| GoPro is Reportedly Developing its Own Line of Consumer Drones Posted: 26 Nov 2014 05:51 PM PST  Consumer drones could cost around $500 - $1,000
The drone market is increasing both for consumers and large businesses. After all, Amazon is looking to employ drones to deliver packages while smaller businesses develop consumer drones such as the Nixie. But according to unnamed sources who spoke to The Wall Street Journal, GoPro is developing its own line of consumer drones. Sources familiar with the company's plans said that it will start to sell drones equipped with high-definition cameras late in 2015 and that GoPro is looking to retail the device between $500 and $1,000. If true, GoPro's plan to enter into the drone market is an interesting and logical one. Several drone makers have been using the company's GoPro's camera for their own camera-mounted drones for a while now. However, drone makers such as Parrot have packaged their own cameras. Parrot is a company that has been at the forefront of the drone market since it started selling its product in 2010. During the third quarter of this year, it has sold $24.2 million in consumer drones which is up 38 percent from the same time period as last year. It is a fair indication of an increasing demand of drones which has caused the Federal Aviation Administration to amend its regulations in order to ban commercial use of drones over stadiums and large public events. So far, GoPro has yet to confirm or deny their plans to enter the drone market. If it turns out to be true, what do you think of GoPro developing and selling drones to consumers? Follow Sean on Google+, Twitter, and Facebook |
| Ubisoft Offers Free DLC for Assassin’s Creed Unity Launch Woes Posted: 26 Nov 2014 04:35 PM PST  Season Pass holders get a free game
Since it was released on November 11, Assassin's Creed Unity has been plagued by a plethora or issues. The game has suffered from so many bug, glitches, and technical issues that the third patch will have around 300 bug fixes. To make amends for the launch, Ubisoft has apologized and announced that Assassin's Creed Unity's upcoming DLC will be free. "I want to sincerely apologize on behalf of Ubisoft and the entire Assassin's Creed team," said Ubisoft Montreal CEO Yannis Mallat in a blog post. "These problems took away from your enjoyment of the game, and kept many of you from experiencing the game at its fullest potential." The Dead Kings DLC will be free for everyone that purchased the game when it is released. When it becomes available, it will be listed as an add-on for both Uplay and Steam where PC gamers will be able to download it. Meanwhile, those who purchased the Season Pass or Assassin's Creed Unity Gold Edition, will be given the choice of one free game from a selection of the developer's titles – The Crew, Far Cry 4, Watch Dogs, Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag, Rayman Legends, or Just Dance 2015. No date has been provided for when the Dead Kings DLC will be released and available for download except that it is "coming soon." Furthermore, Ubisoft has discontinued selling the Season Pass for Assassin's Creed Unity. Follow Sean on Google+, Twitter, and Facebook |
| Associate Editor Position Open at Maximum PC Posted: 26 Nov 2014 03:11 PM PST  Maximum PC needs an Associate Editor!
Is it your dream to get paid to write about PC hardware? If you are an aspiring journalist who wants to write clean copy for Maximum PC, now's your chance to get your foot in the door as an Associate Editor. Ideal candidates should: - Be well-versed in the PC hardware/software scene
- Have writing/reporting abilities
- Be willing to work out of our office in South San Francisco
Job Responsibilities: - Write/contribute content (news, features, and reviews) for the magazine and website
- Build PCs/assist with running PC benchmarks
- Upload articles to the CMS/website
- Participate in Maximum PC's No BS Podcast
- Cover events/tradeshows as needed
- Daily tasks as assigned
Candidates should have in-depth knowledge in the following areas: - CPU
- GPU
- Motherboards
- Storage
- Software (Windows/Linux/Multimedia Production/Editing)
- Cases
- Cooling
- Overclocking
- Peripherals (headset, keyboards, mice)
About Future: Future plc is an international media group and leading digital publisher, listed on the London Stock Exchange (symbol: FUTR). It has operations in the UK, US and Australia creating 200 publications, apps, websites and events. It holds market-leading positions in Technology, Gaming, Entertainment, Creative and Sport & Auto sectors. Future attracts 50 million monthly global unique users to its websites, which include techradar.com, gamesradar.com, bikeradar.com and musicradar.com. Future sells more than 24 million magazines every year, that's 45 magazines sold every minute. Our most well-known brands in the US include Mac|Life, Maximum PC, PC Gamer and Official Xbox Magazine. We deliver over 100 digital editions, selling over two million products in the last 12 months through Apple's Newsstand for iPad. Future exports or syndicates over 200 publications to over 90 countries, making us the UK's number one exporter and licensor of magazine content. Future is currently Consumer Digital Publisher of the Year for both the Association of Online Publishers and the Professional Publishers Association. What we offer: - 401K Match
- Costco Membership
- Corporate Matching Program
- Employer paid medical, dental and vision plans.
