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Sony Ericsson's XPERIA X1a prodded by the FCC
If you've read through our thorough review of Sony Ericsson's XPERIA X1, by now you're probably champing at any number of bits to get your hands on the device. Well, thanks to the FCC, you can rest easier knowing you're one step closer to actually touching, holding, and hugging the phone (the US-destined X1a, that is). Amongst other things, the documents seem to disclose -- we'll stop short of saying confirm -- that a black version will be in play when it arrives in the States, though we feel that page 46 of the 114 page test report was more revealing in many ways. Don't believe us? Hit the read link and take a look for yourself.
TV broadcasters pleased with MPH mobile TV test results
The world needed another mobile TV standard about like it needs another hole in the ozone layer, but regardless of that, we've still got broadcasters backing MPH. We originally heard that said protocol was being tested by Raleigh's WRAL back in July, and since then, a whopping 800 local stations (which make up the Open Mobile Video Coalition) have joined in to work out the kinks. Currently, the general consensus is one of satisfaction, with the group now hoping to "prove the viability of the proposed system before the ATSC." If all goes well, a candidate standard will be ready to present next month, which "would keep handset manufacturers on schedule to have commercial devices available by the holiday 2009 shopping season." OMVC is also planning a multi-station demo at CES in January, so you can bet we'll be there giving it a run for its cheddar.[Via RCRWireless]
Wrath of the Lich King beta quietly ends
Crygil sprung an odd announcement on us all tonight shortly before 2 a.m. EST: The Wrath of the Lich King beta is over.I actually did a double take when I read this. Date check out? Yup, 11/4/2008. Time? Yup, 1:52:22 a.m. EST. Actual blue poster at forums.worldofwarcraft.com? Yup.Ouch. Beta over at 2:00 a.m. PST.No end event? No advanced notice? Just goodbye?This hurts.It's kind of like that girlfriend who you thought was really great, only to find one morning when you wake up that she's gone and all her stuff isn't there anymore. All you're left with is a note: "It's over."Well maybe it's not that bad, but still. I know I wasn't the only one expecting an end event like they've had during past betas, or during some PTRs. Those were fun, had lots of people and interaction with Blizzard. There was even one PTR event where a few other writers and I got whisked away by a GM.I gather we'll all have to wait to experience an end event in the future. Oh well. At least we have the memories of past fun to look back on.%Gallery-18020%
Video: New York City conducts analog shutoff drill
We've seen a smattering of shutoff drills go down from one side of the country to the other, but honestly, hearing of one is still more the exception than the rule. With the digital TV transition drawing ever closer here in the USA, the Big Apple decided to flip the test switch on its local OTA stations in order to give antenna-using citizens a much-needed heads-up. As you can see in the video waiting in the read link, the two-minute test only affected an analog set using an antenna; televisions tuned to WCBS via cable, digital OTA or satellite didn't even notice the warning message. Nice show, New York.
RIM teams with DeviceAnywhere for testing of BlackBerry applications
Palm already did the deed by partnering with DeviceAnywhere in opening its Virtual Developer Lab, and now it looks as if RIM's doing the same for its BlackBerry lineup. The Waterloo-based handset maker has joined hands with the aforementioned testing outfit in order to let "outside developers test their applications on a single system that represents 100 BlackBerry models running on 16 networks." We're also told that RIM is currently working with 100,000 developers to "create applications for such uses as gaming and navigation that link customers more tightly to their devices," which shouldn't come as any surprise given the pressure from Apple and Google. There's no word on when the virtual dev facility will open its doors, but we'd bank on it being sometime between "now" and "real soon."
Nissan readies pilot for road-cam / slip-hazard alert services
Way back in 2005, we got wind of a Bluetooth-based telematics systems for cars dubbed Carwings. Now, Nissan is gearing up to launch two safety pilots which will rely on -- you guessed it -- Carwings HDD navigation systems. First up is the slip-hazard alert, which marries data from the ITS (Intelligent Transport System) and ABS (Anti-lock Braking System) in order to warn drivers of slippery road conditions. In addition to that, the recently concocted road-cam service can "enhance the effectiveness of the alert service by offering drivers a visual image" of surroundings. The company will make the slip-hazard alert and the new road-cam service available to all Carwings customers (in Japan) beginning next month, with the latter hitting first (in November) and the former second (in December). Oh, and did we mention the upgrades will be completely gratis? Because they will be.[Via Wired]
Bartle, gender, and the demographics of WoW's classes
A little while back the gamerDNA blog did a nice breakdown of how WAR classes correlate with how gamers do on the Bartle Test of Gamer Psychology, a widely used test that can break down exactly what type of player you are (Achiever, Explorer, Socializer, or Killer). It was such an interesting writeup that I hoped they'd do it with WoW classes, and apparently I wasn't the only one -- they've got a new post up now examining which classes in Azeroth align with which types of players.They throw gender into the mix as well -- turns out that while the classes have generally the same percentage of players (not surprising, given that gameplay dictates the classes should be fairly balanced), things start to break up when you add gender to the mix. Priests and Warriors seem to have the biggest separation: according to their data (obtained via the profiles on their site), most Priests are played by females, and most Warriors are played by men. Paladins as well tend to be male, though not as much as Warriors, and Druids tend to be female, though not as much as Priests. Women also tend to prefer the elven races (Blood and Night), while guys apparently prefer Orcs and Dwarves (which helps my -- sexist, I admit -- theory from way back on the WoW Insider Show that the Dwarven starting area appeals to guys more than women).The Bartle breakdown is interesting, too -- Killers prefer Rogues (duh), Warriors tend to be Achievers, and Hunters have the slight Explorer edge, but in general, the classes have a fairly even distribution across the board. All of the different roles can be filled by all the classes, which speaks to the way Blizzard has built the classes -- you can really solo, PvP, or group up with any of them. WAR's differences were distinct, but in WoW, Blizzard has done their best to make it so that whatever Bartle type you are, you can log in with any class and do what you want. gamerDNA promises more research here (including a Horde and Alliance breakdown), and we can't wait to see it.
