Halo 4 First Impressions and Gameplay Footage

Halo 4 puts you back in the boots of the Master Chief from Halo 3. Along with his AI, Cortana, he’s been lost in space before they crash land near a mysterious Forerunner planet. The campaign takes place on an artificial planet called Requiem.

What Halo 4 promises is a move away from the straight-forward first-person-shooter and more focus on mystery, exploration and discovery, think more ‘Combat Evolved’ than ODST. Halo 4 is intended to be the first of a new series of Halo game, named the Reclaimer trilogy – so the story has been designed to be part of a three-game arc from the beginning – with Halo 5 planned to be more dark than this, and six being the conclusion.

All good so far. But for those expecting to be blown away by this latest Halo outing, there may be slight hints of disappointment. First off, Bungie are no longer developing the game. Now it’s 343 Industries - the team behind the latest HD remake of Halo: Combat Evolved. That being said, the Master Chief has never looked better, and the new enemies are interesting-looking, making a refreshing change from the Flood and Covenant.

source- dailymail.co.uk

Microsoft Surface Tablet Unveiled

After days of speculation and rumors, Microsoft's major announcement has just been unveiled at a press event in Los Angeles: a Surface tablet. We suspected the company might be working on its own tablet, and Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer revealed the device on stage at Milk Studios in Los Angeles today. Discussing Microsoft's history with Windows, Xbox, and Kinect, Ballmer introduced a video of the company's hardware products over the years before unveiling Windows 8's companion, the Microsoft Surface.
 
Microsoft's Intel-based Surface tablet will run Windows 8 Pro, with a thickness of 13.5mm, a weight of 1.9lbs, and USB 3.0 support. This particular version will also include magnesium casing and a built-in kickstand, but will ship with either 64GB or 128GB storage. Additionally, the Intel version will include additional digital ink support through a pen that magnetizes to the body of the tablet, and a 10.6-inch ClearType "Full HD" display. Both of Microsoft's Surface tablets feature optional Touch and Type keyboard covers.

Microsoft says suggested retail pricing will be announced closer to availability and is expected to be competitive with a comparable ARM tablet or Intel Ultrabook-class PC. The Windows RT PC will be available at the time of the Windows 8 general availability (expected in October), with the Windows 8 Pro model to ship about three months later. Surface will be available through Microsoft's physical retail stores in the US and through select online outlets of the Microsoft Store.

Windows 8 will sync with your Windows Live ID

Microsoft will offer the ability to sign into Windows 8 with a Windows Live ID, a move that places the next-generation operating system in heightened competition with both Google Android and Apple’s upcoming iCloud.

According to a Sept. 26 posting on the “Building Windows 8” blog, doing so will “ensure that each PC user has a truly personal experience that seamlessly bridges their online and offline tasks, is simpler to set up and use, and persists across their set of Windows 8 PCs.”

A newly purchased Windows 8 PC will give users the option of creating an account linked to a Windows Live ID. From that point forward, signing into any Windows 8 PC with that Windows Live ID will activate the user’s personalized settings on that machine. Those settings apparently include “lock screen picture, desktop background, user tile, browser favorites and history, spell check dictionaries, Explorer settings, mouse settings, and accessibility settings.”

That Windows Live ID will also sync Windows 8’s Metro-style apps, including their settings and most recent state. Users will have the ability to customize which settings sync between PCs. Websites that leverage the Windows Live ID, such as Hotmail, will not require a second sign-in after the initial log-in to Windows 8.

The ability to sync across multiple devices is a growing trend in the tech world, with different companies offering their own variation on the theme. Use your laptop to send an email via Gmail, for example, and your nearby Google Android tablet will update to reflect the new communication. Apple’s iCloud, due to ship this fall, will sync contacts, calendar, email, photos and music between users’ various devices.

source- eWeek

Netflix Launches in Latin America

The service launched today in Brazil today and is expected to be made available in 43 countries in Latin America, Mexico, and the Caribbean over the next week, Netflix said in a blog posting. Netflix said it has spent the past couple of months studying how Latin Americans think about movies and TV shows, as well as testing its delivery method.

"We've been testing and figuring out the right Internet architecture to make sure the quality and speed of the Netflix streaming experience is the best it can be," Rochelle King, Netflix VP of User Experience and Design, wrote in a company blog.

Subscribers will be able to access Netflix in Spanish, Portuguese, or English. Netflix said the streaming offer in Latin America and the Caribbean will work the same way it does in the United States. Customers will pay a monthly fee for unlimited access to the company's streaming-video library.

Netflix subscribers will be able to access content on computers, WII and PS3 game consoles, and smart TVs. However, it doesn't appear the program will include access to the physical media. The move, which was announced in July, is Netflix's largest expansion to date, with an apparent goal of creating a worldwide streaming service. Netflix expanded outside the United States last September with the launch of a streaming service in Canada.

It's unknown how much demand there is for streaming content in Latin America or how much revenue Netflix could generate from the market.

Source- Cnett

Job Posting in UK hint towards Iphone 5 Release

"Our client, Apple, one of the largest consumer electronic hardware and software companies in the world are seeking full-time iPhone Sales Staff for an exciting project to work 5 days a week (Tuesday-Saturday) for the period 16th August - 29th October within key retail stores," the posting reads.

Gekko notes that those who get the gig need to attend a four-day "training event" during the second week of August, presumably to be briefed on any new product information.

Apple has released a new iPhone every year since unleashing the original model on June 29, 2007. The latest, the iPhone 4, is now more than a year old, and multiple reports of Apple delivering a next-generation version of the handset have pointed to a release in the August/September time frame. It's worth noting that the iPhone 4 was released in the U.S. and the U.K. on the same day last year.

Alongside new hardware, another key release to expect in the fall is iOS 5, the next version of the system software that powers the iPhone, iPod Touch, and iPad. Apple this week delivered the third beta of that software to developers so they can ready their apps ahead of a public release.

source- Cnett