can be resold later on.  None of these other markets are being utterly crushed by the second hand market even though many of those products cost significantly more, so what makes games so especially volatile?  Nothing.

How far are we supposed to take this support? This console generation we have already seen a $10 increase in the price of games, an increase in the cost of Xbox Live and Sony’s introduction of a premium service, the skyrocketing of expensive DLC as the norm, and the common use of patches at a crutch. We now have a situation where Activision can charge £5 more for Call of Duty in England because they realized they can get away with it.  Dead Island is launched as an incompetent, broken mess and we applaud a patch for fixing problems that should have never made it onto the disc in the first place.  These companies are out to make a profit, so they will always be testing the waters for new ways to make even more money.  They will always take any ground that is given to them and they’re excellent at prettying the news up with a pleasant press release that tells you how absolutely vital the change is.  Every little issue seems like such a small thing at the time so it’s easy to dismiss, but can you even imagine what gaming was like back in 2005? Remember when you could just buy a game at GameStop for $50 or less and be confident that you were getting a full experience. Once you got home it was a simple matter of putting the disc in the drive and starting your game. No additional fees were required to access locked parts of the game, and no one had to type a long code into a cumbersome on-screen keyboard in order to have the privilege of downloading content that they had already paid for in the store. No one had to prove that they were a true fan of remain signed into an online service so that they could maintain access to downloaded portions of their single player experience.

I love science fiction because it points out the absurdity of many facets of modern culture by altering the context, so let’s try a bit of that to see if I can crack a few shells. When was the last time that your internet went out? How long did that last? Did you follow the event by explaining to everyone that AT&T or Comcast probably saved a lot of money by not properly upgrading and maintaining the local infrastructure, or for selling you a modem prone to failure? Did you justify the latest abysmal Twilight film by acknowledging that all of those nice cameramen and makeup artists really need their jobs? Wouldn’t it be grand if several features of your car ceased to function whenever you let someone else drive?

Remember me?

Before you go rushing to the comments section let me remind you that the online pass is something that you do not benefit from. You as a consumer have nothing to gain from the situation, and instead are forced into a scenario that becomes an inconvenience at best and an additional cost at worst. Gamers have a long history of defending big companies in a fanboyish manner that do not need or deserve such champion-like behavior. I think I get it. Games make you happy and by extension the people who worked on those games make you happy. As a result it can be painful when others say negative things about them so you feel the need to go firing away with your keyboard on some internet forum in a heated war of the words that inevitably changes no one’s mind.

The ultimate problem with online passes, as I’ve detailed above, is that they are a punishment rather than an incentive.  People who dance to EA’s tune are given nothing as a reward for their loyalty while those who get to the game through other methods are given less.  This is a net loss for us, not a profit.  You cannot call something an incentive when the consumer has nothing to gain.  How can this be fixed, you ask?  An example already exists in the widely used Steam platform on the PC, where users are frequently given 10% off on just about any title if they preorder it or buy it quickly after launch.  A similar event occurred when Super Meat Boy launched on the Xbox Live Arcade with the initial price of 800 space bucks while warning everyone that it would rise to 1200 in the near future.    Publishers see the increase in sales that they want so badly while consumers are given a real and tangible time-sensitive incentive to pick the game up right away.  I could think of more ideas, but if a publisher actually wanted to figure out real incentives I’m sure they’ve got actual experts to discuss this with.

But wait, what’s this?  Syndicate will have no online pass?  A brand new multiplayer-focused game that is both owned and published by EA will not feature such a thing because they “want as little resistance or barriers to entry as possible.”  Instead EA Partners executive producer Jeff Gamon goes on to say that it’s the quality of the game that will combat used game sales.  When the company that created this system in the first place openly admits that it can be harmful to a property’s ability to grow I’m not sure what else I can say.  It seems that even people at EA realize that online passes are absurd.  Case closed.

Nearly a year ago, Corning (maker of Gorilla Glass), released a video encapsulating it’s vision of the future. It’s since gotten 17 million views on youtube, and started numerous discussions and responses.

In the video, Corning predicted large scale desktop touchscreen displays, bigger video screens, and dynamic billboards. And while much of the video is still in the future, the OLED TV’s shown by LG at this year’s CES do seem to bring the video to life.

