Electricpig.co.uk - tech news fast!

Withings Facebook app shames you in public
Sky attacks YouView with OFT and Ofcom complaints
Red Dead Redemption Undead Nightmare DLC preview: Single player mode hands on!
Windows Phone 7: fart app is first big hit
Opera Mobile Android unveiled: coming soon
Spotify Virgin Media team up incoming?
Samsung Galaxy Tab: test it early on the Tube!
Advent Vega review: budget tablet first impressions
Skype for Windows updated: Call your Facebook friends!
Is AOL trying to buy Yahoo!?

Withings Facebook app shames you in public

Posted: 14 Oct 2010 09:32 AM PDT

The Withings Wi-Fi scale intrigued us when we reviewed it a while back but now Withings has taken the concept of making your diet public even further with a new Withings Facebook app. Are you ready to have your friends guessing your weight?

The Withings Facebook app called GuessMyWeight is a game where users earn points by guessing their friend's weight. We can see this one leading to rows frankly. Withings WiFi scale users can play the game by putting their current weight out via the app and have friends bet on wether it will increase or decrease. It's essentially Play Your Cards Right with less Brucey and more flab.

Cédric Hutchings, Withings co-founder says the Withings Facebook app “started as a joke…the idea of playing a game with your weight is entirely new way to take the drama out of your weight, while enjoying the support of your friends. Losing, or even gaining, weight is not easy when done alone…why not get your friends in on it?”

What do you think? Are you up for sharing your dieting successes or disasters on Facebook? Or is that sharing gone too far?

Out now | £free | Withings

Sky attacks YouView with OFT and Ofcom complaints

Posted: 14 Oct 2010 09:02 AM PDT

Sky has kicked in a complaint to the Office of Fair Trading and communications regulator Ofcom in an attempt to kill off YouView and its plans for free on-demand internet TV. Sky has reportedly fired a flurry of complaints about competition concerns to the regulators…

Sky is thought to have argued that the partners behind YouView – including the BBC, ITV, , Channel 4, Five, BT, TalkTalk and Arquiva – will gain an unfair advantage by launching the service.

The Sky complaint could mean the Ofcom investigation into YouView (previously called Project Canvas) will be delayed while it considers the new submission.

Sky isn't making its YouView complaint public but it's clear that it sees the service as a direct threat to its own on demand services. Other firms including Virgin Media have also attacked YouView.

Out TBC | £TBC | YouView (via The Telegraph)

Red Dead Redemption Undead Nightmare DLC preview: Single player mode hands on!

Posted: 14 Oct 2010 09:00 AM PDT

The fans demanded it and Rockstar is delivering. The Red Dead Redemption Undead Nightmare pack is the latest, and last downloadable content to saddle up with Rockstar’s western romp. It’s packed with zombie humans, zombie bears and more in a DLC package featuring a whole new single player campaign, weapons and deathly multiplayer modes. We’ve had a chance to try out the campaign ahead of release, so read on for our first impressions of Undead Nightmare’s horror-filled campaign mode.

The launch and continued success of Red Dead Redemption showed a legion of game fans that Rockstar can do as much justice to the open western world as it can the gang-plagued urban streets it found a comfortable home in, in the Grand Theft Auto series. Red Dead Redemption: Undead Nightmare closes this very chapter, with what Rockstar confirmed again to us, is the last batch of downloadable Red Dead Redemption content, due to arrive on Xbox Live and PlayStation Network very soon on 26th October, costing 800 Microsoft Points and £7.99 respectively. The pack will arrive simultaneously on both platforms.

In Undead Nightmare you’ll once again be playing as John Marston, who has a very personal reason for wanting to find a cure to the zombie epidemic that has swept across the now deathly landscape.

Read our Red Dead Redemption review now

Before we could dive in to play it Rockstar was keen to add that in drafting in the undead, it wasn’t simply going with the current ‘just add zombies’ trend, but were reacting to fans requests dating back several years, giving the fans what they wanted- zombies. They’ll love this. Not only is there zombie multiplayer (look out for our review of the multiplayer extras soon), but a whole new single player campaign more than worthy of spending around eight quid on alone.

