VR-Zone Tech News for the Geeks Nov 2012 Issue

October 31st, 2012 Published by: VR-Zone
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VR-Zone.com | Tech News for the Geeks!
VR-Zone | Stuff for the Geeks is a bi-weekly
publication covering the latest gadgets and stuff for the
geeks.
Disney to buy Lucasfilm and
Lucasarts, will release new
Star Wars movies
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/disney-to-buy-lucasfilm-and-
lucasarts-will-release-new-star-wars-movies/17674.html
October 31st, 2012
In a surprise move that has shocked the industry and
fans alike, Disney has bought Lucasfilm and all of its sub-
divisions, including gaming company Lucasarts, and plans
to release a seventh Star Wars film in 2015, with at least two
more to follow.
In a surprise move that has shocked the industry and
fans alike, Disney has bought Lucasfilm and all of its sub-
divisions, including gaming company Lucasarts, and plans
to release a seventh Star Wars film in 2015, with at least two
more to follow.
The stock and cash deal, worth a whopping $4.05 billion,
effectively hands over the reins of the Star Wars universe
from creator George Lucas to Disney, opening the way for a
slew of new Star Wars productions.
Everything under the Lucasfilm name will now be under
the Disney banner, including special effects and audio
production firms Industrial Light & Magic and Skywalker
Sound, and not to mention LucasArts, the studio that
oversees dozens of Star Wars games, including the recent
Star Wars The Old Republic MMO by BioWare.
Kathleen Kennedy, current Co-Chairman of Lucasfilm, will
become President of Lucasfilm, answering to Alan Horn,
Chairman of Walt Disney Studios. Disney said the present
intent is for employees to remain in their current locations.
Perhaps the biggest revelation made during the deal is that
Episode 7 is a reality, with a targeted release date of 2015.
Lucas will serve as creative consultant, while Kennedy will
serve as executive producer. This is only the first of several
new films too, with Robert A. Iger, Chairman and CEO of
Disney, promising Episodes 8 and 9 too, with even further
plans to release more movies every two to three years.
Iger talked about “maximizing the value of our strategic
acquisitions,” suggesting this is a franchise that will receive
a lot of attention over the coming years, and likely not just
on the big screen, given previous plans for a Star Wars live-
action TV show.
“For the past 35 years, one of my greatest pleasures has been
to see Star Wars passed from one generation to the next,”
said George Lucas, Chairman and CEO of Lucasfilm. “It's
now time for me to pass Star Wars on to a new generation
of filmmakers. I've always believed that Star Wars could
live beyond me, and I thought it was important to set up
the transition during my lifetime. I'm confident that with
Lucasfilm under the leadership of Kathleen Kennedy, and
having a new home within the Disney organization, Star
Wars will certainly live on and flourish for many generations
to come. Disney's reach and experience give Lucasfilm the
opportunity to blaze new trails in film, television, interactive
media, theme parks, live entertainment, and consumer
products.”
Disgaea D2 coming to PS3
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/disgaea-d2-coming-to-
ps3/17673.html
October 31st, 2012
The latest title in the Disgaea series “Disgaea D2” will be
released for Playstation 3 in Japan on March 20th
2013
for 7140 Yen (around $89 USD), with a first press limited
edition available for 11340 Yen (around $142 USD).
In this brand new simulation RPG from Nippon Ichi
Software, players will be able to once again play as the
popular characters Laharl, Etna, and Flonne from the
original Disgaea.
What is Disgaea?
• A realm where devils and angels soar the skies. A realm
where heroes and villains lock swords in battle.

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This is not the world as you know it. This is the Makai –
a world of magic and sorcery where normal logic does not
apply, where almost anything can happen. In this fantastic
world, many characters will set out on the road to their
destinies, and on the way meet others from distant lands.
They may become the best of friends, or they may become
sworn enemies – only time will tell.
• The same Disgaea style we all know and love.
Nippon Ichi has kept a consistent style throughout the
series of Disgaea games, thanks to character designer Takehi
Hasegawa and music designer Tenpei Sato’s participation
in the development of each game. Without their efforts,
Disgaea just wouldn’t feel the same!
• Are you a noble or a scoundrel? It matters not if you’re
having fun!
Disgaea’s characteristic turn-based combat is back;
complete with tutorial modes which welcome players who
may be new to the series. However, seasoned veterans of the
simulation RPG genre need not be scared away by the low
learning curve of the game, as there are plenty of intricate
and original elements speckled throughout the game which
will provide even more entertainment to those who put in
the effort to master their secrets.
• Open-ended character creation & training
It is possible to customize several aspects of your teammates
such as job class, personality, and skill set. Players can
produce a unique character that won’t be found anywhere
else thanks to the unlimited combinations of features that
are available for each character.
• Refreshing gameplay with puzzle elements and
extravagant visuals
In addition to the thrill of defeating powerful enemies,
puzzles dotted throughout the world will also provide
players with as much pleasure as watching the exciting
visuals which play every time your characters blow away an
enemy with a powerful special move.
If you’re still not excited for the game yet, check out what
bonus stuff you get!
(Note: don't get too excited unless you live in Japan or can
play imports on your PS3...)
Pre-order bonus content:
Legacy outfits for Laharl, Etna and Flonne (original outfits
from the first game downloadable from PlayStation Store)
First print limited edition bonus content*:
Etna & Flonne set of 2 figures from Niitengo
Hard-cover impressively detailed design booklet
OST set of 2 CDs
*All of the above come in an exclusive limited edition
box designed and illustrated by character designer Takehi
Hasegawa.
Activision launches
Transformers Prime on
Nintendo systems
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/activision-launches-transformers-
prime-on-nintendo-systems/17672.html
October 31st, 2012
Activision has launched Transformers Prime on Nintendo
game systems, bringing the world of the animated TV show
to life in an interactive brawler experience.
Activision has launched Transformers Prime on Nintendo
game systems, bringing the world of the animated TV show
to life in an interactive brawler experience.
The game will feature everyone's favourite Autobots
and Decepticons, including Optimus Prime, Bumblebee,
Arcee, Ratchet and Bulkhead, as well as Megatron and

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Thunderwing, along with the human characters of the show
like Jack, Miko and Raf.
The single-player game focuses on the Autobot adventure,
while multiplayer (not available on DS) will allow players to
choose from 11 different Transformers from both factions.
The gameplay involves brawler-style combat and numerous
driving sequences.
“The Transformers Prime television show is a fantastic series
and we're excited to bring this new adventure to Nintendo
and Transformers fans alike,” said Kurt Niederloh, VP of
Activision. “We've worked hand-in-hand with Hasbro and
the TV show producers to bring this all-new storyline to life
with the spirit and trademark gameplay Nintendo gamers
have come to know and love.”
The game is now available on the Wii, 3DS and DS, and will
be a launch day title for Nintendo's next-generation console,
the Wii U, on 18 November.
Google loses Australian
defamation lawsuit
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/google-loses-australian-defamation-
lawsuit/17671.html
October 31st, 2012
Google has lost a lawsuit in Australia where it was accused
of defaming a man by linking his name with gangland crime
in search results.
Google has lost a lawsuit in Australia where it was accused
of defaming a man by linking his name with gangland crime
in search results.
62-year-old Milorad (or Michael) Trkulja, who moved to
Australia from Yuogslavia in the 1970s and hosted a TV show
in the 1990s, sued Google after it refused to remove search
results that Trkulja claimed were damaging his repution.
In 2004 he was shot in the back at a restaurant by a
man wearing a balaclava, with the crime never resolved,
but police did not believe it was linked to the criminal
underworld.
Despite this, Trkulja's name started to appear in Google
searches linked with alleged murderers and drug traffickers,
as well as with the words “Melbourne Crime,” which he
claimed might give people the wrong impression that he was
a criminal.
With such an uncommon name in Australia, Trkulja found
that when he searched for his name the first result that came
up contained the words: “Melbourne Crime – Underworld
– Ganglands,” adding: “Former music promoter Michael
Trkulja was shot in the back by a hitman wearing a balaclava
while dining at a St Albans restaurant in June 2004.”
He claims that this suggestion that he was involved in crime,
resulting in a hitman being hired against him, has damaged
his reputation, resulting in people publicly avoiding him and
even refusing to sit at the same table as him at a wedding.
Trkulja's lawyers asked Google to change the search results
in 2009, but Google refused, claiming that its search
results were automated and was therefore a case of
“innocent dissemination,” an argument that the jury said
was reasonable only up until Google was contacted by
Trkulja.
Google has the option to appeal, but Yahoo also previously
lost a case taken by Trkulja, making it diffult to see how
the search giant might overturn the verdict. It will need
to remove the offending search results and the amount of
damages to be paid to Trkulja will be set over the next two
weeks.
The case, and similar cases taken against Google, show how
potentially damaging search results can be, even if there
is no malicious intent behind how certain keywords and
names are linked together. As Google loses more cases like
this, it is likely it will be forced to change its approach and
remove allegedly defaming material as soon as it receives a
complaint.

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2K Games and Gearbox
release Borderlands Legends
game on iOS
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/2k-games-and-gearbox-release-
borderlands-legends-game-on-ios/17670.html
October 31st, 2012
2K Games and Gearbox Software have launched
Borderlands Legends, a mobile gaming experience for iOS
devices set in the same world as the console titles.
2K Games and Gearbox Software have launched
Borderlands Legends, a mobile gaming experience for iOS
devices set in the same world as the console titles.
Brick, Mordecai, Lilith and Roland are all back from the
original game, fighting off endless waves of Skags, Bandits,
Psychos, Bruisers and a slew of other enemies in a mix of
action-RPG and strategy.
There is an easy to navigate menu, important for
small smartphone screens, randomised maps, randomly
generated weapons, shields and utilities, and dozens of skills
and abilities to unlock. The same unique artistic style as the
original games is also present.
The game is limited to iOS devices for now, but the team
behind it mentioned there is a possibility of extending it to
other mobile devices in the future.
Borderlands Legends costs $4.99 on the iPhone and iPod
Touch and $6.99 on the iPad.
Let's just hope people's characters aren't inadvertently
deleted, like in a recent bug for Borderlands 2.
Injured worker's father sues
Foxconn
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/injured-worker-s-father-sues-
foxconn/17669.html
October 31st, 2012
Zhang Guangde, father of factory worker Zhang Tingzhen
brought electronics manufacturer Foxconn to court this
Tuesday after his son suffered severe injuries while working
at Foxconn’s Shenzhen factory. Mr. Zhang expressed to the
court his extreme dissatisfaction with the transfer of his son
to a comparatively cheaper hospital in Huizhou to receive
treatment. He also stated that Foxconn should continue
payment of his son’s medical fees.
(Zhang Tingzhen undergoing treatment after obtaining
severe injuries)

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(Zhang Tingzhen before injuries obtained at Foxconn)
Zhang Tingzhen was injured while fixing a spotlight at the
Shenzhen factory, where he suffered severe trauma to the
brain after being electrocuted and falling to the ground.
Tingzhen was saved from near-death after part of his left
brain was removed.
Directly after the incident, Foxconn had originally paid
Zhang Tingzhen’s medical fees, however starting from this
month the company notified the family that payment of
medical fees would cease unless Tingzhen was transferred
from the expensive Shenzhen to Huizhou, which is situated
some 69km away.
Zhang Guangde’s plea stated that Tingzhen’s fragile state
could not bear long distance travel, and that Foxconn should
continue payment of medical fees for treatment in Shenzhen.
Zhang’s lawyer presented to the court several items of
evidence including his time of hospitalization, his salary
record, and affidavits from coworkers which proved that
Tingzhen did indeed receive injury while working at the
factory.
Chinese factories have a long standing trend of hiring
workers from areas with a lower average salary, and having
them work in areas with higher commodity prices, in an
effort to lower expenditures. Foxconn denied allegations of
using such a strategy when employing Zhang.
Earlier this month Foxconn made a statement to CNET
expressing: “Chinese companies are required to purchase
insurance for their workers via a government social security
system. This makes it impossible for any company to gain
a profit by giving workers low wages or employing people
from areas with a lower median salary. Government issued
social security compensation is different in each area, and
Foxconn have already guaranteed Zhang Tingzhen’s family
compensation for any difference in social security which
arises as a result of their moving to Huizhou. We have
guaranteed this regardless of the fact that we have no legal
obligation to do so, simply because it represents the best
interests of Zhang Tingzhen.”
Samsung to mass produce
28nm 'Adonis' processor for
Galaxy S4
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/samsung-to-mass-produce-28nm-
adonis-processor-for-galaxy-s4/17668.html
October 31st, 2012
Samsung is gearing up to start mass production of a
new mobile application processor (AP) with increased
performance and lower power consumption compared to
previous models.
According to related sources, Samsung Electronics’ System
LSI operation division produced a test model of an original
28nm High-K Metal Gate (HKMG) process based mobile AP
named “Exynos 5400” (codename: Adonis).
The Exynos 5400 utilizes ARM’s latest Cortex A15
architecture, and packs 4 CPU cores with a low power-
consuming GPU as a bonus.
Thanks to process miniaturization and an upgraded GPU,
the Adonis gets not only a boost in power but also burns
through a battery a lot slower than the existing 32nm HKMG
based Exynos 5250 (Cortex A15).
Should Samsung keep on schedule with mass production,
this chip is set to be the first mobile AP on the market which
utilizes a 28nm HKMG process. TSMC are collaborating
with Samsung Electronics to provide a foundry to fabricate
Qualcomm’s latest Snapdragon iteration; however this
product will not be HKMG based. Instead it will utilize a
traditional SiON silicon based process.
HKMG enables the manufacturing of low power-consuming
chips as ultra-miniaturization of the fabrication process
can take place without the side effect of current leakage
associated with shrinking processes based on the regular
SiON approach.
According to market analyzers Strategy Analytics, Samsung
Electronics took 2nd
place with 25.9% market share of the
mobile AP market in the Q2 of this year, compared to market
leader Qualcomm who possessed 38.8%.
The product is expected to reach market in the first half
of next year, and analysts predict it will be used in the
next iteration of Samsung’s flagship Galaxy smartphone
(Galaxy S4) for some localities. Mass production is slated to
commence at the end of this year.
Arndale Exynos 5 with Mali
T604 board offers Android
developers all the goods
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/arndale-exynos-5-with-mali-t604-
board-offers-android-developers-all-the-goods/17667.html

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October 31st, 2012
ARM development boards such as the Raspberry Pi and the
VIA APC are fun to tinker with, but those are kids' toys
compared to the Arndale board featuring Samsung’s Exynos
dual-core Cortex A-15.
(VIA APC board ~$50)
While Raspberry Pi will go for around $50, the base Arndale
board will cost enthusiasts and developers $250 a pop, and
will come with 2GB of RAM, 4GB of internal storage, and a
plethora of connectivity options. Add on some modules such
as the Wi-Fi/BT/GPS, audio, touch panel, and camera and
you may have to shell out around $750 for the total package.
The Exynos 5 with the Mali T604 in the Arndale is the same
beast that powers Google’s Nexus 10 tablet. Samsung’s spin
on this board offers 12.8GB/s of memory bandwidth, 1080p
60FPS video with VP8 codec decoder, and USB 3.0.
This time around, Samsung will provide developers with
information on the Exynos—something Samsung has kept
on the down low in past Exynos hardware. There is a site
that’s dedicated to this particular board and accessories for
it. Additionally, there will be documentation and instruction
on how to build Android and flash it, and the source code for
the device will be available in December.
Scott Forstall ousted
because he didn't sign Maps
app apology letter
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/scott-forstall-ousted-because-he-
didn-t-sign-maps-app-apology-letter/17666.html
October 31st, 2012
Drama among Apple’s managements may be the reason why
iOS chief, Scott Forstall, will leave the company at the end
of this year.
The change in management will be a massive shake up for
Apple, and apparently it’s out of stubbornness that Forstall
has decided to jump ship. According to various reports,
Forstall refused to sign the apology letter regarding the
faulty Maps app in iOS6, which Apple’s CEO, Tim Cook, had
publicly acknowledged while also suggesting alternatives.
Apparently, Forstall’s history within the company seems to
have a part in foretelling his ultimate departure later this
year. Bloomberg reported in a recent story that Forstall
wasn’t always “cooperative,” and that he would brag about
his relationship with Steve Jobs on more than one occasions.
Apple announced Monday that its current chief designer,
Jonathan Ive, would step in to fill the void that left behind
as a result of Forstall’s ousting. Also in the announcement
was the news regarding Apple’s head of retail to accompany
Forstall in the departure.
The Wall Street Journal reported that without Steve Jobs
around to mediate the tension between the execs, the
inevitable happened. Jobs was notorious for his hot
headedness and stubbornness, but according to sources
familiar with the matter, Jobs did his part to retain talents
within the company.
Google releases competitor
to Siri for iOS
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/google-releases-competitor-to-siri-
for-ios/17663.html
October 31st, 2012
Three months ago, Google introduced us to it's new voice-
search system, and now it's finally been released on iOS
as a competitor to the native Siri. The new voice search
replicates a lot of the features found in the new voice-search
capabilities for Android's Jellybean. The software provides
voice queries with spoken results and provides web searches
for anything it doesn't have knowledge about.

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Google's approach, during initial testing by CNET, proved
to be faster than Siri in many regards. Google's approach
also displays your spoken words as text while you speak,
something which Siri doesn't do until you've finished
speaking. The new feature was released in an update to
Google's search app, and added support for the iPhone 5. iOS
users with version 4.2 or above will be able to use the new
feature. Google stated earlier this year that it plans to expand
this functionality to Google Calendar and Drive, though no
date has been set for when this might happen.
ARM Introduces Its 64-bit
Processors: Meet the Cortex-
A53 and Cortex-A57
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/arm-introduces-its-64-bit-
processors-meet-the-cortex-a53-and-cortex-a57/17652.html
October 31st, 2012
At the ARM TechCon which is being held in Santa Clara, CA
the company introduced its first processors based on 64-bit
ARMv8 architecture. Under the name Cortex-A53 and -A57,
the company plans to usher itself into the microserver era,
where it won't face competition from Intel until 2016.
The ARM TechCon 2012 conference is being viewed as a
pivotal event for the company. While previous conferences
were always quite poor, both in content and the way how
they were organized (a complaint we heard from several
large ARM partners) - the 2012 conference is flooding
the news channels with quite important announcements.
Everything is gearing up for a major attack on the market in
2014, with Intel scheduled to launch its microserver parts in
fourth quarter 2013 or first quarter 2014 (Bay Trail platform
with Valleyview processors, which we exclusively disclosed
here).
The News
First off, AMD announced that the company will ship hybrid
64-bit x86/ARM processors for servers, all carrying the
Opteron brand name. While details about the parts remain
hidden, we were assured that AMD will mix the 64-bit
low-power "Jaguar" cores with ARMv8 cores, SeaMicro's
Freedom Fabric and most probably with the Volcanic Islands
GPU.
Secondly, Cadence and IBM successfully demonstrated a
test chip with ARMv8 based 14nm process node with
both IBM FinFET (Tri-Gate, so called 3D transistors) and
next-gen Fully Depleted SOI (Silicon-on-Insulator). The
combination between FinFET and FD-SOI is viewed as
advantageous over competitors that use bulk silicon (Intel,
all TSMC clients), and you can expect IBM, GlobalFoundries
and Samsung Electronics to fully utilize the two technologies
once 14nm hits in 2014. Three foundries in question are
members of the Common Platform Alliance, which shares
the resources in order to accelerate development. 14nm
FinFET / FD-SOI wafers will be available from IBM East
Fishkill (NY State) GlobalFoundries Malta Fab (NY State)
and Samsung's Foundry in Austin (Texas).
ARM's 64-bit products for 2014 take shape
With the manufacturing set in place, the time came for
ARM to unveil a true successor to the popular Cortex-
A9 (2009) and Cortex-A15 (2012) models. The two new
models come under the name Cortex-A53 and Cortex-A57.
These two are first parts based on the eight generation
ARM architecture (ARMv8), targeting superphones, tablets,
convertible designs and high-density servers.
According to ARM, the Cortex-A53 and -A57 should offer at
least three times the performance of Cortex-A15 parts, while
keeping the full compatibility with existing ARMv7 code.
As the name goes, the two parts have different roles,
even though the look in their internals reveals that not all
the numbers play in hand of the higher numbered part.
According to the press release, Cortex-A53 is "most power-
efficient ARM application processor," while the Cortex-
A57 is "most advanced high-performance applications
processor."
Cortex-A53 at a Glance
• Out-of-Order ARMv8 32/64 Core
• Up to Quad-Core Design
• 40-bit Physical Memory Address
• Up to 1TB RAM (LPDDR3 to DDR4)
• 8-64KB L1 I-Cache (w/parity)
• 8-64KB L1 D-Cache (w/ECC)
• NEON SIMD Engine
• FPU
• 128KB - 2MB L2 Cache (w/ECC)
• 128-bit CoreLink Interconnect (CCI-400 and
CCN-504)
Furthermore, we have a product overview:

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Cortex-A57 at a Glance
• Out-of-Order ARMv8 32/64 Core
• Up to Quad-Core Design
• 44-bit Virtual Memory Address
• Up to 16TB RAM (LPDDR3 to DDR4)
• 48KB L1 I-Cache (w/DED parity)
• 32KB L1 D-Cache (w/ECC)
• NEON SIMD Engine
• FPU
• 128KB - 2MB L2 Cache (w/ECC)
• 128-bit CoreLink Interconnect (CCI-400 and
CCN-504)
Just as with the Cortex-A53, we obtained an overview of the
Cortex-A57 silicon, thanks to PR team at Race Point Group:
ARM announced six vendors that will utilize Cortex-
A53/A57: AMD, Broadcom, Calxeda, HiSilicon/Huawei,
Samsung Electronics and STMicroelectronics. We'll address
AMD's strategy in a separate article, while you can expect
A53 and A57 to be the center of quad-core designs
from HiSilicon (paired with Mali-T604 or T628 graphics),
Samsung Exynos 6000 Series, while Broadcom, Calxeda and
STMicroelectronics will use the concepts above for their
respective markets (embedded - automotive, networking,
etc.).
All in all, Intel's 32-bit Out-of-Order mobile architecture
codenamed Silvermont will have a battle royale on their
hands, with ARM entering the server space with AMD and
Samsung.

November 1st, 2012 Published by: VR-Zone
1
geeks.
Study finds smartphones and
tablets extend work days by
two hours
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/study-finds-smartphones-and-
tablets-extend-work-days-by-two-hours/17691.html
November 1st, 2012
The rapid growth of smartphones and tablet computers had
led to working days increasing by up to two hours for some,
according to a survey by Pixmania.
The rapid growth of smartphones and tablet computers had
led to working days increasing by up to two hours for some,
according to a survey by Pixmania.
The research found that the average working day is upwards
of 12 hours long, with nine to ten hours in the office and a
further two hours making phone calls or answering emails
after clocking out. That number jumps to three hours for one
in ten people surveyed.
Close to nine out of ten office workers have email access on
their phones, with two-thirds checking their email on waking
and before bed, which means they probably dream about
work too. A third of people check their emails between the
unholy hours of 6am and 7am, while a quarter log in between
11pm and midnight. The average user checks for new emails
a whopping 20 times a day.
“Many companies expect their employees to be on call 24
hours a day, seven days a week, and smartphones mean
that people literally cannot get away from work,” said
Ghadi Hobeika, Marketing Director of Pixmania. “The more
constantly in contact we become, the more is expected of us
in a work capacity.”
Of course, users can turn their phones off, turn off 3G or 4G
connectivity to stop getting emails, disable notifications, or
in some cases set their smartphone to blocking mode, which
restricts incoming calls and messages to certain allowed
numbers between certain times of time. Unfortunately many
employees will feel obligated to add work numbers to the
whitelist, ensuring work forever haunts their home life.
Human-controlled car beats
self-driving car in race
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/human-controlled-car-beats-self-
driving-car-in-race/17689.html
November 1st, 2012
Self-driving cars are becoming a growing phenomenon,
touted by many as a safer way to travel, but when it comes to
racing, humans still have the upper hand – for now.
Self-driving cars are becoming a growing phenomenon,
touted by many as a safer way to travel, but when it comes to
racing, humans still have the upper hand – for now.
The race was held at the Thunderhill Raceway in California,
with an automated Audi TTS developed by the Centre for
Automotive Research at Standford University facing off
against a human driver.
There were 15 turns on the track, presenting a challenge for
the robotic car which adjusts to surroundings thanks to a
number of sensors fitted to it, and the driverless car reached
speeds of 115 miles per hour.
In the end the human driver won, but only by a few seconds,
suggesting that it is likely only a matter of time before robotic
racers beat us to the finish line.

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The experiment will be pivotal to future development of
self-driving technology, with the researchers at Stanford
analysing data collected from the race, including from
human drivers, in order to incorporate better controls into
the car.
The ultimate aim is to take what is learned and developed
from this research and bring it into safety systems for cars,
particularly for dealing with unpredictable scenarios like icy
roads. Google has already been boasting about the safety
of its self-driving cars, explaining that most crashes are
caused by human error, while Nissan is developing similar
driverless technology.
“As we set up these systems in the future, it's important not
to build autonomous vehicles that are merely a collection
of systems designed for human support but to think a little
bit more holistically about making them as good as the very
best human drivers,” said Professor Chris Gerdes of Stanford
University. “It's not so much the technology as the capability
of the human that is our inspiration now.”
Megaupload founder unveils
file-hosting replacement
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/megaupload-founder-unveils-file-
hosting-replacement/17688.html
November 1st, 2012
Megaupload made headlines earlier this year after it was
taken down by the FBI and the US Department of Justice,
but its founder, Kim Dotcom, has unveiled a replacement
service called Mega, set to launch in January.
Megaupload made headlines earlier this year after it was
taken down by the FBI and US Department of Justice, but
its founder, Kim Dotcom, has unveiled a replacement service
called Mega, set to launch in January.
In order to avoid a similar fate to Megaupload, one of
the world's largest file-hosting services, Mega will adopt a
number of changes to how it works, first of which is avoiding
US companies for hosting any data.
“The new Mega will not be threatened by US prosecutors,”
Dotcom told Reuters. “The new Mega avoids any dealings
with US hosters, US domains and US backbone providers
and has changed the way it operates to avoid another
takedown.”
Encryption will also play a huge role in the new service,
with users able to encrypt their files and hand out unique
decryption keys to share them with others. This will not only
make the service more secure, it will ensure Mega is not
liable if the files breach copyright, since it will not actually
have access to the files themselves.
“Content owners can still remove infringing material and
they will even get direct delete access if they agree not
to make us responsible for actions of users,” Dotcom
explained, marking a major shift from the approach used at
Megaupload, where the website moderators would have to
look for and remove infringing content.
Dotcom claimed that the FBI was flooding the new Mega
website with traffic as it was unveiled, delaying the unveiling.
He still faces charges of copyright infringement, fraud and
money laundering, with an extradition hearing planned for
not long after Mega's official launch.
Fujitsu ARROWS Tab Wi-Fi
QH55/J delayed
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/fujitsu-arrows-tab-wi-fi-qh55j-
delayed/17687.html
November 1st, 2012
Fujitsu announced today with much chagrin that their
ARROWS Tab Wi-Fi QH55/J tablet originally slated for
release on November 2nd is going to be delayed for several
weeks.
Fujitsu announced that their 10.1 inch Windows 8 tablet,
the ARROWS Tab Wi-Fi QH55/J originally slated for release
on November 2nd is going to be delayed. The tablet is now
scheduled for a mid-November release.

3
The ARROWS Tab Wi-Fi QH55/J has a 10.1 inch wide IPS
liquid crystal display with a 1366x768 resolution and comes
pre-installed with Windows 8. The unit has been described
as a “pure tablet PC”, with a weight of 574g.
The tablet stands out from other models with its waterproof
and dirt proof body, which is the thinnest in the world
at 9.9mm. Hardware-wise, the ARROWS boasts Intel's
latest Atom Z2760 CPU, 2GB of DDR2 memory, and a
hefty 64GB SSD. It also has full connectivity features with
support for IEEE802.11 a/b/g/n and Bluetooth 4.0, and
users will get about 10.5 hours of video playback on a single
charge. Addtional features include GPS, accelerometer,
magnetometer, ambient light sensor, and gyrometer. The
device also has a single USB 2.0 port and a single microSD
memory card slot, as well as a microphone jack.
There are two built-in cameras, an 8MP camera on the back,
and a 2MP camera on the front. Full dimensions of the tablet
are 264.4 (length) x 169.4 (height) x 9.9 (width) mm.
The tablet is scheduled to go on sale for 99.800 Yen ($1,245
USD). Yikes!
Sneak peek of Shenzhen's
first Apple Store
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/sneak-peek-of-shenzhen-s-first-
apple-store/17686.html
November 1st, 2012
Apple will be unveiling their first ever Shenzhen based Apple
Store this Saturday at 9 am in Shenzhen’s YT Holiday Plaza,
but today the media got first dibs on a sneak preview of the
store.
YT Holiday Plaza entrance to store
Opposite entrance to store in shopping mall
Tryout area for devices
360 degree Genius Bar

4
A mountain of iPhone 4S and iPad 3 devices.. (but no iPhone
5...)
This store is the first (official) Apple retail outlet to be
opened in Shenzhen, and the 7th
in China following Apple’s
Wangfujing store in Beijing. This occasion also marks the
third Chinese city to have an Apple store, after Beijing and
Shanghai.
Situated in the entertainment center of Shenzhen, the new
store lies opposite the city’s famous ‘Window on the World’
district, which is chocked full with luxury goods retailers.
Apple Store China’s director Denny Tuza introduced the YT
Plaza store to the media today as a special preview for what’s
in store for would-be buyers starting this weekend.
Situated in the first floor basement of a shopping mall, the
outlet covers an area of 1000 square meters and lies entirely
on one floor. This unfortunately means that there is no
trademark spiral staircase in the store (yet). There are two
entrances to the store, one facing the YT Plaza itself, and
one which leads directly into the shopping mall in which it
is situated.
Apple have gone all out in its search for staff and hired a
whopping 250 employees from a total of 41 different cities
across China. Workers at the store can speak a combined
total of 6 different languages and should have no trouble
pushing their wares onto visitors from any nation.
Apple fans in the region may also be pleased to hear of the
triumphant return of the 360 degree open bar – the Genius
Bar. Although somewhat common place in US stores, this
is only the second time a Genius Bar has been set up in a
Chinese store (the first being in Beijing’s Wangfujing outlet).
The rest of the store is broken up into several areas, and users
can easily find their way to the accessories section, iPad/
iPhone section, or one of the trial areas (divided into child
and adult space) where consumers may try out the latest
iPhone and Mac computers.
The latest iPod touch and nano devices which debuted this
September will also be on sale at the new store, and the iPod
touch will start out at 2298 yuan (around $368 USD).
With another weapon to take on the Chinese market in their
arsenal, Apple’s next move is to build a new Apple Store in
the city of Chengdu.
Apple forced to remove
statements about Samsung
verdict from their website
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/apple-forced-to-remove-statements-
about-samsung-verdict-from-their-website/17684.html
November 1st, 2012
After Apple was ordered by UK courts to display a message
stating that Samsung did not infringe upon it's patents, they
have now been ordered to change their message and remove
parts of the statement which were untrue.
It's been less than a month since the Apple vs Samsung
verdict in the UK ended with a loss for Apple. Samsung
was not infringing upon Apple's patents, and as a result of
the lawsuit, Apple was ordered to put up a notice on their
website, stating this fact clearly. However, Apple felt the
need to embellish and add things to the statement, and as a
result, the courts are forcing them to change the statement.
Apple asked for two weeks to make the changes, but the court
shot down their request, stating it had to be altered within
24 hours.
The statement was originally a very specific, 56-word
paragraph laid out by UK High Court Judge Colin Birss:
"On 9th July 2012 the High Court of Justice of
England and Wales ruled that Samsung Electronic
(UK) Limited’s Galaxy Tablet Computer, namely the
Galaxy Tab 10.1, Tab 8.9 and Tab 7.7 do notinfringe
Apple’s registered design No. 0000181607-0001. A
copy of the full judgment of the Highcourt is
available on the following link www.bailii.org/ew/
cases/EWHC/Patents/2012/1882.html."
However, Apple then decided to add a further four
paragraphs to justify the statement and put Apple in a good
light. Among these paragraphs was a reference to a judge in
the original Apple vs. Samsung case stating that one of the
differences between Apple and Samsung was that Samsung's
devices "are not as cool." Apple then went on to describe
how, despite the verdict, Apple had won in other cases
around the world.
The statement was concluded with "So while the UK court
did not find Samsung guilty of infringement, other courts
have recognized that in the course of creating its Galaxy
tablet, Samsung willfully copied Apple's far more popular
iPad."
UK Appeals judge Robin Jacob responded with saying, "I'm
at a loss that a company such as Apple would do this".

5
Indeed, this seems like a particularly irresponsible way for a
multi billion dollar corporation to handle a loss.
Microsoft sued over new user
interface
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/microsoft-sued-over-new-user-
interface/17683.html
November 1st, 2012
SurfCast, a small company making operating systems, has
sued Microsoft for infringing on one of it's four patents, a
user interface design built around the concept of tiles.
In keeping with the spirit of tech companies suing each
other over patents, a small OS developer called SurfCast is
suing Microsoft for Windows 8's tile design. The company
filed a complaint with the US District Court in Maine for
"making, using, selling, and offering to sell devices and
software products" protected by the SurfCast patent.
Mobile phones, PCs and Tablets using windows phone
7, as well as windows 8/RT, are supposedly violating
the patent. Microsoft is also accused of contributing to
copyright infringement by encouraging other developers of
producing app tiles for their operating systems. SurfCast
wants Microsoft to pay damages for any direct and indirect
infringement, while Microsoft remains adamant that the
lawsuit is unfounded and that the case will be dropped.
SurfCast is stating that it thought of the idea of dynamically
updating tile first, and applied for a patent as early as
2000 (it received the patent in 2004). They also claim
that Microsoft was aware of the patent at the time of
the development of their LiveTiles, and that they even
referenced the technology as "relevant art" during the
development of the new user interface.
GeChic unveils 2501M
& 2501A 15.6-inch USB-
powered monitors
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/gechic-unveils-2501m--2501a-15.6-
inch-usb-powered-monitors/17685.html
November 1st, 2012
GeChic Corporation presents their new On-Lap 2501M and
2501A mobile display models. These are 15.6-inch LED
monitors that can operate efficiently using only power from
a USB port.
GeChic Corporation had just unveiled recently two new
mobile display units for commercial distribution. The On-
Lap 2501M and the On-Lap 2501A are 15.6-inch portable
LED monitors that can be simply powered via USB port.
These will be available starting November 9, 2012 in Japan,
and the retail price will be set at around 24,800 yen (300
USD) for the 2501M, and 19,800 yen (254 USD) for the
2501A. Distribution and sale of the units will be managed
and taken care of by TekWind.
To give you a clearer idea on just how low both units'
power consumption rates would be, we'll provide a direct
comparison. A standard LED monitor of the same size (15.6-
inch) usually has a power rate of 15 watts. The USB port
delivers only 2.5 watts at maximum, which means that these
mobile display models are potentially 6 times more energy
efficient.
The display resolution of both units is set at 1366x768
pixels, response time at 8ms, brightness at 200cd/sq.m, and
contrast at 400:1. Some of their connectivity options include
HDMI, MicroUSB, and D-sub. The dimensions are both set
at 395x16.3x260 mm. For their weights, the 2501M is set at
1.3 kg, while the 2501A is at 1.1 kg. In addition, the 2501M
will also be installed with a 9300mAh battery, allowing it to
still continue functioning for 10 hours even when it is not
connected.
Earlier this year, GeChic released the On-Lap 1301 and 1501.
The 1301 had a 13.3-inch screen while the 1501 has the same
15.6-inch screen. While both were functionally the same as
the 2501M and 2501A, they had fewer features, and had
considerably lower specs. Brightness for example is very
noticeably lower on the 1301.
Source: PCWatch (JP)

6
Hitachi launches new
robot to inspect building
foundations
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/hitachi-launches-new-robot-to-
inspect-building-foundations/17680.html
November 1st, 2012
Human workers need no longer crawl under buildings to
perform inspections. Hitachi Advanced Digital announced
today that they are now accepting orders for a new crawling
robot with an attached camera that can squeeze underneath
buildings and inspect foundations, pipes and floor supports
remotely.
Although Hitachi is best known for their factory assembly
and maintenance robots, in 2007 they received a lot of media
attention for a cute roller skating companion and support
robot called EMIEW 2.
The new robot announced today may not be as huggable
but it is arguably more useful, and engineers overcame
formidable design challenges in making it. In the past
workers would have had to crawl under buildings, entering
tight spaces with poor air quality, in order to check the
foundations for weakness or damage. Hitachi's new robot
can enter those spaces and take photos and video, allowing
technicians to judge the soundness of the building from a
comfortable distance.
It may sound like a no brainer but engineers like
Eiji Koyanagi, deputy director of the Future Robotics
Technology Center at the Chiba Institute of Technology,
couldn't just stick a camera on any remote controlled vehicle.
They ran into trouble making sharp turns; and the plastic
sheet, which protects the building from excess moisture,
would often get caught in the wheels.
These challenges have been overcome and the robot can now
smoothly crawl over plastic sheet, make turns, ascend and
descend stairs, and go over objects up to 15 cm high.
Hitachi have stated that they expect to find more uses for
the robot and develop it to handle a wider range of tasks. In
addition to home builders they are also actively marketing
the robot to construction companies for use under buildings
and around piping.
Source: mynavi (JP)
Sony and Sharp fighting to
remain profitable
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/sony-and-sharp-fighting-to-remain-
profitable/17681.html
November 1st, 2012
After some troubling times for Sony and Sharp, the two
technology giants are taking drastic steps to cut costs and are
refocusing their businesses to get back to turning a profit.
Sony has been losing money for a while now, and last year,
they reported a loss of 1.6 billion yen (20 million USD), but
this year, it is expected they'll manage an operating profit of
nearly 33.8 billion yen (425 million USD). Still, Sony is not
out of the water yet; that profit is somewhat inflated and the
company is still cutting costs at every corner.
Currently, Sony's stocks have dropped in value by 16% since
mid-June and is currently valued collectively at 12 billion
USD. Sony's five year cost for ensuring against debt default,
the so called credit default swap, has jumped up by 60%.
Much of the sudden profit comes from the recent selling of
their chemicals unit for 58 billion yen and the closing of their
Shinagawa Technology Center, a 31-story Tokyo commercial
building. There's also talks of closing the Sony tower in New
York. In addition, the company is expected to lay off 10,000
employees before March.
These sudden changes come after the new Sony CEO, Kazou
Hirai, took over in April. He's making some drastic changes
to the company, including shifting focus to gaming, mobile
devices and digital photography, as well as emerging new
technologies such as medical imaging. It will subsequently
be moving away from televisions, which has given Sony a
9 billion USD loss over the past eight years. "The areas in
which Sony is continuing to focus are of course high-risk,
high-return markets," said JP Morgan analyst Yoshiharu
Izumi.
Meanwhile, Sharp is also taking steps to cut costs and boost
profits, and for them, the situation is even more dire. They
recently received a 4.6 billion USD bank bailout, and has
pledged to cut, like Sony, around 10,000 jobs, and sell assets.

7
After adding restructuring, and with loss of valuation losses
on stocks for LCD displays, they expect a loss of 400 billion
yen between April and September, nearly double of what
they had predicted.
To boost profits, Sharp is increasing production of their new
HD power-saving IGZO screens, which they hope to sell to
laptop manufacturers, such as Lenovo and HP. They are
expecting a much milder, yet still substantial loss of 50.4
billion yen, for their second quarter. However, it is expected
that the charges incurred in the April-September period,
frees the company up to pursue profits, and puts it in a better
position to bounce back.
Microsoft claims to have sold
4 million Windows 8 upgrades
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/microsoft-claims-to-have-sold-4-
million-windows-8-upgrades/17679.html
November 1st, 2012
Developers that are looking into taking a chance on Windows
8 will be happy to know that Microsoft has managed to sell
4 million upgrades to the latest Windows OS.
Steve Ballmer, Microsoft’s CEO, announced the news at
the Build 2012 conference yesterday. He also claims that
Windows 8 is outpacing Windows 7 in terms of initial
adoption, and it is only proper that Ballmer dropped the
good news in front of developers that are looking for reasons
to develop software for Windows 8.
(Steve Ballmer at Build 2012 in Redmond. | Image: TNW)
“The level of enthusiasm and desire to learn about the new
Windows 8 computers has really been remarkable,” said
Ballmer.
The impressive adoption rate for Windows 8 is perhaps
largely attributed to the ‘discounted’ and ‘promo’ strategy
that Microsoft has launched in an attempt to lure consumers
into switching from previous versions of Windows. In one
such promo, Microsoft offered recent Windows 7 PC buyers
the opportunity to upgrade to Windows 8 for a fraction of
what it will cost in retail.
In terms of corporate partners, Ballmer claims that ‘tens
of millions of units’ have already been sold to corporate
customers. These corporate customers may have purchased
millions of units, but at the same time they are in no way
obligated to actually install the new OS onto their hardware.
DoCoMo, one of Japan’s major cellular carriers, has also
announced that it will be partnering with Microsoft to
promote Windows 8 through LTE-enabled tablets. To show
that DoCoMo has faith in Windows 8, the Japanese carrier
will collaborate with Microsoft on the hardware and software
as well as share the marketing costs to ensure that Windows
8 will be in the hands of as many consumers as possible.
DoCoMo wrote in a statement:
“Tablet devices are being used increasingly in the
corporate world to raise the efficiency and value
offerings of sales activities. DOCOMO’s Xi LTE
service enables corporations to use tablets with
enhanced flexibility and diversity, while the new
Windows 8 operating system realizes permanent
connection to wireless networks and enhanced
mobile experiences using the touchscreens of tablets
from various manufacturers.”
Within all this hustle and bustle around Windows 8, it’s
easy to forget that Apple also experienced a similar success
with its Mountain Lion OS, with 3 million copies sold in
just four days after launch. Microsoft’s control on the PC
market is currently experiencing a shakeup in light of the
growing tablet/mobile market, and if consumers approve of
Windows 8 then that will demonstrate that the Redmond-
based software maker still has what it takes to remain on top.
Facebook employees dump
shares as company's stock
prices continue to tumble
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/facebook-employees-dump-shares-
as-company-s-stock-prices-continue-to-tumble/17678.html
November 1st, 2012
Facebook has been taking a beating from Wall Street since
its IPO in May, and now the social networking service is
facing yet another dilemma. Many employees that had their
shares locked up until Monday dumped a lot of shares on
Wednesday.
In May, Facebook’s initial offering price was $38, but that
has fallen by nearly half. Employees that were supposed to
be millionaires and even billionaires became less and less
inclined to hold onto their shares as the company’s value
continued to decline.
Back in August, co-founder of PayPal and an early bird
investor in Facebook, Peter Thiel sold the majority of his
shares and netting over $1 billion in cash (not bad for a
$500K initial investment). He also made $640 million after

8
selling 16.8 million shares during the IPO. IPO investors, on
the other hand, are not so lucky compared to Thiel.
So instead of waiting it out and risking further devaluing of
their shares, many Facebook employees have decided that
they’re better off cashing in now before the social networking
giant dips to an even lower level.
It was rumored shortly after Facebook’s IPO that perhaps
the firm would dive into hardware with a smartphone, and
prove to investors that there’s something ‘tangible’ to keep
the company sustainable. That, however, quickly became
an afterthought when CEO Mark Zuckerberg came out and
said that a Facebook-powered smartphone wouldn’t make
any sense, and that the firm would continue with its core
business model—that is, profiting from ad revenues on its
social networking platform.
Facebook will face the possibility of another massive dump
on November 14 when employees can sell 777 million more
shares. ‘777’ can either make it or break it for a lot of slot
machine players, but it doesn’t seem like Facebook will be
hitting the ‘jackpot’ at this rate.
Impressions: ECS eZ Bun -
Conference Speakerphone on
the Go
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/impressions-ecs-ez-bun--conference-
speakerphone-on-the-go/17677.html
November 1st, 2012
The ECS eZ Bun is a nifty little contraption that adds
conference speakerphone functionality to your favourite
mobile devices while on the go.
Elitegroup Computer Systems (ECS) is one of the
largest Taiwanese based OEM/ODM of motherboards and
peripherals, best known for its components inside branded
PCs and entry retail offerings. Recently they have decided to
venture into the rather saturated realm of "mobile widgets",
creating nifty little devices like the eZ Bun to target the
digital masses.
With the advent of long-range wireless communication and
the Internet, more work and meetings can be done on the
road rather than only in a traditional office. For these users,
it might be useful to carry a companion device to have video
conferences with managers or customers. Since the majority
of tablets, smartphones and laptops have less than ideal
microphone input and speaker output for these situations
(lack of volume and clarity), ECS has made the eZ Bun to
address this usage model.
The ECS eZ Bun is a portable video conference speaker
and microphone. Its palm-sized frame allows you to easily
carry it around. The ECS eZ system has two similar-looking
product models: the eZ Bun and the the eZ Bun BT. The
regular version that uses a micro-USB cable to connect to a
Mac or PC, and an included Apple dock connector for the
iPad/iPhone. The BT model has Bluetooth connectivity, so
you can avoid the hassle of wires. Battery life is rated up to 10
hours of video conferencing and 4 hours continuous music.
The idiotproof eZ Bun has only 3 buttons to operate. The
top part with the ECS logo is the microphone receiver button
that allows the user to switch between receive and mute. The
center is the phone answer button. While using an iPhone,
you can use the middle button to call or hang up a phone call.
The other button with the eZ Bun lucky charm is the volume
control.