Despite the fact that most of what was in the video still hasn’t come to reality, Corning apparently isn’t one to stand still. Just under a year after A Day of Glass was released, Corning released A Day of Glass 2.

The vision is even more heady, with nearly every surface you can see turning out to be an interactive glass screen. Windows, car dashboards, tables. There’s even a large wall in a forest (which is actually a cool concept when you watch the video.) Which parts are reality, which are close, and which are still far, far off?

Corning has an answer for those questions as well. Along with A Day Made of Glass 2, it released a second video, with a narrator to help explain the technologies and devices. As a tech enthusiast, I personally found it even more interesting than the basic video.

There was one aspect though which wasn’t explained, or even really touched on. During the video conferencing that the Dad was having with another hospital, the second doctor would move in relation to the readouts on the wall, as if he was really standing behind the glass. On a display with today’s technology, he and the readouts would be fixed, because the screen cannot tell where the user’s perspective is.

However, Microsoft is working on that problem. The Verge got a look into Microsoft’s Edison Lab back in December, and posted a lengthy video. One of the things that Microsoft is working on is a smart wall, which would be able to tell where the user is standing, and change everything to match that person’s perspective.

With the technology that they and others are developing, Corning’s vision might not be as far away as we think. And hopefully a year from now, Corning will show us another glimpse into the future with A Day Made of Glass 3.

Brought to you by TekGoblin
Recorded: 1/31/2012

Starring: Keith Ballard, Andrew Wilson

This week Keith and Andrew fill your brain with video game babble ranging from Asura’s Wrath to Guild Wars 2. It’s a jumble of gaming talk and you’re invited!

— Link Dump —

DualStix Episode 17

Asura’s Wrath Demo Let’s Play

NeverDead

Final Fantasy XIII-2

Fabula Nova Crystallis Final Fantasy

Final Fantasy XIV

Guild Wars 2

Guild Wars: Eye of the North

Batman Arkham Asylum on Playstation Vita

With the launch of the Sony PS Vita less than two weeks away for customers who have ordered the First Edition Bundle, and a little less than three weeks away for those who pre-ordered another version or are simply waiting to purchase it until launch, there are now Demo units popping up at some stores. I can only really speak for my area when saying this, as I’m not sure how prevalent Demo units may have been in metropolitan areas such as Chicago or New York. Around here, we have just gotten the opportunity to play a real PS Vita at one of the local participating retailers. I went to scope one out the other day and found one at my nearby GameStop, and they had just received it that day. It was nice to be able to hold one in my hands to see and feel how it works.

There are no doubts about it, the PS Vita is BIG. Measuring the front of the device vertically, it is “taller” than the original PSP and perhaps a little wider, too, but don’t let this dissuade you from purchasing it. It is actually more comfortable in-hand than the PSP, in my opinion. The design is so ergonomic that it fit perfectly in my hands and I didn’t feel like I was fumbling for any of the buttons. It is also extremely light. I double-checked with the retailer, while it is hooked up to external power so that it is continuously charging, the battery is installed in it. It’s also hooked up to a dock and an anti-theft tether, so it might be even lighter in reality than it is in-store. The screen is large, with beautiful color dimensions and gorgeous crisp graphics. A few seconds of running Uncharted confirmed that the Vita can indeed perform graphically on a level equivalent to the PS3.

Unfortunately, the Demo unit only had demo versions of games installed, so I was unable to evaluate the full aspects of any one game. What I can say, though, is that I played a few minutes of “Little Deviants” because I was dying to try out the rear touchpad. While the game’s loading sequence seemed a little slow, it is entirely possible that it is because of the fact that it was after all a Demo unit and was loaded with a bunch of game demos and didn’t have a memory card installed. After loading the level, I jumped into the tutorial. The goal was to push “bad guys” out of the doors of the barn and leave the people and little deviants alone. If the baddies were facing outward, tap them on the rear touchpad to knock them down. If they were facing the other direction, tap them on the touch screen. The rear touchpad is situated in such a place that it wasn’t difficult at all to make my movements correspond with the exact location of the baddie on the front of the device, it was intuitive. It was also extremely responsive; as much if not more so than the touch screen itself.