The new Undead Nightmares campaign starts off in the Marston Ranch. A deadly epidemic breaks loose overnight, and John leaves the farm to find a cure, riding into the macabre unknown. As John you’ll also be charged with helping the few desperate survivors living in fear of being infected, and clearing small towns of zombiedom, meeting different classes of undead along the way. There are even more activities and challenges, but Rockstar wishes to keep them a surprise.

We started off with a taster of one of the five graveyard missions where the aim is to torch all the coffins there to prevent zombie respawns. Riding there on horseback through the desolate, murky landscape dotted with burning trees and foliage you’ll come across zombie cougars, bats instead of crows, and mythical creatures such as The Four Horses of the Apocalypse. Capture them to mount and take advantage of their powers.

The War horse is a scorching black beauty, enveloped in flames that set zombies alight. There’s also a Death horse, that explodes the heads of the undead, and a Famine and Pestilence steed with infinite ammo and invincibility from hordes. But beware, each horse is stubborn and has a mind of its own. Veer to the right and it’ll suddenly decide it wants to go in another direction, unless you reign it in. We sadly didn’t get to see the zombie Grizzly bears, but they are about, as you may have seen in some of the Undead Nightmare trailers.

Once you get to the graveyard, you’re faced with taking down hordes of territorial zombies protecting their patch, before a boss zombie emerges. Destroying the remaining zombies makes that patch a zombie-free zone, and another step closer to clearing the plague.

Rather than face-off against your Average Joe zombies there are different classes. Undead zombies are your regular zombies, they’ve only just gone zombie, so are, besides the rotting flesh, almost human in appearance. Bolters are nimble buggers. They crawl at you in a quick, but disturbing fashion, but are easy to blast away.

Bruisers are fatties with tree trunk-like legs, bulging arms and meaty torsos. They’re tough to kill, but are easily outrun. And then there’s the Retcher zombies that shamelessly projectile vomit at you every chance they get. The only way to kill each instantly is to put a hole in their head, made all the more easier and enjoyable with Dead Eye, Red Dead Redemption’s equivalent of the Bullet Time effect made famous by the Matrix films.

Failing that there are plenty of new weapons. You start off with a torch, with is just a piece of wood with a flame on the end you’ll mostly use to set coffins on fire. Holy Water is one of the cooler new armaments used to set zombies on fire with blue flames, it sounds dull, but the sight of a zombie burning brightly in the throes of death in the moonlight is a beautiful thing. Then there’s Zombie Bait. Tossing it into a horde of zombies lures them to it, but even better is boom bait, which explodes, sending zombies flying into temporary orbit. The Blunderbuss is the biggest weapon of the lot. It has devastating power, able to turn zombies to smush in one hit. Its ammo? Zombie body parts. Looting dead zombies replenishes your ammo.

There are other activities. Rockstar wouldn’t share them all with us, but among them is the choice to locate missing people. You’ll find their posters in clean zones. These missions are similar to the Bounty Hunter missions of the main game, except you’ll have to return the person to a zombie-free zone.

Riding through the plains you’ll notice pockets of brighter areas where the weather changes according to the local zombie count, the brighter areas being less hazardous. There are also safe-houses you can use as save points, as long as you take out the zombies first, though in some you’ll notice them respawning as you face a constant battle to keep the zombie population down.

Check out our Best PS3 games Top 5 now

Another mission type involves rescuing survivors from zombie-ravaged towns packed to the brim with what seems like up to a hundred of the un-deceased. How you approach these is up to you. Should you go in with your Blunderbuss blazing, or more cunningly throw in some bait and rescue the poor soul? Whichever you pick it’s genuinely enjoyable attempting to get to your goal while Dead Eyeing zombies in the head. After returning our former hostage in one piece it was time to put the pad down.

So the question is, is the Red Dead Redemption: Undead Nightmare pack worth your £8? Rockstar promised us that there will be plenty to do and see in Undead Nightmare. It brings with it a new single player campaign with what looks like delivering plenty of hours worth of gameplay. Add to that new weapons, three new outfits and, did we mention zombies?

