Paul Tan's Automotive Industry News Toyota Passo Sette 7-seater MPV

Toyota’s latest compact 7-seater MPV has been unveiled in Japan on Christmas day, so let’s check out the full details of the new compact people carrier that will make its way onto Malaysian shores sometime in the second half of 2009 as the new Perodua MPV.

As with alot of other Toyota compact cars, the new MPV is available under both the Toyota and Daihatsu badges as compact cars like these are pretty much mainly Daihatsu-engineered as it is their speciality.

The Toyota version is called the Toyota Passo Sette, which essentially means Passo Seven, or a 7-seater version of the Toyota Passo. Sette means seven in Italian. The Daihatsu version is called the Daihatsu Boon Luminas, where Luminas is a combination of the words roomy and luminous.

All variants of the Passo Sette and the Boon Luminas are powered by the 1.5 liter 3SZ-VE engine putting out 109 PS at 6,000rpm and 141Nm of torque at 4,400rpm. Both front wheel drive and 4WD variants use a 4-speed auto, and the front wheel drive version is rated at 15.6km per liter under the 10-15 Japanese test cycle. There is an Eco-Drive indicator light on the dashboard to inform the driver when his driving style is economical.

As previously reported, the compact Toyota Passo Sette measures 4,180mm long, 1,695mm wide and 1,620mm tall, with a long 2,750mm wheelbase to maximize the interior space which is 2,550mm long. The Boon Luminas CX with a bodykit is slightly longer at 4,195mm. Other dimensions that Toyota has provided include a 1,630mm space between the front and rear seat rows, a 150mm split seat slide for the middle row, a wide 935mm rear door opening to ease getting in and out, and a 630mm hip point for the driver to also aide ingress and egress.

Despite the car’s relatively long wheelbase its wheels are at the edges of the vehicle so it is compact and it has a 5.2m turning radius.

Toyota has provided the Toyota Passo Sette with some nice features in the interior including a rear seat entertainment system with a 7 inch widescreen monitor, a DVD player with headphone outputs, and the ability to play different media in the front and rear entertainment systems. There is an optional keyless entry and start with a key fob.

The Boon Luminas also comes standard with a “music server”, which essentially lets you rip 660 minutes of audio content from your audio CDs and store it onto the car’s on-board entertainment system so you don’t have to carry your CDs around in your car. This is also a specifiable option for the Toyota Passo Sette.

The Japanese specs offers some rather decent safety features, though in the interests of cost and maximizing profit I doubt all of them will make it onto the Perodua specifications. The Passo Sette and Boon Luminas has a total of 6 SRS airbags, vehicle stability control (VSC), traction control, Dynamic Support Headrests which reduce the risk of rear-end collision whiplash, and finally ABS brakes.

Now for the Japanese market prices. The Daihatsu Boon Luminas has higher specs so it is more expensive starting from 1,535,000 yen all the way up to 2,073,000 yen, while the lower spec Toyota Passo Sette starts from 1,490,000 yen but can be fully loaded up to a maximum price of 2,033,000 yen.

Please continue reading for a whole load of more photos and videos! It will give you a rough idea of the car to expect next year from Perodua.

source: paultan.org

Dell confirms shocking truth: Adamo to rival MacBook Air

In a confusing timeline of events that only Charlton Heston could love, Dell confirmed today that it already has touted its soon-to-be-unveiled "Adamo" as a rival to the MacBook Air in a blogvertisement that posed itself as a rumor that Adamo would do just that:

"Rumor has it that Dell is coming out with a computer called Adamo that will rival the MacBook Air. At press time, the company was keeping the product tightly under wraps, but PC users rejoice - word on the street is that something cool is coming your way."

The adblog appeared on a "luxury internet magazine," and was noticed by The New York Times Bits Blog, who bounced the copy off Dell, which confirmed it as an ad: "We did this to wake up the personal computing category and create some buzz." This further confirms (or perhaps pre-confirms) what we've heard about Adamo, but we're looking forward to the actual unveiling of this laptop and forming our own real, factual opinions on the thing.

source: engadget.com

First Blu-ray Disc / DVD hybrid announced in Japan

It sure took long enough to happen, but one of HD DVD's biggest benefits has finally made it over to the Blu-ray side. Yep, we're talking about a Blu-ray / DVD hybrid disc, with a single-layer of Blu on one side and a standard DVD on the very same side (as in, not a "flipper" disc). Not surprisingly, the action's going down first in Japan, with Code Blue emergency helicopter doctor Blu-ray BOX (yes, seriously) as the first hybrid title. There's no word on when (or if) this technology will make it to US soil, but the sooner the better -- nothing like a little inbuilt backwards compatibility to ease the mind.

ps: finally....

Auto Bailout Rejected After Senate Vote

The US Senate has rejected a compromise deal that would see Detroit's Big Three get $14 billion in bailout money.

GM and Chrysler desperately need bailout funds to make it past the New Year, or at least until President-elect Barack Obama comes into office under the hopes his administration would save them. GM and Chrysler's survival, and to a certain extent Ford's, doesn't just affect the US but the whole world where these companies trade, have factories, dealers, workers and other peripheral suppliers.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said of the collapse in talks: "I dread looking at Wall Street tomorrow. It's not going to be a pleasant sight. This is going to be a very bad Christmas for many people."

The key issue for the bailout failure was the United Auto Workers (UAW) to meet Republican senators demands of benefit rollbacks on par with those of foreign manufacturers' factories by 2009. The UAW said it was willing to do this when the current contracts expire in the late summer of 2011 but not sooner. Another idea, touted by Democrats but rejected by Republicans, involved UAW to agree to accepting company stock in exchange for US$10 billion owed in retiree health care.

