L.A. Noire (PC) out now

All those PC gamers waiting to step into the boots of Detective Cole Phelps can now do so as L.A. Noire is now out on the PC. Of course, this is just the Steam version; the retail one will be hitting stores locally by the 11th of November 2011 for Rs. 999.

Wha! You mean there's no port for Read Dead Redemption?

The PC version of this game will include a ton of tweaks like better visuals, 3D support, mouse and keyboard support as well as all the DLC released for the game till date that includes The Nicholson Electroplating Arson case, The Reefer Madness Vice case, The Consul’s Car Traffic case, The Naked City Vice case and A Slip of the Tongue Traffic case.

If you do plan on picking up this game, here’s what you’ll need to be running under the hood to play it:

- Operating System: Windows 7 / Windows Vista Service Pack 1 / Windows XP Service Pack 3 / OnLive for PC or Mac
- Processor: Intel Dual Core 2.2GHz to Quad Core 3.2GHz / AMD Dual Core 2.4Ghz to Quad Core 3.2Ghz
- RAM: 2GB to 8GB
- Hard drive space: 16GB
- Video Card: NVIDIA GeForce 8600 GT 512MB to NVIDIA GeForce GTX 580 1536MB / Radeon HD 3000 512MB to Radeon HD 6850 1024MB
- Sound Card: 100% DirectX 9 Compatible
- DVD Drive

source: http://tech2.in.com/news/pc/la-noire-pc-out-now/256222

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Posted in L.A. Noire , L.A. Noire DLC , L.A. Noire India , L.A. Noire PC , L.A. Noire PC Indian release date , L.A. Noire price in India , L.A. Noire review , Rockstar , The Nicholson Electroplating

Nokia N9 gets updated with new features

Nokia has got a new PR 1.1 release for its N9 users that brings a number of improvements to the MeeGo- based handset. The software update version number for this latest release is 20.2011.40-4. Nokia has introduced updates in connectivity, as well as the overall user experience, There’s more stuff happening on the lock screen now as well as with music controls and more indicators.

Neat..

As mentioned in Nokia’s Support Discussions, some of the new features include:

• NFC tag reading to instantly interact with NFC tags
• Music controls on lock screen
• Photo and video shooting with colour filters
• Better multitasking with improved memory handling
• Swype text input
• Faster MfE sync, synchronizing only active folders
• Better noise cancellation that helps reduce background noise 
• Close apps easily with swiping down, by default
• New indicators for standby screen like charging and calendar

In case an automatic update is not available, N9 users can do a manual check in settings/applications/manage applications.  Along with this, according to GSMArena, Nokia is planning to launch a new PR1.2 update, soon. This update will enable system wide copy and paste across all folders and a better camera performance. However, no more details have been divulged.

source: http://tech2.in.com/news/smartphones/nokia-n9-gets-updated-with-new-features/256182

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Posted in Nokia N9 , Nokia N9 automatic , Nokia N9 automatic update , Nokia N9 manual update , Nokia N9 OTA update , Nokia N9 smartphone , Nokia N9 update , Nokia N9 update release , Nokia N9 upgrade

Uncharted 3 - Drake's Deception

Lara Croft is so passé. The undisputed queen of raiding has been replaced by Nathan Drake, an everyday man with a penchant for danger and an amicable shoot first or rather jump first, ask questions later mentality. Two games in and the Uncharted series has already established itself as the definitive blockbuster experience on the PlayStation 3.  In our mind, Uncharted 2 was the perfect game fusing action and platforming with some of the most gripping set-pieces ever witnessed in a video game into one highly attractive package. Naturally, our expectations were sky high from its sequel, Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception. With such lofty expectations riding on its shoulders, Uncharted 3 still manages to deliver a thoroughly entertaining blockbuster experience. Only it’s not as perfect as we’d hoped.

Long road out of hell

This time around, Drake and his mentor, Sully are in search of something called the Atlantis of the Sands, a mythical place in the Rub’ Al Khali desert that houses a powerful secret. Naturally, they aren’t the only ones after this. A shady organization that dabbles in the occult has their eye on the prize as well for obvious nefarious reasons. The plot while predictable is extremely enjoyable thanks to some witty writing and the banter shared between Drake and his companions. It’s the video game equivalent of a buddy cop movie from the nineties and we love it.

Those who’ve played the last two games know exactly what to expect from this one as well. Your time in Uncharted 3 will be spent climbing around derelict, crumbling structures, shooting bad dudes and indulging in some big budget sequences I’d rather not spoil for you. This being a sequel carries with it the unfortunate side-effect of being predictable. Every time you enter a level your mind will immediately begin to pick up clues as to how the set-pieces will play out. Of course, predictable or not, when they do occur, they’ll still blow your brains out. No doubt about that.