9
At the side of the eZ Bun we find the power button and
a micro USB port to charge the device. Headphone audio
output and microphone input is on the other end.
The bundled 2-in-1 cord to attaches to a smart phone or
tablet computer.
When attached to a PC or MAC, the appliance is detected as
a USB audio device with software volume controls.,
The eZ Bun has many essential features built into its
design. For instance, it can isolate static noise and increase
microphone sensitivity. With an audio receiver range of up
to 3 meters, you can have multiple participants in a video
conference.
Image and Review Credits: Chinese VR-Zone

10
eBook Japan to launch their
own 7-inch tablet
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/ebook-japan-to-launch-their-own-7-
inch-tablet/17676.html
November 1st, 2012
eBook Japan, a very long time distributor of electronically
published content on the web, now plans to directly go
where they really belong, by releasing their own e-content
optimized 7-inch tablet.
eBook Japan, a website that mainly deals with the electronic
distribution of Japanese published materials and content,
has announced yesterday (October 31, 2012) that they will
be launching their very own 7-inch tablet model. eBook
Initiative Japan, the company that manages the website,
considers this as a natural and an eventual step up from the
services that they already have.
The 7-inch size may be considered as a standard screen size
for smaller tablet units, but there is actually a slightly higher
significance to it that made them choose such screen size.
Most of the e-contents that eBook Japan distributes, when
presented in their original paper form, are already near the
size of a 7-inch tablet. This goes perfectly in line with the
theme of the unit to "place e-books closer to their real form".
While the concept and main scope of their project has been
revealed to the public, there is yet any information available
about the tablet model's specs and overall design schemes.
The only thing that is certain as of now is that it will be
installed with the Android OS. The release price of the unit is
also yet to be announced as of this moment, although eBook
Japan claims that it will have a price that's "easy on the
hands".
Modern e-books of the "pre-tablet era" as we know it
today were already widely distributed and used ever since
electronic content gradually became widespread in the late
2000's. For eBook Japan, they have been distributing e-
books and other e-content since the year 2000. Their usual
specialities are electronic manga (Japanese comics) titles,
which can be conveniently read and accessed with a web
browser using the Trunk Room, a personal account that
stores bought e-books via cloud storage. Today, they have
over 65,000 titles that is under the category of manga alone,
all of which are universally accessible to PC's, smartphones,
and tablet computers.
Their 7-inch Android tablet is expected to be commercially
available at around December of this year.
Source: Androwire (JP)
Crysis 3 Alpha key giveaway
extravaganza!
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/crysis-3-alpha-key-giveaway-
extravaganza-/17675.html
November 1st, 2012
Crytek is back with a new installment in the Crysis series -
and one generous site has 3000 alpha keys up for grabs!
"The award-winning developer Crytek is back with Crysis
3. Return to the fight as Prophet, the Nanosuit soldier on a
quest to rid the world of the invading Ceph; eliminate the
corrupted CELL Corporation. Adapt to any situation with
the stealth and armor abilities of your unique Nanosuit as
you battle through the seven wonders of New York's Liberty
Dome. Unleash the firepower of your all-new, high-tech
bow and alien weaponry to hunt both human and alien
enemies. And uncover the truth behind the death of your
squad while establishing the power of human will in a rich
story full of exciting twists and turns."
..Or so the story goes.
If you just want to jump in to the game, go here and follow
the instructions: http://www.gamingdeluxe.co.uk/crysis-3-
giveaway.html.
For those of you still here, let's discuss Crytek's latest
endevour in depth shall we? But first a little on Crytek's
background:
Small Beginnings
Crytek started out not as a games company, but as a
small German graphics company in 1999. Founded by two
Turkish brothers with the last name "Yerli", Crytek wowed
participants of the European Computer Trade Show (ECTS)
in 2000 with a tech demo they made for NVIDIA. Several
years later this tech demo evolved into Crytek's first venture
into the games industry - Far Cry.
After Far Cry
Soon after Far Cry, Crytek released their game engine
into the wild. Dubbed 'CryEngine', the new engine was
showcased at the Game Developers Conference (GDC) 2003
trade show. Back in those days, the stunning physics and
polybump visuals of the engine were a huge leap ahead
anything out at the time - even Crytek's arch enemy Epic
could not compete with their Unreal engine.
In Februrary 2004, after allegations of using pirate software
in their offices and being raided by the police, Crytek
coincidentally (?) joined hands with EA, and started work
towards a new plateau of graphical superiority that would
even blow Far Cry out of the water.
Crysis

11
In January 2007, Crytek for the first time revealed to the
world the fruits of their labor over the past few years -
CryEngine 2. Evidently their engine wowed not just would
be consumers of their next game, but also other developers,
as multiple studios rushed at the chance to get their hands
on the engine for use in their own games. In November of
the same year, Crysis was unleashed on PCs worldwide, and
gamer's machines would simply melt in contact with the
game, such were the system requirements for playing it so
high (OK, I made that last bit up).
After what seemed like an endless flood of 'but can it run
Crysis?' jokes, the rest of the world finally caught up to
Crytek's digital prowess and played the game long enough
to get to the part where the aliens arrive.. and it went all
downhill from there really.
Hurr look at me I'm a bad ass nanosuit dude!
Revenge
Crytek were mad. Really mad. They had made a decent
profit with Crysis, but it wasn't the multi-million dollar
hit they had anticipated for all these years as they toiled
over perfecting their monstrous CryEngine 2. The reason
for this, they figured, was not the alien levels in their game,
or lacklustre multiplayer mode. No, no, the reason for their
mediocre sales was of course.. piracy!
Vowing to never again trust the filthy scum of the PC gaming
world, Crytek secretly started work on a new project ... one
that would be a blockbuster hit ... one that would run on all
systems... one that people would have to pay for this time.
Crysis 2 was going multiplatform.
Betrayal
Nerds everywhere were outraged. How dare Crytek, the last
bastion of PC gaming, the flag flier of the PC master race,
betray its own kind like this! How dare they develop for
Xbox360 and Playstation 3!
"It won't sell anyway"
"It will look like crap"
"I bet the alien levels are back"
Such were the sounds of sour grapes which emanated from
masses of PC gamers around the globe. But Crytek didn't
care, because they had a hit on their hands. They were going
to beat Gears of War. They were going to beat Call of Duty.
They were going to beat Halo!
To Crytek's credit, they did try pretty damn hard this time.
Employing professional sci-fi writer Richard Morgan for
the story, and the legendary Batman Trilogy/ Inception
composer Hans Zimmer to create the soundtrack, Crytek
were sure they were going to blast the world away. But would
they. Would THEY be the ones to finally run Crysis?
..A jungle guerilla warfare game set in.. New York??
Seriously, Crytek?
Aftermath
The short answer is no. Crysis 2 did OK considering it was
Crytek's first ever multiplatform game. But it's total 1.6
million sales were miniscule in comparison to the 3 million
sales of Crysis (4.5 including sales of Crysis: Warhead).
Something was missing. The graphical prowess had been
toned down a lot in order to get the game running on the
consoles, and the PC version suffered a lot because of it. The
most important factor here was that Crysis 2 was natively a
Direct X 9 game, and at the time of its release Direct X 10
games had already begun to dazzle PC gamers with their new
sparkly features. This did nothing but further aggravated PC
gamers who were already feeling betrayed by Crytek. It also
didn't help that the game had no graphics settings menu,
and the PC version merely came with the console version of
the menu, complete with 'press X to continue' style console-
centric help messages. To use the parlance of the Internet, it
was almost like Crytek were 'trolling' its audience.
Return of the Prodigal Developer
After being slapped in the face with their console iteration,
Crytek finally got the message and decided it was time
to bring back the tired 'but can it run Crysis?' meme, by
developing Crysis 3 with PC as their main target audience.
(Yes, the CEO himself actually used that stupid phrase).
However, only time will tell whether or not this will prove
to be an effective strategy. For one, the game is still going
to be multiplatform with current generation consoles, which
means that it is debatable whether or not the next iteration of
CryEngine will even be that impressive. (At this stage of the
console lifecycle, it is doubtful). Some demos were thrown
about during E3 this year but personally they didn't really
impress. It seems like Crytek wants to have their cake and
eat it. Will PC gamers buy into their so-called 'return' to the
PC arena?
It's free, just take it, PLEASE!
And so what this all boils down to is this: Crytek probably
BENEFITTED from all the popularity they got when
benchmarkers around the globe tested out their beefy rigs
with pirated versions of Crysis. Without people testing the
game and showing their results to the world, it is dubious
whether or not anyone would have really cared about the
game to begin with. And then it wouldn't have sold much at

12
all. Kind of like another game with the word 'Crysis' in the
title *ahem*. But this time around, its not certain that pirates
will use Crysis 3 as their new benchmarking tool du jour. So
what are Crytek to do? Well give the game away for free of
course. Well.. kind of.
Well, that's my theory behind Crytek's decision to throw out
free copies of their (albeit alpha-stage) game. What do you
guys think?

November 2nd, 2012 Published by: VR-Zone
1
geeks.
Android dominates third
quarter with 75 percent
smartphone market share
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/android-dominates-third-quarter-
with-75-percent-smartphone-market-share/17704.html
November 2nd, 2012
Google's Android mobile operating system is just four years
old and has managed to grow at an incredible rate, ruling a
whopping 75 percent of the smartphone market in the third
quarter of this year.
Google's Android mobile operating system is just four years
old and has managed to grow at an incredible rate, ruling a
whopping 75 percent of the smartphone market in the third
quarter of this year.
A report by the International Data Corporation (IDC) found
that of the 181.1 million smartphones shipped in the third
quarter, 136 million ran Android, marking a 91.5 percent
increase on the 71 million shipments and 57.4 percent
market share it held at the same time last year.
To see how much the smartphone industry has boomed, and
how well Android is doing within it, Android's shipments
in the third quarter of 2012 are higher than the total
smartphone shipments of 2007, when Android was first
announced.
Apple's iOS is far behind Android, with 26.9 shipments in
the third quarter, giving it a market share of 14.9 percent.
This is substantially higher than other rivals, however, and
represents a 57.3 percent growth over last year, when it
shipped 17.1 million units and held a market share of 13.8
percent.
BlackBerry is still in third place with 7.7 million third quarter
shipments and a market share of 4.3 percent, a drop of 34.7
percent on its 11.8 million shipments last year, when it held
a market share of 9.5 percent.
Windows Phone shipped 3.6 million units, giving it just a
two percent market share, but that is 140 percent growth on
the 1.5 million units it shipped in 2011, when it had a market
share of just 1.2 percent.
By contrast Android is skyrocketing ahead like only a little
green robot can. In 2008 it shipped just 0.7 million units,
giving it a tiny 0.5 percent market share. A year later it was
at 7 million units and four percent. 2010 saw that boom to
71.1 million and 23.3 percent, while 2011 saw a further boost
to 243.4 million and 49.2 percent. So far this year, with a full
quarter yet to go, Android is sitting at 333.6 million units
and a total market share of 68.2 percent.
“Android has been one of the primary growth engines of
the smartphone market since it was launched in 2008," said
Ramon Llamas, Research Manager of Mobile Phones at IDC.
“In every year since then, Android has effectively outpaced
the market and taken market share from the competition.
In addition, the combination of smartphone vendors, mobile
operators, and end-users who have embraced Android has
driven shipment volumes higher. Even today, more vendors
are introducing their first Android-powered smartphones to
market.”
High Power Astro PT 700W
PSU Review
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/high-power-astro-pt-700w-psu-
review/17702.html

2
November 2nd, 2012
High Power is the retail branch of Sirfa, a large and
well known power supply OEM manufacturer. Last year
we had the chance to take a look at their most popular
products at the time, the powerful Direct12 BR and the
versatile Performance Pro. Since it has been over a full
calendar year since we had the opportunity to examine
the performance of one of their products, High Power has
released many new and interesting power supplies, with
perhaps the most interesting one being the Astro PT 700W,
an 80Plus Platinum power supply featuring a futuristic
appearance and with a power meter embedded on it. How
does it perform though? We will find out in this review.
High Power is the retail branch of Sirfa, a large and well
known power supply OEM manufacturer. Last year we had
the chance to take a look at their most popular products
at the time, the powerful Direct12 BR and the versatile
Performance Pro. Since it has been over a full calendar year
since we had the opportunity to examine the performance
of one of their products, High Power has released many
new and interesting power supplies, with perhaps the
most interesting one being the Astro PT 700W, an 80Plus
Platinum power supply featuring a futuristic appearance and
with a power meter embedded on it. How does it perform
though? We will find out in this review.
Manufacturer’s features and specifications
• 80 Plus Platinum Certified
• Patented D- VRM technology,Digital Control for a
Precise Voltage Regulation
• Eagle Eye – The patented Real Time Power Meter
• Silent Design
• Advanced DC to DC Converter
• Intelligent Fan Control
• Off- Delay Fan (Fan Stays On After System Off)
• Single +12V Output Rail
• 100% Japanese-made Capacitors
• Reliable Japanese-made Solid-state Capacitors
• Easily Detachable and Flexible Flat Modular Cables
• Patented Easy Swap Connector
Facebook security flaw
allows account access
without passwords
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/facebook-security-flaw-allows-
account-access-without-passwords/17701.html
November 2nd, 2012
Facebook has disabled a feature that contained a security
flaw allowing access to some accounts without a password.
The vulnerability affected as many as 1.32 million Facebook
accounts, with direct links to those accounts that bypass the
password requirement featuring on a Google search.
Matt Jones, security engineer for Facebook, said that the
links in question are designed to be sent directly to the email
addresses of account holders to log back into their accounts
more quickly, such as in the case of email notifications
for status updates. However, some of these links had been
shared in the wild, thanks to hacked emails, throwaway
mail websites, and services with poor protection of archived
messages.
Most of the links can only be clicked once, which means
many of them have already expired, but Facebook decided to
disable the quick access feature until better security is put in
place. It is not clear how it will address the issue of allowing
easy access without potentially compromising accounts.
Facebook was keen to stress that it never made any
of those links “publicly available or crawlable,” blaming
the situation on external websites who had made the
information available to search engines.
Most of the users affected by the vulnerability are in Russia
or China, and Facebook said it has taken steps to secure the
accounts of these users and anyone else who recently used
the feature.
Microsoft working on own
smartphone design, suppliers
claim
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/microsoft-working-on-own-
smartphone-design-suppliers-claim/17700.html
November 2nd, 2012
Asian component suppliers working for Microsoft claim that
the company is designing its own smartphone, a move that
might cause tensions with partner Nokia.

3
Asian component suppliers working for Microsoft claim that
the company is designing its own smartphone, a move that
might cause tensions with partner Nokia.
Anonymous officials at the suppliers told the Wall Street
Journal that the company is already testing a smartphone
design, with a display of four to five inches. No other
details are known and Microsoft has refused to confirm the
rumours, except for a potentially revealing comment from
CEO Steve Ballmer.
“We're quite happy this holiday going to market hard with
Nokia, Samsung and HTC,” Ballmer told the Wall Street
Journal. “Whether we had a plan to do something different
or we didn't have a plan I wouldn't comment in any
dimension.”
So no confirmation on a new device, but definite
confirmation that Nokia is now as much a rival as it is
an ally. Since Microsoft's recently-launched Surface tablet,
powered by Windows 8, has no competition from Nokia,
it begs the question if Microsoft will get a smartphone out
before Christmas.
Microsoft's Windows Phone 7 platform has failed to take off
with the support of Nokia, which is likely making it eager
to try its own approach. It still seems keen to keep Nokia
on board, however, having just announced the Nokia Lumia
920 with Windows Phone 8, but if it can emulate even a
fraction of Apple's success, which involves keeping control
of both the hardware and software, then it might not need
the Finnish mobile firm for long.
Need for Speed Most Wanted
PS Vita Review
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/need-for-speed-most-wanted-ps-
vita-review/17695.html
November 2nd, 2012
The Need for Speed franchise has released it's latest game,
and this time, they've made the jump to the Playstation Vita.
Can the handheld version hold it's own against the home
console versions, or should you do all your driving from the
living room?
Need for Speed: Most Wanted is the latest game in the NFS
franchise, and is developed by Criterion, who previously
worked on the Burnout series and Need for Speed: Hot
Pursuit back in 2010. The new game, though sharing it's
name with a previous NFS title, departs in many ways from
it's predecessor, discarding the underground street racing
scene and storyline for something closer to the Burnout
franchise.
VITA VS HOME CONSOLE
One reason I chose to review the Vita version of this game
is because the developers have made some bold promises:
Most handheld versions of games turn out to be cheap,
bare-bones versions of the "real" game, but Criterion has
promised that Most Wanted for the Vita will be the same
game as for the consoles. The Vita's powerful hardware
certainly allowed for the possibility of a full Need for
Speed game, but even more promising is that Criterion has
developed this version themselves, without outsourcing as
so many other developers do.
Indeed, the Vita version is the full game. The gameplay, the
HUD, the size of the city... all are like the home console
version. There are some differences, but they have less
to do with the content of the game and more to do with
compensating for Vita´s hardware capabilities. There's less
anti-aliasing for example, textures have a somewhat lower
resolution and car headlights also look oddly pixilated. The
overall impression though, largely thanks to the smaller
screen, means you won't notice this very much. The game is
quite gorgeous anyway, and the game plays smooth as silk
with a decent framerate too.
Most Wanted on PS Vita...

4
...and PS3
A difference which kind of affects gameplay, and kind of
doesn't, is that the number of cars on the road has been
reduced. This includes both race opponents and general
traffic: The opponents have been modified, according to
Criterion, to ensure that the challenge remains equatable.
The reduced traffic not only puts less strain on the hardware,
but helps gameplay too. Most wanted is a fast-paced game,
and on a small screen like the Vita's, it would most likely
work against the enjoyment of the game if there were more
cars to avoid.
Something I originally thought was a cut-back was the crash
animations, which hardly seem to deform the cars, but I've
since learned that this is no different on home consoles or
pc. This is rather odd, considering the destruction visible in
previous Criterion games.
Google Translate updates
dictionary with new features
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/google-translate-updates-dictionary-
with-new-features/17699.html
November 2nd, 2012
Google has just released an update for Google Translate,
which adds a smarter dictionary for the translation service;
something which will help you choose the right words with
greater ease for your translation.
Google has released an update for Google Translate;
three new features to their dictionary, which should make
translations much more accurate. The first of these features
is known as "Reverse translations" and will help you choose
between various alternatives to a translation. This will help
you weed through differences such as those found in various
dialects. This would otherwise be very difficult to do without
intimate knowledge about the language.
The next feature, "Frequency" helps you pick correct words
by how commonly they're used. It will instantly rank
translations for certain words based on how commonly the
language uses them. The rarest translations will be hidden
by default, but can be unlocked.
An example of the synonyms and frequency features
The final feature, "Synonyms" will group translations of a
word into groups to ensure that all synonyms for one word
will be easy to navigate to and that words which have only
nearly the same meaning, do not get mixed up with them.
Synonyms is currently only available when translating into
English, but Google is planning to update and expand the
feature in the future.
To try out the new dictionary, head over to Google Translate!
Galaxy Note 2 on a roll
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/galaxy-note-2-on-a-roll/17697.html
November 2nd, 2012
Samsung Electronic’s Galaxy Note 2 is on a roll. It has sold
more than 3 million since it was last released 37 days ago.
Samsung Electronic’s Galaxy Note 2 has sold more than 3
million since it was last released 37 days ago. If it continues
to be as popular as it has been so far it is expected to easily
sell over six million items within the next three months. This
is more than three times the original Galaxy Note sold for.
Galaxy Note cumulative sales was just over 2 million three
months after the launch of the product.
Galaxy Note 2 has a large screen and fast multi-tasking.
It also comes with Google's Android 4.1 Jelly Bean OS. It
also sports two cameras -- an 8MP rear-facing camera with
1080p HD video, a 1.9MP front-facing camera. The Galaxy
Note comes in two sizes with either 16GB or 32GB of internal
storage.
The Galaxy Note 2 has received high praise from many
quarters. A Chinese weekly called the phone the most
‘creative of the year’. The US Tech Magazine Wired gave it 9
points out of ten and named the phone the swiss army knife
of phones due to its broad array of functions.
Rakuten light up your
Christmas with the Kobo Glo
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/rakuten-light-up-your-christmas-
with-the-kobo-glo/17693.html
November 2nd, 2012
Yesterday, Rakuten announced new additions to their Kobo
brand of electronic book readers: the 6 inch Kobo Glo, and
the 5 inch Kobo Mini.
The Kobo Glo has a frontlight (which is like a backlight,
except it’s on the front, I guess), allowing users to enjoy
books in dark places like bedrooms and underground prison
camps (ok maybe not that last one). It also has received a
huge bump-up in storage space, so it is perfect for reading
comic books and Manga. Which, according to Rakuten CEO
Hiroshi Mikitani, is a good thing, because “Japanese people
really like Manga”.

5
"Japanese people really like Manga" - Hiroshi Mikitani,
Rakuten CEO
So just how much of a boost in memory are we talking
here? Well the Glo will come with an embedded 2GB of flash
memory, and will support microSD cards of up to 32GB.
Apparently this translates to roughly 600~1000 comics, or
30,000 books. Which is how they measure things in Japan.
So much for the metric system!
The Kobo Glo possesses a 16 gradient grayscale touch screen
with 758x1024 dot resolution. The device itself is sized
114x157x10mm, and it weighs 185g. So maybe you can fit it
in your pocket, if you have like reallybig pockets. I dunno,
once I fit a Sony PRS-T1 in my pocket, but it scratched the
hell out of the frame. So maybe buy a case if you’re planning
on doing that? Anyway, moving on…
Connectivity-wise, the Glo supports IEEE 802.11b/g/n
wireless, so you will be able to download new books to it
(which is a relief, because that electronic instruction manual
gets pretty boring the 300th
time you read it). At full charge
its battery lasts for up to 30,000 page flips. The battery is
also said to retain charge for up to 1 month, which is cool if
you’re like me and can’t be bothered plugging stuff in.
The device will be available in black or white.
Kobo Glo (Right) and Kobo Mini (Left)
Kobo Glo will be priced at $99 USD, and preorders in Japan
started Nov 1st
, with a planned shipping date of Nov 15th
.
The Kobo Mini is available for $87, and should be shipping
mid December. The old Kobo Touch also got a price cut and
is now the same price as the Mini. The Kobo family is now
available from Rakuten Market, Rakuten Books, and several
electronics stores (at least in Japan).
Future plans for an Android based device named Kobo Arc
were also hinted at.
Rakuten Homepage (English)
Kobo Product Information (Japanese)
Thanko bring your Minority
Report dreams to life with
new gesture-based mouse
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/thanko-bring-your-minority-report-
dreams-to-life-with-new-gesture-based-mouse/17692.html
November 2nd, 2012
Japanese company Thanko have released a glove shaped
mouse which responds to midair gestures. Dubbed the
“Gesture Glove Mouse”, this device consists of a strap-on
sensor for your index finger and a fingerless glove which
carries the brains of the controller and its battery.
The mouse works not only on Windows (XP/Vista/7/8) but
also on Mac OS X (10.5 or later) and even Android. iPhone
compatibility has yet to be announced, but at present is
unavailable.
Users can manipulate the glove by wearing it on their right
hand (sorry southpaws!), and the embedded sensor will read
the movements of the user’s wrist, translating it into mouse
movement. The strap-on part worn on the index finger reads
finger movements, allowing users to perform a ‘virtual click’.
Unlike similar products in the past, this device does
not require a Wii style sensor bar, and instead of using
Bluetooth, it communicates with your computer over
2.4GHz wireless via a USB dongle included with the
mouse. This gives the device a range of about 10~15m. The
embedded battery in the device gives a good 12 hours of
usage after charging over USB for 1 hour.
The glove’s dimensions are 200x110x50mm, and it has a
weight of 35g. The mouse is currently on sale in Japan
at 4,980 Yen (around $62 USD). No US release has been
announced at present, so you will have to import if you want
to get your mitts on it. (see what I did there?)
Thanko Homepage
Product Page
Sega team up with tavern
chain Izakaya Hanako in
Yakuza promotion
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/sega-team-up-with-tavern-chain-
izakaya-hanako-in-yakuza-promotion/17690.html
November 2nd, 2012
Sega hosted a press meeting / free tasting event at Izakaya
Hanako’s Japanese-pub in Shibuya to promote the release
of Yakuza 5 in Japan (aka Ryu ga Gotoku 5: Yume,
Tanaeshimono) on December 6, 2012, and to discuss their
new collaboration with the pub chain. Attending the event
was Japanese talent Saki Suzuki, who is recreated in the
game as a bar waitress.
To celebrate the release of the latest Yakuza title, Izakaya
Hanako pubs are offering a special “Yakuza 5 Banquet
Course” menu from Oct 30th
to Dec 13th
, which consists of
the following dishes based on the 5 main cities which appear
in the game:
Zangi
Tsukimino, Sapporo
Spring chicken deep fried in a special sauce. Goes well with
lemon juice.

6
Cheese Curry Pot
Kamurocho, Tokyo
A pot of cheesy curry with pork and seafood. Good for
sobering up.
Miso Cutlets
Kineichou, Nagoya
Pork cutlet covered in red miso, lightly seasoned with
sesame seeds.
Takoyaki
Aotenbori, Osaka
Large chunks of octopus deep fried for a crunchy sensation.
Fried Ramen
Nagasugai, Fukuoka
Fukuoka’s specialty fried ramen. Rich pork-flavored ramen
served on a metal griddle.
In addition to the above menu, Izakaya Hanako is also
offering their mail magazine subscribers the chance to win
one of 20 limited edition Hanako Original Ryu ga Gotoko T
Shirts by applying through their site.
The press event was attended by Sega’s producer of Ryu ga
Gotoku 5 Masa Yokoyama, Izakaya Hanako’s Manager and
Section Eight PR Official Minako Sakaue, and the previously
mentioned talent Saki Suzuki.
Saki Suzuki is well known for being a video game addict gave
her thoughts about being digitally represented in Yakuza’s
latest installment: “I wanted to give my friends a shock by
appearing in the game, and I was amazed at how lifelike my
CG model was”.
Ryu ga Gotoku 5 Producer Masa YokoYama
Section 8 PR Official Minako Sakaue
Also appearing at the event was the Sapporo finalist of the
previously hosted “Miss Ryu ga Gotoku 5” contest, Kaori
Okamoto. Miss Okamoto is actually a waitress at Izakaya
Hanako in real life, and this was the reason she was chosen
to be digitally represented as a bar waitress in the game.

7
Saki Suzuki
Kaori Okamoto (left) and Saki Suzuki
Finally, Mr. Yokoyama gave his thoughts on the game:
“When looking for a way to accurately portray the local
cultures of each of the 5 cities appearing in the game, I
realized that ‘food culture’ was an important aspect of each
region.” It is possible to walk the streets of the game while
eating specialties from all around Japan, but according to
Mr. Yokoyama, “Izakaya Hanako gives you the chance to eat
local specialties from each region all at one place, that’s why
I like it. I hope to merge the realms of the game world and
reality through our collaboration with Izakaya Hanako.”

November 3rd, 2012 Published by: VR-Zone
1
geeks.
Special Edition HTC One S -
Finally coming to China!
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/special-edition-htc-one-s--finally-
coming-to-china-/17715.html
November 3rd, 2012
The HTC One S is the dual core successor to HTC’s popular
Sensation series of phones, and is being touted as one of the
best Android products from the Taiwan-based smartphone
maker this year. Although previously released in the West,
the phone is finally making its way to China, but with an
extra surprise.
The HTC One S utilizes a Qualcomm S4 dual core processor,
and is designed on a brand new architecture, with bigger
pizzazz thanks to its hefty 1.5GHz of processing power and
1GB RAM. The phone is finally making its way to China, and
with a relatively low price of 2170 Yuan (around $347 USD
for the non-Special Edition One S), the One S is shaping up
to be an attractive choice for cautious buyers.
The Special Edition comes in a glamorous white model
Going into more detail on the specs of the phone, the One S
has a sleek simplistic style designed to be easy to grip, with
a thickness of 7.8mm. Instead of HTC’s traditional choice
of SLCD display, the One S instead possesses a nifty Super
AMOLED screen 4.3 inches in size, whose 540x960 pixels
drives a stake between it and older models in terms of display
quality. The One S has an iPhone-esque aluminum alloy
unibody casing, which feels great to hold.
It's so thin you'd snap it if it weren't for the ultra-strong
aluminium alloy unibody casing!!
Additional features of the phone include an 8MP camera
with an F2.0 aperture lens, and support for 1080p video. The
operating system is based on Android 4.0 and incorporates
HTC’s Sense UI. The MSM8260A series processor also
boasts lower power consumption than previous members of
the Sensation series, so it should give your battery a little
more leeway too.
While the look and feel of the phone is identical to the US
version, the Special Edition will feature a humongous 64GB
of storage space, a huge improvement from the orignal 16GB,
which should be plenty for storing your videos and mp3s.
The exact release date for the phone has yet to be announced,
but the phone should be out by the end of the year.
Exposed: A day in the life of a
Taobao Shopkeeper
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/exposed-a-day-in-the-life-of-a-
taobao-shopkeeper/17714.html
November 3rd, 2012
Ever wonder what its like to run an online store? A local
journalist went undercover to get the down and dirty on the
truth about the driving force behind China's biggest virtual
retailer.
Taobao has over 1,000,000 “virtual stores”, all bustling
busily 365 days a year. A majority of these are small to
midsized in scope, and run by individuals or a small handful
of sellers. A local journalist documented the workings of one

2
of these small stores and found that almost everyday they
worked around the clock like a 24 hour workhouse. While
the life of a virtual shopkeeper may seem relaxing to the
uninitiated, only those who have tried it can truly appreciate
what a laborious job it is.
“I gave my youth to Taobao.”
Eating, talking to friends and family, even washing is a
race against the clock for Taobao store owners before their
store starts to stagnate. In addition to pacifying impatient
customers, Taobao shop owners must spend their time
renovating their shop design, photographing new products,
looking for defects in products, photoshopping pictures,
taking orders, preparing goods for delivery, wrapping them,
sending deliveries, returning items, and so on, and so on…
Let’s take a look at a regular day in the life of Ms Yue, a
Taobao seller who specializes in women’s clothing.
-10:05
Photograph new items in stock
Ms Yue awakens to the shrill sound of the alarm clock. After
working the previous night until 3am, Yue is reluctant to get
out of bed. But duty calls. Yue stumbles out of the bedroom
and quickly washes up, before heading down to a high rise
riverside apartment.
Yue opens the door to a well lit south facing room. Two
young customer service reps briefly give Yue a courteous
smile, but their fingers never stop their agile dance across
the keyboard beneath. “Ding Dong”. A chat window pops up
on the customer rep's screen. Another customer interested
in purchasing from Ms. Yue’s clothing store. More business.
More work.
Yue heads to the photography area, where a large mirror
is set up beside two professional lamps and 40-50 items of
new apparel lie waiting to be photographed. One-by-one,
Yue places each item of clothing on the podium, finds a good
angle, then crouches down to take a picture. After an arduous
couple of hours, Ms. Yue finally finishes taking photos of all
new items for the store.
A typical Taobao storefront
-12:30
Ten minute lunch
There is a knock on the door; lunch has arrived. 1 Soy Beans
with Chicken, 1 Spicy Tofu with Rice. Total $5. The two
customer service girls momentarily chatter as they eat their
take-out. But time is ticking; around 10 minutes later, the
girls quickly finish up and return to their desks. Yue has
finished photographing new items, and also returns to her
desk to check out the new orders received that morning.
-13:30 ~ 18:00
Hi-ho, Hi-ho, to buyers they must go
Yue meticulously opens each of the 50 pieces of clothing to
be delivered and checks for any flaws, pushing the defected
items into a pile for returning to their factory of origin
later on. Clothes that pass visual inspection are packed into
plastic and stored in a larger sack for outgoing mail. Ms.
Yue finishes this task by 16:00, and calls the delivery boy
to collect the sack she just prepared. While waiting for
the delivery boy, Yue as always sits steadfast before her
computer, answering as many buyers’ questions as possible
in order to spur their purchase. You can never have too many
new orders.
A typical outlet for a Taobao store
-19:30
Nightshift
Yue and the two customer service reps leave the office. The
company has no-one working nightshift, so after hurriedly
taking a few bites of dinner. Yue once again turns on the
computer and starts answering buyer questions. Sometimes
Yue has personal issues to solve, and has to rely on friends
to answer questions in her absence, but this is a rare event
for the diligent Ms. Yue. After 22:30, the tumultuous wave of
curious buyers starts to wane. Yue uses this opportunity to
upload the new pictures she took that morning to her online
storefront.
-02:00
No rest for the weary

3
Yue rubs her sore neck and blinks her aching eyes. It’s 2 in
the morning already. Yue originally wanted to sync the new
clothes to her Weibo blog, but she no longer has the energy
for it. Yue staggers into the shower and washes off the day’s
tension. Collapsing into bed, Yue’s exhausted body breathes
a sigh of relief. But her brain keeps working, simmering each
unresolved issue; how will they continue to cope with just 2
customer service reps? How will they meet client demand in
the coming season with their remaining stock? Yue rolls over
and shuts her eyes tight, trying to push such thoughts from
her fatigued mind. Tomorrow after deliveries Yue still has
to visit the factory to choose new products. The landlord is
going to come for the monthly rent of $720. At 29 years of
age Ms. Yue already feels like retiring. But such is the life of
a Taobao shopkeeper.
Halo 4: Forward Unto Dawn
comes to a close
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/halo-4-forward-unto-dawn-comes-
to-a-close/17713.html
November 3rd, 2012
343i's immensely popular live-action series set in the Halo
universe seamlessly blurs the lines of gaming and film, but
Forward Unto Dawn has run its course and closes the circle
with its recently released final episode.
"Stay close to me. It's your best chance at survival."
--Master Chief, Forwad Unto Dawn
Halo 4's live-action mini-series has been hailed, celebrated,
and beloved by Halo fans worldwide. Not only does the series
give a personal and intimiate look at the life of an ordinary
group of cadets, but it also gives a first-hand look at the
original war against the UNSC and the Insurrectionists as
well as how the war against the Covenant united humanity
together.
Forward Unto Dawn chronicles the daily lives of Hastati
Squad, a fresh group of cadets training to become soldiers
at UNSC's Corbulo Academy of Military Science. The series
starts off with everyday drama wherein viewers see the
interactions of the characters as they stuggle to become
soldiers, then Hastati are thrust into a brutal and chaotic
war between a hostile race of unknown aliens who suddenly
attack the planet.
Seeing the Halo universe come alive with fully fleshed
characters who have personalities and emotions is a real
treat, especially since it brings a whole new level of
realism to the franchise. Not since the live action Halo
Landfallvideos has the universe seen such caren taken to
represent the fan-favorite saga.
This series is a monumental shift from Halo 3's live-action
snippets and promos: Forward Unto Dawn shows the total
evolution of live-action gaming fiction and how its grown
into an amazing medium that blurs the lines of gaming and
film.
One of the most enjoyable and iconic moments of the
series is the appearance of Master Chief, who saves the
survivors and dispatches Covies with ease. Forward Unto
Dawn exposes Master Chief's role as a savior and a beacon
of hope for humanity, which is something that isn't always
adequately represented in the games.
The series breathes new life into the franchise, allowing
fans to experience an in-depth view at a living adaptation of
Halo. It has everything from Warthogs to ODST pods, orbital
elevators, Covenant cruisers, needlers, energy swords,
Sangheili warriors, and of course Master Chief, and it
honestly is like watching a feature film on the big screen.
With the recent release of the fifth episode, the series
comes to a close, but it has done its job with an exemplary
performance and has been exceedingly enjoyable, building
the anticipation for Halo 4 even more. 343i's newest chapter
of the Halo franchise goes above and beyond, and Forward
Unto Dawn has helped push it over the edge and become one
of the most anticipated games of 2012.
Watch all five episodes of Halo 4: Forward Unto Dawn via a
playlist on Machinima Prime's YouTube page, and check out
IGN's official mini-Wiki on the series for a rundown of cast
and credit info as well as a few other interesting tidbits.

4
Japan gets Charizard-version
Nintendo 3DS LL
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/japan-gets-charizard-version-
nintendo-3ds-ll/17711.html
November 3rd, 2012
The Pokemon Company plans to release limited-edition
Charizard-version Nintendo 3DS units to lucky customers
who are lucky enough to win the company-sponsored raffles.
Here’s another potentially great addition to your Pokemon
fan collection items. The Pokemon Company has just
unveiled a limited edition black Nintendo 3DS LL that is
design-themed with a gold-lined Charizard (Lizardon in
Japan) image. It will not be available for general sale though,
but will be available to a few lucky customers who will win
their special promotion raffle.
To avail the special raffle, interested participants in Japan
must go and register at the nearest Pokemon Center branch
in their area. Those who are not near any Pokemon Center
branch may alternatively register for the mailing/delivery
version of the raffle contest. There is a specific fill-out form
that will be exclusively used for the promo. Direct Pokemon
Center applicants would of course get the physical fill out
form, while those registering for the mail/delivery version
must download the official form at this link.
Take note, though, that although the units will be raffled, it
is not actually free. The customers will only get the privilege
to purchase the unit when they are chosen in the raffle. That
said, this limited edition Nintendo 3DS LL, if you ever got
the chance to buy one, will cost you at around 18,900 yen
(240 USD).
The registration period to avail these special Nintendo 3DS
LL units starts from November 3 up to November 26, 2012. If
you are selected as the winner in the raffle, you may purchase
your unit at the shop that is indicated in your fill out form.
The purchase period for the units will last from December
15, 2012, to January 14, 2013.
Source: 4Gamer (JP)
Qihoo 360 target of security
controversy
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/qihoo-360-target-of-security-
controversy/17710.html
November 3rd, 2012
Qihoo 360, a China-based antivirus software company, has
been accused of collecting users' personal information. Was
this the company's fault, or is someone outside responsible?
There is currently a war of words between Qihoo 360
and Fang Zhou, a well-known anti-counterfeiting expert in
China. Fang accused Qihoo 360 collecting users private
information through its antivirus software. In China, users
are concerned about their own privacy online and some are
considering other security products. Qihoo 360's stock has
taken a slight drop since the "Fang Zhou Wars" started in
October, but not nearly enough to cause serious worry.
A spokesperson of the Ministry of Industry and
Communication Development Division says that Qihoo 360
will launch an investigation into the alleged security failures,
and that the company takes the matter very seriously. Shi
Wenchang, a professor of information security at Renmin
University, said that, if such a breach of privacy occurred, it
was most likely a malicious theft of an outside hacker, never
the intent of Qihoo 360.
Expert members of the Policy and Resources Committee of
the Internet Society of China have noted that, as technology
advances, it becomes more and more difficult for the
government to regulate Internet companies and monitor
security. As investigations continue, internet users should
remember to avoid suspicious websites and keep their
private information secure.

5
Time Magazine cover shot
with iPhone
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/time-magazine-cover-shot-with-
iphone/17709.html
November 3rd, 2012
The cover image for this week's issue of Time Magazine was
shot by "photojournalist" Benjamin Lowy, using an iPhone
and popular photo editing application "Hipstamatic"
The image here is an ominous shot of a churning swell,
during this week's Hurricane Sandy, which caused billions
of dollar's damage in the United States, affecting a great
portion of the East Coast.
This picture not only demonstrates the iPhone's competence
as an instrument of photography, but the transformation
that mobile devices are having on journalism and
photography alike. With the ability to snap pictures like
the one above, and to share them and other information
instantaneously, mobile devices are making it more possible
for individuals to capture and share the moment.
As sentimental as that last phrase may sound, Time
Magazine's cover shows it to be true in a more somber
sense. Clearly major events, political or natural, can now
be captured on the spot by individuals as they occur. The
smartphone is becoming an important tool in recording and
sharing important information with the world.
Apple bringing $19 Lightning
to Micro USB adapter to the
U.S
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/apple-bringing-19-lightning-to-
micro-usb-adapter-to-the-u.s/17708.html
November 3rd, 2012
Apple is finally bringing the Lightning to Micro USB adapter,
which has only been available in Europe, to the United
States. It can now be purchased on Apple's website.
The United States is something of an anarchy when it comes
to mobile device chargers, adapters, etc. That is why Apple,
an American corporation, was able to invent yet another
charging and syncing protocol with the release of the iPhone
5, known as 'Lightning'.
This new release was met with a good deal of criticism, since
it forced some consumers to purchase adapters or Lightning
cords for their new Apple devices. Additionally, a special
security technology inside of Lightning cables make them
a very difficult target for imitation, therefore wiping out a
good deal of cheaper alternatives which might otherwise
have been available from Chinese imitators on the internet.
Apple is not known for cheap anything, and their cables are
no exceptions.
The problem of needing to purchase an adapter still existed
in Europe, but nobody with a Micro USB cable had to worry
about getting a new cable. The European Commission's
guidelines require all mobile devices to be compatible with
the Micro USB standard.
In order to meet this standard, Apple released a Lightning
to Micro USB adapter in Europe. For a long time, this
convenient device has been unavailable in America, except
through 3rd party resellers.
Image from Apple
Those Americans that do not simply follow along with
Apple's comparatively Draconian methods will be elated to

6
learn that the adapter is now available to purchase, directly
through Apple's website.
Although the adapter costs $19.00, the experience of being
able to use an already purchased cord with a new Apple
product in the U.S should be like a splash of cool, clear water
on the face of a man trapped in a sweltering desert*.
The adapter is compatible with all current iOS devices,
including the iPad mini, and with the seventh generation
iPod nano.
It is capable of charging, and syncing devices in the same
manner of a standard Lightning cord.
*Please note that the author of this article is an American.
Introducing Evergreen's
password lock USB storage
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/introducing-evergreen-s-password-
lock-usb-storage/17694.html
November 3rd, 2012
Evergreen can protect you files from being accessed without
your permission with their new Password Lock USB memory
storage sticks.
Password-like protection systems for USB drives are already
available everywhere. But there is a particular scarcity
for USB storage devices that can be actually “sealed”
with a password. Fortunately though, Japanese company
Evergreen presents us with a somewhat innovative and
strange USB storage device that allows you to protect your
files using a good old password.
The Password Lock USB Memory Storage, as seen in the
image looks like a micro-feature phone that has a USB plug.
It has an LCD display and a standard number pad set in
the main body of the device. There are no details given
on how passwords are made and saved, but it is capable
of storing 8-digit passwords in it. When it is plugged on
a PC, it can automatically disconnect properly after a set
time period (5 to 20 minutes). The device can tolerate up
to 6 wrong password inputs, and if it goes over the limit, it
will start reformatting the unit, erasing all data saved inside
the device. As for its technical specs, its storage capacity is
8GB, supports USB 2.0 connectivity and weighs at around
22 grams.
The item is currently available at the Shanghai Donya online
store for 1999 yen (25 USD). It is sold under the advanced
items category, and will have different service support
(compared to other items) for purchasing customers.
While the concept of the device looks pretty neat, we
just can’t help but wonder about what would happen if
things go wrong witth it. We just hope at least that its
users won’t accidently lock themselves up, or erase their
files unintentionally, in case they forgot their USB stick's
password.
Source: ITMedia (JP)
Pinch Interface Lets You
Create Video Walls On The
Fly
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/pinch-interface-lets-you-create-
video-walls-on-the-fly/17707.html
November 3rd, 2012
Pinch is an interface that connects the displays from multiple
touch devices and it is under development by a research
group at the Tokyo University of Technology. Devices with
different-sized screens, such as smartphones and tablets,
can go together to form a display interface.
Pinch is an interface that connects the displays from multiple
touch devices and it is under development by a research
group at the Tokyo University of Technology. When the user
places a thumb and index finger on two adjacent screens
and pinches, the screens link up. The screens can be lined
up freely, vertical or horizontal. The connected devices share
each other's position and screen size via Wi-Fi.
Devices with different-sized screens, such as smartphones
and tablets, can go together to form a display interface.
According to Takashi Ohta, Associate Professor at Tokyo
University of Technology, who appeared in a video demo,
"This Pinch interface we've developed is used to create
applications that make devices react when they've both been
pinched, so they work together.
In the case of a graphics application, when the devices
recognize they've been pinched, they can show the whole
picture as if it's on one screen." He said that Pinch can be the
foundation of a musical experience, where you connect the
different devices you have horizontally, with the result that
"you could keep playing music for a long time."
Ohta sees Pinch as enabling "fun" communications, where
people gather, place their devices next to one another,
and communicate ideas and images in novel ways. Other
avenues, too, could include mobile music, advertising, and
photo-sharing experiences.

7
The Pinch team said it was offering Pinch to developers,
hoping they could "do something with it." In 2010, Ohta co-
wrote a paper that cast some light on the present research.
In that paper, titled "Automatic configuration of display
ordering for multi-display environments," Ohta and Jun
Tanaka said,
"We designed and built a system that configures the
information of how displays are arranged as a multi-
display environment. The system automatically matches the
physical location of displays and network addresses. It uses
a web camera for capturing a real-time video to observe
each display to flash its screens one by one. The timing
and relative locations of the flashing screens are recognized
using an image processing technique. Furthermore, the
correspondence of the displays and the network addresses
can be deduced from these data." The team concluded,
based on their results, that the "system works perfectly, with
various configurations of display dispositions."
Source: Tokyo University of Technology
Solar System Theory In
a Spin Thanks to New
Research
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/solar-system-theory-in-a-spin-
thanks-to-new-research/17706.html
November 3rd, 2012
The new findings, by researchers led by Dr James Connelly
from the University of Copenhagen, may change our
understanding of how the first pieces of 'dirt' in our solar
system first formed.
The first solids to form in our solar system appeared at the
same time, more than 4.5 billion years ago, according to a
new study published in the journal Science.
The new findings, by researchers led by Dr James Connelly
from the University of Copenhagen, may change our
understanding of how the first pieces of 'dirt' in our solar
system first formed.
CAIs (calcium-aluminium-rich inclusions) and chondrules
are the earliest solids to form in our solar system. Both
are found as millimetre- to centimetre-sized grains in
meteorites.
Scientists have traditionally used isotopic ratios of
aluminium to magnesium to date these most ancient solids,
concluding that CAIs were the first solids to condense out
of the protoplanetary disk followed millions of years later
by chondrules. The new method developed by Connelly and
colleagues uses two new techniques to measure uranium and
lead isotopes.
Connelly and colleagues dated samples from numerous
meteorites, finding chondrules formed 4.567 billion years
ago - far earlier than previously thought.
"These data refute the long-held view of an age gap between
CAIs and chondrules and, instead, indicate that chondrule
formation started contemporaneously with CAIs and lasted
about three million years," the authors write.
Connelly and colleagues say the new time scales are
comparable with those observed in distant solar and
protoplanetary disks, indicating the processes that formed
chondrules and CAIs in our solar system are not unique.
Dr Katie Dyl of Curtin University in Western Australia, says
the new techniques used by Connelly and colleagues have
only recently been available.
"These are really hard measurements to make," says Dyl.
"This new plasma technology allows you to do more and also
offers far greater precision."
She says this has allowed them to say something new and
different from what everyone else is saying.
"The idea that CAI's and chondrules formed at the same
time, goes against one of the basic principles, namely that
CAI's formed first before anything else by two to three
million years," says Dyl.
"Their claim will cause a lot of discussion"
"If it holds up to scrutiny and other labs find the same thing,
then that's a really interesting breakthrough," says Dyl.
Source: ABC Science

8
Will Plasma Jet Thrusters
"Kickstart" Interplanetary
Travel?
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/will-plasma-jet-thrusters-kickstart-
interplanetary-travel-/17705.html
November 3rd, 2012
A new Kickstarter project is looking to build a prototype
electric pulsed plasma jet thruster, and the engineers
behind the project say this could be used for reliable, high
performance, low cost interplanetary space transportation.
One of the side effects that we're seeing from commercial
companies getting involved in space travel and exploration
is that regular entrepeneurs are getting stuck in, developing
what may be the next big thing in their garages and home
made labs. A new Kickstarter project that has a buzz around
it is looking to build a prototype electric pulsed plasma
jet thruster, and the engineers behind the project say this
could be used for reliable, high performance, low cost
interplanetary space transportation.
The team of plasma physics researchers started a company
about 8 years ago called HyperV, and they have come up
with a new design for basic pulsed plasma jet technology.
It runs on superheated ionized particles, and the engineers
envision it could be used for orbital maneuvering, asteroid/
comet rendezvous, orbital debris cleanup and interplanetary
transportation. They say that using this kind of electric
propulsion would significantly reduce the mass and weight
of spacecraft, resulting in more affordable missions.
Open shutter image of an approximately 10 microsecond
long plasma pulse in visible light.
Although there are other types of electric propulsion systems
that have been used for space travel – with mixed results—
the HyperV team believes their new design offers solutions
to problems in previous designs, and will ultimately provide
cheaper and more robust space travel.
The team offered this description of their project:
"We believe our thruster technology has the potential to be
just as efficient as existing electric thrusters (such as ion
and Hall effect thrusters) and with similar specific impulse.
But our advantages will be derived from a thruster that
is less complex (and much more robust), which can use a
variety of propellants including gases, inert plastics, and
propellants derived from asteroids, Mars, the Moon, etc., It
will also be far cheaper to build, and can be more readily
scaled to larger sizes and very high power levels than current
electric propulsion systems. Our plasma thruster technology
should be scalable from a few kilowatts all the way up to
megawatts of average power. The electricity which is needed
to power electric thrusters would most likely come from
new high performance solar panels, but could also utilize
other compact energy sources. From a practical viewpoint
for satellite design, our thruster will have much higher thrust
per unit area than ion or Hall thrusters, thus taking up less
room on the rear of the spacecraft."
HyperV's Mark 1 plasma accelerator.
They predict their prototype could produce a specific
impulse (Isp) of 2000 sec, which is an equivalent to an
exhaust velocity of 20,000 m/s.
As of this writing, the team's Kickstarter has raised $69,525
of their $69,000 goal, so the project will indeed be funded
after it finishes later today. Then, it's all up to them to make
this dream come true.

