General Gaming Article |
- Daily Deals: Logitech Z906 THX Speakers, Corsair Power Supply, OCZ SSD, and More
- SkyDrive vs. Google Drive
- PETA Picks a Fight with Pokemon in Parody Video Game
- Logitech Launches G710+ Mechanical Gaming Keyboard with Dual-Zone Backlighting
- Adobe Plugs 25 Holes in Flash Player
- In Case You Missed It: Maingear Fetches Street Cred with Snoop Dogg, Rapper and PC Gamer
- AMD Targeting Windows 8 Tablet Market with New Z-60 APU
| Daily Deals: Logitech Z906 THX Speakers, Corsair Power Supply, OCZ SSD, and More Posted: 09 Oct 2012 12:05 PM PDT
Top Deal: Today's top deal is the awesome Logitech Z906 5.1-channel 3D surround sound THX speaker system for $300 with $20 shipping at TigerDirect (normally $400). When we reviewed the system last year, we gave it a 9 and praised its surround sound quality and beefy subwoofer. Laptops: Toshiba Satellite C870-BT2N11 17.3" dual-core laptop with 4GB RAM and 500GB hard drive for $412 at Toshiba Direct (normally $550). Computing Hardware & Peripherals: Corsair CX430 V2 430W power supply for $20 with free shipping at TigerDirect (normally $40). OCZ Agility 4 128GB SSD for $85 with $2 shipping after $15 mail-in rebate at TigerDirect (normally $100). Linksys WET610N Wireless-N ethernet bridge for $57 with free shipping at Cisco (normally $90 - use coupon code: HSDISH5). |
| Posted: 09 Oct 2012 10:30 AM PDT SkyDrive and Google Drive Go Head to HeadAfter years of rumors and whispers, Google finally released its long-awaited Google Drive cloud storage service in April, combining Dropbox-like synching abilities and a PC client with the company's Google Docs service. Microsoft could have waved the white flag; instead, it released an excellent update for its own SkyDrive service, adding many of the features found in Google Drive. The chips are on the table and there's only one question left: Which cloud storage service is better? Note: This article appeared in the August issue of the magazine. See author's note at end.
Round 1: InterfaceMicrosoft and Google must've done their homework before launching GDrive and SkyDrive, because the PC and Mac clients for the respective services look and feel an awful lot like Dropbox's. Basically, each appears as just another folder on your computer, albeit a folder that seamlessly syncs with the cloud whenever something inside of it changes. The synched folders even appear in Windows Explorer's Favorites sidebar just like Dropbox's client. It's painless and wonderful. It's a toss-up on the web interfaces, too. Both have simple, flexible, and functional UIs that deliver all the information you need without being overly busy. Both also feature list- and thumbnail-style viewing options. We prefer SkyDrive's colorful look to Google Drive's drab hues, but that's just a matter of personal taste. Winner: Draw Round 2: Storage/PriceNew SkyDrive sign-ups receive 7GB gratis—compared to the free 5GB offered by Google Drive—and veteran users can opt to grandfather in their full 25GB of free space. Plus, SkyDrive's upgrade options are cheaper than Google Drive's, and unlike Google, Microsoft offers a 50GB plan. Google Drive outshines SkyDrive in the total amount of upgradable space available, however. SkyDrive tops out at 100GB, while Google Drive goes all the way up to a whopping 16 terabytes (for a similarly whopping $800/month). Also, Google Drive caps file uploads at 10GB, compared to SkyDrive's 2GB max. We think 100GB of cloud storage is more than enough for most people, though. SkyDrive's cheaper prices and more generous free storage earn it the win. Winner: SkyDrive Round 3: Platform SupportPart of the allure of synching-style cloud storage solutions is the ability to access your files from virtually anywhere. Both services have Windows and Mac desktop clients while neglecting Linux lovers (who'll have to stick to Dropbox). The real difference lies in mobile support: SkyDrive offers dedicated iOS and Windows Phone apps, while Google Drive only has an Android app. (Both now offer iOS and Android apps. See note at end - Brad) Neither has announced plans for BlackBerry support. As it stands, SkyDrive gets the nod for supporting two mobile platforms, including the über-popular iOS, and for its deep-rooted Windows 8 integration. An Apple-compatible app—which Google says is in development—will add a lot of appeal to Google Drive, though both services pale compared to Dropbox and SugarSync's widespread mobile support. Winner: SkyDrive To see which cloud storage service is better at file protection, click on the next page to read the conclusion. Round 4: CollaborationBoth services offer basic in-browser editing for documents, spreadsheets, slide shows, and more, and users can collaborate with others to tinker with files in real time. The superb feature sets SkyDrive and Google Drive apart from their competitors. Giving others permission to read or edit files is a snap in both services, and each gives you the ability to email direct links to specific files. SkyDrive goes the extra mile and includes a Public folder that anybody can access, as well as support for sending links to over 30 social networks (but not Google+). Once you're actually collaboratively editing a document, though, Google Docs presents changes in real time, while SkyDrive's Office Web Apps forces all users to save and refresh documents before showing others' edits. Google's approach is vastly superior. Winner: Google Drive