Breathless

While I’m fine with the “more of the same” mentality most sequels bring to the table, I was pretty disappointed with the game’s combat that actually felt like a step back from Uncharted 2. Naughty Dog have tried to make Drake’s animations feel as life like as possible and they’ve succeeded with their vision to a certain extent but an unfortunate side effect of this is that I never quite felt in control of Drake. Gunplay also felt a bit off as the game’s aiming mechanics are not as tight and responsive as they used to be. This makes combat feel like somewhat of a chore.

source: http://tech2.in.com/reviews/playstation-3/uncharted-3-drakes-deception/255162

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Posted in Uncharted 3 , Uncharted 3 control issues , Uncharted 3 multiplayer , Uncharted 3 PS3 , Uncharted 3 release date , Uncharted 3 release date India , Uncharted 3 review , Uncharted 3 review India

Firefox 8 officially launched, updates available now

We spoke about the early availability of the Firefox 8 browser yesterday, on Mozilla’s FTP server, but today, the browser is officially available for download. Firefox 8 is being launched as part of a rapid release cycle for the browser. One of the biggest features is the ability to search Twitter tags and names from the search bar. As expected, there are a whole bunch of bug fixes and performance tweaks being made to the browser. There’s more control over the way add-ons are installed. Third party add-ons will not be enabled until the user chooses to. Some visual changes to the tab animations have also been made. Current versions of Firefox will auto-update to the latest build. If it doesn’t, users can download the latest version from the official site.

Finally available for download

Two other accompanying products to be launched today are Thunderbird 8.0, the email client and Lightning 1.0, a calendar app. Firefox 9 and Firefox 10 are already under development. Firefox 9 should soon enter Beta, while Firefox 10 appears in the Aurora development builds. Firefox 10 should offer a newer interface. It’s currently available as a nightly build on the Firefox site.

source: http://tech2.in.com/news/software/firefox-8-officially-launched-updates-available-now/256262

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Posted in Firefox 8 , Firefox 8 Download , Firefox 8 Features , Firefox 8 Free Download , Firefox 8 Release , Firefox 8 Release Date , Firefox 8.0 , Firefox 8.0 Release Notes , Mozilla Firefox 8

Fly Vision Tablet Review

In recent months, brands have launched tablets that cater to the needs of the budget-minded consumer. We have seen the Reliance Tab, and close on its heels came the Beetel Magiq tablet. Fly is a fairly popular brand in India, best known for their entry-level mobile phones. The company has recently launched one of the most economical tablets available in the market, second only to the Akaash tablet. But money isn’t the only consideration of course, so read on to find out if the value of the Fly Vision meets its price tag.

Vast number of ports

Design and Build Quality
The design of tablets, these days are pretty much standard. With nothing exciting really to talk about. Fly has stuck to a tried and tested form factor making the Vision similar in appearance to other tablets. It’s equipped with a 7-inch resistive touchscreen, which has a 16:9 aspect ratio and a resolution of 800 x 480. This means that one can use a stylus or fingers (but will need to tap the display with a little more effort) to access the various onscreen options. However, if a little more too much pressure is exerted on the display it causes several anomalies to appear. One side of the bezel has a brushed metal finish and on it is a singular ‘Home’ button.

This tablet is basically in landscape mode and the top is where the buttons such as on/off, menu and return keys are placed. On the bottom of the slate are where all the ports are located. These include a full-size USB port, a mini-USB port, DC-in for charging, a 3.5mm audio jack, as well as a MicroSD card slot. There is a 2GB memory card that comes along with it and the storage capacity can be expanded to 16GB. The rear features a built-in speaker. The one thing that this tablet misses out on are dedicated volume buttons, and to adjust the volume one has to be in the media player.

Simple yet stylish rear

Overall, the design is pretty neat and the brushed metal strip on the face adds to the style factor. It is pretty slim as well and can easily fit in the back pocket of a pair of jeans or a handbag. The tablet is not really heavy as well and carrying it around does not pose a problem.

Features and Performance
Interface
The Fly Vision tablet runs on a stock version of Android 2.2 Froyo. On the home page and the main menu, there are no enhancements present. However, the media players for audio and video do feature some enhancements. The home screen is pretty simple looking and it appears like Fly has just added Froyo on this tablet without any customization from their end. We don’t have much of a problem with this, except for the fact that we would like brands to set themselves apart from the rest.

