PCWorld’s Tony Bradley thinks there are a few tricks Facebook could learn from the new Google+ to improve its own social networking service.

Macworld

One developer that has been very supportive of the Symbian platform and continues to actively develop and improve its product is Nimbuzz. They just announced version 3.01 and posted the following 9 reasons you should be excited about the update:

1. Improved call quality thanks to peer to peer call connectivity.
2. More space for your chats for full screen chatting experience.
3. Chat bubbles bring an iPhone like chat experience to your (Nokia) Symbian phone.
4. Custom wallpapers in the chat screen choose a color or an image from your gallery to display as background for your chats.
5. Custom color for the text font in your chat screen
6. Call Quality Indicator so you can check the expected call quality before you make a call.
7. Free Avatars choose new and exciting avatars for your profile picture from N-World
8. Last Seen Online – shows you the last time your friend was seen on Nimbuzz.
9. Fast group selection straight from your contact list.

Make sure to read their full blog entry that offers more details for these 9 reasons.

I like the looks of the new chat screen and ability to enlarge the viewable area. I downloaded the update to my Nokia N8 and look forward to testing it out.

Nokia Experts

I believe I have tried every web browser application that has ever hit the market (or that even hasn’t). I am sure most have you have migrated from stock to a number of the other popular browsers out like Opera,  Dolphin HD or Firefox. They all have their pros and cons of course, just like any other application made. I know I have been a huge fan of Dolphin HD for a great while now.

Miren browser has now caught my attention and has quickly become my daily application for web viewing. Let’s take a look at why:

- Full tabbed browser with smart full-screen mode
– Top site navigation and smart suggestions
– Flash Support
– Multi-touch Pinch Zoom
– Bookmark management with folders
– Bookmark import/export via SD

That is the blurb from the application page, they are very good points though. It supports my “must have” features.

Tabbed browsing is a deal breaker, in my opinion. Without tabbed browsing, I spend way too much time going back or trying to figure out where I just was. The inclusion of top site navigation gives me a slight feel of the Opera browser with instant access to your top visited sites. Since I know many of us visit the same sites often, this makes getting there a breeze.

Speed is also a key factor when choosing your daily browser. Miren has consistently loaded the pages I view most, faster than Dolphin HD could. I am notorious for using desktop mode when browsing, so my speed tests were done using actual webpages, not mobile view pages. When going to ESPN.com with flash set to ‘always,’ the page loaded and was running in 5 seconds with all images going strong. Granted, Dolphin HD pulled the same page in about 8 seconds, but it is still a noticeable difference, especially when loading flash content.

Integration of RSS feeds is another win for this application. Instead of only being able to choose the feeds the browser has built in, you get to add your own Feed URL.

Here is my favorite feature: the widget. I absolutely love widgets. Miren has included a very user friendly and functional widget. You get your RSS feeds on one tab and your bookmarked websites and top sites on the other. You get the same information when you first launch the browser, but a widget is pretty handy.

Now for the not so good. The only issue I had at all with this browser was the gesture support. Swiping from left to right will take you back a page. Alternatively, swiping from right to left will take you forward a page. This can particularly cause an issue if you are a few clicks into a page and are just trying to move from one side of the site to the other. As of right now there is no way to disable gesture actions. The issue has been voiced many times and hopefully the developers will add that into the next release.

UPDATE: Apparently I was wrong. Believe me, it happens some times. You can actually change the action of your gesture support. I couldn’t find it. I was looking for something with “gesture” in it. It is not labeled in that manner. Thanks to a @GoCKillaz and RobG for alerting me where it was located at. If you go to settings > advanced tab > web page > action for sliding on page edges. In there you can change it from going back and forward to change tabs or to none. Thank you for finding that and letting me know.

Here is a short video of Miren in action. Forgive the language, I was unable to locate a really good English version. I think this still demonstrates its abilities quite nicely.

Click or scan the QRCode below to find out more information about the Miren Browser application. 
Summary and Downloads:

Application: Miren Browser
Developer: miren browser
Cost: FREE

View full post on AndroidSPIN

My friends, I have seen the beauty of Honeycomb (Android 3.0) and now there is nothing on the market today or in the next couple of months that can convince me to buy anything before the release of 3.0.  It is a smart and sexy design – this Honeycomb.

I have been lusting for Gingerbread for a long time.  I could not wait, I had to have it.  I installed it on my Evo 4G as soon as there was a half-baked rom available.  Well, that love has been destroyed.  Every version of Android that has been released to this point has left me wanting just a little bit more.  I’ve wanted a more attractive UI.  A refresh that sets Android so far apart from the competition that all the competition could do was scratch their heads and say, “What now?”

Honeycomb does it for me.  And as we have learned, Honeycomb is not just for tablets. If you haven’t watched the interview Engadget did with Matias Duarte, Android’s Director of User Experience, go watch it here (just a warning, this is a 25 minute interview).  If you want to skip ahead to verify my claim of not being just for tablets, skip ahead to roughly 10:15 in the video.

While at CES there were two phones that just blew me away….I even contemplated switching from Sprint to AT&T just to get my hands on the Atrix 4G.  The LG Optimus 2X is also incredibly desirable to me.  Neither phone came with 2.3 installed (although LG may very well end up getting 2.3 installed quickly).  The Atrix 4G on the other hand will most likely be stuck at Android 2.2 for a while.  I am not going to go off on Motorola for this.  Seeing as they have added the Webtop environment to the Atrix (enabling the laptop feature to work well) it would be foolish of us to believe that Motorola will be updating quickly.  *I would love to be wrong about this, and maybe with their early access to Honeycomb they will surprise us all.* It’s just a fact of life, any addition to the Android OS – Blur, Sense, TouchWiz, etc leads to extended wait times for updates to the newest version.  The Webtop environment will most likely cause delays as well.

This is the reason that I have chosen to not purchase another phone and certainly not allow myself to fall victim of the $299.00 Galaxy Tabs temptation.   T-Mobile shared this video with the world on youtube.  This is what I have been waiting for.  I have lost my love for Froyo and Gingerbread, my next phone/tablet must be Honeycomb.  Below is a video that T-Mobile posted showing off the LG G-Slate which we covered yesterday.

Pics courtesy of Engadget

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Our good friends over at Arkon sent us this cool little Portable Tablet Stand, the Arkon IPM-TAB1.  It’s advertised for the Samsung Galaxy Tab and iPAD, but as most tablet form factors are the same and the stand is fully adjustable, you could use it for almost any tablet available today.

If you’re not familiar with Arkon, they are one of the largest producers of mobile universal mounting solutions.  You may also want to check out some of the other Arkon products we’ve had the opportunity to review in the past.  You can find some of them for sale on the AndroidSPIN Accessory Store.

Who is Arkon?

Arkon Resources, Inc. (Arkon®), is a manufacturer and global supplier of car mounting solutions used with Portable GPS Navigation Devices, SmartPhones, Satellite Radios, Laptops and Notebooks, Netbooks, and other mobile communication and portable devices. Arkon’s customers include many of the world’s most recognized brand names in portable navigation and wireless mobile communication.