SkyDrive's Office Web Apps mimic the look and feel of the stand-alone Microsoft Office productivity programs—right down to the controversial Ribbon interface…
… while Google Docs lovers will feel right at home in Google Drive's stark, black-and-white digs. The two services' PC clients, on the other hand, look virtually identical. Round 5: File ProtectionWhat if, in the midst of a hot-and-heavy collaborative editing session, a clueless co-worker accidentally deletes an important chunk of text and saves the change? Fear not: Both Google Drive and SkyDrive contain handy-dandy version history tools that can restore files to previous iterations. SkyDrive tracks the last 25 versions of a file, while Google Drive maintains file histories for 30 days or up to 100 revisions. The big difference lies in what happens when you accidentally delete a file completely. In SkyDrive, deleted files are simply gone, never to be seen again. (See note at end - Brad) Google Drive, however, moves deleted files into a Trash folder, where you can then choose to delete the file permanently or restore it to its original location, complete with its version history intact if it's a document. Winner: Google Drive And the Winner Is… Sigh. Ties satisfy no one, but individual needs really do determine which of these closely matched cloud-based services is right for you. Google Drive, basically being Google Docs on steroids, holds the slight edge in productivity tasks; SkyDrive is slightly cheaper, offers slightly more free storage, and is available on more mobile platforms. Sign up for the service that supports your mobile platform of choice, or heck, give 'em each a whirl if you're on the fence. Yay freemium! Author's note: This article first appeared in the August issue of the magazine, and it was actually written shortly after the launch of Google Drive, all the way back on May 8th. Both services have seen a bunch of changes since then; SkyDrive now supports file recovery, while both services offer apps for Android and iOS. If anything, the recent alterations to the services only serve to cement the fact that this is a closely fought battle with no clear winner. To manage all of your different online drives, check out our handy-dandy cloud storage backup guide.
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| PETA Picks a Fight with Pokemon in Parody Video Game Posted: 09 Oct 2012 10:01 AM PDT
PETA's beef is with the new Pokemon Black and White 2 game that hit store shelves on Sunday, which the organization claims casts a positive light on what essentially boils down to thinly veiled animal abuse. "Games such as Pokemon send kids the wrong message that exploiting and abusing those who are defenseless is acceptable when it's not," says PETA Director of Marketing Innovations Joel Bartlett. "But with Pokémon Black and Blue, children can experience the great feeling that comes from saving others from harm."
PETA often expresses extreme viewpoints, and in this case, the animal rights organization takes exception to Pokemon being "treated as unfeeling objects" where they're used for human entertainment and as subjects in experiments. "The way that Pokemon are stuffed into pokeballs is similar to how circuses chain elephants inside railroad cars and let them out only to perform confusing and often painful tricks that were taught using sharp steel-tipped bullhooks and electric shock prods," PETA says. In case you want check out PETA's parody title, there are two versions at your disposal, one for adults and one for kids.
This is far from the first time PETA has taken exception to in-game content and/or developed a parody title of its own. In Super Tanooki Skin 2D, PETA took a stand against animal skinning, as it felt was represented by Super Mario putting on a raccoon costume (Tanooki Mario). Around the same time, PETA raged against the killing of rats in Battlefield 3. The organization also was pivotal in Zynga's decision to remove pit bulls from its Mafia Wars title, but probably our favorite PETA memory is when it announced plans to raise awareness for animal rights via a porn website. Once gain folks, no joke. Follow Paul on Google+, Twitter, and Facebook
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| Logitech Launches G710+ Mechanical Gaming Keyboard with Dual-Zone Backlighting Posted: 09 Oct 2012 07:21 AM PDT
Logitech says the non-clicking key switches have a built-in dampening ring underneath each keycap to significantly reduce noise without sacrificing responsiveness. What that insinuates is that you should be able to game late at night and into the wee hours of the morning without waking everyone in your home (unless you bang your fist against your desk in frustration, then all bets are off). Actuation force is rated at 45g and distance at 4mm, which Logitech says is just right for rapid command entry. As for durability, mechanical planks are typically sturdier and more reliable than membrane-based keyboards, and in this case, Logitech says the G710+ has undergone a torturous testing process with a rated lifecycle of 50 million keystrokes. The G710+ is a backlit plank with white LEDs, which you can adjust to one of four brightness levels (or turn off completely). Additionally, you can adjust the brightness of the WASD and arrow keys independently from the rest of the keyboard. There are also dedicated macro keys to play with. Look for the G710+ to be available in December for $150 MSRP. Follow Paul on Google+, Twitter, and Facebook
