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Eurogamer Expo in England this October, major publishers aboard
The Eurogamer Expo is all set to kick off this October in London and Leeds. Publishers confirmed to attend the public event are: Sony, Microsoft, EA, Eidos, Sega, Bethesda Softworks, Konami and Capcom. The show will start in Leeds on Oct. 27 and 28, then travel to London's Old Billingsgate on Oct 30 and All Hallows' Eve. Tickets to the event are 6 lbs. of ... oh, sorry, £6.The GamesIndustry.biz Career Fair wil also be part of the show, which will give students a chance to interview with global companies. Probably a good idea, given the state of the English development scene.London will also have the GameOn! expo -- also associated with HMV -- a couple weeks later, but details and publisher attendence for that event aren't confirmed.
Pioneer brings more affordable Blu-ray options to UK
Pioneer has introduced a familiar trio of Blu-ray players to the British market -- entry-level, midrange and a high-end LX model. The company is going to kick things off in the middle in June when the BDP-320 (pictured) shows up on shelves wearing a £400 MSRP, followed in July by the appearance of the £550 BDP-LX52 and £270 BDP-120 for those who need more luxury or cash, respectively. All models are Profile 2.0 and lossless codec support, but it doesn't look like the UK-spec models of the BDP-120 and 320 don't seem to carry the 7.1-channel analog output thats the US models do, so it's either pony up for the LX52 or go the Bitstream route, friends. Persistent storage is handled by an 2GB USB flash drive for BDP-120 buyers, the other two models have onboard storage.
BBC America HD launch July 20 brings plenty of science fiction starting with Torchwood & Dr. Who
After (in our opinion) a too long delay, BBC America is ready to launch its HD simulcast July 20, getting things kicked off with a load of science fiction programming for the summer. Torchwood: Children of Earth is scheduled as the first HD offering, with five consecutive nights of the new season to get things going before the season finale of Primeval shows its stuff in high definition along with the U.S. premiere of Being Human. That's all just a tease until the Sunday, July 26 U.S. premiere of Dr. Who: Planet of the Dead. Of course, in this day and age more than a few may have turned to the internet to catch quality UK television long before the programmes air here, but until iPlayer HD comes across the pond everyone else can look forward to getting their BBC re-airs in the quality they were intended - here's hoping for Top Gear HD next.Full press release and details are after the break.
Nokia's stunning E71 gets diamond-clad makeover
Nokia's E71 looks perfectly elegant in its Espoo-sourced attire, but there's nothing that can't be made more gorgeous / gaudy with diamonds. Enter Continental Mobiles, which makes its ends by shoving all sorts of glitz and glam onto handsets and charging a ridiculous price. The phone you see above is doused with an undisclosed amount of VS1 quality diamonds, and thus, it'll run you a staggering £5,999 ($9,546). 'Course, it is hand-crafted in England, but you'll have to provide your own bodyguard when taking it to the streets.[Thanks, Sierra]
Kinetic's HD:Hub HTPC now shipping, HD DVD still a selectable option
We've got to hand it to 'em -- these guys aren't ashamed to be clearing out excess inventory, and honestly, we're still fond of the choice. Sure, HD DVD may be defunct, but what's the harm in having the capability in your HTPC should an old friend pop over with a disc to watch? All that aside, Kinetic UK's trio of media center PCs are now shipping after being introduced initially in March, with Blu-ray / HD DVD compatibility, up to 6TB of storage space, Core 2 Duo / Core 2 Quad / Core i7 processor choices and a healthy array of CTO options elsewhere. As for prices, you're looking at starting tags of £849.00 ($1,351) for the Mini HD:Hub, £1449.00 ($2,306) for the Home HD:Hub and £1569.00 ($2,497) for the flagship X HD:Hub.
Panasonic DMR-BS850 Blu-ray DVR gets reviewed
Infuriatingly restrictive DRM aside, Panasonic's FreeSat+ Blu-ray burning DVR brings some new capabilities to the UK, apparently enough to impress Home Cinema Choice. A few downsides, like ITV marking its HD broadcasts Copy Never preventing any disc backups, and an inability to connect to other devices on the network didn't take away its DVR features, h.264 compression capabilities and solid Blu-ray playback. Of course the entry price for the DMR-BS850 is high, but take a look at the rest of their notes before deciding whether or not all those arrows and padlocks are worth the trouble.
