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Golf Channel brings the Sony Open in 3D to multiple providers this weekend
When we first learned the 2011 Sony Open would be shot in 3D it seemed hard to imagine anyone would be broadcasting live 3D sports by then, but now it's practically commonplace. Multichannel News points out six providers confirmed to carry Golf Channel's live 3D feed on Saturday and Sunday (check after the break for airtimes) including Time Warner Cable, Bright House Networks, Cox Communications, Shaw Communications and Rogers Communications, while Telus also mentioned on its Twitter feed that it would carry the event. As usual, if your carrier has been in on previous Versus-like 3D events, we'd expect it on the same channel but check your local listings.
VW Golf Blue-e-motion and Hybrid Touareg strike a pose in Detroit
Alternative means of propulsion are the norm at the North American International Auto Show this year in Detroit, and VW had a few options on display. First up is the Touareg Hybrid, the company's first, with a 3.0 liter supercharged V6 paired to an electric motor, offering a combined 380hp, 0 - 60 times of 6.2 seconds (not bad for a 5,000lb SUV), and up to 27mpg -- if you don't dip too deep in the throttle. Keep things light, and under 30mph, and you can drive it as a purely EV car so long as there's charge. It's available now. Also on display is the Golf Blue-e-motion that our friends at Autoblog previously got to spend a little time with in Germany. This is currently built on the Golf Mk VI platform but, by the time it is released in 2013, will be applied to the upcoming Mk VII platform. It's said to offer a realistic 80 miles of range and, unlike the Focus Electric, hasn't made too many sacrifices in the cargo compartment. %Gallery-113994% %Gallery-113995%
Garmin Approach S1 is the GPS watch for golfers, sends that caddy back to the shack
Pack a lob wedge or extra utility iron? Punch and run or flop and drop? Crush a five iron or hit a three-quarter four? These are just a few of the questions that amateur golfers wish they had to ponder as they instead devote their time to rummaging through the brush trying to find what could be their fourth lost ball in three holes. Maybe Garmin's new Approach S1 watch can help. It's loaded with every hole from over 14,000 golf courses and, from anywhere on the course, will give you precise yardage to the front, back, and middle of the next green -- meaning it won't help your lay-up but could be just the ticket for nailing that approach. Its integrated odometer will even track how many miles you covered through the course of the day and, we're presuming, not tell your significant other whether you spent those drinking in the cart or walking at a brisk pace. The Approach S1 is available now for $249 and is subtle enough that your buddies might not even notice your new wrist-borne advantage. Update: As a few of you pointed out, the Suunto G9 watch from a few years back also offers GPS, meaning this is, indeed, not the first after all! That's a two-stroke penalty, Garmin.
John Daly's ProStroke Golf tees off Oct. 5 on PS3, Oct. 19 on 360
Gusto Games' upcoming stab (swing?) at adapting the world's oldest sport into a much more palatable video game format, titled John Daly's ProStroke Golf, has been given staggered release dates on its two designated platforms. The PS3 version of the title will arrive on October 5, and will ship with native support for the PlayStation Move. The Xbox 360 version will make its way to store shelves on October 19, and will not ship with native support for the PlayStation Move, because that would be ridiculous. If you 360 owners are worried about being surpassed in skill by your early-starting, PS3-playing counterparts, don't fret -- all you have to do is seek some Stroking council from the most august Pro we know: Mr. Clarence Carter.