Now it looks as though only President George Bush can save the deal by accessing what's left of the $700 billion financial bailout fund, half of which is being made available. Previously Bush did not consider this option, but a White House aide says he is now looking at all the available options.

Minority Leader Mitch McConnell commented: "We simply cannot ask the American taxpayer to subsidize failure... Even if we grant that these companies would fail without taxpayer help, we would still have to ask ourselves whether the proposal before us achieves the goal that everyone claims to embrace -- namely, the long-term viability of ailing car companies -- and, in my view, it does not."

source : worldcarfans.com

The Dark Knight Sells 3 Million DVD's on First Day of Release

December 11th, 2008

Not that this should come as any surprise, but The Dark Knight's first day on DVD and Blu-ray was a rousing success. According to The New York Times, consumers in the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom have purchased over 3 million copies of The Dark Knight on DVD in the first day of release, December 9.

In addition to those mammoth sales figures, The Dark Knight Blu-ray sold an additional 600,000 copies on the first day, and it was said that the BD sales were expected to eclipse 1 million units by Saturday. That figure shattered the previous first-day BD sales record of 250,000, set a few months ago by Iron Man.It was also said that BD sales were particularly strong in grocery stores, indicating the format is moving beyond the early-adopter stage.

"Numbers like these in this economic environment firmly establish Blu-ray as where consumers are headed," said Kevin Tsujihara, president of Warner Brothers Home Entertainment.

First Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen Trailer Coming in February

December 9th, 2008

Michael Bay updated his own personal blog this morning with news about an impending Transformers 2: Revenge of the Fallen teaser poster and teaser trailer. Here's what the director had to say on the matter:

Hey everyone. Back from Egypt and Jordan - we had a wonderful shoot over there. I will miss the crew they were an amazing bunch of people and a lot of fun.

I'm stuck in the edit room up to my eye balls - also finished producing Friday the 13Th and The Unborn - coming out the after the new year. Our Trailer for Transformer you have been asking about - First there will be a teaser poster soon after the New Year, and the teaser trailer will be out either in the theaters early Feb. or on the Superbowl. Cannot decide yet. I'm going to release some set stills on this site in a few weeks. I'll keep you informed. Going back to do more selects now from my portable avid that I take home from work. It's late, see you.

Transformers 2: Revenge of the Fallen will crash land on planet earth June 26th, 2009.

source: superheroesflix.com

Sony's PS3 A Sinking Ship: Sales Plummet

Sony's (SNE) PS3 is dying on the shelves.

Alone among the three major videogame consoles, sales of the PS3 are down about 19% from November 2007, according to the latest stats from the NPD Group. Sony was only able to sell 378,000 PS3s this November, compared to 466,000 last year.

And the problem for Sony isn't the recession, it's the PS3. Microsoft (MSFT) put up respectable numbers with its Xbox 360, selling 836,000 units vs 777,000 in November 2007. And Nintendo's (NTDOY) Wii continues to dominate the market, more than doubling sales from 981,000 to 2.04 million.

So why is the PS3 flopping so badly?

1. It's the most expensive console on the market, $150 - $200 more than its rivals. Even if you believe the video game industry is "recession-proof" (it isn't), a tanking economy makes consumers more price-conscious.
   
2. The PS3's big bonus is its ability to double as a Blu-Ray player. Too bad no one seems to care about hi-def DVDs. The differences between Blu-Ray and DVD are hard to see on a TV less than 50".
   
3. The PS3 just doesn't have any must-have titles exclusive to the console. "LittleBigPlanet" has generated decent buzz but isn't a game-changer, and neither is Sony's new virtual world "Home."

There's really only one option left for Sony to remain in the game: deep price cuts, and not just for people with good credit. Tell yourself the PS3 has superior graphics if it makes you feel better, but a $400 console with a mediocre game library simply cannot compete against an Xbox 360 priced at $200 in this economy.

New MacBooks said to have issues with maxed out RAM, faulty NVIDIA GPU

While most of the complaints about the new MacBooks and MacBook Pros have focused on things like the screen or the absence of a certain much-loved port, it appears that another problem has been bugging some folks that went ahead and maxed out the RAM on their shiny new laptop. Apparently, loading 4GB of RAM (either from Apple or a third party) has caused at least a few MacBooks and MacBook Pros to freeze up randomly which, for the time being at least, can only be remedied by dialing things back to 2GB or 3GB of RAM (something tested by jkOnTheRun). While Apple isn't saying anything publicly about this just yet, one member of the Apple support forum claims to have heard from an Apple engineer who says that Apple is, in fact, aware of the problem and that a software update is on the way to fix it, possibly within a few days.

In related MacBook news, The Inquirer is now reporting that the new MacBook Pro's NVIDIA 9600M GPU suffers from the same so-called "bad bump" problem that has plagued previous generation MacBook Pros (and provided plenty of fodder for The Inq) which can, in some cases, lead to blank screens and other video errors. It's not clear, however, if the problem affects all MacBook Pros or just a bad batch, although there does appear to be a somewhat sizable number of complaints cropping up.

source: engadget.com

Stellar 4 channel Amplifier for sale

Bought in June/July for my Myvi but sell the car in Sept. Hardly used. Reason of selling- new car have own amplifier unit. Interested can email me at hulk_7300@yahoo.com. Since this is a one time business, prefer COD and around Klang valley area.