What is the Arkon IPM-TAB1:

Portable Fold-Up Stand for Samsung Galaxy Tab

• For use in airplanes as a seat back tray table tablet computer or eBook stand
• Extremely versatile accessory that can be used almost anywhere including at trade shows or the office, on the nightstand or kitchen counter, or for use with video chat (limited to those tablets having web cameras) or other applications
• Support legs feature non-skid cushioned pads for added stability

I made a Quick Look video of the stand in action so you can see for yourself.  The stand is actually pretty nice and feels good and strong.  It’s not quite pocket worthy unless you have  really big pockets, but you could easily throw it in a bag to take with you.

So without further hesitation, check out the video below:

The bottom line is that if you have a tablet of any kind, you should have one of these on your desk or in your bag.  It’s light, flexible, and provides very sturdy support of your tablet computer.   When it’s folded up it’s like a long cigar taking up only 7″ x 1″ x 1″ and it weights a mere 2.9 oz.

You can purchase this neat little accessory for $17.95 +S&H  directly from Arkon or many times you can find them cheaper with a Quick Google Search around the local accessory stores.  It’s worth the money if you have a tablet and want an easy way to prop it up on your desk.  It will be an even better price when we give our review unit away to some lucky person.  Maybe one of you lucky tablet winners from the 2010 Holiday Triple Tablet Give-a-Way…

If you have any other products you’d like us to review, don’t hesitate to leave us a comment and we’ll see what we can do.

View full post on AndroidSPIN

I’ve had a lot of interesting conversations this week concerning Kik, the BBM-like cross platform instant messaging application available for iPhone, BlackBerry and Android. Kik is still pretty bare in features, but it’s quick, uses data (not SMS) and like BlackBerry Messenger has Delivered and Read confirmation of messages. The majority of these Kik conversations have focused on two key points: one, Kik’s amazing growth (upon release they went from 0 to a million users in 15 days and continue to grow) and two, the fact RIM kiked them out of App World and shut down their push service this week (see Kik’s plea and RIM’s official response).

While the Kik success story/controversy is an interesting one to discuss, the notion that keeps coming into my head when I start talking about Kik isn’t Kik itself, but rather Should Research In Motion offer BlackBerry Messenger as an app/service to other smartphone platforms? Let’s think about this. The rapid growth of Kik tells me the smartphone world wants a cross-platform BBM-style messenger client. To be the category killer of cross-platform smartphone messaging clients, you need infrastructure, a solid app and a critical mass of users. If a small startup can build an app like Kik and quickly establish their brand and score some awesome growth, just imagine what RIM could accomplish with their massive infrastructure, existing BlackBerry Messenger know-how and brand recognition and global marketing reach. If they decided to go this route, it wouldn’t take long for pretty much every smartphone owner to be BBMing, not just BlackBerry owners as it is now (it may not be true BBMing as BlackBerry users know it, but it would be something close enough). Who knows, BBMing could eclipse texting (SMS)!

So should RIM do it? Personally, I think they should. I get the reasons why they wouldn’t. RIM makes money from selling smartphones, and right now BlackBerry Messenger is one of those hooks that keeps people on BlackBerry and actually attracts some people to BlackBerry (I’ve heard stories from carrier reps where individuals walk into the store and ask for the phone that does BBM). But I don’t think this reasoning holds up long-term. As soon as a cross-platform BBM-style client emerges in the smartphone space and attains critical mass (ie. Kik or another), even if not as fully-featured as BlackBerry Messenger the hook of BBM starts to diminish. If it’s inevitable that a cross-platform BBM alternative is going to emerge down the road, is it not better for RIM to be the ones who put it out? There are some iPhone owners out there who no matter what are never going to own a BlackBerry (Apple fanboys!), but I bet those same people would rock BlackBerry Messenger on their iPhone. 

Anyways… it’s something to ponder. Vote on our poll above and let us know what you think in the comments!

CrackBerry.com‘s feed sponsored by ShopCrackBerry.com. CrackBerry Poll: Should RIM make BlackBerry Messenger available to non-BlackBerry smartphones?

View full post on CrackBerry.com blogs

I was convinced before watching it that this had to be a fan-made thing, but no, the video is posted on the official Sesame Street channel on YouTube. Join the Facebook group, and maybe we’ll see Macarooner and Monster Gaga on Saturday Night Live, too! Honestly, this video is funnier than at least 75% of the material on any episode of SNL I’ve seen in years.

Spread the word!

View full post on GeekDad

The holiday season’s coming up and I’m willing to bet a lot of people are in the market for a nice tablet device to give to their loved ones or to make for a nice gift for themselves. The question: what should they buy? Not too long ago, the obvious answer was “iPad.” It wasn’t the first tablet ever to come out, but it was the only modern tablet that could break into mainstream and get people ready to spend hundreds of dollars for what most ended up calling an oversized iPod Touch (yours truly included.)

But the market has changed, as often tends to do, and Samsung has come out with the first real potential threat to Apple and they’re literally selling it everywhere, just as they did the Samsung Galaxy S – their flagship line of Android-based handsets, currently. Now, shoppers will stop into their local Best Buy retail stores and see giant ads for the Tab up against giant ads for the iPad and they’ll have questions. A lot of questions. And even though the iPad – at first sight – would seem like the surefire best bet, the process is still going to prove to be very difficult.

Thus: we break it down. What should you get? In unbiased fashion, I take a look at the hardware, software, and overall ecosystem of both devices and determine which would be the better buy to put under that nice tree this december.

Hardware

The Samsung Galaxy Tab and the Apple iPad are very similar, hardware wise, but are different enough to take a closer look at each. Here, I’ll pick apart every nook, cranny, corner, and angle of each device and I’ll determine a “winner” in that category. I’ll also take a look at the software, but let’s get to the gears that make these devices tick.

Size and Display

Perhaps the first thing people look at when they look at a tablet device (or any device where the display is an important piece to the puzzle) is the display itself. Which is larger? Which looks better? Brighter? Has more vibrant colors? Has a higher resolution? Your average consumer won’t care about the technical details of that last question as it’ll fly over their heads anyway, but it does play into some of the questions before it. The Samsung Galaxy Tab has a 7-inch capacitive LCD touchscreen with a WSVGA resolution of 1024×600 opposed to the iPad’s 9.7-inch capacitive display with a higher resolution of 1024×768 (what an older computer monitor would generally run on.)

It’s easy to think that the bigger size and resolution of the iPad gives it an automatic win, but you have to consider that – in a smaller 7-inch package found in the Galaxy S – the lower resolution really doesn’t do much to change just how great the display looks because it’s pushing only a marginally-less amount of pixels into a screen that’s nearly 3-inches smaller. Having used both of these devices myself, I can’t really say one display completely destroys the other, but there is a noticeable pop in color vibrancy and brightness to be had on the iPad over the Galaxy Tab. If we’re going based on looks alone, then the iPad would be the clear victor.

But the size plays a major factor in comfortability and portability, too. Tablet computers are seen as mobile devices, even if they were never meant to be, and the iPad is simply less mobile than the Galaxy Tab. If you want to use that thing on a subway, too bad. Want to palm it with one hand while walking down the street? Good luck. The Galaxy Tab is still a beast to hold, but you CAN hold it as well as you need to for one handed operation and you can stow it as easily as you could a small netbook.