I had my reservations about the Vita, regarding it’s size and the probability that it will be redesigned for a slimmer, lighter frame later on as all portable handhelds are these days. After getting the chance to play with the Demo at GameStop, I can’t wait for my PS Vita to arrive. I will be writing a full analysis, with photos, when I receive mine on February 15 and will then begin reviewing games for the system as I get them. Those of our readers near Battle Creek can test out the Vita at the GameStop location on B Drive, others can call their local GameStop or Best Buy locations to see if they have a Demo set up yet.

By Shaun McNamara

Seagate has started shipping the GoFlex Thunderbolt adapter for its line up of portable hard drives. The adapter provides Mac users with improved transfer speeds over USB 2.0. While the latest Seagate GoFlex drives offer USB 3.0 connections, Mac computers have not yet implemented the technology, opting for Thunderbolt alongside USB 2.0 as an alternative. Intel claims it developed Thunderbolt to act as a companion to USB, and USB 3.0 will most likely still be found on both Mac and PC computers in the future. For the time being, the GoFlex Thunderbolt adapter bridges the gap for Mac users stuck with limited transfer speeds on portable hard drives.

The bottleneck issues that some may experience can be a thing of the past with this adapter. The Thunderbolt Adapter is currently available to order and is priced at $99.99

Facebook has officially filed for its public offering and will be underwritten by Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs amongst others. The social networking based company will trade under the stock symbol “FB” when it finally goes public later this year. Dante Cesa, Engadget editor, states Facebook “is seeking to raise $5 billion, according to this early filing, amounting to a lofty (and still tentative) valuation north of $50 billion.” Mark Zuckerberg, current CEO of Facebook, has a 28.4% share in the company and will become an even more extremely wealthy man and his current $6 billion net worth would rise to nearly $30 billion.

This move to go public has revealed some internal things about Facebook that we would not have learned otherwise. Facebook documents show that the service has 845 million active users each month and that just boggles our minds. Facebook has balance sheet with revenues of $777 million (2009), $1.97 billion (2010), and $3.71 billion (2011). Zuckerberg had a 2011 salary that amounted to $500,000 and once the company goes public his salary will be cut down to just $1 by 2013, much the way many CEOs with great amount of company shares have done in the past.

Nearly 2 years have passed since Redbox and many others had to deal with Warner Bros. Studio policy to delay new releases titles being rented for 28 days. Warner had a deal in place with Redbox where they would delay the release of their films for 28 days in exchange for lower acquisition costs and a steady flow of Blu-ray discs, but the rental company decided to draw the line when Warner wanted them to wait 56 days. Warner is clearly making this move to help bolster new release sales that are on decline when compared to rental figures. Warner maintains that longer delay windows will “encourage” more people to purchase discs and store them in UltraViolet’s cloud-based digital lockers or rent them on VOD. Redbox will now have to purchase movies at regular retail cost with no current reliable stream of supply and that could spell future price increases on their service. On the bright side, consumers will now be able to rent movies from Redbox when those titles go on sale without any delay, except for stock availability.

Redbox may have to change its stance once their proposed streaming service comes into play, but for now enjoy those rentals. After Redbox released it statement Warner said the following:

“The consumer is best served by a windowing and pricing structure that ensures a healthy film business continuing to deliver quality movies. We hope to continue discussions with Redbox and reach a mutually agreed upon solution to this situation, but we fully intend to do what is best for our business, our consumers and the industry as a whole.”

Redbox faces an April expiration to their terms with Universal Studios, and they better have more leverage by then when negotiating with Universal. If Redbox or Netflix had to raise prices to make new release available at start for streaming services, than we would be supportive of that, but we are not to fond of physical disc media.

Read

I dove right into Final Fantasy XIII-2. My expectations were not high. I try to make sure that my expectations are never high when a new game comes out in one of my favorite series, and considering the fact that most long-time fans consider X-2 to be an abomination, I didn’t have much hope for this -2. That, coupled with the experience given from the demo, kept my expectations low enough for this newest game that it was simply natural for me to be pleasantly surprised. Those of you who read my “First Impressions” article will know that I had reservations about the soundtrack and distaste for the voice actor used for Mog (my favorite character in the entirety of the video game universe. I have a 32-bit pixel Mog tattoo from Final Fantasy 3 on the inside of my left wrist.) Me not liking the Mog character in a  Final Fantasy game is like a sure sign that the end times have arrived.

