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Facebook Crumbles To Criticism; Redesign Incoming

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Since 94% of Facebook users hated the new design / layout, Facebook is now going for yet another redesign. Facebook redesigned the layout so that it was similar to Twitter, but I don't know why. Actually, I have been using Twitter more than Facebook lately, since it's the new thing. Anyways, Facebook plans to change a couple of things on Twitter, including: live updating, photo tags on home page, applications, highlights, and friend list filters. Just like I mentioned before, Facebook will finally be implementing live updates onto your home page. There will soon be no need to refresh my home page repeatedly every couple minutes because Facebook will auto-update it for me (Yay!). That's what I wanted all along, so at least that will make my happy. Regarding photo tags on your home page, you will see them in your stream again (I think the old Facebook did this). Regarding applications, Facebook will give you more control over them, so that you can get rid of them (if you want) showing up on your home page. Highlights will update more frequently, so that's always good. Hopefully, they will also live update themselves. Finally, you will be able to create your own custom friend list filters.

We'll see how it turns out and I'm wondering how the users will react to these changes.

[Mashable]



Nintendo Wii To Surpass 50 Million Worldwide This Month

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Since the Nintendo Wii is aimed at such a large fanbase and is not a next-gen console (in my books), it is on pace to sell its 50 millionth console by the end of this month. This blistering pace is much faster than the Playstation 2's. The Wii is the fastest selling console to date and will continue to be that console for a couple of years. It will sell 100 million consoles faster than the Playstation 2 did. I hate to say it, but it will. There's just too many kids and women in the world that love the Nintendo Wii (for unknown reasons). It's audience is huge and it's cheaper than the other 2 consoles (Xbox 360 and Playstation 3). The Playstation 2 is still the superior console in my books. I must admit that I am excited for the release of Punch-Out (May 18) for the Nintendo Wii.

[Kotaku]

Last.fm To Charge Users In The Future

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Everyone in Germany, Britain or the United States are all safe from this mandatory €3.00 monthly subscription fee. Yes, mandatory. For anyone outside of the aforementioned countries, you will have to pay €3.00 to use Last.fm's services. This is because Last.fm feels that they are not getting the desired amount of revenue from their ads. Luckily, I don't use Last.fm or I'd be looking for a new service quickly. I did try it out for a couple of days, but it wasn't for me and would be fairly pointless. My taste of music differs far too much from my fanbase's anyway. I'll stick to downloading my music illegally and downloading my free podcasts on iTunes.

[Wired]

16-Inch HP dv6z Launching In AMD-Form

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This looks similar to my girlfriend's HP dv6t laptop. That's because it's the same laptop, it's just being remodeled to pack in a slower, but more affordable AMD processor. This laptop should have a similar spec sheet than the dv6t and it will start at $599.99 USD. The deal gets even sweeter by including a free coupon worth $30, and a free HP DeskJet printer that will be available with a mail-in rebate. You can expect it in 2 colours: Expresso Black and Moonlight White. The white model will cost you an extra $25 USD, which should easily be an option since you're already getting a $30 coupon and a free printer.

[Engadget]

Pentax 645 Digital Boasts 30 Megapixels; Expected in 2010

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To sum it up in one sentence, the Pentax 645 Digital capable of shooting 30 megapixels in expected to be released in 2010. This Pentax shooter was rumoured to be canceled, but it looks like its made a comeback. Expect the 645 Digital to drop sometime next year. If you're looking forward to it, you better start saving up now because the FA645 55mm f/2.8 lens should be launched at the same time. Have fun spending your whole year's salary on this and the aforementioned lens.

[Engadget]

Is OnLive The Future of PC Gaming?

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First of all, what is OnLive? It was announced today and is basically a "new video games on demand service." It will apparently change the way everyone will play on the PC. This small hub is capable of turning any low-end [or high-end] computer / laptop, into an all-out PC gaming machine. We all know how much money it is to keep up with new, high-end graphics cards and in the end, it becomes a waste of money. With these economic times, we need something that will be up-to-date all the time. This is where OnLive comes in. This hub is capable of displaying PC games at high-definition (720p) at 60 fps (frames per second). "For standard definition quality, a broadband connection of at least 1.5 megabits per second is required. For HDTV resolution, a connection of at least 5mbps is needed." This will work by contacting the servers at OnLive and it will send you the video through your hub, onto your TV. They claim that there will be virtually no lag because the ping will be "less than one millisecond."