For these reasons, I have to give the ultimate prize to the Galaxy Tab. That’s not to say people can’t walk around with the iPad with one hand (I’ve seen it personally, and I’m sure there are cases that exist to help you hold it with one hand), but it’s just so much easier to do on the Galaxy Tab. The loss in screen real estate is a bit of a bummer, but if you’re going to be expecting a full-screen laptop-like experience from a tablet, why not just get a MacBook air?

Processor

There really isn’t much to say here: the iPad has an A4 processor – just like what you see in the iPhone 4 – and the Galaxy Tab has Samsung’s Hummingbird – just as you’d see in the Samsung Galaxy S. And both of these processors are based on the same family of chipsets, with differences coming only in slight form. The difference comes from how the software utilizes the hardware, but we’ll get into that a bit later. For now, there’s no clear cut winner here.

Memory and Storage

Both of these devices come with a lot of gee-bees (or gigabytes, as you technophiles would rather call them): the Apple iPad can be had in 16GB, 32GB, and 64GB configurations, while the Galaxy Tab can be had in both 16GB and 32GB configurations. The iPad, though, doesn’t allow you to expand the storage, while the Galaxy Tab allows you to add up to 32GB more with the use of a microSD card. Ultimately, flexibility is king and the Samsung Galaxy Tab allows you to get just as much as you need.

I know, I know: who wouldn’t want as much as they can get? Sure, you can make a case for the iPad in that regard, but when you start discussing price, then you’ll learn why some will want to shy away from Apple’s more capable options. We’ll afford the Samsung Galaxy Tab the victory, here.

Camera

The Samsung Galaxy Tab has a front-facing and rear-facing camera, the iPad doesn’t. Winner: Samsung Galaxy Tab.

“What’s that Rob? You want more substance in this paragraph? Fine…” Cameras on mobile devices are important to a lot of people. Even though most people who own a tablet device will also likely be carrying their phones, which most likely will have a camera on it, you won’t want to put your tablet away just so you can pull your phone out, snap a pick, then put the phone back, and take the tablet back out and go about your business. That’s clunky and unnecessary, and I’m quite surprised Apple didn’t consider as much when they had the iPad in research and design.

But what’s more important here is the front-facing camera. Say you’re walking one day and you find a spot to sit down and eat. (Alone? Blech.) You get lonely and want some company, but don’t want to limit yourself to just talking. Introduce a tablet with enough screen-size to make the experience worthwhile. The Samsung Galaxy Tab enables that, and a lot of people are going to eat that up at the point of sale. There have been murmurs that the iPad would be getting at least one camera whenever apple decides to unveil the next iteration, but as of right now, it’s as dry as a desert in this area. Winner: Galaxy Tab.

Battery

I honestly don’t know what type of battery capacity the Apple iPad has, but I can say that it smokes the Galaxy Tab’s 4,000 mAh battery. That’s not to put the Galaxy Tab down at all: 7 hours of continuous video playback is VERY respectable, but 10 hours is even better. (We’ve even seen some users able to go a few hours beyond Apple’s advertised battery life.) If we assume that these two are using the same or similar battery capacity and technology, then it means the iPad is just more efficient in software, hardware, or both. Regardless, the Apple iPad lasts longer and that’s all you need to know. It gets the “#1″ badge in this category.

Connectivity

Both of these devices fail just as miserably as each other for one reason: proprietary connector. I’m sorry, but in today’s world of finicky, cheap charging cables that must be replaced with 30x the amount of cash it takes to make the darn things, we would like something a bit more standard. We expected as much from Apple, but Samsung completely ditched any form of USB and went with their own proprietary connector. Both devices have WiFi, both have Bluetooth, and both will accept the draw here. (Albeit a very sour draw. For shame.)

Browsing

The iPad doesn’t have flash, the Galaxy Tab does. Honestly, the screen real estate provided by both of these devices are more than enough to facilitate a pleasing browsing experience. Things are smoother on the iPad, but they can be just as smooth on the Galaxy Tab on your every day website. The option to use flash is a major factor considering a lot of these full sites push a lot of flash content out. Even still, some people don’t need or won’t prefer flash, and if you take that away, the iPad is the smoother experience as browsing is on all iOS devices. Pick your poison: this one’s a draw.

Videos and Media

Samsung’s made quite the reputation for themselves with the media experience you can get out of their flagship Galaxy devices, and the Tab is no different. DivX and XviD support gives you that much more freedom in loading your videos without any issues, and the same goes for the type of audio you can play. Both devices can expand their capabilities through the virtue of apps, but out of the box, the Samsung Galaxy Tab is going to give you the best video experience you can find on a device this size. If you’re an iTunes buff just as much as you’re a music buff, then the ecosystem with that desktop software will play a large factor, but it’s not necessary. We’ll throw the bone to the Galaxy Tab on this one.

The Determining Factors

When it comes down to it, you’ll need to consider four major things (some of which we discussed above): software, camera, the size/weight/”wieldy-ness” of each, and price. Above any other factors, these will most-heavily weigh into the purchase decision as we look from the average consumer’s point of view.

Software

iOS on Apple’s iPad completely pounces on the Tab with Android 2.2 and TouchWiz, but that’s not to imply that iOS is flat-out better than Android. Their market is bigger and got off to a very fast start, as evidenced by the tons of great apps submitted that take advantage of that HD resolution and 10 inch screen. Samsung’s Galaxy Tab has native apps that make great use of the extra real estate, but there’s no real market for tablet-specific apps yet. They’re urging developers to create apps for bigger screen sizes and resolutions, but the sense of urgency just isn’t there from third-party developers. Perhaps we’ll see a shift with the introduction of Honeycomb and all of the tablets sporting it, but for now, the Android market will make the Galaxy Tab just feel like an oversized Galaxy S. iOS also takes advantage of hardware acceleration so everything is smoother across the board, as it is in the handset sector.

Camera

One of the benefits of having a large screen with a camera is the ability to capture your memories and play them back on the same device. That’s very important to a lot of people, and the iPad just doesn’t facilitate this. The Galaxy Tab even gets the added benefit of having a front-facing camera so you can video chat with your friends and family on that nice-sized screen.

Size/weight

The iPad is still quite light despite its size, but it’s much more comfortable to carry around a 7-inch device than it is a 10-inch device. You can use a 7-inch device with two hands and no surface, while trying the same with an iPad could prove disastrous, uncomfortable, and/or just impractical.

Price

Say what you want about the Samsung Galaxy Tab’s price, but the iPad is just as expensive, if not more when you get into the higher storage tiers and when you talk about adding 3G radios. “But you get so much more with the iPad! And Apple overprices their merchandise by a lot more than any other manufacturer!” That’s true, but the truth is they ALL inflate the price. After you figure in every single cost it takes to create and market one Samsung Galaxy Tab or Apple iPad, they have to see a return on the device. Everyone does it, and while you may feel that the Galaxy Tab’s “inferiority” should bring its price down, that’s just not fair to Samsung. Expect to pay more than $5-600 for any configuration of either of these devices without carrier-provided subsidy. This one’s a draw.