The tablet runs on a 600MHz ARMv6 processor. In terms of power, this is obviously not the fastest, but you can’t expect too much from the price. This is evident while navigating through the interface and the lag that is noticeable onscreen. As compared to the Beetel Magiq, this tablet is pretty slow. The buttons on the top help in accessing the options such as settings, wallpaper, notifications, etc., right from the home page itself. So there is no need to go to the main menu, because this helps with just a single click. There is no camera on this slate.

The resistive touchscreen shows some bleeding

While running Linpack, the Fly Vision tablet gave us a score of 1.908 MFLOPS on multi thread, while we got a single thread reading of 2.157 MFLOPS. Not impressive, at all.

source: http://tech2.in.com/reviews/tablets/fly-vision-tablet-review/255292

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Posted in fly vision , Fly Vision features , Fly Vision price , Fly Vision price in India , Fly Vision review , Fly Vision specifications , Fly Vision specs , Fly Vision tablet , Fly Vision tablet review

BlackBerry Torch 9860 Review

BlackBerry may have had a bit of a set back lately with the whole “outage” issue but that hasn’t really stopped them from pushing the sales of their new products. One of the latest devices to make it out of the Canadian manufacturer’s domain is the totally-touchscreen enabled BlackBerry Torch 9860. Here’s a closer look at the device that might just help you decide if it’s worth your while.

Form Factor
Taking its cue from the Storm series of touchscreen devices previously launched by RIM, the Torch is quite unlike its predecessor and the current updated model of the same the Torch 9810. The 9860, although quite chic is a little heavy (135g) and features a 3.7-inch capacitive touchscreen with a 480 x 800 pixel resolution. The display itself is unfortunately far from resistant to scratches. After a couple of weeks of usage the handset already looks quite “used”. The simple removal and placement of the handset from my pockets was the primary cause of the display getting scathed. That being said, the 9860 is however quite a sturdy device and has managed to withstand some rather hard knocks and falls. The falls also left a few scars on the display but the handset on the whole is still quite intact and relatively damage free.

Slick as they come

The top portion of the device serves as a screen lock. On the right hand side are the 3.5mm handsfree socket (the new bundled handsfree kit is of top notch quality), followed by volume keys with a tiny play/pause button in between. At the bottom, on the same side, is the BlackBerry Convenience key that can be assigned to any specific function available with the handset which include – camera activation and shutter release, Voice Dialing, etc. The rubberized, slim keys are quite easy to access when holding the device in one hand.

Elegant and sturdy

A micro USB port for charging and USB connectivity is located on the left hand-side. RIM has provided four physical buttons below the display for answering and disconnecting calls, a return key and pop up menu option. The optical trackpad might seem redundant to some but can be quite handy in some web-browsing instances. A microSD hot swap slot is just under the hood and the 9860 also comes with 2.5GB of internal storage as well.

Features and Performance
Interface
The OS du jour for the 9860 is BlackBerry OS 7 running on a 1.2GHz processor that was not as impressive, in terms of functioning, as we hoped. The OS is well designed and so much better than the older versions, but for some reason didn’t seem to function as well as it did on the Touch and Type Bold 9900. Although there was a smooth flow to the access and navigation of the menus etc., the more the handset was used, - and we used it a lot - we noticed that it kept hanging while trying to download apps for App World and in certain other spaces.

Keypad is a little small

The on-screen keypad was a little bit too small and kept closing quite frequently whenever anyone with stubby fingers tried accessing the top row of keys. In landscape mode though it was a little better. The integration between the phone book, your email and SN accounts makes it easy to keep track of information. All that being said, BlackBerry users looking for a slightly different feel and a definite upgrade to an OS they were looking to see go up a notch or two will find BlackBerry OS 7 on the Torch 9860 quite a good option. It’ll take a while to get used to the keypad though, unless you’ve got slender digits.

Media
As usual, RIM has ensured that most of your media needs are met with satisfaction. The music player is excellent and with the added support for Audio Boost and presets you will thoroughly enjoy your music experience on the 9860. The video player supports 720p HD files as long as they’re in MP4 formats. We did expect 1080p playback though considering the 1.2GHz processor supporting the devices functionality.

Excellent audio quality

The handset is equipped with enough codec support to read most formats. However with an upgraded system and RIM’s recent issues, to sell this product better to those looking for a better media offering, we feel the 9860 could have had support for more codes. As is though most AVI files will playback without the need for conversion, but not all.

source: http://tech2.in.com/reviews/smartphones/blackberry-torch-9860-review/255402

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