9
"We invite you, the citizens of Earth, to join with us as we
design, construct, test, and execute this demonstration," the
team wrote on their Kickstarter page. "The culmination of
this project will be an all-up, laboratory demonstration of
our prototype thruster."

November 5th, 2012 Published by: VR-Zone
1
geeks.
Test drive Wii U at 5,000
kiosks before buying
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/test-drive-wii-u-at-5-000-kiosks-
before-buying/17734.html
November 5th, 2012
For U.S. consumers, the Wii U will hit retail in about two
weeks, but in case you haven’t already got your mind set on
snatching one up before the Christmas rush then you’ll still
be able to test out Nintendo’s latest console via demo kiosks.
Nintendo announced earlier that it will issue 5,000 Wii U
kiosks to various retailers such as Target, GameStop, Wal-
Mart, and Toys R’ Us. The Wii U will go on sale for $299
starting November 18, and the deluxe Wii U + Nintendo
Land bundle will go for $349.99.
(The Wii U GamePadwith the 6.2-inch screen in the center)
The most intriguing part of Nintendo’s new console is
the new GamePad controller, which sports a 6.2-inch
touchscreen in the center. How consumers will react to
this dual-screen console gaming remains to be seen, but
Nintendo is hoping that it’s trend-setting ‘quirks’ to gaming
will ultimately help the firm maintain profitability in the
years to come.
Satoru Iwata, Nintendo’s president since 2002, made it clear
that the Wii U will be sold at a loss, and any future profits
will be made mainly from the sales of add-ons, accessories,
supply chain modifications, and so on.
If you’re thinking about taking the Wii U out for a test drive
and don’t know the locations of demo kiosks then Nintendo
has you covered. Click here to find out.
Google may have a Maps app
ready for iOS 6 by year's end
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/google-may-have-a-maps-app-ready-
for-ios-6-by-year-s-end/17733.html
November 5th, 2012
As soon as Apple launched its iOS 6, many people began
to complain about the faulty in-house Apple Maps app that
replaced Google’s Maps app. Fret not iOS 6 users, despite
the bad blood between Google and Apple, the superior
Google Maps app may return to iOS 6 soon.
The Guardian reports that Google is working on developing
a native Maps app for iOS 6, which may be ready for
deployment as early as the end of this year. There is a
brick wall that Google needs to climb over (or break down),
however, as Apple gets to decide whether or not the Google
Maps app can be installed on iOS 6.
Let’s take a stroll down memory lane, and see how the whole
Apple Maps app debacle has not only affected consumers but
also the managements within the billion dollar walls of Apple
Inc.
September 19, 2012: Apple releases iOS 6 to the public, and
the Maps app scrutiny began.
September 21, 2012: The iPhone 5 launches, but instead of
praising the nifty new features on Apple’s latest flagship,
tech bloggers ranted about the horrible Apple Maps app
experience.
September 28, 2012: CEO Tim Cook apologizes for the bad
Maps app, and advises users to use alternatives (all the while
trying to not ‘promote’ the best alternative).
Mid to late October, 2012: Tension between iOS Chief, Scott
Forstall, and Tim Cook arises and out goes the long-time iOS
exec.
November 5, 2012: Words get out that Google wants to push
its Maps experience back onto iOS, pending future Apple
approval.
Clearly, Apple understands that its Maps offering is inferior
compared to Google’s, but yet the Cupertino-based firm
has remained adamant about sticking with its own product.
“[We are] continuously improving [Maps],” Apple said in
a statement. The question is not whether or not Apple can
develop a good product, but rather when can it deliver a
product that’s on par with Google’s.

2
When will Apple have a Maps product that can compete
with Google’s? Who really knows, but supposedly Google
will have one by the end of this year. Apple may be drunk
with power now, but when it sobers up let’s hope that it’ll
let people decide which native Maps app to use rather than
forcing it upon its loyal customers.
AT&T to offer Windows 8
Samsung ATIV Smart PC for
$799
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/at-t-to-offer-windows-8-samsung-
ativ-smart-pc-for-799/17732.html
November 5th, 2012
Last week Microsoft announced that it had already sold 4
million Windows 8 upgrades, and that arrangements with
various firms were already in place to help push the adoption
rate of the latest Microsoft tablet/desktop OS. This week,
AT&T announced that it will also pitch in by promoting
Windows 8 through the Samsung ATIV Smart PC, with the
device available starting November 9.
The ATIV Smart PC is an Intel Atom (Z2760) powered tablet
that is aimed at the business sectors. AT&T is planning to
charge $799 for the device, which may come under scrutiny
since that’s a hefty premium for a tablet that has relatively
‘average’ specs compared to other Z2760 business tablets.
Of course, one has to take into account that the AT&T ATIV
Smart PC comes with an integrated mobile broadband radio,
and therefore the apparent premium price tag.
Samsung claims that the 9.9mm thin tablet can stay lit
for 14.5 hours on a single charge. The 1.5GHz 11.6-inch
(1366x768) tablet also comes with 64GB of SSD storage
(expandable to 94GB via microSD), and 2GB of RAM.
Keep in mind that AT&T will be offering just the tablet by
itself, with no accessories/add-ons such as a keyboard dock
(which most Windows 8 users will probably want). Factor in
the additional costs of accessories and add-ons and it’s easy
to see that this Windows 8 tablet offering from AT&T may
not sell that many units.
(Samsung's ATIV Smart PC Pro)
If the $800 tag for a device that doesn’t boast much muscle
is a turn off, then perhaps the ATIV Smart PC Pro may be
a better alternative if Samsung is still your flavor. The Pro
version has a beefier Core i5 3317U clocked at 1.7GHz, 128
GB of SSD storage, 4GB of RAM, and even the screen has a
higher resolution—coming in at 1920x1080. All the features
on the Pro definitely help it to outshine the standard model,
but you won’t get the mobile broadband radio in the Pro,
yet. The current going price for the Pro version is $1,199
(Amazon), and although the tag is higher than the AT&T
offering, the Pro comes packaged with a keyboard dock.
Trailer is here for the new
Skyrim DLC!
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/trailer-is-here-for-the-new-skyrim-
dlc-/17731.html
November 5th, 2012
The third DLC for The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim is in the works,
and the first trailer is here. Watch it now!
The third Skyrim DLC is coming, and the trailer is here.
It seems the dragonborn will be traveling to the island of
Solstheim this time, due east of Skyrim. For those who are
invested in the game's lore, the new trailer reveals that
apparently, you were never the first Dragonborn in Skyrim;
there was one before, who became a rogue dragon priest and
whom you must now defeat. At the very least, you'll see some
fantastical sights, like giant mushrooms and a bunch of new
enemies. Check out the trailer below:
Microsoft partners with
AMEX, pays you for
completing Halo 4
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/microsoft-partners-with-amex-pays-
you-for-completing-halo-4/17730.html
November 5th, 2012
Microsoft and AMEX are doing a promotional campaign
together, where you'll receive $25 (or £25 in europe) for
completing the Halo 4 campaign. Being one of the first to
complete it on legendary, may yield an even bigger award.
Xbox360 players will see their wallets stuffed from playing
games, as Microsoft has partnered with AMEX for a
promotional campaign. Linking your Xbox Live account with
an American Express card will give you $10/£10 credit on
your card. In the US and UK you'll also receive coupons to
AMC theaters, Pacsun and Carphone warehouse. Finishing
the Halo 4 campaign on normal or harder difficulties will
give you $25, or £25 if you're in Europe.

3
Get paid for doing this!
In addition to this, various achievements in-game will see
you receiving credit, as well as coupons. If you happen to be
one of the first 25 players to complete the game on legendary
difficulty in the US, or one of the first five to do so in the UK,
you'll be entered in a competition to win a trip to the E3 expo
next year. Get playing!
JCI offering visitor SIM cards
for tourists in Japan
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/jci-offering-visitor-sim-cards-for-
tourists-in-japan/17726.html
November 5th, 2012
Ever just landed in Japan, only to realize your cell phone
won’t work on their network? JCI (Japan Communications
Inc) is here to help you get your phone-on in the land of the
rising sun.
JCI is seeking to ease the pain of foreign tourists stranded
with no means of communication, by offering a new rental
SIM card available from airports across Japan.
1GB! Cool, now I can download the latest episode of
Dexter...
Dubbed the “VISITOR SIM”, the cards will be available from
the airport post office. Users who sign up for the service
will be able to pick up a VISITOR SIM from any airport
post office for a postal fee of 210 yen. It gives travelers the
advantage of having instant access to their cell the second
they step off the plane.
At present, participating airports are: Chitose, Narita,
Haneda, Chuubu(Central Japan International Airport),
Kansai, Hiroshima, Fukuoka, Kagoshima, and Naha
(Okinawa).
C'mon, get in there.. GET IN THERE! Grrr!!
Compatibility with various phones has yet to be announced,
so if you’re planning on travelling to the far east and can’t
bear to go ten minutes without your cell phone, make sure
your phone is of the 'unlocked' variants.
One more thing: If you take your iPad, I don’t think they will
be happy about you cutting the SIM card in half.
Press release: http://www.j-com.co.jp/news/
release/1228.html
Google letting users opt out
of personalized search
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/google-letting-users-opt-out-of-
personalized-search/17729.html
November 5th, 2012
Google has been filtering your searches based on personal
preference, and since this has caused some stir in the online
community, Google is now releasing a way of opting out of
Google's personalized search results.
Over the past few months, there's been some concern
regarding Google's personalized search. Google collects data
on dozens of different factors, including where you are and
what your previous searches have been, and then uses that
information to improve the results of future searches based
on what you probably want to look for. For example, if you've
previously searched for "iPad", then searching for tablets will
be more likely to give you results on iPads rather than, say,
the Galaxy Tab.
At first glance, this might sound like a good thing, and to
an extent, it is. Personalized searching means finding what
you're looking for faster and with more ease. However, there
is a dark side to personalized searches: they edit the web for
you, without alerting you or asking permission. This puts
you in an information bubble, which restricts the flow of
information to you and may narrow your world view. For
example, during the height of the political crisis in Egypt,
a test was conducted where two people googled the word
"Egypt". One of them did receive results focused around the
political situation, while the other only received travel links.

4
Many people are reaching the conclusion that personalized
searches isn't for them, and Google has responded by letting
their users turn off this search feature. If you have a Google
account, such as a Gmail account, you can do this by
accessing your account settings and choosing “pause” under
Google search. This will stop Google from collecting any
further information. Pressing "delete all" web history will
also remove previously stored data.
If you do not have a Google apps account, you will have to
install a tracking cookie which alerts Google not to store
search data. The cookie can downloaded form google.com/
history/optout.
ZTE quad-core Android phone
for about $160
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/zte-quad-core-android-phone-for-
about-160/17724.html
November 5th, 2012
ZTE received the first orders today for its new Andoid
phone that's equipped with the U950 quad-core processor.
It's not the first Chinese smart phone to include a quad-
core processor but the U950 is receiving a lot of attention
for its price. It comes with all the bells and whistles for the
equivalent of $160.
The phone's 4.3 inch screen and 480x800 resolution are
standard, just like the 5 megapixel camera on the back and
the 0.3 megepixel camera on the front. At 9mm it is thin and
light. Its non-removable lithium ion battery however, has
received complaints from early reviewers who would have
preferred a removable battery. The TFT LCD screen is also
somewhat disappointing and seems to waste the U950's Full
HD capacity.
But everyone agrees that for the price this phone is a wonder.
It comes equipped with 1GB of RAM, 4GB of RAM, and the
Tegra 3 quad-core processor from Nvidia clocked at 1.3GHz.
Reviewers have praised its speed and responsiveness when
running games.
It certainly won't be the last Chinese phone to come with
a quad-core processor, as the technology itself is becoming
more and more feasible. The U950 may be less important
for what it can do, but more so a stepping stone for
future affordable quad-core phones in China. As more and
more applications are programmed to run on quad-core
processors, we will be able to enjoy a faster and fuller
experience for a lot less money.
This phone might make a great gift for someone you don't
want to spend too much money on. It's the thought that
counts after all, albeit a $160 thought.
Battlefield 3 "Epicenter"
shakes up multiplayer
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/battlefield-3-epicenter-shakes-up-
multiplayer/17727.html
November 5th, 2012
A new map has been revealed for Battlefield 3, which will
be part of the new Aftermath DLC, premiering in December.
Aftermath will bring the earthquake from the singleplayer
campaign into multiplayer.
Premiering in December, the Aftermath DLC pack for
Battlefield 3 will feature several new maps, one of which,
"epicenter" has just been revealed with a flythrough-video
and an in-depth interview on the battlefield blog. Epicenter,
and aftermath in general, will focus on bringing the
earthquake from the singleplayer game, into the multiplayer
environment.

5
The DLC pack in general will revolve around the aftermath
(hence the name) of an earthquake, and the Epicenter
map frames this in the ruins of a city block. Damaged
buildings, torn streets and a fallen construction crane turned
makeshift walkway, are the main visual features of the map.
This destruction obviously changes the urban environment;
something the designers were keen on incorporating into
gameplay. Cracked roads will provide new cover, rubble will
provide access to otherwise unreachable areas of buildings
and exposed pipes will let you sneak past you enemies.
The arguably most exciting feature on Epicenter though,
is that you will be experiencing an earthquake in-game.
At random intervals while playing the map, you will feel
aftershocks from the earthquake. This means loud rumbles,
car alarms and dogs barking, as well as debris and broken
glass raining down from the buildings around you. You will
also be shaking, thus making it harder to aim.
To cope with traversing that has so much destruction and
debris around it, DICE will also be providing a few new
and specialized vehicles in the DLC. These will be heavily
modified to get through difficult terrain without getting
stuck. There will also be the addition of new weapons, such
as the silent crossbow. A new game mode, scavenger, will
also be introduced. Scavenger will be based around the
concept of hunting for weapons and ammo around the map.
ThinkPad X1 Carbon Limited
Edition 20 Year Anniversary
Model
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/thinkpad-x1-carbon-limited-
edition-20-year-anniversary-model/17725.html
November 5th, 2012
To celebrate the 20th birthday of the ThinkPad, Lenovo
Japan is releasing a limited edition 14-inch “ThinkPad X1
Carbon 20th Anniversary Edition” Ultrabook exclusively in
Japan.
Reservations for the Ultrabook can be made starting
November 13th, with a scheduled shipping date of late
December. The model will only be available via special order
and there will be a limited production run of 500 units,
making this a possible collector’s item.
The ThinkPad was originally created in Japan 20 years
ago, and wowed users with its portability and durability.
The anniversary edition of the Carbon will be based on the
highest powered SKU of Lenovo’s current flagship ThinkPad
X1 Carbon, and will feature a Core i7-3667U (2GHz,
with embedded graphics), 8GB memory, SSD 256GB, and
Windows 8 Pro.
Production of the limited model will take place at NEC
Personal Computer’s Komezawa factory in Yamagata, and
the machines will be printed with a serial code near the
hinge, a “20th Anniversary Edition” logo on the left of the
power button, and “Made in Japan” printed on the back of
the Ultrabook.
Special features include an original screensaver and
wallpaper, and a special set of wrapped black chopsticks
based on the design of the ThinkPad, created by professional
chopstick artists at Ginza Ohashi. The Ultrabook will also
come with an original waterproof case created by Matsushita
Luggage in Toyooka, Hyogo
In addition to direct sale of the device via Lenovo, orders can
also be taken via Yamada electronics, Yodobashi Camera,
and Big Camera. Remember, there will only be 500 units
manufactured, so if you are interested, better order yours
soon!
Lenovo Homepage
Product Info
3D-printed Minecraft worlds
for sale online
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/3d-printed-minecraft-worlds-for-
sale-online/17728.html
November 5th, 2012
An online company, FigurePrints, is now selling 3D-prints of
your minecraft worlds. Upload your map to them and they'll
make you a plastic model.
Minecraft's PC players can now have their worlds exported
into the real world via a company called FigurePrint.
FigurePrint, which also makes models of your World of
Warcraft and Xbox Live characters, has turned to 3D
printing to make your virtual worlds come to life. Buying
a model of your world is a fairly simple process: First, you
download FigurePrint's map exporting program, and extract
your chosen map. After this, you select what part of the map
you want to model. You can pick essentially any part you
want, but larger sections will be more expensive. After this,
you simply submit your request.

6
This is a really cool application for 3D-printing.
The models are printed with a special powder. A layer of
the powder is spread onto a flat surface. Then resin, used to
bind the powder together and harden it, is injected where the
solid parts of the model are meant to be. After this, another
layer of powder is added on top of the previous one and more
resin is added. This process is repeated over and over again,
building up the structure bit by bit, until you eventually
have a completed model of resin, encased in a block of the
powder. The powder is then cleaned away and your model
is complete.
3D-printing is a growing industry, and some very complex
models, including ones with moveable parts and functioning
mechanical systems, can be created easily. Still, beyond
product demos and architectural models, you don't hear
about a lot of consumer applications of the technology, so it's
good news that companies such as FigurePrint are starting
to pop up.
Asus RT-AC66U 802.11ac
Dual-Band Wireless Router
Review
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/asus-rt-ac66u-802.11ac-dual-band-
wireless-router-review/17712.html
November 5th, 2012
The draft IEEE 802.11ac spec provides for transmission
speeds up to 1300 Mb/s, which is 3 times faster the current
de facto 802.11n wireless standard. We find out whether
Asus's top of the line RT-AC66U is able to widen the speed
gap from its predecessors such as the RT-N66U that we
reviewed earlier this year.
Externals
At a glance, the RT-AC66U is almost indistinguishable from
its predecessor, the RT-N66U "Dark Knight", save for the
gold color logo on the top right corner of the router.
The front side of the router has the LED indicators for power,
wireless 2.4/5GHz, USB port, WAN and LAN activity.
At the rear, we find three RP-SMA antennas connectors, a
power jack, power switch, pair of USB 2.0 ports, four Gigabit
LAN ports, WAN port, WPS and reset button.

7
Advertised Features
Designed for Class-Leading Speed and Range
Dual-Band Connectivity for Lag-Free Entertainment
Separate and Secure Wi-Fi Network via Guest Network
Access
Powerful Online Multitasking up to 300,000 Data Sessions
VPN Server Enabled
Specifications Table
Network Standard IEEE 802.11a,
IEEE
802.11b,
IEEE
802.11g, IEEE
802.11n,
IEEE
802.11ac,
IEEE 802.3u,
IPv4, IPv6

8
Data Rate 802.11a :
6,9,12,18,24,36,48,54Mbps
802.11b : 1, 2,
5.5, 11Mbps
802.11g :
6,9,12,18,24,36,48,54Mbps
802.11n : up
to 450Mbps
802.11ac: up
to 1300Mbps
Antenna Detachable Dipole RP-SMA
antenna x 3
Operating Frequency 2.4G~2.4835GHz /5.1~5.8GHz
WAN Connection Type Internet connection type :
Automatic IP, Static IP,
PPPoE(MPPE supported),
PPTP, L2TP
Dual Link support
Multicast Proxy support
Utilities Download master
- support BT, NZB, HTTP,
ED2K
- support encryption, DHT,
PEX and magnet link
- upload and download
bandwidth control
- download scheduling
Media server:
Image: JPEG
Audio: mp3, wma, wav, pcm,
mp4, lpcm, ogg
Video: asf, avi, divx, mpeg,
mpg, ts, vob, wmv, mkv, mov
QoS:
WMM
User definable rules for
IP/MAC/Port. Upload
and Download bandwidth
management.
ACK/SYN/FIN/RST/ICMP
with Highest priority
Guest Network
2.4GHz guest network x 3,
5GHz guest network x 3
Printer Server:
multifunctional printer
support(Windows nly), LPR
protocol support
File server: Samba and
FTP server with account
management
PPTP VPN server
Network map
Traffic monitor
Ports 4 x RJ45 for
10/100/1000/
Gigabits
BaseT for
LAN, 1 x
RJ45 for
10/100/1000/
Gigabits
BaseT
for WAN,
Support
Ethernet and
802.3 with
max. bit rate
10/100/1000/
Gigabits
Mbps
and auto
cross-over
function(MDI-
X)
USB 2.0 x 2
Button WPS Button, Reset Button,
Power Button
LED Indicator LAN x 4
WAN x 1
AIR x 2
USB x 1
Power Supply AC Input :
110V~240V(50~60Hz)
DC Output : 19 V with max.
1.58 A current
Weight / Dimensions 450g / 207 x 148.8 x 35.5
mm (WxDxH)
Black Ops II gets leaked onto
the net
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/black-ops-ii-gets-leaked-onto-the-
net/17723.html

9
November 5th, 2012
Following the trend of Halo 4, Treyarch's newest chapter in
the Call of Duty franchise, Black Ops II, has been leaked onto
piracy websites around the net.
Call of Duty: Black Ops II, Treyarch's newest contender in
the juggernaut FPS series, has just been leaked onto the
internet's most nefarious and seedy underground: piracy
websites. A fully-working .ISO of the game has been spotted
on many popular piracy websites, allegedly uploaded by
"BAD 2 THE B0N3" from 360iso, a piracy website that
specializes in illegal downloadable Xbox 360 disc images.
Gamers might see many spoilers for Black Ops II including
end-game cinematics in the next few days, potentially
ruining the experience for many gamers worldwide.
Following Microsoft's response to Halo 4's recent leaking,
Treyarch and Activision will most likely respond quickly and
do what they can to get the image off the net, since the game
is this year's flagship title for the development/publisher
duo.
Call of Duty: Black Ops II releases on Nov. 13, 2012
for PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, and Windows PC. For more
information please visit the game's official website.
New Apple store opens in
Shenzhen
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/new-apple-store-opens-in-
shenzhen/17722.html
November 5th, 2012
The Shenzhen Apple store welcomed an estimated ten
thousand customers on its first day in business. Customers
started lining up 24 hours before the grand opening at World
Yi Tian Holiday Plaza. The first customer through the door
was Chen Taixin, a young Malaysian man and a senior at
Shenzhen University. Chen told reporters that he began
waiting outside the doors before 9 AM on November 2. The
store officially opened at 9 AM the next day.
Apple provided the waiting customers with free Starbucks
coffee and free meals from KFC, Pizza Hut, McDonald's,
and Ajisen's Ramen. Customers were allowed to leave
their spots for 15 minute bathroom breaks. Reporters
estimated that 1500 customers entered the store within the
first hour of business, and the first 1000 people were given
commemorative Apple t-shirts.
Last month, Apple opened a larger store in Beijing which
welcomed a record number of customers on opening day,
and the Shenzhen store is now living up to its counterpart's
success.
Conan O'Brien: Apple's next
tablet will be the iPad Mini
Mega Micro
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/conan-o-brien-apple-s-next-tablet-
will-be-the-ipad-mini-mega-micro/17721.html
November 5th, 2012
Late night TV has been mocking various Apple products
lately, and Conan O’Brien’s take on what Apple may launch
next will probably have you laughing until the next launch
event.
When the iPad mini rumor began swirling, some thought
that Apple will finally heed the needs of budget conscious
consumers. However, as we can see from the $329 price tag
of the 16GB iPad mini, Apple hasn’t changed its philosophy
at all. Apple has so much control of the tablet market that
regardless of what the competition is doing, the Cupertino-
based firm will still profit immensely from most of their
gadgets.
Major tablet competitors such as Amazon have confirmed
that they’re making next to nothing on their tablets, but
despite selling iPad-alternatives for ‘less,’ the Kindles aren’t
being sold like grain during a famine. With all this in mind,
O’Brien’s clever take on Apple’s control of the tablet market
is nothing short of hilarious.
Regardless of the screen size, and regardless of the price,
Apple iPad tablets will sell. So far, that theme hasn’t change,
and so the Apple war chest continues to grow.

1
geeks.
New Uncharted game
revealed!
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/new-uncharted-game-
revealed-/17756.html
November 7th, 2012
A new Uncharted game has just received classification,
meaning the adventures of Nathan Drake aren't over
quite yet. However, what little we know of the new title
suggests some strange features. This may be a very different
Uncharted.
Both the Australian and Brazilian classification board, have
just released classification for a game called "Uncharted:
Fight for Fortune", suggesting to fans of the series that they'll
see more of Nathan Drake in the future. There is yet little
information about the game, but the classification board has
revealed some interesting, and puzzling facts.
Screenshot from Uncharted 3's plane crash scene
First, the game is not being developed by Sony's first party
developer Naughty Dog, or by Sony Bend Studios, who
handled the development of Uncharted's Playstation Vita
game "Golden Abyss". Instead, the game will be developed
by One Loop Games. One Loop is a third party developer
who has had releases for, among others, PSN and XBLA .
They've been involved in the development of console games
like The Sabatour as well.One Loop Games does have a
prior relationship with Sony as well, as they've worked on
both God of War: Betrayal and Ratchet & Clank: Going
Commando.
Another interesting fact about the new game is that it's
classified in Australia as having no adult themes, nudity
or sex; and very mild violence and drug use. Uncharted
usually involves quite a bit of violence and at least a few
instances of adult themes, so it is strange that this game has
such a mild classification. Accompanying this, the Brazilian
classification board has listed it as a "casino/card game". We
may be looking at a very different Uncharted.
The Australian classification page for the new game
Apart from this, the classification reveals little else, though it
does issue the warning "Experience may change online", so
it's safe to assume a multiplayer mode is in the works. We'll
have to wait and see for further information.
ZTE is developing a 5.9-inch
1080p Windows Phone 8
'phablet'?
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/zte-is-developing-a-5.9-inch-1080p-
windows-phone-8-phablet-/17759.html
November 7th, 2012
Samsung, step aside because the Galaxy Note may be a thing
of the past if ZTE is indeed working on a 5.9-inch Windows
Phone ‘phablet’.
ZTE is rumored to be in the process of developing a 5.9-
inch 1080p WP8 smartphone. However, Microsoft has not
confirmed support for 1080p devices, but chances are full
HD support will be announced sometime in the near future
if the Redmond-based software maker does indeed want to
stand on even grounds with Google’s Android and Apple’s
iOS. That said, all other important details regarding ZTE’s

2
rumored phablet such as the CPU, RAM, and storage is
currently unknown.
Steve Ballmer confidently said that sales of Windows Phone
8 hardware should pick up rapidly.
"We are still relatively small. ... I expect the volumes on
Windows Phone to really ramp quickly," Ballmer said at a
WP8 launch event in Tel Aviv, Israel.
The latest from the IDC has Windows Phone market share at
2.0% of the total smartphone market. Android and iOS on
the other hand still controls the majority of the market with
75% and 14.9%, respectively, as of Q3.
Microsoft is pouring a lot man power and money into
pushing Windows 8 as well as Windows Phone 8 platforms
into the hand of consumers. Partnerships with major
carriers from around the world such as DoCoMo and AT&T
imply such, but it remains to seen whether or not consumers
are inclined to ditch the two-headed mobile behemoth that
is ‘Goople.’
AT&T announced earlier this week that the Nokia Lumia 920
(the flagship among WP8 flagships) will go for $99, with a
contract of course. If the cheap Lumia 920 price tag is not
enough to entice consumers to switch, then how about the
entry-level Lumia 820 for $49? The pricing and marketing
strategies are set in place, but again, it is up to consumers
whether or not they will walk out with a WP8 gadget in hand
once it’s all said and one.
One of the biggest drawbacks to adopting WP8 platform
is that the Microsoft app marketplace is nowhere near the
levels of Apple’s and Google’s. Microsoft is, too, pushing and
wooing developers to make apps for Microsoft.
As for the rumored ‘phablet’ from ZTE, the market for this
particular niche is still young, so it will not hurt Microsoft or
OEMs to take a stab at it and see where it takes them.
Foxconn admits struggle to
keep up with iPhone demand
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/foxconn-admits-struggle-to-keep-up-
with-iphone-demand/17758.html
November 7th, 2012
Foxconn, one of Apple's primary suppliers and assemblers,
has revealed that it is having difficulty keeping up with
demand for the iPhone.
Foxconn, one of Apple's primary suppliers and assemblers,
has revealed that it is having difficulty keeping up with
demand for the iPhone.
It is a problem that many other companies would love
to be having, but Terry Gou, Chairman of Foxconn, told
journalists that the company is “falling short of meeting the
huge demand.”
Gou said it is not easy making iPhones, a fact that
is hampered not only by high demand, but by intense
scrutiny and criticism of Foxconn's treatment of workers,
following a spate of suicides in recent years and numerous
investigations into factory working conditions. Higher pay
for staff and a cap on working hours has undoubtedly
weakened Foxconn's ability to pump out iPhones at an
incredible rate.
Foxconn could pick up the slack in iPhone supply by
transferring some assembly from Hon Hai Precision
Industry, the primary sub-division of Foxconn, which is
responsible for making the iPhone range, to Foxconn
International Holdings (FIH), a division which makes
phones for Nokia and Huawei.
Gou refused to confirm the rumours that FIH would be
helping out in future, but Reuters reports that stocks rose by
up to 35 percent after Citigroup upgraded its shares to “buy,”
paving the way for a huge boost to supply for the iPhone. The

3
question is if it will be enough and if Apple can maintain its
momentum with future models.
Microsoft to shut down
Windows Live Messenger
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/microsoft-to-shut-down-windows-
live-messenger/17757.html
November 7th, 2012
Microsoft has announced plans to close its once popular
instant messaging service Windows Live Messenger,
replacing it with VoIP service Skype.
Microsoft has announced plans to close its once popular
instant messaging service Windows Live Messenger,
replacing it with VoIP service Skype.
Windows Live Messenger launched in 1999 as MSN
Messenger, rivalling Yahoo Messenger and AOL's AIM, but
the rise of Skype and Google Talk saw the market shares
drop, resulting in Microsoft buying Skype for $8.5 billion last
year.
The ageing chat service has been given its death knell, with
all services except the Chinese one, shutting down by March
2013, with users prompted to switch to Skype instead. A tool
for migrating contacts over will be made available.
The move follows a sharp decline in users, with a 48 percent
drop to 8.3 million in the US alone. Many have already
jumped ship to Skype or other services, and Microsoft would
risk canibalising its user base by running two competing
services, making the end of Windows Live Messenger
somewhat of an eventuality.
Skype as a brand could pull in a lot of new people for
Microsoft, especially with upgrades in Windows 8 and
Windows Phone 8, and the planned roll-out of Skype for
the Xbox. There is also potential to make more money from
this, since users can buy credit for Skype calls to landlines
or mobile phones in addition to making their free text, voice
or video chats.
Maine gets its first WoW
playing state senator
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/maine-gets-its-first-wow-playing-
state-senator/17755.html
November 7th, 2012
Colleen Lachowicz, the state senate candidate who has
recently been under heavy criticism for playing World of
Warcraft, has won her seat as senator.
A while back, state senate candidate Colleen Lachowicz came
under heavy fire from for being a World of Warcraft player.
The republican party has been accusing the democratic
candidate via an intensive mail campaign, sending out
postcards citing her gaming habits as a reason for why she
would be unfit for holding public office. One motivation is
that she plays a rogue in World of Warcraft, and thus spends
a lot of time stabbing things. Another is that she wastes time
that could be used for more productive means.
State Senator Lachowicz (left) and her WoW character
(right)
As the story broke, many people wanted to offer support for
her campaign, but refusing to take donations, she directed
them to give money to a political action committee, ActBlue,
instead. At this, the republican party charged her with
improperly acting with the committee.
Nevertheless, Lachowicz was cleared of all charges, and then
went on to defeat her opponent, Tom Martin, with 913 votes.
She'll be representing Kennebec and Somerset counties, who
clearly care more about a politician's qualifications, than
how she chooses to spend her free time.
Watch Dogs arrives next year!
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/watch-dogs-arrives-next-
year-/17753.html
November 7th, 2012

4
Ubisoft has revealed that it's upcoming game Watch Dogs,
one of the most promising games of this year's E3, is going
to be released next year for current gen consoles.
In Ubisoft's financial call yesterday, it was revealed that
the upcoming game Watch Dogs, will be coming out next
year to current gen consoles and pc. This isn't the first time
we've heard this information: The promise of a 2013 release
was tweeted by Ubisoft earlier, but the tweet was deleted
afterwards. Having the announcement made in an official
statement though, garners more validity to it.
Watch Dogs has been under development since 2010, and
impressed at the E3 expo earlier this year, where it became
one of the big surprises of the show. Watch Dogs' defining
gameplay feature is the use of hacking throughout the game's
open world environment. By tapping phones, redirecting
traffic lights and all manner of other things, the player can
turn the world around them into a useful tool or weapon. If
it works well, it may be a very interesting game. Check out
below for a gameplay demo:
Gigabyte GTX 650 Ti 2GB
Windforce 2X Review
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/gigabyte-gtx-650-ti-2gb-
windforce-2x-review/17398.html
November 7th, 2012
The Geforce GTX 650 Ti is based on the GK106 die used
in the GTX 660 but with some organs removed. Is it still
enough to take you on the DirectX 11 virtual battlefield?
This year, we've covered most of the GPU releases from both
red and green camps, including three hot-clocked enthusiast
grade Geforce offerings from Gigabyte (GTX 680, GTX 670,
GTX 660 Ti). With the holiday buying season approaching,
we thought that a significant portion of our readers might
be eyeing the mainstream GTX 650 Ti, since it is priced
at a relatively affordable US$159-174 and shares most of
the DNA from the more illustrious Keplers. This is a card
suitable for single monitor users who can settle for medium
image quality and physics effects at 1080p resolution. The
card in question is also good for SFF builds, since it has
relatively low profile and power/cooling requirements.
According to the latest Steam Hardware Survey in October of
the latest generation of GPUs, Nvidia's market share stands
at 3.92% (GTX 670/680 and 660 Ti) against AMD's 2.89%
(HD 7850/7870/7950/7970), despite the latter having
almost a half-year headstart in pushing their products to
the same audience. The general consensus so far is that the
Keplers have better power efficiencies, and Southern Islands
edge ahead in clock for clock performance and GP compute.
The GTX 650 Ti is available in 1GB or 2GB memory
configurations, and we strongly recommend paying a few
more follars for the larger option to avoid being bottlenecked
in texture heavy titles like Skyrim and BF3. Gigabyte's take
comes with their trademark Windforce 2X cooler and "Ultra
Durable 2" components.
Instead of a DisplayPort connector that we find on the higher
end models, the Gigabyte card is fitted with a legacy analog
D-SUB, which is a baffling decision since hardly anyone uses

5
it today. Together with the dual link DVI and HDMI ports,
the GTX 650 Ti supports up to four independent displays.
Only a single 6-pin PCIe connector is required, thanks to its
lowly 110W TDP. There is no SLI bridge connector here so
no multi-GPU capability is supported.
The GTX 650 Ti uses a derivative of the TSMC 28nm
GK106 ASIC found in the more powerful GTX 660, featuring
one less SMX and memory controller unit (effectively
768 Stream Processors and 128-bit GDDR5 Memory Bus).
Nvidia's polarizing GPU Boost (dynamically adjusts voltage
and clocks) is also absent here, which should please those
who prefer the traditional overclocking interface.
Google changes its layout
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/google-changes-its-
layout/17752.html
November 7th, 2012
Google alters its design today, giving you a sleeker, less
cluttered search window; at least on google's main US site.
Google has updated the layout of it's US search
page, simplifying the design and de-cluttering it. The
changes include the removal of Google's sidebar, instead
incorporating it's elements, such as images, shopping and
search options, into the overhead bar available above your
results. Google has stated that they wish to optimize the
search page in to the many ways it's users access Google
today. According to a statement, they want to ensure it's
accessible “across the wide variety of devices and screen sizes
people use today.”
Another effect of the change is that the right side of
the screen, which provides immediate information on a
subject you're searching for; the so called Knowledge Graph,
will have more space. It's notable that only the US site,
www.google.com, has been redesigned. Google is planning
to incorporating the changes to it's other regional websites
and languages soon.

6
Me.ga domain seized, then
hacked.
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/me.ga-domain-seized-then-
hacked./17751.html
November 7th, 2012
Kim Dotcom's new file sharing hub Mega, is already facing
difficulties, as the domain name me.ga was shut down
yesterday. As if this wasn't enough, the domain has now been
hacked by a group known as Omega.
For the past few months, we've been hearing some bold
words from Kim Dotcom, founder of Megaupload and
creator of it's soon to be successor, Mega. Dotcom has been
claiming time and time again that Mega will be unstoppable,
a file hosting system of no equal, and we've covered it quite a
bit at VR-Zone in the past. However, even before it's launch,
Kim is finding a lot of opposition.
Splash screen at the current mega site
Dotcom decided on the catchy domain name Me.ga to be the
home of his new site. However, yesterday, it was shut down
by the Gabonese government, who own the .ga domain name
suffix. The communications minister of the small African
country, Blaise Louembe stated that www.me.ga "cannot
serve as a platform or screen for committing acts aimed at
violating copyrights, nor be used by unscrupulous people".
So much for that idea. Dotcom wasn't phased by this though,
stating that he had plenty of backup domains incase me.ga
fell through.
This is what greeted you after the site was hacked
What he might not have been expecting is what happened
next. A group known as "Omega" hacked me.ga after the
shutdown, redirecting it to their own site. The group seems
to be strongly opposing Dotcom and are looking to sell
the domain to Dotcom's adversaries. In a statement they
released on Torrentfreak, they said that Dotcom was "no
better nor worse than Universal. He himself is an industry,
only here to pollute." The hacked site has now been taken
completely offline, but still, it looks like there's a war
brewing.
Until further notice, Mega is hosted at www.kim.com/mega,
where a splash screen greets you with the launch date of
January 19th 2013.
PlayStation 3 certification
suggests China might lift
console ban
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/playstation-3-certification-suggests-
china-might-lift-console-ban/17754.html
November 7th, 2012
China's harsh attitude towards gaming might be a thing of
the past after certification for the PlayStation 3 paves the way
for an end to the country's ban on consoles.
China's harsh attitude towards gaming might be a thing of
the past after certification for the PlayStation 3 paves the way
for an end to the country's ban on consoles.
Sony's gaming console received approval from the China
Quality Certification Centre, a move that signals a shift in
approach to console gaming, which has been banned since
2000.
“This does not mean that we have officially decided to enter
Chinese market,” said Mai Hora, spokesperson for Sony.
“We recognize that China is a promising market so we will
continuously study the possibility.”

7
It is up to the Ministry of Culture to make any decisions on
reversing the ban, but the certification is a good step forward
for Sony and the country as a whole, potentially establishing
a console battle between Sony, Microsoft and Nintendo over
the large and lucrative market.
Despite the potential for high console sales in China, some
analysts believe the gaming habits of Chinese people are very
different to many other countries, with Piers Harding-Rolls,
senior games analyst at IHS Screen Digest, suggesting that
gamers prefer to use “non-dedicated devices,” according to
Reuters.
The threat of piracy is also another challenge console makers
will face, particularly with the rise of knock-offs of devices
like the iPhone and iPad in the region, but even with all the
hurdles facing Sony and its rivals, China is just too big an
economy to ignore.
Affordable quad-core Huawei
Glory a big hit in China
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/affordable-quad-core-huawei-glory-
a-big-hit-in-china/17748.html
November 7th, 2012
The Huawei Glory was officially released on
November 6 and has been called "the quad-core king."
Dragon Quest X Online now
has 40,000 players in Japan
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/dragon-quest-x-online-now-
has-40-000-players-in-japan/17750.html
November 7th, 2012
Dragon Quest X: Rise of the Five Tribes Online, a game that
was released by Square Enix for the Nintendo Wii console
last August 2012, now has more than 40,000 players with
over 70,000 copies sold in Japan.
Dragon Quest X: Rise of the Five Tribes Online, has been
reported to have reached a number of more than 40,000
players in Japan as of November 6, 2012, within a time
period of about three months after its initial release. For
comparison, Final Fantasy XI, which is also developed and
presented by Square Enix over 10 years ago last 2002,
gathered only around 10,000 players within the same three-
month period. This shows that the reception of the game is
exceedingly a lot more than what was expected. The game is
also noted to have been sold in over 70,000 copies in Japan.
Dragon Quest X is currently the first online Dragon Quest
game. It presents the same fundamental gameplay system
of older titles, while having many more features that are
usually available to standard MMORPG's. It currently has
two game modes. The first one is the standard pay-to-play
version, and the other is the time restricted "kid's time" free-
to-play version. The upcoming Wii U version of the game is
supposed to be filled with lots of other extra features that
would make your adventure experience in the game more
fun and exciting.
The very first Dragon Quest game was released for the
FamiCom (NES) console more than two decades ago, in
1986. It was one of the very first pioneers of the Japanese
RPG genre known today, and have since then grown to be
played on numerous other titles on other consoles through

8
the years. With the largely positive reception of the game in
Japan, could we expect an international release soon?
Sanwa presents new
TouchPen for all surfaces
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/sanwa-presents-new-touchpen-for-
all-surfaces/17749.html
November 7th, 2012
The new ballpen and touchpen tool by Sanwa can be used to
note, write, point and browse on all kinds of surfaces.
Touchpens are nifty and convenient little tools that can be
used for clean and pinpoint touchscreen browsing. But if
these tools are generally classified as pens, wouldn't it be
more convenient to if they could also be normally used
as a ballpen? The idea may be hardly original nowadays,
but you may want to take a short look at what Sanwa can
offer for your productivity. Simply called as the "Ballpen &
Touchpen", this is a tool that can help you "access" all sorts
of different surfaces.
The "Ballpen & Touchpen" tool is originally designed to
act as a touchpen for capacitive screened units, particularly
modern tablets. It has a soft end and good sensitivity, which
allows for the tactile sensation of actually pressing into
the buttons of the screen interface. However aside from its
touchpen function it can also be used as an ordinary ball
point pen for writing notes. You simply have to pull the front
half off, turn it around, and connect the touchpen end to the
other end to the pen. The third and last functionality of the
pen is its Class 2 laser pointer, which can of course be used on
all kinds of wallboards for lectures, presentations and other
similar stuff.
Additionally, the overall design of the pen was done to make
it look like a deluxe or premium ball point pen of some kind.
Maybe this would make the product look more attractive
when worn with proper businessperson attire?
The "Ballpen & Touchpen" is currently available at Sanwa's
online shop with a 3980 yen (50 USD) price tag.
Corsair AX860i Digital PSU
Review
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/corsair-ax860i-digital-psu-
review/17747.html
November 7th, 2012
Ever since its release back in August, the Corsair AX1200i
became perhaps the most wanted power supply amongst all
kinds of computer enthusiasts, from professionals to gamers
and overclockers. However, most users did not really need
that kind of power and the high retail price discouraged
them from upgrading. Corsair realized this and today the
company announced the release of two smaller digital PSUs,
the AX760i and the AΧ860i, the wattage of which covers the
main market body of gamers, overclockers and technology
enthusiasts. Are they as good as the AX1200i though? We
put the AX860i to the test, so the answers lie in this review.
Ever since its release back in August, the Corsair AX1200i
became perhaps the most wanted power supply amongst all
kinds of computer enthusiasts, from professionals to gamers
and overclockers. However, most users did not really need
that kind of power and the high retail price discouraged
them from upgrading. Corsair realized this and today the
company announced the release of two smaller digital PSUs,
the AX760i and the AΧ860i, the wattage of which covers the
main market body of gamers, overclockers and technology
enthusiasts. Are they as good as the AX1200i though? We
put the AX860i to the test, so the answers lie in this review.
The Corsair Link DSP interface is the highlight of the
AX860i, as is of the entire AXi digital PSU series. The
software allows the monitoring of several figures, such as
the input/output power of the power supply, the voltage
lines and the speed of the fan, as well as control certain
aspects of the power supply, such as the fan speed profile
and the OCP. Furthermore, the Corsair Link software can
monitor other system parameters as well, such as the CPU/
HDD temperatures, fan speeds and almost anything that has
a sensor embedded in it. Furthermore, it can also control
parameters of other compatible devices, such as the H100i
watercooling kit which the company recently released.
• Digital Signal Processor (DSP) for delivering extremely
clean, efficient power with real-time adjustments
• Corsair Link™ Integration for monitoring and
adjustment of performance, noise, and OCP settings
• Dedicated single +12V rail with user-configurable
virtual "single rail" and "multi-rail" software modes
• An ultra-quiet, 140mm double ball-bearing fan
delivers excellent airflow with exceptionally low noise
levels by varying fan speed in response to temperature
• 80 PLUS Platinum certified, delivering up to 92%
energy efficiency under real-world load conditions
• Active Power Factor Correction (PFC) with PF value of
0.99
• Universal AC input from 90~264V

9
• Over-voltage, under-voltage, over-current, and short
circuit protection provide maximum safety for your
critical system components
• Engineered to meet maximum power output at a
server-grade 50°C temperature rating.
• Self-test switch to determine PSU functionality even
before installation.
• High-quality capacitors provide uncompromised
performance and reliability
• A seven year warranty and lifetime access to Corsair's
legendary technical support and customer service
• Safety Approvals: cTUVus, CE, CB, FCC Class B, TÜV,
CCC, C-tick
Warranty Seven years
Dimension 150mm x 86mm x 160mm
Modular Fully
Power 860 Watts
80 Plus Platinum
ATX Connector 1
EPS Connector 2
PCI-E Connector 6
4 Pin Peripheral Connector 8
SATA Connector 12
Floppy Connector 2
MTBF 100,000 hours

1
geeks.
Creating easy design
printouts with the iDecora
iD-01
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/creating-easy-design-printouts-with-
the-idecora-id-01/17772.html
November 8th, 2012
Roland DG's newest member of their iCreate printer series,
the iDecora iD-01, enables users to easily create design
printouts for various creative purposes.
Japanese computer accessory manufacturer Roland DG
has recently unveiled their latest iCreate printer model.
Designated with the name iDecora iD-01, it is technically
a creativity-centric printer model that is primarily focused
on printing high quality design sheets and other similar
projects.
For the most part, the iDecora iD-01 functions like
an ordinary printer. However aside from its usual PC
integration function, this printer could also communicate
with your iPhone or iPad unit for printing jobs via the
upcoming iDecora app for the iOS. This communication/
data transfer feature provides the printer with the
functionality that is present on many standard wireless
printers today. Aside from directly connecting through
iPhone and iPad units, the iDecora iD-01 could also
wirelessly communicate using the AirMac Express.
Sticker and iron print sheets are the first things that would
definitely come to mind with this design printer. However, it
can also take other types of specialty design sheets like label
papers and vinyl chloride sheets. You can create wallpapers,
shirt designs, papercrafts and even nail designs with it.
The dimensions of the unit are (W)230×(L)158×(H)108mm,
and it weighs 1.4kg. Wired connectivity option for the device
includes a USB 2.0 port. Those who want to learn more about
the printer's design and creativity potential may simply look
up into the iDecora app's list of available design data. Other
than the iDecora app, the printer unit itself will also have its
own iDecora Creator design data software for PC's.
Roland DG plans to launch an iDecora specialty website
around the same time of its commercial release. Owners
of the printers will be presented there with detailed usage
instructions, maintenance tips and additional downloadable
design files to maximize their use for the design printer.
The official release date of the iDecora iD-01 is on November
15, 2012. It would be available to customers at a price of
20,790 yen (265 USD).
Source: MyNavi (JP)
Google launches Chrome-
based music collaboration
web app
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/google-launches-chrome-based-
music-collaboration-web-app/17774.html
November 8th, 2012
Google has launched a music creation web app for its
Chrome browser that lets one or more people play guitars,
keyboards and drums together live.
Google has launched a music creation web app for its
Chrome browser that lets one or more people play guitars,
keyboards and drums together live.
The aptly-titled JAM with Chrome is a “Chrome
Experiment” using HTML5, including Web Audio API,
Websockets, Canvas and CSS3.
We gave the app a try and found it amusing and surprisingly
versatile. Users can choose from 19 different instruments,
likely with more to come, and there are different modes
available depending on previous musical expertise.

