HARDWARE

Hailing from the same stable that brought us the feature packed HTC Incredible, HTC Desire Z with its superb physical slide out keyboard and arguably the best handset released last year, the HTC Desire HD. The HTC 7 PRO is one of few Windows Phone 7 operated handsets that the Taiwanese manufacturer has produced.

The HTC7 PRO, is a feature rich powerhouse that offers users a little something different from the myriad of Google Android handsets which currently saturate the Smartphone market. At 185g with battery, 4.63″ in total length and just shy of centimetre thick, you will be immediately struck by the generous touch sensitive capacitive glass 3.6″, 400×800 WVGA screen. As with all Windows Phone 7 handsets, the minimalist designed enclosure sports just three touch sensitive buttons; back, home and search, underneath the vivid display. Like the excellent HTC Desire Z, a full slide out QWERTY keyboard is integrated, not to mention the 5 megapixel colour camera with LED flash+autofocus, capable of 720p HD video recording. The HTC 7 PRO is also blessed with grunt, thanks to its 1GHz CPU / 576MB RAM combo for seamless and speedy multitasking.

Of course being a HTC handset of such calibre, 8 GB on board storage should be more than adequate for the average user, expansion is also possible with the addition of micro sd cards. Super fast connectivity is made possible through Wi-Fi IEEE 802.11 b/g/n, also 3G enabled at 7.2mbs, EDGE and GPRS make the HTC 7 PRO bang with the best in terms of internet connectivity and sheer speed. Quad band GSM, 3.5mm headphone jack, 7/17 hours talk and standby time, micro USB connector, Bluetooth 2.1 EDR and integrated GPS antennas exemplify as usual, why HTC consistently remain front runners in the smart phone market as no stone is left unturned.

INTERFACE

With the firm establishment of Apples IOS 4, I-Phones and the behemoth Apple App store, Google Android and Android Market, the current smart phone market is an overcrowded and saturated place that is in need of something fresh. The vast amount of Google Android phones that not only currently swamp the market but indeed also the HTC roster, a feature packed windows handset with a physical keyboard is undoubted a powerful addition to the HTC family. As briefly highlighted HTC also offer a few other Windows Phone 7 handsets within its stable, notably the HTC 7 Surround, Trophy and Mozart. All of which are excellent handsets in their own right but fail to exploit the power of Windows Phone 7 due to the omission of the physical slide out keyboard found on the exceptional HTC 7 PRO.

That said, as mentioned the Desire HD alongside the HTC Incredible and Desire Z with its slide out keyboard are heavyweights in their own right, arguably being the best Google Android handsets of last quarter. So why throw away a winning recipe and opt for the HTC 7 PRO? Firstly, as highlighted on the hardware side of things, HTC have retained much of the essential features that make its Android powered handsets arguably the best. On this occasion, the company have simply optimised the best elements of their current offerings, finely tuned with the addition of the slide out physical keyboard creating a truly functional multimedia and productivity centred beast.

Back to the interface, the landing page consists of between 6 and 8 customisable tiles, big vivid and bold all of which are neatly presented in a ‘fresh’ and comprehensive animated menu system that is slick and responsive, polished, very different from any other ‘Windows’ operating system. On access we have the apps list and marketplace, HTC hub as well as people hub (Facebook application and integration). However what makes the HTC 7 PRO really stand out is the fact that this being a Windows Phone 7 handset, Microsoft Office is fully integrated (Office hub ) thus the modification and editing of emails, documents and spreadsheets are an absolute breeze thanks to the excellent keyboard. Coupled with superfast connectivity, the HTC 7 PRO is without a doubt a functional workhorse.

MESSAGING AND WEB

A tap of the picture hub on the home screen, will instantly take you to your gallery where you can effortlessly share and update pictures and post them on Facebook, Twitter or your social network flavour of your choice. The integrated keyboard takes the effort out of SMS and MMS not to mention Facebook updates, instant messaging, windows live and emails. The internet browser on the HTC 7 PRO is not too dissimilar to its desktop counterpart, Internet Explorer 8. Pictures are vibrant and detailed on the large screen and websites load quickly. However the browser does not currently support Flash content or Silverlight, but rest assured, knowing Microsoft, an update is well in the pipeline! Of course, YouTube applications and other media apps are aplenty for immediate download.

MULTIMEDIA ENTERTAINMENT & APPS

The HTC 7 PRO seamlessly integrates work and productivity with entertainment, a simple tap of the home screen button and one is whizzed back to the clean landing page, where upon access of the music and videos hub, you can browse, download, watch and listen to your favourite clips and movies. You can even preview albums and choose from thousands of videos before buying them with a Zune pass via the integrated Zune services. The handset also supports a variety of codec’s including mp3 and wma and records in mp4.