Virgin Media testing DOCSIS 3.0 to new limits with 200Mbps, 3D and 1080p
Forget 101Mbps Internet service or even the 160Mbps available in on J:COM in Japan, Virgin Media is about to put a lucky few of its slick new modems to real work, testing 200Mbps internet, "full HD" broadband content (we take that to mean 1080p) and 3D. All delivered via DOCSIS 3.0, the downside is that at least for the next six months this pilot project will be extended only to about 100 "lead adopters" around Ashford, Kent for testing. We've heard all we need to get packed for a move, how about you?[Via Hexus]
Video: UK Home Secretary delays 1984 by a few years
The UK Home Secretary (whatever that is) has put the kibosh on plans for a giant government database that would track all of the country's emails, phone calls and internet activity. But not so fast, civil libertarians! According to the Telegraph, the onus will merely shift to the private sector -- with telecoms and Internet providers being required to retain the data, at a cost of around £2 billion (over $2.9 billion US). According to the plan, every Internet user will be given a unique ID code that the government can use to access the data in the event of a threat -- whether terrorist, criminal, or extraterrestrial. It just goes to show you how lucky Britons are to have a government that cares so much about their well being. Video after the break.
AVReview pits four high-end receivers against each other
Despite the trickle down of advanced features on many manufacturers' lower-end receivers, there's still plenty of room for their upper-echelon offerings as well, and the UK's AVReview put four £1,200 - £1,500 ($1,750 - $2,200) receivers in a matchup. Entering the ring were the Onkyo TX-NR906, Pioneer SC-LX71 (SC-07 in the US), Sony STR-DA5400ES and Yamaha RX-V3900; we only wish models from Denon and Marantz would have made it to the contest as well. That said, matching up four receivers is not to be taken lightly, and it sounds like each of the contestants would serve you well in both features and absolute performance. We won't spoil the ending for you, but even though only one receiver snagged the overall crown, at this price point you should know that things are more nuanced than a single "winner;" your personal priorities are going to be the biggest variable in choosing the best model for you.[Boxing glove image courtesy germes-online]
iPlayer HD now available
Missed the Dr. Who holiday special? It, and other BBC programmes will be available as previously rumoured in high definition via BBC's iPlayer, now featuring new adaptive bitrate technology plus a new BBC iPlayer Desktop and a cross platform download manager for access under Windows, OS X and Linux. The only bad news? All that HD doesn't seem to extend to set-top boxes or the PS3 just yet, you'll have to try it out for yourself under boxee to find out if that works.
Panasonic's Blu-ray burning FreeSat+ DVRs due in June
Blu-ray archiving DVRs have been a staple in Japan since the format was still in protective cartridges, and now we have more details on the new Panasonic HD Everything lineup launching in the UK. All three boxes can convert recorded programs into h.264 to save disc space, and beyond their FreeSat+ twin tuner DVR capability, support Panasonic's VIERA Cast internet hookups to pull in video and pictures from YouTube and Picasa. The DMR-BS850 and DMR-BS750 support BD-Live enabled Blu-ray playback and recording in HD, while the DMR-XS350 serves as an HD DVR on its hard drive, but falls back to SD for disc archiving on old school DVDs. No word on a price, but while the British ponder Panasonic vs. Humax we're already willing to trade in proposed tru2way boxes to have a shot at these.[Via TechDigest.tv]Update: TrustedReviews came through with some better pics, specs, and most importantly, prices for these joints - The DMR-BS850 has a 500GB HDD for £999, the DMR-BS750 has a 250GB HDD for £899 and the DMR-XS350 clocks in with a 200GB HDD for £699.
LG FreeSat LCDs are finally official, shipping this month
LG is ready to ship its line of LCDs with integrated FreeSat tuners starting this month. The 1080p LF7700 series comes in sizes from 32- to 47-inches and includes 100Hz Trumotion in the 42- and 47-inch versions, with a 50,000:1 dynamic contrast ratio and invisible speaker design. Don't think a TV would hit the market today without the green tag, these claim to use 69% less power, thanks to the integrated light sensor. The cheap ones start at £700, even with BBC HD and ITV HD beckoning lackluster UK buyers may choose to wait for the 200Hz LH5000 models due later this year.
Survey: Only one in 10 UK consumers planning to go HD this year
Looks like Brits have something more important on their minds than HDTV, with survey results indicating that although 99% of consumers were aware of HD only 11% are planning on buying one this year. Of course, one must take online polls with a grain of salt, but the results must be troubling for projected rollouts of HD and beyond, with 53% indicating they don't have it and don't plan to buy. The problem? Tight wallets and a "perceived lack of content." We'll wait until the HD Dr. Who Planet of the Dead special airs and see if that shifts the numbers any.