Undead Nightmare is already looking like the DLC Red Dead fans have been waiting for, and we haven’t even got onto the multiplayer mode yet. Speaking of which, we’ll be bringing you a full preview of next week. But on first impressions, Undead Nightmare is more than just a zombie add-on.

Out 26th October 2010 | £7.99 (PS3) or 800 Microsoft Points (Xbox 360) | Rockstar

Windows Phone 7: fart app is first big hit

Posted: 14 Oct 2010 08:03 AM PDT

Well, Windows Phone 7 has its first hit app – before Windows Phone 7 devices even hit the hands of the public – it's called Farting Dino and it's…um…a fart app. Looks like the journos and Microsoft employees rocking Windows Phone 7 right now are just as puerile as the generally public…

While Apple slammed fart apps in the iTunes App Store guidelines, Windows Phone 7 seems ready to provide a home for that most gaseous of genres. In the Windows Phone 7 app store listings shown in the Microsoft Zune software, Farting Dino has hit the top of the charts.

The big surprise with Farting Dino is that it'll cost you 79p for the privilege of getting a flatulent dinosaur on your device. The raft of iPhone apps celebrating farting have usually been free so it's a surprise to see a big selling fart app in the charts even before the official Windows Phone 7 launch. Does that bode well?

Out October 21 | £varies | Windows Phone 7

Opera Mobile Android unveiled: coming soon

Posted: 14 Oct 2010 07:25 AM PDT

Opera Mobile, the full-fat version of Opera's mobile browser is coming to Android. Opera Mobile Android is being teased on the Opera site with some tasty features promised. The new Opera Mobile Android app will come packing hardware acceleration and, for the first time in an Opera app, pinch-to-zoom smarts. Opera Mini is also getting a pinch-to-zoom update. The best news though is that Opera Mobile Android will work with all version of the Android OS, so if you're waiting for an Android Froyo update or stuck with an older incarnation of the OS, you won't be out in the cold.

Out TBC | £free | Opera

Spotify Virgin Media team up incoming?

Posted: 14 Oct 2010 07:02 AM PDT

Spotify and Virgin Media are close to inking a deal to bring the music service to Virgin Media subscribers according to a new report. Virgin Media has apparently been forced to shelve its own plans for an unlimited music download service are the record labels refused to play ball and is eager to tie-up with Spotify instead…

Providing Spotify could be a good solution for Virgin Media which is eager to get in on the music subscription game and battle Sky Songs but hasn't been able to snag the labels. Universal Music was on board for the Virgin Media service but EMI, Sony Music and Warner Music didn't sign up.

Meanwhile, snapping up some more cash from Virgin Media would definitely appeal to Spotify which need to up its revenues to please the ravenous beasts of the record industry which are snapping at its heels. It recently expanded its reach with the Spotify Sonos tie-up.

The Spotify Virgin Media deal rumours come from the Telegraph which quotes a scattering of unnamed sources. It reports that a "source close to Spotify" says: "Spotify and Virgin Media are close to concluding a partnership deal. The finer points are not yet know but Spotify will be offering new tools and content exclusively to Virgin customers as part of the arrangement."

Unsurprisingly Virgin Media wouldn't comment on the speculation while Spotify issued a classic non-denial denial saying it's in talks with "a range of internet service providers". We’ll be chasing these rumours hard to see what we can find out for you. In the meantime, let us know would Spotify lure you to Virgin Media?

Out now | From £free | Spotify (via The Telegraph)

Samsung Galaxy Tab: test it early on the Tube!

Posted: 14 Oct 2010 06:30 AM PDT

The Samsung Galaxy Tab launches on November 1 but if you're eager to get your hands on it ahead of time, Samsung is offering it up to Tube testers from 18 October. In a clever bit of marketing, there'll be a limited number of Samsung Galaxy Tab units available for loan from Liverpool Street, Highbury & Islington and Ealing Broadway. If you want to be a Samsung Galaxy Tab Tube tester read on for more details…

Samsung wants to prove that the iPad-battling Samsung Galaxy Tab is ideal of slipping in a suit pocket – we've seen it being pretty pocketable in this Samsung Galaxy Tab video – and for using one-handed on the morning commute (we're not getting in to other potential one-handed uses).

