TJ, Ed, Randy, and Jason talk about the new Ipad again now that Mr. TJ happens to own one. Was it a smart purchase or a regretful one? Listen and find out.
Also see TJ's day one youtube review of the Ipad TJ What's New? Ipad Review
Geeksquisite #54: TJ bought an Ipad
Friday, April 9, 2010
Thursday, April 8, 2010
TJ What's New? Ipad
Hey guys I just bought an Ipad yesterday and have been really enjoying it. I've never owned a Iphone or a touch. So this is a review from the perspective of someone who is brand new to the app world. There will be more individual app reviews in the future but for now here is an overall review of the new 1st gen Ipad!
Monday, March 29, 2010
The Last Airbender TV Spot
A new TV spot got my attention, and I am certainly glad I watched this.
After seeing this I took note of a few things.
Still haven't seen much with Patel's Zuko character, but he really evokes the presence of Zuko. He really does, and Zuko's presence was emphasized in the show quite a bit.
From :32 to :39 we get to see one on one bending a little bit more, and while Aang vs Zuko is too short; Katara vs Zuko was really awe inspiring. Patel's execution is really something, and Nicola Peltz as Katara...
She's been like the only worry to me, in terms of embodying her character she seemed more like a supporting character than the care taking individual from the show. That scene with her fighting Zuko ("I won't let you take him") gives me more confidence in her. Once again she seems to have trouble delivering on lines, but that one scene leads me to believe that they just edit her into the trailer badly. I think they edit her lines for "promotional" effect for the movie.
at :40, we see them on Appa. That blew me away, the fact that they were flying on Appa. The detail on just his fur looked so, wow I don't have a word for it. How much is Appa going to be in this movie? I'm really curious. If i'm mistaken, do I also see Momo on the left of Katara? It's probably her arm, and this scene probably starts toward the episodes before Momo even comes in. Would Shayamalan even put Momo in the movie?
at :50, is that Aang? If that is, Ringer has a scratchy voice. Not saying anything bad by that, but I am used to the voice of Zach Tyler Eisen in the show.
July 2nd release eh? I don't know if they told us this in earlier trailers, but this is a decent place to release it.
I am even more excited for this movie, between more confidence in Nicola Peltz, the bigger role Appa seems to be playing, and the bending. This is a movie that now could be great or a beautiful yet tragic failure.
Shayamalan, you better be on your top game.
After seeing this I took note of a few things.
Still haven't seen much with Patel's Zuko character, but he really evokes the presence of Zuko. He really does, and Zuko's presence was emphasized in the show quite a bit.
From :32 to :39 we get to see one on one bending a little bit more, and while Aang vs Zuko is too short; Katara vs Zuko was really awe inspiring. Patel's execution is really something, and Nicola Peltz as Katara...
She's been like the only worry to me, in terms of embodying her character she seemed more like a supporting character than the care taking individual from the show. That scene with her fighting Zuko ("I won't let you take him") gives me more confidence in her. Once again she seems to have trouble delivering on lines, but that one scene leads me to believe that they just edit her into the trailer badly. I think they edit her lines for "promotional" effect for the movie.
at :40, we see them on Appa. That blew me away, the fact that they were flying on Appa. The detail on just his fur looked so, wow I don't have a word for it. How much is Appa going to be in this movie? I'm really curious. If i'm mistaken, do I also see Momo on the left of Katara? It's probably her arm, and this scene probably starts toward the episodes before Momo even comes in. Would Shayamalan even put Momo in the movie?
at :50, is that Aang? If that is, Ringer has a scratchy voice. Not saying anything bad by that, but I am used to the voice of Zach Tyler Eisen in the show.
July 2nd release eh? I don't know if they told us this in earlier trailers, but this is a decent place to release it.
I am even more excited for this movie, between more confidence in Nicola Peltz, the bigger role Appa seems to be playing, and the bending. This is a movie that now could be great or a beautiful yet tragic failure.
Shayamalan, you better be on your top game.
Friday, March 26, 2010
Movie Ticket prices going up
It wasn't more than a year ago that I was paying $5 for admission to a movie, heck i'll pay more for a nicer theatre and maybe for 3D in the case of a movie like Avatar.
The movie industry is making money, and they know it. Now Yahoo gave me the heads up that movie ticket prices will go up.