2
The easy mode allows individual string, pad or key clicks,
or a useful autoplay feature for those of us without musical
talent, allowing for some good tunes with little effort. The
more advanced pro mode lets people use their keyboard to
play, an important option, since clicking really is not fast
enough for proper simulation of a real instrument.
One thing it seems to lack is a Record button, which could
have worked nicely with an upload to YouTube, but we
expect Google will add something like this eventually.
Up to four people can play together, with users able to invite
friends to a session via a special link, or even post to Google+,
Facebook or Twitter to see who shows up for a jam. However,
you might want to soundproof your walls before hitting that
Invite button.
If that has not sold you on JAM with Chrome, perhaps some
musical animals might.
More than a third of IT to be
cloud-based by 2015
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/more-than-a-third-of-it-to-be-cloud-
based-by-2015/17773.html
November 8th, 2012
Cloud computing is expected to boom over the next few
years, with a report by WaveLength and Winn Technology
suggesting that more than a third of IT will run on the cloud
by 2015.
Cloud computing is expected to boom over the next few
years, with a report by WaveLength and Winn Technology
suggesting that more than a third of IT will run on the cloud
by 2015.
Currently only 4.4 percent of enterprise IT runs on the cloud,
which is already up by 58 percent on last year, with 78
percent of medium and large businesses using or testing a
cloud-based platform. The study predicts that by three years
time that 4.4 percent will be 35 percent, firmly securing the
cloud's role in the future of IT.
“The enterprise cloud market and segments have quickly
evolved; today’s meaningful question is no longer if cloud
is used but rather how much,” said Natalie Robb of
WaveLength Market Analytics. “Last year, cloud users said
they expected 28% of IT to be cloud-based by 2015 and now
they expect around 35%. Knowing what sets Cloud Pros and
Pioneers apart is crucial for technology and telecom firms to
advance technologies and reach buyers.”
The report divides enterprises into different segments, with
a new one called multicloud users or “Cloud Pros,” making
up 19 percent of the division, with all of them using multiple
data centres and most employing Amazon Web Services.
“Cloud Pioneers,” who actively use or pilot a cloud, account
for 59 percent, many of which use IBM, Verizon and
Rackspace, while 12 percent are making cloud-based plans.
The remaining 10 percent have no current cloud plans.
In the cloud sector itself, desktop cloud apps are up from six
percent to 26 percent, while back-up and disaster recovery
is also up significantly, from 17 percent to 38 percent. So
for anyone thinking early adopters of this technology had
their heads in the clouds, they might want to think again,
as cloud computing appears to be the way forward for many
businesses.

3
Starbacks starts accepting
Square mobile app payments
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/starbacks-starts-accepting-square-
mobile-app-payments/17771.html
November 8th, 2012
US coffee company Starbucks has started accepting
payments made using the Square Wallet mobile app, paving
the way for cashless enjoyment of a hot beverage in roughly
7,000 Starbucks outlets.
US coffee company Starbucks has started accepting
payments made using the Square Wallet mobile app, paving
the way for cashless enjoyment of a hot beverage in roughly
7,000 Starbucks outlets.
The app, for Apple and Android devices, makes use of the
user's credit or debit card for payments. Once a payment
is arranged, users scan the QR code presented, and the
money is taken digitally, resulting in a digital receipt of the
transaction.
Starbucks customers might already be familiar with the
company's own mobile payment app, which is used over
two million times each week, and has clearly been seen
by Starbucks as a resounding success if it is now keen to
embrace even more mobile payment options.
Adam Brotman, Chief Digital Officer at Starbucks, said that
the company looks forward to continuing to offer choices
to customers in how they pay. “Starbucks was the first
national retailer to offer its own mobile payment technology
combined with a world-class loyalty program in January
2011, and we have seen a tremendous response from our
customers with more than 100 million mobile transactions
occurring in our U.S. stores since its launch,” he said.
“Starbucks believes in the values and vision of Square, and
just three months after announcing our partnership with
Square, we are thrilled to make the convenience of paying
with the Square Wallet app available to our customers
starting today.”
Square Wallet is more than just a payment system, however.
It shows where the nearest Starbucks is and what is on
the menu. Outside of Starbucks it makes it easy to find
other local businesses, particularly ones that also use Square
Wallet, and provides rewards for visiting new businesses for
the first time.
The app is available on any device running iOS 5.0 or
Android 2.2 or higher. Only participating stores in the US
will be accepting Square Wallet payments for now, but we
can likely expect the feature to be rolled out across the world
over time.
MSN gets the boot, but not in
China!
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/msn-gets-the-boot-but-not-in-
china-/17762.html
November 8th, 2012
You may have heard the news this week that MSN’s flagship
messenger would be merged into their recently acquired
Skype software. In most parts of the world, it will be lights
out for MSN starting in the first quarter of 2013. However,
this isn’t the case for China.
Hey that’s not fair!
It turns out that China gets to keep MSN. Why is this? Well
it may have something to do with the fact that at present,
MSN’s Chinese users total 50-60 million people. Not bad,
especially considering the iron grip that Tencent has had on
the chatting market with its popular QQ software. (By the
way, QQ is said to have something like 0.72 billion users..
yikes!). In the past few years, MSN has bobbed along in
China at around 5% market share.
That’s not to say that Chinese users won’t get access to
Skype of course (well unless.. you-know-who decide to block
access). As with current MSN users in other parts of the
globe, Chinese users will also have the chance to transfer
their account to Skype.
The problem with China
Skype is a global internet phone company that was founded
in 2003. It enables users to voice chat with each other, and
also call domestic and international phones ‘IRL’ as the kids
say these days. In 2007, Chinese internet company TOM
announced that it would be bringing Skype to the mainland,

4
and to achieve this they opened a joint-venture company,
where TOM got 51% and Skype held on to 49% stock.
Things changed in May of last year, when the big bad
company from Redmond came into the picture. Microsoft
acquired Skype for 8.5 billion dollars.
That's right.. 8.5... BILLION DOLLARS!
In China, MSN is operated by Shanghai Mason, which
is a company set up by Microsoft and a local enterprise
called ‘Shanghai Union Trading”. When MSN and Skype
merge, this will cause quite the love triangle between TOM,
Microsoft, and Shanghai Union Trading. Local analysts say
that TOM would still have control of Skype at the time of the
merger, but what that would mean in the courtroom is hard
to say.
Other analysts even go so far as to say that Skype is a
VOIP client, and as Microsoft have no license to distribute
such software in mainland China, its very existence under
Microsoft’s control would be illegal under Chinese law.
Microsoft is already finding it hard to stay afloat in the
vicious Internet market of domestic China, and merging
Skype and MSN may exacerbate the problem rather than
remedy it. Added to this is the fact that Microsoft doesn’t
fully own MSN, this already makes it difficult for Microsoft to
control the many problems that the software faces in China
such as frequent downtime and excessive advertisement.
Giving control over to another company isn’t Microsoft’s
style, but it is almost certain that Microsoft decided to do
this because the alternative would be to deal directly with
the government, which is well known for putting foreign
controlled companies through hell. Google and Ebay are two
good examples of the things that can happen when you take
on the far east.
So for now at least, it looks like MSN isn’t going anywhere.
If you live in China.
Nippon Ichi Software to
continue focusing on PS3,
Vita
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/nippon-ichi-software-to-continue-
focusing-on-ps3-vita/17770.html
November 8th, 2012
The RPG game developer Nippon Ichi Software, which has
focused on the Playstation platform in the past, has stated in
an interview that indeed, they will continue to do so in the
future.
Nippon Ichi Software has been focusing on the PlayStation
platform, releasing several games for the PS2, PS3, PSP
and Vita, and in an interview with the Japanese magazine
Dengeki, they have revealed that they will be continuing
this in the future. They will be focusing their efforts on
the Playstation 3 and Vita from this point on, but they
have not yet given up on the PSP. NIS is still developing
niche software for the Playstation Portable, according to the
studio's president Sohei Niikawa.
One of NIS's previous titles, Disgaea 4
The rumor is that NIS is currently developing a new title for
the PS Vita. In addition, the interview hinted at the release
of Disgaea 5, the new sequel to their popular franchise. The
title was first hinted at in July during an anime expo. As
with the previous Disgaea games, it will include a new world
setting and characters. Most likely, the game will be released
on Playstation 3.
LG releases UltraWide
2560x1080 29-inch IPS
monitor
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/lg-releases-
ultrawide-2560x1080-29-inch-ips-monitor/17768.html
November 8th, 2012
Korea’s LG Electronics’s new beast of a monitor has an
aspect ratio which comes close to cinema quality. But how
does its other features compare?
The EA93 UltraWide monitor, as its name suggests, is really
frickin’ wide, and 29” of screen real estate should be enough
for any HD content you can throw at it. Not only that, but the
monitor also supports splitscreen mode, which turns your
monitor into 2 or 4 subscreens ala Mario Kart. This makes
it the perfect choice for multitaskers looking to give their
productivity a boost.

5
Cinephiles and workaholics alike will be absorbed by the
capabilities of this device, especially graphic designers and
programmers who are used to heaving multiple monitors
onto their desk will especially appreciate the efficiency they
gain when using splitscreen mode. Being all in the same
physical monitor, the subscreens will each have identical
colors and resolution to each other. This will solve the
problems graphic designers frequently run into when using
2 separate monitors to compare their work on. Speaking of
this, the monitor also has 100 sRGB color space, and can be
color-calibrated in hardware, which ensures that you can get
the most out of its display capabilities.
The 21:9 aspect ratio of the monitor makes it perfect for
watching movies. Most movies are shot and edited with the
cinema in mind, and generally movie theater screens have
an aspect ratio of 1.85:1 or 2.39:1. Watching this movies
on your laptop monitor or home TV set causes them to
be cropped or distorted from the original format. With the
EA93 UltraWide, you can watch movies the way they were
intended to be seen. The IPS display technology used by the
monitor also allows viewers to sit at practically any angle to
the screen and still enjoy the vibrant colors and rich visual
quality.
The monitor also includes two 7W stereo speakers and
allows gamers to hook up their consoles via HDML or
even their smartphones via the included MHL connection,
making it possible to watch media and also play games
through your phone. Pretty neat, huh?
The LG UltraWide Monitor will be released in its home
country Korea early this month, and it should be available
globally before the end of the year.
Specifications:
Screen Size 29W
Aspect Ratio 21:9
Contrast Ratio Mega
Resolution 2560x1080
Color Gamut sRGB 100%
Panel IPS
Brightness 300nits
Viewing Angle (V/H) 178/178
Response Time 5ms
Interface DVI-D Dual x1, HDMI x2 MHL x1,
USB 3.0, Display Port, PC Audio In, Headphone Out
BeBionic 3 prosthetic hand
looks like something from the
Terminator
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/bebionic-3-prosthetic-hand-looks-
like-something-from-the-terminator/17769.html
November 8th, 2012
British prosthetic firm RSLSteeper latest creation, the
BeBionic 3 prosthetic hand, looks like something from a sci-
fi movie, and has some impressive capabilities.
The British company RSLSteeper has been developing
prosthetic limbs for a few years now, and their latest
creation, the BeBionic 3, is quite impressive. The prosthetic
is a mechanical hand made from light weight carbon fiber
with aluminum and alloy knuckles. Thanks to the design,
it's light enough to be worn without much strain, however,
where it really excels is in it's function. It is strong enough to
grip a book, yet delicate enough to grab an egg.
The hand is controlled by the contraction of two muscles
in the forearm, to which sensors are attached via a forearm
sleeve. When one muscle tenses, the tiny bioelectrical signal
which is produced, is picked up by the hand's sensor. The
sensor then amplifies the signal and send the signal to the
hand, which closes. When the other muscle tenses, a signal
is similarly sent for the hand to open. If both muscles are
tensed, then the hand switches from it's gripping mode to
it's wrist rotation mode. Thus, the hand doesn't function
naturally in the same way a real hand does, but it is operated
through muscles in the arm, and learning to use it intuitively
sounds like a fairly easy process.

6
Seeing how it looks now, imagine how cool these things will
be in a few years...
What sets the hand apart from other prosthetics though,
according to Richard Shapcott, general manager of the US
branch of the company, SteeperUSA, is that the digits can
be operated individually. Most prosthetics simply have a
gripping function where the entire hand can be closed or
opened. The BeBionic 3 however, has a motor for each finger,
meaning it can perform delicate operations, such as clicking
a mouse or gripping a pencil. Esthetically, it also makes the
hand look more natural. The hand comes preset with eight
different grips, some of which involve manually rotating the
thumb with the other hand. BeBionic 3 comes with software
that lets you modify the grips though, adding your own or
refining the existing ones.
Since September, roughly 30-50 people have been outfitted
with the prosthetic. One of these people is Nigel Ackland,
who lost his hand six years ago. Below is a video where he
demonstrates some of the hand's capabilities.
Android and iOS will have
Microsoft Office in 2013
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/android-and-ios-will-have-
microsoft-office-in-2013/17766.html
November 8th, 2012
There are quite a few good office suites available for iOS
and Android, but when Microsoft wants to shove its way to
the front, well, who’s going to stop it from pummeling the
competition?
Microsoft has been quiet about its development of Office for
iOS and Android, but a version of Office has been spotted
via The Verge. Per the same source, Microsoft is planning to
release its mobile productivity suite sometime in early 2013.
The Office app will be free to download so that Android and
iOS users will be able to view Microsoft Office documents.
Basic viewing functionality of Word, PowerPoint, and excel
documents will be free of charge in Android, but to edit
documents users have to have Office 365 subscription.
iOS users will, too, be able to view the same type of
documents, and users will be able to buy Office 365
subscriptions directly from within the app. The Office app
for iOS will supposedly launch around March, 2013, but
Android users will have to wait until May, 2013 to have a
whack at the app.
Use Bing to earn free
Windows Phone apps
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/use-bing-to-earn-free-windows-
phone-apps/17765.html
November 8th, 2012
Want to know how to get free apps for your Windows Phone
devices? It’s not exactly ‘free’ per se, because you’ll have
to do a bit of work to obtain the points which you can then
convert to cash for use towards the apps.
If you use Bing, Microsoft’s search engine, then you may
know that there are some perks to searching Microsoft’s
answer to the Google search engine. With the Bing rewards,
you can now redeem points—earned by using the Bing search
engine—for certificates for the Windows Phone Store.
(Go ahead, Bing away)
The freebies will come in two forms, one is the $1.25 variety,
and the other is $5 nugget. To cash in your $1.25, you must
earn 170 points, and 525 points for the $5 reward.
If you’re a Windows Phone user, just know that you’re a
part of a very selective few. Microsoft’s contribution to the

7
smartphone market with its Windows Phone platform is
currently set at 2%, according to the IDC.
If you’re already on a Windows Phone user, it goes without
saying that even if you manage to earn a good amount using
the Bing search engine, there may not be much for you to
redeem from in the Windows Phone Store. However, that’s
not to say that there aren’t some useful apps for you to
purchase, but for now, the choices seem somewhat limited
in comparison to iOS and Android.
AT&T to invest $14 billion
to extend LTE & broadband
coverage
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/at-t-to-invest-14-billion-to-extend-
lte--broadband-coverage/17764.html
November 8th, 2012
AT&T is going to spend big to deliver better services to its
customers, and by big I mean investing $14 billion large.
The increased spending will help AT&T expand its 4G LTE
network, which is more efficient in transmitting data than
the previous 3G generation.
“This is a major commitment to invest in 21st
century
communications infrastructure for the United States,”
Randall Stephenson, AT&T’s chief executive, said in a
statement. He also mentioned that the expansion will help
to deliver high-speed internet to millions more people who
did not have access to broadband before.
A portion of the investment will go towards expanding
AT&T’s broadband network. Strategically, the company
wants smartphone users to use the wired network instead
to help alleviate the stress of data usage on the wireless
network.
Verizon is currently in first place in terms of LTE coverage,
with 420 cities. Whereas, AT&T’s LTE currently only covers
about 80 cities, but AT&T expects that the investment will
help to bring LTE to 300 million people by the end of 2014.
AT&T’s move to beef up its infrastructure follows recent
moves by other major carriers in the U.S. to improve their
respective services. Last month, T-Mobile USA bought out
Metro PCS to expand on its own business. Sprint, another
major U.S carrier, recently handed over the majority of the
company over to SoftBank Japan in exchange for $20.1
billion.
The thought of catching up to Verizon is on the mind of most
major carriers in the U.S., and AT&T is putting a lot of chips
on the table, but so have T-Mobile and Sprint. Will AT&T
retain second place in the race to be the largest carrier? The
company is planning to infuse $22 billion into expanding
its network by 2015, so why shouldn’t AT&T maintain its
rightful place as the second best carrier?
Spiffy MARSHAL USB analog
meter displays PC's internal
information
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/spiffy-marshal-usb-analog-meter-
displays-pc-s-internal-information/17761.html
November 8th, 2012
MARSHAL announced that they are developing an analog
meter which can display your PC’s status – and look cool
while doing it.
Presently, the product is still undergoing testing, but we
know that MARSHAL is working on 3 types of meter – one to
show CPU, one to show HDD, one to show memory, and one
final meter to rule them all ….. well maybe not that last one.
Combined with an exclusive software package, the meters
are able to read the various internal data from Windows task
manager and display them on their cockpit style gadgets.
The test products are completely handmade, and their
black spherical shape bear a Gantz-like quality to them.
(I wonder if it plays “a new morning has come”?). They
also have a simple red arrow which points accurately to the
current value of whatever information it is displaying. The
final design may not completely emulate this simple design
however, and MARSHAL may still have a few surprises up
their sleeves.
The mysterious device also has an LED backlight installed in
it, giving it an even eerier look when you switch the lights off.

8
MARSHAL’s head of domestic planning Takeomi Maruyama
expressed his thoughts on the quirky meter product.
“Engineers who develop ways to convert analog to digital are
a dime a dozen, but those who know how to convert digital
to analog are few and far between. For this reason, it took
a long time for this product to be realized from its original
design," he said.
All that work just for the PC equivalent of a magic eight ball.
Who’da thought?
The ball, while not exactly a cornucopia of functionality, is
bound to attract fans of the stylish and unique. It’s release
date has yet to be announced, but you will be able to get your
hands on one for around 1,980 Yen (~25 USD). Currently,
there are only 3 test models, but that may change if they are
popular enough.
I bet you artsy types will buy them up in truck loads though,
that is if you haven’t spent your money on the latest Macbook
Pro.
MARSHAL Homepage

1
geeks.
Space internet used to issue
commands to robot on Earth
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/space-internet-used-to-issue-
commands-to-robot-on-earth/17793.html
November 9th, 2012
An astronaut on the International Space Station (ISS)
has issued commands to a robot on Earth using a new
interplanetary internet, paving the way for enhanced
communications between astronauts and people back home.
An astronaut on the International Space Station (ISS)
has issued commands to a robot on Earth using a new
interplanetary internet, paving the way for enhanced
communications between astronauts and people back home.
The new technology, developed jointly by the European
Space Agency (ESA) and NASA, is called Disruption-
Tolerant Networking (DTN) and has the potential to help
safely deliver more data from space missions back to Earth,
addressing existing problems with rovers sent to Mars.
Sunita Williams, ISS Expedition 33 Commander, used a
laptop with the DTN software to successfully direct a
rover in Germany. The idea going forward is to replace
the existing point-to-point communication systems used to
control rovers on Mars with the new, more data durable
internet.
The DTN was a project long in the making, with proposals
made a decade ago by Vint Cerf, one of the creators of
the internet. The space internet is similar to the one back
home, but as its name implies it is more tolerant to delays
and disruptions that are possible when sending data over
such large distances, where data may take minutes rather
than seconds to arrive, sometimes due to solar storms or
planetary interference.
The delays are dealt with using a network of nodes, where
data is held at one node when there is a disruption, before
attempting to send on again later. This prevents the data
loss that is capable when a transmission fails on the normal
internet.
The technology is likely too expensive to replace our
normal internet here, but it could become part of smaller
networks, such as those used by the military, where data loss
prevention is important.
Tales of Hearts R Slated for
a PS Vita Release in Spring
2013
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/tales-of-hearts-r-slated-for-a-ps-vita-
release-in-spring-2013/17790.html
November 9th, 2012
Bandai Namco Games finally presents a remake for the
Nintendo DS game Tales of Hearts. The game will be ported
this time for the PS Vita and will be released in spring 2013.
Bandai Namco Games is again continuing its trend of
remaking certain Tales series games for other consoles. This
time, its Tales of Hearts, a game that was originally released
for the Nintendo DS last 2008. The new Tales of Hearts R
will feature a new 3D rendered environment, and will have
lots of other bonus features that would let gamers treat it as
a totally separate version from the original. The game will
be ported to the PS Vita, and is scheduled for an official
(Japanese) release in spring of 2013.
Aside from the newly 3D rendered graphics the game
would also have fully voiced main scenarios. There will
also be additional animation sequences to further immerse
the players into the game's story. A new battle strategy/
command, which is named as the "Chase Link", provides an

2
additional angle of offense for players who want to use aerial
battle techniques (waza and ougi) to combo their opponents
above ground.
The world map system, a system that is common to many
standard RPG's, will also make a comeback in Tales of Hearts
R. This would allow the player to experience going through
fields and navigating the next town just like any classic RPG.
But perhaps the most anticipated bonus addition to the
remake is Calcedny Arcome. Originally a non-playable
character in the NDS version, he will now be available in the
new PS Vita version as a playable party character.
In general the remake will have many features that would
also enable old players of the original version to have
something to enjoy. Players who are expecting an English
release of the game overseas though might still have to wait
yet again, if Bandai Namco Games would ever decide to work
on an international version of it soon.
New potentially habitable
planet discovered
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/new-potentially-habitable-planet-
discovered/17792.html
November 9th, 2012
Astronomers have discovered a new planet which they say
could support life, thanks to a potentially similar climate to
that seen on Earth.
Astronomers have discovered a new planet which they say
could support life, thanks to a potentially similar climate to
that seen on Earth.
The team, which combined scientists from the University of
Goettingen in Germany and the University of Hertfordshire
in the UK, identified the planet orbiting its star at roughly the
same distance as Earth does, which is within the “Goldilocks
Zone” of neither too hot nor too cold.
The planet, dubbed HD 40307g after its star HD 40307,
is 44 light years away and has a mass that is seven times
that of Earth, which might come in handy if our burgeoning
population ever needs to evacuate the planet in future.
In addition to orbiting its star at a distance similar to our
planet, the new planet also rotates on its own axis, which
gives it a night and day cycle, further exciting astronomers
about life on the planet. Night and day is pivotal, as
otherwise one half of the planet would be plunged into total
darkness the entire year around.
Earth - could HD 40307g look like this?
HD 40307g, which we might one day call Earth 2, was
discovered using the HARPS spectrograph, which can pick
up changes in light colour of the star as it is affected by the
gravitational pull of its orbiting planets. A new technique
helped filter out the star's own signals, making it easier to
see the surrounding planets.
Previously the scientists were only able to discover three
planets, but the newly-employed technique uncovered three
additional planets, including this potentially life-supporting
one which is the closest of habitable planets to Earth that
ticks all the boxes for an Earth-like environment.
Of course, until we develop technology to travel such vast
distances of space safely, it will likely be a long time before
we can confirm the scientists' suspicions.
US Game sales drop 25% in
October
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/us-game-sales-drop-25-in-
october/17784.html
November 9th, 2012
Game software and hardware sales continute to decline,
and during the month of October, sales have dropped 25%,
possibly due to people holding off their purchases before the
big holiday titles are released.
For the past 11 months, game sales in the US have been
dropping. The trend continues during October, with game
sales dropping a further 25%. The drop concerns both
hardware and software.

3
The NDP group revealed the sales figures on Thursday
It is possible that October's decline in sales is due to the
upcoming holiday game rush. Many AAA-titles, such as Call
of Duty: Black Ops 2 and Hitman: Absolution, will be coming
out very soon, and some gamers may simply be waiting to
spend their money. Still, a few of the holiday games have
already been released during October, and the holiday rush
doesn't explain the past year of sales:
The NDP group revealed on Thursday that the industry's
sales in the US have gone from $1 billion last year, to just
$755.5 million for this year. Sales of games, excluding PC
titles, fell by 25%, to $432.6 million. Hardware, including
consoles, fell 37% to $187.3 million. Accessories was the only
part of the industry where sales saw a growth; increasing by
5% to $135.6 million.
Hitman: Absolution, is one of this years holiday season
releases, and will be coming out in November
Retail sales account for roughly half of the industry sales, the
rest being covered by downloads.
One explanation to the drop in sales is that we're nearing
the end of a console generation, and thus, consumers may be
less inclined to throw money at their game systems. Feel free
to come up with your own theories in the comments section
below.
Throwable camera helps
warn of dangers
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/throwable-camera-helps-warn-of-
dangers/17787.html
November 9th, 2012
A company known as Bounce Imaging is developing a new,
throwable camera which can help with finding dangers and
letting the user know via a mobile device.
Bounce Imaging have been developing a new device; a small
ball outfitted with an array of cameras and sensors, to warn
of dangers wherever it's thrown. When deployed, it rolls to
a stop, and then a series of six cameras with infra red lights
construct a panorama of the area around it. The device also
takes measurements such as temperature and oxygen levels
in the area. All of this information is then transmitted to a
mobile device and will give the user invaluable information
on what to expect around the next corner.
The developers of the camera ball, both of whom are alumni
of MIT, have stated that the device is still a prototype and
that further testing and development is needed. Still, they
expect it to have far-reaching application, in everything from
search and rescue to military operations. Though no price
has been speculated on yet, the ball will be cost efficient and
will provide an alternative to traditional fiber optic "snake
cams" used by first responders today.
Apple experiences a slump in
China: iPhone out of China's
Top 5
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/apple-experiences-a-slump-in-
china--iphone-out-of-china-s-top-5/17789.html
November 9th, 2012
After just taking a blow in the global market by losing 1st
place to the Galaxy S III, its more bad news for Apple today as
the latest analyst data shows that the Apple iPhone dropped
out of China's Top 5 smartphones in the 3rd quarter.
Apple enjoyed 2nd place in China's smartphone market in
the first quarter of this year, but have started to see their
foothold slip as they dropped down to No. 5 in the second
quarter. The 3rd quarter sees a continuation of that trend as
Apple's iPhone slipped further down to No. 6. Samsung held
their grip on the market, keeping 1st place with 14% of the
market, and are closely followed by Lenovo who have 13%.
While Apple's YOY shipment of smartphones in the 3rd
quarter actually increased, it wasn't enough to hold onto
their position against the fast pace of local makers, and their
market share dropped 1 point from the previous quarter to
7%.
Analysts commented that China's electronics market
operated on the principle of extreme price wars, and recent
low-price high functioning smartphones produced by local
makers has stimulated new growth at the bottom end of the
market. People who weren't interested in buying hi-tech cell
phones at Apple prices jumped at the chance to get their
hands on some nifty gear at an affordable price.
In the 3rd quarter of this year, China's total shipped
smartphones amounted to 50,000,000 units. That's more
than 1/3 of all globally shipped units. 60% of these were
made by Chinese manufacturers, and as time goes on an
even larger percentage of these sales will be eaten up by local
manufactures.
The average price for a smartphone in China is currently
$70~$120 USD. Compare that to Apple's iPhone 4S, which
when bought without a contract in China will set you back a

4
hefty $713 USD. That's almost a full months wages for a lot
of locals.
Will the iPhone 5 be Apple's savior in China?
Things are not all bleak though, as Chinese sales of the
iPhone have yet to feast on the spoils of the iPhone 5, which
is scheduled for a December release in the region. Analysts
expect the new revision to give Apple another boost in the
4th quarter. Whether or not this will be enough to hold off
against the cutthroat competition of the Chinese electronics
market though, is yet to be seen.
Dead Space 3 Co-op adds
new element of gameplay
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/dead-space-3-co-op-adds-new-
element-of-gameplay/17786.html
November 9th, 2012
Dead Space 3 has been critiziced for featuring an optional
co-op mode, which players believe will remove much of the
horror elements in the game. The co-op though, will feature
some unique features that may change that.
Dead Space 3 has been under some criticism recently, much
focused on it's upcoming co-op gameplay. Many critics
believe that including co-op in a horror game will remove
many of the elements which makes the game scary.
Visceral Games hopes to remedy this by adding some
interesting and unique elements into the gameplay: Both
playable characters will be having hallucinations at different
times during the game, while the other continues to
experience the game normally. This will lead to one
character running off like a madman, while the other is
left alone to fend for themselves. Alternatively, they could
choose to follow the player, but may then be lead into a
situation more dangerous than they were previously in.
It's likely that this won't restore all of the dread and
loneliness the game series have previously been good at
invoking, but it is taking a step in the right direction. Having
co-op take a few unique and different turns will set it
apart from the regular concept of "play the same game but
with a friend", is welcome too. At this time though, not
much is known of how extensively the hallucinations will be
incorporated into the game.
Personally, I have never been a particular fan of co-op, and I
have been skeptical to the Dead Space 3 co-op in particular.
I have to admit though, I'm very curious to try it out. Dead
Space 3 will be released in February 2013
Skyrim DLC coming soon to
PS3
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/skyrim-dlc-coming-soon-to-
ps3/17785.html
November 9th, 2012
PS3 players rejoice; after a long wait filled with bugs and
delays, Skyrim may soon get a DLC pack for Sony's console.
When The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim was released for PS3, it
was plagued by bugs. Most notably, the game became slower
as you explored more and more of the game world. This had
to do with how the Playstation 3 handles system and video
memory, which is notably different from how it is handled
on the Xbox360 and PC.
Bethesda decided that they wouldn't release any DLC for the
game until all the issues with the Playstation port had been
resolved. In the meantime, PS3 players have been free to
look on with jealousy as the PC and 360 received DLC packs
Hearthfire and Dawnguard.

5
Now though, PS3 players may finally get to experience
the content, as Bethesda has released a statement: "To
update: we’re also close on new Skyrim content for PS3 and
PC." It had been hinted in the code for the newest DLC,
Dragonborn, that the it may be released for PS3, and so
the issues with the platform were probably resolved. This
confirms it.
CoolPAD 9960 with Nvidia
five core chip comes out this
month
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/coolpad-9960-with-nvidia-five-core-
chip-comes-out-this-month/17782.html
November 9th, 2012
According to recent reports from China Telecom, CoolPad's
latest flagship 4.7-inch Android smartphone, the HD 9960,
will go on sale later this month. The biggest surprise,
however, is that the phone will come with a Nvidia penta-
core chip inside.
In true Chinese fashion, the HD 9960 is the result of two
years of research by a team of 800 engineers. It represents
a significant achievement through the partnership between
CoolPad and China Telecom. In China, sales of the phone
will be subsidized by the state owned China Telecom. A lot
of buyers may need help affording it, too, as its price of 4980
Yuan, or almost $800, places it firmly at the expensive end
of the price spectrum for new smartphones.
The HD 9960's 4.7 inch 1280x720 screen and 13MP camera
are impressive, but it's the processor that could really
change everything. The Nvidia mobile CPU inside the
new phone employs a technique called Variable Symmetric
Multiprocessing (vSMP) to balance workloads and save
power. Additionally, the CPU governor analyzes system
workloads and switches between the low power process
500MHz processor and the four high performance 1.5GHz
processors. The 'throttling' effect can be accomplished in
just 2 milliseconds. Nvidia claims this processor uses two to
three times less power than standard competing chips.
The HD 9960 is part of a major investment in handset
technology on the part of China Telecom, and an ambitious
attempt by Chinese IT companies generally to compete with
their counterparts around the world. China Telecom has
outlined a strategy it calls the "New Three" which consists
of providing technology, a platform, and content for mobile
phones. CoolPAD is reported to have invested 200 million
Yuan ($32 million) in research. Investment in new devices
is also reportedly up 20% over 2011. I wouldn't expect the
appearance of new technology from Chinese manufacturers
to slow down any time soon.
The World goes Topsy-Turvy:
Foxconn factory in America?
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/the-world-goes-topsy-turvy-foxconn-
factory-in-america-/17788.html
November 9th, 2012
In a strange turn of events, market watchers in China
have leaked that the notorious Apple contractor Foxconn is
planning to build a manufacturing plant in the States.
Electronics makers such as Apple generally outsource their
manufacturing to the Far East to cut costs and take
advantage of the Mainland’s extensive work force. Foxconn
is one of the biggest of these outsourced manufacturers, and
makes sure that all the kids in middle America get their
new iPhones in time for Christmas. The lower salaries and

6
material costs in China have traditionally made it a ripe
target for device makers who want to keep their expenditure
to a minimum.
..Which is why it’s completely unintuitive that Foxconn
would be trying to build a company in the US.
…Or is it? With each new generation of device, the
technology embedded in them become more and more
complex. Especially in the case of iPhones, each new model
seems to try and cram more and more components into
an ever-tightening space. However, there is one electronic
product that doesn’t face that problem: LCD displays.
Analysts predict that it will be these displays, and not Apple’s
iProductLine that get their green cards, so to speak.
So where does this theory stem from? Recently, there has
been somewhat of a trend in the US, where many product
makers with manufacturing plants based in China have
started announcing their plans to bring manufacturing back
to the US. In order to solve the cost difference between the
two continents, makers have begun to get cozy with a new
burgeoning technology: automation.
The trend began with electric vehicle maker Tesla Motors,
who completely manufacture their Model S cars in America,
using multi-limbed sophisticated robots with more tentacles
than a Japanese comic book.
Tesla Motors' automated factory at work
Hoping to jump in on the homegrown boom, many other
makers have started vowing to rid their manufacturing
process of all connections to the East, and thus in one
sweep banish the problems of exploitation accusations and
intellectual property theft which constantly rear their head
in the industry.
Foxconn is in a very fragile position if such a boom continues
to fruition, as suddenly they will have no clients left. Not
one to be left behind, Foxconn is taking the initiative and
attempting to go automatic before their American friends
can beat them to the chase. The new factory search in
America is probably directly related to this strategy.
Any concrete plans are still unclear, and the topic still
remains hearsay, but sources state that Foxconn are
currently scoping out Detroit and Los Angeles as potential
build sites for their new factories. I guess we’ll just have to
wait and see what happens.
New software from Microsoft
translates spoken language
almost instantly
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/new-software-from-microsoft-
translates-spoken-language-almost-instantly/17783.html
November 9th, 2012
Microsoft is developing new software which allows the user
to speak in one language, and have their voice almost
immediately translated into speaking another language. Sci-
fi takes another step towards reality.
At an event in Tianjin, China on October 25, Microsoft's chief
research officer Rick Rashid demonstrated a new product
which translates speech into other languages. Rashid's
voice was almost immediately translated from English into
Chinese. After he spoke, the words he uttered in English
appeared on a screen along with it's Chinese translation. A
short time thereafter, he was heard speaking Chinese to the
cheering audience.
There has been a slew of recent research into voice
recognition, and particularly from an advancement known
as "deep neural networks", which make use of the way
neurons are mapped in the human brain to better optimize
speech recognition. By understanding how the human brain
thinks, and how it goes from thought to thought, it has
an easier time predicting what word comes next, based
on what has been said previously. This new technique has
reduced the errors in speech recognition from 20-25% of
the translated words, to just 15%. This is still a lot, but a
significant improvement.
The new translator makes use of the recent improvements in
order to transcribe what a speaker says. Even when speaking
unclearly, as one would in a normal conversation when
not attempting to dictate words, it manages fairly well at
understanding what the speaker is saying. Afterward, the
software translates the text, word for word, into the new
language. Next, it reorders the words to fit the structure of
the new language. The final part of the translation process is
to speak the translated text, and it does this in the original
speaker's voice. The speaker supplies about an hour of
their own voice, which allows the software to automatically
modulate the audio output to sound like the speaker.
Rashid has stated that the limits of the accuracy of this
technology is unknown. However, the most impressive
part of the technology is that the software completes the
translation almost immediately. In other words, we're not
all that far from the translators you see on Star Trek or in
Mass Effect, and that is extremely exciting. The future is
now! Below is a video demonstration of the technology from
the recent event in China:

7
US Seals who killed Bin
Laden punished for revealing
secrets in game
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/us-seals-who-killed-bin-laden-
punished-for-revealing-secrets-in-game/17791.html
November 9th, 2012
A number of US Navy Seals, allegedly including at least
one member of the unit that killed Osama Bin Laden, have
received reprimand letters and pay deductions for revealing
secrets while helping out with Medal of Honor: Warfighter.
A number of US Navy Seals, allegedly including at least
one member of the unit that killed Osama Bin Laden, have
received reprimand letters and pay deductions for revealing
secrets while helping out with Medal of Honor: Warfighter.
Electronic Arts brought the Seals on board as consultants,
claiming that they were used to make the material in the
game, including raids, more realistic. The Seals are believed
to have divulged secrets in this process, but it is not clear
what these were.
Sufficed to say, the Navy was not pleased. Rear Admiral
Gary Bonelli, Deputy Commander of Naval Special Warfare
Command, told the Associated Press that the Navy does “not
tolerate deviations from the policies that govern who we are
and what we do.”
The seven Seals, which include two Senior Chief Special
Operators and five Chief Special Operators, all members of
Team Six, were charged with violation of orders, misuse
of command gear, dereliction of duty and disclosure of
classified material, according to the BBC. They received
disciplinary letters and their pay was cut for two months.
Another four former Team Six members, who are still on
duty in the Navy, are under investigation.
Team Six was the division of the Navy responsible for taking
out Bin Laden, earning it fame throughout the US and the
rest of the world, but some members of the group have
irked the Pentagon over their subsequent behaviour. One
Seal, Mark Owen, wrote a book about the events, which the
Pentagon warned their could be legal repercussions over.
For all the hype over the use of real Seals in the making
of the new Medal of Honor game, Warfighter was received
largely negatively by critics and players alike. Our review
highlighted how it was “mediocre” and full of bugs. So if any
secret Navy information was used in the game, probably less
people than intended will be seeing it now.
Intel to Merge Xeon and
Itanium in 2015-2017
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/intel-to-merge-xeon-and-itanium-
in-2015-2017/17781.html
November 9th, 2012
The future of much criticized Intel Itanium processor is
often blurry. In fact, it was even a matter of recent court
spat between ORACLE and HP, where ORACLE wanted
to abandon Itanium altogether. Thus, Intel is making a
strategic move to ensure the future of this niche product line.
Without much fanfare, Intel finally introduced the Itanium
9500 series, formerly known as Poulson. This long-
delayed part is manufactured using the trusted-n-tried
32nm process, replacing the 65nm Tukwilla (Itanium
9300 Series). However, there are many clouds on the
horizon for the Itanium lineup, mostly with Itanium
customers demanding more strict ECC code for the GPU
and Accelerators (how Intel likes to call Xeon Phi), in order
to replace them going forward. Even with the court forcing
ORACLE to continue supporting Itanium, there's no secret
that long delays of Poulson / Itanium 9500 and general lack
of focus on the architecture Intel and HP once called "the
future of high-end computing" are taking their toll.
Thus, for the next generation of Itanium processors, Intel
is going to do something the company typically avoids to
do: socket compatibility. Poulson or Itanium 9500 will be
the top of what Intel has on offer for the next two to three
years, during which time its successor, 22nm Kittson will
be reengineered to align itself with the Xeon E7 series
processors. According to slides leaked on X-bit Labs, the
Haswell-EX (Xeon E7) will share silicon design (Memory, I/
O, RAS) and package / socket, while the cores will be either
Itanium (IA64) or standard Xeon (x86-64 / EM64T).

8
This move is scheduled to take place during 2015-2017
timeframe, which follows the executing logic of the
company:
• Ivy Bridge (Core i3/i5/i7) debuted in 2012
• Haswell (Core i3/i5/i7) will debut in early 2013
• Ivy Bridge-EP (Xeon E3/E5) should arrive in mid-2013
• Ivy Bridge-E (Core i7) debuts in late 2013
• Ivy Bridge-EX for critical servers (Xeon E7) debuts in
late 2013
• Broadwell (Core i3/i5/i7) should ship in early 2014
• Haswell-EP (Xeon E3, E5) should ship by mid 2014
• Haswell-E (Core i7) debuts in late 2014
• Haswell-EX (Xeon E7) is planned for late 2014
• Broadwell-EP (Xeon E3 / E5) is planned for mid 2015
• Broadwell-E (Core i7) arrives in late 2015
• Broadwell-EX (Xeon E7) is planned for late 2016
At the same time, Kittson is targeting the introduction in
the fourth quarter 2015, when the socket meld should be
happening. The company is hoping that by lowering the
cost of the infrastructure, it can get more businesses to use
Itanium. At least, that is the company line. More realistically,
as our sources close to hear of the company are saying
is that Intel wants to lower the cost of Itanium platform
development, since it represents too high of a strain when
profitability is compared.
The new socket could be the one you already know -
according to some sources, Intel plans to re-wire the
LGA-2011 for Haswell/Broadwell, making it incompatible
with Sandy Bridge/Ivy Bridge-based products. The rewiring
isn't being done to support new architectures, but rather
provide more power - according to documents we saw,
Intel plans to introduce 150W and up to 180W parts when
Haswell and Broadcom architectures enter the cut throat
server business.
That's it for this edition of crystal ball, stay tuned.
Xiaomi now taking orders for
the 6th batch of Xiaomi M1s
phones
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/xiaomi-now-taking-orders-for-
the-6th-batch-of-xiaomi-m1s-phones/17780.html
November 9th, 2012
Fans who missed out during the first five rounds have
another chance to order their own M1s phones. The first
round of 20,000 phones, released on August 29th, sold out
in just under half an hour. Is the phone worth the fuss?
Xiaomi will be releasing the sixth batch of its popular M1s
phone on the 11th of November, in time for Chinese 11/11
sales events. The last five rounds were snapped up eagerly
by hordes of Mifen, as Xiaomi fans are known in China. But
let's take a look at the phone and try to figure out what all
the fuss is about.
Despite selling for 1499 Yuan (the equivalent of $240,
in China), it is marketed towards the US market as well
as international customers for between $330 and $360,
respectively. The phone's specs are average. It runs MIUI V4,
an in-house twist on Google's popular Android ICS. It comes
equipped with a 1.7GHz Qualcomm dual-core processor,
8MP camera with autofocus, and a 2MP rear camera. The
M1s supports both GSM and WCDMA connections.
The MSM8260 1.7GHz processor represents the biggest
difference between the M1s and the earlier M1 phone, which
was powered by a dual-core 1.5GHz processor. The M1s also
includes an HML instead of a micro-USB port.
Chinese reviewers have praised the M1s for its speed
and responsiveness, and that the phone's greatest
strength is its ability to stream video smoothly. Reviewers
have also commented that it takes quality pictures, and
comes installed with useful software like a music player
and antivirus software. On the other hand, a few have

9
complained about bugs affecting the audio quality and that
the battery can often get hot. Overall, the positive feedback
seems to outweigh the negative, and the speed with which
each batch of M1s phones sell out is a testament to its
popularity. It is sure to remain strong competition for other
phones in its price range due to its speed and ease of use.
Chinese colleges in favor of
online civil service exams
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/chinese-colleges-in-favor-of-online-
civil-service-exams/17779.html
November 9th, 2012
For hundreds of years, the Chinese civil service exam was
a strenuous affair for scholars wanting to work in the
government. Now, many professors want the exam to be
held online.
The Chinese civil service exam has changed drastically over
the last hundred years. In pre-modern China, Confucian
scholars would spend days in a small room writing lengthy
essays on parchment. Today, college students take the
exam with pencil and paper, but soon, the exam might be
on the internet. According to discussions among Chinese
universities, it may be beneficial to host the civil service
exam online.
Ji Xuefeng, a professor of mathematics, says that many
student athletes have to cut back on practices because their
parents push them to take the civil service exam. If the exam
were held online, students would be able to take the test
without missing other activities. It would also encourage
students to take the test who may have otherwise not had the
time.
Having the test online would be more convenient for
students, teachers, and proctors, but it might make sorting
through the scores more difficult. Last year, 150 million
people took the test, according to the Chongqing National
Bureau of Statistics Survey Corps. Only one out of every
9470 test takers get a job in the civil service. If the exam were
held online, entrance into the civil service might become
even more competitive.
Civil service employees have very low starting salaries, but
they recieve good benefits and job security. However, it
seems that fewer and fewer young people are interested in
civil service careers.
Brush your teeth till they're
blue! Bluetooth 4.0 coming
soon to...everything
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/brush-your-teeth-till-they-re-blue-
bluetooth-4.0-coming-soon-to...everything/17776.html
November 9th, 2012
The Bluetooth Special Interest Group (Bluetooth SIG)
announced on the 8th that Windows 8 would natively
support Bluetooth 4.0. With Bluetooth 4.0, your PC will
be able to connect to a whole new array of low power-
consuming devices.
Bluetooth 4.0 first reared its head in the iPhone 4S. Unlike
previous editions of the protocol which munched up all
the power from your battery (presumably with its blue-
teeth), this time around Bluetooth is being heralded as the
harbinger of a new era of low energy devices. If it does all that
its cracked up to be, Bluetooth 4.0 will be the go-to choice for
medical and health devices, sports and fitness equipment,
and a host of other crap that you never dreamed would some
day connect to your PC.
Bluetooth has forged its way into a variety of devices thus
far due to its simple and secure way of connecting wirelessly
to devices. According to ABI Research, the amount of
Bluetooth capable devices in the world already amounts to 9
billion; shipped units in 2012 alone account for over 2 billion
of these, and there are no signs of this trend slowing down.
Over 9 billion blue-teeth reported. Dentists everywhere are
outraged.
From its humble beginnings as the wireless communications
device of choice for headset-wearing obnoxious
businessmen who talk too loud in the line at Starbucks,
Bluetooth has evolved into a multi-purpose protocol whose
low power requirements will let it bless your household
products with its heavenly blue teethed waves. Running on a
battery the size of a coin, Bluetooth 4.0 really is a giant leap
for the protocol.
There is one tiny itty-bitty problem with putting Bluetooth in
everything though. The simple and compact data sent from
each Bluetooth compatible device cannot really be used by
anything without first being sent to a “hub” device, like a
PC, smartphone, or tablet. Only then can the data be viewed,
processed, or sent to that all-powerful cloud in the Internet
sky.

10
Doc, I'm having a CAT scan here, can you quit playing
Angry Birds for one second?
At the recent Bluetooth 4.0 sleepover (or maybe it was
just a conference, who knows), the example given was wait
for it… a Bluetooth ready toothbrush. (Get it? Bluetooth..
toothbrush.. ha..ha… oh you crazy engineers!) So anyway
the example was of a child using a Bluetoothbrush™ to brush
their pearly whites, and all of the data associated with the
brushing process such as time spent, pressure of the brush,
which teeth were brushed etc. can all be sent to a nearby
tablet or phone.
Oh god.. it actually exists… a Bluetooth toothbrush!! Where
can I get one???
A possibly less creepier example given was to insert a
Bluetooth enabled accelerometer in the tip of a golf club to
measure your swing speed and accuracy, allowing the golfer
to check his/her stats on their smartphone. More useful
applications include checking your blood level on your PC,
or connecting your fitness equipment to your TV so that you
can synchronize your workout with Jane Fonda (good luck
catching up to her though!).
Blue wavy things not included (unless you count Bluetooth’s
spread spectrum radio waves, but they’re invisible, silly.)
Bluetooth devices are expected to take the world by storm,
reaching an estimated 2.5 billion devices shipped next year,
and 27 billion devices shipped by 2017. It’s hard to say what
level of success the slimmed down protocol will have, but it
sure will be fun to see what crazy devices choose to support
it in the coming years.
Play Halo 4 multiplayer and
earn Microsoft Points
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/play-halo-4-multiplayer-and-earn-
microsoft-points/17778.html
November 9th, 2012
Embrace your Halo 4 addiction with Microsoft's new Halo
4 Combat Tour promotion on Xbox LIVE Rewards, allowing
gamers to earn up to 800 MSP just by playing Halo 4
multiplayer. The more you play, the more you earn!

