TechGuyNate

TechGuyNate

Nathan Needham  //  Tech and Home Theater enthusiast

 
Oct 19 / 2:41pm

iPhone App: ROCK BAND by EA mobile

Rockband

Rock Band is now available for purchase for $9.99, which seems to be EA's starting price point for most new release iPhone games.  It appears to play similar (from the screenshots at least) to the recently released Tap Tap Revenge 3 which only cost $0.99. Here is the feature list for EA's Rock Band:
  • Go solo, or push it to the limit with LIVE BLUETOOTH MULTIPLAYER
  • Sync up via Facebook on your own time.
  • Rock out on guitar, bass, drums or vocals to MP3-quality songs
  • Play at three levels: easy, medium or difficult
  • Play solo, or start a band with friends from around the world
  • Jump into Quickplay for casual sessions or take it on the road in Tour Mode
  • Play along with 20 legendary songs from great bands like Smashing Pumpkins, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Foo Fighters, Blink-182, The Beastie Boys, and more!
  • Start out playing in grungy dives and work all the way up to stadium-rock stardom
  • Collect rewards and achievements that provide replay value and depth to even the most experienced Rock Band veterans
  • Check out the in-game Music Store to purchase additional tracks
EA also offers Rock Band Unplugged currently for PSP at $39.99, but the gameplay experience is handled differently than the iPhone version.  I'm a huge fan of Rock Band, but I'm not sure what platform I would prefer to play Rock Band on the go.  I've played the demo on the PSP and enjoyed it, but there is no demo available at this time for iPhone (and I doubt there will ever be one).  I'll wait and see as some of the reviews start coming in before I make my decision.

(download)

Filed under  //  EA mobile   PSP   Rock Band   iPhone   iPhone App  
 
Oct 19 / 2:07pm

News: Wolfram|Alpha iPhone app $50... is that an extra zero?

Wolfram|Alpha is a "computational knowledge engine" that can accept free-form natural language inputs and then output dynamically computed results.  What does this mean you ask?  Well, here's the creator, Stephen Wolfram, explaining how it works:

As an architecture student I attempted to use Wolfram|Alpha to retrieve data for climate analysis on a project I was working on.  I was unable to retrieve almost any useful results that I couldn't simply get somewhere else quickly.  I was hoping for psychrometric charts, wind roses, sun path diagrams etc., but I was lucky to get a graph that plotted temperature distribution.  I'm sure though as this engine develops it will only get better and will eventually become a wider encompassing engine.

Earlier this summer, Wolfram|Alpha launched an "iPhone mobile page" at http://www.wolframalpha.com/iphone which allows iPhone users to essentially make a web-app.  At that time they showed interest in making a full-blown iPhone app.  Well, the wait is over... the Wolfram|Alpha iPhone App is now available for $50.  I'm sure this app is 'optimized' for the iPhone and 'integrates' with other iPhone features, but why should I pay FIFTY DOLLARS for what I essentially get for free with the web-app.  Sorry Wolfram, but I believe you've shot yourself in the foot with this price point. 

(download)

Filed under  //  News   Search Engine   WolframAlpha   iPhone   iPhone App  
 
Oct 15 / 4:52pm

New Product: Sonos ZonePlayer S5

S5explode

The new ZonePlayer S5 by Sonos is the first ZonePlayer to offer a built-in speaker solution.  It sports a "five driver speaker system – two tweeters, two 3” mid-range drivers, and one 3.5” woofer. Each driver of the product is individually powered by a dedicated amplifier".  It will be available at the end of October for $399.  This is a great addition to the product line and it really makes me want to invest in the Sonos brand.  Here is a short video of the new player:

Filed under  //  Music System   New Product   Sonos   ZP S5  
 
Oct 15 / 4:35pm

Random Fun: Ulduar Movie by Invisusira

I thought this was a well done WoW machinima about the Ulduar raid dungeon. 

Filed under  //  Invisusira   Random Fun   Ulduar   World of Warcraft   machinima  
 
Oct 1 / 8:30pm

Feature: Mobile Game Device - Hardware Comparison Matrix

Mobilehardwarechart

Please click to enlarge if you can't read this...I put it together earlier today.  It was a pain finding some of the specs, but I managed to find most of them.  I tried to stay away from listing possible accessories etc.  I plan to do another matrix similar to this but focus more on the software features.  Feel free to share this and if you find a mistake then leave a comment or send a message via Twitter.  Thanks.