It's moves like this that assure me this world will never get out of a recession, because the movie industry is investing in this stupid 3D technology. I was pretty impressed by the 3D in Avatar, but no movie is going to do that much effort again. Oh i'm sure James Cameron will in his "teased" sequel, but there's a reason Avatar didn't win best picture. 3D isn't cinema value, it's a gimmick. Now that gimmick is becoming the standard of the movie industry, as is IMAX.
I've seen three movies in IMAX, and i'm done with that gimmick as well. There is honestly no value in my honest opinion for paying extra for a larger screen (IMAX) or to have stuff pop out at you (3D).
People like to watch movies at home, and the regular screens of a movie theatre are about ten times the size of the average 55 inch TV in a home. So answer me why an even bigger screen matters that much? It doesn't if people are content watching the movies at home.
However 3D doesn't add to a movie, the novelty rarely every holds onto the viewer for long. Now studios see 3D as a way to make more money, the majority of these movies are pop out 3D which is a simple 1 hour of labor to add the stereoscopic effect of 3D. Are we really going to wear glasses whenever we watch a movie, people are too lazy for that including me. Turning on the TV is a no brainer, but reaching for glasses? That just seems stupid to be necessary in your own home, and that also makes TVs too expensive.
Time and time again, even though I am tech crazy I will say this. Technology does not guarantee a good movie, and all this stuff they add to the movie going experience without giving consumers "viewing choices" on seeing a movie will keep movie goers away.
So if these depraved managers want to raise ticket prices, go ahead, because i'll never take a risk with movies again unless I absolutely want to see them. That was one element you have to love about movies, taking a risk and either liking or disliking a movie. That element is gone, and have made movie goers more definitive of their genre. The movies used to be escapism, now its an expensive escapism that you have to be particular about if you want to afford the overpriced popcorn.
I thought of something interesting, perhaps movies want to use 3D to curb piracy. I imagine a pirated 3D film looks awful, but price goes over preference in this economy.
To save the escapism of movie going,the movie industry and the studios, go back on these ticket prices you delusional minds in the industry. The Recession isn't over, and this will only hurt the movie industry which has remain untouched financially.
For me this means I am eating before I go to a movie, because at this point the snacks and drinks should be free with these prices.
The movie industry is making money, and they know it. Now Yahoo gave me the heads up that movie ticket prices will go up.
It's moves like this that assure me this world will never get out of a recession, because the movie industry is investing in this stupid 3D technology. I was pretty impressed by the 3D in Avatar, but no movie is going to do that much effort again. Oh i'm sure James Cameron will in his "teased" sequel, but there's a reason Avatar didn't win best picture. 3D isn't cinema value, it's a gimmick. Now that gimmick is becoming the standard of the movie industry, as is IMAX.
I've seen three movies in IMAX, and i'm done with that gimmick as well. There is honestly no value in my honest opinion for paying extra for a larger screen (IMAX) or to have stuff pop out at you (3D).
People like to watch movies at home, and the regular screens of a movie theatre are about ten times the size of the average 55 inch TV in a home. So answer me why an even bigger screen matters that much? It doesn't if people are content watching the movies at home.
However 3D doesn't add to a movie, the novelty rarely every holds onto the viewer for long. Now studios see 3D as a way to make more money, the majority of these movies are pop out 3D which is a simple 1 hour of labor to add the stereoscopic effect of 3D. Are we really going to wear glasses whenever we watch a movie, people are too lazy for that including me. Turning on the TV is a no brainer, but reaching for glasses? That just seems stupid to be necessary in your own home, and that also makes TVs too expensive.
Time and time again, even though I am tech crazy I will say this. Technology does not guarantee a good movie, and all this stuff they add to the movie going experience without giving consumers "viewing choices" on seeing a movie will keep movie goers away.
So if these depraved managers want to raise ticket prices, go ahead, because i'll never take a risk with movies again unless I absolutely want to see them. That was one element you have to love about movies, taking a risk and either liking or disliking a movie. That element is gone, and have made movie goers more definitive of their genre. The movies used to be escapism, now its an expensive escapism that you have to be particular about if you want to afford the overpriced popcorn.
I thought of something interesting, perhaps movies want to use 3D to curb piracy. I imagine a pirated 3D film looks awful, but price goes over preference in this economy.