Please be advised, that while I will do my best to keep from unveiling any important story points, there will be some spoilers in this article as discussion of the plot is essential to my analysis of enjoyment of the game.

Entirely to my surprise, the game starts out with Lightning narrating, and for a brief period of time the player is dictating Lightning’s actions, as though we will be playing as her for this adventure. The opening cinematics are gorgeous. If it was possible to improve upon Final Fantasy XIII graphics, Square Enix has done so. Lightning is fighting against an antagonist named Caius, and there is a cut scene showing him lowering a body into the water on what Lightning calls the “shores of Valhalla”. As the body touches the surface of the water, it disintegrates into dust and spirals away. Fans that have played Final Fantasy VII will feel an eerie familiarity with this scene, excepting the body’s immediate cascade into dust. We don’t know who the person is, but we will see her again later in the adventure.

Battle rages on between Lightning and the Bahamut summoned by Caius until Lightning subdues the Bahamut and a portal is opened. Through the portal falls a body that Lightning, and players that have been doing their research about this game, recognizes as Noel Kreiss. Lightning surges up to rescue him out of his freefall and they begin to talk. Eventually, Noel is tasked by Lightning to bring Serah to him. Thus begins our adventure into the world of Final Fantasy XIII-2.

The opening sequences serve as a tutorial for how to battle in the XIII universe, how to successfully complete “Cinematic Actions” and they lay the bedrock for the storyline in an engaging way. We move onto the settlement of New Bodhum and see several familiar faces, including Serah of course, and then begin learning about the controls of this new iteration of Final Fantasy. We have the first few decisions to make in “Live Triggers” where the player decides how to respond in a social interaction by choosing from four options with corresponding button presses, and we take on our first mission. The game also begins to familiarize players with the objective system, doling out goals for the player to reach and then giving rewards or progressing the storyline when one is reached.

From New Bodhum, there is only one destination to travel to. People who played the demo will immediately recognize the content in Episode 2, though there is an extra cinematic that was not shown in the demo. Once things have been taken care of there, however, a few more options open up in what is called the “Historia Crux”. The transition between Episode 1 and Episode 2 gives a glimpse into the possibility for the open-ended storyline that the game developers have been touting since details about the game were released. After completing Episode 1, the player is taken into the Historia Crux and taught how to select their next destination. Each destination in the Historia Crux is separated by region and/or time. There are multiple times of some regions, and some regions have an undefined time.

The chief complaint about Final Fantasy XIII was that the storyline and play were far too directed and rigid. It seems that Square Enix took this into account when developing XIII-2, because there are multiple endings in store and a myriad of different ways to traverse through the Historia Crux, the system or “web” of time that must be worked through on the way to story completion. The idea is that the choices players make in the timelines will affect the eventual outcome of the game. Since I have yet to complete the game, I cannot give testament to how great an effect individual actions have on the eventual outcome, but it is a compelling mystery each time I must make a choice as to how to progress.

In Episode 2, and as we were shown in the demo, the player opens up the Crystarium where Crystogen Points earned from battles will be spent on character development. Crystals are also awarded at the end of some battles, and added to the possibilities for the “Paradigm Deck” that is completely customizable. When I read about the demo and finally got a chance to play it for myself, I was sincerely concerned that collecting monster crystals for inclusion as “party members” would end up being a lot like Pokemon. I am happy to say that I needn’t have worried. The act of collecting the monsters itself is nothing like Pokemon. While you can aim for certain types of monsters by “farming” in certain areas where they are prevalent, it is random as to whether or not your efforts will be rewarded with a monster crystal at the end of battle. Monsters have their own Crystarium, as well. Instead of leveling the monster up as you would in Pokemon, it fights alongside you in battle and as you collect components you can unlock crystals in it’s Crystarium.

Monster evolution is not as flexible as character development. Each monster has it’s own set of skills that it can learn within it’s lifespan, you simply need to collect the right type of components to level it to the point of unlocking them. Whereas developing Serah and Noel has diverging paths because of the roles, the monsters learn their abilities at certain levels regardless of what type of component you use to level them. With Serah and Noel,  it makes a difference what role you choose to level on which crystal. The large crystals in their crystarium represent opportunities to aim for specific bonuses, for example adding a rank in Commando on a large node will net you a +2 strength modifier. Monsters will gain a bonus at each level they gain based on the rank of Monster Material you use to upgrade them, and extra growth with the use of “potent” materials or  large nodes.

