While this isn’t as sexy as the HTC Touch interface — dig the cube, man — this new piece of software from PointUi mimics some iPhone functionality while hiding the hard mess of WinMo6 under a pretty wrapper. As Michael points out, maybe if I had this on my Shadow I’d answer my phone more, but I doubt it. We’ll give it a whirl once the vodka passes out of my bloodstream. Until then, enjoy the video.
So it’s the end of the year and I seem to be on a bit of a retro gaming kick, so I was stoked to find the AtGames Mega Drive Portable, a 20-in-1 handheld Sega Genesis device.
Alex Kidd, Golden Axe, and Altered Beast are just three of the twenty games included, and besides having a 320×240 backlit LCD to play on, the device has AV-out, meaning you can plug it into your TV. Sweet.
sega genesis portable: get your retro jollies on the run [Technabob]
If you drive across the country to rape a 15-year old girl and her sister whom you’ve met playing Xbox Live, it’s likely not a good idea to text message them and tell them you’re on your way. That’s what this cyber-savvy creep did in Spokane did over the weekend, driving from New York to Washington to stalk the girls. The details are pretty typical of such a case, but between the meeting on Xbox, googling the girls for personal information, and text messaging criminal intent, this is one scary cautionary tale.
Also, check out all the Bible references on his MySpace page. Totally weird.
New York man arrested after traveling to Spokane to stalk girls [KHQ Right Now]
How come I don’t find things like this before Xmas? This is the Gen-X Dual station, likely the weirdest console I’ve ever met. It’s an NES and a Sega Genesis combined into one, but the thing is it doesn’t use ROMs; it uses the old cartridges you’ve got in that box in the back of your closet.
Yes, this is real.
Gen-X Dual station plays Sega Genesis and NES games [Technabob, via Robot Ramblings via Slippery Brick]
According to holiday numbers released by Neilsen Soundscan, physical album sales were down 21.4 percent from last year. The drop is the latest indication of the spectacular decline of the music industry’s ability to move albums.
Many in the industry will shake angry fists of blame at Online piracy, but, as Ars points out, the fact that Josh Groban’s “Noel” was the highest selling album of the year speaks volumes. In summary: the music industry needs to focus more on making better music and work on becoming more progressive so that it can better fulfill consumers’ tastes.
‘Noel’ is music’s saving grace [Variety]
The NY Times today has a piece reporting on the general state of high def DVDs. The report concludes that with about a million players in circulation (both formats combined), most consumers appear to be opting out of the battle altogether.
For me, it raises a lot of questions. It’s clear that one of the formats will take the throne from the DVD, but the question remains as to which one it will be. While Blu-ray is technologically superior, HD DVD’s price point makes it more consumer friendly.
I’m currently the owner of a Toshiba HD DVD player and find it to be passable, though I miss the snappiness of my old DVD player, the image quality is stellar. And it only cost $99, so it really couldn’t be beaten.
It makes me curious, however, as to what the adoption rate is amongst CG readers. Have you all opted for Blu-ray or HD DVD and why?
In the DVD War Over High Definition, Most Buyers Are Sitting It Out [NY Times]
It’s been a great year for everyone at CrunchGear and we’re glad you’ve been here to enjoy it with us. Just a reminder that we’ll be in Vegas from the 5th through the 10th for CES and then we’ll be in San Francisco for MacWorld the following week. Look for big things from us in 2008. Have a happy and safe NYE.
Big Daddy is rounding up the year with, what else, lists documenting the most popular articles, heavy hitting stories and those who entered the dreaded deadpool in the past year. Whether you’re into the whole Web 2.0 craze or not, it may be a good idea just to peruse the headlines to see if anything tickles your fancy and see what’s actually going on in the World Wide Web.
If you’ve been putting donating an OLPC, today is your last day to participate in the Give One Get One program. So after today, if you buy one, you only get one.
It’ll set you back $399, but it’s for a good cause and you’ll get one for yourself, so yay.
