valentines day
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X-Doria makes a case for your Valentine
With Valentine's Day just around the corner (next Thursday, to be exact) you might want to get thinking about that special someone with an iPhone or iPad mini. X-Doria has a selection of cases that are perfect for Valentine's Day, that day when pink and red seems to be everywhere. The X-Doria Valentine's Collection highlights four designs in the company's Dash Icon line for iPhone 5 and SmartStyle cases for iPad mini. There are two styles for the iPhone 5 -- Fluttering Hearts and Rising Hearts (both US$29.99) -- and two for the iPad mini -- Love's Armor and XO (both $39.99). The Dash Icon cases for the iPhone 5 soften a tough polycarbonate shell with heart-covered 3D textured fabric on the back. Let's face it, your sweetie is gonna melt when you encase her/his iPhone 5 in this season-appropriate protective statement of love. As for the two SmartStyle iPad mini cases, they're puff-printed with either a "love 'n kisses" XO pattern or a bright red pattern with little white hearts. The cases are easy to grip and are quite protective, gripping the mini in a shell in a complimentary color. We have two of the Dash Icon cases and two of the SmartStyle cases to give away. In order to get these to you before Valentine's Day, we'll pick the winners on Monday and ship the cases overnight. You, however, are responsible for picking up dinner, chocolates, flowers, and other items for your sweetheart. Here are the rules for the giveaway: Open to legal US residents of the 50 United States, the District of Columbia and Canada (excluding Quebec) who are 18 and older. To enter, fill out the form below completely and click or tap the Submit button. The entry must be made before February 9, 2013 11:59PM Eastern Standard Time. You may enter only once. Four winners will be selected and will receive either an X-Doria Dash Icon case for iPhone 5 valued at $29.99 or an X-Doria SmartStyle case for iPad mini valued at $39.99 Click Here for complete Official Rules. Loading...
Daily Update for February 5, 2013
It's the TUAW Daily Update, your source for Apple news in a convenient audio format. You'll get all the top Apple stories of the day in three to five minutes for a quick review of what's happening in the Apple world. You can listen to today's Apple stories by clicking the inline player (requires Flash) or the non-Flash link below. To subscribe to the podcast for daily listening through iTunes, click here. No Flash? Click here to listen. Subscribe via RSS
Apple shares Valentine's Day gift guide
Perhaps you haven't glanced at your calendar lately, but it's February 5 -- and Valentine's Day is just around the corner. Apple has created a Valentine's Day Gift Guide in the iTunes App Store to help you find the perfect gift for that certain someone in your life. The gift guide is full of categories to make searching easy. Is your honey a photographer? There's a special category for that. Have a hankering for a certain hardcore gamer? No problem; there's a huge section for that, too. The App Store curators also provide a quick tip at the top of the guide on how to send an app as a gift, so if you really want to make that someone special happy, you'll start gifting them with apps today... Just don't forget the chocolate. Apps are no substitute for chocolate.
Apple offers free iPad, iPod engraving for Valentine's Day
Apple has announced a promo on its online store for free engraving and gift-wrapping on iPads and iPods bought as Valentine's Day gifts. The company is also offering free shipping on orders over $50. To make sure you get your gifts in time for Valentine's Day Apple has also created a special page that lists the last day you need to order your device in order to receive it by V-Day. Besides the free engraving, gift-wrapping and free shipping for orders over $50, there's no other deals to be had. I hope that doesn't leave you broken-hearted.
The Tattered Notebook: The insider's guide to Erollisi Day
As EverQuest II gracefully ages, it's become a game that's rich with content. That's especially true of the in-game holidays, like the current live event, Erollisi Day. And now that Erollisi herself has returned, the holiday is cause for celebration rather than remembrance. The event is winding down, but there are still a few days left to participate. In this week's Tattered Notebook, we'll highlight some of the many things to do during Erollisi Day, including something old, something new, something borrowed, and something.... Gnome!
The MMO Report: Chocolate makes you fat edition
This week on The MMO Report, Casey delivers a Valentine's Day rant before moving on to the latest news -- namely, The Secret World's release date rumors, Wakfu's PvP, and the sunset of sci-fi sandbox Earthrise. He also rounds up the latest Blizzard headlines, noting the lawsuit against Valve, World of Warcraft's recent sub losses, and the "valiant and pointless exercise" of rebuilding Azeroth in Minecraft. Finally, Uncle Casey's Mailbag provides a forum for the debate over just how we're supposed to pronounce "SWTOR." All this and more in the video behind the break!