- A culture that encourages a passion for life both inside and outside of the office.
- Free shuttle service from BART and CalTrain to the office.
To apply for this position, please click here: https://theapplicantmanager.com/jobs?pos=FS172 |
| Newegg Daily Deals: AMD FX-8350 Black Edition Vishera, Intel Core i7 4790K Haswell, and More! Posted: 26 Nov 2014 01:09 PM PST |
| Acer's B286HK 28-inch 4K Falls to $350 Posted: 26 Nov 2014 11:34 AM PST  A big price drop on a 4K monitor
It's not the version with Nvidia's G-Sync technology baked inside, but Acer's B286HK 28-inch 4K Ultra HD monitor is selling for just $349 on Newegg today. That's a pretty hot price for a 3840x2160 monitor that's capable of 4K video at 60 FPS over DsiplayPort 1.2. It's an especially good deal when you consider its original selling price of $699, though we've seen it on the street for as low as $450 (Provantage) prior to today's sale price. Could this be an indication of things to come? It appears that 4K panel pricing is on a rapid decline, and that's fine by us. At the same time, what we're really interested in are the next generation models that will hopefully increase the refresh rate and come with IPS panels at a reasonable price. Acer's model uses a TN panel -- a bit of a bummer, though at $349 for 28 inches of 4K real estate, it's hard to be too critical of the specs. Other features include a 2ms response time, 300 cd/m2 brightness, built in speakers, and a stand with tilt, swivel, height, and pivot support. The monitor is been in and out of stock throughout the day. At the time of this writing, it's showing as in-stock. Follow Paul on Google+, Twitter, and Facebook |
| Steam Exploration Sale Treats PC Gamers to Big Discounts Posted: 26 Nov 2014 11:10 AM PST  Yet another chance to stock up on games
Some things in life you just have to suck up and accept. You know, like having to deal with in-laws during the holidays, Fido chewing up your high tech programmable universal remote, and one day leaving this world without having played every game in your Steam library. Life is a lot less stressful if you don't fight these types of things. So with that in mind, here's a heads up that Steam's Exploration sale is going on now. As with the various other Steam sales that frequently occur, this is your chance to stock up on games at big discounts, some as high as 90 percent off. Here's a sample: - Age of Mythology Extended Edition: 75 percent off, $7.49
- Dead Island: 75 percent off, $4.99
- The Stanley Parable: 70 percent off, $4.49
- Watch Dogs: 50 percent off, $29.99
- Goat Simulator: 50 percent off, $4.99
- Left 4 Dead 2: 50 percent off, $9.99
That's a small collection of the 5,636 titles on sale across Steam at this very moment. Plus there are daily specials, so there's really no excuse to have a Steam library filled only with games that you've played before. The Steam Exploration sale ends December 2, 2015, at 10 AM PST. Follow Paul on Google+, Twitter, and Facebook |
| Rapid Tablet Growth is Now in Rear View Mirror, iPad Sees First Year of Decline Posted: 26 Nov 2014 10:50 AM PST  All good runs eventually slow to a walk
Market research firm International Data Corporation (IDC) believes the tablet market will see a "massive deceleration" in 2014 with annual growth only hitting 7.2 percent, down significantly from 52.5 percent in 2013. It will also be the first full year of decline in Apple iPad shipments, which are on pace to drop 12.7 percent in 2014 as Android and Windows devices cut into its market share. IDC said it isn't surprised by the slowdown, considering that the lifecycle of tablets in general is increasingly becoming like that of PCs rather than smartphones. "The tablet market continues to be impacted by a few major trends happening in relevant markets," said Ryan Reith, Program Director with IDC's Worldwide Quarterly Mobile Device Trackers. "In the early stages of the tablet market, device