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Sprint's new $50 unlimited plan is only for iPhone 6 (and 6 Plus) owners
Not in a framily yet? If you're in the market for one of Apple's new iPhones, perhaps it's time to jump on the Sprint bandwagon. The carrier's rolling out a new individual rate plan: $50 gets you unlimited talk, text and data (and yes, that data is of the high-speed Spark LTE variety). Plus, Sprint will pay the ETF should you be breaking up with another carrier. Of course, that rate is exclusive to owners of the iPhone 6 and 6 Plus, so all you small-screened iPhone owners need not apply. And, should you struggle with up-front hardware costs, Sprint's new iPhone for life initiative lets you pay just $20 a month with no money down and you get a new Apple handset every two years.
Rogers overhauls its cellphone plans to offer unlimited voice and text, hook Canadians on data (update: Bell and Telus too)
Most larger North American cellular carriers still base their plans around voice minutes -- how quaintly 2006 of them. We're in an era of smartphones now, and Canada's Rogers is revamping its plans to reflect a data-first reality while possibly wringing out a few dollars more. A quartet of newly active Unlimited Talk and Text rates hand out the now-trivial messaging and voice time like candy: apart from a $55 entry plan that includes a still-healthy 1,000 minutes of talk, they all offer unlimited local or Canada-wide calling as well as unlimited MMS and SMS. The gotcha, as you'd anticipate, is getting enough data. Anyone but the most casual among us will want to skip the anemic 200MB from the $55 plan in favor of the $65 (1GB), $75 (3GB) or $95 (5GB) tiers that let smartphones flex their muscles. Rogers' strategy is no doubt meant to draw a few data-heavy Galaxy Note II and Lumia 920 buyers into more lucrative service echelons, but it's a refreshing break from pricing that still treats the basics as scarce resources. Update: It's well-known that the major Canadian carriers tend to imitate each other's cellular plans, and there's no sign they're letting up. MobileSyrup has heard that both Bell and Telus should have uncannily similar plans as of November 9th and 8th, respectively. About the only practical difference is Telus' decision to focus on the top three tiers and hike prices by $5 across the board.
Virgin Media unveils quartet of new SIM Only plans for data-focused Brits
It was only in June that we saw Virgin Media shaking up its regular mobile plans for UK residents. The carrier is back for another round, this time to serve the SIM Only customers who thrive on unlocked phones. Four plans starting from £12 ($19) a month all provide unlimited data and text messaging for bring-your-own-phone subscribers, with voice as the only real separating factor: the thriftiest callers get 150 minutes per month, while higher £15, £17 and £25 ($24, $27 and $40) tiers ramp up to a respective 250, 1,200 and 2,500 minutes for chattier customers. The chief gotcha is a lack of bundled landline calling for all but the priciest plan, although existing Virgin Media subscribers can knock an extra £5 off of that rate. If you're the sort who can't bear the thought of a contract, Virgin now has you better covered.
Possible hidden mechanics behind Lock and Load
The Hunter's Mark's Atkallen takes a good look at one of my new favorite Hunter abilities: Lock and Load. I'm pretty late to the party on this one (BigRedKitty showed us all how awesome it was a while back), but ever since I went dual spec and started raiding Survivalist, most of my time is just spent waiting for a Lock and Load proc. And oh boy, when it hits twice in a row and I can throw off Explosive Shots for free on just a global cooldown, look out.But Atkallen's post suggests something a little sneakier about the buff, which procs off of any trap snares or damage, or, more commonly, off of Black Arrow, another Survivalist talent. It used to proc off of Serpent Sting, from 3 to 10 percent of the time according to how many points you put into the talent, and when it was changed to the current form and lowered to 2, 4, and 6 percent, most Hunters worried that they wouldn't see it pop up as much. But here's the thing, and I can attest: it still shows up all the time.
Will mobile carriers charge different rates for data during peak / off-peak times?