Yes, we chose the Galaxy Tab over the iPad if you go by the tally count, but numbers won’t dictate the result here. Being Android fans, we’d always give the benefit of the doubt to the Galaxy Tab, but being unbiased in this quick comparison between two of the biggest tablet devices on the market today, we’d have to give the victory to the iPad. Even with the Galaxy Tab winning 2 of the 3 most weighted factors, the iPad wins in software which is VERY important to the overall experience. (If we were to distribute the weight of the four factors, software would get 50% of the influence with the other 50% being evenly distributed to the remaining three.)

Without software, the hardware isn’t all that special. We’re certain Samsung, Google, and Google’s other hardware partners will be able to catch up in due time, but as of right now, it’s just not there. To be frank, it’ll just be a more pleasant experience to walk into an Apple Store or Best Buy or what have you, buy an iPad, and be happy with the decision as that monstrous tablet-specific app store proves why software will always be king. We hope and fully believe that Google and company will get there, but Apple walks away with the victory this holiday season.

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Copyright © Warner Bros. Pictures

1. It’s rated PG-13. For what ages of kids is the movie really appropriate?

Well, my son is almost ten and my daughter is eight, and they were both fine. There were a few moments where they grabbed my or my wife’s arm, but they passed quickly enough and on the whole they loved it.

Whether the same will be true of other kids depends on many things, of course. I should note that we’d read the entire book about a year ago, and in preparation for the movie’s release reread the first twenty or so chapters. So my kids had the benefit of knowing what was going to happen; if your kids aren’t familiar with the story going in, there are some parts of the film that will likely be more traumatic for them than they were for mine. There are a number of very intense  scenes and a little sexuality, but nothing particularly gory or explicit. It is a bit on the loud side at times, so if your kids are sensitive to noise I recommend getting them some earplugs to lower the volume.

2. How closely does it adhere to the book?

(I’m trying very hard not to be spoilery here. If you haven’t read the book, there may be a very slight spoiler ahead.)

It certainly gets a lot closer than any of the last four films have, but that’s not setting the bar too high. They cut some corners, as of course they had to, but very little of consequence was changed. Some of the scenes that were taken directly from the book were done brilliantly, like the Seven Potters, and some of the things they changed were great, like Dobby’s last lines to Bellatrix (many of my fellow audience members applauded). Some of the changes were a bit bewildering, like Harry showing up at the wedding as himself and Griphook being at Malfoy Manor without any clear reason.

On the whole: Very well done.

3. So, how was it as a movie?

Excellent, though of course it would be utterly incomprehensible to anyone who didn’t know the previous movies/books. It’s really quite amazing to see what fine actors Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson and Rupert Grint have grown into. I mean, maybe it’s just that they know these characters so well they’re like a second skin, but if they can keep up the level they reach in this film they’ll have brilliant careers … not that they need to work for the rest of their lives, of course, after the money they’ve made.

And of course the supporting cast, composed as always of some of the finest British actors alive, is wonderful. Ralph Fiennes is wonderfully over-the-top as Voldemort, Bill Nighy is brilliant in the short but important role of Rufus Scrimgeour, Jason Isaacs shows his range as Lucius Malfoy is finally called upon to be something other than supercilious and Helena Bonham Carter is at her crazy, scene-stealing best as Bellatrix.

4. When’s the best time for a bathroom break?

There’s no particularly great time, but as the film’s nearly two-and-a-half hours long, holding it may not be possible for everyone. Probably the best time is when Harry, Ron and Hermione infiltrate the Ministry of Magic — you’ll miss several good scenes, but not  a huge amount of plot development.

5. Is it worth paying more for IMAX?

Yes, absolutely. There are some shots in the film that are just gorgeous, and seeing them on IMAX makes them all the more powerful. I haven’t seen it on a regular screen for comparison, but I will say that I was blown away by the visuals on the IMAX screen. You can really see how much the Harry Potter films have improved over time on IMAX, especially when it comes to CGI — if I didn’t know better I would swear that the elves Kreacher and Dobby were as real as the human actors.

6. Do I need to sit through the credits for a bonus scene at the end?

No, which is hardly surprising for the first part of a two-part story.

7. Will I want to see it again?

If you’re a fan of the Harry Potter movies, I’m certain you will. I know I certainly do, and on the way out of the theater my eight-year-old daughter asked me if we could buy the film on DVD when it comes out.

8. Any good previews?

Sadly, I am not in a position to say. My family went to see the film at the IMAX theater at the Air and Space Museum, so there were no previews.

9. Is there anything you wish the film-makers had done that they didn’t do, or vice-versa?

Yes! I was really disappointed at the end of Half-Blood Prince, when they didn’t show Dumbledore’s funeral, because it was such a beautiful, moving scene in the book. I had heard, some months ago (though I’ve no recollection of where) that this movie was going to begin with the funeral. So I was disappointed, yet again, to discover that there was no funeral scene in this film, either.

The only other thing I can think of is that it would’ve been nice to have had some explanation of how The Burrow (the Weasleys’ home) got rebuilt after the fire in the last movie.

10. So, where in the story does Part I end, and how long do we have to wait for Part II?

If you’re familiar with the book, Part I ends (avoiding spoilers)  just as Voldemort finds the item for which he searches for much of the first two-thirds of the book — specifically, at the end of Chapter 24, although the protagonists’ storyline isn’t quite at that point yet.

Part II is set to come out July 15, 2011 — so the answer is: a fair while. Unfortunately, Part II will be in 3D, meaning the beautiful cinematography seen in Part I will be darkened. Maybe they’ll see how successful Part I is without 3D and decide to scrap it for Part II as well. Hey, a guy can hope, can’t he?

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According to Bloomberg RIM’s upcoming BlackBerry Playbook tablet will be available (at least in one model) for under $500. The device is rumored to land in North America sometime early next year in multiple versions including an 8gb, 16gb and 32gb models. At the time of the press announcement, RIM also made it clear that 3G/4G versions would be available at some point too (hopefully sooner than later!).

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CrackBerry.com‘s feed sponsored by ShopCrackBerry.com. BlackBerry PlayBook Price Update: At least one version of the Playbook should be available for under $500

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1. Will my kids like it?

Yes! There’s plenty of slapstick to keep kids of nearly any age amused, and only a few short bits that are sad or show the characters in peril. And those bits are all pretty quickly undercut by humor, anyway. My nearly-ten-year-old son would like me to say that Megamind is “not just funny — extremely funny.”

2. Will I like it?

Very probably, yes, though you won’t love it. The movie makers manage to keep the slapstick from from degenerating into juvenile, which all too often happens in kids’ movies — witness the Shrek films, for example. There are also plenty of little jokes (many of them musical) aimed squarely at grownups, which is always a pleasure to see — I will never understand why so many makers of kids’ movies neglect to do this, despite the knowledge that most kids will not be going to the movie alone or with their own money.

That being said, the film does suffer from the knowledge of what it could have been, because it is impossible not to compare it to The Incredibles, and not just because the hero Metro Man is very similar to Mr. Incredible. A lot of the jokes in Megamind seem very derivative of the Pixar film, and suffer by comparison.