Sensor-laden SensoGlove helps you make smarter decisions than Tiger Woods
You scoff, but it's true. Do you honestly think Tiger Woods has the luxury of looking down as his golf glove while on the Masters' greens and seeing if his grip is too tight? Indeed he doesn't, nor will he ever if we understand anything about PGA regulations. Germany's own Sensosolutions has just revealed what it's calling the planet's first "digital golf glove," with the $89 SensoGlove boasting a handful of sensors that "continuously read the user's grip pressure." In real-time, users are shown that data on the sweat-proof 1.2-inch LED monitor, and it's even capable of outputting information via aural commands. Put simply, it can give you a warning if you're exceeding your target grip pressure level, and it can even show you exactly which fingers are squeezing too tightly. What it can't show you, however, is just how closely your wife is monitoring your extracurricular phone activities -- but hey, there's always version 2.0, right?%Gallery-103286%
LotRO's radiance to be run over by a train and other future tidbits revealed
"We took Radiance outside, tied it up to some railroad tracks, and...well...I think you saw the end of this in Red Dead Redemption. Look for this in the future -‐ we will be removing Radiance from LotRO." Thus sayeth Turbine's Jen "Jalessa" Gordy, who confirmed that the controversial gear gating system is headed for a messy death. In the same WarCry developer chat, the team fielded a number of questions about where LotRO is headed after this week's mega-update. Some of the features in the works for Tolkien's digital offspring include a new raid, class changes for monster play, a barter item wallet, PvMP skirmishes, Isengard, additional minigames and -- yes -- vanity pets for all. The devs also admitted to slipping in a few pop culture mentions into the game, such as Firefly and Futurama references. And will there ever be any other hobbies than fishing in LotRO? Kate Paiz mused: "All of us devs really want to make golf next, but it's a tricky undertaking, so we don't have a timeline yet, but feel free to start practicing your backswings!" You can read the full transcript at A Casual Stroll to Mordor.
PlayStation Move review
The PlayStation Move. It's funny to think just 15 months have passed since Sony first unveiled its motion controller, and now we're mere weeks away from hitting the retail market. To be sure, it's not like the company didn't have waggle on the mind already -- patents dating as far back as 2005 reveal as much, and of course the incredible success of Nintendo's Wii proved there's a market for more physically exerting gameplay. And it's not just PlayStation; Microsoft's got its controller-free Kinect motion camera system coming this November. So, in the year where all major game consoles now ask you to get off the couch and earn arm muscle, how does Move fare? Read on for more!
Microsoft previews Windows Phone 7 app design process with a golfing scorekeeper (video)
You don't need us to tell you that apps have grown to become a core part of modern smartphone ecosystems. Android and iOS, the two major app-centric OS environments are growing in leaps and bounds, while a substantial part of Windows Phone 7's eventual success is expected to hinge on exactly how it matches (or betters) those guys on the app front. So, what better excuse than that to check out this concept golf scoring app from Redmond? Designed using Microsoft's favored Metro aesthetic, it really streamlines the user experience by employing "multiple touch targets [that] are spread out from one another" and distilling content down to large, easily readable data. We've got to say, it's hitting the right note with us, but do follow along after the break to learn about a few of the WP7 design quirks -- such as the drop-down system tray and the reason why rounded app icon corners are undesirable.
New Exilim golf-friendly digicam hitting Japan; the Pro from Dazaifu never had it so good
Golf fanatics will stop at nothing in pursuit of upping their game, and as you know, all sorts of gadgets have been modified to suit their purposes, from PNDs to digicams. Apparently Casio's Exilim line has been a favorite, and now its golf-centric camera is getting something of a spec bump. The Exilim EX-FC160S sports a 10 megapixel backside illuminated sensor, 5x optical zoom at 37mm, and support for 240fps video with an optional 30fps slow-motion playback. Available in Japan come August 27, in a limited production run of 5,000 units.