A priest's guide to class romance
It's a troubling yet underpublicized fact that four out of five shadow priests respecced shadow for the first time after experiencing a romantic break-up. Recent studies show that priests are 63% more likely to respec shadow within 72 hours of a break-up, while a separate poll found that 78% of healing priests had seriously considered respeccing to shadow after having an argument with their spouse or significant other. To the tenderhearted healing priest, shadow probably seems like a quick way to steel yourself and mend a broken heart; unfortunately, too few priests realize the two points they're putting into Masochism 'til they're staring down into an empty bottle of Volcanic Potion and wishing they could do the same DPS as a warlock. The simple way to avoid all these drastic courses of action is, of course, to skip getting your heart broken in the first place. Easier said than done, you think? Perhaps, but knowing the battlefield of love will certainly help you avoid the more obvious pitfalls. Want to know what your best match is? What about your worst? This week, I've got the answers in a special guide to the classes.
Love and Hate tweets collected on 3D 'Love Will Conquer' site
Valentines Day might have passed you by, but for many it's a day of conflicting emotions. Some of you may be screaming EB Browning's Sonnet 43 from the rooftops, others talking about how much you hate smug couples. Either way, if you're tweeting your feelings then (innovative marketing firm Imperial Leisure's) Love Will Conquer will record it. Geotagged tweets are being mapped, in real-time onto a 3D Earth, where an perpetually growing tree maps out who's feeling what and when. If you tell someone you love them freely and the tree will swell with red leaves, whereas hate causes cold blue ones to sprout instead. If you want to watch the world venting its ardor, point your WebGL browser (Chrome and Firefox 10.1 both work) at our source link.
Apps for Valentine's Day
Image: Shutterstock Today's smartphones are, by their nature, quite versatile. It's impossible to guide every lover on Valentine's Day to the app for their particular needs, because despite the requisite "flowers, chocolate, *something*" expectations, we all do it differently. I tried to round up a few apps that might appeal to just about anyone who participates in tomorrow's festivities. Happy Valentine's Day, if that's your thing! Going out to eat If you're trying to get a reservation, one of the fastest ways to check and make a reservation is with OpenTable (hopefully your area's restaurants are on-board with their system). If you're out and looking for somewhere to eat, I still use one of the first big breakout apps from the App Store, UrbanSpoon. Of course, you can always ask Siri, but if you don't have a 4S, try Yelp. Going out to find someone to love Personally I've had a great experience with OKCupid, probably the least skeevy of the online dating sites and its app is quite excellent. There's also Skout, which I haven't tried, but it has good reviews and features a location-based singles finder in the app. There are also most specific love-finding apps like Grindr for the gay community and Cupidtino for fans of Apple stuff. Buying a gift Don't know what to buy your sweetheart? Apps like El Gifto, and Thoughtful (not yet available in app form) will help you answer that question by asking a few background questions first. You can use Red Laser to comparison shop (you hopeless romantic, you) or Giftiki to pool your money with friends -- the gift that says "I love you enough to beg our friends for money." Setting the mood Yeah we've all heard of Pandora by now, but lately I'm digging the DJ-powered Slacker Radio for less repetition and a wider set of music. Slacker also has several romance-themed stations set up, like this one called Love Songs. If you subscribe to Rdio or Spotify, you can build your own playlist for all-night romance without commercial interruption. My personal preference is Rdio, but it'll be fun to see all the romantic songs being played in Spotify on the night of V-Day thanks to Spotify's in-your-face social mechanisms. Having fun Spending a night at home? Try Scene It? Romance Movies for some lighthearted fun -- although it could be embarrassing if you never watch romance movies. If you want to reminisce about the times you had together and snapped with Instagram, check out Lovestagram, which will bring up all the pics of you and your loved one taken using the social photo service. iKamasutra is the App Store-approved Kama Sutra for the iPhone. You could just as easily buy the real deal in ebook form, but the app provides easy navigation to all your favorite, um, love pretzels. Got any other apps you recommend for Valentine's Day? If you need to call a florist, I'd suggest Google or Siri -- and that you do it fast.
Sega Valentine's Day sale starts today for mobile titles
For some, Valentine's Day is a sweet occasion. Happy couples the world over will be lounging back, nibbling on an array of chocolate delights before partaking in the annual somersault contest that ensues. You know, like how our parents used to do before they got all old and stuff.For us loners, the holiday is a day of self-indulgent sobbing and darkness, but it doesn't have to be. If you're in the market for some iOS or Android games, you can snuggle up to Sonic and company through Sega's Valentine's Day sale starting today and running through the 14th.Sonic the Hedgehog 4 Episode 1 and Sonic CD lead the charge of discounted downloads for iOS and Android users, both half off, while iDevices also see considerable price cuts down to $.99 on Streets of Rage, Golden Axe and Super Monkey Ball. Gunstar Hero, Altered Beast and Virtua Fighter 2 are also on sale for a buck each.For the full list of what's on sale, hit the source link below.