Development in the crystarium for Noel and Serah is a little bit different, and a lot more confusing. Large nodes represent extra bonuses like with monsters, but instead of adding a percentage of growth to the focused stat, each role comes with it’s own bonus points when affixed to a large node. Commando provides +2 to strength, Ravager +2 to magic, Sentinel +6 to HP, and Saboteur, Synergist and Medic each give their own bonuses dependent on whether the level is even or odd. In my opinion the best strategy, however you want to level each of your characters in their roles, is to use the small nodes for Sab/Syn/Med and save leveling the Com/Rav/Sen for larger nodes, dependent upon which stat you value the most in your character. For those of you who are wondering, I have found that Serah is better with magic, and Noel is better with matters of strength: making her a better Saboteur, Ravager, and Medic, and him a better Commando, Synergist and Ravager. He makes a fair back-up medic, as well.

In the Historia Crux, there is a number below each “gate”, indicating how many fragments have been collected out of the fragments available in that area. Fragments are key items throughout the story that serve as a sort of benchmark for how far you have progressed. Some are awarded to you as part of the storyline, and others require a bit of extra effort to find or earn. The acquisition of each fragment comes with an award of Crystogen Points, and later on in the game once the Casino area is unlocked, the number of fragments you have translates into unlocking additional special abilities referred to as “Fragment Skills”. The number of fragments you have collected in a certain area is a good indicator of how much progress you have made in that area. When going back to the Historia Crux, if you find an area that has less fragments earned than fragments possible, it would be a good idea to go back and look in that location if you want to sidetrack yourself with some side quests for a while.

Twenty hours isn’t a lot in the scope of most Final Fantasy games. I can remember sinking one hundred and twenty into Final Fantasy XII alone. That being said, after only spending twenty hours on XIII-2, I am already at the end of Episode 4. From what I can tell, the game only extends to Episode 5 and a Final Episode, so I am very concerned about the value based on time playable. I will admit, however, that I have not spent a significant amount of time on side quests and that I have only 40/160 fragments. I have barely begun to scratch the surface on Chocobo Racing, also, so hopefully those two elements will translate into being able to get many more hours of enjoyment out of the game. I have grown used to the soundtrack by now, and I even like some of it. The only part of it that I still hate (and probably always will) is the semi scream metal aesthetic used for BIG boss battles. Mog’s voice has started to grow on me, too. I began thinking about it and reasoned that the voice I had associated with moogle dialogue in the past was rather young and squeaky sounding, and the voice sounds less high-pitched in later game sequences, so I am now decidedly okay with it. That’s all for now, but further analysis to come upon game completion. I will also be writing a “Help!” article to address some of the places where I was stuck in an attempt to help you, our reader, progress through the game. Leave a comment for me if there is something specific you would like me to address.

Crackberry claims the above picture handset is Rim’s upcoming much rumored Blackberry 10 smartphone, codenamed London. A few months ago we saw what was then believed to be the Blackberry London, but this above rendering appears totally different from what we saw and quite honestly looks much better. This device seems to look more like a scaled down Blackberry Playbook rather than a whole new design concept and whats wrong with that as the Playbook definitely has slick aesthetic design in its own right.

There hardware for this device is being rumored to include a 1.5GHz dual core processors from both Qualcomm and TI OMAP5. The online rumor mill has the London being slated for initial release in the UK, with other variants with different names, the Laguna & Lisbon, being released in the United States under Sprint, AT&T, and Verizon.

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Sony Corporation has finally confirmed what has been rumored for some time now, that Kazuo Hirai will replace Sir Howard Stringer as the new CEO and President of the company effective April 1, 2012. Hirai has been running Sony’s consumer product business and is currently the executive deputy president and has a been in charge of Sony’s gaming division in the past. Stringer who has been Sony CEO since 2005, will step down and become chairman of the board of directors of Sony effective in June.

