Gadgetell | Tech News, Reviews, and Interesting Things

Even though Microsoft has “officially” stated that a Blu-ray drive would be sold for the Xbox 360, this rumor just does not want to die. The latest information is coming courtesy of the Chinese newspaper, Economic Daily News, and it seems to indicate that Microsoft is still interested in utilizing the apparent winner of the HD disc war for their game console.

The Economic Daily News is reporting that Pegatron Technology, a subsidiary of Asus, has orders, from Microsoft, to assemble Xbox 360 consoles that are equipped with a Blu-ray drive. This purported assembly is set to begin in the Q3 of this year. Microsoft has yet to comment on this latest chapter in the Blu-ray/Xbox rumor, so more as it happens.

Read [Digitimes]

To give us all a break from the Eee PC frenzy, Asustek is giving us the skinny on their new gaming laptop which was first introduced during CEBIT 2008. This gaming rig called the Asus G70 sports “multi-dual engine” architecture, meaning its major components were built with duplex structure.

So first we have the G70’s dual graphics engine, make that two independent Nvidia 8700M GT graphics engines that work in parallel with each other through SLI technology. The G70 also has a 1GB GDDR3 dedicate physical memory and another 553/667MHz DDRII RAM. Next we have a dual hard disk with combined storage capacity of up to 640GB, that’s more than half a terabyte folks. Would the Asus G70 also have a dual CPU? Yes, and it’s a choice between two Intel Core 2 Duo or two Core 2 Extreme processors. Of course nothing could be sweeter than having a dual display to match those previously mentioned dual system features, right?  Equipped with a 17-inch WUXGA (1920x1200) full HD display, the Asus G70 boasts of an ultra-quick 8ms response time, supported by a secondary screen that displays critical system information, incoming email and message alerts and personalized messages. Yes dear readers, gone are the days of annoying alerts that pop-out of the lower right button of your computer’s screen.

MORE »

Our sister site Gamertell has spotted an interesting freebie at Target retail stores. The chain is putting out a Speed Racer-themed gift card that comes with a 60+ MB USB 2.0 Flash drive built right in. It is one of those gift cards you fill with money to give to someone else, so it’s essentially free if you happen to forget to fill it before you take it home. (*wink*)

The Flash drive is preloaded with 50 MB of promotional files including the usual wallpapers, printable coupons, movie files and a videogame cheat code for the upcoming release of May 6, 2008, release of Speed Racer: The Videogame. You can, of course, keep or delete the files as you wish and simple have a nifty fat credit card sized Flash drive with a Speed Racer skin.

Read [Gamertell]

Toshiba has unveiled two new powerful gaming laptops, the Satellite X205-SLi5 and the X205-SLi6. Both laptops are powered by Intel’s 45nm processors and offer NVIDIA SLi technology that is sure to delight hardcore gamers.

Both models of the X205-SLi laptops feature HDMI ports to allow gamers to play games on their 1080i high-definition HDTV display. For added excitement, Toshiba has thrown in an S/P DIF output port that gives 5.1 stereo surround sound when combined with Dolby Sound Room technology. The two Toshiba laptops come with Intel Core 2 Duo processors, 3GB RAM, 320GB-400GB hard drives that run at 7200 RPM, DVD multi-drives, wireless gaming features with Bluetooth V.20+EDR technology and a 1.3-megapixel webcam.

The X205-SLi5 and X205-SLi6 will sell for around $1,999 and $2,499 respectively. Ready to shell out that amount of money for your gaming pleasure?

Read [Toshiba Direct]

uWink sounds like the name of an online dating service, but it’s a restaurant concept from Nolan Bushnell, founder of both Atari and Chuck E. Cheese.  So you’d expect arcade games at such an establishment, but uWink takes it a step further and has the games built into your tabletop!  You and your dining companions can have fun playing games while waiting for your food and after finishing your food, and most of the games are free!  Also, large wall projections let patrons from different tables play against each other.  What a great idea for if you want to book the restaurant for a private function, and yes uWink can customize the games too!  I guess that’s where the “wink” comes in, since you can meet people from other tables.