Valentine's Day app sales underway: Treasures of Montezuma, Hanging with Friends, Order and Chaos Online
Romance is almost in the air (even, if you're as single as I am, though you might not care), and that means what every holiday seems to mean around the App Store: More sales! With all these great deals on apps, you can either enjoy one with your sweetie, or use them to distract you from your lonely, solo existence. Match-3-alike Ablazed is free right now, as the recently re-released Hand of Greed (which has been re-released a few times now right?). Sega has quite a few of its titles on sale for just 99 cents, including most of the Sonic titles, Streets of Rage, Golden Axe, Altered Beast and Gunstar Heroes. EA (surprised? Us either) has lots of titles on sale too, including Scrabble, Risk, Spy Mouse, and The Sims. Telltale has Back to the Future Episode 1 up for free, and the rest of them up for just $2.99. Crescent Moon also has a solid sale on, including the beautiful Gears puzzle platformer, Pocket RPG for iPhone (no HD sale, unfortunately), and Evertales. Match 3 title Treasures of Montezuma 3 is on sale for iPhone for 99 cents, and the iPad version is $2.99. Vito Technology's "Walk" apps are all on sale for the holiday. Fantasy Sky HD is free. The ad-free version of Zynga's Hanging with Friends is just a buck. Careful with playing it on an airplane, though. WoW-alike Order and Chaos Online is also just a buck. Comes with a free three month subscription, but you'll have to pay after that. TanZen for iPhone is free -- but the iPad version is not. Loud Crow Interactive is putting one of its apps on sale every day up and through Valentine's Day -- you have to follow them on Twitter to know which one, however. We might see even more as the holiday gets closer, so stay tuned.
Indie Royale Valentine's Bundle available now, with Lume, Hoard, Zeno Clash and more
The Indie Royale website is back at it with a brand new bundle of games for sale, this time scheduled for Valentine's Day. On this one, paying either the minimum price (currently just above $4) or above will net you five different indie titles: The impressive FPS (and IndieCade finalist) Zeno Clash, the excellent and underrated Hoard, the gorgeous adventure title Lume, and top-down puzzle crawler Soulcaster and its sequel. Plus, buyers also get both Hoard DLC packs, and anyone who pays higher than the minimum will pick up the "Music to Play Games by Too" compilation album.Remember, the way the bundle works is that the price goes up as more people buy the bundle, but it drops when people spend more than the minimum (so giving more actually makes it cheaper for everyone, and supports the game's developers as well). Purchased titles are available on both Steam and Desura, and the bundle is on sale through Valentine's Day.
Celebrate Valentine's Day with Perfect World Entertainment
If you haven't made any MMO-centric plans for Valentine's Day, consider the offerings from free-to-play giant Perfect World Entertainment. The company is playing cupid in several of its online titles, and players can acquire "wedding fashions, romantic items, spectacular mounts, mystery boxes, and more." Jade Dynasty features a wedding event and items for marriage-minded avatars, while Perfect World International GMs will be interacting with players and giving out a rare mount. Rusty Hearts is putting on an art contest, and the prize is Roselle Vegerius (the game's latest premium character). Forsaken World players will receive a Valentine's Day card and random items, while War of the Immortals fans can collect chocolate and trade it for additional XP. Finally, Ether Saga Odyssey players can enter a screenshot contest to win XP and bonus items, as well as bid for rare pets and send custom broadcast messages. [Source: Perfect World Entertainment press release]
GamersFirst teases APB Valentine's Day massacre event
If you've ever wanted to wield a pink assault rifle, APB Reloaded is the game for you (also, seek professional help). It's only for a limited time, though, and the shenanigans are a part of GamersFirst's Valentine's Day massacre event. All you have to do is log in, as G1 is sending everyone a couple of V-Day-themed weapons. Furthermore, each gun "contains an exciting new modification," according to a post on APB's official boards. Killing foes with the special weapons will advance two new roles and lead to Valentine prizes like new theme music, symbol art, and heart-shaped sunglasses. The shindig kicks off today and runs through February 20th, so be sure and get started on your role advancement ASAP.
