Author Archives: Chris Morris

OnLive, Vizio strike deal to stream vidgames

Posted on by

Streaming movies directly to Internet-enabled TV sets has already become familiar, but manufacturers are about to begin adding top-tier videogames to their bag of tricks — which could prove to be a fundamental shift in the vidgame industry.

OnLive, a cloud-based game streaming service that has been making headlines for the past few months, announced Tuesday that it has struck a deal with Vizio that would put the service on all 2011 model HD TVs and Blu-ray players as well as forthcoming smart phones and tablets from the company.

Read more at Daily Variety

New fronts in tablet war

Posted on by

In just eight months, Apple has managed to create one of the computer world’s fastest-growing and most lucrative sub markets. And the competitors are getting tired of Steve Jobs and Co. hogging the spotlight.

Launched in April 2010, the iPad has quickly come to define tablet computing. Consumers have snatched it up, with 2010 sales expected to total between 15 million and 19.5 million units. With prices ranging from $499 to $829, the iPad is a huge breadwinner for the company; Apple can’t keep up with demand.

Read more at Daily Variety

Handy guide to tablet warriors

Posted on by

Apple might have a tight grip on the tablet market today, but at CES, the competition will come at it with both guns blazing. Here’s a look at what you can expect:

The Android tablets – Google’s mobile operating system is the de facto choice for companies going up against Apple. The problem is it’s optimized for phones, not tablets. At CES, there will be a lot of talk about devices using Honeycomb, a new version of the OS designed for tablets. Asus, Acer, Samsung, Toshiba and others are expected to have new tablet offerings revolving around Honeycomb, which should hit the street sometime in the second quarter.

Read more at Daily Variety

High price helps iPad

Posted on by

While there are plenty of companies gunning for Apple as the tablet market heats up, most have one thing in common: They’re planning to use price as a battlefield.

The iPad might be affordable by Apple standards, but it’s hardly a cheap piece of hardware, with prices ranging from $499-$829. And many competitors see that as an opening.

Read more at Daily Variety

 

CES 2011 Preview: Wednesday’s things to watch

Posted on by

It’s press conference day here at CES. That means the news floodgates are about to open big time.

Pretty much every major consumer electronics manufacturer attending the show has their moment in the spotlight Wedensday, with some 15 press conferences scheduled – including the evening’s keynote by Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer.

Read more at Variety’s Technotainment blog

Has the iPhone Become Big Brother Plus Terminator?

Posted on by

In “The Terminator” film series, mankind brought a nuclear Armageddon upon itself when it created Skynet, an artificial intelligence service that became self-aware and rebelled against its creators. In essence, the population became too dependent on technology—and paid the price.

While the Apple iPhone hasn’t shown any Schwarzenegger-like tendencies quite yet, it’s pretty astonishing just how quickly its users have grown to rely on the phones—and how much control they have given it (along with the iPod Touch and iPad) over their day to day lives.

Read more at CNBC.com

CES 2011: Toshiba unveils 3D glasses-free laptop

Posted on by

The 3D holdouts that are using the mandatory ridiculous glasses as an excuse might want to start coming up with another reason.

Toshiba has taken the wraps off of a prototype laptop that offers stereoscopic 3D images without the need for any sort of headwear. The machine uses the same technology Toshiba is using to power similar 3D TVs in Japan and lets users play games and watch movies in 3D. There’s one slight difference here: Those TVs are 12 inches. This machine boasts a 15 inch screen.

Read more at Variety’s Technotainment blog

CES 2011: Vizio TVs get a streaming game service

Posted on by

OnLive, one of the most promising streaming game services, has just become a legitimate threat to consoles.

The cloud-based gaming company today announced it has signed an alliance with Vizio to bring OnLive to that company’s TVs and mobile devices.

Read more at Variety’s Technotainment blog

OnLive, one of the most promising streaming game services, has just become a legitimate threat to consoles.

The cloud-based gaming company today announced it has signed an alliance with Vizio to bring OnLive to that company’s TVs and mobile devices.

CES 2011: Coming soon, a portable second monitor

Posted on by

If you’re a power PC user, life without two screens can be a pretty miserable thing. It sounds ridiculous, I know, but once you’ve had a day or two with multiple screens, it’s hard to imagine ever working any other way.

Then you go on the road – and you’re stuck with not only a single screen, but one that’s considerable smaller, to boot. Starting later this year, the life of dual monitor road warriors might get a little easier.

Read more at Variety’s Technotainment blog

Presenting the technology of 2016

Posted on by

We’re gearing up for the Consumer Electronics Show here – including the barrage of press conferences, keynotes and quirky show floor finds that make the gadget business a fascinating one to cover.

Rather than the typical “What to expect at the show” piece, we thought it might be more interesting to look a little farther into the future, courtesy of the futurists on staff over at IBM.

Read more at Variety’s Technotainment blog