Nissan GT-R Spec-V Confirmed Specifications

A reliable tip-off on the Nissan GT-R Spec-V specifications has been received. Before getting into that, a strong wind of suspicion says Nissan will not release any data captured from testing at the fabled Nurburgring anymore. Eyebrows of wonder all around? Suffice to say at the Sendai Highland Raceway, where the Nismo and Spec-V GT-Rs are tested, the Spec-V was a full two seconds faster than the standard car.

The engine's output has been upped to 485ps. That will work extremely well with an overboost function which is used for a more effective midrange boost when overtaking.

A number of carbon fiber features can be found inside the Spec-V, such as front seats, a rear shelf that replaces rear seats (a casualty of weight-saving), mirror switch surround as well as MFD surround. Not unexpectedly this lightweight material posts itself quite nicely on the exterior where treatment is metted out on the front grille, rear wing, ducts on the front lip spoiler and brakes are also carbon fiber. It runs on 20-inch forged aluminium wheels with Dunlop tyres as a no-cost option.

GT-R Spec-V has a new colour in Ultimate Black Pearl, said to be a purplish black, to add to Brilliant White, Red, Dark Metal Grey and Black. A base price of ¥15,750,000 ($165K, €128K) should be in order when the car goes on sale 8th January 2009.

$15 Billion Dollar Bailout Agreement Reached

Automakers could get the funds within a matter of weeks.

Members of Congress and President Bush have apparently reached an agreement to provide $15 billion dollars worth of government loans to Detroit's big three automakers. This is far less than the $25 billion dollars that was originally requested and much smaller than the $34 billion that the CEO's requested during the past two days of testimony on Capitol Hill.

The breakthrough came when Democratic Speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi, gave into the President's demand that the funding come from an earlier aid bill that offered the automakers $25 billion dollars for retooling and creating more energy efficient automobiles. Next week both the House and Senate will take up the proposed legislation and according to expectations it should sail through both chambers of Congress and reach the President's desk shortly thereafter. The quick passage of the legislation should help to insure that the big three will have the money within a matter of weeks.

However there are details that still need to be worked out. In a statement released by Pelosi she stated that "Congress will insist that any legislation include rigorous and ongoing oversight to guarantee that taxpayers are protected and that resources are directed to ensure the long-term viability and competitiveness of the American automobile industry." Officials from both political parties have also agreed that the legislation should include the creation of a new bureaucracy to insure the funds are used for their intended purpose.

The $15 billion dollar aid package is expected to allow the big three to last until March of 2009, by which time President-elect Barack Obama and the new Congress will have been sworn in.

source:worldcarfans.com

Other carmakers committed to F1

F1's other manufacturer-backed teams have rushed to insist their commitment to the sport is not diminished by Honda's shock decision to quit amid the worsening slump in global car sales.

Mercedes-Benz's Norbert Haug said the German marque's involvement with the McLaren effort is financially sound and subsidised by team sponsors, but said cost-cutting is important.

"Over the next two years we must achieve cuts of at least 50 percent," he said.

Media reports on Friday said the next most likely manufacturer to withdraw from formula one is Toyota, but Japan's other entrant said in a statement it is committed for now to the sport and the teams' efforts to cut costs.

Toyota said it is "committed to succeeding in formula one and to reducing costs".

BMW board member Klaus Draeger said F1 "is an integral part of the company strategy".

"There is no better platform than formula one for demonstrating our brand values," he said of the German manufacturer, involved in F1 since 2000, and currently with its majority ownership of BMW-Sauber.

"The cost-benefit ratio is commensurately positive," he added, and a Renault spokesman said the French marque is similarly committed.

Ferrari president Luca di Montezemolo, as head of the F1 teams' alliance FOTA, said the Italian marque and the other teams are working hard to reduce the costs in the "short and long term".

FIA president Max Mosley, however, is extremely pessimistic about the sustainability of F1 in its current guise, slamming FOTA's most recent efforts to cut costs as "fiddling about".

Nick Fry, Honda's F1 chief executive, agrees that the risk of more manufacturers following Honda out the door is real.

"The reason they are in F1 has gone for the moment -- selling cars," he said.

"The danger is that Honda might start a domino effect. That is the nightmare scenario," he admitted to the British newspaper Express.

source: worldcarfans.com

Lips - Xbox 360

Microsoft takes to a whole new stage with Lips, an all-new music franchise exclusively for Xbox 360®. Lips is the only singing game offering wireless motion sensitive microphones and the ability to sing from your own collection of DRM-free songs*. Start channeling your favorite pop star because it's you, your friends, and most importantly, your music that makes this the ultimate party experience this holiday. Keiichi Yano, celebrated developer behind some of the industry's most beloved rhythm games, brings his vision of collaborative and social musical entertainment to the first and only singing game offering interactive sound effects and the music to make your party rock all night long. Toss your apprehensions out the window and join the party.

• Two wireless interactive microphones: Featuring stylish interactive motion sensors and lights, the microphones respond to the singer's actions and can be utilized as percussion accompaniments. With the freedom and encouragement provided by the high quality wireless microphones, everyone can live out their singing dreams in style.
• The best music: Lips ships with a diverse selection of songs, including your favorite blasts from the past like "Bust a Move" by Young MC, as well as new songs from breakout artists like "Mercy" by Duffy, and "Young Folks" by Peter Bjorn and John.
• Sing to your music collection: Customize your experience with the songs that matter most by singing along with friends to DRM-free music from your own personal collection.*
• Play along: Using the standard Xbox 360 controller, up to four people can join the fun and choose from a variety of percussion accompaniments to play along. By placing control of various tambourines, claps, and of course, the ubiquitous cowbell, at the finger tips of anyone with a controller, you have a social entertainment experience for friends, family, and kids alike!
• Constant flow of new music: From the songs that come with the game, to your own music collection, and the ability to download new tracks from Xbox LIVE® Marketplace, Lips continuously provides new music to bring people together and keep the party going.

