Redbox Increases Rental Prices

Starting October 31, Redbox will be raising their price to $1.20 from $1 for daily movie rentals. Luckily, they seem to have learned from the mistakes of their competitor, Netflix, who later apologised to its subscribers for the way that they had changed their monthly plans for its users. Netflix has lost over 800,000 subscribers due to the price increase, but things look to a brighter future for the emblematic red movie boxes.


So how do you feel about this price change?

Amazon Kindle Fire: A Hot Contender

At a mere $199, the Amazon Kindle Fire is quite a competitor when it comes to the mobile tablet industry.

Packing a dual-core 1GHz processor, 7" multi-touch LCD, and 8GB on-board storage, the Kindle Fire is a capable, and powerful device.

At half of the price of the Apple iPad and wonders less than popular tablets such as the Samsung Galaxy Tablet and the Motorola XOOM, the Fire is priced at a point that could be considered hard to resist my many.

Luckily, the Kindle Fire houses all of the features needed to stay alive in today's markets. Mobile web browsing can be done with Amazon Silk, a new web browsing program, as well as movies, applications, and music can all be purchased from Amazon's personal vendors. You can also stream music and videos and sync with unlimited storage with the cloud services provided with Amazon. Creating and editing documents and checking email can also be achieved.

It's a bit to early to decide if the Kindle Fire is going to be a hit-or-miss for Amazon, but with a device like this at a price in which it will sell for, I think Amazon has another hit on their hands.

The Kindle Fire is set to be available on November 15, 2011, and you can pre-order the tablet here.

Best Buy offers 15% off iTunes Gift Cards

Best Buy is offering a 15% discount on all iTunes Gift Cards until Sunday, October, 23.

The 15% discount, which can be applied in-store or online, drops the prices of iTunes Gift Cards, which can be used to purchase music, applications, or books from iTunes AS WELL AS for purchases in the Mac App Store.

A $15 card can be bought for $12.75.
A $50 card can be bought for $42.50.
A $100 card can be bought for $85.00.
You can also pick up a 3-pack of $10 cards for only $25.

Shipping and tax is estimated upon location, while in-store purchases are tax free.

Samsung Announces Galaxy Nexus for Verizon

The Samsung Galaxy Nexus was made official  late Tuesday night.

It's finally time to put those endless rumors to sleep as Samsung releases new information about their upcoming device, the Galaxy Nexus, a new installment to the Galaxy and Nexus line of Android devices.

The phone, which taunts its' massively large 4.65" AMOLED HD (1280x720) display, sports a dual-core 1.2GHz processor, 1GB of RAM, a 5MP rear facing/1.3MP front-facing camera, and most importantly, the newest version of Android, OS 4, dubbed "Ice Cream Sandwich".

The Galaxy Nexus is expected to be HSPA+ 4GLTE capable and comply with the Verizon Wireless network. This will be the first device to sport the newest breed of the Android OS, as was the Nexus S back with OS 3, Gingerbread.

The Galaxy Nexus seems like a strong contended in the rapidly changing cell phone market, but how will its' features stack up next to newly released devices such as the Droid Razr, Galaxy S II, and iPhone 4S?

iPads on a Budget: Apple's Limited Time Prices

It looks as if Apple is clearing their shelves, offering refurbished first-generation iPads at a highly discounted price. For a mere $399, one could purchase a 32GB + 3G iPad, or a 64GB WiFi model, while you can also pick up a 64GB + 3G king of the crop model for only $499.

So what does this mean?

Well, to be frank, it means that you can pick up an iPad at a semi-reasonable price. You can't beat that...

Siri has siri-ous issues outside of the U.S.

Siri, a 'robotic receptionist' is expected to support global services by 2012.

Siri is admittedly an amazing service introduced to the iPhone 4S by Apple. Granted, that it, as long as you are in the U.S.

Many complaints are coming in from iPhone 4S owners from outside of the U.S. borders. Siri, which is a feature that allows users to actively prompt a 'robotic receptionist' for information including location services, alarms, calenders, a weather information.

There is not much to blame here, considering the service is still in beta, but it is expected to support additional languages, locations, and search content by 2012.

iOS 5 - Official Launch

Unexpectedly arriving ahead of schedule, iOS 5 is now available for download for all iPod Touch and iPhone users. Some of the largest updates that Apple has brought to the table with iOS 5 is a new notification system, lockscreen, Bookshelf virtual newsstand, and many interface lifts to the standard Apple applications.

If you are having issues updating, just have some patience. Over 6 million users are trying to access the servers to download and install iOS 5.

If you already are running iOS 5, what are your thoughts?

