If there’s one thing that those familiar with the video game industry know, it’s that things move quickly. Publishers and developers are constantly competing to produce what they hope will be the next big thing. Nintendo know this, and they have managed to maintain a decent level of success thus far. Their DS and Wii consoles ushered in new eras in both handheld and home gaming, and since it was released in 2006 the Wii alone has sold upwards of 89 million units. With sales finally starting to decline, however, along with the relatively poor performance of their latest handheld, the 3DS, Nintendo must now look to the future. The 3DS may not have done as well as was hopped, but it was nevertheless a bold step forward in the future of gaming technology, and the Wii U marks another – although perhaps in a slightly different direction.

The Wii U is still a way off yet, estimated for release sometime in winter 2012, with an earlier Japanese release probably over the summer. Much has yet to be revealed: the key selling point so far has been the Wii U’s unique controller, which completely revolutionises the concept of a gaming remote. More like a tablet than any console controller to date, the U controller is a large and cumbersome piece of equipment. However, within that chunk of plastic players will have use of not one but two touch screens. Like Sony’s upcoming handheld, the PS Vita, the Wii U controller has a visual touch screen on the front and an additional rear touch pad for added control when gaming. On either side of the main screen is a joystick, as well as standard controls such as arrow keys, shoulder buttons etc. Measuring a whopping 6.2 inches, the primary touch screen will combine with the rear screen and additional buttons to create an entirely new input method, shaking up the interactive gaming experience.

So how exactly will this innovative new controller contribute to gameplay? Building on the link between consoles that Nintendo first attempted (rather unsuccessfully) with the Game Cube and Game Boy Advance, the Wii U controller will directly impact the way you play on your main TV screen. You can play on both at the same time, using the controller to display certain aspects of gameplay from different views or perspectives. You can also switch from the main console to play just on the controller – although this does not make the controller an independent handheld, as it must remain tethered to the console in order to function. The best news is that the Wii U will be entirely back compatible, not only with regards to original Wii games but also all earlier Wii accessories and input devices. Up to for Wii Remotes can be combined with the Wii U controller for an exciting multiplayer mode.

The Wii U is quite unlike anything we've seen in the gaming world so far.

Now, all this may be difficult to process at first, but it’s worth bearing in mind that when the Wii was first released in 2006 many people laughed outright at the thought that it could change the world of gaming as we know it, and look where we’ve ended up on that front. The motion sensor of the Wii was so popular that both Sony and Microsoft felt obliged to release their own versions, respectively the PlayStation Move and the Xbox Kinect. Ubisoft in particular, who have supported Nintendo for some time, are wholly backing the Wii U, as are some surprising big name publishers, offering franchises and multi-format releases that the original Wii missed. Third parties have pledged titles such as Assassin’s Creed, Batman, and Ghost Recon, and when added to Nintendo’s own hard-hitters like Smash Bros. and Zelda, the Wii U looks set to not only build on the success of the Wii but also take it into new territory previously occupied by the Xbox 360 and PS3.

Publishers and developers, although reluctant to adapt major multi-format games for the Wii’s motion controls, were content to make exclusive titles for the console because they had a guarantee that 100% of players had access to the remote. Kinect and Move, on the other hand, were optional extras and therefore less successful. This wasn’t an issue when the consoles were directed at different audiences; the Wii catering primarily to families whilst the Xbox and PlayStations went for older, dedicated gamers. However, the Wii U raises that bar with a powerful quad-core processor (similar to that which powers the Xbox 360) and HD graphics that are rumoured to exceed the limits of all predecessors, making it more of an all-round machine. With additional features including a camera on the controller allowing direct video calling, a web browser in which the controller screen can zoom in and focus on specific features, and of course the ability to share media between controller and TV, Nintendo are taking things to the next level with their second generation Wii.

So what do you think of Nintendo’s plans? Check out the video below to see the full Wii U trailer as debuted at E3 earlier this year.

- Kat Humphries

Sources and further information:

Ubisoft CEO: ‘We Think Wii U Will Be Successful’ – gamasutra.com

Wii U: first hands-on with Nintendo’s new console – guardian.co.uk

Introducing Wii U – e3.nintendo.com

Nintendo Wii-U … what you need to know – pluggedin.co.uk

Wii U: all the latest details – techradar.com

However, there are additional benefits of having bought the console on first release, at its original price. The Nintendo 3DS Ambassador Program was designed to reward those consumers who purchased the hand-held during its first few months of availability – if you owned a 3DS and performed a system update or visited the Nintendo eShop before the deadline of August 11^th, you will have automatically registered for the program which gives you access to 20 free downloadable games. The first 10, already available for download, are NES Virtual Console games including Super Mario Bros and Zelda II – The Adventure of Link. The remaining 10 are GBA Virtual Console games, 5 of which have been announced, including Yoshi’s Island and Mario Kart. These will be released for download before the end of 2011.