Edge: Bigger Than Blu-ray - New 400GB Disc Could Be PS3-Compatible

Edge writes: "In the picture above you will see the materialized form of one of Pioneer's boldest claims in recent memory: a 400GB optical disc, of 16 layers with a capacity of 25GB each.

What's missing from this equation is the word Blu-ray. In fact, yesterday at the IT Month Fair in Taipei, Taiwan, Pioneer was coy about not using the term Blu-ray at all when unveiling its newest disc, save for suffixing it to "16 times the storage of..."

The consoles you have right now will not be able to play these discs. Numerous sources have reported that the disc is compatible with Blu-ray players (and therefore PS3s) already on the market. Speaking to Edge, Pioneer said the opposite was true. "Current BD players and drives would not be able to read these discs," the company said, adding that the technology is "at this time not being proposed as a candidate for addition to the existing Blu-ray Disc format."

However, the company went on to say that a firmware upgrade may allow Blu-ray players to read the disc, putting Sony's PS3 straight into the spotlight as the likeliest device available today that could read them."

Top six automakers report 30 to 47 percent sales drop - a 26 year low

Could things possibly get worse? Maybe not, but they may stay this bad through 2009 and that may mean a completely different auto industry landscape in the United States a year from now.

November sales figures are in and they're not looking good for anybody, including the formerly fearsome Japanese brands.

For November 2008, compared to the same month last year, GM sales were down more than 40 percent. Chrysler's were down 47 percent. Ford seems to be doing much better, they were down only 30 percent compared to an overall drop of 36 percent for the industry as a whole.

This collapse in sales has also hit Japanese import brands in the US market. Nissan sales were down 42 percent, Toyota almost 34 percent and Honda was at a 31 percent drop.

Adjusted for an annual rate, November sales reflect a US market of 10.8 million vehicle sales per year. This overall market number is important. Sales in the US peaked at around 17 million in the 2000s. Where that sales number now goes could determine whether one or two of the Big 3 survive 2009. Chrysler and GM are in the worst positions in terms of falling sales and a lack of cash. Both automakers are in desperate need of operating capital and are anxiously awaiting news on a government bailout.

Sales are at the lowest they've been in 26 years. Per capita sales are down to lows not seen since the 1950s.

source: worldcarfans.com

More Proton MPV pic

source : paultan.org

Xbox 360 Registers Biggest Black Friday in Its History, Outsells PS3 3 to 1

Microsoft Corp.'s Xbox 360 video game and entertainment system kicked off the holidays with record- breaking console sales on one of the biggest shopping weekends of the year in the U.S. Retailers reported Xbox 360 console sales over the Black Friday weekend were on pace to beat previous years, outselling the PlayStation 3 by a three-to-one ratio and estimating a 25 percent increase from Xbox 360 Black Friday sales figures from 2007.

source: n4g.com

Fringe - when in Malaysia??

S...t Happens!!!!

Suppose to be a wonderful weekend, going back to Kedah but ends up with this. Some dude thinks that he's Dare Devil...Anyway, shit happens and already lodge a police report together with the stuntman. But my ride will stay like this for a few weeks....hate that....

2010 Porsche Panamera

Xbox 360 outsells the original Xbox, Microsoft heads down to the trophy shop

In the manner of a modern day fable on par with The Little Engine That Could or Rocky, Microsoft has just announced that sales of the Xbox 360 have outraced total sales of the original Xbox, a mere two days after the 360's third birthday on November 22. Do you feel yourself getting teary-eyed? Sure, the gang in Redmond could have stopped believing, or reaching for that rainbow (or whichever tired cliché you prefer), but it looks like all the hard work has paid off -- Microsoft has won a race with itself, and in doing so has given us all hope. To put this in perspective, a total of 25 million original Xboxes were sold during its lifecycle of November 2001 - May, 2005 (roughly three and a half years). The company has yet to release precise sales figures for the 360, but between price cuts in Europe, Black Friday, and the New Xbox Experience, they expect to ride out the tail end of this year with a huge sales boost. Great job, guys! We knew that some day your company would be a success.

source : engdget

GT(Game Trailer.com) is NOT Biased! PS3 is OUTDATED!

Look, I'm sick of all the kerfluffle about how GT is biased towards 360 and how GT favors 360 and how GT hates on PS3. That ends now! The fact remains that 360 has just released better content than PS3. Period. See what I did there? I put a period after Period. That means conclusion; the end of discussion. The reason why GT gives 360 games better scores in the reviews is because the games are simply better experiences. The main reason for this--and it is often an overlooked and underestimated one--is because the 360 controller is a far superior gaming device than the Sony controller. This is to be said within the context that we are talking about influential, significant, market moving franchises--eg. Gears of War 2, Call of Duty, GTA 4, Halo 3 for crying out loud! Have you tried playing any of the previously mentioned multi-platformed titles on the PS3 with that awkward, unintuitive Sony controller? It simply cannot compete. The 360 controller's design is sleeker, more form fitting, and lends itself to a much more instinctual gaming experience. That Sony controller has been around for how many years now? It's time to update, reinvent, and innovate, and that's exactly how Microsoft has managed to stay ahead of the curve. I had posted a forum about this very topic and got reported for inciting a flamewar as they call it. Before the forum could evolve into a discussion it was taken down, but I did receive a very constructive critique about my thoughts from a fellow GT member who claimed that the PS3's D-pad was superior to the 360's, especially in fighter games, to which I give him credit and agreement. However, this goes without noting that I was focusing on major blockbuster titles like the Halos and the Gears and the Call of Duty's; titles that move consoles and market share. Sony not only needs to update its controller, but it also needs to incorporate it with an enjoyable, story-driven exclusive franchise to rival the mind-blowing Microsoft heavyweights Gears of War and Halo franchises. Do this, and you shall live. Do it not, and every one of you will die today.