Filed under  //  Apple   Feature   Nintendo   Nintendo DS Lite   Nintendo DSi   Sony   Sony PSP go   Sony PSP-3000   iPod touch  
 
Oct 1 / 11:48am

News: PSP go launches today

Psp-go-logo

The PSP go arrives on retail shelves today for the price of $249.99.  The feature list is similar to that of it's older brother the PSP-3000, but there are some distinguishable differences. First of all the form factor has been completely changed to make the PlayStation Portable more.... portable.  They did this by removing the UMD slot and opting for download only titles via PSN as well as making the screen size smaller. Then they added 16GB of built-in storage and a Bluetooth radio that can be used for tethering. 

There was initial plans to create an exchange program for existing PSP owners to receive a digital version of their game to use with the PSP go, but according to recent news via Kotaku this will not be available.  This makes it a really easy decision for me... why would I buy a PSP go and then not be able to play any of my older games?  Not to mention it's kinda tough to buy a PSP go when the PSP-3000 sells for $169.99 currently.  I plan to do a follow up post today comparing the specs/features of today's portable gaming devices.

 

(download)

Filed under  //  News   PSP3000   PSPgo   PlayStation   Sony  
 
Sep 29 / 2:49pm

Social: My GiantBomb.com profile

Giantbomblogo

Giant Bomb is a video game community that encompasses everything from PCs to portables to consoles.  The website founders, Ryan and Jeff, began with the Arrow Pointing Down podcast (3 episodes) in February 2008.  It then changed to the Giant Bombcast as they initially launched their blog style website. 

It has now evolved into a full featured community with Game Wiki's, Forums, User Blogs, Reviews and much more.  My profile page can be found here... I need to finish setting up some of the features, but look forward to contributing.  The Giant Bombcast is still being recorded every Tuesday and they also have an iPhone App available:

Filed under  //  Bombcast   GiantBomb   Social  
 
Sep 29 / 1:54pm

iPhone App: Sonos Controller by Sonos, Inc

 
The most recent update was April 14, 2009 to work with the most current iPhone OS 3.0.  Below are the features:
  • Wirelessly stream millions of songs and stations all over the house - no computer required.
  • Play the same song in every room or different songs in every room.
  • Instantly access music stored on your computer, and play tunes from a NAS drive or Apple Time Capsule without turning on your computer.
  • Control the music selection and volume in each room individually.
  • Search for any song with the touch-screen keyboard.
  • Wake up or fall asleep to your favorite music or Internet radio station with full-featured alarms.
  • Set up or expand the Sonos system wirelessly with a touch of a finger.

(download)

Filed under  //  Remote Controller   Sonos   iPhone   iPhone App  
 
Sep 29 / 1:34pm

Product Highlight: Sonos Multi-Room music system

Sonoslogo
Sonos is a company with a clear goal and that is to make it easy to play music throughout the home.  The first thing I noticed about Sonos is their simple product lineup.  They have 2 zone players:  the ZP120 that has an amplifier to hook directly to 2 speakers and a subwoofer, and the ZP90 with analog/digital outputs to connect to a receiver.  They offer the  CR200 remote to control the system as well as Mac or PC software.  Sonos also offers an iPhone / iPod touch app that I will do a short follow-up post on.
 
Sonos uses a mesh network that connects to your existing network to access features such as Rhapsody, Pandora, Last.fm etc..., but it also creates it's own network between devices that is referred to as SonosNet.  Each Sonos zone player in the network acts as a repeater, which allows for greater range throughout the house and also allows for better syncing of music between zones.  This means that SonosNet gets better with each zone player that is added to the network.  This is very similar to how Insteon home automation devices create a stronger mesh network with the addition of more devices.
 
I definitely plan to invest in one of these systems eventually and can't wait to see what Sonos has to offer in the future.  For a review of the latest Sonos bundle check out the CNET review posted below.
 

(download)

Filed under  //  CR200   Insteon   Music System   Product Highlight   Sonos   ZP120   ZP90   iPhone  
 
Sep 29 / 11:57am

Random Fun: Yoshi betrayed by Mario

Betrayal

Looks like I need to boot up Smash Bros and kick Mario's ass for this. 

Filed under  //  Mario   Random Fun   Yoshi