The Samsung Galaxy Tab Tube test programme will offer up the device for a 48-hour loan on Monday, Wednesday and Friday of each week up until launch. To get in on the action, you need to email galaxytab@tubetest.co.uk or just rock up at one of the stations and talk to a Samsung promotionbot.

Let us know if you're planning to become a Samsung Galaxy Tab Tube tester and more importantly if you're raring to slap down some cash and buy one for keeps. Check out our Samsung Galaxy Tab hands on to help you make up your mind.

Out November 1 | £varies | Samsung Galaxy Tab

Advent Vega review: budget tablet first impressions

Posted: 14 Oct 2010 06:02 AM PDT

Yesterday we got our hands on the Advent Vega tablet announced last week: a budget tablet that will only set you back £250. At that price, we were sceptical about the Advent Vega. Something that cheap must have cut some pretty big corners right? Well, not really. After having a play around with the Advent Vega, we're convinced it’s a real bargain.

The Advent Vega runs Android Froyo 2.2, but it’s been stripped back by the folks at Advent and tweaked to make it suitable for tablet. The Advent Vega has a 10.1" capacitive touchscreen, and a 1GHz processor powering it too. The home screen is built with shortcuts to social networking sites Twitter and Facebook.

The Advent Vega has two key weak spots. Firstly, (and this is the corner that’s been cut) the camera, which is a 1.3MP front facing camera, will be pretty useless. Secondly, it has no 3G, yet. The Vega tablet we saw had a 3G slot, and while it has nothing in it now, that's something that Adam Lockyer, the category manager for Advent, said would be added, and an Advent Vega would be available in early next year with 3G capabilities.

It has a HDMI output, USB dock, and microSD slot, which can take cards up to 32GB. Out of the box Advent will give you a 4GB card too. The screen is good too, perfectly suitable for watching movies on the go.

So what's the battery like on the Advent Vega? We asked Lockyer how far you can push it before it conks out, and he said that him and his team had played the A-Team three times over to put it through its paces, and after three full plays it had around half the battery left. He estimated that you'd get around ten hours of playback with the Advent Vega, which is not bad at all.

The Advent Vega also has a cousin device, the Advent Amico, which is £130, and is a real no frills option, with a resistive touchscreen and not much more. While the Amico is probably a false economy, the Vega is setting a good standard for the wave of budget tablet options we’ll be seeing in the next six months.

Out 1 November | £250 | PC World & Currys

What do you think of the Advent Vega? Tempted? Drop us a line in the comments and let us know!

Skype for Windows updated: Call your Facebook friends!

Posted: 14 Oct 2010 06:00 AM PDT

We’d heard rumours, but now it’s official: a new version of Skype for Windows is out today, and it’s bringing some serious Facebook integration with it. Read on for what’s new and what you can do.

Skype for Windows has just hit version 5.0, and the big new feature is Facebook integration. You can now check out your Facebook feed from within the Skype for Windows application, which doesn’t sound too thrilling, but more usefully, you can dial out and send texts to contacts in your Facebook phonebook – it’ll also make a free Skype to Skype call should said Facebook buddy be on the VoIP service too.

Read our Skype Android app review now

Skype for Windows also brings the 10 way video calling into open beta, letting you video chat with more than one person at a time, should your broadband be up to the task.

Skype for Windows should be ready to download right now at the link below. Let us know how you get on!

Out Today | £free | Skype

Is AOL trying to buy Yahoo!?

Posted: 14 Oct 2010 05:33 AM PDT

AOL, along with a handful of private equity firms, is planning to buy Yahoo!, according to the Wall Street Journal. The article states that: “Silver Lake Partners and Blackstone Group LP are among the firms that have expressed interest in teaming up with AOL to buy Yahoo! or trying to take it private on their own. They added that at least two or three other firms could be interested in participating if a formal buyout proposal is drawn up.”

AOL isn’t quite on top of its game, and Yahoo! has had some rough times, but if the two were joined in a sell out by AOL, could the fortunes of the companies be turned around? What do you think?

Made for Life

Friday, 15 October 2010

Electricpig.co.uk - tech news fast!

Electricpig.co.uk - tech news fast!

No comments:

Post a Comment

Blog Directories