Trion releases RIFT wedding trailer
A couple of weeks ago Trion announced its plan to get RIFT in the Guinness Book of World Records for hosting the most virtual marriages in a 24-hour period. Today the company has released a new video designed to show off the matrimony mechanics and give fans a sneak peek of what's in store for the Valentine's Day record attempt. The festivities begin at 12:00 p.m. EST on February 14th, and Trion says that "any two RIFT players who get hitched in-game will be counted in the Guinness World Records title attempt and will receive 'The Avowed' in-game title." Don't forget to check out the video after the break. [Source: Trion press release]
Indie Royale Valentine's Bundle offers a treat without the calories
Indie Royale's Valentine's Day bundle makes no promises, unlike some people we know who promised us the moon on a string last February 14, but who showed up three hours late, drunk and with a box half-full of chocolates -- all fruit-filled. You know who you are.Indie Royale is offering its Valentine's Bundle for pre-order at the lowest minimum price, $3.99, but is keeping the games a mystery until the big day itself. If you live life on the edge, don't read the following clues before buying the bundle:"The games offered this time include a fantastical first-person action-adventure game (Steam for PC), an IGF-nominated puzzle adventure title (Steam for PC and Mac, Desura for PC and Linux, DRM-free PC, Mac and Linux download), a 'scorching' single and multiplayer arcade-strategy game (Steam for PC and Mac), and a world premiere on PC for a pair of retro RPG-defense games (Desura for PC, DRM-free PC download)," Indie Royale writes. On its Facebook page it added, "None of these titles have been in previous standalone indie game bundles such as Humble, etcetera!"Pre-orders will receive the Valentine's Bundle the moment it launches, along with One Life Left's "Music to Play Games by Too."
Dragon Age: Redemption hits DVD on Felicia Day; er, Valentine's Day
Let's skip the formalities and just say it: BioWare wants you to buy Felicia Day for Valentine's Day. No, not buy something for her, but purchase Felicia Day herself. And no, not in any illegal or gross sense of the word -- Dragon Age: Redemption, the six-part webseries available on Machinima's YouTube channel since October, is coming out in DVD form on February 14, complete with behind-the-scenes extras, a commentary track and blooper reel.Dragon Age: Redemption parallels the story in Dragon Age 2's digital add-on, Mark of the Assassin, which features Day as an elf who assassinates things. Or, as Flatiron Film Company describes both forms of media, Felicia Day cosplaying!
SOE announces in-game Valentine's activities
Valentine's Day is just around the corner, and aside from mad dashes to the Hallmark store for cards and boxes of chocolate, the season is also typified by various MMO events. This year is no different, and Sony Online Entertainment is queuing up a couple of noteworthy shindigs in EverQuest II and Free Realms. Norrathians will be celebrating Erollisi Day from February 7th through the 20th, and there are plenty of contests, quests, and love-soaked goings-on to keep everyone happy. Free Realms' Festival of Hearts lasts a bit longer (February 7th through March 8th to be exact), during which time players may partake of Valentine's Day-themed environments, quests, and reward items. Finally, Star Wars: Clone Wars Adventures is re-introducing a few Valentine's Day items to its StationCash markeplace, and you'll find more info on each game's celebration events at their respective official sites. [Source: SOE press release]
Scribblenauts Remix tops a million downloads, Valentine's Day update now available
Soon after launching in October, Scribblenauts Remix soured to the top of the charts in the App store. Today, Warner Bros. celebrates one million downloads to date for the iOS title with a new Valentine's Day-themed update.Players will find a free new Valentine's Day playground in which to conjure up objects -- the press release offers a few suggestions for odd items, including a "loving, polka-dotted charonosaurus" or "giant, pink, flying chocolate box." If we didn't read heavy, leather-bound books, like, every day, we'd think WB was trying to pull a fast one on us with that charonosaurus business, but we assure you it is a real animal. It is, in fact, the ancestor of charizard.
City of Heroes asks, 'Will you be my super-Valentine?'
It's hard to believe that it's already February and that spring is now within striking distance. City of Heroes feels the season coming on strong, which is why it's bringing back its Spring Fling holiday event from February 8th through the 27th. The event this year will be a mix of the old and the new. Returning from the past are tangles with Arachnos, quests to fetch underwear for Eros, and a smackdown of Snaptooth. New for the 2012 season are a couple of additional missions for the restless hopeless romantic in all of us -- Widow in Red and Valentines -- with accompanying badges. The former quest will have players looking into the love life of Lord Recluse (Match.com has no entry for "super-villain," much to his dismay), while the latter will send heroes all across the game world looking for valentines to deliver or redirect. The Valentines missions reward players with temporary powers such as Arrows of Romance and Arrows of Jealousy.
