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Twin-stick puzzle-em-up Velocity Ultra also heading to Steam
Velocity Ultra is bringing its mix of vertical shooting and teleport puzzling to Steam, as well as PS3. The PC port of FuturLab's Vita game is being handled by Curve Studios, the same team working on the PS3 port. According to Curve, the PC version runs at 60 frames per second, and should make for a nice stocking stufffer when it arrives around Christmas time. FuturLab, meanwhile, is working on PS4 and Vita sequel Velocity 2X, as announced at Sony's Gamescom conference. 2X features top-down shooting and side-scroller platforming, which Futurlab hopes to weave into "one seamless experience."
Sprint unveils Velocity Service Bus, puts your car's settings in the cloud
Many connected cars only take limited control through the internet -- they can receive directions and unlock doors, but rarely much more. Sprint is widening that scope by launching Velocity Service Bus, an upgrade to its Velocity infotainment, diagnostics and maintenance platform. The IBM-powered expansion adds that map delivery feature, but it will also sync cabin settings through the cloud: preferences like radio stations, seat positions and temperatures can transfer between vehicles. Naturally, this also makes it easy to customize the car's interior through a smartphone or another remote device. While drivers will have to wait for automakers to implement Sprint Velocity Service Bus, it may cure quite a few headaches for multi-car homes once it arrives.
Velocity Ultra launches on PS Vita July 2
Sony-funded indie studio FuturLab announced that an enhanced version of its puzzley shoot-'em-up Velocity will premiere for the PlayStation Vita in North America on July 2. Originally released last year as part of the PlayStation Minis service, Velocity Ultra is a vertically scrolling shooter with a unique teleportation mechanic that allows players to dart around the screen at will. Players are also equipped with teleportation pods, allowing them to explore alternate pathways and return to earlier points within each level in order to rescue survivors. Velocity Ultra features new touchscreen-based gameplay mechanics, along with trophy support (including a Platinum trophy) and PSN leaderboards.
PS Minis developer Futurlab inks deal with Sony to fund new Vita IP
Futurlab, the developer of PlayStation Minis and Mobile games Velocity, Surge and Fuel Tiracas, has acquired funding from Sony to develop titles for the PlayStation Vita. The deal also includes the added bonus that allows Futurlab to retain control of its intellectual property."We're incredibly excited to be working closely with PlayStation over the next year, bringing our particular brand of twitchy fun to the PS Vita," Futurlab Managing Director James Marsden says. "Sony has provided a great package that means we retain full control of our IP, which is a perfect deal for us."It's kind of like mommy giving you the credit card and telling you to only buy stuff for yourself. The website for Futurlab's next project is titled "Fan Powered Flight" and currently has a countdown clock with two days remaining, along with the text, "You asked for it," across the top. You're right, Futurlab, we did ask for a penguin with the capability of flight, and we can't wait to see what you've genetically engineered. You're so sweet.
Vodafone bringing LTE speeds to Germany, with the HTC Velocity
HTC has confirmed plans to bring its very first LTE handset to Germany, with the launch of the Velocity. The phone, known Stateside as the Vivid and in South Korea as the Raider, features a 4.5-inch qHD touchscreen and is fueled by a 1.5GHz dual-core CPU. The Gingerbread-laced device also boasts 1GB of RAM, 16GB of flash memory and an eight-megapixel camera, along with your standard 1.3-megapixel front facing sensor. As far as networking goes, you'll find support for quadband GSM/GPRS/EDGE, dualband UMTS/HSDPA/HSUPA at 900/2100 MHz and, most compelling, dualband LTE at 800/2600 MHz. Vodafone confirmed the news to Germany's Computer Woche, though it has yet to offer a price or release date.