The technology also extends to the food ordering process.  Terminals at each table display the menu along with photos of each item and a list of ingredients, so you know what you’re getting and can order the food to your exact specifications.  This is great for folks with food allergies and other dietary needs.  Everything is done using the terminals, from ordering the food to asking for refills to paying your check.  As for the food itself, you’d think it’s an afterthought, but apparently it isn’t as it’s prepared by accomplished chefs.  So uWink’s got the technology and it’s got the food, I can imagine it’s hard to score a table!  uWink is opening their second L.A. location next month, but it’s a concept other parts of the country could embrace as well.

Read [LAist]

Nokia has officially launched its N-Gage mobile games service. The N-Gage allows gamers to try and buy mobile games directly from their Nokia handsets. As we reported last Friday, the N-Gage service supports Nokia handsets that belong to Nokia’s new generation of mobile phones. These handsets include N81, N81 8GB, N82, N95 and N95 8GB.

For its initial offerings, N-Gage is making available various mobile games such as EA Sports’ FIFA08, Brain Challenge and Asphalt 3: Street Rules by Gameloft; World Series of Poker Pro Challenge by Glu Mobile and Hooked on: Creatures of the Deep and System Rush: Evolution by Nokia’s own mobile game publishing arm. Nokia also promised to release more games in the coming days.

Aside from trying and buying games from N-Gage, users can also create Friend List, send and receive private messages and participate in N-Gage’s IM style chat. Prices of games to be featured in N-Gage will range from $9 to $15, but remember you can always try the games first before paying for them.

Read [Nokia]

Nokia has finally launched its N-Gage gaming service with high hopes of revitalizing the ailing mobile gaming market. (And possibly earn a few more bucks?) Although an official announcement will be made on Monday, the N-Gage blog took one step in advance and informed the loyal N-Gage followers who were testing the product during its beta stage, that the N-Gage platform is already opened.

The N-Gage is fully compatible with Nokia’s top mobile phone series – the N95, N81 and N82. With Nokia striking a deal with major cellphone game developers such as Electronic Arts, Gameloft and Glo Mobile they should prove to be successful. Nokia hopes to have around 25-30 games available by mid-2008 and add another 25-30 during the second half of the year.

Can the N-Gage re-ignite the dying flames of mobile phone gaming? That remains to be seen.

Read [N-Gage] Via [I4U]

Sony has long been claiming that all its consoles have a 10-year life cycle. Its claims of console longevity seemed inflated at first, but once you take into account the life cycles of its past consoles, those claims hold some merit. In North America the PSP reached its third anniversary on March 24, 2008, and if John Koller, senior marketing manager for the PSP, is to be believed then even the handheld is supposed to have a 10-year life cycle.

Read more [Gamertell]

MSI must have received reactions from GX600 users that it decided to upgrade its gaming notebook to fully support the demand of today’s 3D games. The latest iteration of MSI’s GX600-Enhanced, which is how the notebook is now called, features Intel 45nm processing chips, increased memory and hard disk drive capacity.

What was previously an already powerful gaming right was made even powerful and resource-efficient with the new processor and a 3GB RAM and 320GB of hard disk storage. Gamers would definitely have a heyday playing their favorite MMORPG and other online games using the GX600-Enhanced.

MORE »

N-Gage First Access, the testing ground for the pre-release version of the N-Gage application where users can try and buy N-Gage games and provide feedback about them is ending its beta on March 27, 2008. Although there was no word yet on the exact date of the official launch of the final version of N-Gage application, the N-Gage site mentions it will be happening in the next few weeks.

Related to this announcement, the official N-Gage blog has issued some reminders for those who participated in the N-Gage First Access run.

MORE »