Does the name Zune ring any bells? Of course you remember, we had a good laugh about the iPod clone once upon a time warp right? Well, let me just summarize the whole article up ahead in a few words of total bias. Zune is now Windows Phone 7. Yep, that’s it. Now, click the back button and clear your history.

I lied a little,  that was not it for the story of WP7. WP7 was built from ground up based on the Zune OS. Yes, it does look a lot like Zune but it was one of the few things that was good about the Zune. It looked  – whats the word I’m after here? Right, “different” and kinda “cool” (iPod users, take it easy on that last comment. Hey, I own one too!). Microsoft essentially took that idea and expanded it a little further to meet smartphone standards.

Here’s what Terry Myerson said in his blog post at Windows Phone Blog

“Windows Phone 7 is the most thoroughly tested mobile platform Microsoft has ever released.  We had nearly ten thousand devices running automated tests daily, over a half million hours of active self-hosting use, over three and a half million hours of stress test passes, and eight and a half million hours of fully automated test passes.  We’ve had thousands of independent software vendors and early adopters testing our software and giving us great feedback. We are ready.”

The Home Screen

One of the featured features on WP7 is the new home screen, Microsoft calls the little rectangular tiles as “Smart Tiles”. This is very similar to Push notifications on the iPhone and many other devices today but in WP7, things are a little different. The tiles however display dynamic content for example, if you have pictures under a certain tile, they would show up as little thumbnails and if you have facebook, all the latest activities will be featured in the tile. The tiles can be customized the way you would like by ordering and coloring. The tile display is not limited to the home screen but extends further to other applications as well.

Applications and Gaming

Microsoft spent big bucks over the last couple of years paying developers to develop apps for the new platform. At this time, there is not much information on the apps that are going to be available but for the money they spent, I’m quite sure there is something interesting coming. If you are an Xbox Live or Windows Live Games user, you now have the ability to take your games on the go. However, at this time there are only around 40-50 titles to choose from and that list is expected to grow according to Microsoft. A Microsoft representative commented today that WP7 is capable of cross platform multiplayer gaming. The games will utilize DirectX9 which would mean that most games will look almost the same way as they used in the good old days of Windows XP. Pretty neat! If it works, that will most probably revolutionize mobile gaming once again.

System Requirements

I’m about to sum up right here but this cannot be left without mentioning. Microsoft requires all the devices to meet the following standards.

CPU: 1GHz or better
Memory (RAM): 256MB or better
Flash Memory: 8GB or better
Graphics: Direct X9 Capable
Camera: 5MP or better

A Minimum of three hardware buttons under the screen, a physical camera button.

Rumors:

This is not confirmed yet but it is rumored that Nokia may jump on board WP7 due to the latest software issues in Symbian. That’s your homework to find out if its for real.

Videos:

…Either that, or it’s an ad for the PlayStation Move. Anyone for BBQ chicken?

Anyways, lets talk about the iPods. The new iPod touch is basically an iPhone 4 without the phone. It contains the A4 chip, higher resolution screen, and front and back cameras which makes it a far more versatile device. As per the case of the Touch its basically the same as previous generations but much thinner than the iPhone 4. Check out the pictures and video below.

Next lets take a look at the iPhone Nano. The Nano is probably the biggest surprise of the iPod’s because of the overhaul in design. In a way its a combination of the iPod Touch’s screen and size of the iPod Suffle. It’s Super thin, super light, and really, the capacitive multitouch works very well. The screen is crisp and top menu navigation is smooth also. The only issue with the device is getting back to the home screen. This requires pressing on the screen for a few seconds which sometimes activates other stuff that’s running.

Finally the new iPod Suffle was revealed. The thing comes in a bunch of colors and uses the typical wheel design. Not much else to say…..

iPod Touch Video:

iPod Nano Video:

Source: Engadget.com

Select the traditional plus for distinct cardinal direction movement in games like Halo: Reach to change weapons and perform complicated combinations and deadly finishing moves in Street Fighter games, or rotate the D-pad to the disc format for sweeping motions in games such as Pro Evolution Soccer 2011.

Other noticeable changes is the matte silver finish, black triggers and bumpers, as well as the A,B,X,Y buttons each in a different shade of grey. Last but not least, the joysticks have been slightly modified to be more concave for better thumb traction.

Don’t expect this innovation to come with a new Xbox however. As it stands, the new controller will only be available with the Play & Charge Kit on November 9th for $64.99 US.

Source

When Jay was asked when Diablo 3 was going to be released he said, “We will no announce a release date, are release dates always when it’s done”

Nike has filed for a patent for self-lacing shoes, complete with a charging station. Sure, not every patent filed means we can expect to see the product on the shelves, but we really hope Nike makes these shoes a reality. Who wouldn’t want a pair of Marty McFlys?

Oh, and if you’ve ever felt the urge to mug the kid legging it around the supermarket with light up shoes, you’ll be glad to know that the patent for these shoes also details lights on the sides of the soles, as well as a light up Nike logo on the tongue of the shoe.

Patent Details

PS3 Hax reports that Oz ModChips and Quantronics have both been ordered not to sell or distribute PS Jailbreak USB sticks as part of an injunction awarded to Sony by the Federal Court of Australia. This only affects retailers in Australia and is just a temporary injunction effective until August 31 – Sony has until this date to make its case for a permanent ban on PS Jailbreak USBs.

Even with the success in the critical reviews and in sales, with DLCs that are coming on a regular basis and still fans craving for more. Bioware still decided that they would tweaked this sequel with a few changes to the formula, to be more like Bioware’s other hit franchise “Mass Effect”.

You will no longer be an able to start the game by picking a race and origin. You will start the game as a human named Hawke similar to Mass Effect’s Shepard. you will be able to pick Hawke’s gender and class and even appearance but you will be playing out Hawke’s story instead of an entirely new character you created.

the Dialogue wheel has also been imported form Mass Effect to Dragon Age. where you can have up to 6 different options on how you want to respond, while symbols will hint towards the outcome of the choice (example a fist at the end of the dialogue hints if you say it a fight will break out if you choose this)

A save transfer is also going to be in the Dragon age franchise even though Hawke’s Storyline won’t have anything to do with the story in “Origins” or “Awakening” the choices you made in both will come back and be reflected in the world.

“Dragon Age 2″ will Be much more dynamic then it’s predecessor with Hawke being fully voiced and more cinematic experience was promised.

Hawke’s story will take place after the events of “Dragon Age Origins” majority of the story will take place in the City of Kirkwall in the region known as “The Free Marches” that was mentioned in the first game, north of Ferelden where the first game took place. The entire epic story will be spanning 10 years in Hawke’s life as he starts as a refugee to becoming a champion of Kirkwall.

new spells, new weapons, a more responsive combat system and an epic story awaits you, which will see a North American release on all platforms March 8th 2011

See Hawke as he battles an Abomination in the Trailer “Dragon Age 2 -DESTINY “.