| E3 2013: Unu Interview Posted: 14 Jun 2013 11:44 AM PDT  Not your ordinary tablet.
Devices makers are aggressively pushing Android as a viable platform for your living room entertainment needs, hence consoles like Ouya, Mojo, and more. The Unu tablet is a similar attempt at getting gamers to fire up Android titles in the living room, but in a different way. It's a 7-inch slate that plugs into your TV, which in and of itself isn't a fancy trick since many tablets already have HDMI output, but the difference here is it turns your television into a smart console of sorts. We had a chance to see the Unu tablet at E3. It comes with an air mouse (remote control) so that you can dock the tablet and sit on the couch out of arm's reach. You then navigate the tiled interface, selecting from various categories like YouTube, Smart TV, Netflix, Hulu Plus, Games, and more. It seemed to run smooth and fast -- almost too fast, on occasion -- during our short look at the prototype device. If you want to play games, you can use the air remote, or a dedicated controller that looks similar to the Xbox's controller. There will be two SKUs of the quad-core 7-inch Unu tablet, including a Media Edition for $199 and a Gaming Edition for $249. Follow Paul on Google+, Twitter, and Facebook |
| Half of the Internet's Mobile Ad Revenue Belongs to Google Posted: 14 Jun 2013 11:23 AM PDT  By the numbers, it's Google's Internet, we're just witnesses.
Oh, to be Google for a day. If you could have Google's mobile ad dollars for a single day out of the year, you could quit your job and never work again, if you didn't want to. According to data by eMarketer, Google's mobile ad revenue is on pace to double in 2013 to $8.85 billion, and if you divide that by 365, it comes to more than $24 million per day. We'll give you a moment to let that sink in. As if any of this needs put into perspective, Google rakes in more than half of the world's mobile Internet ad revenue. That was the case in 2012 when Google collected $4.61 billion of the $8.8 billion spent, and if eMarketer's forecast for 2013 is correct, Google's $8.85 billion this year will again account for the lion's share of the $15.82 billion that will be spent overall. While most of the mobile ad dollars flow through Google, it's not the online online company collecting obscene amounts of green. Facebook is on pace to come in at a distant second with a little over $2 billion by the end of the year, ranking as the only other company to join the billion dollar mobile ad revenue club. After Facebook, Pandora is the biggest beneficiary of the Internet with 2013 revenue likely to total $400 million. That's a far cry from Google, but still more than $1 million per day. Follow Paul on Google+, Twitter, and Facebook |
| Using Siri to Sell Windows Tablets is a Potentially Winning Strategy Posted: 14 Jun 2013 10:52 AM PDT  Microsoft continues to lob advertising grenades at Apple's iPad.
I have to admit, I'm finally impressed with Microsoft's ability to market. That's not something I can recall saying before, certainly not when Microsoft tried to counter the humorous (but misleading) Mac vs PC commercials with a series of Jerry Seinfeld ad spots. While Apple was busy clowning Windows Vista, Microsoft figured it was a good idea to show Seinfeld shopping for shoes. Seriously. Thankfully, Microsoft isn't making the same mistake in mobile, and its latest ads are actually quite funny. In case you missed it, Microsoft several weeks ago took aim at the iPad by placing it side-by-side with an Asus tablet running Windows 8. In the ad, Siri repeatedly apologizes for being unable to perform the same tasks as the Windows 8 slate, and finally pleads, "Shall we just play chopsticks?" Here's a look at the ad, which has over 5 million views to date: Tablets running Windows 8 have a long way to go before they catch the iPad in market share, but with a comical ad campaign that doesn't feature churros or any of Microsoft's other past quirks, and instead turns Siri against the iPad, the Redmond outfit may have a shot at winning over consumers, especially as prices come down. There's the key. Prices are coming down, as Microsoft points out in a new ad. This latest one features a Dell tablet, and like before, Siri is both apologetic and in awe of the competition, until she see the price compared to an iPad. "Oh, that's not cool," she proclaims after learning Dell's tablet is $200 less. Have a look: What do you think about Microsoft's latest ad campaign? Share your thoughts in the comments section below! Follow Paul on Google+, Twitter, and Facebook |
| E3 2013: Freddie Wong Videogame High School Interview Posted: 14 Jun 2013 09:03 AM PDT 
Behind the scenes with the cast of Video Game High School web series. If you haven't already, spend some time getting caught up on Video Game High School, an action comedy web series by Rocket Jump. Through nine episodes in Season 1, VGHS has amassed around 36 million views on YouTube. Obviously the idea of professional gamers being elevated to star status is striking a chord with viewers. We had a chance to sit down with Freddie Wong, a gaming celebrity in his own right and one of the founders of Rocket Jump, along with the cast of VGHS. Wong and crew explain the premise behind VGHS along with various inspirations. Having completed Season 1 of the web series, work has already begun on a second Season, Wong says. Season 2 will see an expansion of the VGHS universe with the various characters having their own story lines. You can expect TV length (22 minutes) episodes in the upcoming season, a decision that was made in response to the overwhelmingly positive response to the series. Follow Paul on Google+, Twitter, and Facebook |
| E3 2013: Alienware 18-inch, 17-inch, and 14-inch Gaming Laptops Posted: 14 Jun 2013 08:36 AM PDT  Alienware invades E3 in style.