The HTC 7 PRO comes bundled with ZUNE software, similar to the familiar iTunes interface, allowing the handset to wirelessly synchronise with your music and media catalogue on your PC though WI-FI even whilst the phone is charging!

With a 1GHz Snapdragon processor, the HTC 7 PRO really shines when using Bing maps or Google maps, as images and locations are rendered in a flash, pinching and zooming in and out of locations with precision and ease. Apart from the sensational hardware and slick operating system, one of the strongest standout features is the fact that the HTC 7 PRO handset can actually support and play console-quality video games with Xbox LIVE integration.

FINAL THOUGHTS

When Choosing a HTC Handset one could be spoilt for choice. Fact is, HTC offer the best value for money, price vs performance handsets found anywhere on the planet and to ever grace the palm. It’s usually the discerning that delineate the slight differences and benefits HTC handsets offer. However, if you’re not necessarily particular and after a ‘do it all’ phone, something that can seamlessly integrate business and productivity with multimedia and social networking, with a plethora of onboard connectivity, storage, features and flexibility not to mention the exquisite slide out keyboard not currently found on any other HTC Windows Phone 7 Handset; the HTC 7 PRO covers all basses. Whilst it may not be the ‘right’ phone for everyone, this functional, cohesive powerhouse is a joy to use and unquestionably offers something for absolutely everyone.

This strikes a blow at the campaign organised by both Coca-Cola and road safety campaign THINK!. Now in its third year, the campaign offers drivers who choose to be the designated driver free soft drinks. However with 32 per cent of men saying its not ‘manly’ to be seen with a soft drink and 47 per cent saying they would feel like a ‘wuss’ if they ordered such a drink, it seems as though the campaign is falling on deaf ears.

There is a number or adverts around during the festive season, both on radio and TV advising about not just the dangers of drink driving but also the repercussions. A recent radio advert involved an interview with a man who had been caught drink-driving. Following his ban from driving, not only did he lose his job because he couldn’t get to work but he also lost his girlfriend due to not being able to travel to see her as often. Other countries take much more extreme measures to tackle drink-driving such as South Africa.

In a locally-produced television advertisement the South African campaign imitates lonely hearts film clips from burly and dishevelled men telling viewers “I’m looking for a special person”, “These hands will never let you go”. Whilst the threat of prison rape is a step to far, what will it take for men to realise the dangers of drink-driving?
A change in attitude

Last year there was over 12,000 drink-drive casualties with 380 killed in collisions. A change in attitude is definitely needed as the problem persists. The AA polled a number of its customers asking what excuses they had heard for drink-driving. A massive 67 per cent said they had heard the excuse ‘It’s only down the road’.

Edmund King, president of the AA said “There is no excuse for drink driving. Drivers must accept responsibility and stop making excuses for drink driving. A short journey, urban myth or a low perceived risk of being caught are not valid excuses for breaking the law and putting lives at risk. The “it’s only down the road” excuse can easily end up with a trip to the morgue.”

Being caught with alcohol in your systems can have massive implications on your life. Not only could you lose your job, girlfriend and ability to drive, you will also end up paying for it in the years to come. Having a drink-drive conviction (DR10 penalty) on your license can increase your car insurance premiums by up to 75 per cent. Some insurers will just flat out refuse to insure you. The table below shows the increase in premiums when having such a conviction on your license.

Sourced by www.moneysupermarket.com 06.12.2010

The rise in cost can be substantial and as insurers will always ask if you have any driving convictions in the last five years, you are guaranteed to pay a lot more than the initial fine.

There are very few racing video games that give you long game play but the newest Dirt 2 will provide many hours of game play. But you know anytime a game is good on the Xbox 360 or PlayStation 3 then chances are the Wii is not going to be too hot.

In short, Dirt 2 on the Wii basically resembles playing the game on the PSP. So imagine how it will look on the PSP and add motion control and you have the Wii version of the game.

The game’s overall feel is extremely unpolished. Tires sound like static, the competition is not very aggressive, and the tracks are not very challenging. Things that are standard on the other two games consoles are not featured on the Wii. Simple features that should be included like cockpit mode or being able to hear music while driving is not available.

The biggest problem with Dirt 2 is that it isn’t fun. Plus there are major issues with the game controller in the Wii. Using the analog stick setup the game is not too bad to play. But using the virtual wheel was a big disappointment. There just was not enough sensitivity to my movement to move the car.