Toshiba Regza 42ZV555D: "World's first" upscaling TV

By Ian Morris, CNET.co.uk
Nov 13, 2008

That's right, you read the headline correctly. Toshiba has just claimed to have created the industry's first upscaling TVs, the Regza 42ZV555D and 46ZV555D LCDs. With such bold boasts flying around the Internet, we feel like making a few ourselves. Did you know that we invented blogging? Or that without Crave, there would be no Moon? No, we didn't think so, either. But we've looked into it and it's true. Honest.

Let us explain why we're stroking the skeptical cat here. All HDTVs have upscalers built in, because if they didn't, when you came to watch something that was shot in a resolution different to that of the screen, you'd end up with a postage stamp-sized bit of video. If you were watching something with dimensions of 720 x 576 pixels, it would float in the middle of a 1,920 x 1,080-pixel screen. We've lovingly demonstrated this concept in our image above.

In a high-definition TV, the smaller, standard-definition image is stretched to fit the full-screen resolution. The TV's upscaling hardware will also apply some video processing to make it look as good as possible. It will do some additional processing to turn a standard-definition, interlaced picture into a progressive one because LCD and most plasma TVs can display only a progressive image.

source: cnet asia

Philips 42PFL5203S LCD TV

Pixel Plus 2 HD for great details, depth and clarity

Pixel Plus 2 HD offers the unique combination of ultimate sharpness, natural detail, increased depth, vivid colors and smooth and natural motion from standard TV, High Definition signals and multimedia sources. Each pixel of the incoming picture is enhanced to better match the surrounding pixels, resulting in a more natural picture. Artifacts in compressed multimedia content are detected and reduced, ensuring that the picture is clean and razor sharp. Digital noise reduction ensures that the picture is perfectly smooth yet razor sharp.

HD LCD display, with a 1366 x 768p resolution

This WXGA display with state-of-the-art LCD screen technology gives you widescreen HD resolution of 1366 x 768p pixels. It produces brilliant flicker-free progressive scan pictures with optimum brightness and superb colors. This vibrant and sharp image will provide you with an enhanced viewing experience.

HD Natural Motion for ultra smooth motion in Full HD movies

n performance that surpasses the cinema!

28.9 billion colors for brilliant natural images

Vibrant and natural images from most advanced color processing. The 3 color channels (RGB) are optimized using 10 bit resolution, a total processing power of 28.9 billion colors. It produces vibrant colors while retaining excellent sharpness. The advanced algorithms detect subtle color shades , skin tones and processes these to give most natural colors

source: philips malaysia

All new Honda NSX technical illustration

Microsoft exec touts HD streaming over discs, suggests Xbox 360 will outlast PS3

Man, talk about talking tough. In a recent interview with Venture Beat, Microsoft executive Shane Kim pointed out that the impending New Xbox Experience would be the beginning of a "fascinating time as all of these different media evolve." Kim got rough when questioned about the value of a built-in Blu-ray player in Sony's PS3, stating that "Microsoft made the right decision by not including HD DVD or Blu-ray in its box and offering HD DVD as an accessory." Following up on that, he noted that "digital downloading of movies to the Xbox 360 over the online connection would likely prove more important than Blu-ray in the long run," and that it would continue producing the 360 "one day longer than the lifespan of the PlayStation 3." My, oh my.

[Via GameDaily]

Chinese pirates offering cheap AVCHD Blu-ray rips on disguised DVD-Rs

Just last week we heard that Warner Bros. was ending its home video / DVD business in South Korea due to rampant piracy, and now we've got a report from China suggesting that sophisticated pirates are duping buyers with faux Blu-ray Discs that are actually DVDs. As the story goes, movie pirates in select parts of Asia are ripping bona fide BDs and then burning them in AVCHD format (which uses 720 horizontal lines of resolution compared to Blu-ray's 1,080) on writable DVDs. Word on the street has it that these discs are being offered for around $7 each, and they even boast the BD hologram and the iconic blue hues on the packaging. Reportedly, none of the discs have made it outside of Asia just yet, but stay sharp should you ever get the urge to snag a discounted BD title while traveling abroad.

source: engadget

SuperSpeed USB 3.0 spec officially released, first chipset demonstrated

It's been nearly a year since we first saw the USB 3.0 connector make an appearance at CES, and after months of corporate infighting, spec-polishing, and technical navel-gazing, the future of consumer peripheral connectivity is here -- in the form of complete specifications and a demo. Yeah, so maybe SuperSpeed USB isn't making the most dramatic entrance ever, but hey, it doesn't have to with 4.8Gbps transfer speeds, improved power management, and backwards compatibility with USB 2.0 along for the ride. As expected, the first wave of devices won't hit until 2010, but Symwave's giving attendees of this week's SuperSpeed conference a taste of tomorrow with a demo of the Quasar USB 3.0 chipset, which is targeted at "sync-and-go" devices like phones and media players. Sounds lovely -- now if you'll excuse us, we have to go back to mourning the death of FireWire 400.

USB 3.0 to Deliver a Tenfold Speed Increase

Tighten your seat belts. Data transfer is going into overdrive as the ubiquitous Universal Serial Bus, better known as USB, prepares to make a tenfold jump in speed.