Velocity Micro Cruz T408 review
It's no secret that the market for Android tablets is crowded – and getting more so every day. Just ask Samsung, Acer, HTC, Huawei, Lenovo, Pandigital and, oh yes, Verticool. We could keep going, but you get the point: it's a big market out there, one with wildly varying prices and features. And just recently a little company called Amazon made its move in a big way with the Kindle Fire, an Android-powered $199 portal to its corner of the cloud. The world's largest online retailer clearly thinks competing on price is a way to stand out from the pack. Velocity Micro, maker of the 8-inch Cruz T408, wholeheartedly agrees. It's coming to market with a $199 slate, hoping to capture some attention of its own. Can it succeed? Read on to find out. %Gallery-135786%
Velocity Micro Cruz T408 8-inch tablet gets its FCC credentials, goes on sale at $240
The T408 has been loitering around pre-order pages for a while now, but without a nod from the FCC it was going nowhere. Fortunately, it's just been given a clean bill of 802.11 b/g/n health and can be yours for $240 from Best Buy Amazon. That outlay gets you an 8-incher with a front-facing camera, 4GB of built-in storage and a microSD slot. Watch out though: like previous Cruz tablets, it omits Android Market support out of the box, which tells you something about its target audience. Update: Looks like the T408 isn't available from Best Buy, at least not yet. But, you can put in your pre-order over at Amazon if you so desire. [Thanks, Nathaniel]
Discovery HD Theater is becoming Velocity, focuses on programming for 'upscale male audience'
This is the last summer for Discovery HD Theater as it will be replaced by Velocity starting September 25th. The new channel focuses on reaching an "upscale male audience" that digs shows like Cafe Racer, Inside West Coast Customs and Mecum Auto Auctions while still promising to keep up HD Theater's rep for high quality production and picture quality. We're sad to see HD Theater fall by the wayside -- Sunrise Earth, never forget -- but if this means we can get a few new episodes of Rides it may not be a bad thing after all. On the other hand, we also remember how well this exact plan failed to save INHD / Mojo years ago. Check out a trailer (that's unfortunately low-res but is the best we could do) and press release for the new network after the break.
AT&T USBConnect Turbo and Velocity are carrier's first LG and GPS modems, respectively
Location-based services have finally melted our brains to the point where we're completely useless without immediate and constant access to Google Maps or a reasonable facsimile -- we couldn't fold a paper map if we tried, and even if we could, we'd spend an hour looking for the pulsing blue dot. That's why we're so delighted to hear that AT&T has finally outed its very first GPS-enabled USB modem, the USBConnect Velocity from Option, that includes a so-called Option GPS Control Panel for injecting your whereabouts into popular services like Yahoo and Bing (Google, curiously, isn't mentioned). The other newbie to the lineup is the USBConnect Turbo -- AT&T's very first modem from LG -- with an "ergonomic design" and versatile connector for even the most awkward ports (MacBook, we're looking straight at you). Both devices will be available on the 7th of the month; the Turbo will be free on contract after rebate while the Velocity comes in at $29.99.
Velocity Mobile's WinMo-powered 111 hits the FCC
Being that Velocity Mobile's 103 just made it through the FCC gauntlet a few months back, we knew the delightful 111 couldn't be too far behind. Sure enough, the Windows Mobile-based smartphone has made its final stop before hitting store shelves in the United States, though we can't say for certain where it'll actually be sold. Also of note, the linked Users Manual is inexplicably corrupt, so we can't say much about the functionality, either. Ah well, it ought to be landing in eager hands soon enough -- we can stand the wait. Maybe.
Velocity Mobile's 83 hits the FCC
Guess what? You'll be able to use Velocity's weak-sauce 83 without any strongly-worded objection from the boys and girls at the Federal Communications Commission! Okay, okay, maybe that's not fair -- with WiFi and GPS, it does its job at the bottom end of Velocity's lineup -- it's just that when you compare it to the 103 and the 111, it comes up a little short (ahem, QVGA display, EDGE radio, we're looking at you guys). We're not really feeling that gnurled back, either -- especially in light of the FCC lab's less-than-stellar photography skills -- but if it floats your boat and you're stationed stateside, you can start to feel a little less illegal now.
Velocity Mobile launches the 83, naming scheme still boggles
Don't get us wrong, Velocity Mobile's new 83 is certainly a well thought out Windows Mobile 6.1 device, but with its older siblings getting grandiose names like the 103 and 111, they could have broken down and done something different. We guess the low number may be alluding to the lack of the third G, but the quad-band EDGE, GPS, WiFi, 2.8-inch screen, and dual microSD slots -- one for storage the other for maps -- mostly still makes us nod. Price point is set in the $500 range and the launch is scheduled for November this year.