11
Gamers can now get rewarded for their devotion to playing
dozens of hours of Halo 4's multiplayer with Microsoft's
new Halo 4 Combat Tour promotion, a new Xbox LIVE
Rewards program focused on 343i's newest chapter in the
Halo franchise. Microsoft is giving away a total of ten million
Microsoft Points in the promotional event, allowing each
gamer to earn up to 800 MSP for their participation in Halo
4's invigorating and explosive multiplayer.
"Your commitment to Halo 4 has never been so rewarding!
Xbox LIVE Rewards members can earn up to 800 Microsoft
Points this November simply for playing Halo 4 on
multiplayer and purchasing eligible Halo content on the
Xbox LIVE Marketplace. Explore Halo 4 in all its modes:
Campaign, Spartan Ops, and War Games - the more you
do, the more you get.
Gamers can also get back Microsoft Points when they
purchase Halo-related content from the Xbox LIVE
Marketplace, offering more ways to earn from the
promotion. Players have the entire month of November to
stack up their hours, and can play both War Games and
Spartan Ops to accumulate game time.
Pre-Orders now available for
Gears of War: Judgment
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/pre-orders-now-available-for-gears-
of-war-judgment/17777.html
November 9th, 2012
Epic's groundbreaking franchise is back and better than
ever with Gears of War: Judgment, and now you can reserve
your own copy at a retailer near you.
Epic Games' Gears of War franchise has been synonymous
with Xbox 360's noteworthy shooters, providing a unique
and gritty experience that hasn't been matched by many
other games on the market today. Spanning an award-
winning critically acclaimed trilogy, the new Gears of War
release--GoW: Judgment--breathes new live into the
series with a multitude of new gametypes--like OverRun--
and a brand new story arc that continues the dynamic plot
of the previous games.
"Before the rise of the Lambent, the sinking of
Jacinto or the detonation of the Lightmass bomb,
there was Emergence Day – when the Locust horde
burst from the ground and set Sera on a path toward
near annihilation.Gears of War: Judgment brings
players back to the terrifying aftermath of E-Day,
before the events of the Gears trilogy, for the most
intense and challenging “Gears” game yet."
Gamers can now reserve their own copies of Gears of War:
Judgment, securing their place among the ranks of Cog-
heads worldwide for a brand new battle. The upcoming new
chapter retails at the standard price of $59.99, however
many retailers have $1 pre-order cards that allow gamers to
reserve their copy and pay the rest when the game is actually
released--which is quite convenient for many gamers.
Gears of War: Judgment releases on Mar. 19, 2013 for Xbox
360. For more information please visit the game's official
website.
Sharp to release electronic
dictionary with a twist
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/sharp-to-release-electronic-
dictionary-with-a-twist/17775.html
November 9th, 2012
Not one to let bad news stand in their way, (soon to be
bankrupt?) Sharp is releasing a new “lifestyle oriented”
electronic dictionary on November 22nd. Dubbed the “Brain
PW-A7300”, the device is expected to be released with a
price of around 35,000 Yen (~$440).
At first glance, the Brain PW-A7300 looks just like any other
e-dictionary. But it packs a secret weapon. In an attempt to
ride the health boom currently sweeping the aging society
in Japan, this dictionary is chock full of health tips. That’s
right. Health tips, in a dictionary. Bet you didn’t see that one
coming! Sharp is just full of surprises lately.
Although it may sound strange, technically it makes sense.
The dictionary’s health almanac is pulled from an electronic
version of the “Complete Course on Household Health:
Revision 6”, which has previously been released on the
Android market. So technically it is a dictionary. Sort of.
Anyway, this health encyclopedia has over 2,600 entries
about illnesses, wounds, symptoms, and so on. Think of it as
a pocket version of WebMD.

12
The home screen of the device makes no attempts to hide
the fact that it is going for the ‘iPhone for old folks’
angle, and consists of 6 icons: “Health”, “Brain Training”,
“Travel”, “Dictionary”, “Color Picture-book Movie”, and
“Accessories”.
Especially interesting is the “Brain Training” application, as
the popular “Brain Age” game on Nintendo DS is actually
called “Brain Training” in Japan, and just happens to be one
of the best selling DS games amongst the elderly in Japan.
It looks like Sharp are trying extremely hard to conquer
that market, but whether they can do it or not by copying
competitors is another matter. What’s more, the device itself
is no Nintendo DS, and shoving unrelated software on a
device like a dictionary is a bizarre move to say the least. By
the way, did I mention the dictionary comes with a touch
pen?
Despite the dubious nature of some of the bonus apps,
we should give Sharp some credit for thinking outside the
box here, as most electronic dictionaries tend to be boring
grayscale with the same 2 or 3 dictionaries and not too many
extra features. It just feels like maybe the makers of this
device are stretching themselves too thin trying to please
a bigger audience, and in the end it is doubtful whether
they can find any market for such a device, in a world of
smartphones and portable games consoles. I guess that's
why they’re trying so hard to appeal to old people, since they
are the one target group who don't necessarily all carry cell
phones.
It looks cool I guess but can it play Angry Birds? Didn't
think so...
While adding a lot of extraneous features, Sharp did the right
thing and made sure not to drop the ball when designing
the core features of the device: the dictionary software
itself. The device carries a whopping 100 dictionaries
including “Kanji-gen 5th
Revision”, “Meikyou Japanese
Dictionary”, “Historical Encylopedia of Japan”, “Genius
English-Japanese Dictionary”, and some other bizarre
entries such as “Understanding Medicine Your Doctor Gave
You 2013”. Well, it is a health-oriented dictionary, after all.
Spec wise, the unit is no iPhone 5, but it still beats the pants
off of earlier models with its 5in 480x320 dot LCD display,
and continuous display time of approx. 130hrs. The Brain
PW also packs a microSD card, which is usually used to add
new dictionaries in devices like this, but maybe Sharp will
offer new apps to install via SD card if it sells enough units.
The device’s dimensions are 149x110.2x16.8mm, and it has
a weight of 205g. It comes in gold, pink, black and green, so
you’ll have no problem finding a model that matches your
grandma’s shoes if you’re buying one as a Christmas gift.
The dictionary doesn't promise to cure all ailments of the
elderly, but here’s hoping that it can cure some of Sharp’s
recent aches and pains.
Press Release: http://www.sharp.co.jp/corporate/
news/121108-a.html

1
geeks.
Samsung vs Apple: Have the
tables finally turned?
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/samsung-vs-apple-have-the-tables-
finally-turned-/17803.html
November 11th, 2012
Recent analysis shows that more of Samsung’s flagship
Galaxy S III phones were sold in the 3rd quarter of this year
than the Apple iPhone 4S. Is this the beginning of a new era?
And just what is Samsung's secret?
During the past quarter, Samsung shipped 18 million units
while Apple only managed to sell 16.2 million. That’s a big
deal considering the iron grip that Apple has held on the
smartphone business for the past few years.
Although the data referred to mixes shipped and sold units
and is basically like comparing apples to oranges (well,
actually its comparing Apples to Samsungs..), the result is
still far from insignificant, and may be the first step down a
bleak road for the Cupertino developer.
Arch rivals Samsung and Apple have been battling each
other for years for domination of the smartphone market.
Both manufacturers employ a more or less similar strategy,
that of focusing on a single flagship device rather than
diversifying and playing the laws of large numbers, as has
been the case with HTC, Motorola, LG et al. By doing so,
Samsung were able to build up their brand recognition and
make their product into the ‘must-have’ device that is craved
annually by a mass market.
While in the background Apple have been taking on
Samsung in the courts for copying the likeness of their
products, in the main arena of pushing product there was
nothing Apple could do to stop Samsung from “copying”
their winning strategy, and ultimately it has been this
strategy that has let Samsung rise above their opponent.
The Galaxy S III finally knocks the iPhone out of its ivory
tower
After three iterations of the Galaxy S, Samsung have gotten
into the swing of how to control every aspect of their
smartphone strategy. From hardware manufacture to design
to advertising, Samsung is completely self-sufficient. This is
the real Ace up Samsung’s sleeve, and gives them unlimited
potential in the mobile computing market.
Apple, though trying hard to migrate from relying on 3rd
party fabricators to internally developed ARM chips for their
CPUs, still have to rely on outside sources for their phone’s
displays and flash memory. Until now Samsung have been
the major source of these parts for Apple, so the Korean
maker have been profiting even when their competitors do
better than them.
That’s not to say that Apple doesn’t have control over its
production chain. It is this very control which has been
another key part of their strategy, as they can cheaply and
quickly manufacture in bulk thanks to their huge orders
every year. When Apple is in town, it is harder for other
phone makers to even get similar parts, since contracted
manufactures in places like Taiwan and mainland China
are too busy cooking up batches for Apple’s annual sales
bonanzas. Samsung is about the only other player capable
of such a high-stakes battle. And they play it just as well as
Apple.
It is hard to say which way the feud between Apple and
Samsung will go. Maybe Samsung’s lack of creativity will be
the thorn in their side that stops them from really getting
ahead of their foe. But one thing is for sure, where there’s
more competition, there’s more benefit for the user. As
long as the fire between the two smartphone makers keeps
smoldering, there will be no end to the rapid innovation and
progress of the mobile market.
Sales numbers courtesy of tech.sina.com.cn
Taiwan will switch to digital
TV by 2014
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/taiwan-will-switch-to-digital-tv-
by-2014/17801.html

2
November 11th, 2012
The Taiwanese government has announced a date for
the analog to digital television switchover. Electronics
companies are manufacturing set-top boxes in preparation
for incoming sales.
The Executive Yuan, the executive branch of the Taiwanese
government, is planning for all television services to become
digital by 2014. All county and city governments will hold
their National Cable subscriptions until the end of 2013,
when services will make the switchover.
People who still have analog televisions will need set-
top boxes to convert broadcasts. Electronics companies
such as Prime Electronics and Satellites, Inc., Unizyx, and
Morningstar are producing set-top boxes en masse. Local
television service providers will purchase the set-top boxes
for customers who need them.
The Executive Yuan had recently planned to make a
complete switch to digital cable by 2017, but the growing
popularity of digital service in Taiwan made it possible
to do this sooner. Already, more than 50% of Taiwanese
households have digital cable, and broadband companies
like KBRO have seen surges in service subscriptions.
Apple pays $20 million for
clock design
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/apple-pays-20-million-for-clock-
design/17802.html
November 11th, 2012
Awhile back, there was a report that Apple stole a clock
design trademarked by the Swiss Federal Railways. Well, the
story didn’t end there, as the Swiss railway company decided
to go after Apple for stealing what was rightfully theirs and
got a pocket full of change for their effort.
There hasn’t been much coverage regarding the iOS clock
rights, and none of that matter now because Apple has
agreed to a $20 million payout for rights to use the clock
design. The amount Apple paid out to the Swiss Federal
Railways may as well be a dime in a wishing well, but to the
average Joe it’s an automatic retirement and all the toys one
can ever wish for.
Initially, the railway company approached the iOS clock
design with friendliness and enthusiasm, and they had this
to say in a statement:
“We’re rather proud that a brand as important as Apple is
using our design, it’s already on show in exhibitions in places
like New York.”
However, shortly after the initial statement, a Swedish
newspaper reported that the Swiss railway company meant
business and were pursuing the matter legally. Lo and
behold, the outcome couldn’t have been better (other than
more money) for the Swiss railway company.
The railway company's operating revenues for 2011 were
$902.4 million, so $20 million may not seem like much.
However, we’re talking about a clock design that’s worth
$20 million! Only companies like Apple have enough change
to toss around like that. Now that that’s out of the way, back
to Samsung vs. Apple.
Update: The figure seems to be around $20-21 million.
The Nerd comes to the big
screen with the official
AVGN: The Movie trailer
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/the-nerd-comes-to-the-big-screen-
with-the-official-avgn-the-movie-trailer/17800.html
November 11th, 2012
James Rolfe a.k.a. the Angry Video Game Nerd has released
the first official AVGN: The Movie trailer, allowing fans to
get a two and a half minute glimpse of the hilarity that ensues
when the Nerd gets pressured into reviewing the worst game
of all time: E.T. for the Atari 2600.
Just about every gamer around knows about that iconic
cussing, booze-chugging geek gamer who brings you back to
the past and plays all the games that really suck ass.
James Rolfe's portrayal as one of the most humorous
YouTube celebrities on the internet has gained considerable
popularity and an ever-growing fanbase: his signature bad-
mouthing and unforgettable expressions have become the
stuff of legend. Since his inception in 2006, AVGN has gone
viral and is still going strong with a multitude of views
and followers throughout the internet's most popular social
networks.
The episodic YouTube show now spans over a hundred
episodes, each of them focusing on a different classic system
of game that has frustrated everyone in the gaming sphere.
Due to the popularity of The Angry Video Game Nerd's show,
James Rolfe has been working on an official AVGN movie
for the last few years. Finally, we get to see the fruits of his
labors with the first official AVGN: The Movie trailer.

3
This film marks the culmination of Rolfe not only as a
popular internet celebrity, but as an aspiring director, and it
will be quite a fantastic journey to see the Nerd review one
of the worst games of all time: E.T. for the Atari 2600.
Check the trailer out for yourself below, and for more
information on The Angry Video Game Nerd and the AVGN
movie be sure to check out Cinemassacre's official website.
Preview of ASUS's new
Windows RT VivoTab RT
TF600 (Japan)
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/preview-of-asus-s-new-windows-rt-
vivotab-rt-tf600-japan-/17799.html
November 11th, 2012
ASUS will be releasing their own Windows tablet tomorrow
(in Japan) to do battle with the multitude of competitors all
itching to get their hands on a slice of the mobile computing
pie. But how does it stand up against its rivals? Your favorite
writer (me, in case you were wondering) is here to find out!
On Nov 11, ASUS fans will get an early Christmas gift in
the form of a new Windows 8 tablet by the Taiwanese
manufacturer. Launching at 59,800 Yen ($750 USD), the
tablet will run Windows RT on its ARM SoC platform.
Of course, beneath the pretty veil that is the common
Windows UI lies the controversial debate of ARM's
compatibility with various apps/software. It is said that 10%
of the apps on the Windows Store are not compatible on RT,
and not only that, but device drivers compatible with the OS
are few and far between.
If it looks like a tablet and works like a tablet, then its
probably a tablet.
Users who just want a basic tablet with Internet functionality
and a familiar interface should be happy enough with the
VivoTab in its current state, but those wanting a little more
bang for their buck should probably hold out for an X86
model. Of course, that’s not to say the folks at MS won’t
some day solve the compatibility issues with RT, but those of
us with memories somewhat more lengthier than a goldfish
may still be haunted by flashbacks of the early days of Vista…
and Windows ME…. And we all know just how long those
problems lasted for.
One advantage of ARM’s System-On-A-Chip hardware is
that being originally designed for use in smartphones, it’s
motherboard and cooling components can be shrunken
down to fit into small spaces. This means any tablets that
use it should be thinner and lighter by default. And on the
software side, sure you may not have access to every app
out there, but at least you get Office 2013 (well.. this device
only comes with the ‘Preview Version’ of Office, but its better
than nothing. I guess.)
Lookin good, VivoTab, have you been on that new juice diet
that's all the rage?
Of course in America, Microsoft’s own flagship ‘Surface’ is
getting most of the limelight, but over in the land of the
Rising Sun, the only Windows tablet currently available is
the NEC LaVie Y. Starting tomorrow, Japan will have a grand
total of 2 Windows tablets on the market. Not exactly piping
hot competition, but that is sure to change in the coming
months.
Anyway, lets get down to the nitty gritty. That’s what you’re
all here for, isn’t it?
Specifications
CPU: NVIDIA Tegra3 (1.3GHz quad core with embedded
graphics)
Memory: 2GB
Storage: 32GB
Display: 10.1” Super IPS + Liquid Crystal
Resolution: 1,366x768 dots
Interface: IEEE 80211b/g/n, Bluetooth 4.0, Micro HDMI,
microSD, microphone & headphone jacks.
Extras: Mobile keyboard dock available separately for
14,800 Yen ($186 USD) (yikes!)
Sensors: GPS, compass, accelerometer, gyrometer, 2MP
front camera, 8MP back camera
Dimensions: 262.5 x 170.9 x 8.3mm (same as ASUS Pad)

4
Sure it looks cool now, but just wait until you get your
greasy fingerprints all over it...
Judging from the above, you may be thinking “why, that’s
exactly the same as an Android tablet!”. If so, give yourself a
cookie, because you’re quite right. It seems that at this point
in time, ASUS is merely offering existing hardware wrapped
up in a different bow. Maybe when competitor devices start
showing up in Japan they’ll try harder, but until then you
should probably keep that credit card stored safely in your
wallet.
That is, unless you really really loved Windows ME.
Product Page: http://shop.asus.co.jp/item/ASUS
%20VivoTab%20RT%20TF600T/
Evergreen release touch-
based Bluetooth keyboard
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/evergreen-release-touch-based-
bluetooth-keyboard/17798.html
November 11th, 2012
Evergreen Inc is back again with another weird device
for you crazy PC aficionados. It’s a touch based Bluetooth
keyboard and it’s got “useless” written all over it. But looks
can be deceiving so let’s take a look at what it’s really like.
Before we go into the tech side of this device, its worth
noting that its one of those mysterious units that can
only be acquired via direct sale. In this case the keyboard
can be obtained via Shanghai Donya (that's Japanese for
wholesalers), and you’ll forgive them for not spending too
much on marketing, but come on guys you could have tried a
little harder with the name. DN-80513. Seriously? It sounds
like a reject droid from the Star Wars prequels. But anyway,
like I said this is only available through direct sale, so I guess
people who have their heart set on owning something like
this won’t be too bothered about what its called.
So what does this little puppy have in store for those brave
enough to put 7,999 Yen (that's a cool $100 USD) on the line
for one?
By the power of Bluetooth!!
Well, the keyboard is exactly that – a flat board, with keys
printed on the surface. It works by electrostatic capacitance
(in normal people speak, that means iPhone-style
(capacitive) rather than Nintendo DS-style (resistive)).
This means when you spill your coffee on it, it will go all crazy
for a while, but when it dries it will go back to normal. Unlike
mechanical keyboards, which instantly fry when bathed in
hot caffeinated liquids. So that's one plus point for the
device.
Another advantage of the keyboard is that it works over
Bluetooth, so it’s completely wireless. Even better is, you can
switch modes on it to turn it into a Bluetooth touch pad. Ok
not bad, Evergreen, so what else can you do to wow us with
this little black brick?
There’s another cool option – the backlight. In dark places
you won’t have to fall back on your Mavis Beacon skills to
type, instead you will be greeted by the cool Tron-like hue
of the panel. Another cool add on is that the board vibrates
to every touch, and this haptic response should keep your
fingers from feeling naked when tapping on this flat slab.
Might be cool for taking notes but you won't see anyone
playing Counterstrike with this thing!

5
The dimensions seem to be somewhat tablet-oriented at
191x115x13mm, and it has a weight of 269g, so you won’t
have to stock up on protein powder before carrying it
around. Carrying it together with a 7-inch tablet should be a
piece of cake. The keyboard of course has an internal battery,
and it can be charged over USB.
The DN-80513 hasn’t jumped on the 4.0 bandwagon and is
still Bluetooth 3.0, but its communication distance of a max
10m should be more than enough for any eagle-eyed typists.
It supports Windows Vista/7/8 and iPad/iPhones on iOS 4.2
and below, and if you’re lucky enough to possess an Android
phone with Bluetooth HID profiles, it should work on that
too.
This keyboard isn’t for everyone, but might be a cool addition
to your Starbucks survival kit if you have $100 lying around
collecting dust.
Shanghai Donya Product Page: http://www.donya.jp/
item/23966.html
Tencent Video to recoup
startup expenses by 2014
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/tencent-video-to-recoup-startup-
expenses-by-2014/17797.html
November 11th, 2012
Tencent announced an end to the "money burning" stage
as its new video platform starts turning a profit. Now
competing against the Youku and Tudou merger, Tencent
Video has some advantages that sets it apart.
In the past 16 months, Tencent has been investing heavily
in in its online video website and now expects to recoup its
losses by 2014. Tencent Video recieves around 275.5 million
viewers a month, better than Youku's previous 266.3 million
viewers a month. Youku, a popular Chinese online video
service, recently merged with its rival, Tudou, amassing an
average of 475 million monthly viewers.
However, Liu Chunning, Tencent's general manager, is
confident that Tencent can catch up with Youku-Tudou
soon. According to Liu, Tencent has four advantages over
other video sites. First, Tencent has years of previous
experience in the entertainment industry and is better able
to draw viewers to videos according to their interests.
Second, with Tencent's integrated platforms and channels,
videos can spread more widely. Third, Tencent can use its
user base resources and capital to keep technology up to
date. And lastly, Tencent has one of the most innovative and
influential new media platforms in the country.
There are currently four popular video platforms available in
mainland China: Youku-Tudou, Tencent, Sohu, and Aiqiyi.
Foreign websites, such as Youtube, are banned by the
government and only accessible through a VPN or other
application.
Target Black Friday sale
includes Retina iPad with $60
gift card for $499
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/target-black-friday-sale-includes-
retina-ipad-with-60-gift-card-for-499/17796.html
November 11th, 2012
The madness is about to begin, so are you willing to endure
it all for a chance at grabbing a Retina iPad with a $60 gift
card for $499.99?
Black Friday is quickly approaching, and if you’ve been
setting aside a few bucks here and there for a chance
at grabbing cheap tech then maybe an iPad with Retina
bundled with a $60 gift card for $499.99 from Target will
empty the pig and satisfy your urge for a new toy.
Wal-Mart will, too, have an iPad sale, but it’s not the one
with Retina. Rather, Wal-Mart will be selling the iPad 2 for
$399.99 and will come with a $75 gift card. Wal-Mart will
open early, and promises that the iPad 2 will be in stock for
at least an hour.
If you’re willing to endure the crowd and risk losing a body
part in all the madness then I have this to say to you: “May
the force be with you.” Wouldn’t it be nicer just to stay at
home to enjoy the left-over turkey and catch up with family
and friends?
iPhone snatchers beware:
pepper-spray case now
available
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/iphone-snatchers-beware-pepper-
spray-case-now-available/17795.html

6
November 11th, 2012
Are you an overprotective parent (not many will admit to
being so)? Are your kids off to college? Are you scared for
their safety? Did you spoil your kid with an iPhone 4/4S?
If you answered yes to the last question, then perhaps an
iPhone case with built in pepper-spray will help to ease the
thought of evil-doers trying to harm your precious children.
It’s called the ‘Pepper Spray Phone Case,’ and although
the name may not conjure up fear like facing el Diablo
himself, it’ll get the job done—just like a normal point-n-
shoot pepper-spray canister.
The deadly iPhone 4/4S add-on was developed by Scott
McPherson of Arizona for the purpose of protecting his
daughter who is in college.
“Most co-eds don’t go anywhere without their smartphone,”
he said, “So the optimal solution was to combine her phone
and a safety device.”
Talk about killing two birds with one stone.
Operating the pepper-spray is as easy as unlocking the
canister and turning the phone sideway then aim-and-
shoot. According to McPherson, the spray is formulated
using habanero pepper: “[It’s] one of the hottest peppers
available.”
“We use what the police force does, TSA, FBI. We actually
buy it at the same place they get it,” McPherson added.
The pepper-spray case is currently only available for the
iPhone 4/4S, and can be bought for $39.95 via Spraytect. It
comes in four colors: Black, pink, white, and turquoise. The
maker is even kind enough to include a dummy canister so
that you can practice operating the pepper-spray case.
Presenting the New Extra
Battery Packs from Croy
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/presenting-the-new-extra-battery-
packs-from-croy/17794.html
November 11th, 2012
Energy accessory manufacturer Croy has released 3 new
portable battery products, all of which can be conveniently
used without the need for wires.
Croy, a specialty manufacturer of energy accessories for
mobile devices in Japan, has unveiled on November 9,
2012 three new products that they will add to their
current product line. Each one of these products presents
a functionality that is similar to battery pack smartphone
cases, which means they do not necessarily require wires to
be used.
The first product is the Energy Stick. It is an extra battery
pack that is cylindrically shaped, and looks much like
an oversized battery. Connection ports include both one
male and female connector, with the female connector
mainly used for wired charging (using adapters). Standard
configurations include a full USB port, and a 30-pin Apple
connector port. It weighs 90 grams, has an energy capacity
of 3000mAh, and will be priced at 3850 yen (50 USD).

7
The second product is the Energy Stage A30. It is an extra
battery pack that is uses a 30-pin Apple connector port, so
it is specifically designed for the iPhone 3GS / 4 / 4S and
iPod. While it can be used like an iPhone stand as shown
in the image, the connector can actually bend all the way
down, allowing you to use it much like any other battery pack
smartphone case. It has an energy capacity of 2700mAh, and
will be priced at 3750 yen (48 USD).
The last product is the Energy Stage Micro. It is an extra
battery pack that is designed to be generally used by any
smartphone, although it is also specifically designed to fit
the profile of any Samsung Galaxy S unit. It uses a micro-
USB port for connectivity, and like the Energy Stage A30, the
port could also be twisted and moved around. It an energy
capacity of 2700mAh, and will be priced at 3650 yen (46.5
USD).
The commercial release date for all three products is set on
November 12, 2012.

1
geeks.
BlackBerry 10 to launch 30
January
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/blackberry-10-to-launch-30-
january/17826.html
November 12th, 2012
Research In Motion (RIM) is finally ready to put BlackBerry
back on the map with the launch of BlackBerry 10 on 30
January at events throughout the world, with the first two
devices powered by the revamped mobile operating system
slated to be unveiled that day.
Research In Motion (RIM) is finally ready to put BlackBerry
back on the map with the launch of BlackBerry 10 on 30
January at events throughout the world, with the first two
devices powered by the revamped mobile operating system
slated to be unveiled that day.
The much-anticipated platform will come with a slew of new
features, including Flow, which offers “seamless navigation”
through multiple open applications, and the Hub, which
collects all messages, notifications, feeds and calendar
events into a single area that can be opened from anywhere
on the device, while the keyboard adapts to how users type
for even faster correspondence through email.
RIM is attempting to hang onto its strongest market,
government and business, with a recently granted FIPS
140-2 certification, which gives government agencies the
go-ahead to use both BlackBerry 10 smartphones and
BlackBerry Enterprise Service 10. Then there is BlackBerry
Balance, which separates personal and work profiles and the
apps and information relevant to each.
“In building BlackBerry 10, we set out to create a truly
unique mobile computing experience that constantly adapts
to your needs. Our team has been working tirelessly to
bring our customers innovative features combined with a
best in class browser, a rich application ecosystem, and
cutting-edge multimedia capabilities. All of this will be
integrated into a user experience – the BlackBerry Flow –
that is unlike any smartphone on the market today,” said
Thorsten Heins, President and CEO of RIM. “Thanks to
our strong partnerships with global carriers and a growing
ecosystem of developers, we believe our customers will have
the best experience possible with BlackBerry 10. We are
looking forward to getting BlackBerry 10 in the hands of our
customers around the world.”
RIM earned investor criticism after delaying the launch
of BlackBerry 10, formerly called BBX, from late 2012 to
early 2013, missing out on the lucrative Christmas shopping
season. Shares fell by as much as 18 percent and speculation
mounted about RIM's fate. Many analysts see BlackBerry 10
as a “make or break” for the company, a reality which might
have factored into its delay, but it seems that RIM is finally
ready to take a leap of fate with the product and hope it can
win back market share lost to Android, iOS and Windows
Phone.
Apple: "Before contacting
the genius bar, have you tried
turning it off and on again?"
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/apple--before-contacting-the-genius-
bar-have-you-tried-turning-it-off-and-on-again-/17819.html
November 12th, 2012

2
Apple, presumably fed up with the number of unneccessary
support requests it gets, has started asking it's customers to
reset their devices, before contacting them.
As anyone who has tried to troubleshoot a computer will tell
you, the first thing to do is usually to try turning it off and on
again. I myself have been doing it for years. Most of the time,
this will solve your problems, but the general public seems
quite unaware of this handy all-round solution. Resetting the
device has been a running joke on the comedy TV series "the
IT crowd" (there's a montage below, for your amusement),
because it's something tech support has to say over and over
again.
Apple has seemingly caught on to this fact. Currently, when
making a genius bar reservation for fixing your iPhone,
apple tells the user to try resetting it first, likely saving the
company a lot of time, and frustration for their support staff.
Curiously, the suggestion is not presented when reserving
tech support for an iPad or iMac, even though it is fairly
universal in terms of devices.
Video Game Exhibit coming
to Seattle in February
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/video-game-exhibit-coming-to-
seattle-in-february/17821.html
November 12th, 2012
A video game art exhibit from the Smithsonian American
Art Museum is traveling to Seattle, where it will make an
appearance in February, highlighting art in games over the
past 40 years.
The Smithsonian American Art Museum has been hosting an
exhibition on the Art of Video Games, and this exhibit is now
going to have a showing at Seattle's EMP Museum between
February 15 and May 12 of next year.
Pac-man
The exhibit showcases art in videogame and demonstrates
the evolution of art within the medium, and will have 80
games from 20 consoles on exhibit, all of which have been
carefully selected to demonstrate storytelling, interactivity
and art. The exhibit begins with early classics, such as Pac-
man, and then moves up through artistic milestones within
gaming, such as the Secret of Monkey Island and ending in
modern examples such as Flower.
Flower
The exhibit will consist of videos and interviews, images and
screenshots, as well as some playable games.
PFU to release iOS/Android
compatible document
scanner: ScanSnap S1500
(Japan)
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/pfu-to-release-iosandroid-
compatible-document-scanner-scansnap-s1500-japan-/17810.html
November 12th, 2012
For the first time in 3 years, PFU will be releasing a new
ScanSnap model on Nov 30. And this time, it will support
mobile devices.
The ScanSnap iX500 will be released with an open price, but
can also be purchased via direct sale for 49,800Yen ($626
USD). With IEEE 802b/g/n Wi-Fi, the scanner can easily
connect to your iOS and Android devices when you want to
scan in your documents without booting up a clunky desktop
PC.
The scanner will also support USB 3.0, and carries a newly
developed hardware graphics processing engine called the
‘GI’ processor. This allows it to achieve the same level of
image processing on mobile as with PC, as the heavy lifting
is all done by the scanner itself, and the machine effortlessly
outputs JPEG and PDF encoded files.

3
That's GI Engine, not GI JOE.
Additional improvements in this latest model from PFU
include a heightened read speed, which has been boosted
to 25 pages/ minute for color 300dpi scans. More cool
features include a ‘break roller’ paper feed which separates
the inputted pages, and a straight path paper ejection which
allows the device to support many more types of paper, and
even allows direct printing onto plastic such as credit cards.
Not only that, but the scanner can even prevent multiple
pages entering the feed by using a multi-feed sensor based
on ultrasound! As far as boring office equipment goes, this
guy’s actually pretty cool!
Some printers/scanners have notoriously bad software, but
how does the iX500 shape up? On the PC, when you scan
something and a helpful pop-up menu appears, making
it easy to deal with the newly obtained image. You can
also add applications or cloud services to the ‘Favorites’
function. When scanning in business cards or receipts, a
‘recommendation’ function helpfully displays the relevant
business card or receipt managing software first. Speaking
of business cards, the scanner also comes with a copy of
“CardMinder” , which supports management of business
cards not only in Japanese but from a total of 11 languages
including English, Russian, and Chinese.
Scan straight from your iPhone!
The software package also comes with OCR, which utilizes
parallel processing to speed up creation of searchable PDFs.
Traditionally the OCR processing of a 3 page A4 sized
document has taken up to 36 seconds, but with PFU’s latest
machine, this has been reduced to 17 seconds.
On the technical side of things, the scanner has 2 CIS
sensors, and can support a maximum resolution of 600dpi
in color, or 1,200dpi in monochrome. Scanning speed
is 7 pages/minute at color 600dpi, or 25 pages/minute
for 150/200/300dpi. The scanner can take paper formats
A4~B6, postcards, business cards, letters, legal documents,
and so on. An additional A3 carrier sheet can also be used
to enable scanning of A3/B4 documents, with a maximum
length of 863mm.
The unit is powered by an AC adapter and has dimensions
292x159x168mm, with a weight of 3kg.
The scanner comes with the following software: scanner
drivers, ScanSnap Manager V6.0, ScanSnap Organizer V5.0,
CardMinder V5.0, Business Card Filing OCR V3.2, Acrobat
X Standard, ABBYY Fine Reader for ScanSnap 5.0, Scan to
Microsoft SharePoint 3.4, Simple Account Book Entry 2 for
ScanSnap, Evernote for Windows 4.5. Of these, the drivers,
business card manager, OCR, and Evernote tools also work
on Mac OS.
Thermo-bimetals may change
cooling and shading of
buildings
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/thermo-bimetals-may-change-
cooling-and-shading-of-buildings/17818.html
November 12th, 2012
Doris Kim Sung is developing Thermo-Bimetal paneling,
which changes shape with temperature and may let walls
breathe and windows apply shading to themselves.

4
Doris Kim Sung is an architect with a history in biology
and has been addressing an issue with modern architecture:
heat. Before the advent of air conditioning, buildings were
well insulated to keep them warm in winter and cool in
summer. But as technology improved and air conditioning
became available along with new construction techniques,
our buildings moved away from insulation, trading it instead
for large panoramic windows and thinner walls, essentially
making them hot boxes.
As long as the power is on, such building design is fine.
But when the power goes out and the AC stops working,
they heat up immensely in the sunlight and sometimes even
have to be vacated temporarily. Sung is developing a number
of solutions which could help solve this problem, and they
involve thermo-bimetals. Thermo-Bimetals are alloys which
contains two separate metals layered on top of each other. If
the alloys have different thermal expansion properties, then
one side of the metal will expand more than the other when
exposed to heat. Because of this, the thermo-bimetal curls
up, and this is very useful.
Doris Kim Sung, next to some thermo-bimetal paneling
Sung is hoping to develop an automatic shading system with
the material. By paneling strips of thermo-bimetal, she can
create a sun shield which remains open in the shade, but
closes as soon as direct sunlight begins to warm it. She has
created a proof of concept for this technology, in the form of
a large metallic sail which not only provides shading, but as
a side-effect allows air to stream freely through the material
and provide a cooling effect when the panels are open.
In the future, Sung is hoping to incorporate this material into
the space between two panes of glass in a window. By filling
it with many small strips of thermo-bimetal, she envisions a
window which will shade itself from the sun, only in the area
that's effected by the sun. Theoretically, a building could self
regulate shading as the sun travels around it throughout the
day.
The metal strips curl upwards when heated, allowing air to
pass through
Another equally interesting concept, would be to create a
building material which breathes. She hopes to manufacture
a construction material with perforations which would allow
air to travel through it. These would be constructed together
with thermo-bimetals, which could curl around the holes,
blocking them, when the metals were hot, and allowing air
to pass through freely when cool.
A promising aspect of the technology is that it operates with
no electricity. It's completely autonomous.
Alibaba reports healthy
growth
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/alibaba-reports-healthy-
growth/17805.html
November 12th, 2012
Alibaba's net profit amounted to $292 million in the second
business quarter, ending June 30, 2012, a 113% rise from
the previous quarter. The company's entire revenue for the
quarter was $1.07 billion, a rise of 70.63%. Net profit for
2012 was $730 million, an increase of 75.68% from the same
period last year, with a profit margin of 68.7%, slightly better
than last year's 66.72%. As of June 30, 2012, Alibaba's
current assets were $4.437 billion, a rise from $3.49 billion
a year before.
Alibaba is a leading ecommerce group that connects
businesses and manufacturers. Reportedly, Alibaba makes
more sales per year than Amazon and eBay combined.
Valve says new engine under
development. No news on
HL3
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/valve-says-new-engine-under-
development.-no-news-on-hl3/17813.html
November 12th, 2012
According to Gabe Newell, Valve is working on a new game
engine. Newell is still not talking with regards to when Half-
Life 3 may be turning up though.
A group of 4chan members from the site's /v/ board, recently
made a visit to Valve's studio in Washington, where they
met with studio head Gabe Newell and asked him about
what Valve is working on at the moment. Rumors have been
circulating recently about a new game engine that may be
under development, and during the visit, Newell confirmed
that Valve is indeed working on an engine. When asked
if the engine was completely new, i.e. more than just an
update of the current engine, he confirmed that it was. Some
ambiguity still exists as to whether the engine is a sequel to
Source or something entirely different.

5
Gabe Newell
Newell also stated that the engine would most likely roll out
together with a new game release, but did not say which
game that might be. He did confirm that the studio is
working on Ricochet 2, the sequel to a multiplayer Half-Life
modification from 2000. As usual, Valve is keeping silent
about the development of the elusive Half-Life 3.
Witness the end of an era in
the new Final Fantasy XIV: A
Realm Reborn trailer
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/witness-the-end-of-an-era-in-the-
new-final-fantasy-xiv-a-realm-reborn-trailer/17820.html
November 12th, 2012
The end is nigh in this breathtaking cinematic trailer for
Square Enix's popular MMORPG Final Fantasy XIV: A
Realm Reborn.
The new trailer for Square Enix's revitalized MMORPG
based in the Final Fantasy universe features nearly six
minutes of amazing cinematics from the game, displaying
the studio's signature breathtaking and fantasy-infused
visual style that has defined the franchise for decades.
After receiving a considerable amount of negative feedback
and poor reception for the original Final Fantasy XIV, the
previous PC MMORPG, Square Enix used feedback from the
community to completely rebuild the game from the ground
up.
Now gamers get to see and experience the fruits of
Square Enix's labors with Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm
Reborn, breathing new life into the game as well as the
franchise with all-new original content.
Additions include an epic story arc filled with fantasy and
intrigue, fully fleshed characters, new classes, jobs, skills
and abilities, and a dynamic living, breathing world rife with
adventure and mystery making for a great MMO adventure.
"Witness the end of an era as the Eorzean Alliance
clashes with the Garlean Empire in a bid to
deliver the realm from certain destruction. The saga
will continue in FINAL FANTASY XIV: A Realm
Reborn." -- Official YouTube video description
For more information on Final Fantasy XIV: A Realm
Reborn and the radical changes and alterations that have
taken place in the dynamic MMORPG world, please visit the
game's official website.
Assassin's Creed movie may
be coming to theatres next
year
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/assassin-s-creed-movie-may-be-
coming-to-theatres-next-year/17817.html
November 12th, 2012
In a recent interview, Ubisoft's chief sales and marketing
officer Geoffroy Sardin revealed that the upcoming
Assassin's Creed movie may be coming out next year.
In a recent interview with the website GamesIndustry.biz,
Geoffroy Sardin, Ubisoft's chief sales and marketing officer,
hinted at a tentative release date of next year for the
film adaptation of Ubisoft's critically acclaimed video game
franchise Assassin's Creed.
“Another thing that is very important for the
lifecycle is the transmedia offer. All the figurines,
the books, the publishing, and we have a movie in
the next coming year. So it's not only about games,
we are talking about a global brand, and this is the
life cycle management we want to set up now.” --
Geoffroy Sardin, interview with GamesIndustry.biz
The Assassin's Creed film will star Michael Fassbender in the
lead role--presumably as Desmond Miles--and Hollywood
has been buzzing with news that the movie is indeed in
the works for months now. Ubisoft, the development studio
behind the popular gaming franchise, has partnered with
New Regency to bring the games to life on the big screen.
The Assassin's Creed games have been the subject for
acclaim and anticipation, selling over 38 million units

6
of the franchise's four games worldwide, and with the
newest chapter in the series, Assassin's Creed III, Ubisoft's
franchise gains even more momentum.
An official release date for the movie hasn't been confirmed
yet, but it appears that fans might see their favorite assassin
on the big screen next year.
Toyota testing automated car
communication system
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/toyota-testing-automated-car-
communication-system/17823.html
November 12th, 2012
Toyota is testing a new automated safety system that
recognises obstructions on the road and communicates with
other vehicles to avoid accidents.
Toyota is testing a new automated safety system that
recognises obstructions on the road and communicates with
other vehicles to avoid accidents.
The Intelligent Transport System employs sensors on the
car and transmitters on streets to give the car a kind of
intelligence of its own, notifying the driver of things he or she
may not have seen, such as a pedestrian crossing the road or
the breaking of a red light.
The Japanese car giant trialled the system in a newly-
completed 3.5 hectare facility in Japan, where the car
showed off its safety-first mentality. A fake pedestrian on
the road led to a beeping sound and an image of a person
displayed on a screen in front of the driver, an arrow
indicated an approaching car at an intersection, and a voice
reminded the driver the light is red when he was about
to break it. The company also demonstrated an advanced
breaking feature for when drivers don't press on the break
hard enough.
That is all well and good in a fake road network, but Toyota
plans to test the technology on real Japanese roads in 2014,
with similar plans on the table for the US, though no date for
that is decided.
Like Google's claim that most accidents occur due to human
error, Toyota believes this new system could help save lives.
It said that half of car accidents happen at intersections,
where Toyota's smart car technology will come in most
useful.
There is no estimated date for release, but the technology
is expected to be initially offered on Lexus luxury models,
which already tout additional safety features like automatic
breaking. Given the high cost of all the sensors and related
technology, we likely won't see these kinds of features on
cheaper models for a long time to come.
Source and Image Credit: Associated Press
Blizzard sued in class action
lawsuit
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/blizzard-sued-in-class-action-
lawsuit/17815.html
November 12th, 2012
Blizzard is being sued in a class action lawsuit for selling
security solutions after sale to protect their customers'
private information
A class action suit is being brought against Blizzard
Entertainment and it's parent company Activision Blizzard.
Benjamin Bell, who is the lead plaintiff is seeking damages
for fraud, unjust enrichment, negligence, breach of contract
and bailment. His charge concerns a $6.40 security solution
called the Authenticator, which is meant to help solve a
security flaw; something which Blizzard has earned $26
million on selling.
Blizzard requires their players to use the battle.net
website which stores personal information, but puts the
responsibility to secure that information on the player, and
charges them for it; rather than taking steps to ensure that
the accounts themselves are secure.The complaint, which is
33 pages long, puts focus on this fact:

7
"Defendants negligently, deliberately, and/or recklessly fail
to ensure that adequate, reasonable procedures safeguard
the private information stored on this website. As a result
of these acts, the private information of plaintiffs and class
members has been compromised and/or stolen since at least
2007."
Adding insult to injury, in both May and August, it was
revealed that hackers had breached battlenet's servers and
stolen personal information from the defendant's accounts
in North America, Latin America, Australia, New Zealand
and South East Asia. Furthermore, Blizzard is accused of not
taking the necessary legal steps to alert the gamers effected.
We will report on the outcome of this case as it develops.
US claims world's most
powerful supercomputer with
Titan
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/us-claims-world-s-most-powerful-
supercomputer-with-titan/17822.html
November 12th, 2012
The United States has sealed its claim to the top spot for
supercomputing thanks to its latest rig built by Cray at the
Orak Ridge National Laboratory, utilising AMD processors
and Nvidia graphics cards to make it the fastest and most
powerful computational machine in the world.
The United States has sealed its claim to the top spot for
supercomputing thanks to its latest rig built by Cray at the
Orak Ridge National Laboratory, utilising AMD processors
and Nvidia graphics cards to make it the fastest and most
powerful computational machine in the world.
The new system, aptly dubbed Titan, is capable of a
whopping 17.59 petaflops, which is thousands of trillions
of calculations per second. This beats the previous record
holder, the IBM-built Sequoia supercomputer at Lawrence
Livermore National Laboratory in California, which was
capable of an equally impressive 16.32 petaflops.
Titan, based in Tenessee, is used for climate studies, material
research, fuel combusation analysis, and nuclear power
simulation. It is 10 times faster than Jaguar, Oak Ridge's
previous supercomputer, which held the record in 2009.
The system is made up of 18,688 processing nodes, with
a mind-boggling 710TB of memory. Each node utilises
a 16-core AMD Opteron 6274 processor and an adapted
Nvidia Tesla K20X graphics card, helping it achieve its
record-breaking computing speeds, and also helping it lower
the supercomputer's carbon footprint compared to systems
using CPUs alone, especially considering Titan uses roughly
the same amount of electricity as 9,000 homes. Despite how
monumental that sounds, Titan was able to achieve its 10
times faster speeds over Jaguar while only increasing power
consumption by 20 percent.
The Top500 list of supercomputers shows where the world's
powers are in terms of computational ability, with the US
generally leading the race. Japan stole the lead in 2011
with the K computer, which was the first to surpass the 10
petaflop mark, but Sequoia returned the crown to the US
in June of this year. Titan ensures that crown sits firmly in
place, but in the fast-paced world of supercomputing that
can quickly change.
Tsukumo Japan releases PC
equipped with Intel's Core
i7-3970X Extreme Edition
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/tsukumo-japan-releases-pc-
equipped-with-intel-s-core-i7-3970x-extreme-edition/17807.html
November 12th, 2012
Anyone interested in buying a PC that comes loaded with the
newest six-core CPU from Intel shouldn't have long to wait.
The Aero Stream RA9J-K43/XE2 from Tsukumo Japan's
built to order brand of computers, eX. Computer, went on
sale today in Japan. It's priced at ¥224,980, or about $2,380.
When the Core i7-3970X came out late last month, some
fans were disappointed that the newest edition to the Sandy
Bridge-E-based Core i7-3000 family was another six core
and not an eight core processor. In many ways the Core
i7-3970X is similar to the 3960X which came out last year.
They both feature six active cores plus hyperthreading which

8
allows them to address 12 threads simultaneously. They
both similarly offer 15MB of L3 cache and drop into the
same 32nm Sandy Bridge architecture. The only difference
between them is that while the 3960X's base clock rate
was 3.3GHz and it reached 3.9 GHz via Turbo Boost in
single threaded apps, the i7-3970X starts at 3.5GHz and
accelerates to 4.0GHz when Turbo Boosted. Furthermore it
is rated for 150W compared to the 3960X's 130W.
The Sandy Bridge-E-based core i7 processors have been
called the best of the best for running threaded apps or
setting up a multi-card gaming box. They are the perfect
choice for high performance gaming machines. The real
question for the new Aero Stream is whether users will be
satisfied enough with everything else on it to buy the PC, or
whether they will just buy the processor for about $1000 and
build their own machines.
AMD Launches FirePro
S10000, Goes against Intel
Xeon Phi 3110 / 5110P, Nvidia
Tesla K10 / K20s
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/amd-launches-firepro-s10000-goes-
against-intel-xeon-phi-3110-5110p-nvidia-tesla-k10-k20s/17812.html
November 12th, 2012
AMD is finally becoming more aggressive in their bid to win
the lucrative HPC share, which is set to explode with this
week's SC'12 supercomputing conference in Salt Lake City,
Utah.
On AMD Fusion Developer Summit 2012 (AFDS), which was
held in June 2012 in Bellevue, WA Mark Papermaster (Chief
Technology Officer) showed "the next generation FirePro for
workstations and servers" card. The card represented quite
the departure from familiar-looking FirePro cards, since it
featured no less than three 80mm fans and purportedly
two GPUs. In conversations with PR team, it was clarified
that Mark Papermaster was mistaken, and that the part in
question was long delayed and pretty much shelved Radeon
HD 7990 (PowerColor launched the product on their own).
Today we see that the CTO of AMD was not mistaken in any
way, and that he indeed, showed the server part.
FirePro S10000 (S10K) represents the best Southern
Islands GPUs can offer to give "optimal efficiency for HPC
calculations, ideal for virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI)
and workstation graphics deployments." This is also (on
paper) the highest performing accelerator on the market.
AMD cites 5.91 TFLOPS single-precision and 1.48 TFLOPS
in double-precision floating-point operations. This is higher
than what both Intel and Nvidia can offer with their Xeon Phi
3110/5110P and Tesla K10 and K20/K20X boards. In fact,
in terms of peak compute performance, this is the highest
performing accelerator card of all time.
As you might have figured out, the S10K is consisted out
of two Tahiti XT GPUs, packing no less than 4096 stream
cores, while the dual 384-bit memory interface delivers
480GB/s (240GB/s per GPU). On paper, nothing compares
to this part. We believe that AMD should have launched
the 12GB version (6GB per GPU instead of "just" 3) and
completely thrash the competition, but there are objective
reasons why the company did not dare to offer maximum
memory configuration. Probably the biggest concern was
populating the back of the card on a server board, as these
parts have to endure 100% computational load for most of
its life. Still, S10000 has equal amount of memory to single-
GPU configurations like Sapphire's Toxic HD 7970 6GB,
K20X (6GB) and less memory than Intel's Xeon Phi 5110P
(8GB) and Tesla K10 (8GB).
Furthermore, AMD is the only vendor that doesn’t offer
a passively cooled option, which will prevent system
integrators from embedding this part with their standard 1U
and 2U servers. In the high-occupancy 4U configuration, you
should be able to put up to 8 FirePro S10000 boards, for a
16GPU/48GB GDDR5 configuration. We spoke with one of
vendors that will unveil its FirePro S10000 system at SC'12
in a few hours time, and it cites record performance from a
4U box:
• 8x FirePro S10000
• 16 Tahiti XT GPU
• 48GB GDDR5 Memory
• 3.75 TB/s Aggregate GPU bandwidth
• 47.28 TFLOPS Single Precision (peak)
• 11.68 TFLOPS Double Precision (peak)
In the standard 42U rack, you could configure up to seven
systems for a grand total of:
• 56 FirePro S10000
• 112 Tahiti XT GPUs
• 336GB GDDR5 Memory
• 26.25 TB/s Aggregate GPU bandwidth
• 330.96 TFLOPS Single Precision (peak)
• 82.88 TFLOPS Double Precision (peak)