The original Super Mario Bros. game for the Nintendo Entertainment System has be re-released for download on the 3DS.

Access to these retro Nintendo classics alleviates one of the major problems that the 3DS has faced – at its launch, none of the most popular Nintendo favourites were available for play. The games that coincided with the release of the console were mainly uninteresting, missing out all the heavy hitters of Nintendo’s catalogue such as Mario, Donkey Kong and Zelda. This meant that even hard core Nintendo fans were somewhat apprehensive, and although this didn’t affect initial sales it may explain why Nintendo have felt the need to decrease the console’s selling price so drastically so soon after release.

In an attempt to keep things fresh, Nintendo have now released a new edition of the 3DS to add to the original two colours, Cosmos Black and Aqua Blue. The newest variant is Metallic Red, which was released recently to coincide with the launch of the Star Fox 64 3D game. This reimagining of the Nintendo 64 classic may help to expand the 3DS’s appeal to the die-hard Nintendo fan, whilst giving all consumers more variety in their choice of console. Misty Pink and Ice White 3DS’s have also been announced.

The Metallic Red 3DS was released in Japan under the name Flare Red, and in North America and Australia as Flame Red.

- Kat Humphries

Sources and further information:

Nintendo 3DS on Wikipedia.org

Nintendo 3DS Ambassador Program at Nintendo.com

“Open, exciting and dynamic”
“Around a tenth of the price of the most expensive cans in the test”
“They’re well built, use copper-clad aluminium wire voice coils…”
What Hi-Fi October 2011

Providing a fair and complementary review, What Hi Fi commented on the audio quality for such an affordable price, making the headphones a great choice for personal or professional use.

Michael O’Connor from LINDY comments, “Gaining 4 stars for our premium HIFI headphones is a fantastic achievement and one that will let our customers know that they can rely on us for continuing to supply quality electronic products. These headphones are an increasingly popular choice, particularly for music lovers looking for a clear and accurate sound, with no external distractions. Following the success of LINDY’s Noise Cancelling headphones, which last year also gained 4 stars in a similar What Hi Fi review, it is great to see good feedback continue with such a highly regarded source.”

LINDY Premium HiFi Headphones are the ideal solution to enjoy audio either in public or in the comfort of your own home. They equal the performance of competitors, which in most instances cost many times more; they are high quality with accurate responses. Retreat into your own world with the LINDY premium headphones, which are comfortable enough to wear for long periods of time. You can connect them easily to a Hi-Fi system and professional audio equipment, or carry them with you in a specially designed padded carry case.
Technical Spec:

Sensitivity: 100dB
Impedance: 64 Ohm
Frequency response: 10Hz – 26KHz
Power handling capacity: 100mW
Nominal THD: <0.2% at 1KHz

It would seem the biggest drawback of the phone is the time it takes to load apps. For a unit that houses a moderately fast dual-core processor, the loading times should be significantly quicker than what they are, and when it comes preloaded with a significant amount of apps, the hope would be that transitioning to them, would be a smooth and easy experience.
Although the Droid 3 is an attractive unit with the specs to keep you happy for a few months, it comes at a time when the market is flooded with bigger and better things, so by the time it is released in the UK, it might just be obsolete.

In order to achieve this slenderness Sony has had to make a few alterations so they have had to get rid of two of its most notable features the internal disc drive and dedicated graphics. However, they have come up with a solution – the Power Media Dock. The dock resembles an external optical drive but it crams in an AMD Radeon HD 6650 graphics chipset, and also acts as a docking station. The dock also has a USB2 and USB 3 port on the back of the dock and an Ethernet socket. As well as this there is also D-SUB and HDMI video outputs on the back and if you unhook a flap on the dock’s top edge, and you’ll find another USB 2 port for quick attachment of a USB flash drive or similar. You can charge the dock from the mains or you can use a single connector to charge the notebook and transfer data. It also uses Intel’s Light Peak technology which jets all the graphical, USB and network data via the VAIO Z’s USB 3 port.

What’s more the display is very impressive as the resolution is very sharp and in fact the lowest spec model has a 1,600 x 900 resolution display making the whole display really impressive and sharp.

However, just because it is ultra portable doesn’t mean it skimps on performance. In fact even without the power dock it is still a good notebook. While even the lowest spec Vaio Z series comes with a Core i5-2410M processor. Because they have done away with the graphics and placed them on the media dock it does mean that the battery time is impressive which is perfect for long journeys in fact Sony claim that there seven hours of battery life with the internal 4,000mAh battery.

Arc uses 1 GHz Scorpion processor with Adreno 205 GPU, a common combination normally found in high-end Android devices by HTC and other manufacturers. Sony Ericsson is playing this one safe for sure, since the combination is already famous for offering superb all-round performances even under heavy use. It comes with the latest Android OS v2.3 Gingerbread as well.

