nickel-and-dime
Latest
A second opinion on Star Wars: The Old Republic F2P
There is certainly no shortage of opinions out there regarding both Star Wars: The Old Republic and free-to-play business models in general. Combine the two and you end up with a tornado of loud noises and pointed gestures. SWTOR's journey to F2P has been one of the major events of fall 2012 already, and virtually any time it's mentioned here on Massively, a gigantic comments discussion follows. We've already heard Larry's impressions this past week of the pros and cons of this new business model. I thought I'd dog-pile on top of that with my own from a slightly different perspective. You see, while Larry is our resident SWTOR columnist, someone who is staying on the subscription side of the fence, I'm a lapsed player who recently returned to taste and see whether or not F2P is any good. I've seen a lot of F2P transitions in my tenure here at Massively. Some have proven to be a resounding success, while others fail to keep a broken ship from plunging into the deep waters of cancellation. So which will SWTOR be? Read on for a second opinion on the subject!
PSA: Western Digital and Seagate commence bonfire of the warranties
Seagate and Western Digital really do have the spirit of the holidays running through their veins, as both companies are slashing the warranty periods on hard drives for the new year. Gone are the days of five-year safety periods, instead owners of Seagate's Barracuda XT, Constellation 2, ES.2 and Momentus XT drives will have three years protection. SV35 Series and Pipeline HD drives have two years while Barracuda, Barracuda Green and the 2.5-inch Momentus get a measly one year. Western Digital on the other hand, will be hacking a year off the Caviar Blue, Green and Scorpio Blue drives that ship after January 1st, each coming with just two years warranty. On the upside, you'll be given the chance to extend the package for a modest fee -- nothing like the odd nickel-and-dime to hasten the post-holiday slump, eh? [Image courtesy of Columbia Pictures]