Droid HD "Spyder" Spotted in the Wild

The Droid HD has been spotted in the wild sporting a 4G LTE Verizon badge and carbon fiber back. Rumored to be named the "Droid Spyder", this new addition to the Android line is thought to have a 1.2GHz dual-core processor, while rumors claim the Spyder to pack the new 1.5GHz processor released earlier this year.

How will the Spyder stack up next to the recently release Bionic or even the Droid X2, nobody can really tell, but as of now it looks like a solid contender. 

Facebook for iPad: The Official Release

Facebook for iPad will be officially rolling out into the App Store today for iPad users to download for free. Rumors for the official Facebook application have been circling the web for months, but now users will have an official Facebook app to feed their Facebook addiction.

Download here.

iPhone 4S Pre-Orders Top 1 Million in 24 Hours

The iPhone 4S is topping the charts with over 1 million registered pre-orders for the October 14th launch. Compared to the 600,000 iPhone 4 pre-orders in 2010, the iPhone 4S is Apple's most succesful iPhone launch to date. Pre-orders have been deemed successful from all three carriers.

The iPhone 4S will go on sale in the U.S. at 8 a.m. local time on Friday, Oct. 14. The phone comes in black and white and will be available for a suggested retail price of $199 for the 16 GB model, $299 for the 32 GB version and $399 for the 64 GB model.

Battlefield 3: Welcome to the Big Leagues

If there was ever a time when I thought a game company was making a bad choice, now is not one of those times. Electronic Arts, a game company well known for the Battlefield and Medal of Honor series, believes it can match up with the big leagues this year by releasing Battlefield 3 a month before highly anticipated titles such as, Call of Duty: MW3, The Elder Scrolls 5 Skyrim, and Saints Row the Third. By doing this Electronic Arts must have a lot of faith with all the programming and production of the newly developed and enhanced Frostbite 2.0 engine. What is the Frostbite 2.0 engine? Believe it or not, Frostbite 2.0 is a well-defined graphical engine, and a newly tested physics engine, that Dice had been working on since the Bad Company series. Let’s go through a rundown on what will make this game more unique and possibly ready to take on the big leagues.

From what most people were able to figure out with the Battlefield 3 Open Beta, the gameplay seemed to be standard. But there were some added features. Instead of having all of your guns set for the standard fully or semi-automatic modes you were now able to switch between the two firing modes. This would make things a lot simpler if you are looking for an accurate shot or a higher firing rate to insure your hit is marked. Another new feature that was brought back is the ability to go prone. Before in games such as the Bad Company series, you were only able to crouch. The ability to go prone makes being a sniper more fun and challenging for the other players.  Throwing a grenade is a little more complicated this time around with this game. Instead of being able to hold it and aim, you now let go of it as soon as you pull the pin. A perfect example of how this works is throwing a grenade in halo. Another feature added to the game is being able to run and slide to cover. You can also dive and go prone. The only problem with this feature I have is what people would call “Drop Shots”. If you play Call of Duty I am sure you are well aware of what a drop shot is. For those who are not aware of what it is, to put simply it is a player who is running then sees and enemy, he then drops to the ground shooting at the enemy. It is not easy but it is possible in Battlefield 3. The only reason this is annoying is making your mark is harder than usual. But past the annoyances, it is a clever but cheap tactic. Overall, the gameplay seemed to work really well. I hope the ability to hold your grenade for a longer period of time will be added.

One thing the graphics and the controls have in common, they are both really nice and smooth. The one thing that makes me happy about the graphics is how colorful and well detailed they are. The lighting changes at the right time and situation, like if you are in the metro station it will be lighten up by the fire and the ceiling lights (What is left of them anyway) and would have shadows in the right spots. Now the controls are very simple and easy to remember. Your knife button is the Right bumper on the Xbox 360 and R1 on the PS3. The right joystick is still crouch so it can be a life saver. If you have played Bad Company 2, then you will have no problems with the controls for they are the same with added features.  From one coming from other first person shooters, the gameplay controls may take some time to get used to, but it’s not something that’s hard to adapt to.

I would love to comment on the multiplayer experience, but to be honest it is really hard. But let me explain something’s about the multiplayer I think you might enjoy. A game online doesn’t end in a short period of time. Normally a match can last as long as forty minutes or longer depending on whom is on your team and what is going on. Sometimes a match can end really fast, but it is rare to happen. Another thing is, team work is needed. You can’t just have one person running around and gunning everyone down. In fact, team work is needed to the point there is no free for all or lone wolf matches. Now some people find it annoying and rather play by themselves, in which it’s understandable. But if that’s what you like, then the multiplayer is not for you.