HSDPA of up to 7.2 Mbps is the main data connectivity offered by the Sony Ericsson XPERIA Arc. You can also use the built-in Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n module to connect to hotspots to enjoy broadband internet access. If you want to connect to the internet using your laptop or any other wireless-enabled devices, you can transform Arc into a mobile wireless hotspot through wireless tethering.

A built-in 8-megapixel camera with autofocus and LED flash is also included. The camera comes very equipped with tons of features including touch focus, image stabilization, geo-tagging, and smile detection.

All those amazing features are packed together into a very thin and compact device. The exterior design of XPERIA Arc is simply too beautiful to miss, with the 4.2 inches LED-backlit LCD dominating the front part of the phone and the arc-shaped back making this phone very comfortable to hold and use. What a magnificent work of art! You can read more here!

The Motorola ATRIX 4G was officially released only a month after it was announced. This is rather unusual, since mobile phone manufacturers usually announce their latest smartphones months before the actual release date. However, Motorola’s decision to release the new Motorola ATRIX 4G so quickly may be a wise one nonetheless; the market is looking for better, more capable Android handsets to fulfill their needs and Motorola ATRIX 4G may very well be the answer.

Motorola ATRIX 4G is also special because it is among the first Android phones to use a dual-core processor. ATRIX 4G comes with a 1GHz ARM Cortex-A9 proccessor and an NVIDIA Tegra 2 chipset. You can expect stunning performances on both data processing and 3D graphics, especially since a built-in ULP GeForce GPU is also present.

Motorola’s decision to use Android OS v2.2 Froyo on the ATRIX 4G is indeed a bit shocking, but you don’t have to worry because an update to Android OS v2.3 Gingerbread is already on its way. ATRIX 4G’s capabilities will certainly be maximized further with Gingerbread installed, presenting even more fluid user interface and improving the overall usability.

The good news is, this device is very affordable, plus there are so many stunning add-ons that will turn ATRIX 4G into an even more capable mobile device.

As you may have already known, the new iPad 2 comes with built-in cameras. Don’t expect capable cameras that can cater to your photography needs, but the two built-in cameras are not to be taken lightly at all. The main camera at the back is capable of capturing HD video at 720p resolution. The front camera, on the other hand, captures crisp and vivid images to be streamed using FaceTime to another Apple device.

Added apps also make the new iPad 2 much more exciting. Photo Booth can now be used to apply effects and manage pictures you take using iPad 2’s built-in camera. The improved Safari browser is lightning fast and will make cruising through the internet much more enjoyable. Full support for HTML5 means you can still view multimedia files on HTML5 sites without Flash.

Let’s not forget that iPad 2 is 1/3 thinner than the first iPad, meaning it is so much cooler and sleeker in every way. It comes with black or white (yes, white) exterior to choose from.

The first notable feature is of course the 3D screen as well as the offered 3D gaming experiences. You don’t need to wear an additional 3D glass to enjoy games in full 3D. The internal GPU automatically process objects by adding depth and space in order to create a realistic 3D view.

Several interesting games will also be released very soon as the Nintendo 3DS hits the shelf. Nintendogs + Cats will be one of the most anticipated Nintendo 3DS games so far, offering a completely new playing experience that requires more player involvements. Metal Gear Solid: Snake Eater 3D, even though it is a remake, is another highly anticipated title that will be even better in 3D.

Several other third-party games will also be available in spring 2011. Tom Clancy’s Shadow Wars, for example, will certainly be interesting to play on a Nintendo 3DS, especially with the amazing graphics thanks to the cell-shaded layers and textures. My personal favorite is the upcoming Resident Evil: Mercenaries, maximizing Nintendo 3DS’s multiplayer features and taking advantage of the 3D gaming platform.

The release of Nintendo 3DS certainly brings tons of new excitements to mobile gaming.

When I say that Xiilun Micro PC is the smallest PC, I seriously mean VERY SMALL. The entire PC can be stored in your shirt’s pocket, nothing more than the size of your favorite smartphone. Even with its small form factor, Xiilun Micro PC is very capable and can be used to do any standard office-related tasks such as document editing and web browsing.

The Atom 600 processor used in Xiilun Micro PC has the speed of up to 1.6 GHz. Compared to current Atom processors used in notebooks, however, the Atom 600 is more capable thanks to the newer architecture. 1 or 2 GB of DDR2 RAM is also installed to support the processing capability of Xiilun Micro PC.

An integrated Intel GMA 600 and DirectX 9 support means the Xiilun Micro PC can be used with both Windows XP and the latest Windows 7 without hassle. A microSD slot, an HDMI port, and 4 USB 2.0 ports are also available to make it easier for you to connect this micro PC with other devices including USB flash drives and input devices.