Thursday, February 28, 2008

Chumby















I found this really cool gadget called a Chumby. "What the heck is a Chumby?" you might ask. Well, here's what it does:

  • Catch the latest news headlines, sports, weather, stock prices.
  • Play iPod® mp3 and m4a files through built in speakers. Charge it too. (Not currently compatible with Apple iPhone, iPod Touch or 6th generation iPods.)
  • Enjoy your Flickr and Facebook photos as a digital picture frame.
  • Stay updated on new Netflix releases or view your movie queue.
  • Make and share e-greetings, photo mash-ups, goofy animations.
  • Wake up to the multi-tone alarm clock.
  • Track any eBay auction or Craigslist items.
  • Monitor incoming email on any POP3 account.
These are the specs:
  • 3.5" LCD color touchscreen
  • Two external USB 2.0 full-speed ports
  • 350 MHz ARM processor
  • 64 MB SDRAM
  • 64 MB NAND flash ROM
  • Stereo 2W speakers
  • Headphone output
  • Squeeze sensor
  • Accelerometer (motion sensor)
  • Leather casing
  • AC adapter included
  • Wi-fi connectivity
  • Access to the free Chumby Network
  • Over-the-air software updates
Sounds cool huh? Chumby uses things called "widgets" to do all the things mentioned above. You can customize which widgets you want and don't want from the Chumby site. Currently there are over 400 different widgets including clocks, games, shopping, sports, photos, and much more. Chumby is open source which means anyone that knows Flash can make their own widgets and put them on the chumby site. Chumby comes in three different colors: latte, basic black, and pearl. Chumby retails for $179.95. For more information or to buy a Chumby go to the Chumby site. I don't know about you but I want one!

Here's a video of it:

Still Need a Hulu Invite?













Hulu allows you to watch tv shows on demand directly from your browser. It's currently in private beta but I'm giving away a free Hulu invite to the first person to answer the following question correctly:

What's the name of the video game pictured below and in what year was it released?











If you know the answer to the question then post it in the comments for this post along with the email address you want me to send the invite to. The first person to answer correctly gets the invite. I'll update the post after I send out the invite.

For more information visit:
http://www.hulu.com/

Update: Congratulations Amy! The correct answer is Maniac Mansion: Day of the Tentacle released in 1993.

Wednesday, February 27, 2008

God of War PSP bundle coming in June




















A new PSP bundle is coming out in June. It will include a Limited-Edition “Deep Red” PSP with Kratos silkscreened on the back, God of War: Chains of Olympus, Superbad UMD movie, and Voucher to download Syphon Filter: Combat Ops from PLAYSTATION Store for free. This will be the third PSP bundle Sony has released. The bundle will retail for $199.99.

Tuesday, February 26, 2008

Endless Ocean (Wii) Gameplay

This is gameplay footage of Endless Ocean for the Nintendo Wii. Here's the game description:

For players really looking to kick back and relax Endless Ocean features several soothing modes. On the deck of the boat is a deckchair that allows the player to sit and watch the sea. Alternatively in the aquarium section of the game players can select fish they have seen and add them in an aquarium for a closer inspection. What's more this game even doubles up as a tranquil screensaver if the Wii Remote is left untouched. The relaxed setting is further heightened with a tranquil soundtrack from New Zealand songstress Hayley Westenra.

If players prefer to dive with a buddy, the Wii's unique WiFi Connection Service allows players link up with their friends. By exchanging friend codes, two players may dive and explore the ocean together. In this co-op mode they have access to all the tools that can be used in single player mode, as well as an additional mode of communication controlled with the D-pad. With a fish logbook to complete, items to be salvaged and collected and the ability to listen to your own MP3's via the Wii SD Card slot while you dive, Endless Ocean provides hours of entertainment.

Wii Menu Update 3.2








A new update for the Wii menu was released last night. Nothing major but here's what it does:

"Once installed, if a Game Disc is inserted into the Wii console and an update is required, a notification message will be displayed across the Disc Channel alerting you to update your system. If no update is needed, the title of the Game Disc inserted will be displayed."

Warcraft: Tower Defense DS v0.5

This is a video of Warcraft: Tower Defense v0.5 for Nintendo DS. It's a NDS adaptation of the famous Warcraft mod.

Changelog:
- PAFS version is gone, now only the fat/DLDI version is available
+ you can now use the arrow keys to select maps in the menu
+ added 5 automatic levels of difficulty for each map: it affects the life of the monsters, and the final score
+ options are now saved within the rom (require DLDI driver with write support)
+ in-game menu added
+ added possibility to restart the map in-game
+ added quicksave & exit in-game option so you can save your current game and finish it later (require DLDI driver with write support)
+ high-scores are now saved (require DLDI driver with write support)
+ high-scores can be viewed on the map selection screen (press L or R to switch minimap/high-scores)
+ small speedups here and there
+ added some new maps
+ new game icon
= fixed some bugs
= fixed Long Walk TD skeleton's round

For more info and to download go here.

Monday, February 25, 2008

Pocket Physics Fun! - Footloose!

This was made with Pocket Physics v0.5 on the Nintendo DS. For more information visit the Pocket Physics site.

Sunday, February 24, 2008

Suggestions or Comments















How do you like my blog? I'm open for any suggestions you might have. I'm planning on adding a weekly Wii Virtual Console update. I'll also post a video of Endless Ocean for the Nintendo Wii soon. Please post any suggestions or comments below.