That means the vast sea of USB devices -- from HD camcorders to hard drives and music players -- will be able to transfer music, video, photos and other data much, much more quickly.

The new standard, the first update to the USB specification in eight years, will also deliver greater power efficiency and the ability to recharge a wider variety of gadgets -- and it will most likely mean the death of the competing standard known as FireWire.

To get a sense of the speed increase, consider this: Transferring high-definition video of 27 GB, the amount on a standard Blu-Ray disc, takes about 10 minutes with the current USB 2.0 standard. With USB 3.0, it will take just about a minute.

"What the user will see is really a much faster response time, less waiting, more productivity," says Patrick Moorhead, vice president of advanced marketing at AMD, one of the supporters of the USB 3.0 standard.

BlackBerry Storm vs. Apple iPhone: 8 reasons pro and con

With RIM’s (RIMM) touchscreen BlackBerry Storm set to be released in the United States next Friday, CIO.com has published eight reasons to choose the Storm over Apple’s (AAPL) iPhone.

The same day, it published eight reasons to pick the iPhone over the Storm.

Both pieces are by Al Sacco, who probably doesn’t pay for the phones he reviews.

Here’s why he prefers the Storm:

1. Stereo Bluetooth capability
2. Removable battery
3. Expandable memory
4. Video recording
5. Works as a tethered modem
6. Tactile feedback
7. Copy and paste
8. Multitasking

Here’s why he prefers the iPhone

1. It’s now second-generation
2. Built-in memory
3. iTunes App Store
4. iTunes integration
5. Full QWERY (virtual) keyboard
6. Wi-Fi support
7. iPod media player
8. Safari browser

NVIDIA's Quadro FX 5800 with 4GB graphics memory is 'the most powerful graphics card in history'

That's some serious boasting by NVIDIA, but this is some serious graphics horsepower. The Quadro FX 5800, already seen in NVIDIA's Quadro Plex D data cruncher, replaces the 5600 at the top of the NVIDIA heap with 240 CUDA-programmable parallel cores and the industries first card with 4GB of graphics memory. MSRP? Just $3,499 for you big spender -- pennies for the companies who can harnass the power for the purposes of oil and gas exploration, 4D modeling, and graphics design

Ericsson: 20 megapixel cellphones shooting Full HD video in 4 years

It's tough to predict the future, especially with cutbacks to R&D budgets in the face of a global economic slowdown. Still, it's always nice to see a forward-looking corporate-slide related to mobile handsets from the taller, blonder half of that Sony Ericsson partnership. LTE and fast CPUs are certainly no surprise, nor is that 1,024 x 768 XGA screen resolution that Japan's superphones are already bumping up against. The most compelling vision is that of the embedded camera sensors: 12-20 megapixels capable of recording Full HD video by 2012. Adding more fuel to firey speculation that handsets are about to find themselves embroiled in a megapixel war. Fine by us, just as long the optics and image processing are there to support such a resolution. Even though 12-20 megapixels seems high compared to the 5-8 megapixel cell phones we see today, those numbers are entirely within reason when you recall that Samsung hit 10 megapixels in Korea two years ago. In fact, we wouldn't be suprised in the least to find Ericsson's mythical device on the market well prior to 2012. Combined, these features certainly make for a tantalizing glimpse at the wireless handset future.

Gears of War 2 sells 2.1 million on day one

According to early retailer reports, and user polls, Gears of War 2 is shaping up to be one of the biggest Xbox 360 titles to date, putting it in very similar territory to blockbusters 'Halo 3' and 'Grand Theft Auto IV'

Using the aforementioned data, Gears of War 2 looks to have debuted to midnight and Friday sales of 1,400,000 units in North America, and 700,000 units in 'Others' territories. This would represent about two thirds of Halo 3's massive debut, which wound up with 3.8 million units sold it's first week on the market.

Due to the US Election taking place on the 4th November, the release date for Gears 2 was moved back to Friday the 7th meaning that "week one" sales will be made up of two days sales - expected to come in at around 2.5 million worldwide. The implication of this is that week two sales should show a lower than normal dropoff so it is entirely possible that the game may hit 3.5 million sold by the end of week two - in just nine days.

As you can see, Gears of War 2 is shaping up to be a formidable competitor in the November NPD data, and looks to eclipse Gears of War 1 worldwide sales by the end of the year (which is at 5.2 million units).

source : n4g.com

The wait is over

Finally, Gears of war 2 has arrived. Just got my Limited Edition copy. Bought it at Gamers Hideout, Cineleisure. Been there since 10am but they opened at 1230+!!! But its worth it.
Will battle the Locust Harde again & surely its going to be huge!!!!

exclusive on Xbox360....

Maradona lands Argentina job

LEGEND Diego Maradona has been confirmed as the new Argentina boss.

The Argentinian Football Association gave the move the green light at a meeting in Buenos Aires today.

Maradona, 48, replaces Alfio Basile, who stepped down for personal reasons last month.

The star, who led his country to the 1986 World Cup, will now plan for his first game against Scotland at Hampden Park on November 19.

Maradona, who will work alongside new technical secretary Carlos Bilardo, said: “Being the coach of the national team and being alongside Carlos is an honour for me.

“I will do my best to succeed. We will work every day to make Argentina have a better national team day by day."

Bilardo was Argentina coach in 1986 and will work closely with his former player in the new set-up.

Maradona has also revealed that he wants Liverpool midfielder Javier Mascherano as his new skipper.

He said: “I want Mascherano to be my captain because I believe he is the Argentinian player who is closest to the idea I have about the Argentinian shirt.