PGA Championship app pushes latest scores, includes buy-up live video
The set overlap between "iPhone owners" and "fans of professional golf" isn't trivial, so it's worth mentioning that the free app for the 92nd PGA Championship is available in the App Store. You can follow along with the action at Whistling Straits this weekend in glorious Retina Display detail, and with a $1.99 in-app purchase you can get live video of marquee players through their entire rounds, or see the entire field play the course's par 3 holes. Of course, live coverage is also available at pga.com or on television. Even without chipping in for the live streaming, there's plenty of video in the app: highlights, course overviews and instructional clips are all included gratis. The app includes customizable push notifications, so you can keep abreast of the latest news or zero in on particular players, round schedules or exceptional events (double bogeys, birdies/eagles, etc.). If you like the PGA Championship app, there's more around the corner; the 2010 Ryder Cup App will be in the store in September. Check out the gallery below for more views of the app. %Gallery-99429%
92nd PGA Championship loads up with HD, online, mobile and 3D video this weekend
Just in case you haven't already been spending the day following Tiger Woods up and down the course in Whistling Straights, between PGA.com and TNT, there's plenty of ways to watch the PGA Championship this weekend. 3D coverage kicks off shortly, broadcast from holes 12 and 17 between 3 and 7 p.m. today and tomorrow on Bright House Networks, Cablevision, Comcast, Cox Communications, DIRECTV and Time Warner Cable, plus a Silverlight online stream for properly equipped PC viewers. That's on top of PGA.com's 2D streams following marquee groups like the aforementioned Woods/Singh/Yang trio, an iPhone / iPad app (free, but live video streaming is a $1.99 purchase and 20 hours of coverage on TNT. With just two holes, this is much more of a trial run than some of the events we've seen lately, but until there's more 3D on it's probably worth setting the DVR for.%Gallery-99297%
Sky 3D channel comes home October 1 with Ryder Cup, EPL, movies and more
The Sky 3D channel has so far been officially available only in 1,500 or so UK pubs, but now its residential launch for all Sky+HD customers is slated for October 1. The 2010 Ryder Cup will serve as a launch event with three days of live coverage from Celtic Manor as the US and European teams do battle; the first ever in 3D, but the third such event it's covered in high definition. Golf fans won't be the only ones catered to, Premier League football will be returning once the season starts and today's announcement coincided with a SkyArts 3D filming arranged by the English National Ballet. Hollywood's major studios have already agreed to provide 3D movies including Bolt, Monsters vs. Aliens, Harry Potter & The Half Blood Prince and more, while Sky has commissioned its own original 3D flick, Flying Monsters presented by Sir David Attenborough. Not quite ready for the 3D revolution? Feel free to put that on the backburner -- at least until the 2012 London Olympics -- as the network is also adding content from HBO, a large slate of new comedies, Anytime+ VOD, and a Sky Mobile TV iPad app. With an HD channel count of 43 and plans to reach 50 by year-end, there should be a little something there for everyone to enjoy.
ESPN's blowing out the first HD British Open
Look, broadcasting the World Cup in 3D was impressive, but since most of us here are still HDTV-only, it's much more likely that you'll check out some action of The Open Championship this weekend, presented in HD for the first time ever. Just as promised, the entire affair is in HD (some AVSForum posters say they can still detect a few SD cameras in use, so beware) this year with all four rounds on ESPN (with HD available on ESPN networks in Latin America as well, plus The Open Highlights on ESPN UK which is apparently the only highlights show of the championship in the UK that is in high definition) and ESPN3. Check the press release after the break for the rest of the schedule and details, we'll be updating our list of events still in SD -- with this and the WNBA draft gone, seriously, Formula 1, IT'S JUST YOU LEFT NOW - FIX IT.
Expresso announces PND for the golf course, you'll have to find your own polyester pants
PNDs for the golf course aren't exactly unheard of, and if they fail to excite us it might be because we're not really the types that putt in the office while dictating memos to our secretaries (we don't even have secretaries in Engadget HQ). If this sort of thing is your bag, however, we want you to know that a company called Expresso has recently announced the AG1 Automotive and Golf GPS, which promises all the nav info you could ever want for "the freeway, family entertainment and the fairway." That is, they threw in a media player with the usual GPS capabilities. Featuring iGolf maps for more than 20,000 courses and an HD display, we have a lovely video after the jump in case you would like to hear more. The Pro from Dover never had it this good!