According to Stringer, Hirai was being groomed for the position as far back as 2009 and he goes on to say that

“Kaz is a globally focused executive for whom technology and the cloud are familiar territory, content is highly valued, and digital transformation is second nature. I believe his tough-mindedness and leadership skills will be of great benefit to the company and its customers in the months and years ahead. I look forward to helping Kaz in every way I can so that succession leads inevitably to success. It was my honor to recommend him to the Board for the positions of President and CEO, because he is ready to lead, and the time to make this change is now.”

Hirai was also not short on good words for Stringer as he has been quoted as saying “As challenging as times are for Sony now, were it not for the strong leadership of Sir Howard Stringer these past seven years, we would have been in a much more difficult position.” Sony has indeed seen tough times, especially in the past year. In 2011, its stock value fell 54% primarily due to a strong yen that has been harmful to exports. Sony also had hits to their supply chains after the March 2011 earthquake and November floods that rocked Thailand, not to mention the hacking of PlayStation’s online network last year that compromised private data for millions of PlayStation network users. 2011 was not a good year for Sony or many other companies for that matter. Hirai appears to be ready to do great things as Sony’s newest CEO when he says “The path we must take is clear:to turn around the television business; and to accelerate the innovation that enables us to create new business domains.” Sony failed to fend off the Apple iPod in the Mp3 business, is losing market share to Samsung in televisions, and is having difficulty out competing Microsoft and Nintendo in the gaming market so we will see if Hirai can come and integrate Sony’s TVs and computers with content from its entertainment businesses.

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Barnes & Noble announced on Tuesday that they will be pulling titles off their shelves from Amazon Publishing. Barnes & Noble has over 700 retail locations and has decided that this was the best thing to do to protest against exclusivity deals that Amazon has been creating. The New York Times received word from Barnes & Noble’s chief merchandising officer, Jaime Carey, who said “Our decision is based on Amazon’s continued push for exclusivity with publishers, agents and the authors they represent…Their actions have undermined the industry as a whole and have prevented millions of customers from having access to content.” Fortunately for Nook users and eBook enthusiasts, Barnes & Noble is continuing the sale of Amazon Publishing titles through their online site.

This move could definitely affect Amazon’s ability to sign authors that would want their titles to be sold in Barnes & Noble’s 703 nationwide stores. There is still a huge market for brick and mortar book sales and Barnes & Noble maintains a good market share in that category. Especially when there are writers who only have print book versions of their titles for sale and no e-Book versions. We will have to wait and see if the independent bookstore community follows suit with Barnes & Noble to help end exclusivity deals on print or e-book sales.

New York Times

Today Konami announced Tomoyuki Tsuboi has been named President of Konami Digital Entertainment, Inc., replacing Mr. Shinji Hirano, who will be assuming the role of President of Konami Digital Entertainment, GmbH (Europe).

Mr. Tsuboi has been with Konami for over 14 years, managing Corporate Planning across multiple divisions. Most recently, Mr. Tsuboi helmed global business planning and management for all of the digital entertainment business for the Konami Digital Entertainment Business Planning Group.

Mr. Tsuboi has a solid understanding of the North and South American market and will look to grow the business and institute strategies around franchises, including Metal Gear Solid, Pro Evolution Soccer and Silent Hill. In addition, Mr. Tsuboi will oversee production out of the western regions, including emerging mobile and social gaming platforms.

“My goal is to build upon the momentum the entire Konami Digital Entertainment, Inc. staff has built for our company,” said Mr. Tomoyuki Tsuboi. “We plan to intensify this momentum by continuing to innovate across our core franchises and creating those memorable gaming experiences that has been synonymous with KONAMI over the past four decades.”

Toshiba was not the bearer of good news win they announced their Q3 earning reports that shows Toshiba down nearly $139 million in revenue losses year over year. Toshiba was able to gain $18.5 billion in revenue in the quarter to end December 2011, but that was 9% less than it accomplished at the same time last year. Apparently Toshiba has seen steady drop in sales across television, appliances, computers, and other consumer electronic devices. Toshiba has reassessed their 4th quarter projections with drastic changes such as cutting projected earning by nearly 50%.

Unlike their strong holding the consumer PC business Toshiba has yet to make an impact on the smartphone and tablet market as compared to competitors like Samsung and Apple. This shift in what consumers are buying these days for content consumption and productivity could have a tremendous effect on these numbers.