9
All in all, it is good to see that AMD is becoming more
aggressive and is launching products for this space, but we
cannot but wonder is this the reason why HD 7990 never
saw the light of the day. Furthermore, AMD could have
made a passively cooled part without DisplayPort, HDMI
and DVI, as these things are really unnecessary in a server
configuration.
Amazon Kindle finally coming
to China?
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/amazon-kindle-finally-coming-to-
china-/17811.html
November 12th, 2012
Last week with the Kindle Paperwhite’s software update
came the newly added support for Simplified Chinese. This
maybe another hint alluding to an incoming Chinese release
of the electronic reader.
Addition of Chinese support alone isn’t enough evidence to
justify this theory of course. There may be been technical
issues in the past which prevented Amazon from supporting
the complex Chinese script. However, that’s not all.
Another clue comes from the China Radio Management
Agency’s website, which shows that four Kindle devices were
submitted for evaluation for a Chinese radio license. If that’s
not a big X marking the spot, I don’t know what is.
Finally, Chinese support. What took you so long, Amazon!
What’s more, in 2011 Amazon already confirmed that they
were planning a future Chinese launch, so what is really
surprising is that its took them this long. Amazon would be
foolish to miss another Christmas’ worth of sales, and may
be ramping up for a festive release in the mainland.
It is interesting to note the timing of this move too. 2 weeks
ago I wrote an article about Amazon China’s president Wang
Hanhua resigning amongst rumors of Amazon attempting
to ‘speed up’ the strategy of the Chinese branch. This would
correlate with the sudden rush of events to indicate a Kindle
launch. Amazon have also just released their Kindle devices
in Japan, and this may be part of a larger strategy to take on
Asia as a whole.
Until Amazon get a move on, we always have... this thing....
With billions of potential customers, Amazon would be silly
to miss out on this opportunity. While e-book piracy is
rampant in the mainland, that doesn’t mean that people
wouldn’t be willing to pay for quality content should it be
easily available. Hopefully Amazon can rectify that situation
better than any local tablet clone has in the past.
New Spartan Ops episode
coming to Halo 4 today
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/new-spartan-ops-episode-coming-to-
halo-4-today/17809.html
November 12th, 2012
Episode Two: Artifact of Halo 4's Spartan Ops multiplayer
mode is coming to Xbox LIVE later today. Jump in for the
trailer to get a brief glimpse at what's included with the new
episode.
The new trailer for Halo 4's celebrated multiplayer gametype
Spartan Ops features a look at what gamers can expect in the
new episode, continuing the story arc that was established in
Episode One: Departure.
Episode Two: Artifact features five new chapters, each with
their own distinct map, objectives, and enemies, combining
the Covenant ensemble with the dangerous and lethal
Prometheans for an unforgettable and enthralling gametype.
The new episode also follows up the investigations of the
mysterious artifact discovered in Chapter 5: Core, which
actually ends up sending a EMP pulse throughout the UNSC
Infinity...
Episode Two: Artifact will be available on Xbox LIVE on
Monday Nov. 12, 2012 for free. For more information on
Halo 4 or Spartan Ops, be sure to check out Halo Waypoint's
official website.
RIM hosts Port-a-Thon for
Blackberry developers
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/rim-hosts-port-a-thon-for-
blackberry-developers/17804.html
November 12th, 2012

10
In a desperate attempt to hold on to its handful of remaining
supporters, RIM will be hosting a 36 hour developer event
on November 16. Dubbed the “BlackBerry Got Game Port-a-
Thon”, it’s good news for developers who still have a love for
the previous king of enterprise devices, but is it all a case of
“too little, too late?”
At the virtual event (that’s right, you don’t need to leave your
room to attend) next week, RIM employees and specialists
will instruct developers on how to port and develop games
onto the Blackberry 10 platform. RIM’s strong suit has
always been enterprise applications, and this begs the
question: what is the management thinking? Is this an
attempt to reach a wider audience, or are they just hooked
on Angry Birds?
Do you want to get game? Get rewards? Or just get a life?
The choice is yours!
There is a pot of gold waiting at the end of this 36-hour
marathon though, as the developers with the best results
will be rewarded with $100. Ooh, lucky them. I guess you
can’t blame RIM for not giving a bigger reward though, since
they’re leaking money like it's water in a boat made out of
Swiss cheese.
But wait developers, don’t walk away just yet, there’s more!
If a developer makes 2~5 games which pass approval, they
get a PlayBook tablet thrown into the mix. If they make 5~10
games which all pass approval, the developer can even win
a Dev Alpha unit. If they make more, the busy developers
will be repaid heavily with a vast banquet of rare meats and
festive wines, drank from a goblet made of solid gold. Just
kidding, they get a ticket to next year’s Game Developers
Conference. Close enough I guess.
I'll settle for the $100, thanks.....
It seems like RIM are really pushing any developers they
have left to make as many apps as possible. Not a bad
strategy, but the fragrant aroma of desperation is still
difficult to ignore.
Microsoft cooking up a
handheld Xbox?
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/microsoft-cooking-up-a-handheld-
xbox-/17806.html
November 12th, 2012
Now that the Surface tablet and Windows 8 are launched and
ready for consumer scrutiny it’s time for a build up to the
next bit of rumor surrounding the Redmond-based software
giant.
As previously reported by us in a recent article, the next
Microsoft game console may be called the Xbox Next or
something that doesn’t have to do with doubling upon the
previous gen numbering system. There’s probably no doubt
that there will be a next-gen Xbox released to compete with
the Nintendo Wii U and Sony PlayStation 4, but what about
the handheld market?
The PS Vita and the Nintendo DS are currently the big
players in this niche, but if you throw in tablet brands such as
the Nexus 7 and Apple’s new iPad Mini and you have a rather
perplexing ecosystem. Sure, true console/handheld gamers
will probably negate the fact that a tablet can be considered
as a ‘gaming system,’ but one cannot doubt that tablets can
deliver just as much horses as a handheld (maybe not so
much a console, just yet).
That said, there are some rumors suggesting that Microsoft
is considering developing a handheld gaming device that will
use Windows 8 to drive the game software. What do you
suppose Microsoft may call this device? Why not the Xbox
Surface?
Microsoft has garnered enough experience and industry
know-how through its Xbox console hey-day to slap the
Xbox brand onto a portable device to woo gamers. The
Microsoft mobile app store hasn’t matured enough for a
‘portable gaming Windows 8’ tablet to stand on its own,
but with the help of partnering game developers a 'portable
Xbox’ may be a reality sooner than one might think.
(EA's latest NFS: Most Wanted on a mobile platform. Got
an HDMI out? Hook your device up to an HD TV.)

11
While I still favor the personalization of a PC gaming rig, it’s
hard for me to deny the fact that mobile devices are catching
up in terms of functionality and visual eye candy (also, check
out our review of NFS: Most Wanted for the Vita). No single
tablet can replace the gaming rig which I spent countless
hours devising and putting together, but the reality is that we
can achieve almost just as much on a portable device today as
we once did on a full tower PC—be it productivity or gaming.
Many questions are going to be answered within the next few
years as the ‘personal computer’ evolves. For the hackers
and geeks that love the ‘personalization’ part of a PC, let’s
hope that the future of the PC industry will continue to allow
us to customize the hardware the way we want it. For those
that likes to have something that ‘just works’ without any
tinkering and modding there will be plenty of that floating
around.

1
geeks.
Survey shows kids want
laptops, not smartphones or
tablets, for Christmas
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/survey-shows-kids-want-laptops-
not-smartphones-or-tablets-for-christmas/17847.html
November 13th, 2012
More children want laptops for Christmas than smartphones
or tablets, according to a survey by online reward website
Ebates, showing there is still plenty of life left in older forms
of computing.
More children want laptops for Christmas than smartphones
or tablets, according to a survey by online reward website
Ebates, showing there is still plenty of life left in older forms
of computing.
The study was conducted by Harris Interactive for Ebates,
surveying 1,121 kids and teens between 8-18 years in the US.
The findings show that the mobile device market has not
fully devoured the laptop market yet.
When presented with a list of products they would like for
Christmas, 17 percent picked a laptop, followed by 15 percent
for an iPhone 5, 11 percent for clothes, nine percent for a
10-inch tablet, six percent for an Android smartphone, five
percent for an iPad Mini, and four percent for an e-reader.
The most desired gift changes based on gender and age
bracket, however. Boys between 8 and 9 typically wanted a
tablet, while girls of the same age typically wanted an iPhone
5 or clothes. Both boys and girls between 10 and 12 wanted a
laptop. Boys between 13 and 15 generally wanted an iPhone
5, while girls of the same age usually wanted clothes. Both
genders from 16-18 preferred to have a laptop.
“Ebates feels the holidays are a time to focus on children,
so we wanted to hear directly from them what they would
most like as a gift with our 2012 Holiday Wish List,” said
Kevin H. Johnson, CEO of Ebates. “It’s interesting to see how
the older kids want a laptop while the younger kids generally
would prefer a smartphone or tablet.”
Many of the kids also reported being influenced by
celebrities like Justin Bieber, Taylor Swift, One Direction
and Selena Gomez for which gift they would like. Laptop
makers might want to take note of that to keep Santa off of
Apple and Google's payroll.
Image Credit: Jarenwicklund
University of Dundee finds
practical use for Kinect
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/university-of-dundee-finds-practical-
use-for-kinect/17841.html
November 13th, 2012
The university of Dundee in Scotland has found a practical
use for Microsoft Kinect's technology in the form of optical
tweezers, which physicists will find useful.
Up until now, the Microsoft Kinect has had it's primary use
as an input device for dance games on the Xbox 360, but
the University of Dundee has found another use: Optical
tweezers. Optical tweezers are lasers, which can be used to
manipulate microscopic particles. The system that has been
developed by the university is known as HoloHands and
allows physicists to use gestural commands to operate the
lasers.

2
Optical tweezers have been in development since the 1970's,
but have always been difficult to control. The researchers
are hoping that the Kinect will be able to help them solve
these issues, though more development is still required.
HoloHands has undergone basic testing, but latency issues
and misinterpretations of the bodies it manipulates are still
causing problems.
Doctor David McGloin, who is the project leader at the
University of Dundee has stated that a lot of the researchers
working on HoloHands are gamers. He believes that using
the Kinect is a useful and intuitive way to control the
tweezers and could fit a wide range of users.
Google updates Maps with
indoor mapping
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/google-updates-maps-with-indoor-
mapping/17846.html
November 13th, 2012
Google has updated its Maps app for Android devices to
include the interiors of many stores, helping consumers
more easily navigate their way around this holiday season.
Google has updated its Maps app for Android devices to
include the interiors of many stores, helping consumers
more easily navigate their way around this holiday season.
While Apple's map app failed to get basic roads
and landmarks in place, Google is boasting its latest
enhancement for Maps for Android, with indoor floor plans,
fully labelled to help people find food courts, toilets, ATMs,
and pretty much anything else that might be on a shopper's
list.
The maps are not available for all interiors, but popular
shopping locations, includings malls, will be accurately
mapped, Google says. Select other stores will also
be mapped, including Best Buy, Nordstrom, Macy's,
Bloomingdale's, Harrod's, Selfridges, and John Lewis,
among other retailers.
It is not just shoppers who will see the benefit of
indoor maps, however. Many railway stations, museums,
universities, libraries, airports, casinos, hotels, and sports
centres, among others, have already been given the Google
Maps treatment.
In addition to simply knowing where you are and how to
get from A to B, the app can tell users the quickest route
from one store to another, a valuable tool considering the
mad shopping rush that will occur over the next two months.
Individual shops are also mapped by product, so women can
find where the dresses are, while men can find which small
corner the men's clothing is tucked away in.
So far indoor maps are available in Belgium, Canada,
Denmark, France, Japan, Sweden, Switzerland, the UK, and
the US, with Google releasing a full list of available locations.
This list will likely expand rapidly in the future, with Google
calling on owners of stores and facilities to upload a floor
plan to its database.

3
Google Play Music now
available in parts of Europe
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/google-play-music-now-available-in-
parts-of-europe/17837.html
November 13th, 2012
Google's music streaming and cloud storage service is
becoming available in Europe, and has now rolled out in a
number of European countries.
Google Play Music is a mix between iTunes, Spotify and a
cloud storage service and for the past few years, it's been
available exclusively in North America. Now the service is
becoming available in Europe and Google is rolling it out
in a few countries to begin with. The UK, France, Germany,
Italy and Spain can now make use of the service, and more
countries will undoubtedly follow soon.
Play Music has two main features. It is composed of a
music store, similar to the iTunes store, which allows you
to search for and purchase music. In addition, the cloud
storage feature allows you to store your own music library
in the cloud, letting you stream it from any computer
or smartphone with an internet connection. You may, of
course, also download your music to keep it on your
computer, when the internet is not available to you. I've
been using the service for a long time and can attest to how
practical this cloud feature is. I always have my music with
me, no matter where I am or what I am doing. In addition,
when a hard drive failure destroyed my music collection last
year, it was saved in Play Music.
Google Play Music's user interface
It may take some time for Europe to warm up to the
idea of Google's music service, but many will soon see
it's usefulness; especially with the recent announcement
of Warner Music Group's inclusion to Google's worldwide
music catalog, meaning a lot more music will be coming Play
Music's way.
Rockstar's co-founder Dan
Houser reveals spoilers for
GTA V
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/rockstar-s-co-founder-dan-houser-
reveals-spoilers-for-gta-v/17840.html
November 13th, 2012
In a recent interview with The New York Times, Rockstar
Games co-founder Dan Houser reveals a few spoilers for
Grand Theft Auto V's complex story arc.

4
Still here? Then you don't mind knowing more about GTA
V's story straight from the co-founder of Rockstar Games
himself, Dan Houser, in a recent interview from The New
York Times.
Silicon Studio release free
benchmarking software for
iOS/Android
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/silicon-studio-release-free-
benchmarking-software-for-iosandroid/17832.html
November 13th, 2012
Ever wanted to test the power of your cell phone? Silicon
Studio is here to answer your prayers with their new
MOBILE GPUMARK software. But be warned, the guys over
at Silicon Studio really love CAPS LOCK.
GPUMARK is composed of several tests which can evaluate
specific features of your graphics unit. RIGID GEMS tests
shader power and measures the 3D capabilities of your
mobile device. DEAD PARKING tests display of multiple
characters, while NATURAL BONE uses a variety of rich
3D models with highly detailed textures to simulate scenes
from high-end game consoles. Finally, there is a GPU
BENCHMARK option that will test all aspects of your GPU.
SOUNDS GREAT, DOESN'T IT?
Let’s take a closer look at each test.
RIGID GEMS
Light beams are reflected and refracted off sparkly gems and
rings, utilizing complex shader programs, post effects such
as glare and depth of field, and physical simulations such as
collision between gems and rings. Each gem has around 300
~ 600 polygons and each ring has 832 polygons.
DEAD PARKING
This demo tests drawing of multiple 3D characters with large
polygon amounts, generation of real time shadows for the
3D objects, glare and depth of field, and control of character
motion. Each of the 24 zombie characters in the demo
has around 2,000 polygons, and the main character has
approx. 3,300 polygons, while the background uses 13,000
polygons.
NATURAL BONE
This demo pulls no punches and throws in current
generation console level 3D models and high quality
textures. Rest assured, this one will really give your GPU a
decent workout. The character’s polygon count is 12,000,
and the background has a whopping 150,000 polygons.
GPU BENCHMARK
Combines ‘Fill Test’, ‘High Polygon Model’, ‘Many Models’,
‘Per Vertex Lighting & Specular’, ‘Per Pixel Lighting &
Specular & Normalmap’ tests into one big survival challenge.
Will your GPU make it to the end, or just melt under the
pressure? THERE'S ONLY ONE WAY TO FIND OUT!

5
Each demo also comes with a ‘demo mode’ which lets you
play with options such as glare filters, out-focusing, level of
physics, and so on.
If your phone manages to run the tests without dying of
exhaustion first, scores from each demo are uploaded to a
server where you can compare your phone’s power level with
other devices (then brag on every forum in existence).
The benchmarking software currently runs on Android
2.3.3, iOS 5.1 and below, but a Windows version is also in
the works.
SO WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR? GO AND
DOWNLOAD IT NOW!
The New Canon PowerShot
S110
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/the-new-canon-powershot-
s110/17831.html
November 13th, 2012
Canon is known for their outstanding cameras that come in
all manner of styles and user needs, but the new PowerShot
S110 with its 12.1 megapixel capability is one outstanding
buy. Priced around 450 U.S. dollars, the PowerShot S110 has
an image stabilized zoom with a 5X wide-angel optical lens.
This little camera produces some effortlessly sharp images,
while the camera itself looks sharp as well with its ultra slim
compact design.
Canon has began expanding their line of mid range compact
cameras making them useful for the most novice to the most
professional of users. While the cameras can take impressive
professional looking images, its use is easy to understand
and the price tag is not something that will break the bank.
Canon’s lines of PowerShot cameras are all quality cameras,
but one camera that really sticks out is the PowerShot S110.
The camera comes with a 5x wide-angle optical image
stabilized zoom with a super high-sensitivity CMOS sensor
along with their DIGIC 5 image processor. Its 24mm wide-
angle f/2.0 lens can give the user speeds up to 12800, and
even at very early or very late hours in the day. Its lag time
is barely noticed with its super high speed AF, with setting
easily changed with its touch screen LCD interface.
While picking out a camera might come easy to some, this
camera is special with its built in Wi-Fi connectivity that
allows you to instantly upload your images or video on-line.
If you happen to be near a hotspot or a traveling Internet
connectivity, this means you could have your images up on
a social media site in mere seconds as opposed to hours,
or sometimes days, depending where you are. This Wi-
Fi capability also allows a user to connect to any type
of Wi-Fi enabled printer. Most amazingly, the camera
offers GPS snapshot information that can be recorded from
Canon’s online ‘CameraWindow’ application, which can be
downloaded for free onto your smartphone. This enables
the user to tag their images and where they were taken. For
those who use social media sites like Facebook, this is a really
fun tool to have. It also comes with many great features such
as face detection, and a flash range up to 23 feet.
If you are looking for a high quality compact camera under
500 U.S. dollars, the Canon PowerShot S110 might be exactly
what you are looking for. It’s easy to use, takes fabulous
shots and has features that more advanced cameras offer.
Also, it’s WiFi access capability makes it a must have for
those who like being on-line to tag and upload their images.
For more information, check it out on-line or at your
favorite camera retailer.
Epson release 14-inch non-
glare notebook PC (Japan)
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/epson-release-14-inch-non-glare-
notebook-pc-japan-/17834.html
November 13th, 2012
Epson have started taking orders for a new ultra-slim
notebook named the Endeavor NA601E. Today we take a
look at just how slim it really is.
Epson used to be a popular printer and scanner maker, so it’s
always strange to see them release new notebooks. Maybe
they just got sick of getting printer ink all over their hands
whenever they changed a cartridge? Who knows. Anyway,
let’s get down to brass tacks and take a look at what this
puppy can do.
Available from Epson Direct, the Endeavor has a thickness of
22mm and a screen size of 14”. The machine is marketed as
a “business mobile notebook PC” rather than an ‘ultrabook’,
but after converting from Yen (¥59,850, to be precise) its
price more or less reaches ultrabook prices ($755 USD).
The weight of the device is 1.76kg as standard, but its also
possible to order a model without an optical disk drive,
in which case the weight drops to a lighter 1.65kg. The
dimensions of the device are 338x242x22mm.
Its practical use as a business machine really boils down to
its portability and usage time on-the-go. We’ve already seen
that its small and light enough to fit into an attache case, but

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what about the battery life? Well, the default battery gives
a so-so 7 hours, but it is possible to add an extra battery,
boosting the mobile-life of the unit up to 11.6 hours. That’s
more like it, Epson.
Lookin' good, Endeavor. Are you on that new juice diet?
Spec wise, the machine carries a Core i5-3317U (1.70
GHz, with embedded graphics), 2GB memory standard
(upgradable up to 16GB), Intel HM77 Express chipset, DVD-
ROM drive (optional), 1,366x768 dot 14”-wide LCD panel
(non-glare).
On the storage front, buyers may choose from the standard
HDD 250GB, SSD, or hybrid HDD. Those who opt for the
solid state model will be happy to hear that it supports Intel
Rapid Start Technology. The model of SSD has not been
specified but its support for Rapid Start indicates that it’s
probably an Intel device.
Three Ctrl buttons you say? This is madness!
The machine comes with Windows 8 64bit as standard,
but those more comfortable with Windows 7 can choose
Windows 7 Home/Premium/Professional in 32 or 64 bit. It’s
also possible to upgrade to Windows 8 Pro 64bit, if you’re
really feeling wacky.
Additional components include a TPM security chip, and
optional antitheft features. Interface ports include USB
3.0, USB 2.0x2, Gigabit Ethernet, HDMI output, Mini D-
Sub15pin, SD card slot, IEEE 802.11a/b/g/n wireless LAN,
WiMAX, and Bluetooth. Phew!
Epson Direct Store: http://shop.epson.jp/
Product Info: http://shop.epson.jp/pc/na601e/
Sanwa Direct Showcases
Back-Installed Tablet Arm
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/sanwa-direct-showcases-back-
installed-tablet-arm/17829.html
November 13th, 2012
Sanwa Direct presents a new adjustable arm stand that is
installed at the back of your PC monitor, and is designed to
hold tablets.
Sanwa direct had just showcased another adjustable arm
product for their line of monitor holders. They have already
previously released adjustable arm products for quite some
time, but this is the first time that they had developed
one that is specifically used for tablets. The new product is
designated as the 100-MR067, and it is aimed to be used
on tablets that are 7 to 12 inch in size. It is designed to be
installed at the back, for the attached tablet to be used as an
auxiliary unit for your PC setup.
The back mounting standard of the 100-MR067 allows a
good portion of the arm itself to be hidden behind a ordinary
LCD monitor, which makes for added points in its overall
ergonomic standard. It saves you table space, and is not
rough to look at. The tablet holder itself has 5 variable
stoppers/clips and is tipped with a cushion material, so
that it both stays in place firmly and gets protected from
scratches and other minor damage. The arm has three joints,
all of which can be efficiently used to change the position
of the tablet while it is attached. The tablet tray is made of
ABS plastic, and the arm is made of steel and aluminum.
The maximum length of the arm is 462.8mm, and overall it
weighs 0.98kg.
Although it has been generally advertised to be able to hold
7 to 12 inch screen tablets, it actually has specific tablet
dimension limits. The length of the tablet to be mounted
should be from 191 to 272mm, width from 110 to 190mm and
thickness from 5 to 18mm.
The tablet arm units are now currently available for limited
time purchase at several online stores (Rakuten Online

7
Shop, Yahoo Shopping (JP), Amazon Marketplace (JP) for a
price of 6480 yen (82 USD).
Source: MyNavi (JP)
Update: Blizzard sued
in class action lawsuit -
Blizzard's response
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/update-blizzard-sued-in-class-
action-lawsuit--blizzard-s-response/17835.html
November 13th, 2012
Yesterday, we published an article concerning a class action
lawsuit against Blizzard for forcing the sale of security
solutions to it's customers. Blizzard has responded to our
request for a comment, and so we're publishing an update.
Yesterday, we published an article about the recent
class action lawsuit against Blizzard Entertainment. The
lawsuit concerns security solutions for their games, which
involves charging customers for protecting their personal
information and for not taking proper steps towards alerting
their players when security breaches had compromised the
personal data. We reached out to Blizzard for a comment,
and they've responded.
Blizzard is adamant that the lawsuit is baseless, as well
as filled with false information. They state that the do
indeed take the security of their users seriously, and that
they are "fully committed to defending [their] network
infrastructure."
The Battle.net logo
Blizzard is accused of failing to alert their users of the
August 2012 security breach or take any appropriate steps
against it. Blizzard denies any wrong-doing. Their response
to us states that they took action and provided their players
with information on what Blizzard was doing to correct
the situation, as well as how the breach affected the end
user. Blizzard points out that it explained how no sensitive
information, such as names or credit card numbers, had
been obtained. They refer to their FAQ and a letter to their
users, and indeed, having looked through them, they seem
to support Blizzard's claim.
The lawsuit also claims that Blizzard is charging their players
for security solutions, necessitating that customers purchase
the battle.net authenticator, instead of providing security to
the user accounts outright. Blizzard's response states that
this charge centers around a basic misunderstanding of
what the authenticator does. They explain that the battle.net
authenticator is an added protection against threats from
outside of Blizzard's network infrastructure. Using the
authenticator involves using a random code as an extra
security step for logging into your account. It's purpose is to
ensure that it is really you who are logging in, and not simply
a person who has stolen your credentials through external
means, such as if you've used the same credentials on
another website which was compromised. This has nothing
to do with the internal security at Blizzard and is completely
optional, though Blizzard still recommends it.
The Battle.net Authenticator
The letter ends with Blizzard remarking that they've received
plenty of support for their security solutions and thanks the
player community for their support during the lawsuit.
You can read their full email response to us on the next page
Blizzard announces release
date for StarCraft II: Heart of
the Swarm
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/blizzard-announces-release-date-for-
starcraft-ii-heart-of-the-swarm/17845.html
November 13th, 2012
Blizzard has announced that the highly-anticipated first
expansion for StarCraft II, entitled Heart of the Swarm, will
launch in March of next year, with pre-orders now open.
Blizzard has announced that the highly-anticipated first
expansion for StarCraft II, entitled Heart of the Swarm, will
launch in March of next year, with pre-orders now open.
The game will zerg-rush onto the computers of players on 12
March, 2013, taking the story from the perspective of Sarah
Kerrigan, Queen of Blades, the leader of the Zerg race. There
will be a single-player campaign with 20 missions, where
Kerrigan features and can grow more powerful, with new
abilities and new Zerg strains to use to fight dictator Arcturus
Mengsk.
Multiplayer is receiving some attention with new units
like the Terran Hellbats, Zerg Swarm Hosts, and Protoss
Tempests, updates to old units, and new features like
group and clan systems, unranked matchmaking, global
play, additional stat tracking, an improved user interface

8
and physics system, multiplayer replay, and a new levelling
system to provide more customisation for players.
Heart of the Swarm can be pre-ordered now, with three
editions available: the standard edition download, with just
the game itself; a Digital Deluxe Edition with the game, a
Torrasque skin, three unique portraits and decals, a World
of Warcraft Baneling pet, and blade wings and a banner sigil
for Diablo 3, showcasing Blizzard’s ability to entice players of
its other games to part with cash; and finally the Collector's
Edition, with all of the above, an art book, soundtrack CD,
behind-the-scenes DVD, and mousepad.
The expansion will be available for PC and Mac and will sell
for $39.99 for the basic edition, $59.99 for the Digital Deluxe
Edition, and $79.99 for the Collector's Edition. Players can
upgrade from the standard edition to the Digital Deluxe
Edition at any time for $20.
AT&T to launch Android-
powered Samsung Galaxy
Camera on November 16
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/at-t-to-launch-android-powered-
samsung-galaxy-camera-on-november-16/17828.html
November 13th, 2012
Samsung and AT&T will launch a high-end Android-based
Galaxy camera on November 16 for US consumption. Will
this camera be a hit or a novelty item?
The camera, although having already been launched in
various locales worldwide, is finally coming to the US with a
pretty nice price tag. Originally tagged for retail as a $499
purchase, the price seems to have dropped to $399 for US
consumers—with a catch, that is. Buyers will be able to
purchase the Android-powered Galaxy camera for $399 if
they decide to also purchase a Samsung Galaxy Smartphone
as well.
True to the Android meme, the Camera will sport a 4.8-inch
Super Clear HD LCD screen, a 1.4GHz quad-core CPU, Wi-
Fi, 3G and 4G support (varies on model), Wi-Fi Direct, and a
microSD. The camera itself boasts a 16MP sensor, 21X zoom,
and a wide variety of built-in photo editing software.
Since the camera is capable of 3G and 4G connectivity, you’ll
be able to purchase AT&T’s data services. The pricings of the
various service includes: Mobile Share which allows you to
share between 1GB-20GB for $10, DataConnect 250MB for
$15, DataConnect 3GB for $30, and DataConnect 5GB for
$50.
Does the Galaxy Camera sound like a worthwhile buy? Or is
it just a novelty item that will get phased out sooner or later?
Comments below!
John McAfee Wanted for
Murder in Belize
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/john-mcafee-wanted-for-murder-in-
belize/17827.html
November 13th, 2012
According to reports, John McAfee, the founder and
namesake of the McAfee antivirus software company, is

9
wanted for murder in Belize, on the north-eastern coast of
Central America.
According to reports, John McAfee, the founder and
namesake of the McAfee antivirus software company, is
wanted for murder in Belize, on the north-eastern coast of
Central America.
According to Gizmodo, the antivirus pioneer is a prime
suspect in the murder of American expatriate Gregory Faull,
who was shot in his home on Saturday night. Faull, a builder,
had previously filed a formal complaint against McAfee
for firing off guns and exhibiting "roguish behaviour."
Apparently the two men had had a disagreement about dogs
sometime before Faull was shot.
Wanted for murder: John McAfee. Photo: Youtube
A police statement obtained by Gizmodo notes that police
haven't established a motive yet, but are pursuing several
leads, one of which appears to be McAfee.
McAfee founded the company that bears his name in the
late 90s and went on to sell it to Intel for $US7.7 billion in
2010. Since then, McAfee has turned his attention to a new
company he co-founded called Quorumex, which is based in
Belize and researches antibiotics.
McAfee's behaviour has been described as "erratic" in recent
years. He has experimented with hallucinogenic drugs and
discussed his experiences in chat rooms.
Earlier this year, McAfee was arrested in Belize for
possessing illegal firearms, which he described at the time
as being a "bogus charge." He also accused police of having
killed his dog during the raid on his house.
This is not the first time a software company founder has
been accused of murder. In 2008 Hans Reiser, the Linux
programmer behind the ReiserFS filesystem, was convicted
of killing his wife.

1
geeks.
Rightware launches
Browsermark 2.0, benchmark
tool for multiplatform web
browsers
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/rightware-launches-
browsermark-2.0-benchmark-tool-for-multiplatform-web-
browsers/17870.html
November 14th, 2012
With a four minute test conducted by Rightware's
new Browsermark 2.0 benchmark, users can now better
determine the efficiency of their browser, and compare it to
statistics gathered from a library of other tests.
With a four minute test conducted by the new Browsermark
2.0 benchmark tool by Rightware, Internet users can now
determine the performance of their browser based on a wide
range of strenuous tests, and a library of statistics with which
to compare the results.
Browsermark 2.0 is free to use, and works across a variety
of hardware and software platforms. This includes desktop
computers, laptops, tablets, and even smartphones. After
performing a four minute series of tests to determine
performance of browser functionality and conformance
to modern standards/protocol, Browsermark displays the
results and compares them to an accumulated library of
statistics.
Currently, and likely to few netizen's surprise, Google
chrome largely takes the lead in performance across desktop
and mobile platforms tested.
“We are all frustrated with the performance of our browser
based on the device we are web browsing on, to the
point that we continue to ask ‘Am I expecting too much
from my tablet?’” said Tero Sarkkinen, CEO of Rightware.
“Browsermark answers that question for you. This simple to
run test will help you decide which browser gives the best
web experience for your device. In addition to measuring
your own device, consumers can check out the latest results
in our Power Board online database. We believe these two
technologies will help to improve the user experience on
every device.”

2
With the rise of “post-PC” computing, and feature rich web
applications for business and personal use, web browsers
have a dominant place in the average computer user's digital
life. This makes the functionality of Rightware's utility quite
useful, in allowing users to determine the most efficient
browser for their purposes.
To that end, Browsermark performs a series of detailed tests
for a variety of categories. This includes basic functionality,
such as loading pages and resizing windows, to more
complicated features typical of modern browsers, such
as WebGL, Canvas, HTML5, and CSS3/3D. These latter
categories also make the benchmark particularly useful for
web gamers, playing any of the variety of rich MMO's and
various other games available to browsers.
Skype patches password
reset vulnerability
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/skype-patches-password-reset-
vulnerability/17871.html
November 14th, 2012
Skype has fixed a vulnerability in its Voice-over-IP (VoIP)
service that allowed hackers to take over accounts using the
password reset feature.
Skype has fixed a vulnerability in its Voice-over-IP (VoIP)
service that allowed hackers to take over accounts using the
password reset feature.
Leonas Sendrauskas, an engineer at Skype, said that the
company was notified of the problem earlier today. It
temporarily suspended the password reset while it made an
update to fix the security hole.
However, the problem has existed for months, with one
Russian website, Xeksec, featuring a guide on how to exploit
the vulnerability. When the bug finally gained notoriety on
Reddit Skype took notice.
Skype for Windows 8
All a hacker had to do was create a new Skype account with
the email address of an existing member. A password reset
request with the original Skype user's username would then
result in the hacker being able to access the reset token
directly through the Skype app using the newly-created
account.
The hacker would then be able to see the user's details and
spend any credit the user had on their account. Credit card
details are also stored, though only the last four letters are
shown, but a hacker can avail of the automatic top-up option
for when credit is low, potentially leaving a hacked user with
a hefty bill.
Skype said it is contacting anyone affected by the
vulnerability to assist them in regaining access to their
accounts. Presumably it will refund any credit that is
fraudulently spent, given the problem was not user security
but a gaping hole in Skype's own defences.
With Microsoft planning to ditch Windows Live Messenger
for Skype, monumental security failings like this one won't
make that transition any easier.
Google reveals government
requests for user data on the
rise
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/google-reveals-government-
requests-for-user-data-on-the-rise/17869.html
November 14th, 2012
Google has released its latest transparency report, revealing
that government surveillance is on the increase, with the
United States making the most requests by far for data on
users.
Google has released its latest transparency report, revealing
that government surveillance is on the increase, with the
United States making the most requests by far for data on
users.
During the first six months of this year, the latest figures
to be added to Google's tally, the search giant received
20,938 requests for user data from governments throughout
the world, with those requests centring on 34,614 Google
accounts.
Of those, close to 40 percent came from the United States,
which made a whopping 7,969 requests, relating to 16,281
accounts. 90 percent of these were fully or partially complied
with.

3
The next highest country is India with 2,319 requests relating
to 3,467 accounts. 64 percent of these were complied with in
some form. The UK, France, Germany and Brazil all came in
with around 1,500 requests, with between 39 percent and 76
percent of them being complied with.
Some countries like Hungary, Turkey and Russia made
dozens of requests, but Google refused to comply with any
of them. Compliance with the US is by far the strongest,
followed by Japan at 86 percent, then Denmark at 78
percent.
Content removal requests also increased dramatically.
Google said that from 2009, the year it started releasing
these reports, to 2011, such requests from governments were
“largely flat,” hovering around the 1,000 mark, but in the
first half of this year it received 1,791 requests to take down
content, relating to 17,746 pieces of content on the web.
The vast majority of these were for defamation, but
privacy and security also made up a huge chunk. There
were relatively low amounts of requests for removal of
government criticism, adult content, hate speech, and
copyrighted material.
Google also commended fellow technology companies
Dropbox, LinkedIn, Sonic.net and Twitter for jumping on
the transparency report bandwagon in the last year.
Image Credit: Google
Shenzhen based Ginwave's
new Gnote2 gives Samsung a
run for their money
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/shenzhen-based-ginwave-s-new-
gnote2-gives-samsung-a-run-for-their-money/17830.html
November 14th, 2012
The successor to Ginwave's popular Gnote smart phone
came out this month. It offers users a 5.3 inch screen that
they can write on with an attached stylus, along with other
industry-standard bells and whistles, all at less than half the
price of a Galaxy Note 2.
The Gnote2 is part of a general trend toward bigger screens.
It offers users a screen resolution of 960X540 to enjoy
streaming and gaming powered by a dual-core ARM cortex-
A9 processor. It comes with an 8 megapixel rear and a
2 megapixel front camera one would expect on a device
like this one. It runs Android 4.0, and allows for 32GB of
expandable memory via microSD. The added stylus should
significantly increase the device's appeal to less tech-savvy
users who are more comfortable operating the device with a
peripheral.
If you're saying to yourself that the Gnote2 is basically just a
slightly downgraded Samsung Galaxy Note 2 then you have
a point. Its processor is slower than the Note 2's 1.6GHz
quad-core. In fact that was the main complaint it recieved

4
from early reviewers in China. The Gnote2's screen is also
0.2 inches smaller than the Galaxy Note 2's, and also slightly
thicker and heavier. Why should you care about it at all?
Selling for 2299 Yuan ($369) in China, the Gnote2 costs 60%
less than the price of a Galaxy Note 2. O2 and Vodafone
customers in the UK are getting it for free with their plans.
If the device makes it into the US market, it may be a very
attractive price if the pricing model remains consistent. Even
smart phone users who aren't interested in cheaper, lower-
spec versions of the most popular phones should know that
their existence has an important effect of pushing down
prices across the board. Phones like the Gnote 2 fill an
important gap in the market.
New GRIN technology could
create better artificial lenses
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/new-grin-technology-could-create-
better-artificial-lenses/17866.html
November 14th, 2012
A new optical technology will mean better artificial lenses for
the human eye; a closer resemblance to the eye's natural lens
will remove distortions which were previously unavoidable
Artificial eye lenses have never been a perfect replacement
for the natural ones we're born with. One reason for this is
that artificial lenses have a single refractive index, while the
natural lens has a range of different indices. The refractive
index is the property in a material which determines the
way light travels through it; specifically how the angle of
incoming light changes as it passes from one material to
another. The natural lens has several different refractive
indices, and the human eye is optimized for this. Artificial
lenses with one refractive index, such as those used in
cataracts surgery, thus often cause visual distortions.
Diagram over how light is refracted through a natural lens
Case Western University, the Rose-Hulman Institute of
Technology, the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory, and a
company called PolymerPlus have been working on creating
a new lens capable of having several refractive indices, and
thus being able to serve as a more perfect replacement for the
human one. The technology they've created is called GRIN,
or Gradient Refractive Index Optics.
The group has used GRIN to create a new lens, which
is composed of layers upon layers of nano-scale polymer
films. Each layer has slightly different optical properties, and
when combined on top of each other, the result is a lens
through which light is incrementally bent at different angles
depending on where it strikes the lens. Michael Ponting,
president of PolymerPlus, explains: “It’s a very efficient
means of controlling the pathway of light without relying on
complicated optics,"
A GRIN lens
The most obvious application for the technology is medical,
but in the future the technology could be more widespread.
As Ponting stated, the technology allows for very efficient
means of controlling light; meaning it could one day have
consumer or military applications in optical systems by
reducing the number of components needed.
Papa John's Pizza sued for
$250 million over SMS spam
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/papa-john-s-pizza-sued-for-250-
million-over-sms-spam/17868.html
November 14th, 2012
After an SMS ad campaign sent thousands of text messages
to customers, even those who hadn't opted in for adverts,
Papa John's pizza is now being sued for $250 million.
In 2010, Papa John's Pizza hired a mass text messaging
service, OnTime4U to send advertisements to it's customers.
Now, this service has earned them a $250 million class
action lawsuit. Erin Chutich, one of the plaintiffs in the case,
said in a statement that "Papa John's never asked permission
to send me text message advertisements." Indeed, even
when customers complained, the messages kept coming.