In conclusion, this is great game on the PSP. The game is okay on the Xbox 360 and the PlayStation 3. I would skip it for the Wii. If you can afford it buy Dirt 2 for the PSP and then wait for the next Need For Speed game to come out to play on the game consoles.

Eric is a avid gamer and electronics freak. To read more reviews and recommendations on gaming headphones then Click Here.

If you’ve never played a Sim City game, I can only assume you’re either living in a cave or you just don’t like video games. It’s been around forever. For those of you living under a rock, Sim City is simply a game where you build your own city and manage it. Sounds simple enough, right? Well, sometimes it can get pretty complicated. You’ll occasionally get whiny residents badgering you to lower taxes or you have to take out a loan because a giant gorilla just destroyed half of your town.

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When I heard there was a DS version of Sim City, I knew I had to have it. It’s a classic that’s worth hours of game time and I figured the touch screen would give it an easier interface. Unfortunately, I think the developers dropped the ball on this one.

The Good

Let’s start with the good aspects of this particular game. The best part is, of course, getting to use the stylus to control things. It makes it easier when you’re zoning off land, building roads, and placing buildings. You simply scroll through some simple menus, find what you want, and click on a grid-map to decide where you want things to go.

They also made various additions to get more use of the stylus out of this one. Whenever you promise a citizen you’ll enact a new policy, a piece of paper comes up where you sign your name. The fun part about this is that you can write anything you want there and it doesn’t matter. Draw an elaborate picture of a squirrel for all they care! As long as you scribble something, it’ll be satisfied. Every year the citizens will throw a celebration for you like a fireworks display. You have to use the stylus to set off the fireworks. It’s a simple little mini-game, but it’s pretty fun!

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The Bad

There are MANY popular features missing from this version of Sim City. You can’t build monuments, you can’t set off disasters on your own (they’re always random), and to be perfectly honest, you can’t do much of anything. You also are constantly pestered by citizens and the characters they use for the citizens are about as annoying as they get. You can choose to ignore them, but when your assistant is bugging you every ten seconds to let you know there’s someone who wants to talk to you, it’s quite obnoxious.

What irked me the most was the fact that after about fifteen hours I was pretty much stuck. My city could hardly grow any bigger because it was taking up most of the map and I still only had 50,000 residents. All I was doing was filling in areas with heavy residential zoning and waiting for the tax dollars to roll in so I could do it again.

Okay, so… Do you recommend it?

If you’re a little kid who has never played a Sim City game, it might be a good introduction because it’s not too difficult and kids will find it easier to control than the PC versions.

Otherwise, forget it.

Overall Recommendation: Save your money and buy a cheap copy of Sim City 2000 from Dsi download Center.

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The Pokèmon games for Nintendo’s Game Boy (and its reincarnations) are among the most popular video games ever created. In the latest installments, Pokèmon Diamond and Pokèmon Pearl (which, like their predecessors, are basically the same but each has some Pokèmon that you can only catch on one version and not the other), the Pokèmon franchise has jumped onto Nintendo’s latest handheld, the DSi. The premise is exactly the same as the previous installments: you catch little monsters (Pokèmon) and battle others with them. You travel from town to town, defeating the leaders of Pokèmon gyms and collect badges. Your goals are twofold: to become the greatest Pokèmon master of all time as well as to collect every single Pokèmon in the game.

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So, what’s new about this one? What sets it apart from all the other Pokèmon games we’ve played?

The Differences

As I haven’t played any other Pokèmon games since the Gold version on the Game Boy Color (which I never finished), I’m not sure exactly what the previous games looked like, but if you’re like me and felt that the Gold and Silver versions were too similar to the original Blue and Red games to be worth it, you’ll be pleasantly surprised by Diamond and Pearl.

The most notable difference is in the graphics. Though it is essentially the same, with all of the people being tiny sprites and the Pokemon battles looking almost exactly like they did, the 3D effect used on the buildings and trees make it look shiny and new. You feel like you’re actually getting a top-down view of your character. The rest of the graphics are much more crisp and clean than the previous versions, of course, thanks to the DSi’s greater graphical capabilities.

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The beginning is pretty much the same as every other Pokèmon game: you choose your name and sex, you get into a situation where you have to pick your first Pokèmon, and off you go on your adventure. As the game progresses, you’ll find plenty of pleasant surprises that make this game unique from the others. This is where the DSi’s stylus comes in.

Though the stylus isn’t used excessively much, it can be used to control the battle menus. I prefer using the D-pad myself, but if you’re looking for a change of pace you might try using the stylus. There are a number of mini-games that also make use of the stylus, like the Pokèmon contests. Though it’s not essential for most of the game, using the stylus in these mini-games adds variety to this game.