Since it claims to be "video on demand" there will be no need for install times and games will come to you virtually instantaneously. At GDC, they actually showed off OnLive on an old Dell, so this thing could be the real deal. The pricing is expected to be monthly, and they should be around the same prices of Xbox Live. I don't know how much fame OnLive will receive, but it looks like it has a lot of potential. One problem I can think of (pointed out by a friend) is a bandwidth issue. While playing WoW 24/7, won't make you go over the bandwidth limit, playing OnLive might push you over because of its 720p hi-def gaming. We'll have to see. If you want to know more, just click on the Kotaku link below, they know much more than I do.

[Kotaku]

Need For Speed: Shift Revealed

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This isn't the so-called Need for Speed MMO, but it is a racer. For a change, the "Underground" feel is gone. The video below is actual gameplay footage and it looks great. I know I'm tired of the whole neon lights look and the whole "street" look that Need for Speed was trying to portray. Finally, it looks like Need for Speed has grown up into a mature racer. It doesn't have the gameplay of a Gran Turismo but, on the bright side, it won't be as delayed as it either.



[Kotaku]

Mitsubishi's LaserVue HDTVs Up and Running Again

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In early February, Mitsubishi suspended the production of their LaserVue HDTVs. Today, Mitsubishi has announced that they are mass producing their HDTV's yet again. No one knows why they stopped producing these monstrous TVs in the first place, but I think it had something to do with the economy's downfall. All in all, it's good to see that Mitsubishi has recovered from whatever problems they were having. Time to order your LaserVue HDTV's once again.

[Engadget]

Asus EEEs Getting Voice Recognition

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Asus is going to put Voice Recognition into their EEE-lineup of PCs and netbooks. They are deciding to do this because "touch and gesture input is universal, whereas language is not universal." This will be useful at home, but I doubt that you'll be able to get away with talking to your EEE in public. Beware of others awkwardly staring at you. It is expected to be released in the last half of this year. Keep in mind that it could be only implemented in their newer EEEs. I don't know if it will work with old EEEs, but look out for it later this year. Asus is pushing to make society even lazier than it already is. By the way, I have no idea why the EEE in the picture has Mickey Mouse's ears.

[Gizmodo]

Samsung N120 Netbook; 10-Hour Battery Life

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Samsung's been releasing a ton of stuff lately. First there was the N310 netbook, then the N110 netbook, and then the Q320 and R522 notebooks. Now this is the Samsung N120 netbook with a six-cell battery which will give you 10.5 hours of battery life! It also has a 12-inch full keyboard, so that's good for those of you with small fingers. It has a 10.1-inch display, an integrated 1.3MP webcam, a 3-in-1 card reader, 3 USB 2.0 ports, and has optional Bluetooth. It will run on Windows XP thankfully and is expected in Europe this April. No word on the price though, of course.

[Gizmodo, Engadget]

Samsung Q320 and R522 Laptops

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After announcing 2 laptops yesterday (the N310 and the N110), Samsung is back at it again. This time with the 2 laptops you see in the picture: the Q320 and R522 notebooks, left and right respectively. The Samsung Q320 notebook is "ultra light" weighing in at just 2.2kg. The laptop itself has a 13.4-inch display, an optical disk drive (clearly in the picture), and also has a six-cell battery that is long enough to last around 5 hours. The full spec sheet is not revealed for either of the 2 laptops, but the Q320 does have an Intel Centrino 2 processor, a Nvidia GeForce G105m graphics card and will run on Windows Vista Home Premium.

The Samsung R522 notebook is "designed for the way you live you life." I don't know where Samsung comes up with these quotations, but apparently it's because of its so-called "advanced battery power" that is also expected to last around 5 hours. That's decent for a laptop with: a 15.6-inch display, touchpad lighting, a "chargeable USB port so you can keep your devices up and running even when the laptop is powered down", and a keyboard that has the "latest medical technology" to get those nasty germs off. It comes with the same Intel Centrino 2 processor that the Q320 does, but that's all the specs that are mentioned so far. Both of these laptops are expected to hit Europe in April, but there was no word on a price tag.

[Tech Radar]

Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children Expected This June

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In Japan, they're getting the Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children Complete package on April 16, but we (North Americans) got no love. Love is in the air folks, without the need for Valentine's Day. They've recently announced that the Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children Complete package is expected to touch down on June 7. It will have both English and Japanese soundtracks and will have the Final Fantasy XIII "sneak peek" which is the demo. It will also come with some regular extra features, too bad there is no word on the PS3 bundle, just like the Japs are getting.

[PS3 Blog]