winter
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The quest for Autumn: Windows XP's elusive backdrop
It's no secret that people have been fascinated, or at least intrigued, by wallpapers and screensavers since the desktop first graced their eyes, and judging by the sheer multitude of websites and man-hours devoted to perfecting the screen that you so rarely see once you launch that first app, it's also no shock to hear a tale of such obsession. Although Autumn may not be most people's default background in Windows XP, it's still well regarded, and for one Vanity Fair writer, it sparked a worldwide quest to find its origin. Expecting the task to be one of relative ease in the age of email, meta tags, and digital archives, he began by questioning the usual suspects about its humble beginnings, but to his dismay, was turned down time and time again by rights protectors who wouldn't divulge the author nor location of such a highly prized stock photograph. Eventually, his entire team was onboard in a furious (albeit seemingly futile) search to discover precisely where this image was shot, once leading to thoughts of permanent relocation if the locale was finally unearthed. After what seemed like months of running into brick walls, an email to Bill Gates himself resulted in an apparently automated response that belted out nothing more but the snapshot's place of origin, which incited fits of jovial celebration office-wide. To Campbellville, Ontario, Canada they headed, in desperate need to visit the orangey area so burned into their memories, and thanks to the purportedly mysterious workings of a co-worker, they even landed the shooter's name. Eventually, the journey led them to a rarely traveled path in the city of Burlington, where the old Harris Homestead quietly sat behind a vigilant row of bare trees surrounded by glistening white snow. It truly was Winter, at last for the adventurous crew, but it certainly gives us pause when deciding whether or not to seek out the origin of Ascent and Azul in our spare time.
Strong Q1 sales point to less cyclical gaming calendar
MCV takes a look at some recent ChartTrack sales data and notes that British game sales for the first few weeks of the new year are up significantly over 2006's already record-breaking first quarter. An interesting little factoid, to be sure, but the true importance comes out in a quote from Eidos UK's Jon Brooke, who told the trade paper that increased Winter sales "prove the industry doesn't need to be so seasonal." Amen to that. We are sick and tired of publishers clogging up store shelves with big name titles around Christmastime only to leave us with months of nothing once the new year comes around. Fortunately, this trend looks like it might be slowing, with quality releases like WarioWare: Smooth Moves, Crackdown, and MotorStorm filling in the quiet Winter months. It's about time publishers realized that good games will sell no matter what time of year they're released. [Via Guardian GamesBlog]
Yuki-taro chrews through snow, chunks out ice cubes
The Japanese are well known for crafting useful robots to do the dirty work for humans who'd rather park it at home, and the Yuki-taro autonomous snowplow is just another example of machines taking care of the business people can't (or won't). In a collaborative effort between five Niigata-based organizations, the snowbot was created to go off by itself and chew through massive sections of snow to make areas passable once more. The nearly 900-pound machine rocks a yellow and black shell, scoots about on tracks, and features a wide mouth to gobble up the fallen snow, compress it into small blocks, and then expel them from the device's rear. Internally, it boasts a GPS module and a pair of video cameras integrated into the eyes, and while we're not certain what type of energy this thing utilizes, its inventors did manage to receive a design award for its snow-crunching abilities. So if you're tired of shoveling for hours on end in a seemingly futile attempt to uncover your driveway, keep an eye out for a commercial version of the Yuki-taro, as plans are to bring it to market for around $8,300 within five years.[Via Pink Tentacle]
Camelbak teams with Skullcandy on speaker-packed Hellion hydration pack
Joining the growing array of wintry kit suited to help your day at the slopes be a bit more like you never left your AV center, the Camelbak Hellion SC delivers a hydration pack, gear compartments, and few electronics to boot. The brand best know for its wide variety of liquid-toting backpacks has teamed up with Skullcandy on its latest offering, and while the whole color / design scheme is a bit too flamboyant for our tastes, the spec list isn't half bad. Aside from all the random pockets for your keys, gloves, Cheetos, and deodorant, you'll find a 100-ounce sack to keep your Kool-Aid chilled as well as a battery-powered LINK system that pipes audio from any 3.5-millieter audio out jack into the integrated speakers. Sadly, there doesn't appear to be any Bluetooth connectivity or a way to dictate anything other than volume from the strap-mounted "soft touch panel," but boarders that don't already have DAP access on their helmet, coat, or beanie can snap this up right now for just under $250.[Via Talk2MyShirt]
Burton's Sleeper Hoodie: for the dozing boarder
If you're the type who feels that sleeping is just another way to waste precious seconds of life, the MyDo Bururu glasses can help extend your waking hours and keep you argus-eyed, but if you've been looking for an easy, comfortable way to find sleep while flying around or cramped up in the back seat of a car, Burton feels your pain. Even if you've already dropped entirely too much loot on a plethora of other Burton gear this winter, the company's Sleeper Hoodie could easily extract a few more bills for all its niceties. Aside from sporting a soft, outer layer to keep your toasty, this special hoodie features a built-in iPod / ticket / passport pocket, complimentary earplug compartment, arm pit zips to air yourself out, cuff thumb holes, a pull down "light shield" to block out the rays, and to top it all off, a built-in neck pillow to keep comfy while dreaming away. So if you've nothing better to do on those hour-long ski lift rides to the tip top of the mountain, you might as well cash in on this and snooze a bit (or tune into your iPod) to pass the time.[Via JoshSpear]