Velocity Mobile 103 shipping this month
After a spring intro, WinMo-powered start-up Velocity Mobile is ready to unleash its first product on an unsuspecting (or suspecting, as the case may be) world. The 103 -- a QWERTY-less device with quadband EDGE and tri-band HSPA, VGA touchscreen, 2-megapixel primary and VGA secondary cameras, TV-out, and 256MB of ROM with microSD expansion -- is now available for preorder with an expected launch by the end of the month. Considering the solid specs, the unlocked price of £334.99 (about $591) seems pretty reasonable, too; we'd probably hold out for the QWERTY 111 model, personally, but hey, this is a start.[Via Phone Scoop]
Velocity Mobile details its WinMo skin
Following a spring handset announcement, Inventec buddy Velocity Mobile is now ready to get into the nitty gritty about the software it has thrown together to cover up Windows Mobile's ancient roots. The interface looks a good deal like the early build we'd seen before, but with a bit more spit and polish -- and Velocity is quick to point out (as it always has been) that the UI can be seamlessly updated over the air without so much as troubling the user with a PC sync. We'd still take TouchFLO 3D over this, but does it beat the stock WinMo 6.1 look? That's an unqualified "yes." [Via phoneArena]
Fuze infuses software into Velocity Micro FuzeBox
Now that Fuze has gone OEM, we should probably expect a lot of similar announcements from the firm. In a somewhat confusing twist, Fuze Media has just signed an OEM deal that will place its tightly integrated software into an HTPC built by Velocity Micro. If you'll recall, Velocity Micro was actually responsible for the original FuzeBox, though this one will start out "much cheaper" at $1,995. Presumably, the box will feature Fuze's FuzeOne platform, which will reportedly play nice with any machine out there (that's good, since it went OEM and all), utilize its own homegrown media player and simplify DVD ripping / library management. Hit the read link for a blowout of the new architecture and machine, and expect to see more when CEDIA cranks up in about two weeks.
Hands-on with Velocity Mobile's 103 and 111
It's hard to stand out in the sea of Windows Mobile handsets; no smartphone platform is already more stratified, serves more market segments, and offers more form factors, so where's a new entrant supposed to fit in? Somehow, though, Velocity Mobile manages to do exactly that -- partly through an interesting software strategy, partly through sheer brute force of its first devices' impressive spec sheets. We had a chance to check out both the 103 and 111 models that'll lead off Velocity's production roadmap, and while they don't really look much different than your average high-end WinMo handsets, the flush touchscreens, trackballs, and clean lines all feel great to the touch. We're told that Velocity's slick, finger-friendly, widget-based interface will improve over time; the improvements will be made available to all existing owners, too, so don't let that little fact deter an early purchase.%Gallery-19649%
Velocity Mobile, shrouded in mystery, preps for CTIA reveal
It's not every day that a new phone manufacturer backed by one of the world's largest ODMs gets off the ground, so this might just be worth keeping an eye on. Seattle and London-based Velocity Mobile -- with support from electronics giant Inventec -- will be revealing itself and its product line at CTIA next week, adding some sort of entry to the crowded smartphone market. We can only assume there'll be something here to set 'em apart from the crowd, since anonymity is a recipe for a new entrant's quick, profitless death. Inventec's been responsible for some lovely kit in recent memory, so they're definitely capable of pulling off some sort of coup; then again they've also brewed up disasters like the i-mate JAQ, so we don't think we're in a position to use our jump to conclusions mat here without seeing the goods. Hang tight on this one, folks.
Velocity's Micro NoteMagix M57 Ultra gaming notebook reviewed
Although the hardest-of-hardcore gamers will likely scoff at any laptop that isn't SLI-enabled these days, PC Mag's review of Velocity's 17-inch Micro NoteMagix M57 Ultra shows us that even a solo graphics card combined with a zippy single core processor and a generous helping of RAM can deliver excellent 1,920 x 1,200 fragging performance. The M57 is powered by a 2.26GHz Pentium M 780 -- which gives it only decent productivity benchmark scores compared to a dual core machine -- but the fact that Velocity throws in 2GB of RAM along with the high-end mobile nVidia GeForce Go 7800GTX card and a 7,200 RPM hard drive allowed the rig to best PC Mag's previous champ, the Dell XPS M170, in all-important 3-D and framerate testing. Even better, the faults here are few and far between -- a rather-hefty 9.3-pound weight, lack of software for the built-in TV tuner, and separation between mouse buttons are the only knocks in this review -- so non-SLI snobs should feel safe in dropping their $3000 on what is judged to be a "Very Good" laptop.