lifecycles were expected to resemble those of smartphones, with replacement occurring every 2-3 years. What has played out instead is that many tablet owners are holding onto their devices for more than 3 years and in some instances more than 4 years. We believe the two major drivers for longer than expected tablet lifecycles are legacy software support for older products, especially within iOS, and the increased use of smartphones for a variety of computing tasks." What about 2-in-1 hybrid devices? IDC says hardware manufacturers continue to advance the category with thinner devices and lower prices, but that shipments are only expected to reach 8.7 million units in 2014, or just 4 percent of the tablet plus 2-in-1 market. It's not very likely tablets will ever see the kind of explosive growth they've experienced the past few years, though IDC says there are a few unknowns that could impact shipments. Among them are how the industry reacts to Windows 10, what Google ends up doing in the tablet space with Android and Chrome OS, and Apple's rumored product expansion (the company is said to be working on a larger size slate). Follow Paul on Google+, Twitter, and Facebook |
| Amazon Drops Price of Fire Phone to $199 Sans Contract Posted: 26 Nov 2014 09:31 AM PST  Still a tough sell
Amazon is having itself a Fire sale of sorts -- Fire Phone, that is. You can now grab Amazon's Fire Phone with 32GB for just $199 off-contract, the lowest price yet for the company's first real foray into the smartphone business. It's also been a rather forgettable one, with Amazon earlier this month letting it be known that it was sitting on $83 million in unsold Fire Phone inventory. The company has gone on record admitting that it got initial pricing all wrong for the Fire Phone, which debuted at $649 for the unlocked version. You could get it cheaper on a subsidized basis, but at $199, there were (and still are) far better options out there. This time around, it's $199 outright and it still comes with a free year of Amazon Prime, which itself is a $99 value. That at least makes things interesting, though probably isn't reason enough to jump on the deal unless you live and breathe everything Amazon. For some, it's not an option anyway -- Fire Phone is GSM only, meaning Sprint and Verizon subscribers are out of luck. If that doesn't deter you, head here to place your order. Follow Paul on Google+, Twitter, and Facebook |
| Microsoft Is Giving 100 Free Albums To Windows 8 And Windows Phone Users Through Music Deals App Posted: 26 Nov 2014 07:52 AM PST  Rock out with your Windows Phone or Windows device out
It wouldn't be fair to call Microsoft a Scrooge, not when the company is rolling out a pair of sweet deals for the holiday season, one of which includes 100 free albums. The caveat? You have to be a Windows or Windows Phone user. If you are, you can claim your 100 free albums from Microsoft by installing the company's Music Deals companion app. These aren't crappy albums, either. Some are obviously better than others, depending on your music preferences, but you'll find plenty of big names like the Rolling Stones, Led Zeppelin, James Taylor, Eminem, Bob Marley, Eric Clapton, American Idiot, and lots more. And that's just one of the deals going on. Microsoft is also offering up 50 boxed sets at $2 a pop. Think artists and bands like the Eagles, KISS, John Lennon, and of course the list goes on. These sets typically sell for between $15 and $100. "Remember, albums you download as part of our Music Deals are all MP3s. You can download these albums, keep them, and play them on whatever device you have," Microsoft stated in a blog post. You can grab the Music Deals app from the Windows Store here and from the Windows Phone Store here. Follow Paul on Google+, Twitter, and Facebook |
| Newegg Daily Deals: Intel Core i5 4690K Devil's Canyon, AMD FX-6300 Vishera, and More! Posted: 25 Nov 2014 08:45 PM PST |