Yes friends, your worst nightmare could indeed come true. With companies looking for every last way to nickle and dime their few remaining loyal customers, it's now being suggested that mobile operators could start charging different rates for mobile data depending on the time of day. And, let's face it, it makes total sense in a sick, sadistic way. Reportedly, carriers will soon start having a tough time keeping up with all the data-using cellphone and laptop owners, with the latter crew obviously causing the greatest strain on existing networks. A mocoNews report suggests three main ways of dealing with the uptick in demand: 1) keep building out the network and burning cash, 2) using new technology (read: LTE) with more capacity or 3) create rate plans that discourage usage during peak times. We've always heard that history repeats itself, but we'd be just fine with never hearing the words "peak time" ever again.
The Daily Grind: How long should it take to reach the level cap?
Yesterday Blizzard revealed that World of Warcraft's recruit-a-friend program will undergo some big changes. One of those changes: if you group with a friend whose account was signed up because you invited him or her to play, you'll both receive experience at 300% the normal rate.Blizzard has already decreased the amount of XP needed to reach level 60. When Wrath of the Lich King launches, word has it that an even bigger slash will occur in the 60 - 70 range. How long will it take to 60, 70, or 80 now, we wonder? That probably depends on your personal playstyle. But the question of how long it ought to take to reach the endgame in an EverQuest/World of Warcraft-style MMO has been on our minds ever since Funcom made a statement about how many hours it wants people to invest to reach level 80 in Age of Conan.What's the sweet spot for you? Do you want to get there as fast as possible, or is the journey to the top the real attraction?
Essences to Motes, pros and cons
We had an idea like this a while back, but now Sweet from Korgath has come up with an even better one. Make 10 Essences equal one Mote just the way that 10 Motes equal one Primal. Since 2.1, Essences (the random crafting widgets that used to drop in Azeroth) are dropping in Outland, and since most of the recipes that use them are pretty old by now, players don't have much to do with them. Way back, we'd suggested an Alchemy Transmute Essence-to-Mote recipe, but Sweet's idea is better-- why not just make them all the same thing?Drysc rains on the parade, however, by saying that because Essences drop so much back in old Azeroth, it would be necessary (in his view) to nerf their droprate there. And that in turn, would cause problems for lower level players who couldn't make it to Outland (Drysc assumes that lower level players are still farming Essences the way all 60s used to, but I might disagree with him there). Also, he says, it would increase the amount of Motes and Primals floating around, obviously, and Blizzard doesn't want those to be super easy to come by.But surely there's some conversion rate they could hit on which would make Essences worth just a little more than worthless at level 70. If too many Essences drop in Azeroth, then make it 15, or 20, or whatever. Better than vendoring stacks of Essences picked up while Mote-farming just because no one will buy them on the AH.
DS Daily: Common usage
It'd be cool to live in Japan, we've always said. The food, the culture, the fact that by 2011, 89% of the Japanese will own a DS ... wait, what?That's insane. Ridiculous. Incomprehensible. We're quite sure that not even close to 89% of Americans have a web-connected computer (2003 U.S. census figures showed 55%), and it's almost assumed in today's society that you've got access to the internet at home.With such a ubiquitous, portable, and interactive device, it's amazing that the Japanese haven't truly capitalized on its potential. They've got English dictionaries and day planners and all that, but everyone's got one! Why not introduce eBooks, or DS-enabled fast food drive-thrus, or ...! Well, we're maybe not so good at this. What would you guys do with that ridiculous penetration rate?
XM / Sirius to offer new pricing schemes after merger
We already know just how "priceless" the XM / Sirius merger will be, that your current radio will probably still function just fine, and that both firms are still facing legal heat in one way or another, but we hadn't heard just how the newlyweds would handle the pricing of the new service -- until now. In a decision sure to make a few people elated while giving a hint of suspicion to most others, the merged company will offer customers a package that includes "less channels" at a monthly price lower than $12.95, one that seems "substantially similar" for exactly $12.95, and finally, a third option that touts even more channels for "a modest premium." We can only assume that the pricey third alternative will boast a nice mixture of both companies' existing lineups, but unfortunately, it also leaves open the possibility that the cheaper two options might exemplify the "you only get what you pay for" tagline.[Thanks, Frankenstein B.]
