Verizon took out a full-page ad in the New York Times to flaunt its hot new Android smartphone, Motorola’s Droid X, and stopped along the way to mock the iPhone 4’s notorious antenna problems. The ad took direct aim at Apple, saying consumers can hold the Droid X however they please without obliterating cellular reception. It’s clear that Verizon believes it has a winner on its hands with the Droid X and that, despite persistent rumors about the iPhone coming to Verizon, the cellular provider doesn’t need to play nice with Apple.

The New York Times advertisement ran on June 30 and listed the Droid X’s impressive specs, which rival those of the iPhone 4–a phone that is (unfortunately) still exclusive to AT&T. After the specs, the ad said, “And most importantly, it comes with a double antenna design. The kind that allows you to hold the phone any way you like and use it just about anywhere to make crystal clear calls.” Ouch!

Apple’s iPhone 4 antennas–which are built on the phone’s exterior; a supposed revolutionary design meant to improve call quality–have been beaten to a pulp by the press. Class action lawsuits have even been filed. Meanwhile, Apple has been in denial, claiming it’s not a hardware concern but rather a software issue that falsely displays the number of signal bars. Reports have suggested that a soon-to-be-released iPhone software update, iOS 4.0.1, will fix the crisis.

So what does this mean for Verizon getting the iPhone? Bloomberg reported that the super-popular smartphone will appear on Verizon’s network in January 2011 (rumors like these go back years). But if Verizon is taking potshots at the iPhone 4, it seems unlikely to me that the network is holding its breath for a partnership with Apple and would rather focus its loyalties on Android-powered phones.

Source: PCWorld

When asked during an interview about the core game experience to expect from the new Zelda game, Skyward Sword, Nintendo’s Eiji Aonuma revealed some interesting tid-bits. He mentioned the game will not be as “big” as Twilight Princess, the current latest installment, but that the franchise will return to the roots of what makes Zelda games, in general, fun to begin with. Skyward Soul is supposed to head “back to basics” which includes “boiling it down” to make the game “compact yet solid” while building it around the fundamental elements of what great Zelda games are made of.

Submitted By: DarkPacMan77

Source: Gamexplain

One of the most fantastic gaming devices/ services I recognized from this year’s E3 conference was “OnLive”. OnLive is a play on the word, “online”, and for fully-justifiable reasons. With OnLive, any compatible device that can connect and run the OnLive client with at least a download rate of 5mb/s will be able to play HD gaming content wherever they have internet access. The content is streamed through the client to whatever independent device that is compatible with the service and then is able to play HD content on that device. 

At E3, the game shown off as a working title was Borderlands, an exceptional first-person shooter MMO game. The device that the game was played on was none other than Apple’s new iPad, a device known for being “just a large iPod touch”. 

Microsoft has been questioned for a long time about making a hand-held gaming device and have dodged questions. Now, it seems that they are at least a little bit closer to providing such a device. Now, however, it seems any device capable of creating a method of input, like the iPad’s touch screen or perhaps a USB peripheral gaming controller (not mentioned, but to be expected) will be able to stream HD gaming content that looks just as great as the modern gaming generation as played on Xbox 360 – but seemingly limitless. 

This type of technology truly brings to question the concept of the future of hand-held devices and battery power consumption standards. For me, personally, I look at this type of technology and see visions of the 90’s when Sega Channel was still pumping.

Submitted By: DarkPacMan77

Source: FPSTime

Gran Turismo 5 has had more than its fair share of delays. Now, in spite of those delays, the game seems to be slated for a November 2nd release, but I think it’s more appropriate to just say “November”.

The newest installment will feature new courses; Madrid, Tuscany, Rome, Nurburgring, and even the TopGear test track that “The Stig” is often seen driving various cars on the hit European television show, TopGear, are welcome delights. The game boasts a grand total that exceeds 1,000 vehicles to choose from, 800 of which are dubbed “standard” cars. The rest, assumably, will reside in the category dubbed, “premium” cars. Cars in that category will reap all of the best benefits that Gran Turismo 5 has to offer such as photo-realistic dashboard/ interiors and on-the-fly vehicle damage which is sectional and appropriate according to where you received damage. It is unknown, at this time, as to whether or not the other 800 cars will feature sectional damage or even generalized damage as we’ve seen in trailers and hands-on previews so far.

From a graphical perspective, Gran Turismo 5 will most likely lock-down the title of being the racing game with the best visuals. Every car will utilize the PS3’s pixel shader to the limit, allowing for other visuals which also enhance the game overall. Things like collision sparks, time of day changes, low/ high beams on the cars, smoke illumination, and even the ability to kick up debris from the car are all things that will help bring a better and more involving gaming experience to the player. The game will have support for both 3D televisions and also face-tracking with the PS3 camera. The online mode is extensive and should leave gamers begging for more.