5
The lawsuit was certified by U.S. District Court Judge John
C. Coughenour on November 9 in Seattle, Wa. If successful,
it will lead to a big fine for Papa John's, according to the
Telephone Consumer Protection Act. This act states that it is
illegal to send advertisements to anyone who hasn't opted in
to receive that information. The lawsuit requests $500 worth
of damages for each sent text message. The lawsuit is also
claiming that, in total, 500,000 messages have been sent.
Judge John C. Coughenour
Papa John's has stated that it acted within the extent of the
law, since it was not them, but a third party vendor, who
sent the messages. Personally, this seems like a very weak
defense, but Papa John's is nevertheless moving to appeal
the certification given by Judge Coughenour.
Jellyfsh-like device can
snatch cancer cells from the
bloodstream
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/jellyfsh-like-device-can-snatch-
cancer-cells-from-the-bloodstream/17867.html
November 14th, 2012
A new technology utilizing microfluidic biochips mimics
how jellyfish catch food, in order to grab cancerous proteins
from the blood stream.
It's been about a year since a collaboration between three
universities created what is known as a microfluidic chip;
essentially a laboratory on a glass biochip which with no
electricity can separate blood plasma from blood cells, and
then analyze the blood in a variety of sensors. Now, the same
technology has been used to find a possible means of treating
cancer.
Boston's Brigham and Women's Hospital has created a
microfluidic chip where a sample of blood flows through a
channel, and long strands of DNA have been dangled into
this stream. The DNA strands grab onto cancerous proteins
which flow past, behaving in the exact same way as jellyfish
behave when they grab food in the ocean. The chip can even
be made to release the proteins later for further study. Thus,
the chip can be used both therapeutically and diagnostically.
It's even possible to use the technology to isolate fetal cells,
and most likely there will be other sues in the future as well.
At this point, the next step for the technology is human
testing, meaning it's been quite far into the development
stage already.
Tesla wins Motor Trend Car
of the Year with all electric
Model S
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/tesla-wins-motor-trend-car-of-the-
year-with-all-electric-model-s/17855.html
November 14th, 2012
Motor Trend has made the unanimous decision on Monday,
November 12th in making the Tesla Model S to be the 2013
Car of the Year. The Model S will be Tesla’s first sedan and
is all electric.
The Model S will be Tesla’s first sedan that is all electric and
the first all electric built and marketed from the ground up
available to a mass market.
Most people drool when they see a Tesla roadster pass them
on the highway but the sporty looking all electric sport cars

6
are priced for those in the more affluent market. Many
critics said the idea of a new start up all electric car company
was next to impossible to achieve but to the amazement of
many Tesla kept going, and they have now expanded their
fleet offering cars that are truly modestly priced.
The latest model from Tesla is being called the Model S, and
it was awarded by Motor Trend magazine as the 2013 Car
of the Year. Motor Trend states that this is the first time in
their history that the decision was made unanimous by the
judges.
Tesla Motors co-founder and CEO stated to the press,
“Our aspiration with the Model S was to show that an
electric car truly can be better than any gasoline car,
which is a critical step towards the widespread adoption
of sustainable transport…Nothing illustrates this more
clearly than winning Motor Trend’s Car of the Year
by unanimous decision against a field of exceptional
competitors.”
Many will agree with Motor Trend’s decision on this
new Tesla sedan, and this Tesla sedan just an absolutely
phenomenal car of the future. The car comes with an
impressive 300-mile range (85kWh model) and can reach
60MPH in less than 4 seconds! The car is also the world’s
first high end all electric sedan designed from the ground up
that is available to a mass market. It is a solid car, and it has
a near perfect weight distribution along with a low center of
gravity making it agile and responsive on the road with its
19” aluminum wheels. Of course the interior console is just
fantastic with a full 17” in-dash touch screen pad available
with an Internet connection and satellite radio along with a
GPS function.
The main powers available for the car are three options and
all with lithium ion batteries. They offer 40kWh, 60 and
85kWh of power. The 85kWh offers the driver a near 300-
mile range but adds a lot ot the final cost of the vehicle.
Tesla claims that since a regular engine is absent in their
sedan, they offer more cargo space with two trunk areas,
which is very nice. The exact specs on this all-electric sedan
are impressive. The legroom is 42.7/35.4” and a seating
capacity for 5 grown adults and a total cargo area is a
roomy 31.6 cubic feet. The body on this car is made of a
special aluminum alloy that is super strong with boron steel
reinforced regions on the frame.
If you are truly interested in owning a Tesla model S, you
need to put down a 5 thousand U.S. dollar reserve payment.
The cost of the car starts out just under 50,000.00 U.S.
dollars and it qualifies for the U.S. Federal tax credit for
driving a car with zero emissions. For more information
on reserving your very own Tesla you can check out their
website at www.teslamotors.com
Black Ops II for PC may
contain Mass Effect 2
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/black-ops-ii-for-pc-may-contain-
mass-effect-2/17865.html
November 14th, 2012
If you bought Black Ops II retail for PC, you may end up with
your second disc filled with Mass Effect 2 code.
Gamers who bought Black Ops II for their PCs may be in for
a nasty surprise when they try to insert the game's second
disc. Due to a manufacturing error, it seems the retail version
of the game has gotten mixed up with Mass Effect 2, and
some of the copies of the game contain code from Bioware's
space opera. This doesn't effect all copies of the game (I got
away unscathed), but reports are piling up from all over the
internet.
No Black Ops for you, PC gamer.
Since the two game franchises are published by different
companies; Electronic Arts for Mass Effect and Activision
for Call of Duty, it's strange to find the games mixed up. The
most likely explanation is that both companies use the same
pressing plant for manufacturing their game discs, and that
this is where the mix-up occurred. Neither Activision nor
EA has as of yet come out with a statement regarding the
incident.
If you've received a faulty disc, there's no need to fret as
long as you have a decent internet connection, of course.
The game launches via steam, and if you can't install via the
disc, you can simply download it instead, even if it may cause
some frustration.
Motorola unveils wearable
computer
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/motorola-unveils-wearable-
computer/17864.html
November 14th, 2012
Motorola is has revealed a new computer that will soon go on
sale, which is worn on the head like a helmet, and operated
via voice commands.
Motorola has created a new computer which is worn on
the head like a helmet. The Motorola HC1 as it is called,

7
is attached with a cradle that fixes the computer to the
wearers head. The computer itself curls around their neck.
A small screen protrudes on the left side of the device and
is positioned so the user can see it when glancing slightly
down. Meanwhile, the right side of the device is occupied by
a camera.
Controlling the computer is predominantly done via voice
commands, which will allow the user to do several tasks,
including accessing files and email, as well as viewing and
zooming with the camera. It will also feature Bluetooth and
wi-fi connectivity.
It's bulky, but Motorola's wearable computer is a very
practical device
The main use for the HC1 will be in professions where on
the fly information is vital, and where it is important to have
your hands free. Paul Reed, product manager for mobile
computing at Motorola explains further: "If you imagine
somebody up, say, a telegraph pole at the very top, needing
to rewire something, they don't really want to be fiddling
with a laptop,". Other professions which may find use for
the computer are warehouse workers who need to be aware
of storage and stocking information; or paramedics, who
could access medical records and stream video of the patient
back to the hospital. A Nottingham based company is already
developing an application for the device intended for use by
paramedics.
Motorola is estimating the retail price of the HC1 to be
around $3000-4000. With it's rather bulky design and
expensive price tag, it's not exactly a consumer product.
You'd be better off waiting for Google's take on the concept
"Project Glass" instead. However, the Motorola HC1 is
notable because it is not a prototype, as with many similar
projects. It's due to go on sale in the new year.
John McAfee In Hiding From
Belize Police
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/john-mcafee-in-hiding-from-belize-
police/17853.html
November 14th, 2012
Millionaire software developer John McAfee is currently in
hiding from the police in the country of Belize. He is wanted
in questioning concerning the shooting and murder of a fifty-
two year old man by the name Gregory Viant Faull.
Faull was a neighbor of McAfee whose body was found on
Sunday, November 11th lying dead in his home with a bullet
wound to the head. McAfee is currently not considered a
suspect in the murder of Faull but he is being called a ‘person
of interest’ according to numerous on-line reports.
If the name John McAfee seems familiar, you may not have
to look any further than the computer you are reading this
story from. McAfee was a pioneer in developing software
to combat virus attacks with his company aptly named,
McAfee. The 67-year-old McAfee is currently in Belize and
has been considered to be in hiding from law enforcement
there. A Wired magazine report stated that McAfee had
nothing to do with the murder of Faull and was worried that
the police may kill him if he is found. Numerous on-line
reports have also stated that the Belize police are asking that
he come in and just talk without any fear of harm.
The 67-year-old Faull is being reported as a retired
construction magnate from the U.S. state of Florida. His
housekeeper found him inside his Belize Island home and
purported to be lying on the floor face up in a large pool of
blood. He had a single bullet wound to the head. McAfee
told Wired magazine that he felt maybe the shooter mistook
the home to be his and possibly killed the wrong man.
John McAfee is a U.K born, naturalized U.S. citizen. He
made his fortune by starting up a software company in
the 1980s that became the leader in anti-virus for personal
computers. In 2008 McAfee moved to Belize to invest in a
new company that makes pharmaceuticals. His net worth
was once over 100 million dollars but it has been rumored
that he lost a considerable amount of his fortune when the
world economy collapsed.
McAfee has been accused by the Belize government of
starting up some sort of quasi-military force by surrounding
himself with armed bodyguards, and he has accused the
Belize government of killing his pets and stealing his
passport and other personal items.
Panasonic to lay off 10,000
employees in attempt to
restore profitability
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/panasonic-to-lay-off-10-000-
employees-in-attempt-to-restore-profitability/17862.html
November 14th, 2012
During the last fiscal year, Panasonic already let go of
36,000 workers. During an interview with Panasonic’s CFO
Hideaki Kawai, he announced that another 10,000 unlucky

8
employees of the group will be sent on their way before the
end of March 2013.
Panasonic have continued to bled money amongst stiff
competition from both China and Korea, who specialize in
undercutting competition with their price war strategies.
This combined with the murky economic state has been
more than a small burden on the Japanese electronics
maker.
Hideaki Kawai let on that 1/5 of the 88 business departments
which the group oversees are unprofitable, and only 50%
of the company are able to achieve the expected operating
profit of at least 5% per annum. Starting from next year,
Panasonic plan on selling off some of their non-core
businesses, and directly close those which have no selling
value.
The CFO explained how the current plans for the group was
to reach a minimum of 200 billion Yen (approx. 2.52 billion
USD) by the end of the fiscal year ending in March 2014.
In the fiscal year of 2011, Panasonic’s losses amounted to
10 billion USD, the largest loss in history for the company.
However with some amount of effort, Panasonic was able to
turn this around and had a profitable 1st
quarter of this year,
making net profits of 12,81 billion Yen.
However, the future is bleak for the electronics group
as Panasonic’s profit estimate released last month shows
expected losses of 10 billion dollars by the end of the current
fiscal year in March 2013. By this fated date, Mr. Kawai plans
on selling off 110 billion Yen’s worth of property, consisting
of mainly land and real estate.
Industry analysts claim that this selling off of assets will
provide Panasonic with the liquidity it requires to reshuffle
its organization’s deck in the coming months.
Z.O.E Reboot Project: Jehuty
attacks Odaiba (Japan)
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/z.o.e-reboot-project-jehuty-attacks-
odaiba-japan-/17844.html
November 14th, 2012
To celebrate the release of “Zone of the Enders
HD Edition” on PS3 and Xbox360 (released October 25),
Konami has been making a splash in Tokyo.
Taiwan's ecommerce growth
might plateau
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/taiwan-s-ecommerce-growth-might-
plateau/17849.html
November 14th, 2012
Taiwan's annual ecommerce growth has hovered around
15% for several years. Economic expert, Wang Yizhi,
suggests some ways to get those numbers up.
Wang Yizhi, a senior industry analyst and group leader
for the Institute of Information Industry, says that Taiwan
has seen a 17.4% increase in commerce since from last
year's numbers. Taiwan's ecommerce industry is currently
valued at 660 billion yuan, roughly 1 billion USD. Wang
predicts that ecommerce will grow because more consumers
are starting to buy online, more retail businesses are using
ecommerce, and the government is offering more support
for online business. This year, the B2C (Business to
Consumer) ecommerce amounted to 385.2 billion yuan,
while C2C (Consumer to Consumer) ecommerce accounted
about 275 billion yuan.
However, if Taiwan's ecommerce industry makes no
significant changes in the near future, its value may plateau.
For the past few years, the industry has maintained a
steady growth rate of around 15% per year. If Taiwanese
ecommerce can establish a firm foothold in mainland China,
its value would rise exponentially. Nonetheless, Taiwan can
expect the value of ecommerce to rise to 764.5 billion yuan
next year.
As of now, much of Taiwan's ecommerce targets a
predominantly female consumer base with clothing,
accessories, beauty products, and specialty food. Wang
points out that an untapped consumer group, the 30 to 39
year-old office workers, can be targeted for further business
growth.
Some consumers are worried about shopping online, voicing
concerns such as Internet instability, limited quality of
goods, poor safety regulations, and security of online
payments. Businesses can improve upon those issues to
bring in new customers.
Ubuntu for Android video
teases smartphone users
even more
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/ubuntu-for-android-video-teases-
smartphone-users-even-more/17852.html
November 14th, 2012
The folks over at Ubuntu want you ‘to live a simpler life.’
How? By turning your Android smartphone into a full-
fledged PC, and thereby eliminating the need to 'live a double
life.'
The Ubuntu for Android ad has been plastered all over the
Ubuntu official website for a long time, but up until now
there still hasn’t been a public release of the desktop OS for
our Android smartphones. The concept is pretty simple; you
install Ubuntu to run alongside your Android OS, and when
you hook your phone to a docking station the phone will
switch into Ubuntu desktop mode. Sounds freakishly cool
right? But again, the Ubuntu-Android mash up is still not
available for public consumption as of yet.
As if the dedicated ‘Ubuntu for Android’ section of the
website was not enough to tease us, Ubuntu recently posted

9
a video explaining all the great things you can do with your
Android smartphone if you installed Ubuntu on it. Here…
the video is self-explanatory:
Google deploying fiber optic
Internet in Kansas Cities
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/google-deploying-fiber-optic-
internet-in-kansas-cities/17851.html
November 14th, 2012
This week, residents in the two Kansas cities will be able to
arrange for installation of Google's new 1 Gbps fiber optic
internet service.
Residents of the two Kansas cities are now among the first
to experience Google's fairly revolutionary new Internet
service. The fiber optic service, first announced in 2010,
will be among the fastest available anywhere in the United
States, and delivers 1 Gbps Internet service – a speed 100
times faster than that of an average American's Internet
connection.
This week, it will become possible for residents to arrange
for installations of this new connection into their homes, so
they can access content at the speed of light – literally, in a
sense. The fiber optic cables that are being used in Google's
new service carry data signals by light beams transmitted
through a glass thread inside the cables. These light beams
are ideal for data, since they can deliver vastly superior
transfer speeds, orders of magnitude greater than that of the
every day Joe.
For an idea of how fast this kind of Internet is, at a speed of
1 Gbps, it's theoretically possible to zip a four gigabyte HD
movie to a connected computer in about thirty seconds.
Of course, this is in perfectly ideal conditions. And, needless
to say, there probably aren't a lot of servers on the web ready
to capacitate a steady a lot of traffic at those rates.
But now that the Google monster is adding ISP to its already
towering resume of services, the average netizen can be sure
that an Internet revolution won't be far behind.
Tomb Raider Collector's
Edition announced
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/tomb-raider-collector-s-edition-
announced/17843.html
November 14th, 2012
Square Enix reveals the Collector's Edition for their new
re-imagining of Lara Croft's adventures in Tomb Raider,
coming soon to Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3.
The new upcoming Tomb Raider game completely
revitalizes the franchise, giving a realistic and gritty new
adventure for gamers to explore and re-imagining the iconic
femme fatale Lara Croft. Spearheded by gaming giant Square
Enix and developed by Crystal Dynamics, Tomb Raider looks
to be one of the most dynamically impressive releases of
2013.
The newly announced Tomb Raider Collector's Edition
features a wide array of additional goodies for fans of
the series and is available in limited quantities for release
alongside the game on March 5, 2013.
• The Collector's Edition features a replica survival tin
recovered from the expedition ship "Endurance" as
well as the following:
• An exclusive 8-inch Lara Craft figurine from Play Arts
-KAI- with an alternate set of three hands, bow and
arrow, shotgun, handgun, and an ice axe.
• A double-sided 15" x 19" island map and poster,
allowing gamers to discover and keep track of their
travels and adventures throughout the island of
Yamatai.
• An exclusive 5" x 7" Lara Craft lithographic print with
matte frame designed by Crystal Dynamic's senior
art director Brian Horton and concept artist Brenoch
Adams.
• Three iron-on badges used on the game's experience
icons: "Animal Instincts," the "Climbing Axe" and "Fire
Arrow".
• The official 10 track Tomb Raider Original Soundtrack
"Survivalist Cut" CD featuring over 60 minutes of
music from the game.
• Weapons Pack DLC, including a variety of weapons
to help Lara survive against Yamatai's dangerous
inhabitants.
The Tomb Raider Collector's Edition will be available in
limited quantities for $99.99 and will release alongside the
game on March 5, 2013 for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. For
more information on Tomb Raider and how to reserve your
own pre-order, please visit the game's official website.
New Windows 8-optimized
Wireless Keyboard by Elecom
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/new-windows-8-optimized-wireless-
keyboard-by-elecom/17848.html

10
November 14th, 2012
The TK-FDP055 is a wireless keyboard developed recently
by Elecom. It features a special number pad that can be used
as a touch pad by using specific finger gestures.
Now here's a treat for those who still want to fully optimize
touch functionality in Windows 8 without always having
to reach for your screen while typing. Elecom has just
presented their new wireless keyboard, the TL-FDP055,
which is designed to be optimized for various Windows 8-
exclusive control functions.
The most noticeable feature on the keyboard, as you can see
in the image, is its numpad, which is actually also designed
as a touch pad. While the buttons work as they would in
an ordinary numpad, it can also be used to control a screen
mouse pointer, or to scroll and click things within Windows
8's graphical interface. In addition, the touch pad can also
receive other special commands based on specific finger
gestures. Here are the some of the things that you can do to
the numpad of the TL-FDP055:
• Swipe leftwards to the center to call up the Charm Bar
menu
• Swipe rightwards to the center switch active apps
• Swipe downwards to the center to open the apps bar
• Pinch to zoom in/out
• Swipe sideways using three fingers to flip between
webpages
• Swipe upwards from the center with three fingers to
open the Computer menu
Unlike the some other Windows 8 optimized keyboards
though, the configuration for its input "system" is actually
more of a typical desktop-use wireless keyboard than an
all-rounder mobile keyboard. It does not send input via
Bluetooth, but instead it uses a wireless receiver that is
plugged into the main unit's full USB port. This can be a
hassle to some mobile Windows 8 units, but is thankfully not
a problem for Microsoft's flagship tablet unit.
The dimensions of the unit are set at 369 x 124 x 24 mm,
and weighs 442 grams. It uses two AA batteries, which it
can typically use for up to 4 months. The frequency of the
wireless signal is at 2.4 Ghz and maximum use distance
is 10 meters, though it shortens to 3 meters when used
within a nearby magnetic field. Even though it's optimized
for Windows 8, it can also be used for Windows XP, Vista
and 7 (albeit without the touch functions).
The release of the TL-FDP055BK (black version) in Japan
is scheduled to be around December of this year. It will be
priced at 8431 yen (107 USD).
Verizon gets quad-core LTE
HTC Droid DNA for $199.99
with contract
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/verizon-gets-quad-core-lte-htc-
droid-dna-for-199.99-with-contract/17850.html
November 14th, 2012
Starting November 21, the HTC Droid DNA will be available
for $199.99 with a two year contract, but pre-order for this
quad-core LTE-capable device is already underway.
We’ve been following HTC for a while ever since rumors
swirled about HTC developing a ‘phablet-esque’ smartphone
like the Galaxy Note, and now it’s official. The Droid DNA’s
screen size is slightly smaller than the Note II’s 5.5-inches,
but coming in at 5-inch the Droid DNA is inching ever closer
to tablet territory.
Previously, many quad-core flagships from OEMs like HTC
and Samsung did not retain that same spec when they
entered US market due to LTE requirements. Therefore,
OEMs instead installed dual-core chips that were LTE-
capable, being mainly the dual-core Snapdragon S4. The
quad-core dilemma is no more, because Qualcomm has
finally made a quad-core Snapdragon S4 that is compatible
with LTE technology here in the States.
Specifically, the Droid DNA will boast a 5-inch 1080p HD
screen protected with Corning Gorilla Glass 2, a quad-core
Snapdragon S4 Pro LTE-capable clocked at 1.5GHz, 2GB of
RAM, 16GB of internal storage, HTC’s in-house Sense 4+
UI, an 8MP rear camera, a 2.1MP front camera, NFC, sound
tuned with Beats Audio, and Android Jelly Bean to boot.

11
Amazon selling zombie
survival gear
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/amazon-selling-zombie-survival-
gear/17838.html
November 14th, 2012
Amazon, much like the rest of the world, seems worried
about a zombie apocalypse, and in order to do their part in
our survival, they're now selling gear to help you survive the
undead.
Zombies are permeating our pop culture, and we seem
obsessed with the idea of the dead waking up to feast
on our flesh: Television has The Walking Dead; gaming
has Left4Dead; and now Amazon has Zombie Apocalypse
Supplies.
The recently opened Amazon page sells everything you'll
need to survive in the event of a zombie uprising, listing
their product under categories such as "brain protection",
"first aid supplies", "cut resistant gloves" and "duct tape".
The page also sells costumes, books and movies.
There is no subsection of the amazon page selling zombie
themed games however, which at first seems strange,
considering that there is quite a large market for them.
However, after looking closer at the page, a small logo
promoting Call of Duty Black Ops II's zombie mode is lurking
at the top of the page. This amazon section is thus likely
a promotional stunt. This doesn't make it any less cool
though. My only complaint is that the site seems to be
missing an axe-section.

1
geeks.
Black Ops II sells 1 million
copies at launch - fails to
impress fans
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/black-ops-ii-sells-1-million-copies-
at-launch--fails-to-impress-fans/17891.html
November 15th, 2012
With all of the hype and glam surrounding the release of
Black Ops II, it's no wonder that the sales are enormous. On
it's midnight launch alone, the game sold over one million
copies. But with the reviews and opinions beginning to role
in, impressions have not been so high.
On Amazon alone, the highest number of ratings for the
game are 1-star reviews. Considering the reviews have just
started coming in, this is an ill-omen for the game.
That's not to say that Black Ops II hasn't been trying. Being a
sequel to the first Black Ops game, the description from the
company sounds exciting, action-packed, and futuristic:
“Pushing the boundaries of what fans have come
to expect from the record-setting entertainment
franchise, Call of Duty®: Black Ops II propels
players into a near future, 21st Century Cold War,
where technology and weapons have converged to
create a new generation of warfare between old and
new foes. In this conflict, the mechanized creations
of men reign supreme, facing off against each other
as their creators stay safe and unconflicted, and in
the process grow ever softer. In this scenario an
important question will be asked: What happens
when enemy steals the keys? To understand such
a possible future, you must understand where you
have been.”
Alongside of this thrilling premise, there is an alternate game
style. Black Ops II features zombies. Built right in is one of
the most extensive zombie vs. humans elements in a game
that's not at all about zombies. The game features three
different zombie-fighting modes: storyline play-through,
survival, and 4v4 team mode. Excitement has been building
since they announced the sans-modding zombie content,
and folks were ready to spring into action with the release.
The reviewers, however, are not so excited. One such
reviewer, S. Joshi, commented that, “It's isn't like Black Ops
or Modern Warfare 3.” Many are agreeing, which leaves
the new title homeless in a market that thrives off of it's
familiarity. Some even mentioned how they weren't that
excited about the zombie content, as they had been long-
time fans of the series and it's original theme and content...
not some gimmick to get people buying.
Only time will tell if the response turns positive, but the
initial waves of angry reviewers spells a near doom for the
title. With the departure from any of the previous games, will
the Call of Duty series be able to hold on to it's fans.

2
Microsoft's Steve Ballmer
attacks Apple and Android
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/microsoft-s-steve-ballmer-attacks-
apple-and-android/17898.html
November 15th, 2012
The ever vocal Steve Ballmer, CEO of Microsoft, has strongly
criticised Apple and Android, suggesting Windows Phone is
the best of both worlds.
The ever vocal Steve Ballmer, CEO of Microsoft, has strongly
criticised Apple and Android, suggesting Windows Phone is
the best of both worlds.
The attack came during an interview at a technology event in
California, where Ballmer lambasted Android for being too
uncontrolled and iOS for being too controlled. He classified
Android's ecosystem as “a little bit wild,” while finding fault
with Apple's high prices.
“The question is how do you get the quality with maybe not
the premium price of the phone, with maybe not quite as
controlled an ecosystem. And how do you allow for the lower
price points, more affordability, diversity that comes with
Android,” he told Reid Hoffman, founder of LinkedIn. “And
I think you can say that's kind of the best of both worlds and
that's available to us.”
He suggested there was still room for a third competitor,
that there is a customer base out there that “wants an
alternative,” citing Apple and Samsung as the two high-end
smartphone manufacturers, while dismissing the low-end
sector's myriad of options as “a sea.”
Ballmer is hoping Windows Phone will get 10 percent of the
market share, though he did not give any indication of a
timeframe. He boasted figures of as much as 60 percent, but
said that will not happen overnight. Unless Windows Phone
8 takes off big time, however, that may not happen at all.
Halo 4 rakes in $220 million
in first day
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/halo-4-rakes-in-220-million-in-first-
day/17861.html
November 15th, 2012
On it's first day of release, Halo 4 earned a whopping $220
million. While the full analysis of the earnings hasn't come
in yet, projections for the sales say that this could be the best
selling Halo game yet.
The gaming industry has a whole field full of sequel games
that have been released recently, or are set to release soon.
One would think we've run out of original ideas. Call of Duty:
Black Ops 2, Grand Theft Auto 5, the list goes on. But fans
of the Halo series don't seem to want it gone yet, as Halo 4
has had record sales of $220 million earned in it's first 24
hours available to the public. With both Master Chief and
Cortana returning for the game, fans have apparently gone
wild and spent heavily. The game was released on November
6th
, 2012, and while the numbers aren't all in yet, analysts
predict an opening week of $300 million for the game.

3
The series was recently taken over from its original owners
and producers, Bungie, to 343 Industries and Microsoft,
as Bungie believed it had already made all of the games
that it could with the title. Bungie had planned the Halo
series to be a trilogy at most, and felt it was right to end
it there. Microsoft, being what it is, knew the popularity
behind the series and decided a new installment was called
for. Obviously, Microsoft has the right idea.
The game features much of what fans have come to expect:
this installment introduces new characters, weapons,
vehicles, maps and more. More maps are already planned
in advance for Halo 4, the first being due out some time in
December of this year. An update to Master Chief's suit has
been spotted, along with “greater depth” in the relationship
between Cortana and the Chief. You can hear the fan fiction
writers squeal.
With an opening day as fierce as this, and a projection of a
firm opening week, Microsoft can already see that this is the
most successful a Halo game has been in sales. What they
plan to release next in the series is already being discussed,
the company admitting that the next installment will be
“darker”. If the sales for that match Halo 4, the video gaming
market will have a good day indeed.
NASA orders data encryption
after latest laptop loss
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/nasa-orders-data-encryption-after-
latest-laptop-loss/17896.html
November 15th, 2012
NASA is implementing a new data encryption policy on
portable devices after another of its laptops was lost,
potentially exposing sensitive information.
NASA is implementing a new data encryption policy on
portable devices after another of its laptops was lost,
potentially exposing sensitive information.
The space agency, responsible for putting the first human
on the moon, made a series of security blunders by
not encrypting what is classified as “sensitive personally
identifiable information” on a laptop that was stolen, along
with a number of documents, from a staff member's car at
NASA's headquarters.
The laptop was password protected, but that might prove
little defence against hackers. The firm has now not
only ordered that no staff can remove company laptops
with sensitive information from its facilities, but that
those laptops should be encrypted, which would provide
considerably more protection.
NASA is now warning of phishing hoaxes, including
emails and phone calls, that might make use of personal
information found on the laptop to bypass security
verification procedures. It said it may need up to 60 days
to review the information stolen and contact the relevant
people.
The new encryption rules are designed to cover all laptops
by a month's time, with a substantial amount sought by
next Wednesday. Any laptop containing information about
the international sale or transport of weapons and nuclear
equipment, along with human resources data and other
sensitive but unclassified information, will need to be
encrypted before leaving NASA buildings. No other mobile
devices, such as smartphones or tablets, are allowed to store
sensitive information.
NASA has already had losses and thefts before, with 48
laptops disappearing between April 2009 and April 2011. It
seems it has finally learned its lesson.
Fender Stratocaster
introduces USB enabled
guitar
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/fender-stratocaster-introduces-usb-
enabled-guitar/17882.html
November 15th, 2012

4
The Fender guitar company, which is famous for their
high-end, solid-body styled electric guitars has recently
introduced a revolutionary USB enabled guitar called the
Squier Stratocaster. The newly designed USB enabled
instrument will offer the ability for the user to record and
share tracks without any need of additional hookups.
If there were any guitar maker that emanates nostalgia, it
would be a Fender. Starting out as the ‘Fender’s Radio
Service’, the small business would go on to become the
first company to set a precedent by offering the first solid-
body Spanish-style electric guitar produced in mass. The
company would become synonymous with style and of
course Rock n’ Roll.
However, in this day and age everyone want to somehow
connect all their gadgets to a computer. Fender has
acknowledged this reality, and will be offering a budget
friendly guitar with a USB hookup to allow users to record
their own tracks and share them with friends or colleagues.
The new electric guitar will be called the Squier Stratocaster
(one the best selling guitars of all time was the Fender
Stratocaster, introduced in the 1950s) and will offer an
integrated USB port, which allows one to record and share
their music tracks. While the guitar is being marketed to
the Apple iOS platform, Fender made sure the guitar was
PC friendly and it will also be compatible with Windows 7
operating systems and above.
It is only logical that Fender would choose this new type
of method with Internet technology and speeds advancing
like they are now. Instead of some fancy audio interface
connection, now anyone can connect their USB, record some
tracks and then upload it immediately to the Internet. This
revolutionary guitar offers a stereo headphone jack that has
a volume control when the user connects it to their iDevice or
PC. The guitar can of course be played like any other electric
guitar with the standard ¼” jack.
The Apple store states that the all-new Squier from Fender
will offer a bi-directional audio streaming, which includes a
top of the line headphone amp. This guitar will allow the
user to record directly to their iPhone, iPad or Mac without
the need of any hardware. Some of the specifications on
the guitar include a pickup tone control, type mini-USB
connector with bi-directional audio streaming and a pickup
select switch.
Currently the guitar is only available at the Apple store and is
priced at a highly reasonable 199.95 U.S. dollars, and it even
comes with free shipping. For more information you can
check it out at the Apple store.
Microsoft celebrates the
10th anniversary of Xbox by
giving away special edition
consoles
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/microsoft-celebrates-the-10th-
anniversary-of-xbox-by-giving-away-special-edition-consoles/17890.html
November 15th, 2012
Microsoft launched the Xbox 10 years ago, and throughout
its decade-long lifespan the console has evolved into a
bona-fide entertainment system. To celebrate Xbox's 10th
anniversary, Microsoft is giving away many special edition
consoles to long-time loyal users of Xbox LIVE.
Microsoft's Xbox console has only been around for a decade,
but in that short time the system has evolved and grown
into a massive conduit that provides every kind of digital
entertainment available today: from movies, television and
interactive gaming, Xbox 360 has it all.
To celebrate Xbox's tenth anniversary, Microsoft is giving
away special editions of the Xbox 360 to select long-time
loyal users of Xbox LIVE. Many people have already received
their own consoles through the mail, however we're not
exactly sure of the requirements. Since Microsoft is awarding
and giving back to "loyal Xbox LIVE users", we can guess that
this may mean an uninterrupted subscription for perhaps
anywhere from seven to ten years...yet this hasn't been
officially confirmed and remains speculation.

5
The limited edition consoles, dubbed "XBL 10", are snazzy
redesigns of the newer age Xbox Slim models, featuring a
stylish color scheme that incorporates the signature Xbox
LIVE theme of neon orange and lime green.
Also to coincide with Xbox's tenth birthday Microsoft is
hosting an online event over Xbox LIVE featuring various
sales on content as well as others festivities to be included
on a window pane on the Xbox LIVE dashboard. For more
information on Xbox's tenth anniversary please visit the
official website.
Minecraft milestone: 8 million
PC copies sold
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/minecraft-milestone-8-million-pc-
copies-sold/17886.html
November 15th, 2012
The indie sand-box style game Minecraft hit it's 8-million
copies sold mark, making it one of the top selling PC games
of all time. The makers aren't stopping there, and are still
planning many updates and expansions in the future.
“Jeepers creepers! Crikey! Jawch! Inoffensive exclamation
native to your home country!” is most of what the company
Mojang had to say about hitting the 8 million mark for
copies of Minecraft sold. This makes it one of the best-selling
PC games of all time. Combined with the sales from the
360 version, the tally comes to 12 copies of Minecraft sold
worldwide. That's nothing to sniff at.
Notch, the creator of Minecraft, had only this to say:
“69I960EHE0A4A0IVG0EHE02500R4R0G1T30PLJ00V6V0EHE
No worries: as far as we know, Notch is still human.
For those who don't know the game, I'm sorry. You've
been missing out. An indie game, focused around creating,
crafting, building, surviving, and (you guessed it) mining,
the game is original in that every object in the game can be
destroyed (and most can be destroyed and then re-placed).
With Minecraft, you can take the massive generated world
you are given, and reshape it from the ground up... or from
the underground up, if you feel so inclined. The real key to
the game... some say the things that keeps them playing the
game... is that while you can build, craft, and explore during
the day, by night the player will need to have shelter to avoid
the many monsters of the dark. Other than that, however,
you are free to play as you will – there is no set goal for the
game, and therefore the possibilities are endless.
Minecraft was officially release in November of 2011, though
it had massive fan-base before it was even a full game. Even
with the full version released, the creators are still adding
to the game every few months or so with updates. The most
recent update, the Pretty Scary! Update, added such things
as a new “boss” to battle, new entities like bats and witches,
as well as anvils, pumpkin pies, and flower pots.
The game is set to shortly had a modding API update, which
will universalize the system by which mods are added into
the game. This is sure to boost popularity, and get sales
revving up into the higher echelon of gaming. In a game
where almost anything is possible, modders want to see how
far they can stretch and mold that promise. The modding
community is already thoroughly populated, having already
crafted their own modding API's – they up and ran with
them, creating some of the most impressive mods in any
game to date. With the upcoming modding API, modders

6
across the world will rejoice, and glue themselves ever-more
permanently to their computer screens.
If you aren't one of the 8 million or more who own Minecraft,
I heartily suggest you grab it post-haste. The game has
something for everyone – from those who don't consider
themselves “gamers”, to the most hardcore, mod-heavy,
geek-speaking gamers alive... this game has something you'll
fall in love with. With a few more purchases, maybe we can
tip Minecraft into at least the Top 3. Hope springs eternal.
Microsoft to begin offering
Windows Embedded 8 from
March 2013
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/microsoft-to-begin-offering-
windows-embedded-8-from-march-2013/17884.html
November 15th, 2012
Microsoft’s Windows 8 has been met with a lukewarm
response. Unlike the iPad, their flagship ‘Surface’ product,
while selling fairly okay, has not exactly been an ‘overnight
success’. Aching to expand their market, Microsoft will be
launching the next piece of the Windows 8 puzzle in the form
of Windows Embedded 8, starting from March in next year.
Devices known as ‘embedded systems’ traditionally spanned
across a wide range of industries and devices such as VOIP
phones, DVD players, GPS receivers, and printers. However
with ever-shrinking technology, many other innocuous
devices have started to spread their silicon wings and join
the technological march towards the ‘smart’ future.
With more and more devices becoming ‘embedded systems’
insomuch as they carry computer chips in some form, there
is a growing demand in software to manage these machines.
In the past, barebones versions of Linux have been the go-
to choice for embedded operating systems, due to their low
system requirements and easy customization. However, if
Microsoft get their way, that is all about to change.
The expansion of more and more household objects into the
digital realm has sparked interest in what is being dubbed
the ‘Internet of things’, a network which connects all of the
computerized items in your house together, providing their
owner the ease of managing and searching for objects just as
they would files on a computer. So where does Microsoft fit
into all of this?
Well, there has been a steady decline in Desktop computer
sales in the recent years, and Microsoft need to move
fast to diversify unless they want to become a window-
shaped fossil. One strategy which has been designed to
save Microsoft is to jump on the tablet/smartphone craze,
and Windows 8 is the first big step towards that. But
this is just part of a larger overall plan, which aims to
transform Microsoft from a software company to a ‘devices
and services’ company. The folks over at MS have even gone
so far as to release an ‘embedded roadmap’, most probably
to show stock holders that they aren’t a lumbering dinosaur
about to be obliterated by an incoming mobile meteor.
So this brings us back to the topic at hand –Windows
Embedded 8. While many may not have heard of this
specific form of Windows, it has actually been around for a
while. Even the original Win3.x had an embedded version
which ran on POS terminals. But the first real ‘Windows
Embedded’ product was built in 1999 and called Windows
NT Embedded. The Windows XP code was then used to build
“XPembedded”. Following this came “Windows Embedded
Compact”, which you may have heard being referred to by
its previous name, “Windows CE”. This was less obscure a
product than you may think, and was used in many a set-
top box, but probably gained most wide recognition from
its inclusion in Sega’s ill-fated Dreamcast console. See, you
have seen embedded products from Microsoft before!
In 2009, Windows XP Embedded was updated to from
Windows Embedded Standard, which provided the full
Win32 API, but unlike Windows CE which ran on a
multitude of processors such as ARM, MIPS and SuperH,
Windows Embedded Standard only runs on x86. The
tradeoff is that it is fully compatible with ‘standard’
programs such as .NET Framework, IE7, Windows Media
Player, Silverlight, and so on. At this point you’re probably
thinking ‘wait a minute, what’s the point of having all that
installed on your microwave?’ Well, apparently Microsoft
thought of this too, and has allowed device makers to
customize the system by removing parts they don’t need,
while keeping the core functionality of the OS. This feature
has been utilized (exploited?) by some clever folks in the past
to produce live-cds of Windows such as BartPE.
Windows Embedded 8 Standard is also a modularized
version of Windows, which allows Linux-like customization
for device manufactures who don’t need all the bells and
whistles of a full fledged OS just for a toaster oven. However
that’s not to say that the latest version won’t benefit from
Windows 8’s new features, and the new touch and gesture-
based interface will be available from the comfort of your
own waffle iron in the near future.

7
Now you can crash Internet Explorer and your brand new
Prius all at the same time. Pretty cool, huh?
The new edition to the Windows Embedded family will
initially come in two flavors – Standard and Pro. Windows
Embedded 8 Pro is the successor to the ‘Windows Embedded
Enterprise’ SKU, and is basically a full version of desktop
Windows 8 which has been repackaged to run on embedded
systems. Later in the year, Microsoft will release Windows
Embedded 8 Industry, which is aimed at manufacturing
and healthcare (Windows on your pacemaker.. eep!).
After that will come Windows Embedded 8 Handheld,
which assumedly is for handheld devices, then Windows
Embedded 8 Automotive, which will run on your in-car
systems, if you...really want that...
Microsoft chooses Julie
Larson-Green as new
Windows Head
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/microsoft-chooses-julie-larson-
green-as-new-windows-head/17881.html
November 15th, 2012
Julie Larson-Green may not be a name most would recognize
off hand, but she is surely a significant part of the millions
of households around the globe that use a PC running
Windows.
Putting the past behind them, Microsoft with their all-new
Windows 8 OS has made a tremendous leap forward and it
was due, at least in part, because of the tremendous work
and effort of Microsoft's programmer, Julie Larson-Green.
Not too long ago Microsoft and Apple were major players at
odds with one another. The commercials from Apple were
seemingly endless with their humorous PC Vs. Macintosh
campaign. The commercials would open up with the tag
lines, “Hello I’m a Mac. And I’m a PC.” The massive ad
campaign seemed to fade away once Mac/Apple sales went
up. Now Windows is firing back with their all-new Windows
PC operating system. This new system is being touted as a
major competitor with Apple, and a lot of that modern look
is being attributed to Julie Larson-Green.
Julie Larson-Green has been working for Microsoft for
nearly 2 decades and began as an humble yet efficient
program manager for Visual C++. Green worked her way up
the ladder and was always well respected by her peers and
known as a driven and efficient developer and programmer
for the company. So, when Microsoft announced on
Monday, November 12th that Steven Sinofsky who was once
head over the Windows and Windows Live operations would
be leaving the company and replaced with Julie Larson-
Green, it came as no real surprise. Most knew that Green
was the perfect woman for the job and also because of her
revolutionary contributions to the new Windows 8.
Sinofsky leaves Microsoft only a few weeks after the release
of Windows 8, which was designed in part by the help of Julie
Larson-Green. However, it was noted that Sinofsky and
Green were part of a much larger team in helping to create
the new software development for the company. And it was
because of that team-building spirit that Green was able to
help lead the biggest redesign in regards new Windows 8
operating system.
In an interview with ABC News, Green stated that Windows
needed major changes because the world had advanced
tremendously since Windows was first introduced nearly a
quarter century ago. Green told ABC News, “We wanted to
reinvent Windows to be what people expect today but we
also wanted to maintain the familiar desktop and the apps
that people use.” She went on to say that she and the team
working on Windows 8 worked very hard on the project and
changed it to how they felt people wanted to have with the
new OS.
“We wanted it to be fun and useful. People talk about work
life and home life, but in today's world it's not different… you
can have fun and get things done," she said.
Now that Green is head of Windows, many in the PC
community are ecstatic to see where Windows is headed and
how it will evolve into the more advanced era of computing.
While the changes in Windows and the advancements they
are making are quite apparent, it is even more apparent
that Microsoft has chosen the right person to be head over
Windows. Green has been one of Microsoft’s greatest assets,
and now that she is head over Windows, PC users should
be delighted to see that Microsoft has not lost its edge in an
ever-evolving Internet world.
New optic fibres will link
Japan & Singapore to provide
faster broadband
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/new-optic-fibres-will-link-japan--
singapore-to-provide-faster-broadband/17883.html
November 15th, 2012
Japan’s NEC and KDDI have been busy lately, working
together with American company TE SubCom to build
a South-East Asia Japan Cable (SJC) that will speed up
Internet access between Japanese and Singaporean servers.

8
Cables have already begun to be loaded onto ships in
Fukuoka’s city of Kita Kyuushuu, and in Japan there is also
work being done lifting earth in order to install new cables
linked to this project.
What is the SJC project really about?
The SJC project, which heavily involves telecoms operator
KDDI, sets out to link Japan & Singapore with undersea
fibre optic cables, while on the way branching out to China,
Hong Kong, the Philippines, and Brunei, providing speedier
Internet access between all nations of South East Asia. The
undersea cables reach a total length of around 9,000km,
and utilize the latest DWDM technology to enable an initial
capacity of 16Tbps. The construction costs for the cable
amount to around 400 million dollars, and the cable is
expected to go online mid-2013. The new construction is
expected to help cope with the surge of new demand for high-
speed telecommunications in the Asian region.
KDDI’s Network Technology HQ International Network
Department Chief Hiromitsu Todokoro states: "An undersea
cable which cuts through the ocean costs around 300~400
hundred million dollars to construct, and requires over 10
hundred million in maintenance costs per year. Usually
telecommunication companies from a cooperative body to
invest in this, and this requires a long term relationship
between participating companies of around 20~25 years.
With the new cable construction for the SJC project, from
an economic and technological standpoint, we thought it
best to switch over completely to the new cable from
the old one. The reasons for this are increase in Internet
traffic, a trend towards higher capacities due to multiple
wavelength technology, and the decrease in communications
delay brought about by new cables, as well as decreased
maintenance fees for the cables thanks to new developments
in their manufacture.”
Of course, a project with this kind of scope can’t be
easily completed by just one company, and many other
enterprises have come to lend a helping hand. In addition to
KDDI, Global Telecom (Philippines), Google (USA), SingTel
(Singapore), PT Telkom International (Indonesia), China
Telecom (China), China Mobile (China), Donghwa Telecom
(Hong Kong), BIG (Brunei), TOT (Thailand) have all agreed
to lend their support to the project.
Senior expert Shota Masuda at NEC’s Ocean Systems
Enterprise Group stated that "with undersea cable systems,
as soon as demand reaches half the total capacity of the
cable, work on the next cable must be started." In 2013,
demand is expected to reach half of the capacity laid out
during 2009, and worldwide traffic is also inclining at a
steady rate. Asia’s economic growth has also carried with it
a huge surge in demand for Internet access in Asia and the
Pacific region.
Lenovo unveils world's
smallest desktop PC and
latest all-in-ones
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/lenovo-unveils-world-s-smallest-
desktop-pc-and-latest-all-in-ones/17895.html
November 15th, 2012
Lenovo has unveiled the world's smallest fully-functioning
desktop PC and a slew of new all-in-one PCs.
The Chinese computer giant boasts that its IdeaCentre Q190
is just 22mm wide, making it the smallest desktop computer
in the world that can still do all the things its larger cousins
can, such as play high-definition graphics and 3D Blu-ray
with the optional Blu-ray drive.

9
The Q190 can be used as a normal PC, plugging into any
monitor, or it can double as a mobile home theatre system,
with 7.1 surround sound and an optional compact wireless
multimedia remote with a built-in backlit keyboard and
mouse.
The computer comes with Windows 8 Pro and has processor
speeds that are 80 percent faster than the previous model,
the similarly-sized Q180. It will launch in January with
prices starting at $349.
Lenovo also unveiled the latest C-Series of all-in-one PCs,
the C340, C440, C540, C345, and C445, all of which can
feature up to 1TB hard drive, or 2TB for the C540, up to 8GB
of RAM, a 720p webcam, the Lenovo Education Portal, and
Windows 8.
The C340 and C345 come with a 20-inch display, C440 and
C445 feature a 21.5-inch display, while the C540 has a 23-
inch display. The C340, C440, and C540 are powered by up
to a third-generation Intel Core i3 processor, with graphics
options available up to Nvidia's GeForce 615 2GB card, while
the C345 and C445 feature up to an AMD E2 dual-core
processor with AMD Radeon HD graphics.
All models feature the Lenovo Dynamic Brightness System,
which automatically adjusts screen brightness based on the
user's environment, and the Lenovo Eye Distance System,
which tells users if they are too close to the screen. Starting
prices range form $479 to $519, depending on the model.
Halo 4 Review
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/halo-4-review/17744.html
November 15th, 2012
How does 343i's newest chapter in the Halo universe
compare to its predecessors, and why has it become one of
the most anticipated games of 2012? Jump in to find out!
Halo 4 is the culmination of the entire franchise, marking a
new era for the Halo universe with the brand new Reclaimer
saga. Featuring a multitude of new interactive features,
pristine graphics, and a dynamic, epic story arc, Halo 4
breathes new life into the saga and brings gamers to a newly
evolved series.
Many gamers were dubious about Bungie handing off their
fan-favorite franchise to 343 Industries, passing off the torch
of Halo--who's flame has been brightly burning for more
than a decade--to a brand new studio...but 343i has proven
that they are more than capable and that the Halo universe
is in safe hands.
Halo 4 marks the return of the iconic Master Chief to
the battlefield, reawakened after four long years of cryo-
sleep to take on an ancient evil hidden within the strange
Forerunner planet construct of Requiem. Spartan 117 faces
impossible odds in true Halo style, balancing a hundred
different incredible tasks on his shoulders while trying to
save the cosmos as well as the UNSC and the rest of mankind
at the same time.
This new chapter in the franchise brings with it a host of new
features, adding a plethora of in-game content, game modes,
weapons, and a huge story arc that continues over the next
two chapters of the Reclaimer trilogy.
Halo 4 is filled with fully fleshed characters that have their
own distinct personas: Commander Lasky (yes, that same
cadet from the live-action series Forward Unto Dawn has
grown up quite a bit) is easy-going, whereas Captain Del Rio
is stern and stoic, leaving Commander Palmer an assertive
and authorative female Spartan IV warrior who doesn't take
no for an answer.
343 Industries has created an awe-inspiring visual spectacle
that ushers in a new age of graphical presentation with Halo
4, leaping far ahead of that of Halo: Reach and raising the bar
even further to deliver jaw-dropping vistas and incredible
Forerunner constructs.

10
Everything from the expanse of the skies to the bizarre
array of advanced Forerunner tech is eye-catching, and
the character animations are perfectly fluid and incredibly
realistic. During the game's many cutscenes, it's easy to
mistake Commander Lasky's in-game character for a live-
action recording of a real person: that's how good the
graphics are.
343i's latest chapter in the series is pure entertainment
and inspires a true sense of sci-fi fantasy that defines the
series, bringing with it a mix of elation and curiosity as the
Forerunners are shrouded in infinite mystery. The fourth
installment of the Halo universe easily provides hundreds
of hours of visually stimulating and entertaining gameplay,
providing a treat for the eyes and ears of any gamer.
Infinity Multiplayer makes up the game's other half, and
is just as impressive as Campaign. Featuring many new
and familiar game modes, the multiplayer is split between
Spartan Ops--which delivers a short and sweet Firefight-
like gameplay experience--and War Games--the definitive
competitive multiplayer action filled to the brim with
frenetic action.
In Spartan Ops four players team together in co-operative
matches to complete various objectives in episodic chapters
that change week to week, affording a fresh new experience
every week. War Games is the heart of Halo 4's multiplayer,
delivering the classic in-your-face action that gamers are
accustomed to: from King of the HIll to Oddball or classic
Team Slayer, War Games is the ultimate Halo experience,
bringing a new experience with every game.
Tom Hardy signed on for
Splinter Cell movie
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/tom-hardy-signed-on-for-splinter-
cell-movie/17893.html
November 15th, 2012
Tom Hardy, the British actor who recently played Bane in
The Dark Knight Rises, has signed on to play Sam Fisher in
the movie adaptation of the Splinter Cell video game series
It's time for another video game movie adaptation, and time
for gamers all over to hope it isn't terrible. Ubisoft has
just officially announced that a Splinter Cell movie is in
the works, though no studio has been signed to the project
yet. This confirms rumors which started circulating during
the summer and is the second movie-related news coming
from Ubisoft recently. A few weeks ago, it was announced
that New Regency and Fox were going to be working on an
Assassin's Creed movie co-produced by Michael Fassbender.
Photoshop some night vision goggles to his forehead and
you've basically got Sam Fisher
Splinter Cell's "rival" franchise in the stealth genre, Metal
Gear, is also in the process of making a movie. During the
25th anniversary event for Metal Gear, Avi Arad, the founder
of Marvel Studios, took the stage to declare that he would be
producing a Metal Gear movie for Colombia Studios.
Ubisoft also stated that Tom Hardy, who was in recent titles
such as The Dark Knight Rises and This Means War, will
be starring in the movie, playing the lead as Sam Fisher.
Chances are you'll have to wait a long time to see the movie
hit theaters though. In the mean time, the next Splinter Cell
game, Blacklist, will be coming out next year.
Samsung reveals new,
smaller chip for mobile
phones
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/samsung-reveals-new-smaller-chip-
for-mobile-phones/17892.html
November 15th, 2012
Samsung has released a new chip which will soon find
it's way into our mobile phones. Significantly smaller than
previously, we can look forward to even slimmer devices in
the near future.
Samsung has just revealed a new memory chip, making it's
latest eMMC chip obsolete after only three months. The
64GB eMMC Pro Class 2000 is moving from a 20nm to
a 10nm process format, the new chip is 20% smaller than
the previous generation. In addition, the new chip has a
whopping 30% increase in performance and manufacturing
productivity.

11
The previous chip utilized JEDEC Solid State Technology
Association's eMMC 4.5 interface, but now, Samsung is
planning to drop JEDEC in favor of developing a new
interface able to handle the full capabilities of the chip. The
new chip has an input speed of 2,000 IOPS (input/output
per second) and an output speed of 5,000 IOPS. This means
the new format will be able to handle 260MB/s read and
50MB/s write speed. By comparison, the old chip is able to
handle 1,500 input and 3,500 output IOPS.
The new chips are already in production and will be hitting
the market soon. However, with Apple in the talks of buying
billions worth of components from Samsung, you may just
see them in Apple products.
New research into frozen
mummy reveals heritage
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/new-research-into-frozen-mummy-
reveals-heritage/17888.html
November 15th, 2012
In 1991, the mummified remains of a 5,300 year old man
was found in the Alps. Previously this year, the mummy's
remains were genetically mapped, and now, there's been an
update to the findings.
Ötzi the iceman is the mummified corpse of a neolithic man
found in the Austrian alps who died some 5300 years ago.
When discovered in 1991, he became the oldest murder case
in the world, as it was revealed that he had been shot with
an arrow and left to bleed out on the mountain. Today, the
mummy resides in the South Tyrol Museum of Archeology in
Italy. Ötzi's genes were recently analyzed to help determine
his heritage and it was found that he was Sardinian, a
surprising finding.
Ötzi, shortly after being discovered
It was confusing that a Sardinian, coming from a quite
isolated area at the time, would have found his way to
a glacier in the alps. It's assumed that prehistoric people
didn't move around nearly as much as modern day humans.
It would have taken a considerable amount of effort, for
seemingly no reason, to move hundreds of kilometers to
Austria. In order to find an explanation for this, the genetic
makeup of Ötzi was further investigated. The entire DNA
sequence had not been analyzed previously, and now, it
was compared not only to modern day Humans, but to the
remains of other prehistoric people as well.
He has seen better days.
The findings revealed something quite interesting: Though
Ötzi does most closely genetically resemble modern day
Sardinians, the result is quite different when compared to
ancient humans. Among his peers, he is much closer linked
to northern Europeans, such as Swedes, and also Bulgarian
farmers of the time. The findings support the notion of
a mass migration from the Middle East towards northern
Europe, which brought farming to the continent.
2,500 educators turn to
Portal 2 for teaching
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/2-500-educators-turn-to-portal-2-
for-teaching/17887.html
November 15th, 2012
Valve's physics-based puzzle game Portal 2 is being used by
teachers across the United States in order to educate their
students about math and physics.
When the original Portal was released by Valve in 2007,
many teachers had the idea of incorporating it into their
lesson plans. Because the game relies heavily on physics
for solving it's puzzles, it could serve as a teaching tool.
Educators, ranging from middle school teachers to college
professors, sent word to Valve of how they were using the
game, and Valve took this into consideration when creating
the sequel, Portal 2.