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| Adobe Plugs 25 Holes in Flash Player Posted: 09 Oct 2012 05:57 AM PDT
This latest security update for Flash Player fixes as many as 25 vulnerabilities, of which 14 are buffer overflow vulnerabilities and the rest memory corruption flaws. According to the company, these bugs could potentially be used for remote code execution. However, the company isn't aware of any instances of these flaws being targeted in the wild. "Adobe has released security updates for Adobe Flash Player 11.4.402.278 and earlier versions for Windows, Adobe Flash Player 11.4.402.265 and earlier versions for Macintosh, Adobe Flash Player 11.2.202.238 and earlier for versions for Linux, Adobe Flash Player 11.1.115.17 and earlier versions for Android 4.x, and Adobe Flash Player 11.1.111.16 and earlier versions for Android 3.x and 2.x," the company said Monday. "These updates address vulnerabilities that could cause a crash and potentially allow an attacker to take control of the affected system." To everyone's surprise, Microsoft also patched IE10's baked-in Flash Player on Monday. The last time Microsoft patched IE10's Flash Player was in September, even though Adobe had issued the patches a month earlier. Even worse, Microsoft initially planned to begin patching the integrated Flash Player only after the official release of Windows 8 on October 26, but had to alter its stance after it came under heavy criticism. |
| In Case You Missed It: Maingear Fetches Street Cred with Snoop Dogg, Rapper and PC Gamer Posted: 09 Oct 2012 05:09 AM PDT
Snoop Dogg was spotted a few months back smoking foes with Maingear CEO Wallace Santos, the two together putting the then-new Potenza through its paces by blazing through rounds of Battlefield 3 in 3D. For himself, Snoop Dogg purchased a custom F-131 desktop from Maingear that was loaded with an Intel Core i7 processor, GeForce GTX 680 graphics card, and other hardware. He also picked out an Asus 27-inch monitor with Nvidia 3D Vision 2 glasses. Celebrity PC gamers are anything but rare. According to Bright Side of News, other celebrities who indulge in PC gaming include Chuck Norris (game over, console fans -- PC gamers win), Cameron Diaz, Robin Williams, Brandon Routh, Tom Cruise, and Daniel Craig, to name a handful.
Before the inevitable "This story is old!" comments come rolling in, understand we're aware of that, we missed covering it this summer, we feel terrible about it, and thought you should know. Oh, and for you die-hard console gamers, we're willing to acknowledge celebrities play on those too -- see above. Everyone happy? |
| AMD Targeting Windows 8 Tablet Market with New Z-60 APU Posted: 08 Oct 2012 09:15 PM PDT
"Tablet users seeking an uncompromised experience for both creating and consuming content on the Microsoft Windows 8 platform now have a performance-driven, affordable option with the AMD Z-60 APU," said Steve Belt, corporate vice president of Ultra-Low Power Products, AMD. "We see a large gap between the lower performance and high-price competitive offerings that allow AMD to be in tablet designs that will please our customers and end users alike." The Z-60 APU is a dual-core part clocked at 1GHz. It has 1MB of L2 cache, integrated Radeon HD 6250 graphics with 80 Radeon cores, USB 3.0 support, and a 4.5W TDP.
According to AMD, the Z-60 APU is loaded with tablet friendly features, including AMD Start Now technology to allow for fast boot and resume from sleep times, up to 8 hours of battery life when browsing the web and up to 6 hours when watching HD videos, support for Full HD 1080p visuals, and DirectX 11.
AMD didn't announce pricing, but if it adopts the same strategy that it's taken on the desktop, things could get very interesting in the Windows 8 tablet space. Imagine Surface-like tablets at a fraction of the price. In any event, the Z-60 APU is shipping today to customers and will manifest in launched products later this year. |
On a recent road trip across the Midwest headed towards the East Coast, I happened by a jerky outlet selling exotic meats, such as elk, kangaroo, and even gator jerky. Off to the side in the same shop were PETA t-shirts, though upon closer examination, they read People Eating Tasty Animals. I thought, 'Ah, of course.' The real PETA -- People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals -- has a sense of humor too, which it most recently used to develop a parody video game called 
Membrane keyboards don't hold a candle to their mechanical-based brethren, they just don't. Mechanical key switches offer far superior click action, and thanks to the variety of switches out there, fans of mechanical planks have their choice of loud and obnoxious keyboards, quiet performers, or something in between. 
Hardly a month goes by without 
The artist formerly known as Snoop Dogg who recently renamed himself Snoop Lion (we prefer to acknowledge him as the Dee Oh Double Gee from the L-B-C) is a PC gamer, though he doesn't roll his own rigs. There's nothing at all wrong with the latter, especially when your dealer is 
Look out Intel, because 
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