3. When’s the best time for a bathroom break?

The film is 96 minutes long, and moves fairly quickly, so waiting until the end is best if possible. If not, the best time is probably when Megamind is disguised as Bernard and is talking to Roxanne (this will make sense when you see the film) — my kids agreed that that was the least interesting bit of the movie.

4. Is it worth paying more for 3D? How about IMAX?

No to 3D. My family saw it in 2D, and it was just fine. And there’s a lot of detail in the backgrounds which could easily be missed because of the distraction of the foreground in 3D or because of the darkening effect modern 3D technology has on everything. Save your money and see it in 2D.

As for IMAX, I really can’t imagine it would enhance the film much, especially since you’d have to see it in 3D.

5. Do I need to sit through the credits for a bonus scene at the end?

There are two parts to the credits: a fairly short animated bit and a much longer traditional scrolling bit. There is a quick, funny scene in between the two parts that you should stay for, but nothing at the very end.

6. Will I want to see it again?

Maybe, though I’d be willing to bet your kids will. It’s a refreshingly good film, especially for Dreamworks, whose animated films I tend to think fail to live up to their hype. That being said, it will never be considered a classic the way The Incredibles will be (and to some extent already is). It’s a lot of fun, but (at least in my case) a lot of the fun came from the little surprises here and there aimed at grownups, and I’m pretty sure they’ll lose a lot when they aren’t a surprise.

7. Is it loud or scary?

Not really. My son has always been sensitive to loud noises, and I’m pretty sure he didn’t even flinch once.

8. How’s the animation?

It’s very Dreamworks, by which I mean that the animation is in many ways the central point of the movie — as opposed to Pixar, where the story and characters are always the foundation. Everything is showy and clever, often to the point of distraction. Megamind, in particular, is to a great extent defined by the way he moves and his facial expressions. In fact — and my wife and I came to the same conclusion completely independently — I’m not sure that Neil Patrick Harris couldn’t legitimately sue Dreamworks for making Megamind a virtual copy of him (only blue and with a huge cranium and Leno-like chin).

9. What about the voices?

The voice talent was excellent. Brad Pitt was the perfect choice for Metro Man, although I’m not sure he wasn’t doing a George Clooney impression in the role. Will Ferrell did a great job as Megamind, especially since he didn’t play it as Will Ferrell — since if you’ve seen his movies you know he pretty much can play only one character. Tina Fey was a standout as the Lois Lane-esque Roxanne Ritchi, managing to convey the character’s sarcasm without making her a caricature.

10. Any good trailers?

Well, there was one for Tangled, which I’m sure will be a decent (if not great) film. There was one for the Jack Black Gulliver’s Travels, which looks pretty terrible. There was one for Yogi Bear, which looks even worse. I’m pretty sure there were at least two more, but they weren’t memorable enough that anyone in my family can recall them.

View full post on GeekDad

While Samsung’s intentions to keep the Galaxy Tab up to date haven’t really been a secret, we are getting more confirmation out of the slate’s launch in India on the matter. A Samsung representative said that, barring any hardware setbacks, the tablet should see both the Gingerbread and Honeycomb versions of Android when they eventually come to market. When that will be isn’t quite clear, but it seems like Google may be setting up a 1-2 punch similar to the release of Android 2.0 and 2.1 in quick succession.

Gingerbread is rumored to make its debut before christmas, and we should expect news on Honeycomb to come early in 2011. When both launch and when they make it to the Galaxy Tab is a different story entirely. Just take the Samsung Galaxy S as an example, which still awaits its date with Froyo months after the new OS was first unveiled.

[via AndroidCommunity]

View full post on Android Phone Fans

Network Feature Should Extend Smartphone Battery Life
Due to a reporting error, the fourth paragraph of the story “Network feature should extend smartphone battery life,” posted Tuesday, incorrectly stated the company Leslie Shannon works for. She works for Nokia Siemens.

Read more on CIO

Leveraging the world-wide reach of Radio.com, Spark Radio by Handcast Media Labs puts thousands of radio stations at your iPhone fingertip and streams them over Wi-Fi or 3G. Spark Radio has been available for several months and has undergone a bit of a price drop in that time. So if you avoided the initial release because of the six dollar price tag, but haven’t yet found a radio app that pleases you, then tune in.

On the surface, Spark Radio appears to be just another way to listen to the radio on iPhone. A closer look reveals a full-bodied application with a ton of preference settings, easy access to all genres of music, search functions, and a fully integrated web browser. Spark Radio populates some local stations, allows you to search the streaming URL of others, and supports an approximate total of 24,000 stations around the world. (…)
Read the rest of Spark Radio Price Drop Should Spark Interest

All App Reviews © AppCraver.com, 2010. |
Spark Radio Price Drop Should Spark Interest | Best iPad Apps | Best Free Apps

View full post on AppCraver

Photo: Judy Berna

I was quickly cruising through my email inbox on Friday morning, making sure there wasn’t something urgent needing my attention, when I came across a link to a New York Times article about how picture books are losing popularity. The subject matter stopped me in my tracks. I skimmed through the article, tagging it for a more in-depth read once I got my nine-year-old on the bus for school.

But the whole time we were going through our school morning routines the idea gnawed at me. The main point of the article is the idea that parents are anxious to get their kids into chapter books. There’s pressure to get your kid moving along the academic track as quickly as possible. Picture books are seen as something for little kids, a minor step on to bigger and better things. I understand the pressure parents are under to keep their children moving forward academically. But letting go of picture books too early is not the answer.

[Read more of this post at our companion site GeekMom.com]

Related articles

• Are Picture Books a Dying Breed? (wired.com)

View full post on GeekDad

In a time when the community is like a rampant swarm of flies around a steaming pile of horse manure and modifications and rooting are a part of everybody’s life, carriers are trying harder and harder to make sure their devices cannot be broken.  This is very understandable when you look at the history of the Android phones.

Back in the day of the now infamous G1, modified boot loaders, recovery images and complete system images where released frequently to modify and increase the functionality of your phone.  When some of these modifications became too large to fit in the partitions of the G1′s internal memory, and a developer by the name of Haykuro release an updated SPL (Secondary Program Loader) that reorganized the internal partitions of the device and made it possible to fit more enhanced modifications on the device.

To the community, this was an awesome advancement, but to T-Mobile, it was an incredible inconvenience.  The downside to the release was the issue of people bricking their devices so they became unusable.  T-Mobile became inundated with support calls and requests for replacement devices and rooted phones became a sore point.

On the lighter side, a well designed phone that is rootable only increases the value of the device and provides more sales for the carrier as more and more people want to own that phone.  Why? because the life span of the phone just increased as the community will always find ways to make it better and faster.  Look at the T-mobile G1! Still going strong.

So, how do we overcome the issues for the carriers? How do we appease the carriers so their support costs do not sky rocket and replacement phones costs due to user error and bricked devices? How do we make it possible for the carriers to give us rooting powers?