Toshiba
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Apple has brought an update to their latest Final Cut program, Pro X, and it brings with it so desired features. Apple disappointed many existing users of previous Final Cut versions when they released PRO X that was wanting in many aspects. Well it looks like Apple may have looked through their actual forums and listened to what users had to say. Apple announced that the latest version of Final Cut Pro X (10.0.3) will include several options that include multicam support, broadcast monitoring live, new chroma key feature, layered PSD support, and support footage from up to 64 cameras regardless of frame-rate, codecs, or resolution.

Final Cut Pro X v10.0.3 is available within the Mac App Store for $299.99 to any new users, or as a free update for existing Final Cut Pro X customers.

Capcom announced today that a new open world action game title called Dragon’s Dogma, will be available on May 22nd in North America with a European release just a few days later on May 25th. The title will be available on both the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 gaming consoles and Capcom will bundle a code for access to a playable demo of Resident Evil 6 with the game as well. There will also be some exclusive pre-order DLC from various retailers that include the “Pawn Upgrade Pack” from GameStop, the “Armor Upgrade Pack” from Best Buy, and the “Weapon Upgrade Pack” from Amazon.

The game, based on press video footage below, really looks to be an appealing game with a very interesting story. We hope to get our hands on the title to review it for you here on TekGoblin.

Bioware is apparently planning to introduce same-sex relationships within The Old Republic Star Wars MMORPG, but Family Research is up in arms over the issue. Family Research is a nonprofit organization based in Washington D.C., and claims itself to be “the leading voice for the family in our nation’s halls of power.” Family Research has issued a statement condemning Bioware’s use of homosexuality in the Star Wars gaming universe.

A representative for Family Research came out to say the following below in a public broadcast:

“In a new Star Wars game, the biggest threat to the empire may be homosexual activists! Hello, I’m Tony Perkins of the Family Research Council in Washington, D.C. In a galaxy not so far far away, Star Wars gamers have already gone to the dark side. The new video game, Star Wars: The Old Republic, has added a special feature: gay relationships. Bioware, the company that developed the game, said it’s launching a same-sex romance component to satisfy some complaints. That surprised a lot of gamers, since Bioware had made it clear in 2009 that “gay” and “lesbian” don’t exist in the Star Wars universe. Since the announcement, homosexuals have been celebrating the news, but parents sure aren’t. On the game’s website, there are more than 300 pages of comments–a lot of them expressing anger that their kids will be exposed to this Star Warped way of thinking. You can join them by logging on and speaking up. It’s time to show companies who the Force is really with”

We found out that back in 2009, the issue of homosexuality within The Old Republic first arose when community forum users noticed that the words “gay, lesbian, and homosexual” were all censored when they were typed in forum threads. A Bioware community manager would soon reply to questions regarding the matter to state that “Gay and lesbian are terms that do not exist in Star Wars. Thread Closed.” Well it looks like Bioware may be changing that stance as they made the below statement regarding same gender relationships in games:

“Due to the design constraints of a fully voiced MMO of this scale and size, many choices had to be made as to the launch and post-launch feature set. Same gender romances with companion characters in Star Wars: The Old Republic will be a post-launch feature. Because The Old Republic is an MMO, the game will live on through content expansions which allow us to include content and features that could not be included at launch, including the addition of more companion characters who will have additional romance options.”

As it stands, same-sex relationships are not available in the game just yet as Bioware said this would be a post-launch feature, and we will keep you apprised if any news arises regarding a response from Bioware. Check out YouTube video below for the actual audio comment by Family Research representative Tony Perkins.

The Samsung Galaxy Note was expected to release on AT&T sometime this year, but we never had a finalized date. We that date has been announced and it will be on February 19th that the carrier will be selling this behemoth of a smartphone to new and existing customers. The device will also be available for pre-order this upcoming Sunday on February 5th. According to AT&T, customers who are eager to get their hands on the Samsung Note can pre-order at the AT&T website or any AT&T corporate and all orders processed by Feb. 15 will arrive by Feb. 17. That is 2 days before the official launch of the handset, not to shabby. The Note will be priced at $299.99 with new 2-YR contract. Check out the press video below for some visual looks at this device in action.