PTR closed with a thank you from the blues
Bornakk and Maaven posted a thank you note to everyone in the Public Test Realm (PTR) forums this afternoon. The PTRs are now closed since patch 3.0.2 is coming out tomorrow. It was an interesting note in that it made sure to mention all of the feedback that they've gotten. The feedback for this patch (and Wrath of the Lich King in general) has been different from previous times. There has been a ton of constructive, well thought out posts on the official forums about all the changes. Often times they've attracted the attention of Lead Class Designer, Greg Street (aka Ghostcrawler), and the discussion that results from such series of posting are quite enlightening and entertaining.So no more PTR, a nice little thank you from Blizzard, and a whole lotta patch to look forward to tomorrow.
TiVo soliciting beta testers for "Hawk" Series3 / TiVo HD software update
Generally, we'd say it's hard to tell what TiVo has up its sleeve with this newfangled "Hawk" software, but given that we already took a peek at what's potentially the next big TiVo interface late last month, we can't help but think the two are related. TiVo has been sending out solicitation e-mails to select Series3 / TiVo HD owners in order to enlist them in a beta program to test out a software release slated for launch sometime this fall. Users are being asked to deal with a few quirks and report them in a timely fashion, and they're promised a small parting gift for their participation. Of note, "Hawk" won't work with Series1 / Series2 boxes, and while "fall" is definitely mentioned, so is the word "December." Meaning? Don't get your hopes up that this release will be headed down the pipes in gold fashion anytime soon. [Thanks, NotMe]
City of Heroes Issue 13 enters Closed Beta
City of Heroes Issue 13: Power and Responsibility has now been patched to the Test Server, where a small but dedicated group of people will be testing the hell out of it for a while before the gate is unlocked and Open Beta begins. Leaking stuff from a Closed Beta is of course a major no-no, and we would not condone this from anyone. There is, however, a limited amount of access that anyone can get, simply by going through character creation. Although it's not possible to enter the game fully unless you're in the Closed Beta, costume pieces and new powersets can be examined in their current state. These are in testing, so it would be unwise to fixate on anything for now.So far we've had a look at the Shields powerset, which is extremely cool and contains many surprises, and Pain Domination, which picks up the buffity-healy hero set Empathy, runs with it, and smashes its face into the wall repeatedly while laughing like some ice-girdled steel-toothed agony maiden from Hell's own surgical wing.
Espresso testers selected, beta coming late November
If you've been salivating for a shot of Espresso, the upcoming integrated web development environment for Mac OS X, you'll have to wait just a little bit longer. An email sent this morning by the developer, MacRabbit's Jan Van Boghout, confirmed the status of those accepted into the beta program, but he also indicated that the top priority was to give plug-in developers working with the Sugar framework "a solid SDK to start with." Van Boghout expects that the company will release a beta in late November. Espresso, which stares Coda straight in the eye and says, "Yeah, I'm lookin' at you," is from the same people who make CSSEdit, and was announced in mid-September.
Technicolor establishes first BDA-approved Blu-ray Disc testing facility in US
We haven't seen too many BD fiascoes of late, and Thomson's Technicolor is out to make sure it stays that way. As of this week, it has established the very first BDA-approved Blu-ray Disc testing facility in the United States, which promises to provide a place for advanced BD-Live / BD-Java testing before titles are publicly released. There's no specific word as to what studios it'll be stamping seals of approval / disapproval for, so we'll just assume anyone who feels like ponying up for its services can apply.
Stainless: Another attempt at Chrome for OS X
At this rate, Google won't even have to release Chrome for Mac OS X -- our devs will have done it all already themselves. We've already reported about CrossOver putting their own port of Google's web browser together just to show they could do it, and now word has come in about Stainless, another attempt to bring Google's Chromium kit over to our favorite operating system.Unfortunately, it's still just a tech demo and not really a full-fledged browser (and the guys behind it, Mesa Dynamics, say that they didn't even try doing the cool stuff that the real OS X Chromium team is working on). But they did create a multi-process browser (one per tab), and they used some of the tech from their other app, Hypercube (Edit: NOT HyperCard, sorry -- I would have been more excited about that, too) to do it. I haven't tried it (I haven't tried the real Chrome on Windows either, Firefox is good enough for me so far), but like the other OS X Chrome, this app really only exists just so it can.And it shows just how desperate OS X users are to get their hands on Google's browser. Just how much longer do we have to wait?