Saturday, February 23, 2008

PSP Firmware 4.00 predictions















Sony recently released version 3.90 of their PSP firmware with Skype and expanded support for Playstation Network titles. It's already been rumored that PSP firmware 4.00 will include Divx support but what else would you like to see in the new firmware? Here are some things I'd like to see:

Flash support for the web browser
Support for streaming video podcasts
Support for text RSS feeds
Ability to output games to non-HDTVs
Skype text chat support


Post some things you'd like to see in future firmware updates in the comments below.

GrandCentral Invite

Want to manage all your phone calls in one place? Well, Google GrandCentral is for you. You get a single phone number that forwards to all of your phones, giving you one number for life. There are tons of features included with GrandCentral such as call screening, call recording, call blocking, and much more. Best of all, it's totally free! Currently, GrandCentral is in private beta but I'm giving away a GrandCentral invite to the first person to answer the following question correctly. For more information on GrandCentral and all it's amazing features go here.

What is the name of the video game pictured below and in what year was it released?








Post your answer along with your name and email (required for me to send the invite) in the comments below. The first person to answer correctly gets the invite. I'll update the post after I send out the invite. Good luck :-)

Update: Congratulations Paul! You won the GrandCentral invite! The answer is The Secret of Monkey Island released in 1990.

Friday, February 22, 2008

Pocket Physics Fun! - Man Overboard!

This was made with Pocket Physics v0.5 on the Nintendo DS. For more information visit the Pocket Physics site.

Pocket Physics v0.5 - Homebrew Physics Simulator for NDS

This is a homebrew physics simulator for DS called Pocket Physics. I'm using it on the r4ds. Go to the Pocket Physics site for more info and to download.

Here are the changes in this release:

v0.5 (2008-02-22) * Added the moving tool * Improved speed (different timing, inactive objects fall asleep) * Better repeatability * sketches are now stored in /data/pocketphysics/sketches by default

Another Hulu invite!





Hulu allows you to watch tv shows on demand directly from your browser. It's currently in private beta but I'm giving away a free Hulu invite to the first person to answer the following question correctly:

What is the name of the game system that was released on December 3, 1994, in Japan?

If you know the answer to the question then post it in the comments for this post along with the email address you want me to send the invite to. The first person to answer correctly gets the invite. I'll update the post after I send out the invite.

For more information visit:
http://www.hulu.com/

Update: Congratulations Alex! You won the invite! The answer is the Sony Playstation. Keep watching my blog for more chances to get an invite.

Thursday, February 21, 2008

Playstation Store on PSP












Tired of having to plug your PSP into your PC to get game demos, themes, and videos? Well, you may soon be able to download them directly onto your PSP. Sony announced yesterday at GDC that you'll soon be able to do just that with the Playstation Store on your PSP. There was no word on when this will happen but hopefully soon.

Hulu Preview

Here's a free sample of Hulu for anyone that doesn't have an account. I'll be giving away a few more invites soon so keep watching my blog. I the meantime here's Knight Rider:

"Knight Rider," the iconic 1980's television classic that became a runaway success, returns with a modern day sequel.

DSmaps v0.2.1a - Google Maps for DS


This is a video of DSmaps v0.2.1a. It allows you to use Google maps on your Nintendo DS. Currently you can only zoom and move around the map but there will be more functionality in future releases. For more information and to download go to:
http://dsmaps.wordpress.com/


Wednesday, February 20, 2008

Your favorite game system of all time















How many game systems do you own? What's your favorite? My game systems:

Currently own:

Nintendo Wii
Nintendo DS
Game Boy Pocket
NES
SNES
Sega Genesis
Sega Game Gear
Sony Playstation 2
Sony PSP Slim

Don't have anymore:
Sony Playstation
Game Boy Advance
Game Boy Color

I can't really choose which is my favorite of all but I'd have to say it's between the SNES and the Playstation 1. My favorite games for the SNES are Zelda: A Link To The Past, Super Mario Bros. 3, and Shadowrun. My favorite Playstation games are Speed Punks, Worms Armageddon, and Crash Bash. Post your favorites in the comments.

Tuesday, February 19, 2008

You like?

How do you like my new blog? If you have any suggestions please comment on this post.

Hulu invite anyone?





Hulu allows you to watch tv shows on demand directly from your browser. It's currently in private beta but I'm giving away a free Hulu invite to the first person to answer the following question correctly:

What is the name of the two-in-one Mega Drive/Genesis and 32X console which Sega planned to release in 1994 or 1995 but never did because they felt that consumers would not be interested?

If you know the answer to the question then post it in the comments for this post along with the email address you want me to send the invite to. The first person to answer correctly gets the invite. I'll update the post after I send out the invite.

For more information visit:
http://www.hulu.com/

Update: Congratulations to the winner! The answer is the Sega Neptune. I have 9 more invites, so keep watching my blog for another chance to get one.

The Internet Time Machine

Ever wanted to see what a website used to be like way back when? Well now you can with the Wayback Machine! Just type in the website address and it will give you a selection of time periods to choose from. Click on one of the them and you're traveling back in time! I also found that there are some downloads stored in the archives. It may not be too useful but it's pretty cool!

Here's a picture of Google in 1998:












Check it out here:
http://www.archive.org/web/web.php

Sunday, February 10, 2008

Quake 2 for Nintendo DS

This is a video of Quake2DS prerelease 1. It requires that you have a slot-2 card with RAM. For more information and to download go to the official site:
http://quake.drunkencoders.com/index_q2.html

Thanks to the creator, Simon Hall, for this awesome port!