Yes, we all know the Wii is still an elusive bugger and the DS is hot stuff (it’s outselling the PSP), but the novelty of both have warn off. I don’t touch the Wii anymore, but I am learning Spanish via My Spanish Coach at the moment on my DS. The NYT has a fancy, yet bloated, article on the success of both devices for Nintendo and the only thing worth noting from the whole thing is the following:
Mr. Fils-Aime said that future DS device will be more tightly integrated with its Wii console. Complete games as well as game samplers will be able to be downloaded into the Wii using its broadband connection, and then transferred wirelessly to the DS.
The LG Rumor for Sprint appears to have major issues. Big time problems. A debugging menu has been found on the device that triggers a complete wipe of the phone including its firmware. For the time being, Sprint has halted all shipments of the Rumor pending LG’s firmware update that will remove the code to access the debugging menu. The specific details on how to access the menu are unknown, so I suggest you put it under your couch cushions until the update. Heh. Current Rumor owners will have to wait for an OTA while prospects looking to pick one up should wait till the firmware has been updated.
Not a Rumor, the LG Rumor has Issues [Phone News]
It appears some anti-virus software is pinging mootools — a Javascript script that is running on this site now — as a SNZ.A virus. I discovered that this has been happening recently and isn’t a virus but I have some nerds working on it so you won’t get the computer-herp.
I don’t do well under pressure so I can’t think of anything off the top of my head. Maybe I need some coffee. My only gripes are HTML e-mail and something else that I just forgot. I need some coffee. In the meantime, feel free to add to the list in comments.
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I sure hope this works because I haven’t been able to use one of my Sprint dongles for months. Sprint has updated their drivers for Novatel EV-DO Rev. A devices (S720, U720, EX720 and U727) to play nice with Leopard and its WWAN framework. Sprint is even allowing your dongles to be used as GPS devices free of charge. High five, Sprint. Version 2.0 is a hefty 12MB and I hope it’s worth the time to download. Just wish I brought my U727 with me.
Of course, it’s not all peaches and cream. It appears that the WWAN interface doesn’t want to show you signal status, which is a real bummer consider that’s the only thing I really care about.
Update: Looks like this was released earlier in the month. Better late then never, I suppose.
Not really bedazzled, but I was just listening to Dane Cook and he was talking about his sisters bedazzling his jean jackets when he was a kid. Umm. Ok. Awkward. Asus is looking to cash in on the popularity of the Eee with a handful of accessories for the new year. Whatever shade of vomit you decide on for your Eee, if you don’t have one, can be accompanied by a mouse with the same shade. The noise-isolating headphones, unfortunately, only come in white as well as the power adapter and extra battery.
I haven’t been playing much in the last week or so, but I know there were some issues and everything seemed to have been resolved over the weeekend. I remember having difficulty signing in and gave up after a couple attempts. I thought it was just my network connection. But I guess not. Anyone still having problems with XBL? What should MS do to make this up to us? Is the Zune marketplace working? Doesn’t want to work for me.
Microsoft, what’s going on?
I’m not really looking forward to CES next week, but LG.Philips has me frothing with the announcement of multiple LCDs ranging from 32- to 84-inches with multi-touch interfaces, handwriting recognition and transreflective backlighting. Can you imagine what your TV viewing experience will be like with any of new sets? It’s going to be mind boggling. Oh wait, i forgot to tell you one thing. They’re all being used as public displays. *sad clown* I guess you’ll have to weather the storm of teeny boppers and d-bags at the mall to really get a hands on with one. Does it even matter what the specs are on these? I didn’t think so, but in case you feel like geeking out then check out the PR.
It appears the rumored touchscreen BB is just a myth if you believe what first time poster Cooper over at BB Forums has to say. This photo was purportedly taken in Waterloo at the RIM campus. The 9xxx line won’t see a touchscreen for a long time and it seems as though it’s a myth internally, too according to Coops. I have a hard time swallowing this one. If anything, this looks like a redesign of the Curve. A couple characteristics of this particular RIM device stand out; its rounded corners and keyboard. The photo also appears in an eBay auction located in Texas so that is a testament to Cooper’s credibility or lack there of. The backwards B is also a clear indicator.
He/she goes on to give tid bits about 3G devices and HTML e-mail being tested. Whether they will appear on the 9xxx line or not is up for debate and will allegedly be coming out in six to eight months.
Blackberry 9000 [BB Forums]
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