The Similarities

In essence, this game is fairly similar to the versions before it. There are over 100 new Pokèmon introduced, as well as numerous appearances of Pokèmon from the original Blue and Red versions. I found this to be a great thing since I was never a big fan of the “new” Pokèmon. 151 was enough to keep track of! Though I must say, the new Pokèmon introduced in this game are pretty neat. I absolutely LOVE Bidoof, a guinea pig/beaver-like creature who beats Pikachu hands-down in the cuteness department.

Okay, so… Do you recommend it?

Sure! If you’re a Pokèmon fan, you’ll really enjoy this. If you grew up playing Pokèmon as a kid like I did, you’ll find this to be a pleasant nostalgia trip that uses the same formula that made these games so addictive without being exactly the same as the originals.

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Overall Recommendation: Unless you absolutely abhor Pokèmon, you really should give this one a try!

This movie to video game adaptation is done very well. It is a mmorpg (massively multiplayer online role playing game) that has a unique combat system where you attack directionally instead of click and lock on like most mmos. You perform combo by hitting the directional attack buttons in sequence. This can lead to cool fatalities and more damage.

It is set in the Robert E. Howard universe which has its own races and cultures besides that of Conan’s Cimmeria. You can choose to start in Cimmeria; a barbaric cold world. Stygia; an Egyptian like world with Pyramids and snake worshipers. There is also Aquilonia which is like an advanced society like the Romans or Byzantium.

There are many guilds in the game some with over 300 people others with 50-60 people. They are going to add Guild Alliances and Alliance Battle Keeps. There are plenty of servers to choose from as well. They have PvE (player vs environment) or PVP servers or culture PvP where you fight different race classes.

The leveling system goes as such; from 1-20 you play in Tortage a pirate island so you can learn the game and system. Then from 20-80 you essentially play in the full world and can engage in PvP anywhere outside of cities. There are some solo instances(zones) where you can only fight by yourself against monsters. There are also raid instances where you need large groups to defeat epic monsters. Sometime you need from 6-12 players depending on the instance. These zones will yield better loot such as swords or armor with better stats.

The game’s initial release had so much hype that it had trouble living up to it in the first few months. Now, they have PVP (player versus player) experience and have fixed a lot of the errors and bugs that occurred in the early months. They have ironed out almost all of the bug and game play problems. They have smoothed over some of the class differences as well. There may still be a gap between some classes, but each one is needed to fill out a good team.

You can siege other player made Battle Keeps or fight in other PVP skirmishes and mini games. There are catapults and War Mammoths that can take down the enemies walls. You can defend you keep with Archers and guards from inside and out. The graphics are very good so make sure you have the latest requirements before buying the game. I give it a 9/10.

Irrespective of the age, from 5 to 50 year – almost all of us enjoy reading to favorite video game reviews. Video games that people can go online and connect with other people are very popular. They are a popular form of entertainment. If some believe them to be useful in relieving stress, others simply play them for fun. Implementation of modern technology and designing has helped create multitudes of user-friendly video games.

The vast repertory of online video games comprises ingredients of every taste and likeness. For the millions of fans, video game reviews offer the direct connotation of the information partaking to gaming. Be it those bang-bang action or intuitive strategic game play options, for every choice of your, you’ve a game. While a lot many games allow players to complete their initial levels for free, the future attraction in store lures gamers to go for the level next while paying certain amount of money for it. And from the list of such games that are grabbing maximum of eyeballs, Microsoft’s Xbox 360 game variants top the chart.

Just not only on games, video game reviews provide information on Xbox 360 accessories. In addition to superior gaming environment, the gaming experience in an Xbox 360 gets enhanced by the quality of sophisticated and ergonomic Xbox 360 accessories available for the system. Xbox 360 accessories are some of the best unit currently on the market as described in several video game reviews.

Up to four controllers of the Xbox 360 accessories can be used at one time. Most of the systems come with wired controllers, but now wireless is the new trend. A rechargeable battery pack is available with the gadget that provides twenty five hours of power for the wireless controllers. A play and charge kit is a well-liked way to recharge a controller while playing a video game. This can be accomplished by plugging the controller into one of the given Xbox 360 USB ports. Also other accessory available is the quick charge kit which has two battery packs.

A small keyboard is there that is used for messaging. Xbox 360 accessories include a headset that is plugged directly into the chatpad. Steering wheels are mainly used for racing games; most steering wheels have a force feedback so it feels like people are driving a real car. Xbox 360 accessories also include floor mounted brake pedals and accelerator.