Spring has sprung around these parts , land with it the promise of unexampled life : trees are blooming , razzing are singing , andmost significantly , new gadgets are presumptively on their way . There ’s just something about this time of twelvemonth , when a untried man ’s fancy turns to thought of the late in technological innovation . Maybe it ’s the smell of plastics in the air . Or the ever so feeble call of the barbarian microprocessor . Whatever it is , I think that it ’s got my eyes tearing up . Oh , wait , no , that’spollen .
On this hebdomad ’s expedition into gadget strange , we ’ve get some quality time with the Xbox 360 Elite ; a new competition for the Apple TV ; andfinally , a machine that mix my love of clip art with my honey of breakfast food .
Like the Xbox 360, I am totally leet
Despite being Macworld ’s occupant Gadgetologist , my consumption of gizmos and doohickeys is middling modest . However , I ’d enrol into ablood pactwith several friend that we would all purchase Xbox 360s for diddle plot with each other online . Knowing as I did about the upcoming Elite framework , I opt to hold out until it arrived in stores this preceding Sunday , with its capacious 120 GB hard drive .
Unless you calculate my Nintendo DS portable , the Elite is the first biz console I ’ve ever bought for myself . Comparing the two is far beyond the scope of this clause , so let ’s say that a ) the 360 is much , much large , b ) the DS has a touch sensation screen and Wi - Fi , and the 360 does n’t , c ) the 360 presumably feature fewer game based on Pokemon .
Even though I ’ve had the 360 for a few days , I ’ve logged comparatively little time on it . But I do have some initial feeling . For one thing , signing up for an Xbox Live explanation is cumbrous , to put it politely ( memo to Microsoft : game controllers the ideal user interface for text entry?not so much ) , but once you ’re on , there ’s a wealthiness of content usable ( most of it , alas , for an extra cost ) . Also Microsoft ’s insistence on charging for something as trite asiconsis a little galling , but that ’s not surprising , give that they’relosing mucho dinero on the 360 itself , but there are loose demo and movie trailers galore .
The Elite does n’t solve one trouble that many former 360 owners have sound off about , and that ’s noise . earnestly , the console table is so brassy I think that someone had left the sports fan in our bath on full attack . I presume that the fans need to be on perpetually , and it ’s not just some lazy schlub at Microsoft thinking : “ let ’s not get to ramping them up and down , just give ‘ em on full blast the whole meter . ” Becausethatwould be irritating .
I ’m looking forward to putting the Elite through its pace in the weeks to total , specially involving game that require shooting thing . Preferablyevil , zombie - alike thing .
Who do VUDU? You do VUDU!
The meshing of traditional video recording content with Internet distribution is rapidly becoming a major battleground . Apple made their entry into the disturbance with the Apple TV , but there areplenty of competitorsout there , and more arriving every week .
The latest strength to fall in the fight for the aliveness room is a new ship’s company , VUDU , Inc. , with their eponymous set top box . Like the Apple TV , the VUDU corner has outputs for connecting to your TV , such as HDMI , S - video , and composite connector , as well as an Ethernet port for connecting to your internet . But that ’s roughly where the similarity terminate : the VUDU box does n’t require a microcomputer to deliver invigorated , steaming content right to your TV . Rather , it take advantage of a distributed internet to have you buy subject directly from the nifty gyre - rack remote and originate playing it nigh instantly .
All of that , of course , means piffling without content , so VUDU ’s been bring in batch pass on and proper with provider like Disney , Lionsgate , Paramount , Fox , Universal , and Warner Bros. When the box is publish , later this summer , VUDU hopes to have more than 5,000 titles available ( that immensely dwarf the just over 500 movies available on iTunes ) . No price has been announce yet , but the loge itself is expect to be close to the Apple TV ’s $ 299 . depicted object will presumably be priced competitively to iTunes and other download service , though an all - you - can - eat subscription model , à la Netflix , would bemost tempting .
Oh , and one reasonableness Apple fan might be concerned ? VUDU Chairman Alain Rossman is an Apple vet , having worked on the original Macintosh . Presumably he learned a thing or two there . [ viaNew York Times ]
Pop-Tarts meet Pop Art
You know I ca n’t balk indulging my pleasure for all sort of culinary devices . Besides the 360 — which was , in part , a natal day present to myself — most of my birthday present this year were kitchen - related . I now , for model , possess a whisk , which is certainly not something I would have envisioned desiring a scant five class ago .
But enough about me ; let ’s babble about toast . One of my very favoritest food in the whole wide world . We ’ve reckon plenty of toasters here in the Gadgetbox , but as far as I ’m concerned , you could never have too many thatsearimages into the bread itself . Witness Target ’s $ 35Pop Art Toaster(oh , because the artpopsup ! Soclever ! ) . Six interchangeable designing plateful can imbue your breakfast with icon of a flower , heart , a snowbird , a smiley brass , a cake , or , for the texters among you , the content “ LUV U. ” Honestly , I ’d like to see the ability to write your own messages , such as the ever useful “ INDIFFERENT uranium ” or “ washing DISHES , PLZ . ”
Better yet , you could get the toaster itself in your selection of black , white , ruby-red , or turquoise , and if you need just two home plate ( a smile sun or a coffee cup ) , you could blame upa bleak or blank model for $ 5 cheap . [ viaShiny Shiny ]
And that ’s just about enough out of me . Now it ’s back to committing unspeakable acts via the Xbox 360 . See you next week .