Review: Tiger Woods PGA Tour 11 (Wii)
I've played a lot of golf games over the years, from the arcadey Hot Shots series to my all-time favorite, Links 2004. But I've never played anything quite like Tiger Woods PGA Tour 11. For someone new to the series on Wii, its MotionPlus controls aren't just a revelation -- they're the only way I want to play golf games from now on. Sorry, Links. %Gallery-87857%
John Daly's ProStroke Golf gets Move support
Small-time publisher O-Games announced its take on the world's oldest sport, John Daly's ProStroke Golf, in May to little fanfare. However, MCVUK reports that the title's developer, Gusto Games, recently made a decision which should garner a bit of attention: The PS3 version of the game will now be compatible with the PlayStation Move. The game, which is due out October 1, will be demoed for the first time on the show floor at E3 2010, where the titular professional golfer John Daly will be on-hand to show how one gets their virtual putt on -- a subject we probably don't need too much additional instruction in, thanks. We'll try to get some time in with the game once we make our way to E3 in a couple short weeks.
Found Footage: Playing virtual golf in Manhattan with Gigaputt for iPhone
Considering the number of iPhones around the world, I have this sinking feeling that we're going to start seeing a lot of people wandering looking like fools. Well, they already look like fools, but when people start swinging imaginary golf clubs in public they're going to look even more foolish. Gigaputt for iPhone (US$1.99), from Gigantic Mechanic, is an augmented reality app that lets you play golf anywhere. You grab your iPhone, fire up Gigaputt, and it lays down a virtual 3-hole golf course wherever you may be. That could be in the middle of Manhattan, in a suburban shopping mall, in the swamps of Louisiana, or on a mountainside in Colorado. Gigaputt includes support for OpenFeint as well as Twitter and Facebook integration. For two bucks, it looks like a great way to get some exercise and lose all your dignity. Now, where did I put my plaid golf pants?
The Masters in 3D will require you to manually select side by side
So you have Comcast's HD service, love golf, and have already picked up one of the latest 3DTVs from Samsung or Panasonic. Everything you need to enjoy The Masters this week in 3D, right? Well actually there is one little detail you need to know -- otherwise it'll look like the image above. This 3D presentation came about pretty fast and Comcast, Time Warner Cable and others have yet to update set-top boxes with 3D aware firmware. The good news is that frame compatible side by side 3D doesn't actually require the box to know what's going on. The bad news is that the set-top box won't tell your fancy new 3DTV what format the 3D is in. Luckily the fix is simple, you simply need to tell your TV what type of signal it's receiving. Exactly how to do it will depend on your TV, but it shouldn't take too much digging around in the interface to figure it out.
Tiger Woods PGA Tour 11 trailer shows off online team play
EA Sports' latest attempt to breathe new life into the Tiger Woods PGA Tour franchise's eleventh installment is an online multiplayer mode, previewed in the "Ryder Cup" trailer posted above. Players will be able to align themselves into teams, and go head-to-head (to-head-to-head, and so on) in an attempt to dominate the lush, rolling greens. The only question that remains is what team you'll choose to enlist in. Will it be team Tiger Woods, who's repeatedly proven his prowess for hitting golf balls into faraway holes? Or will it be team Rory McIlroy, who is exactly one vowel away from being totally awesome?
Comcast will beat DirecTV to the punch by broadcasting the Masters Tournament in 3D April 7-11
Very cagey way to play it Comcast. While DirecTV, ESPN and Discovery were first to say they would have 3DTV broadcasts back at CES, the cable company will actually be the first to deliver it, starting with the Masters Tournament (but why not the 3D broadcast of the Final Four?) April 7-11. That's right, the first "live next-generation 3D broadcast of a major sporting event on TV, the first live simulcast of a next-gen 3D event online, and the industry's first live multi-camera next-gen 3D production" will be on cable (& internet), not satellite or telco. Again, that's right, if you don't have a 3D television set up yet, it will also be streamed at Masters.com (no word whether this is a Comcast only or if it will be open to all) for all those with a 3D setup on their PC. We'll temper our expectations until we see what kind of quality is able to squeeze through Comcast's fiber backbone and down our neighborhood coax wires, but this should certainly blow away the anaglyph stuff currently offered on VOD. Of course, the old school HD streams will still be broadcast on ESPN and CBS, but if Tiger really does make his comeback at Augusta this should give us a better view of the course (and any residual damage from that "car accident") than ever before. [Thanks, Simon]