I’ve talked to many people in the community about this subject and one option that actually sounds somewhat feasible, to the community at least, I can’t speak for T-Mobile or any other carrier, is for the users who want to modify their devices to sign some form of waiver that they will no longer call the carrier or the device manufacturers for support.  Maybe the IMEI number used to uniquely identify your device is logged in their systems and the first they do before providing support is ask you for your IMEI number.  the other issue is the means for the carriers to make the particular device  open and rootable and only that single device.

One down side to this is that the carriers will incur a little extra cost to maintain this list (albeit pretty small) and a slight change to their support process.

So how do we make it possible and even beneficial for the carriers to offer this service?  Maybe there is a one time fee to have your device unlocked at the time you sign your waiver declining support.  The fee could cover any administration costs and any software fix they would need to apply to your device.

It’s proving difficult for the community to root the G2 with it’s read-only system partitions being restored on each boot of the device so I hope that something happens so the future of the device modding community can continue.  If all the carriers keep pushing and pushing to make their devices more secure and un-breakable ( if possible ) it will water down the future of Android and it’s whole Open Source approach.

Do you have any suggestions to make this an easier process?  Leave us your thoughts below!

View full post on AndroidSPIN | Your No.1 source for Everything Android.

I had the chance to see a sneak preview of Secretariat a few weeks ago. I wasn’t really sure what to expect, but ended up really enjoying it. Here are a few things parents should know before heading off to the multiplex:

1. Will my kids like it?

My two daughters are head over heels about horses these days. So much so, that one of my girls brought a stuffed horse with her to the screening. The horse scenes along with Diane Lane’s performance (see below) make it a must-see for horse geeks, young girls and movie fans, alike. My son, who is more of a sci-fi and superhero movie fan, enjoyed the movie for its great action scenes.

2. Will I like it?

The story of Secretariat is pretty well known. But, even with the ending never in doubt, the story was compelling and never dragged. I was surprised that – in the screening I saw – attendees were so engrossed, many people applauded during the race scenes. It’s a story that would be unbelievable if it wasn’t true, or as the movie poster suggests, an “impossible true story”. I appreciated that, even though the film flirted with some emotional storylines, it never crossed the line to being sappy.

3. Best time to take a bathroom break?

The movie runs almost exactly 2 hours. About 45 minutes in, there’s a scene involving a death in the family. This is a good time to step out or at the hour and forty minute mark, there’s a ballroom scene. Either time is good for visiting the rest rooms.

4. Any good previews?

Unfortunately, since I saw a sneak preview, there were no previews.

5. Should I stay after the credits to see anything?

Just prior to the credits, there are some “where are they now” vignettes that are worth seeing. Other than that, there’s nothing else to see.

6. Will I want to see it again?

It was an enjoyable movie, but not one that compels a second viewing in my mind. Kids, on the other hand, will likely want to see it over and over again, as they are wont to do.

7. Was it loud or scary?

Outside of the manufactured dramatic moments, there’s nothing remotely scary about this movie. The movie involves the death of older parents, which some kids may (or may not) have a tough time dealing with. During the scenes where the horses race, the volume and tension are ratcheted up a notch or two. Other than that, it’s a Disney movie – great for the whole family.

8. Is there anything else I should know about this movie?

John Malkovitch turns in a memorable performance as horse trainer, Lucien Laurin, but the movie is absolutely stolen by Diane Lane. As Secretariat’s owner, Penny Chenery, Lane portrays one of the strongest, most positive female roles in recent memory, made all the more enjoyable given the climate of women’s rights and societal expectations during the time that the movie’s action took place. The real Penny Chenery played an integral role in the making of the film. She appears as an extra in one of the spectator scenes.

9. How about some more trivia I can wow my friends with?

• They used five horses in the production of the movie. White paint was applied to make the horses appear to have marking just like Secretariat.
• Secretariat’s heart was twice the size of an average horse heart.
• Secretariat won the Belmont Stakes by 31 lengths and still holds the record time at 2:24 for 1.5 miles.
• The production used the actual Triple Crown trophy, on loan from the Kentucky Derby Museum.
• The fluffy blonde wig that Diane Lane wore in the film was playfully nicknamed Peaches.

10. So, come on. What about the giveaway?

Disney is going to send us three shirts — one men’s, one women’s and one youth (no specific sizing info available) — plus a hat, all sporting Secretariat branding from the movie. If you’d like to win the whole package, just leave a comment below. We’ll pick a winner at the end of the weekend.

View full post on GeekDad

I have a couple Apple products (MacBook Pro & iPod touch) and for the most part I do enjoy using them. I am however, extremely tired of Steve Jobs’ arrogance during press conferences and announcements and can’t stand how the RDF (reality distortion field) around him explodes in the media and blogosphere. Apple seems to like to tell you how it should be done and then slowly adds features on their own time as you can readily see on the evolution of the iPhone. This same attitude of telling us how the world should be versus Nokia’s attitude of trying to give you products to help you see the world as it is can be seen even in the latest smartphones from both companies. Engadget posted a camera comparison between the Nokia N8 and iPhone 4 and it is quite clear that the N8 produces photos that are much more “real” while the iPhone 4 shows you a world as Apple thinks it should be with filled in colors and way too much yellow tinting going on.

CNET also conducted a comparison of the N8, iPhone 4, and a dedicated digital camera and their conclusion, along with their photo proof, shows the N8 is close to a dedicated digital camera and better than the iPhone 4. Unfortunately, the reviewer on CNET doesn’t seem to know much about using Symbian devices and has trouble using the OS.

I don’t have an iPhone 4 to create this same comparison, but I do have an HTC EVO 4G with 8 megapixel camera that I can use for comparison purposes. Then again, we already know that isn’t even a contest so I think I will just post N8 photos and let them stand on their own.

After looking closely through the Engadget comparison, do you agree that the N8 photos are better?

View full post on Nokia Experts

If you have a Samsung Vibrant, it may be time to start using Kies, Samsung’s proprietary sync and update app. There’s a new update being reported as coming through the Kies wire, update JI5, that is said to be fixing GPS issues on the device. That’s right, folks. While it may not be an update to 2.2, better GPS functionality on the Vibrant is nothing to be disappointed about.

The update also includes Media Hub.

You can download Kies here.If you download this update on your Vibrnat, be sure to let us know how it goes in the comments!

Samsung Vibrant gets update through Kies, should fix GPS issues

View full post on Google Android News Android Forums

While Samsung went ahead and unveiled the Galaxy Tab for all four major carriers in the US, none have dropped any formal release dates or pricing options. That doesn’t mean Verizon isn’t busy whipping up the marketing on this one, and if all the hands-on footage and impressions of the Tab after last night’s launch event weren’t enough to convince you that this is the Android tablet to consider above all others, perhaps these ten bullet points will. Too bad none of them are “You can get it next week” or “It will only cost $200.”

[via DroidLife]

Image: Wikimedia

This month, the nominating committee of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame meets to assemble a slate to vote on for 2011’s induction class. The factors that go into deciding who should be considered for induction aren’t well known — this is a pretty secretive group. What is well known is that when you look at the list of previous nominees and inductees, there is a huge, glaring omission from the artists honored by the committee. Rush, the most successful power trio of all time and a group that has sold more consecutive gold and platinum records than everyone except the Beatles and the Rolling Stones, has never even had their name on the ballot.

