Time to shop

A diversion from the norm as I'm trying to an iPad 2 in the iSave, iWrite, iPad competition from PlayPennies.com!

It's got me thinking about deals in general, I've recently been abusing Tesco as much as possible thanks to their fantastic price check offer, I've re-negotiated my O2 broadband down to £10 a month by going through retentions, purchased computer games cheap to take advantage of generous trade-ins. In general I've been working hard to prepare for our first child, due in august. I can certainly see that I'll be glued to the deals on PlayPennies.com looking to save money. Normally I save so much money on HotUkDeals I can hardly afford it! Hopefully buying nappies means I won't get as carried away like when I'm buying a new set of speakers that's so cheap I have to buy them to save more money.

I noticed in town this week though that another independent games retailer had closed down. I was always telling myself I would shop there to support them but somehow, like everyone else it would seem, I never did. I'm still going to carry on using sites like PlayPennies and HotUkDeals to make my wage go a little further but I'm determined to at least pop in my few remaining local shops to browse, and who knows..

..maybe even buy something.

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Head in the clouds

Well, this one passed me by, but luckily, it's still in beta; Tagxedo is a fantastic little web page which you can use to create tag clouds - like the one above - from any text.
In the beta version you can supply any photo you like as the frame for the image (I used a picture of myself here), though this functionality will belong to the 'pro' version once the project leaves beta. There is a great selection of templates and options, and the software automatically finds the most meaningful words very reliably.

Try it out!

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Crowson transducers (shakers) review - adding a thump to your Home cinema!

Crowson Tactile transducers long term review (TES100 & A300)

Right, having had these devices set up in my home and been using them for a year now I thought it might be time to commit my thoughts to (virtual) paper.
For those who aren’t yet aware of the Buttkicker and Quake threads or are still wondering why the subwoofer forum had ‘tactile transducers’ added; the Crowson kit in question is a system designed to add extremely low (infrasonic) frequency effects to your films. Picking up around the point that the subwoofer normally stops producing useful output, tactile transducers provide, what is essentially, a powerful rumbling effect designed to complement your existing sound system and increase immersion.



There are several types of design and the Crowson’s are described as ‘linear actuators’, essentially you would normally find these pushing the cone back and forth inside a speaker. Here instead they will be pushing your sofa up and down!
The unique selling point of this kit is that not only does it work off the lfe channel (the .1 in your 5.1) it also takes a feed from your front left and right speakers, in theory this allowes a stereo affect in its low end rumbling.
So, with the theory out of the way, what do you get for your money (I paid around £1150 from Kent Home cinema):

An A300 Stereo amplifier, as the concept is to physically move you in your seats, plenty of grunt is needed here. Crowson’s own amplifier is rated at 160w into 6 omhs for each of its two channels. You could, of course, save quite a bit by specifying a different brand but the A300 does have excellent build quality, good looks, remote control and the essential variable crossover.

The TES100, a pair of metal plates which go under your chair or sofa, feature a rough top section to inhibit unwanted movement and regular binding posts to connect your speaker cable. You also get a couple of rubber feet to balance out your seating.


Setup is pretty straight-forward, effectively identical to setting up a simple hi-fi. Care needs to be taken by users of equalisation systems such as a Behringer, SVS or anti-mode, your feed goes into these after the Transducer setup before going to the subwoofer. Then you can also connect your pre-outs from your receiver from your front two channels to the A300 for the stereo effect. Otherwise your only configuration is to set volume and crossover.
Now, unlike setting up a subwoofer where great results tend to come from actual measurements, the Crowson system really needs to be set up ‘for taste’. Luckily the system has a remote which makes tweaking during a watching/listening session much easier. So, what did I think about the system?


Well, rather like a large speaker or sub upgrade, this is a product which certainly makes its presence felt immediately (pun intended, for which I apologise). Straight away I tore through my collection of action films on Blu-Ray, with everything from Master and Commander and the Matrix gaining an extra level of excitement and immediacy. The temptation is, of course, to overcook the level somewhat which can be a lot of fun, much in the same way as with a subwoofer the best results tend to come from turning the device down so that it is felt but is not intrusive. One of the commenters on the AVforums posted that it made large sub impacts feel like they were occurring, physically much closer to the seating position and I wholeheartedly agree. Watching the Moria scene from Fellowship of the Ring made this really stand out - as the cave troll crashes his stone hammer into the floor - the impact seemed dramatically more real and much more ‘in the room’ than with just a subwoofer.

Games improved to an even greater degree; playing Battlefield Bad Company 2 left me shaking with excitement from firing a .50cal static gun, as its bruising recoil thudded through my entire body. With the cross-over set low enough there are no strange moments of inappropriate bass just a feeling of extra immersion (yes, that word again). Playing Need for speed shift was the only time that the stereo effect really made itself felt; you could really tell that one side of your car was losing grip over the other, there was also the great feel of the engine thrumming through the sofa; good stuff.


Playing music is, fairly unsurprisingly, the point where the system fails to impress. I’m sure there are a few bass heads who would like the experience, but without any proper context for the physical impacts I felt that the sensation was detrimental to even the output of the likes of Nine Inch Nails and the Prodigy. Music will, I suspect, have you reaching for the remote to subdue or switch off the system.