To save the escapism of movie going,the movie industry and the studios, go back on these ticket prices you delusional minds in the industry. The Recession isn't over, and this will only hurt the movie industry which has remain untouched financially.
For me this means I am eating before I go to a movie, because at this point the snacks and drinks should be free with these prices.
Sunday, March 21, 2010
First Impressions of the Rock Band Network
So, the Rock Band Network has been out for a while now, but I haven't really had a chance to mess around with it too much. However, I recently popped in that copy of Rock Band 2 and decided to take a look. I must say, it's quite impressive.The RBN is located in the "Music Store" menu as a separate item, letting you easily sepearte the official Harmonix releases from the releases on the Rock Band Network. Once you get into the RBN store, it's sorted a little differently than the main store is. You have a few options here, "Top 10" which gives you the top 10 highest rated songs, "Harmonix Picks" which gives you a select number of songs Harmonix liked and hand-picked for that week, "Browse" which lets you simply sift through all of the songs, and "Random Song" if you'd like to be surprised.
If you choose Browse, there's gonna be a bunch of extra ways you can go through all the songs. by Artist, by Author (The user who charted the song), by Label, by Genre, by Language (yes, there are foreign-language songs on the network), by Title, or by Rating.
The sorting is obviously very deep, and will allow you to find any song on the network you are specifically looking for very quickly. It also seems to be built to
handle thousands upon thousands of songs, which makes sense if the network becomes popular enough. At the time of this writing, there have been 168 songs released on the Network, which is quite impressive for only having been out one month.One of the best parts of the Rock Band Network is the ability to download free Demo versions of songs. When I first heard about this, I was wondering exactly how it'd work, but it's actually quite smart. You download the demo-version, you're unable to use it in Tour Mode, Practice Mode, or Online. The only way you can play it is in Solo or Band quick-play. You can play it as many times as you like, however, you can only play through the first 30 seconds of the song, and it'll cut off and go to a "Demo Over" screen, complete with a "Buy Now" option.
This seems really effective in making people want to throw down their cash right away to finish the song. It also gives people a chance to see how well-charted the song is, and gives them a little bit more to listen to of the song than the initial preview-track at the Store-level.
Another great thing about the Rock Band Network is the support it's getting from artists. I've seen a few big-name artists on here such as Drowning Pool, Bang Camaro, Senses Fail, Third-Eye Blind, All That Remains, KMFDM, and probobly the biggest name so far, Steve Vai! I've also found out about a few unknown artists that I personally really enjoy such as DNA's Evolution with their track "The Heist" and The Hold Steady with their track "Sequestered in Memphis".
Overall, there's some great music in the Rock Band Network, and it seems like it'll keep expanding and growing larger. Maybe someday soon we'll see day-and-date Rock Band Network releases with Artist's releases on itunes or other music download services.
Friday, March 19, 2010
Cliffy B talks Gears 3, obviously.
Maybe its just me, but why do I get the feeling that Cliffy B still believes Gears of War 3 will be a surprise? I saw posters online while using google to look up ANYTHING on Gears 3, and that said November (17th) 2010. Photo shopped? maybe since I can't find them again.
Honestly though.
Gears:2006
(+2 years of development)
Gears 2:2008
(+2 years of development)
Gears 3:2010
We've waited long enough, and the way he talks makes it seem that Gears of War 3 COULD be out this year. Sure there is concern of Gears 3 and Halo Reach "affecting" each other, but i'm getting both games for sure regardless of when they come out. All those games of 2009 were pushed back because of Modern Warfare 2, and that's been a stupid move so far.
I didn't know Epic's tech was used for Natal, but I do remember Cliff saying Gears wouldn't use Natal. The "hybrid game" description in regards to the uses of Natal makes me wonder if he changed his tune with using Natal for Gears 3.
I am happy that he browses forums to find feedback and realizes how redundant and repetitive Gears of War 2 matchmaking is, I hope Gears 3 improves on that.
Gears of War 2 seems forgotten nowadays, and that's a shame. Horde mode was much more fun than say, Firefight, and the Co-op of Gears campaign was WAY better done than Halo 3. Halo 3 had you all fighting the same number of aliens, Gears split up the players and made a much more satisfying Co-Op experience. Spec Ops on Modern Warfare 2 is about the same, but Gears encouraged you to defend your teammate.
Gears of War 2 was such a major improvement over the first one, I seriously can't wait till we see the third.
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