There's no need to fear an alien invasion, not when they come from the planet Dell. Alienware comes in peace and is interested in one thing and one thing only: high-performance gaming. Maximum PC Online Managing Editor Jimmy Thang probed Alienware's booth at E3 to take a look at three new gaming laptops, including a 14-inch model, 17-inch model, and a giant 18-inch SKU. Alienware claims its 14-inch model is the "most powerful 14-inch notebook in the universe." It's also uniquely designed and looks different from previous generation Alienware systems. There's an anodized aluminum cover, magnesium alloy body, and an overall industrial design. There's also a lot of metal on the inside to help keep components cool. Lighting has been changed, too. There are now 10 customizable lighting zones, though if you're not into that sort of thing, you can turn them off. Alternately, game developers can tap into the lighting zones and, say, make them blink red if you get shot by an enemy. Cool stuff. The 17-inch model kicks things up a notch and comes standard with an Nvidia GeForce GTX 765M GPU (you can upgrade to a 770M or 780M), and of course Haswell is inside. Choosing the 17-inch SKU over the 14-inch model obviously sacrificies portability, though it also increases the level of immersion since you're working with a larger display. If you really want to go big, however, check out Alienware's 18-inch beast. Described as the "big kahuna," Alienware says this is the most powerful gaming notebook in the world, period. Unlike past versions of Alienware's 18-inch model, you don't start off with a single graphics card anymore -- it now comes with two GPUs by default. It's essentially a portable gaming desktop. Follow Paul on Google+, Twitter, and Facebook |
| Newegg Daily Deals: Hitachi GTS Touro Mobile Pro 500GB Hard Drive, Linksys Router, and More! Posted: 14 Jun 2013 08:13 AM PDT |
| Microsoft Office Casually Moseys Over to iPhone, Caveats Follow Posted: 14 Jun 2013 07:57 AM PDT 
"You have to call me Dragon." Remember that scene in Step Brothers when Dale Doback and Brennan Huff meet for the first time? They stare each other down and insist on being called Dragon (Dale) and Nighthawk (Brennan). It's a scene that immediately came to mind when we found out Microsoft's Office productivity suite had wandered over to iOS to meet the iPhone -- and only the iPhone -- in the form of Office Mobile. You read that right -- Office is (finally) available for iPhone via iTunes, though not without caveats. Though it's a free download (yay!), it's only accessible to Office 365 Home Premium and ProPlus subscribers (boo!). The other caveat is that Office Mobile is only optimized for iPhone, not the iPad or iPad mini, both of which offer larger displays to work with. Regardless, it's a first step -- and a big one at that -- in bringing Office over to iOS. "After signing in to an Office 365 account, you can access, view and edit Microsoft Word, Excel and PowerPoint documents from anywhere," Microsoft stated in a blog post. "And, you can count on Office Mobile to keep all your content and formatting intact so the document still looks great when you're back on your PC or Mac." Microsoft promises a consistent Office experience across platforms, meaning your formatting and layout will remain intact when going from PC or Mac over to iPhone. The software maker also touts the ability to make quick edits and share documents from your iPhone, with the ability to save directly to SkyDrive, Microsoft's cloud-based storage locker. Office Mobile is available to download right now. Follow Paul on Google+, Twitter, and Facebook |