Now purists will, of course, start complaining that none of this is what ‘the director intended’ and, to be fair, this is almost certainly true. I feel however, that directors and designers are not aiming for these devices as they are not popular enough, not because they don’t feel it would add to the experience. Generally no part of our setup will be ‘as the director intended’ whether we are watching on smaller screens, wearing headphones or perhaps have four subs to balance out room nodes. All we can do as enthusiasts is make the most of what is encoded onto the disc and the Crowson system does a really good job of making movies and games that little bit more compelling and exciting.

To sum up, an expensive upgrade and only you can decide if the money would be more profitably spent on other areas of your system. But given all that, should you buy one? Hell yes!

Overall rating 8/10

Pros

Extra immersion in Games and Movies
Excellent build quality and features
Easy to install
Plenty of wow factor for guests

Cons

No use for music
Expensive, rather over-priced compared to competing solutions

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Big boy hug for Apple and Verizon

Well, as predicted by the entire internet the iPhone is now available on Verizon, America largest (and by most accounts, best) network.
This is, of course, big news. The deal with Verizon will open up the American market to a much greater extent for Apple and mean that many people who didn't wish to switch can now rush out to purchase an iPhone 4.

Of course this means we are probably in for another round of signal strength comparisons/complaints and Apple will now have to decide what to do when their typical summer release comes around for the iPhone5. It's possible they could just make minor tweaks ala the 3GS to not alienate users too much or possibly they will offer existing users a good price on a (very) early upgrade. It seems unlikely that Apple would want to move forward with two different dates and SKU's for long however.

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Pocket PC returns

Ever since the Halycon days of the OQO, it seemed that the concept of a full blown PC in our back pockets was but a small step from reality. Of course, anyone who used an OQO was well aware of the compromises in power and battery life; but surely, we wouldn't have to wait long?

Well, it looks like the long wait could finally be over, Engadget calls it "one of the most amazing [...] things at CES" and I'm inclined to agree. Motorola have announced the Atrix (have a quick gander at the video linked above) and, at a quick glance it's already impressive - large screen, 5MP camera, Dual core tegra and 1GB DDR2 - but the real power is the docking stations and software.

The Atrix can run a linux desktop OS on top of Android which can launch automatically when docked, piping HDMI video and audio and giving you a familiar mouse and keyboard setup. It will also has a11 inch laptop shell available. With Citrix support for enterprise, flash for consumers and some really nice design touches this is a device which deserves to create an impact on release.

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How far things have come

Well, I don't really have a lot so say about this, except... Wow.

With our current preponderance of  cheap and advanced technology it is a little upsetting that so few truly amazing experiments are done with regards to space exploration and just how little money is invested into research. Still,  amateur projects like this can give us hope.

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Compete on... name?

Well, looks like Samsung is indeed going to be toughing it out on level terms with Apple come the release of their new 'Galaxy Tab' iPad competitor. I for one was expecting Samsung to go price competitive with this product as the specifications don't really mark it out as the superior product.

Samsung have already been very bullish regarding the number of units they expect to sell, claiming they will shift ten million units in the next 12 months. However, with a price of £529 off contract compared to the Apple WiFi version of the iPad at £429, how will they be competitive? Samsung do have god brand awareness but rarely trade as a top tier premium  brand in the same way as Apple. Given the iPad was first to market and has a larger screen (I doubt the average consumer is thinking of pixel density) and better materials what is the draw to purchase the challenger?


I suspect we may see some aggressive pricing even before Christmas.

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It's a mad mad Nokia world

 
Well after all the shakeups and changes at Nokia recently, it must be nice for Nokia to be in the headlines for something technology related. Quite a few interesting devices hve been unveiled at Nokia World, but for me, the stand out is the new 'Communicator' the E7.
It's a huge departure from the stylings of the old Nokia E90, and to my mind this looks like the best hardware Nokia has ever produced; slick metals, smooth lines and the natty slide mechanism from the N97. Comine all this with specifications that - for once - are competive in all areas, and actually stand out in many (the gorgeous screen and camera) and Nokia looks to have a true flagship for the first time in years.


I suspect it would be more of a runaway success if it ran stock Android Froyo however...

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This week - illuminating blackberry (sorry)

So, RIM has announced it's 'comeback' device in the shape of the portrait qwerty sliding torch. the new phone boasts the typically excellent Blackberry keyboard, improved web browser, OS6 and an uprated 5mp camera. On the downside the software still seems to be lagging behind iOS and Android in the polish and functionality stakes, it appears that RIM is trying hard to straddle the needs of the corporate and consumer customers, but still has a way to go. Last gen screen resolution and processor speed don't help the case for the torch and I don't think in alone in thinking that the design would have looked old fashioned five year ago. I can still see this being a moderate success but really, RIM needed to do a whole lot more to keep pace.

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All iOS jailbreak release from the devTeam

Well, congratulations to the top hackers/developers/coders at the iPhone devTeam. The latest Jailbreak is out today to enable access to the Cydia store (amongst others) to download software onto your iPhone, iPad etc that wouldn't be approved for sale in the app store. This means that iPhone 4 owners will be now able to join in the fun and get apps to add widgets, new lockscreens, better status updates and wifi tethering. The jailbreak is easier than ever, just head to www.jailbreakme.com and slide to unlock; it really is that easy, I've tried it with no hitches on several devices, though there are threads of issues at www.modmyi.com.

Cydia is being hammered at the moment though so it might take a while for the program to populate all of it's sources.

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