'Shady camps' and more in latest Age of Conan Testlive patch
Just as players' patience was starting to fray again, 'Patch 3' has arrived on the Age of Conan testlive server, and it is a chunky one - we counted at least 594 meg. Feel like browsing the patch notes? Make a nice cup of something, put your feet up, take your time... there are six pages to wade through.Obviously we can't detail all of them here, but they range from the silly-but-desired 'Party people rejoice - proper drunkenness has been implemented!' to the necessary 'Fixed several causes of crashes and assert errors' to the trivial 'For decency's sake, Old Finn now has pants!'But the most interesting new feature is the addition of Shady Camps as a complement to the new Age of Conan PvP notoriety system, as promised by Craig Morrison recently. There are several other new tweaks to the system that had us eager to see it go live. We've put them behind the cut.
Sprint and Intel signing up Baltimore-area XOHM testers
Back in June, we heard that Sprint would be going live with its XOHM WiMAX service in Baltimore, um, this month. As of today, it's pretty clear that the service won't be rolled out fully before October dawns, but at least some progress is being made. Based on a survey sent out to select (read: lucky) Baltimore-area residents, it seems that Intel and Sprint are willing to give away free laptops in order to trial the XOHM service in the city. Unfortunately, the lappies won't even be given out until late October, and the trial itself is set to last 30 days, so frankly, we'll be lucky to see XOHM hit the general populace before Santa takes to the friendly skies. Though, why are we not surprised?[Thanks, Anonymous]
LTE trial deemed a success: 170Mbps downloads in a moving car
Controlled LTE trials have been going pretty well of late, but the first test "under everyday conditions" has just gone down in Germany. We're pleased to say that everything went off without a hitch, as a connection using the next-generation (4G) mobile communications standard was maintained while inside a moving car traveling at around 42mph. Aside from the thrill of not dropping in and out of Pidgin at random, experimenters were able to pull downloads of up to 170Mbps and upload at up to 50Mbps. According to Hamid Akhavan, head of T-Mobile, it will still be 2010 (at the very earliest) before any of its markets go live with LTE, but at least we're moving in the right direction, eh?[Image courtesy of ChrisHarrison]
PTR 3.0.2 Patch mirrors
Everyone seems to be having problems downloading the Public Test Realm (PTR) client still. This can be a real problem for some, especially if you don't have access to a high speed internet connection all the time. You can read the PTR patch notes multiple times over and still not be finished with the download.WoWWiki has a great list of a few mirrors, and I've linked to the most trusted ones I use all the time after the break.Please keep in mind that it is always possible, although highly unlikely, that one of these files might contain a virus. You should be running something to scan for viruses on all incoming files, like the free AVG.See below after the break for the mirrors list.
PTR 3.0.2 Patch Notes
Patch 3.0.2 will bring with it major changes to the way the game is played, all in preparation for Wrath of the Lich King. Mechanics for virtually all aspects of game-play will change somewhat, and all classes will get new talent trees and spells. The patch notes are long and extensive, and they're not even done.The notes give a clear warning "The current patch notes are incomplete, but will be progressively more comprehensive in each patch." Things are not done. Indeed, these notes even go on to mention that Blizzard is still modifying and balancing the classes.Read below after the break for the complete PTR 3.0.2 patch notes. Sit back with a drink and read over them all, it's going to be an interesting patch!(Psst! Looking for the short version? Check out the TLDR version here.) Patch 3.0.2 "Echoes of Doom" has landed and WoW Insider has you covered. From patch notes to talent guides for every class to fixing your addons to 5 easy achievements you can snag right now. Make sure to check out the latest news.
PTR 3.0.2 client is available for download
You can now begin downloading the PTR (Public Test Realm) client for patch 3.0.2. We reported earlier today that character copies have been made active, and those are going along nicely as far as we can tell (my Warrior copied across with no problem). To download the client and copy your characters over to the PTR, login to your account administration at worldofwarcraft.com.We are expecting a lot of out of this patch. From new talent trees, to class and raid mechanics changes, to the removal of the Amani War Bear. We'll have a lot more on this as we get more information in. Patch notes are not available yet – though we expect to get our hands on them soon. Stay tuned!
Stargate Worlds beta "just a few weeks away"
Cheyenne Mountain/FireSky's Stargate Worlds beta test plans seem to be on track. At the Leipzig Games Convention, Studio Head Dan Elggren told the press that the beta would start in "early September/October." If you were worried that wouldn't happen, it might be time to stop worrying and start signing up (if you haven't already); there's an announcement at the official website saying that the closed beta test is "just weeks away."No further information was provided. We just got the above and a reminder to sign up. Since it's just the closed beta, though, you're not very likely to get in too terribly soon what with 200,000 applicants and all. That probably shouldn't upset you too much, since early closed beta tests tend to be about as playable as Ultima IX: Ascension.Hardcore Stargate Worlds fans will of course ignore these words of wisdom, because that's the kind of crazy gamers can proudly be.