Submitted By: DarkPacMan77

Source: Gamezone

A few images have surfaced on the neogaf forums which could be the first occurrence of a RROD type error in the new slimline Xbox 360 consoles.  The message reads “The Xbox 360 is shutting down to protect the console from insufficient ventilation.”, but based on the picture, it looks like this 360 has plenty of room to breath.  While this is obviously a measure put into place to prevent a catastrophic failure, an error message like this could pose a major threat to game play continuity. 

E3 2010’s now officially behind us, and there was a ton to talk about. Between Nintendo announcing the 3DS, Sony showing off the Playstation Move, and Microsoft announcing the ’slimline’ XBox360, it was easy to overlook the actual games. Two have me very excited, though: One that was shown during Microsoft’s press conference, the other was actually released before E3, but its released was somewhat overshadowed by the big show.

Child Of Eden: The ’sequel’ of sorts to the cult-classic Dreamcast (and now XBLA) title ‘Rez’, Child of Eden is a game that’s not so much about the challenge of boss battles or time trials, but a game about the experience. You ‘conduct’ the action on-screen, making amazing beats that are accompanied by beautiful HD visuals. It’ll work with Microsfot Kinect, Playstation Move, or a regular controller, so there’s no reason you should miss out on Tetsuya Mizuguchi’s upcoming masterpiece.

Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker: A full-fledged Metal Gear Solid, MGS: Peace Walker takes place several years after both Metal Gear Solid 3 and MGS: Portable Ops. In this installment, Big Boss is recruiting soldiers for Outer Heaven, which he considers a ‘paradise for soldiers’. Extremely lore-heavy, and remarkably well-directed for a handheld title, Peace Walker doesn’t disappoint, and any Metal Gear fan would be foolish to miss out.

Many thanks to our friends GameTrailers and G4TV for the great video clips. What games caught your eye at this year’s E3? Let us know by stopping by our forums!

Every Xbox owner dreads the sight. Those red rings scream heat, failure, and most importantly a month or so without your precious console. Through a leaked specification sheet provided to Joystiq, it is shown the power button on the new console is only capable of only showing green lights. Is Microsoft running out of red LED lights? Our guess is they are trying to leave the RROD image behind and move forward to an era where this dreaded image is moved away from there console, and users will focus on the failures of the PS3.

“Live today; prepare for the future of technology, Tomorrow.”

   A possible Italian ad for the new Xbox 360 Slim was brought to our attention by crait. Not sure if it is real or not, but we will find out soon.

[ Discussion ]

PS3 Firmware 3.21 will be available this Thursday. It will disable the “Install Other OS” feature that was available on the PS3 systems prior to the current slimmer models, launched in September 2009. This feature enabled users to install an operating system, but due to security concerns, we’re now removing this feature.

For most of you, this won’t have any impact on how you use your PS3. If you are one of the few who use the “Other OS” feature, or if you belong to an organisation that does, then you can choose not to upgrade your system. However, doing so will mean that the following features will not be available:

• Ability to sign in to PlayStation Network and use network features that require signing in to PlayStation Network, such as online features of PS3 games and chat.
• Playback of PS3 software titles or Blu-ray Disc videos that require PS3 system software version 3.21 or later.
• Playback of copyright-protected videos that are stored on a media server (when DTCP-IP is enabled under Settings).
• Use of new features and improvements that are available on PS3 system software 3.21 or later.

If you currently use the “Other OS” feature and you wish to update to system software 3.21, make sure you back-up any data stored within the hard drive partition used by the “Other OS,” as they will not be able to access that data following the update.

Source

Google and China’s war has been going on since mid-January when Google refused to continue censoring search results in the country. Now though, Google is rumored to be pulling censorship this month- something the Chinese government’s IT ministry describes Google’s plans as “unfriendly and irresponsible” and warning that the company will have to bear the consequences of its actions.

ine-width: 0px; outline-style: initial; outline-color: initial; font-size: 12px; vertical-align: baseline; background-image: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; padding: 0px; border: 0px initial initial;">Their clash of values has been well-publicized, with Google halting the release of certain Android phones and even canceling a developer event over there.

Li Yizhong, a Minister of Industry and Information Technology in China, responded with "if you don't respect Chinese laws, you are unfriendly and irresponsible, and the consequences will be on you" when asked about how China will retaliate if Google stayed true to its word.