Music is a subjective experience and while some listeners may not appreciate the Canadian band’s sound or songs, it is difficult to ignore Rush based on their track record. The Hall of Fame’s mission is to honor great achievement in rock and roll. So let’s consider what Rush has done: The boys from Toronto have been together for more than four decades and in their current lineup for almost that entire time. During that period, they have released 19 studio records, 8 live albums and 10 compilations:  a total of 37 records. Of those, 24 were certified gold and 14 as platinum, which led to the sale of more than 40 million records worldwide.

Each member has been recognized for outstanding achievement in playing his instrument by various publications in the music press and by his fellow artists. Countless musicians — from Trent Reznor to Les Claypool, Kirk Hammett to Billy Corgan and many, many more — cite Rush as an influence and inspiration. And, approaching the age of 60, they still go out on extensive tours, playing long, three-hour sets for their fans.

All of this success has come without any real mainstream attention. They have never enjoyed much radio support and they’ve never had a #1 album or single in the states. The intelligentsia of the music press have always marginalized the band, going so far as to openly mock them for much of the band’s career. Still, all told, the facts attached to Canada’s most popular and best-selling band should be more than enough to gain induction to the museum in Cleveland, Ohio.

But there is more to the story than just the numbers, oh yes. Being geeks, we can come up with some geeky reasons why Rush should be given this one little victory and be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. For your consideration:

1. Rush’s lyrics are rooted in literary themes and references – Listen to their body of work. You won’t find any odes to Betty Sue in the back seat of her daddy’s Ford. Drummer Neil Peart is the main lyricist for the band and literature has always influenced his words. For instance, 1976’s breakout album, 2112, is about the individual against a totalitarian state. The liner notes even contain a dedication to Ayn Rand’s writing. Sebastian Bach talks about the influence of 2112 on him as a youth, “I ran right out and bought The Fountainhead and read it. How many bands get 12-year-olds that fired up about literature?”  Xanadu is tied to Samuel Taylor Coleridge’s poem Kubla Kahn. Peart has talked about being inspired by T.S. Eliot for Distant Early Warning. That’s a bit more substantive than lyrics like “my hump my hump my hump“.

2. They understand your pain – For many geeks, growing up is a tough time. There’s the feeling of alienation, of being outcast and bullied. Not only are these themes that Rush has addressed in their music (Subdivisions), but they are hurdles the band has had to face in their early lives and careers too. Bassist Geddy Lee and guitarist Alex Lifeson have talked openly about how being bullied at school was part of the reason they dropped out of high school before graduating. What’s more, Rush has been marginalized by the music press (and some of their peers) for most of their career for not conforming to the mainstream.

3. The band has embraced technology from very early on – OK, maybe they embraced technology too much during the ’80s, but they have often turned to technology to solve problems stemming from the limitations of being a trio. This meant being some of the first to adopt synthesizers. Rush was also one of the first to realize the power of the Web to connect with people and they have stayed on the cutting edge, using technology to stay in contact with their fans.

4. They have their obsessions – First and foremost, they love making music and they obviously enjoy each other’s company — even after all these years. But it doesn’t stop there. The technology is a constant education, and then there are the tour distractions: Alex is a complete golf geek, Geddy has a deep passion for baseball and Neil has logged more miles on his motorcycle than some people do in a lifetime of driving. Reading is a favorite hobby and Peart has talked about how he learned to knit, just because he had to know how.

5. They are big fans of science fiction and fantasy: Their songs include “Rivendell,” “Cygnus X-1,” “The Necromancer” and “By-Tor And The Snow Dog.” What else needs to be said?

6. Rush fans have their own con – One of the staples of geek culture is the con, a chance to get together with people obsessed with the same things as you. Whether it’s Star Wars or fantasy fiction or comics or games or Muppets, there is a con for you. Rush fans are no different: Each year fans from around the world congregate in Rush’s hometown of Toronto and listen to speakers, play games and get to share in their obsession with other fans.

7. They have never really been cool – Yes, their fans have always loved them, but even the most ardent devotee has to admit the silk robe phase was a little … embarrassing. But the silk robes are a metaphor for their entire career. They were never the cool kids — but largely because they never wanted to be. In the outstanding Rush documentary, Beyond the Lighted Stage, Gene Simmons talks about when Rush was touring with KISS. Simmons says barely clad women were everywhere after every show, but Rush just went back to their rooms and watched television. Rush has always done their own thing — whether it’s recording concept albums, roasting chickens onstage or passing up the rock and roll lifestyle to march to the beat of their own 33-piece drum kit.

8. Like geeks in general, Rush is getting attention now – Everywhere you look, geeks are getting attention and acceptance in the mainstream. From an appearance on The Colbert Report to a supporting role as the-band-to-emulate in I Love You, Man, Rush is also being noticed. A few years ago, the Beta-2 version of Joomla was nicknamed “Red Barchetta” because of the song’s spirit of freedom. And the band has been an oft-mentioned reference on MST3K and RiffTrax.

9. Rush has a great self-deprecating sense of humor – Like any bullied geek who has honed a razor sharp wit to deflect attention away from himself, Rush has always been funny. From lampooning Canadian stereotypes (and Lee’s high pitched voice) on Bob and Doug Mackenzie’s 1982 single “Take Off” to the hilarious video interludes at concerts, the band knows how to not to take itself too seriously.

10. They are family-friendly – Not withstanding a certain incident, Rush is a band that you can feel at ease with when sharing with the whole family. Song lyrics, while mature in terms of intellect, shy away from themes that the RIAA would deem explicit – neither profanity nor sexual descriptions that would earn them a Parental Advisory sticker. Yes, A Passage to Bangkok has lyrics that could be interpreted as drug-related, but they are nebulous enough to be safe. What’s more, Rush is multi-generational. Visit any Rush concert and you’re likely to see plenty of fathers and sons, mothers and daughters enjoying the music together.

11.  Like any good Internet flamewar, Rush is the basis for plenty of good arguments – Yes, Geddy Lee has a high pitched voice. Yes, their songs have erratic time changes. No, they aren’t radio friendly. Yet, they still enjoy a huge, worldwide fan base. When you think about it, it’s tough to think of a band that has enjoyed the success that Rush has, while being as polarizing as they are.

12. Rush’s induction would be redemption for us all – Why? Because Rush has been ignored for so long, despite all of their accomplishments, because the elitists in the music press have acted like the cool kids and made fun of the band, and because they are probably the world’s biggest geeky band. Here is a group of guys who consistently stood outside the mainstream, doing their own thing – creating art that reflected their own growth and change, without compromising their integrity for the sake of sales. They took all the criticism and snark about lyrics that were silly, musicianship that was overdone and style that was nonexistent … and still they persevered and enjoyed great success. Induction into the Hall of Fame would be a win for geeks everywhere.

That’s it – our 12 geeky reasons why Rush should be included in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Agree? Think we’re full of it? Did we leave something out? Let us know in the comments!

View full post on GeekDad

Product: Equus

Manufacturer: Hyundai

Wired Rating: 0

Hyundai is going upscale. No, really.