"Sweat for it, sacrifice for it, being a professional, being close to the team-mate.

“I will convince him. He will be my captain.”

Wrap Is Called on Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen

It's official. Michael Bay has called wrap on his upcoming sequel Transformers 2: Revenge of the Fallen, which is part two of the Hasbro toy line franchise that hit big in 2007 with Transformers. Nelson reports from Michael Bay's own personal blog with the following message:

Nelson here. As of this week, principal photography for Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen has ended. Congrats to Michael and his team.

That means the film is heading into the editing suite, where it will be completed for a June 26th, 2009 release date.

Alienware's surprise: the CrossFire X-enabled M17 gaming notebook

When it said evolutionary, it wasn't kidding around. Alienware has just taken the wraps off of a relatively uninspiring (or, unworthy of hype, we should say) new laptop: the M17. Not to be confused with the M17x, this 17-incher is the outfit's very first CrossFire X-enabled notebook, and those with the requisite coin can get one outfitted with a Core 2 Quad / Extreme CPU, up to 4GB of DDR3 RAM, twin ATI Mobility Radeon HD 3870 GPUs, a WXGA+ / WUXGA panel, an optional ATSC HDTV tuner, up to 640GB of HDD space in a RAID 0 array, a dual-layer DVD writer / optional Blu-ray reader, WiFi, Bluetooth 2.1, gigabit Ethernet and a facial recognition sensor. As with most of its siblings, this one puts a beating on the scales at 9.5-pounds, and we're certain you can deplete that 12-cell battery in no time flat. Granted, it does get going at "just" $1,399, but you can expect that figure to head far north when you add anything drool-worthy to the build sheet.

Sony Ericsson's new ad shows off the C905's camera and absolutely nothing else

An ad campaign shot entirely on a mobile phone camera? Well, Sony Ericsson -- claiming to be the first -- has done it, using the C905, ostensibly to prove what an awesome (8.1-megapixel) camera it boasts. The results can be found exclusively in December's issue of FHM, and are what Sony Ericsson Marketing Director David Hilton calls an "amazing opportunity" to "show off the capabilities" of the Cyber-shot. So let's just get this straight: your ad uses a professional model, a fashion photographer, professional lighting, and makeup, not to mention all that retouching, and we're supposed to be impressed with the camera? Okay, we'll admit it: we're pretty impressed.

source: engadget

New PS3 low in Japan - How next-gen is failing in home of gaming

Another week goes by, and Sony sees the PS3, supposedly its flagship console, dropping even lower in terms of sales in Japan. While the Xbox 360 is doing surprisingly well in the country, both true next-gen consoles are massively behind lesser machines such as the Wii, the DS, and the PSP. So why is the spiritual home of gaming seemingly rejecting next-gen gaming?

The latest weekly sales figures to come out of Japan, those for the week ending October 26th, show that the PSP is massively out in front, selling over 60,000 units in the space of a week. The Wii is still sitting pretty on 24,000, while the DS has dropped back a little (no doubt due to the imminent release of the DSi), but still managed sales of 22,000.

Then, there is a massive drop to the Xbox 360 on 7,844, with the PS2 just behind on 6,962. The Playstation 3, supposedly the most powerful games console ever made, and a console developed and manufactured by a home-grown Japanese company, only managed to sell 3,931 units - a new low for the machine.

Xbox 360 owners will rightly call this a victory, and the seven weeks in a row that the Microsoft console has beaten out the PS3 is impressive to say the least. It’s also proof that the Xbox seems to have turned a corner in Japan, with a combination of new games and a lower price point making the Xbox a more worthy purchase for gamers.

PSP - 60,467
Wii - 24,292
DS - 22,965
Xbox 360 - 7,844 ( its 7 weeks in a row now!!!! )
PS2 - 6,962
PS3 - 3,931 ( What happen???? )

Proton MPV compare to Grand Livina

These two shots were snapped on the NKVE by reader Reza, who happened to be on the same route as the MPV from the Jalan Duta toll until the ELITE exit.

Click for enlarged image

What’s interesting about the shot above is the fact that the Proton MPV is right behind a silver Nissan Grand Livina, who Reza said appeared to be travelling together with the Proton MPV. This allows us to estimate the size of the Proton MPV as compared to the Nissan Grand Livina. An estimation shows that the Proton MPV is slightly larger than the Nissan Grand Livina, but we can’t really be 100% sure about this as there could be some perspective errors.

Click for enlarged image

This second shot shows the LEDs of the Proton MPV’s rear taillamps lighting up.

Source: paultan.org

Western Digital quietly intros WD TV HD Media Player

Well, what do we have here? With no fanfare whatsoever, Western Digital has apparently strayed from its platter-based roots and delved into the wide, murky world of HD media streaming. The WD TV HD Media Player purports to "turn your USB drive into an HD media player, allowing you to watch your favorite HD movies on your TV." For those still befuddled, look at it like this: it enables you to plug in your USB key or USB hard drive and play back multimedia clips up to 1080p on your HDTV via the HDMI / composite outputs. The 1.6- x 4.9- x 3.9-inch box ought not bog you down too much when looking to take it on a journey, and the $129.99 price tag isn't too painful either.

source: engadget

“P2″ The Last HD DVD Released

What is supposedly the world’s last “HD DVD” release is now available exclusively at DVAspecial. The title in question is P2, a 2007 horror film which performed poorly at the box office, the title is available for $26.99.

Interestingly, Brad Kugler the CEO of DVA claims to have inked a deal with an unknown studio for more HD DVD releases. It remains unclear if Mr. Kugler is referring to new titles or those previously released.

