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Sony's NEX-6 satisfies the FCC with paperwork, guts
Still hungry for a closer look at Sony's WiFi-packing NEX-6 despite perusing our hands-on? Apparently the FCC feels the same, so it's used its government-granted authority to inspect the camera first-hand, and tear it apart in the process. This isn't the only time the 16.1-megapixel shooter has been given the ruler treatment, but a full copy of its user's manual has notably come along for its US visit. Check out the gallery below to view this NEX's guts, or hit the source link to gloss over a PDF of the instruction manual -- might as well get the boring stuff done before the package arrives in November.%Gallery-165226%
Out of the box concept aims to simplify cellphone instructions
It's not often that someone tries to reinvent the instruction manual, but that's just what Clara Gaggero and Adrian Westaway of Vitamins Design have done in conjunction with the Helen Hamlyn Center and Samsung Design Europe. While they've offered up a number of different ideas, the standout has to be the book concept pictured above, which literally puts the phone itself at the center of the user manual -- just flip through the pages and follow the directions that point right at the screen. Another interesting (but slightly further out) concept is a set of cards that would actually perform a function when touched on the screen (add a contact, record a voice memo, etc), and which would contain instructions on the back so you can eventually learn to do it yourself. Hit up the source link for a peek at that concept, along with a slightly less simple "map" idea that promises to help folks navigate though a phone's menu system.
Ubisoft getting greener by ditching paper manuals
Ubisoft will cease including paper instruction manuals inside its Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 boxed games, starting with this holiday's Shaun White Skateboarding (as revealed in an announcement that quietly confirms the PS3 and Xbox 360 versions of Shaun White Skateboarding). In place of a paper manual, a digital manual will be provided and accessible in-game. Digital manuals are often more convenient than paper ones (except if you're trying to read one on your way back from the store) and are already becoming commonplace with the proliferation of downloadable games. Plus, we're not exactly going to lament the loss of the no-frills, black-and-white manuals most games include nowadays. But how does Shaun White feel about it? "It's pretty cool that Ubisoft is making a conscious effort to go green with its new video game packaging," White said in a canned statement. "I'm excited for my new skateboarding game to come out and stoked that it will be the very first Ubisoft game to be part of their green packaging initiatives." In addition to saving money for Ubisoft, scaling back on paper manuals -- no plans to extend the initiative to Wii, DS or PSP games were announced -- is part of an environmentally-conscious program from the publisher that also introduces a new recycled "ecoTech" case for PC games packaging. Splinter Cell: Conviction will be the publisher's first PC game to sport the new box when it arrives at retailers next week.
GTA's 'Next Stop' teased in Liberty City Episodes manual
We'd thought the Grand Theft Auto franchise had taken us to lovingly rendered simulacra of every metropolitan city-type known to man, but apparently, we thought wrong. In the back of the GTA IV: Episodes from Liberty City manual, a fake advertisement points to the series' "Next Stop" (seen above). Of course, the destination being teased is quite obviously the lovely town of Clip Artington, Minnesota. Surely you've heard of Clip Artington! It's renowned for its apple butter festivals. On the off chance the teaser is pointing to a different city, we've ... we've really got no idea. Looks like a desert, though, right? And a mountain? And some conical, obsidian monoliths? What? Trees? Oh, yeah, that makes a lot more sense. We'd love to hear your speculation in a well-written, thought-provoking comment! There's a place for those right after the jump, you know. [Image credit: VGChartz]
Sony Alpha 850 DSLR manual pops up on Hong Kong support site
Sony's Alpha series DSLR cameras are almost notorious for how often they leak, and as is custom with an introductory assertion like that, we've got another one to show you. The company's Hong Kong support site has an instruction manual available to download for an as-of-then unknown iteration, the α850. The gang at Dyxum forums have gone through it more thoroughly than we have so far, and the Initial reaction is that it's similar to the α900 but with only three FPS, a smaller viewfinder, and still no video (unlike its competition). We've assembled some highlights from the guide, including full specs, in the gallery below. Hit up the read link to grab the full manual for yourself, but just a word of caution, even though the PDF's only 3.54MB in size, the download has proven to be rather painfully slow. [Via Dyxum forums; thanks, Doug]
DS Daily: Needing instructions
We have to admit -- sometimes we'll play and complete games without even looking at the instruction manual once. When we do check out the handy booklets, though, they're usually very helpful, and even have impressive artwork at times.How often do you look at instruction manuals? Always? Never? Or, perhaps only sometimes, depending on the game? And, have you ever come across one for a DS game that included noteworthy art?
Strawberry Manuals Forever
We're over a year late on this, but you'll have to excuse us on not keeping up to date with the Strawberry Shortcake video games series. Insert Credit pointed us to the delightful fact that Strawberryland Games, Ms. Shortcake's 2006 minigame collection for the DS, comes with a Strawberry-fragranced instruction manual, just like the original dolls! One reviewer even described the booklet as having captured "the scent of Franken Berry cereal."As amusing as we found this "bonus feature," should companies spend their time, money, and imaginations on such trivial details? Well, it convinced us into talking about a licensed children's game 15 months after its release, so there's obviously some value to this approach.In fact, we wish more publishers would follow The Game Factory's lead and put out their own appropriately scented manuals. Wouldn't it be cool if Jake Hunter: Detective Chronicles smelled like an ashtray when you opened its box? Or if My Horse and Me's manual wafted a farm-like aroma? Okay, so those examples aren't too great; we're sure you can come up with much better ideas.[Via Insert Credit]
Comic book manual makes No More Heroes even cooler
Perhaps "cooler" isn't the best word to use, since comics tend to be associated with, well, nerdy lifestyles. Fortunately, though, this is a video games blog, meaning that we completely eat up geek culture like it's delicious candy. The folks over at Grasshopper Manufacture seem to understand this, and have therefore decided to incorporate a comic book motif into the No More Heroes instruction manual. We can only hope that Ubisoft decides to use this style as well, but in case they don't, check out some pictures provided by Siliconera's Spencer Yip after the break.