The Korean automaker is building on the success of the Sonata and the (excellent) Genesis with the Equus, a 385-horsepower luxury barge injected with leather accents and enough gadgets to make Best Buy jealous. Having proven that it can match the best from Japan, Hyundai is challenging the best from Germany.

The Germans have cause to worry.

This car is supremely comfortable, it can cover vast distances quickly, and it’s entertaining on a winding road provided the curves aren’t too tight. But this is touted as a luxury car. It’s all about the tchotchkes when you’re in this segment, and Hyundai delivers with a list of standard features longer than a Russian novel. Name it, and the odds are this car’s got it.

We spent the day in an Equus with the top-shelf Ultimate package and didn’t want to get out of the heated and cooled massaging back seat to take our turn at the wheel. We could have happily spent all day back there listening to the excellent 17-speaker Lexicon audio system or watching movies on the 7.1 DTS surround-sound system while pulling cold ones from the shoebox-sized thermoelectric fridge between the seats.

Did we mention the Equus is supremely comfortable?

Our only complaint was we couldn’t try out the reclining rear seat because the Hyundai exec sitting up front was in the way. Oh, and the 8-inch LCD video screen is too small for a car of this caliber. And it would have been nice to have a headphone jack, so we could crank up the 608-watt stereo without distracting the driver.

Beyond those quibbles, we loved the passenger experience, enjoying the smooth ride, completely insulated from road noise by thick acoustic glass, plush carpet and what must be a few hundred pounds of sound-deadening material. The Equus is almost meditatively quiet inside; there’s only a subtle hint of tire noise.

But, alas, the Hyundai folks were pretty adamant that we should actually drive the Equus, so we reluctantly traded the back seat for the 12-way adjustable driver’s seat. We were surprised. For a big, heavy car, the Equus proved surprisingly fun to pilot.

To show what the car can do, Hyundai mapped a route more suited to a motorcycle than 4,600-pound sedan almost 17 feet (!) long. All that mass rides on an electronically controlled air suspension and 19-inch wheels..

It’s plush, but push the sport-mode button and the suspension tightens, the steering response improves and the six-speed automatic gearbox (with a manual mode) shifts more aggressively. It’s no Audi or BMW, and even in sport mode the ride is a bit soft. But the Equus remains flat through turns, and we surprised ourselves with the speeds we could carry through the winding roads of California’s Santa Cruz Mountains.

Of course, there are all kinds of electronic nannies to keep you out of trouble, including electronic stability control, cornering brake control, traction control and a host of others in Hyundai’s Vehicle Stability Management system. The car also has adaptive cruise control, lane-departure warning, a backup camera and self-leveling headlights. If you somehow manage to overwhelm the nannies, electronic seat-belt pre-tensioning and nine airbags will minimize the damage to your body, if not the car.

Under the hood is an aluminum 4.6-liter V-8 good for 385 horsepower and 333 pound feet of torque. Of course it drives the rear wheels. Hyundai wouldn’t mention acceleration specs but is confident the Equus will do zero to 60 “in the low sixes.” We didn’t measure it, but the car accelerated briskly and confidently when we stomped on it. Still, a car this big could use more power, and Hyundai reportedly has a 5.0-liter V-8 with 429 horsepower coming this spring.

The Equus gets 16 mpg in the city, 24 on the highway and 19 combined.

The roomy interior is slathered with butter-soft leather, with an Alcantara suede headliner, walnut (or birch) veneer and polished-aluminum accents. The infotainment and navi systems are intuitive and easy to navigate using the large knob on the center console. (Navi system is 2-D only, though.) And the steering wheel — heated, of course — feels absolutely fantastic. The front seats are heated and cooled, and the driver’s seat offers a subtle massage that, frankly, feels great.

Hyundai doesn’t offer any options on the Equus: Everything is included as standard equipment. The Ultimate package is meant for those important (and/or wealthy) enough to have a driver. Most of the 2,000 or so Equuses (Equui?) that Hyundai expects to sell in the United States will have the Signature package. It doesn’t get the massaging and reclining rear seat, the fridge and a few other minor features.

Regardless of which package you choose, Hyundai includes an iPad, because that’s where the owner’s manual is. There’s also a dead-tree manual in the glovebox if you want it, but flipping through pages is so 2008.

If the car has a shortcoming, it’s the styling. The car closely resembles a Lexus but often feels bland. There’s also way, way too much chrome. Still, the Equus is sleek and aerodynamic, with a drag coefficient almost as slick as the Toyota Prius.

Hyundai’s keeping mum on the pricing for now, but figure on spending something in the $50,000 ballpark for the Signature package, and about 10 grand above that for the Ultimate when the car goes on sale in November.

View full post on Wired Product Reviews

In Machete, Danny Trejo reprises his role from the Spy Kids films. Or perhaps not.

1. Will My Kids Like It?

You may remember the title character Machete, the gruff but lovable uncle played by Danny Trejo in the Spy Kids series. Turns out, this is NOT the sequel to Spy Kids 3D. But my kids – who have become extreme fans of director Robert Rodriguez, who also did Sin City and Grindhouse – already knew that when they begged me to take them. Here Machete, the former federale, illegally crosses the border from Mexico into Texas and gets caught up in a political scheme that gives him the chance to pay back the corrupt leaders who betrayed him. There’s also lots of romping about with such co-stars as Lindsey Lohan, Jessica Alba and Michelle Rodriguez (the helicopter pilot from Avatar). So yeah, if your kids are teenage boys, they’ll like it.

2. Will the Clerk at the Ticket Booth Let Me Drop the Kids Off to See This R-rated Film While I Go Next Door to Watch George Clooney?

No.

3. Will I Like It?

Surprisingly, yes. Although I had to hide my eyes at several points in the action, this is a grainy exploitation flick with lots of humor and intelligence.

4. How is the Cast?

Danny Trejo’s lived-in face is of course worth watching all on its own. And with Robert DeNiro, Cheech Marin, Steven Seagal and Don Johnson in supporting roles, Rodriguez certainly had a lot to work with.

5. Does it Have Any Redeeming Social Value?

Although I hadn’t seen it mentioned in any of the reviews, the plot actually centers around the issue of illegal immigration. You will gain an appreciation of the role Mexican workers play in the US economy, versus how they are perceived by some of our louder politicians. So you could almost call it educational.

6. When Would be the Best Time for a Bathroom Break?

When the hero swings out of the hospital window using the bad guy’s disemboweled small intestine as a rope, or any time Trejo starts swinging those machetes. You’re not going to be looking at the screen then anyway.

7. Any Good Previews?

What is it with previews that show you the entire movie? I guess they’re helpful to keep you informed if you’re not planning on seeing those movies anyway. But Green Hornet looked promising.

8. How Are the Special Effects?

Did I mention the intestines?

9. Is It Loud or Scary?

No, it’s not particularly loud.

10. Is the Ending Satisfying?

Rodriguez puts an interesting twist on the classic hero riding off into the sunset ending – and then throws up title cards which promise sequels to come.

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Net neutrality is one of the most important issues — if not the most important — in the life of the Internet so far. Yet it’s widely misunderstood. Here are the facts about net neutrality from PCWorld’s Paul Kapustka.

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