Nike kicks out Performance Hatphones for your iPod nano
If you poor souls have really been running around with one of the iSoundCap contraptions on your dome in order to bring your iPod a bit closer to your skull, you've finally got a somewhat stylish alternative. Seeing a huge opportunity, Nike has jumped into the strap-your-DAP-on-your-head game with its Performance Hatphones. No, there's no Bluetooth connectivity or any other connection to a mobile handset, but we're assuming Nike is just replacing "ear" with "hat" and calling it a day. Anyways, the fleece caps are designed to keep your noggin toasty while providing a "fully functional iPod nano click wheel" on the outer rim -- you know, so you appear to be calling yourself "loco" while scrolling from Abba to Zebrahead. So if you're looking for the perfect winter companion to your C.O.R.E. Backpack iD (or just really love the swoosh), you can pick one of these up for yourself or the opposite sex in a variety of colors for $60 a pop.[Via Slashgear]
Plantronics and Quicksilver team up for Bluetooth / iPod-enabled winter gear lineup
Seeing newly-unveiled outerwear touting iPod / Bluetooth connectivity is becoming a winter tradition it seems, as these blustery days bring about visions of new coats, helmets, lift tickets, and never letting go of your dear DAP / cellphone. This time around Quicksilver is seeking the technological know-how from Plantronics as it offers up a "limited edition" lineup of snow-ready gear that plays nice with your iPod and BT-equipped handset. The Double Daffy Snow Jacket sports Plantronics "stereo sound and voice technology" via Bluetooth, and should hit retail stores for $370 soon, while the presumably corresponding Pulse Helmet rocks a lightweight, ABS-infused design, side vents, and a black camo motif for $249.95. For the ladies in the house, the Teen Angel Snow Jacket caters to the female agenda for $340, and the partnering Shiver Helmet will run you $249.95. While no hard availability dates were mentioned, all the new kit will be on display at the SIA conference in Las Vegas through the end of the week, and we assume it'll hit your favorite ski shop shortly thereafter.
Handheld winter wonderlands
Is it cold outside? December just seems like it should be chilly, but no matter the weather outside, you can get cosy inside with Modojo's picks for the best winter wonderlands ever to fill a handheld screen with white stuff. Unsurprisingly, Mario Kart DS pops up on the list, with its wintry stages. They're pretty, sure, but this blogger fears taking to the ice almost as much as she does the dreaded Rainbow Road, and a pox on whoever picked it at the last Mario Kart Game Night. A pox!The full list does boast a few surprises, though The Legend of Zelda: The Oracle of Seasons (pictured) wasn't one of them. [Thanks, Justin!]
Shred Ready offers up waterproof, helmet-ready Freestyle Audio DAP
We know the winter's coming soon, and if you haven't hit the slopes just yet, we know you're itching to climb back in that ski lift as soon as possible. Shred Ready is making sure those "first day back" errors won't cost you an MP3 player, as its Freestyle Audio DMP is not only small enough to fit in any of the 238 (or so) available pockets your ski coat presumably has, but it's completely waterproof as well. Designed to handle the harsh, unforgiving nature of the mountain, the DAP promises "skip-free" playback from the built-in 512MB of storage, and even if you pull an all-nighter on the black diamond trial, the reported "40 hours" of battery life should keep things jamming 'til the break of dawn. It also comes bundled with the SR Can-Can Earflaps to conveniently attach to your helmet and keep the cabling under control. Unfortunately, the $199.95 price does not include a helmet of your own, but there's certainly no shortage of MP3-ready headgear if this one looks a little steep (ahem) to you.[Via Red Ferret]
Thanko's hand-warming / snow globe holiday mice
If you just so happen to be in the market for a new mouse or off-the-wall hand-warming device, Japan's own Thanko has just the things. If you're down with a bit of holiday cheer, the admittedly unsightly snow globe mouse sports a bright, smiling face across the buttons, actual snow globe in the casing, and USB connectivity; additionally, Frosty can get his party on with the seven color-changing LEDs that light up the dome. If all that glitz just screams overkill, the hand-warmer mouse can keep your palm toasty as the snow trickles down outside your window, and the adjustable temperature knob can prevent unnecessary perspiration from accruing. Both mice sport 800dpi optical sensors and light-up when connected to a powered USB port, and the heater-equipped version can be had for ¥2,980 ($25), while the Santa-approved variety demands just ¥980 ($8.32).Read - Thanko's hand-warming mouse [Via The Raw Feed]Read - Thanko's snow globe mouse [Via The Raw Feed]
Curling for the DS
Finally, something to play in the middle of the night when insomnia makes everything a little wiggly around the edges! At least, that's when we watch curling at the Olympics -- but maybe that's only because that's the only time it's aired in the U.S.All jibes aside, curling is a very serious game with a huge worldwide following, and since it is so intense on the strategy side (rather than on the heart-pumping-action side of things), it'll likely fit the DS like a glove.Curling DS will hit the ice in Japan this November. If the game is in any way a hit, we wouldn't be at all surprised to see it released on the Wii as well.
Konami pits DS against PSP
This winter, Konami is hedging their bets by releasing a flurry of games on both the PSP and the DS. The upcoming titles Marvel Trading Card Game (trading cards for a handheld? really?) and Xiaolin Showdown will be released for the competing platforms, and Konami is also debuting a pair of games based on the animated series Winx Club. But their real winner, Castlevania: Portrait of Ruin, is exclusive to the Nintendo DS -- and a good thing, since it makes heavy use of the Nintendo handheld's touchscreen. Anyone wanna guess which console's games will win in this deathmatch? Where did we leave those sales figures ....