In the long run, I believe Battlefield 3 does have a big chance this year. Now one thing that will cause a small percentage in sale prices is the Call of Duty fan base. This isn’t a bad thing. But there are a larger number of people who would buy Call of Duty in a heartbeat. But aside all of that, I believe that this game will change the way first person shooters are played.  So as gamers all around ponder who would win between Modern Warfare 3 and Battlefield 3, I say it’s going to be a hard choice. By sales one will when, by gameplay… That will be decided when the time comes.

2.3.4 Update for Droid X2

Click to enlarge.

Droid X2 users will soon be able to install the latest firmware update, helping fix many small issues including keyboard issues and other miniscule software issues as well as a few minor hardware issues.

The update is expected to be pushed to devices within a week. Owners will be able to download the update through their device wirelessly.

Why we didn't see the launch of the iPhone 5

Although it may not look different on the outside, it's pretty clear that the newest edition of the greatest selling phone, the iPhone 4S, is a completely new phone on the inside.

Sporting a dual-core Apple branded A5 chip, boasting speeds up to 7 times that of last year's iPhone 4, as well as an updated camera, the iPhone 4S seems like a step forward in my book.

Rumors for the iPhone "5" have been circling the web for months now, and many of us thought that we would be seeing a totally redesigned device with a larger screen, 4G capabilities, and a whole new look, but there are many reasons why I thought that these rumors were not possible.

Now on three U.S. carriers including AT&T, Verizon, and now Sprint, the iPhone 4S is considered a global device as it is able to run on both CDMA and GSM carriers worldwide. The issue, each of the three carriers hold different data speeds and network capabilities. The Verizon network stumps the competition with their 4G LTE network, while Sprint offers a similar 4G network. The problem? AT&T. AT&T is still in the design process of a network capable of achieving data speeds that can compete with the CDMA carriers, so why on earth would Apple launch a device capable of 4G speeds, but at which can only be obtained on two of the available networks. That would kill the sales with AT&T.

Another reason that sparked my mind while scrolling through countless pages of iPhone 5 rumors, was similar to the one that I came across prior to the release of the iPhone 3GS. The iPhone 4 (and iPhone 3G at the time) were selling like hotcakes. Shelves were consistently cleared week after week, pumping in sales one after another.

With all of these iPhones being sold, many of which to customers on a two year contract, why would Apple change something that was already good enough. True, there is always room to improve, but with millions invested in accessories for their devices, it would only make sense to give them something to be able to adapt to. Apple would not have released a whole new device, being just over a year since the launch of the iPhone 4.

I expect that within a year and a half, each and every U.S. carrier will support a 4G capable network that will allow Apple to release a whole new product in a way that each carrier is similar.

Steve Jobs: The Cult Lives On

"Without you, Apple is just a fruit.”

As I read that quote from one of the many letters hugging the side of my local Apple Store, I knew that the impact that Steve Jobs, the former C.E.O. and co-founder of Apple, had on the world was nothing of the ordinary.

It’s a well-known fact that Jobs was facing a serious case of pancreatic cancer, which was slowly deteriorating his health. Jobs had undergone countless treatments, but none of which were able to rid the cancer.

When Jobs left Apple back in January on a leave of medical absence, many of his followers knew the time was coming. Sure enough, in August, Steve stepped down from C.E.O position and left Apple under the reign of Tim Cook.

In many eyes, one could consider Steve Jobs to have been “our present day Thomas Edison” or the “man who started it all”, but to me, Job’s role and philosophy was much different.

I view him as a man of great intelligence. A man who utmost shaped the world we live in today. Look down at your desk, put your hands in your pockets, grab your smartphone, and take a look around you. We live in a world dominated by technology; a world that would not exist without the impact of Steve Jobs.

The ideas hit home during one of my classes at school where we brought up Steve Jobs and his impact on the world. My teacher would then ask, “How many of you own something by Apple?” As each and every hand in the class shot up in the air, I really was able to grasp the idea of how Jobs had impacted our lifes.

We live in a world where we can do anything imaginable, without being more than a few swipes or clicks away. It’s very hard to justify how things might have turned out, had Steve Wozniack and Steve Jobs not built the Apple I from the small garage in their tiny home.

The world has lost a mind that comes out as more than just a regular business man. What we lost was a man whose philosophy was to keep improving and never give up. Over the last decade, Apple’s sales have risen steadily due to the introduction of many new products.

Hit after hit after hit.

To me, Steve Jobs was my biggest inspiration. His ideas and ways of life were just a small portion of what made him so inspirational. I started a technology blog site when I was in 7^th grade. I was absolutely obsessed with everything he did, and all of the products he created.  

In one retrospect, Jobs left us with a cult. How many businesses can say that they have customers waiting days in advance for a launch of a new product, or can say that each product they release is going to be a success? The cult that lives and breathes Apple extends far beyond the reach of any other. 

Steve Jobs was truly one of the greatest of this lifetime to live, and his impact that he left on each and every one of us lives on.