Pioneer's 32-inch KRL-32V KURO LCD HDTV gets unboxed

Peeks and glimpses are alright, but we all know those are just the crumbs leading up to the feast. CNET's UK branch was able to grab hold of what appears to be a retail Pioneer KRL-32V KURO LCD, and of course, they paused every few seconds during the presumably mayhem-filled unboxing process in order to snap a few photos and let us all in on the fun. Early impressions were overly positive, with the lucky unboxers noting that Freeview picture quality was "impressive," and that this here set proves that Pioneer definitely "has something to bring to the LCD party."

Diego named Argies' boss

DIEGO MARADONA tonight confirmed his shock appointment as Argentina boss - with a trip to Scotland as his first match.

The 1986 World Cup winner announced he will be head coach on November 19 when his countrymen visit Hampden Park, where he scored his first international goal.

Maradona will travel to England next week to meet two Argies challenging for the Premier League title - Manchester United striker Carlos Tevez and Liverpool midfielder Javier Mascherano.

And on tuesday the Argentinian FA will rubber-stamp their choice of a controversial but all-time great player for their top job.

Maradona, 48 today, said: "I really never expected this, although I always dreamed of having the chance.

"I will travel to England on Saturday to see Tevez and Mascherano.

"And in Scotland I will make my debut.

"We're going to play the game against Scotland with the best team we've got."

Lionel Messi, 21, will be one of the few stars to miss that match as Argentina have agreed with Barcelona that the whizkid will not play every friendly.

Sergio Batista, who guided the Argentina Under-20s to Olympic glory, is tipped to be Maradona's sidekick.

And he is likely to have a technical director in Carlos Bilardo, the boss of Argentina's 1986 and 1990 World Cup teams.

Maradona's coaching experience is limited to two months with Deportivo Mandiyu in 1994 and four months at Racing Club the following year.

But Argie football chiefs hope his iconic status with both players and fans will transform a national team who have won just one of their seven World Cup qualifiers.

source: thesun

First Official 2009 Nissan 370Z Photos

Psystar slaps Apple around, releases Mac clones with Blu-ray / GeForce 9800GT

While suits from Psystar and Apple are currently attempting to work things out via alternative dispute resolution, the former company is doing something the latter company won't: offer OS X-capable machines with built-in Blu-ray and NVIDIA's GeForce 9800GT. Showing no mercy whatsoever in a recent release, Psystar calls Steve Jobs out for his controversial "bag of hurt" comment and proceeds to inform the general public that it's "now shipping" OS X-compatible PCs (better known as Open Computers) with Blu-ray optical drives and the GeForce 9800GT GPU. Based on pricing figures gathered from the company's website, a 6x Blu-ray writer is a $310 upgrade over a dual-layer DVD burner, while the 512MB GeForce 9800GT will set you back $200 more than the 8600GT. Whatcha got to say now, Steve? Huh? Huh?

Windows 7 details galore: interface tweaks, netbook builds, Media Center enhancements

Microsoft's Windows 7 announcement earlier today was followed up by an extensive demo of the new features during the PDC keynote, and since then even more info about the new OS has flooded out, so we thought we'd try to wrap up some of the more important bits here for you. Microsoft seems to have done an impressive job at this early pre-beta stage, folding in next-gen interface ideas like multitouch into the same OS that apparently runs fine on a 1GHz netbook with 1GB of RAM, but we'll see how development goes -- there's still a ways to go. Some notes:

• Obviously, the big news is the new taskbar, which forgoes text for icons and has new "jump lists" of app controls and options you can access with a right-click. You can select playlists in Media Player, for example. Super cool: when you scrub over the icons, all the other app windows go transparent so you can "peek" at the windows you're pointing at.
  
• Gadgets now appear on the desktop -- the sidebar has been killed. That makes more sense for all those laptop owners out there with limited screen space, and you can still see gadgets anytime by peeking at the desktop, rendering all other windows transparent.
  
• Window resizing and management now happens semi-automatically: dragging a window to the top of the screen maximizes it, pulling it down restores; dragging a window to the edges auto-resizes it to 50% for quick tiling. Nifty.
• The system tray now only displays what you explicitly say it should -- everything else is hidden, and the controls have been streamlined.
• User Account Control settings are now much more fine-grained -- you can set them by app and by level of access.
  
• They demoed multitouch features on an HP TouchSmart PC -- it was pretty cool, although the usual nagging "what is this good for / that'll get old fast" concerns weren't really addressed. The Start menu gets 25 percent bigger when using touch to make it easier to handle, and apps will all get scroll support automatically. There's also a giant on-screen predictive keyboard. Again -- could be amazing, but we won't know until it's out in the wild.
• We've always known Microsoft intends Windows 7 to run on netbooks, and we got a small taste during the PDC keynote: Windows SVP Steve Sinofsky held up his "personal" laptop running Windows 7, an unnamed 1GHz netbook with 1GB of RAM that looked a lot like an Eee PC, and said that it still had about half its memory free after boot. (We're guessing it was running a VIA Nano, given the announcement this morning and since most Atoms run at 1.6GHz.)
  
• At the other end of the scale, Windows 7 supports machines with up to 256 CPUs.
• Multiple-monitor management is much-improved, as is setting up projectors -- it's a hotkey away. Remote Desktop now works with multiple monitors as well.
• Media Center has been tweaked as well -- it looks a lot more like the Zune interface. There's also a new Mini Guide when watching video, and a new Music Wall album artwork screensaver that kicks in when you're playing music.
  
• Devs got a pre-beta today; a "pretty good" feature complete beta is due early next year. No word at all on when it'll be released to market apart from that "three years from Vista" date we've known forever.