Daring DIY'er devises homegrown heart monitoring device
While there's already a plethora of safe, proven methods to monitor your heart rate, there's just no satisfaction in buying an off the shelf BioShirt when you know you possess the skills (and spare time) to craft a system of your own. Interested in making his own mark in biomedical engineering, a crafty individual set out to build his own electrocardiograph for nothing more than fun, but rather than keeping his homegrown work all to himself, he busted out a set of instructions in order for us less inventive souls to replicate the process. Aside from creating an ECG board, reading results with LABView, and having the nerve to actually strap leads to your body and hope that you don't electrocute yourself, there's still a good bit of coding and behind the scenes work necessary to pull this off. So if you never got around to going to medical school, but you know you've got the DIY skills to operate a heart monitoring system in your home office, be sure to hit the read link and read that blurb about "destroying your nervous system" real carefully.[Via MAKE]
Stars, points and conversions
So, you folks over across the Atlantic pond, you have a bit of a step up on us statesiders. You know, except for those exorbitant prices. Anyway, when you purchase wonderful Nintendo products, you may redeem your purchases for "star points", which can then be used to obtain various wallpapers and doodads.Recently, Nintendo revealed that these star points would be redeemable for Virtual Console points, but the conversation rate was not yet specified. However, German mag N-Gamer has apparently uncovered the secret, and come up with a less than satisfying rate: 4 to 1. Since DS games are occasionally offered for around 4500 star points (DS games are typically around 45 Euros), that means approximately 100 star points per Euro. This amount of star points, under a 4:1 rate, would purchase 1125 VC points. If you simply used 45 Euros to purchase VC points directly, however, you could get over four thousand.Yeah, it sucks, but at least it's an option if you've got nothing else to grab. Be sure to grab it soon, too: Nintendo Europe has recently stated that star points have an expiration date of twelve months.
The numbers are in
It's been over a week, folks, and Nintendo has issued the first of many self-congratulatory press releases concerning the Wii. Eight days after launch, the Wii has sold more than 600,000 units in North America. Furthermore, their flagship title The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess has sold 454,000 copies, achieving a rather ridiculous 75.67% attach rate to the console itself. Nintendo seems to be holding fast to their claim to ship four million units worldwide by year's end, and many expect the company to deliver close to 200,000 units weekly to North American outlets. Not quite enough, though, is it?On the eBay front, 27,000 Wii units have been sold in auction at an average price of $412.53. For comparison, only 15,000 PS3 units were sold (at an average price of $1186.39). Take that, PS3 eBay people! Well, we suppose an average profit of around $500.00 after shipping and tax isn't too bad. The Wii is still very much one of the hottest items of the holiday season, and sell-outs should be expected at least through the end of the holiday season. Good luck, Wii-goers!
Proposed legislation: ESRB must complete every game
Sen. Sam Brownback (R-KS) has proposed a bill that would require the ESRB to play games in their entirety before providing a rating. This, like so much other legislation, establishes how little the government knows about games, making us concerned when it tries to legislate gaming.The punch-line, as you've guessed, is that there's not enough time for the ESRB to play every game. That's like asking a chef to make every possible meal before rating a restaurant. And how do you decide when an MMO, or even a repetitive game like Tetris, is complete?Under the current rating system, publishers provide the ESRB with video of the gameplay and detailed information about a game's content. The ESRB may also play the game, but the group relies most on publishers' full disclosure. If the publisher lies about the game, that company faces fines and the possibility that the ESRB won't rate its future releases. (Most major chains won't stock unrated titles.)Legislation like this, where our representatives don't understand the subject of their bills, makes us uncomfortable. We hope that logic will end this proposal, but logic seems to evaporate the closer we get to Congressional elections.[Via: Digg]
macosxhints debuts hint-rating system
The 'don't-buy-a-Mac-without-it' macosxhints.com has debuted a hint rating system, allowing both logged in and anonymous users to place a 1-5 star rating on each hint. As you might expect, their stats page now includes a 'Top 20 Rated Hints' section at the bottom. This should allow you to spend even more time you never intended to, learning even cooler ways to use your Mac.