Angry British villagers block Google Street View car, incident captured on CCTV
Look we understand demands for privacy. We just find it ironic that citizens of Broughton (pronunciation: bak-wərd), a small village in a nation where CCTV cameras look, evaluate behavior, and sometimes speak at virtually every intersection, would block a Google Street View car on grounds of invasion of privacy. Seems to us that they've given up on that right a long, long time ago. Though the police were called, the villagers eventually let Google's contractor pass peacefully -- presumably after assurances were given that cameras can not, in fact, steal your soul.
iPlayer HD on the way
The BBC had big plans for its iPlayer immediately upon launch in 2007, and it may be ready for a resolution bump up to HD as soon as April. Director of BBC Vision Jana Bennett revealed that an HD edition is on the way during a panel discussion at the FT Digital Media and Broadcasting Conference. Of course, UK ISPs are apparently already unhappy with the squeeze iPlayer puts on their bandwidth, and HD will only make things worse. We don't know if a ZillionTV style deal is the answer, but here's hoping it gets by the bandwidth caps somehow.
Vodafone to slash hundreds of jobs in Britain
Yet another company has succumbed to making tough choices in the face of a rough economy, as Vodafone is reportedly preparing to lay off "hundreds" of workers in Britain. The report stated that the cuts could come as soon as this week, and while there was no definite number given as to how many of its 10,000 employees would be asked to leave, we do know that the operator is aiming to "boost free cash flow by cutting one billion pounds of costs." Predictably, Voda declined to comment on the report, but it'll probably have to talk soon whether it wants to or not.
Sky+ HD maps out a plan to beat downturn depression with HDTV
Tough Economic times, layoffs and bad news from Pioneer can all be enough to affect a person's mood for the worse, but don't give up yet since Sky+HD has apparently found a link between watching HDTV and improved psychological well being. Sure it's partly marketing fluff aimed at improving HD penetration, but it does jibe with our extensive "watched Sunrise Earth for hours" research. as such, we think UK residents should give psychologist Donna Dawson's viewing guide a shot, based around using key visual factors to stimulate the brain, it might give one a different viewpoint on the current state of things. Of course, U.S. viewers are on their own, but why not grab the PDF and work up a lazy DVR weekend mental health break of your own.
Samsung NC20, 3G NC10 now available for pre-order in the UK
The Russians have already declared their love, and soon you'll be able to get your mitts on the Samsung NC20 and see for yourself what all the fuss is about. It's now available for pre-order from UK retailer BT Shop, priced at £390.98 ($565) VAT included, with a white model due out in February and a black iteration in March. Both models sport a 12.1-inch WXGA display, Windowx XP Home Edition, 1.3GHz VIA Nano U225 CPU processor, 1GB RAM, 160GB HDD, Bluetooth, 3-in-1 card reader, 1.3 megapixel camera, and a 6 Cell battery -- no SSD option at the moment. Additionally, the shop is also showing a new NC10 equipped with HSDPA coming next month for £416.63 ($602) with VAT, which is £107 ($154) more than its non-3G equivalent. Not to worry, US readers, we're sure Sammy will be asking for your Benjamins soon enough.[Thanks, Darpan]
Garbage-powered garbage truck now making its way across merry England
The Brits get all the cool stuff -- Queen Elizabeth II, The Sex Pistols... and now a rubbish truck that runs on rubbish (sort of). That's right: up in Huddersfield they've just unleashed a modded three-and-a-half ton Smith Edison Ford Transit garbage truck that tools around, picking up garbage, hauls it to a nearby Energy from Waste power station and recycling center which then burns the 'bage to make electricity for the next day's route. The garbage also produces about 10 megawatts of excess electricity per day which is dumped into the grid for added fun. The truck's got a top speed of about 50 miles per hour, and is apparently so quiet that the locals fear it could be dangerous to unsuspecting pedestrians. Maybe they could slap a speaker on there and pump some Oasis as a warning? Just a thought.
You may be too short-sighted to enjoy HDTV, study finds
If Vision Express was looking for some attention, it just got it. A recent study by the optician chain found that 60 percent of Britons had avoided an eye test over the past year, with that number rising to 79 percent in Scotland. Phillip Hyde, dispensing optician and head of professional services at the firm, was quoted as saying that "even a marginally short-sighted person sitting on a sofa watching an HD broadcast may not see the full benefits in enhanced image quality." As if that wasn't comical enough, he continued by saying: "If you're investing in HDTV, you ought to have your eyes checked to make sure you get the full benefit." You heard it here first, folks -- factor in the cost of an eye exam before buying your next HDTV, or you'll regret it. Forever.[Image courtesy of Lenslinger]