12
All right class - today's lesson: The Einstein-Rosen bridge!
Valve initiated the "teach with portals" initiative in order to
further the ability to use the game in a school environment,
and released a level designer called "Puzzle Maker", which
lets users create their own singleplayer and co-op maps.
Today, over 2,500 teachers have embraced the teach with
portals concept, and classrooms are using it to teach both
math and physics.
In the future, there's talks of expanding the lesson plan
to include language, art, game design and chemistry. I
personally believe that using the right games in the right way
can make teaching into a much more visceral and captivating
experience. I'm still looking forward to history class using
Assassin's creed to aid in showing how people lived and how
societies looked and were structured in the past.
First homeless planet has
been found
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/first-homeless-planet-has-been-
found/17885.html
November 15th, 2012
It's long been speculated that there may be planets whizzing
through space without a sun to orbit, and now we may have
found the first confirmed case.
It's been a long standing theory that planets on occasion
become ejected from their solar systems. Several objects
have been found since the 1990's which have possibly met
this fate, but until now, all such objects have been too close
to a star to observe properly. It's unknown if these objects
really are planets, or failed stars known as Brown Dwarves.
Now though, Philippe Delorme and his team from Institut
de planétologie et d'astrophysique de Grenoble, CNRS/
Université Joseph Fourier, France, have found an object
which they can confirm is an ejected planet by using the
ESO's Very Large Telescope and the Canada-France-Hawaii
Telescope. The planet, known as CFBDSIR2149 ...we'll call it
Charlie for short, is supposedly four to seven times the size
of Jupiter, but is bluish in hue and looks more like Neptune.
Artist's depiction of Charlie if illuminated by a star
Delorme's team explains their conclusions: "The team's
statistical analysis of the object's proper motion; its angular
change in position across the sky each year, shows an 87%
probability that the object is associated with the AB Doradus
Moving Group, and more than 95% probability that it is
young enough to be of planetary mass, making it much more
likely to be a rogue planet rather than a small "failed" star."
The AB Doradus Moving Group is a group of around 30 stars
which are all traveling at the same velocity, and have similar
age and composition. The planet most likely used to orbit
one of these stars, before being thrown out. It's not easy to
throw a planet out of it's star system, but gravitational forces
and interacting bodies could certainly do it. Another planet
in the star system might have had an orbit that took it too
close to Charlie, and slingshot it (him?) out of the system.

1
geeks.
Halo 4 Spartan Ops episode 3
trailer released
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/halo-4-spartan-ops-episode-3-
trailer-released/17909.html
November 16th, 2012
The third chapter is almost here for Halo 4's weekly episodic
Spartan Ops series, and the new trailer gives a glimpse at
what players can expect from S1E3 "Catherine".
In Season 1 Episode 3 of Halo 4's weekly co-operative
multiplayer mode, Spartan Ops, Catherine Halsey--the
veritable mother of the SPARTAN-II project and of every
Spartan warrior--comes all the way from ONI to investigate
the strange Artifact that was discovered in the last chapter.
Dharma Point to release N-
Key Rollover Gamer Keyboard
(Japan)
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/dharma-point-to-release-n-key-
rollover-gamer-keyboard-japan-/17907.html
November 16th, 2012
Clast Inc. is set to release a brand new n-key rollover
supporting gamer keyboard under the Dharma Point brand
in Japan on December 14th. Dubbed the DRTCKB109UP1,
this keyboard has an ugly name, but aside from that what
exactly sets it apart from the competition?
With an estimated retail price of 3,980 Yen (~49USD),
this keyboard is slightly less expensive than other ‘gamer’
targeted keyboards which generally contain a horde of bells
and whistles such as LED screens and other such nonsense.
It’s not all bare-bones though, because this keyboard does
pack a punch with its special plunger-structured actuator,
which allows gamers who type faster than they can think
to hit the keys at any particular angle without their fingers
slipping off the keys. It doesn’t matter what angle you hit
the key at, it will reliably move perpendicularly and depress
without slipping.
That’s not all though, the keyboard is built for heavy use.
Apparently the keyboard supports up to 20 million key
presses with its super durable construction. That should last
any avid gamer a while. (Unless you play Starcraft, in which
case it will probably last you a week). Each keystroke has
a distance of 3.8mm give or take 0.4mm, and a depression
property of 35-75g.
As far as special features go, while not exactly living up to
the super nerdfest standard of Razer et al., it does contain
a couple of neat perks. One is that you can simultaneously
press all keys without the keyboard giving you any trouble or
making that annoying PC speaker BEEP sound. Another is
that you have the ability to lock the Windows key, which is a
pretty cool option for when you are playing full screen games
and don’t want to accidentally tab-out and crash your game.

2
Being a Japanese product, the layout of the keyboard is
Japanese 109, but don’t worry its pretty much the standard
Qwerty format you are used to. It’s not one of those Kanji
keyboards that you only ever see in movies like Tomorrow
Never Dies.
Another cool feature about this keyboard is that the cable can
be shifted so that it extends from the center, left, or right of
the keyboard, allowing you to organize your desk in perfect
gaming Feng-Shui. The rubber stands on the base of the unit
are also non-slip, which is another necessary requirement
for those frantic gaming sessions.
The keyboard has dimensions of 448x148x34~43mm, and a
weight of 1,170g. The cable length is approx 1.8m.
Oh, one more thing, it works over USB. Duh.
Product Page: http://www.dharmapoint.com/products/
DRTCKB109UP1
Morgan Stanley - Sales For
Apple Higher Than Expected
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/morgan-stanley--sales-for-apple-
higher-than-expected/17904.html
November 16th, 2012
In a recent report released by Morgan Stanley's head Apple
analyst, sales for Apple devices such as the iPhone, iPad and
so forth will be doing far better than predicted. Morgan
Stanley’s Apple Analyst, Katy Huberty, issued the report
for Morgan Stanley investors on Thursday, November 15th,
2012.
According to a recent report issued to clients of Morgan
Stanley (MS), the company stated that a review of the
companies in Asia producing the Apple products are
showing sales would be doing far better than expected.
Previous estimates stated that for the quarter ending in
March 2013, Apple could sell as many as 43 million iPhones
and as many as 19 million tablets. Those estimates have
now been bumped to approximately 46 million iPhones and
possibly 23 million tablets, which is not only exciting news
for investors but also the market in general.
MS sees a ‘bullish’ opinion on Apple, and the investment
firm has set a ‘buy’ rating for the stock with an ‘overweight’
position. This means that MS believes the return on Apple
stock can be expected to be well above previous average
returns during the next 12 months. MS currently has Apple
with a 714 U.S. dollar price target and estimated the stock
could go up as much as 37% from that target in the next year
which is close to 1,000.00 U.S. dollars per share.
While MS maintains a bullish opinion on Apple, many
investment firms are skeptical about any future sales and
are saying that sales would be very hard to predict based on
past sales. Most firms’ maintain a ‘bearish’ opinion on Apple
stock, and they pointed out that the current report from MS
has not brought the value of the stock price up since their
report. In fact, Apple stock has plummeted as much as 25%
post launch of the iPhone 5, which saw a 52-week high of
705.00 U.S. dollars.
Steve Jobs film to feature
just three scenes
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/steve-jobs-film-to-feature-just-three-
scenes/17911.html
November 16th, 2012
The upcoming film based on Steve Jobs' life and work may
only have three scenes if award-winning Aaron Sorkin's
script becomes reality.
The upcoming film based on Steve Jobs' life and work may
only have three scenes if award-winning Aaron Sorkin's
script becomes reality.
Sorkin, who wrote the screenplay for The Social Network,
revealed that he plans to show three iconic moments from

3
the late Jobs' career, following each scene in real time for a
kind of quasi-24 effect.
The unusual treatment differs starkly from the more
comprehensive coverage of Jobs' entire life in Walter
Isaacson's biography, which is the book that Sony originally
paid for before it had been completed, but the novel
approach could prove insightful into some of the world's
biggest product launches.
The idea is to cover the lead-up backstage to the launch of
the original Mac and iPod, with the third scene focusing
on a product launch from Jobs' time at Next Computer.
Surprisingly the iPhone and iPad do not seem to make the
cut.
Each scene will play out 30 minutes of events in real-time,
rather than flitting back and forward to cut out the boring
bits. This will give viewers a sense that they are watching
actual events as they unfolded, as if it had been caught on a
camera behind the scenes.
Sorkin said he won't be using Isaacson's biography, but is
instead doing his own research, meeting with various people
connected with Jobs over the years, including Apple co-
founder Steve Wozniak.
The screenwriter also hopes to end the film with the first
version of Apple's “Think Different” TV ad, which would
certainly epitomise his approach to Jobs' career. A more
traditional biopic starring Ashton Kuchter is also in the
works, and it will remain to be seen which of the two will
prove most successful on the big screen.
Image Credit: Matthew Yohe
Researchers discover way to
boost congested Wi-Fi speeds
by 700 percent
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/researchers-discover-way-to-boost-
congested-wi-fi-speeds-by-700-percent/17910.html
November 16th, 2012
Researchers have discovered a way to improve speeds on
congested Wi-Fi networks by as much as 700 percent,
potentially revolutionising crowded public hotspots.
Researchers have discovered a way to improve speeds on
congested Wi-Fi networks by as much as 700 percent,
potentially revolutionising crowded public hotspots.
A team from the North Carolina State University is testing
WiFox software that optimises Wi-Fi networks to improve
speeds for everyone connected, with dramatic results when
there are a large amount of people hogging the same
connection.
One experiment was conducted on a network that could
handle up to 45 users, with a 400 percent increase in speed
noticed when 25 users were logged on. That figure jumped
to 700 percent when the full 45 users were connected, when
normally everyone on the network would suffer a serious
slow-down.
Arpit Gupta, head of the project, said that the technology
could be distributed as a software update to existing Wi-
Fi networks, which means it should be relatively pain-free
to increase speeds on the millions of private and public
networks throughout the world.
The importance of such a discovery cannot be overstated,
as anyone who has used a free public network in an
airport, library, café, or waiting room can attest too. These
connections are often so sluggish, thanks to so many people
trying to use them at once, that they are virtually unusable.

4
Any kind of improvement to this, and particularly such huge
improvements, will be welcomed by many.
John McAfee asks forum
about tracing mobile phones
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/john-mcafee-asks-forum-about-
tracing-mobile-phones/17908.html
November 16th, 2012
John McAfee, founder of the namesake anti-virus firm, has
sought advice on how quickly it takes for a phone company
to locate a mobile phone signal and if there is anything that
he could do to confuse or delay the system, according to
Gizmodo.
John McAfee, founder of the namesake anti-virus firm, has
sought advice on how quickly it takes for a phone company
to locate a mobile phone signal and if there is anything that
he could do to confuse or delay the system, according to
Gizmodo.
McAfee is wanted in Belize on suspicion of murdering his
neighbour, Gregory Faull, with whom he allegedly had a
falling out. He denies the allegations, but his latest request
online certainly does not help his case.
Gizmodo reports that late on Wednesday night McAfee
posted on a private forum under his well-known
“stuffmonger” alias to ask:
“How long does it take for a phone company to triangulate a
cell phone signal? With what accuracy? Is there any way to
confuse/delay the system? If a cell phone is turned off, but
the battery is installed, is there any way to locate the phone?
Are there any brands of phones are more/less difficult to
triangulate?”
Perhaps he thought the messages would not be tracked since
it was not a public forum, or perhaps his experimentation
with drugs has led to such erratic behaviour, but either way
such a post, suggesting McAfee might literally go on the run
rather than cooperating with police, who he thinks will kill
him, does little to vindicate him.
The Prime Minister of Belize called McAfee “extremely
paranoid, even bonkers.” McAfee stepped down from his
role in the anti-virus company in 1994 and Intel bought it in
2010, keeping the name, but Intel might now be inclined to
change it after these bizarre revelations.
Image Credit: Sofia Munoz/Associated Press
Foxconn to install 10,000
Foxbots to replace thousands
of workers
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/foxconn-to-install-10-000-foxbots-
to-replace-thousands-of-workers/17903.html
November 16th, 2012
The benefit of robotics is that it can replace the need of
human labor in various segments of manufacturing. Despite
the cut throat pay that Foxconn offers its manufacturing
workforce, the gadget producing behemoth of the east
has begun installing robots to replace its current oxygen
breathing, warm blooded employees.
Foxconn revealed awhile back that it will begin replacing
its human employees with robots, but it was not until
recently that the robotic arms and legs, amounting in several
thousands, began making their ways to the factories.
("What's beyond these walls?" | Image: ABC)
According to Foxconn, the company plans on deploying
10,000 robots to replace 10,000 to 20,000 workers. Within
three years, the number of robots will increase to 1 million,
thus, ousting somewhere around 1 million workers.
Blandly dubbed as the ‘Foxbots,’ these human replacements
will help to suppress attacks from workers’ rights
organizations and their accusations of poor employee
treatments. Financially for Foxconn, the move to install
robots will cost the company a fair amount. Each robot
costs Foxconn somewhere between $20,000 to $25,000,
and that’s about three times the annual salary of an average
worker. Also, take into account the maintenance of the
robots, and that means Foxconn has a big bill to pay.

5
In the long run, however, Foxconn will ultimately save
itself the trouble of having to deal with worker complaints,
negative media coverage, and wage increases.
Singularity Hub reports that Foxconn employs
approximately 1.2 million people, and the installation of 1
million robots will essentially lead to a massive layoff of
employees. Or maybe Foxconn will keep the majority of their
work force and give them all raises for being such dedicated
and loyal servants. Who really knows...
Google launches closed beta
Ingress, a free alternate
reality game for all
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/google-launches-closed-beta-ingress-
a-free-alternate-reality-game-for-all/17902.html
November 16th, 2012
Google is investing in fiber optics, entertainment, hardware,
cars, satellites and, hell… Google probably has its hands in
just about every aspect of technology today. So it shouldn’t
surprise us that Google recently launched a closed beta of
a free Android game that blends reality with the fictions of
the digital world. Dubbed as Ingress, Google’s new take
on alternate reality gaming has definitely caught some off
guard.
In Ingress, players actually have to get off the couch and
travel around in the real world to be able to accomplish
their goals. Once a player reaches his destination (be it
by walking, running, or teleportation) he can interact with
landmarks while using his phone as a ‘guide’ to figure out
what secrets that location might hold. Along the way, players
can collect “XM”, or virtual energy units, which can then be
used for unlocking other ‘portal’ missions.
Players are divided into two teams; the ‘Enlightened,’ which
are the people that accepts the power, and the ‘Resistance,’
which are the ones that are against the power.
“The concept is something like World of Warcraft, where
everyone in the world is playing the same game,” said John
Hanke of Niantic Labs, the force behind Ingress.
While the game is an interesting addition to the line-up of
Google products, Ingress itself does serve another purpose.
And by purpose, I meant to say advertising. Some well-
known brands such as Zipcar and Jamba Juice are involved
in some ways with the game. Whether it’s directly or
indirectly, Ingress will help expose players various brands as
they progress in the game.
The game does not have an infinite cycle as the creator has
confirmed that there will be an end to the madness after
about a year and a half. Ingress is a free app available to
Android to users, but currently the game is in closed beta
and only invited players are allowed to navigate the alternate
reality to determine the fate of mankind. You can request an
invite via the Ingresswebsite.
Sims 3: Seasons Expansion
Pack released
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/sims-3-seasons-expansion-pack-
released/17897.html
November 16th, 2012
As of November 13th 2012, Simmers can rejoice at the
release of EA's Sims 3: Seasons expansion pack. Seasons are
here, and they include weather. Sunny, rainy, snowy, foggy,
and even hail-y!
With this expansion pack, gamers can now see physical shifts
in the (literal) atmosphere of their world. It adds seasons,
of course – spring, summer, fall, and winter – but it doesn't
stop there. All sorts of weather will now be available – snow
snow storms and rain both take a big role in the lives of your
Sims, letting them use umbrellas in the rain and appropriate
clothing in the snow. Sunny, rainy, snowy, foggy, and even
hail-y! Wondering what weather is coming next? Your Sim
can check out the weather channel for all the updates.
Each season comes with one specific holiday to match, and
the town now takes notice! Watch for pumpkin carving,
snow ball fights, and kissing booths to appear during their
particular season.

6
This expansion pack has been long awaited by fans of the
series. The previous installment, The Sims 2, also had a
Seasons expansion pack, which was highly acclaimed and
very popular with the Simmers. While the Sims 2 version
added the seasons, much of the new material in the Sims
3 version will be in the holidays and festivals. After EA's
most recent expansion for the game, the Supernatural
pack, enthusiasts were wowed at the sheer amount of
content included. Directly after that release, they announced
the Seasons pack... which has left many excited, waiting
impatiently for the release. The day has come and gone, and
Seasons is out on shelves now.
The game has two versions – original and limited. The
limited version features an Ice Lounge community lot, where
your Sims can go and cool down in the summer. It features
an ice bar, ice furniture, and pub table. Tthe extra content
isn't massive, but that hasn't stopped fans from going the
extra mile to pick up a limited copy.
Gamers have yet to collectively sound-off on how they like or
dislike the expansion pack; this may be due to many being
too busy actually playing the expansion pack. Go figure.
New use for the Wii: YouTube
set-top box
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/new-use-for-the-wii-youtube-set-
top-box/17900.html
November 16th, 2012
YouTube has finally released an app so that Wii owners can
enjoy content from the video-sharing site without having to
move over to a laptop or another gaming console.
Starting today, Nintendo Wii owners in the U.S. can stream
YouTube videos directly to their consoles, and while many of
us are anticipating the release of the Wii U it’s nice to know
that the original Wii hasn’t quite lost all purposes just yet.
The YouTube app on the Wii won’t be as feature-packed as
it is on a PC browser, but nevertheless YouTube promises
that users will be able to “watch the shows and channels
[they] love… like The Book Club…or the official Nintendo
Wii YouTube channel.” The app will also enable users to flip
through categories like Gaming, Music, and trending videos.
Interactivity was one of the main selling points of the Wii,
and now YouTube is trying to build upon that focus. Do
you have a hankering for learning how to get ripped abs or
do yoga? Flip through the Wii YouTube app using your Wii
controller to enjoy exactly what you’re looking for.

7
The Wii U is coming soon, but don’t toss it’s elder into the
closet just yet. Use it as a set-top box!
Study finds 4G LTE has
devastating weaknesses
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/study-finds-4g-lte-has-devastating-
weaknesses/17899.html
November 16th, 2012
Many mobile carriers have invested billions upon billions of
dollars to upgrade their network infrastructures to support
4G LTE, but just like many modern marvels the network
itself does have an Achilles’ heel.
A recent Virginia Tech study found that wiping out 4G
LTE signal in a large area won't be that hard. According
to the study, the control instructions that regulates the
LTE signal makes up less than 1 percent of the overall
signal being sent. Hence, all a person has to do is
‘jam’ that 1 percent of the signal and down goes the
network. A crucial portion of this 1 percent is the
time synchronization and signal synchronization that helps
mobile LTE devices communicates with the towers. By
transmitting an amplified signal with the same frequency as
the synchronization signal, it is possible to disrupt the entire
network in a large area.
“Your phone is constantly syncing with the base station. If
you can disrupt that synchronization, you will not be able
to send or receive data,” said Marc Lichtman, a research
assistant in the study.
(Jam your neighbor's 4G with this radio unit)
Something like a $650 software-defined radio unit drawing
power from a car battery can serve as the disruptive
contraption. Although the idea sounds simple enough, it
does take a bit of technical LTE knowledge and engineering
know-how to actually carry out this experiment.
Jamming the synchronization signal is just one method that
may be used to disrupt LTE service, as there are about 8
point of attacks in total. The LTE signal is made up of
subsystems, and if one subsystem goes the whole thing gets
spoiled.
“There are multiple weak spots—about eight different
attacks are possible. The LTE signal is very complex, made
up of many subsystems, and in each case, if you take out one
subsystem, you take out the entire base station,” according
to the researchers.
One could say that even if LTE service gets disrupted, there
is still 2G and 3G to fall back on. However, that may not
be the case as many carriers are beginning to phase out the
previous standards and promoting the latest.
(Verizon currently boasts the most 4G coverage in the
United States)
The LTE study itself found possible weaknesses to the LTE
infrastructure, but according to the researchers there aren’t
any permanent solutions as of yet.
“Although we’ve identified the problem, we don’t necessarily
have the solutions. It’s virtually impossible to bring in
mitigation strategies that are also backward compatible and
cover it all,” said one of the researchers.
“LTE does a good job of covering [digital cellular systems].
But unconventional security aspects, such as preventing
signal jamming, have been largely overlooked,” said Jeff
Reed, the director of the research group.

1
geeks.
Star Citizen breaks crowd
funding record!
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/star-citizen-breaks-crowd-funding-
record-/17925.html
November 17th, 2012
The new pc exclusive space sim game Star Citizen had
broken a world record, gaining more financial backing from
it's fans than any other crowd funded project in history.
Star Citizen, the ambitious new space sim currently being
developed by Chris Roberts (of Wing Commander fame) has
broken a world record. The game, which is due out in 2014
has been on crowdfunding for almost a month now, and a
short while ago, it became the most successful crowdfunding
project of all time, breaking the previous record as it passed
the $4.2 million mark. This record means the project has
gathered more than double that of it's initial goal of $2
million.
In game screenshot
There's now barely two days left in the crowdfunding effort,
and as is usually the case, the contributions are flooding in
at an accelerated pace. The developers, who are promising
unlocks such as new features, richer storyline and a more
expansive universe as the supporters pass certain funding
goals, are stating that they can't produce concept art quickly
enough to keep up with the donations at this point.
New USB key safely stores a
person's medical data
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/new-usb-key-safely-stores-a-person-
s-medical-data/17922.html
November 17th, 2012
A company called SmartMetric Inc. has created a new type of
device that stores your medical record data in a small keying.
This storage device is unique in that it will give caregivers
access immediately and that it is stored locally and not in
some central database.
In this day and age of digital storage you simply cannot be too
careful with your personal information, let alone a detailed
medical history. Now a company called SmartMetric Inc.
has created a new type of secure storage device that keeps
100% of your medical record data in a small keying. This
storage device is unique in that it will give medical staff
instant access to your data while keeping your information
safe and activated only by the patient's fingerprint.
In a November 15, 2012 press release, SmartMetric Inc.
announced a new product that can safely store the users
medical records all contained and encrypted inside of a
small keying with USB connection usable on a PC or MAC
computer. This medical history storage device is plug and
play ready, and it allows your medical doctor or other
healthcare professional to instantly access your medical
history without the need of doing a check from some central
database.
According to the company this small device will save the lives
of many people entering into an emergency room because
it allows the ER staff to know exactly what their patient’s
history is without any wait. The key ring storage will offer
up to 128GB of data, which is a large amount of storage data
for any USB memory device. This large amount of memory
will allow a patient to store X-ray images, CAT scans and all
manner of image data important to the patient.
While many might be fearful of carrying around their entire
life on a keying there is no need to worry because all of
the data is encrypted and stored locally. Even if the device
is lost or stolen it cannot be activated without the users
hands since it needs the patient’s fingerprint in order to
open the drive. Upon release by the patient, the drive is

2
given to the medical staff that takes it to their own system
to look through the patient’s history and then they can make
important decisions about the patient’s medical care.
WordPress goes ad-free for a
fee
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/wordpress-goes-ad-free-for-a-
fee/17921.html
November 17th, 2012
WordPress Bloggers of the world take note, you can now go
ad-free on your account! WordPress.com, which is probably
the most popular free blogging sites on the Net, has begun
implementing payment options for the user to go totally ad-
free for a nominal fee.
WordPress.com, which is one of the most popular free
blogging sites on the Internet, has now begun allowing
payment options for things such as allowing bloggers to go
ad-free. These new options being offered by WordPress will
allows user to pay only via Bitcoin, which is currently an
on-line currency exchange system similar to PayPal but all
transactions are carried out through BitCoin's own network,
void of any 3rd party.
WordPress’s decision to allow users to go add-free is
welcome news to lots of users who enjoy blogging on the
popular site. However, there will be some costs involved and
users may only use the services offered by paying through the
Bitcoin system. While many people prefer the use of PayPal
and the ever-popular credit card, Wordpress felt that Bitcoin
was a better method of payment.
Currently PayPal and many credit card companies have
restrictions on uses in many places around the globe due
to problems associated with on-line theft and local politics,
such as trade embargos. In regards to the latest payment
through Bitcoin, Wordpress blogger Andy Skelton writes,
“Bitcoin is a digital currency that enables instant payments
over the Internet. Unlike credit cards and PayPal, Bitcoin has
no central authority and no way to lock entire countries out
of the network. Merchants who accept Bitcoin payments can
do business with anyone.”
Many people might still insist on using PayPal for on-line
payments because of its on-line protection plan. Wordpress
wants these people to know they can be rest assured, and
they will be honoring refunds with any transaction done
through Bitcoin payments for the site. And while BitPay
does not offer refunds themselves, Wordpress says they will
back up any grievances with any customers who are unhappy
with the ad-free service for reimbursement.
The cost of going ad free on WordPress will be 30 U.S. dollars
per year and you can read more about it by clicking here.
RIM reveals BlackBerry
10 focuses heavily on
multitasking
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/rim-reveals-blackberry-10-focuses-
heavily-on-multitasking/17924.html
November 17th, 2012
BlackBerry 10 isn't due out for almost three more months,
but that hasn't stopped RIM from agressively trying to
convince people that its latest OS should not be overlooked.
RIM’s BlackBerry 10 (BB10) OS isn’t exactly the most
anticipated tech launch of the year, but it’s still worth looking
into if you haven’t already decided on an Android, iPhone, or
Windows Phone. The Canadian-based handset maker hasn’t
seen much success in the smartphone market in recent years,
but its CEO, Thorsten Heins, is hoping that RIM’s latest OS
will help BlackBerry regain its foothold.
Due for launch at the end of January next year, BB10 will
probably make it or break it for RIM. Despite all the
speculations about the ultimate demise of the BlackBerry
brand, there may be a chance for RIM to regain what little
prominence it once had. Multitasking seems to be somewhat
lacking in Android and iOS, and that’s where BB10 aims to
rise above the rest.
Muy Computer recently posted a 10 minute video in which
RIM’s Regional Senior Product Manager, Claudio Roselli,
gave viewers a taste of BB10’s multitasking prowess. The
demo is in Spanish, but you don’t have to know the language
to know what’s being shown. Roselli demonstrated that
BB10 users can accomplish quite a few tasks within a short
amount of time with simple finger gestures.
BB10’s app count is still low, but the video reveals
that the drawer isn’t filled with chirping crickets either.
Furthermore, RIM has been aggressively trying to persuade
developers to port apps to BB10, and supposedly porting an
Android app to BB10 is as easy as installing a plugin for
Eclipse.
BlackBerry supporters will likely love everything about
RIM’s new smartphone OS, and for the sake of RIM’s future
let’s hope that others will feel the same.
New Borderlands 2 "Mr.
Torgue's Campaign of
Carnage" DLC inbound
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/new-borderlands-2-mr.-torgue-s-
campaign-of-carnage-dlc-inbound/17917.html
November 17th, 2012
In a sheer hilarious style, Gearbox has revealed a new DLC
for their zany shooter slash RPG in a series of humorous
ECHOcast tweets. Jump in for more info!

3
Gearbox, the developers of the exponentially popular
shooter/RPG hybrid Borderlands series, have revealed the
last two DLC's to their newly released sequel in a creative
way: through the interactivity of social networking.
Utilizing their @ECHOcast Twitter feed, Gearbox made it
appear as if someone were hacking their account, tying in a
brand new nefarious baddie from the Borderlands universe
to the digital tampering. Mr. Torgue has apparently taken
over the ECHOcast and is running amok, spraying visceral
oddities and hilarity to all of Gearbox's followers.
Mr. Torgue only hinted at the new Borderlands 2 DLC via
the hijacked ECHOcast Twitter feed before it was officially
announced on Gearbox's website as "Mr. Torgue's
Campaign of Carnage", featuring a brand new ringleader
for total chaos and havoc--which are signature staples to any
Borderlands game.
This story-driven expansion challenges players
to conquer all that the titular Mr. Torgue has
waiting in his newly-constructed Badass Crater
of Badassitude, complete with a new storyline,
new areas and environments, new bosses, new
guns, new character customizations and more.
In addition, Mr. Torgue's Campaign of Carnage
features appearances from fan-favorite characters
like Tiny Tina and Mad Moxxi!
Mr. Torgue's Campaign of Carnage will be available on
Tuesday Nov. 20, 2012 for Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and PC
for $9.99 (800 Microsoft Points) For more information on ,
please visit Gearbox's official website, or talk to the crazy
madman himself via Gearbox's Twitter feed: @ECHOcast.
Corsair Neutron GTX 480GB
SSD Review
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/corsair-neutron-gtx-480gb-ssd-
review/17919.html
November 17th, 2012
As the controller is the most important part of a SSD drive
and virtually defines the entirety of its performance, it is
only natural that every company is seeking the optimal
solution in order to gain leverage over the others. Corsair
surprised us recently with the launch of their new high end
drives, the Neutron series, which were based on a Link-A-
Media controller, a Japanese company without any history
in the SSD market. Today we will see what kind of fruits
this partnership brought about as we will be reviewing the
current flagship SSD from Corsair, the Neutron GTX 480GB
drive.
As the controller is the most important part of a SSD drive
and virtually defines the entirety of its performance, it is
only natural that every company is seeking the optimal
solution in order to gain leverage over the others. Corsair
surprised us recently with the launch of their new high end
drives, the Neutron series, which were based on a Link-A-
Media controller, a Japanese company without any history
in the SSD market. Today we will see what kind of fruits
this partnership brought about as we will be reviewing the
current flagship SSD from Corsair, the Neutron GTX 480GB
drive.
The Corsair Neutron GTX 480GB is based on a
Link_A_Media (LAMD) LM87800 controller, not any
different than the "Vanilla" Neutron SSD which we
had the chance to test a few weeks back. However,
certain improvements allow the GTX version to achieve
considerably higher speeds, making it (on paper) the fastest
SSD which Corsair currently produces. We will soon find out
just how much faster the GTX version is and how well it
compares against some competition.
Manufacturer features and specifications
SSD Unformatted Capacity 480 GB
Max Sequential R/W (ATTO) 555 MB/s sequential read
511 MB/s sequential write
Max Random 4k Write
(IOMeter 08)
85k IOPS (4k aligned)
Interface SATA 6Gb/s
Form Factor 2.5 inch
DRAM Cache Memory 256MB
Weight .1kg
Voltage 5V ±5%
Power Consumption (active) 4.6W Max
Power Consumption (idle/
standby/sleep)
0.6W Max
S.M.A.R.T. Support Yes
Shock 1500 G
MTBF 2,000,000 hours

4
Energizer launches
14,000mAh Super Battery to
power your USB devices
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/energizer-launches-14-000mah-
super-battery-to-power-your-usb-devices/17914.html
November 17th, 2012
For those busy folks who are always in need of an extra
charge, Japan Trust Technology have teamed up with
Energizer batteries to release an external battery which can
power your notebook for just a wee bit longer.
The battery in question is an Energizer XP14000 mobile
battery, which has a capacity of 14,000mAh. The unit is
selling at an open price, but current estimates put an RRP of
15,800 (~94USD) Yen on the device.
A lack of connectivity would be fatal for a product like
this, and Japan Trust Tech have made sure not to make
that mistake. The battery is able to output at 19V/3A, and
comes with 6 different kinds of AC connectors. In addition to
this, the battery pack also comes equipped with 5V/1A and
5V/2.1A output USB ports, which means that you can also
use the nifty little unit to charge up your smartphone, iPad,
PSP, or 3DS on the go. Gamers rejoice.
Despite its small size, apparently the battery carries enough
juice to power an Atom based netbook for an extra 4.5 hours
(under moderate usage conditions). Not bad at all.
Speaking of its size, the exact dimensions of the XP14000
are 155x98x23mm (Width x Length x Height), and it has a
weight of approx. 375g.
If the aforementioned myriad of connectors still weren’t
enough for you tech geeks, you can still order the device with
an optional 12, 15, or 16V voltage converter cable. And as an
added bonus, users who purchase the battery pack are also
offered up 2 free connector adaptor chips (although you do
have to fork out for p&p when you order them).
Head on over to Japan Trust Tech’s homepage for more info.
Scott Derrickson to direct
movie adaptation of Deus Ex:
Human Revolution
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/scott-derrickson-to-direct-movie-
adaptation-of-deus-ex-human-revolution/17916.html

5
November 17th, 2012
The popular cyberpunk video game Deus Ex: Human
Revolution has been greenlit for a movie adaptation, and
noteworthy director Scott Derrickson (Sinister) is at the
helm.
Deus Ex: Human Revolution is a direct sequel to the
cult-classic PC game Deus Ex release in 2000, featuring
a continuation of the franchise's signature futuristic
cyberpunk dystopia and stylish mix of FPS action and deep
story plots full of intrigue and decption.
Receiving a warm reception in the gaming world, Human
Revolution blends science fiction with futuristic sleuthing,
as gamers take hold of the game's cybernetically augmented
protagonist Adam Jensen and utilize both raw power
and tactical stealth to uncover hidden conspiracies and
overthrow the totalitarian government.
Based on the game's success and distinct visual style, Scott
Derrickson (the director of Sinister) was thrilled to take
charge of the game's movie adaptation for CBS Films:
“Deus Ex is a phenomenal cyberpunk game with
soul and intelligence,” Derrickson commented. “By
combining amazing action and tension with big,
philosophical ideas, Deus Ex is smart, ballsy, and
will make one hell of a movie."
It's always a huge plus when a director of a game adaptation
is a fan of the game itself, and hopefully Derrickson will stay
true to the franchise and not go off on tangents. Considering
that gamers may be the main constituency to see a movie
based on a video game, movie producers and directors
should keep the film closely tied to the original source
material.
Having played Deus Ex: Human Revolution myself I can
honestly say that the game plays like a movie, featuring
full voice-acting dialong, an engaging story arc replete with
secrets and betrayal, and enjoyable fast-paced action. What's
more is that the game itself paralells a societal conundrum
that's eerily realistic, painting a visceral and dystopic view of
our not-too-distant future.
No information has yet been confirmed on who is to star in
the upcoming adaptation or when it will be released, but I
for one am excited to see this game get an adaptation. For
more information be sure to check Entertainment Weekly's
article on the upcoming film.
Spike announces VGA 2012
nominees
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/spike-announces-vga-2012-
nominees/17915.html
November 17th, 2012
Spike reveals the top nominees for this year's annual VGA
2012, celebrating its tenth anniversary while showcasing this
year's best video games. Oh, and it's hosted by Samuel L.
Jackson!
Spike TV's annual Video Game Awards celebration is back,
and the nominees for VGA 2012 have been revealed.for
the various categories including Game of the Year, Best
Independent Game, Best Song in a Game, etc. Along with
celebrating this year's best video game titles, Spike is
also celebrating its tenth anniversary of the VGA award
ceremony.
Spike's Video Game Awards showcase this year's best
releases, allowing gamers and fans across the world to vote
for their favorite titles and tune in to see the winners on
Spike TV. This year's VGA 2012 is hosted by Samuel L.
Jackson--yes, the highly esteemed Sam Jackson--and will
feature Spike's signature hilarious style which makes the
ceremony quite a fun ride.
Nominees for VGA 2012's Game of the Year are:
• Assassin's Creed III
• The Walking Dead: The Game
• Dishonored
• Journey
• Mass Effect 3
Be sure to vote for your favorite games today and have your
voice heard!

6
You can catch Spike's VGA 2012 celebration live on Friday,
Dec. 7 at 9p ET / 7p PT. For more information be sure to visit
Spike's official VGA website.
Grand Theft Auto: Vice City
pulled from digital stores
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/grand-theft-auto-vice-city-pulled-
from-digital-stores/17905.html
November 17th, 2012
If you went to purchase Grand Theft Auto: Vice City recently
and couldn't find it, there is good reason – it was pulled.
According to Rockstar Games, the maker and distributor for
the game, there is an issue licensing for some music found
on the game.
Rockstar Games, which markets and produces numerous
video games recently had to pull their Grand Theft Auto:
Vice city game from digital stores due to a possible copyright
licensing claim on one of the songs imbedded in the game.
In a recent statement from the company they write: “Due
to some music licensing issues, we’ve had to temporarily
remove Vice City PC from digital stores. We’ll make it
available again as soon as possible.”
While many Internet gaming forums have rumored it may
be about a Michael Jackson track, there has been no
official statement in regards to the rumor or exactly the
issue is all about. A few on-line gaming sites such as
gameinformer.com are reporting the company stated that
the iOS and Android version of the game will still be available
very soon.
Rockstar Games began in 1998 and is a wholly owned
subsidiary of Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc. The
company famous for such games as Grand Theft Auto, Max
Payne, The Warriors and all manner of intense action games
suited to all manner of free range or open world style of
playing. The company is also known for their own game
engine called the Rockstar Advanced Game Engine (RAGE),
which enabled players to use the home PC, Play Station 3,
Xbox 360 and the Wii gaming systems. Their website can be
found at Rockstargames.

1
geeks.
SpaceX claims Europe's
Ariane 5 rocket has "no
chance"
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/spacex-claims-europe-s-ariane-5-
rocket-has-no-chance-/17955.html
November 19th, 2012
The CEO of commercial space agency SpaceX, Elon Musk,
has mocked Europe's once-prized Ariane 5 rockets as having
“no chance” against his company's new Falcon 9.
The CEO of commercial space agency SpaceX, Elon Musk,
has mocked Europe's once-prized Ariane 5 rockets as having
“no chance” against his company's new Falcon 9.
“Ariane 5 has no chance,” he told the BBC. “I don't say that
with a sense of bravado but there's really no way for that
vehicle to compete with Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy. If I were
in the position of Ariane, I would really push for an Ariane
6.”
The Ariane 5 currently holds one of the top spots in a small
but growing market for launching satellites and other vessels
into space, but SpaceX's cheaper Falcon model is enticing
many to switch contracts.
The European Space Agency (ESA) is meeting this week to
discuss the fate of the Ariane programme, with Germany
calling for an upgrade of the existing model and France
calling for development of the next-generation Ariane 6. The
agency faces tough challenges, however, with member states
required to subsidise the cost of the rockets at a price of €217
million for 2011 and 2012.
Musk boasts that Ariane rockets “sure as hell can't compete
with the next [Falcon 9],” which he said will actually come
at a cheaper price than the current already comparatively
affordable model, which costs less than $60 million per
flight.
It is no wonder then that SpaceX already has 40 contracts
under its wing, despite the Falcon having only made four
flights to date. Ariane's longer history and reliability may
help it in the interim, but as SpaceX makes more successful
launches it will become an even more attractive option.
It looks like the future for space exploration will be
outsourced to private companies. Given budget cutbacks in
the US and Europe, this is probably a good thing for those
hoping to keep interest in the final frontier.
Amazon boasts week-long
Black Friday sales
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/amazon-boasts-week-long-black-
friday-sales/17954.html

2
November 19th, 2012
Amazon has unveiled its Black Friday Lightning Deals
running all week through 24 November, with up to 70
percent off select items, including electronics, toys, clothing,
DVDs, and books.
Amazon has unveiled its Black Friday Lightning Deals
running all week through 24 November, with up to 70
percent off select items, including electronics, toys, clothing,
DVDs, and books.
Some discounted TVs include a Samsung 40-inch Smart
LED HDTV for $448, a Toshiba 40-inch LCD TV for $179,
a Panasonic VIERA 55-inch Smart 3D LED HDTV for $899,
and a VIZIO 60-inch Razor Smart LED HDTV for $688.
Other discounted electronics include a Lenovo G585 15.6-
inch laptop for $199.99, Dell Inspiron i14z 14-ich Ultrabook
for $499.99, a Canon EOS Rebel T2i digital SLR camera
for $699, a Panasonic Lumix ZS20 high sensitivity digital
camera with 20X optical zoom for $199, and a Fujifilm
Finepix SL300 14 megapixel digital camera with 30X optical
zoom for $149.99.
Gamers can get their hands on an Xbox 360 250GB bundle
with two games and one month's Xbox Live membership for
$199 or a 250GB PlayStation 3 bundle with two games and
one month of PlayStation Plus for the same price.
Other discounts include up to 60 percent off outerwear for
men, women and children, up to 70 percent off designer
shoes, up to 60 percent off black diamond stud earrings, 50
percent off select Melissa & Doug toys, up to 67 percent off
movies and TV shows, and up to 60 percent off books.
“We’re offering customers our widest selection of Black
Friday Lightning Deals ever and we’re bringing doorbuster
deals to shoppers earlier this year,” said Ben Hartman, VP of
Consumer Electronics for Amazon “Customers should check
our Black Friday Deals Store regularly to find a vast selection
of great gifts at great prices. Plus, there is no need to stand
in long lines, fight crowds, or brave the cold weather – shop
from the convenience of home.”
With Adobe predicting $2 billion of online sales on this
Cyber Monday alone, and a 12 percent increase in Black
Friday sales over last year, Amazon is sure to benefit from
the shopping frenzy over the coming week.
Samsung bundles Far Cry 3
with 250GB SSD
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/samsung-bundles-far-cry-3-
with-250gb-ssd/17953.html
November 19th, 2012
Samsung is bundling its 250GB SSD 840 drive with Far Cry 3
from Ubisoft from this Black Friday through Cyber Monday,
with an additional discount off the normal price to boot.
Samsung is bundling its 250GB SSD 840 drive with Far Cry 3
from Ubisoft from this Black Friday through Cyber Monday,
with an additional discount off the normal price to boot.
From the 22 November to 26 November gamers will be able
to get their hands on a free download of Far Cry 3, a week
before its official release in Europe and nearly two weeks
before its launch in North America.
The Black Friday weekend deal will save customers $59.99
on the game itself, along with $20 on the list price of the
solid-state drive, which Samsung is offering for $169.99
during the special promotion.
The SSD 840 employs a SATA 6.0 Gb/s interface, a triple-
core MDX controller, and triple-level cell Toggle DDR2 flash
memory for an affordable SSD option. This delivers random
read speeds of up to 92,000 input-output operations per

3
second and sequential speeds of up to 530MB/s, in addition
to a longer battery life, less heat, less noise, and improved
reliability compared to standard hard disk drives. Samsung
also offers 120GB and 500GB variants.
Far Cry 3 is Ubisoft's upcoming sandbox first-person
shooter, stranding players on a tropical island, where the
locals are not exactly friendly. There will be traditional
combat involved, along with role-playing elements like skill
trees and crafting. The game will benefit from the faster
loading times of an SSD, and considering the usually high
prices of SSDs, this is a bargain offer this Black Friday
weekend.
New Uncharted is a trading
card game, drops in
December
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/new-uncharted-is-a-trading-card-
game-drops-in-december/17952.html
November 19th, 2012
The new Uncharted game, "Fight for Fortune" has received
it's first trailer. If you were expecting another globetrotting
adventure, you'll likely be disappointed to hear that it's a
trading card game for the Playstation Vita
A while back we reported on the classification of a new
Uncharted game. The Australian and Brazilian classification
boards revealed a new game in the action adventure
franchise by listing a page for Uncharted: Fight for Fortune
back in October. This served as the first official word of the
game's existence, but there was some confusion as to what
we'd be playing. The classification of the game labeled it as a
card game and having little to no violence, swearing or adult
situations.
Well, the first trailer for the game has arrived, so we can
finally get an idea of what Fight for Fortune is all about.
It's all about cards. The new game is a trading card game,
akin to Magic the Gathering and will feature many of the
protagonists and villains from the franchise. Notably, the
game will tie in with Uncharted: Golden Abyss, allowing
players of Abyss to collect items in-game that they can use
in Fight for Fortune.
This, no doubt, will not be a game in everyone's taste. It
certainly doesn't seem to be the kind of game Uncharted's
core audience is most interested in playing. Personally, I
had hoped that an Uncharted card game would involve
sitting around a poker table with the likes of Sully and
Zorin Lazarevic. A trading card game however, just feels
out of place to me. Check out the trailer below, and judge
for yourself! Uncharted: Fight for Fortune will hit stores in
December.
Meth might be effective
against combating Flu
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/meth-might-be-effective-against-
combating-flu/17951.html
November 19th, 2012
Methamphetamine is addictive, harmful, and lowers your
immune response... but it might just be effective against
fighting the flu, according to a new experiment conducted in
a lab
Researchers, from the National Health Research Institutes
in Taiwan and the University of Regensburg in Germany
have been doing research in to the effects Methamphetamine
has on different viral infections. There's a lot of research
indicating that, continued use of meth makes you more
susceptible to infections as it lowers your immune response.
However, the same does not seem to be the case with the flu.
The research team used a small sample of human lung tissue,
which was kept alive in a lab, and administered meth to
it before exposing it to the H1N1 influenza virus. This is
the same subtype of influenza which the media calls swine
flu, and is closely related to the influenza variation which
occurs in pigs. Astonishingly, the lung cells demonstrated an
increased ability to combat the infection.
Walter and Jesse aren't bad guys - they're just trying to help
you get over your flu
This research however, is far from conclusive: The
experiment was done with only one type of cell, which was
exposed to only one type of flu. Further more,. the entire
experiment was performed in a laboratory environment,
so it is entirely unknown how the treatment would affect
living humans or animals. Even if it was a conclusive finding
though, the question arises as to how smart it would be to
invest in meth as a flu treatment...

4
The Wikipedia page for Methamphetamine lists the physical,
psychological and long term effects of meth abuse. The list
is a mile long and includes symptoms such as heart attack,
paranoia, psychosis, memory loss.. and of course death. And
if that's not enough to convince you, go watch Breaking Bad.
Actually, go ahead and watch that anyway.
Start8 App returns start
menu to Windows, sells in
tens of thousands
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/start8-app-returns-start-menu-to-
windows-sells-in-tens-of-thousands/17949.html
November 19th, 2012
Windows 8 did something rather bold when they decided
to rid themselves of the start menu and put their money on
Modern UI instead. As with any bold move, there's plenty of
people who like it the old way, and the app known as Start8
is proof of this.
Ridding Windows 8 of the iconic start menu is one of
the most controversial things Microsoft has done in recent
years, and a lot of people are uncomfortable with the idea.
Streamlining issues between the desktop mode and Modern
UI doesn't make things better. Stardock has developed a new
application called Start8, a mod for Windows 8 which brings
back the start menu (as it appears in Windows 7) to the
desktop mode.
Windows 8's users seem to be keen on seeing the start menu
return to their computers. A spokesperson for Stardock
said to USA Today that their $5 app has sold in the tens
of thousands since it was released on October 26. In fact,
the spokesperson referred to the release as "floodgates
opening". The free version of the app has also been
downloaded tens of thousands of times.
An update was released for the app which restores even more
of the old Windows feel, including a function which disables
the start screen when you click in the lower left corner. You'll
also be able to drag and drop items in the start menu.
Be Quiet Dark Power Pro 10
850W PSU Review
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/be-quiet-dark-power-pro-10-850w-
psu-review/17950.html
November 19th, 2012
A few weeks ago we had a look at the Dark Power Pro 10
550W power supply, a product with low maximum output
but of stunning quality and performance. Although it was a
great product, it definitely was not enough for the system
of an advanced enthusiast or hardcore gamer. Be Quiet
responded to this by sending the 850W version of the same
unit in for review, the output of which makes it capable
of powering multi-CPU and multi-GPU systems. Can it
perform as well as the smaller version though? We will soon
find out.
A few weeks ago we had a look at the Dark Power Pro 10
550W power supply, a product with low maximum output
but of stunning quality and performance. Although it was a
great product, it definitely was not enough for the system
of an advanced enthusiast or hardcore gamer. Be Quiet
responded to this by sending the 850W version of the same
unit in for review, the output of which makes it capable
of powering multi-CPU and multi-GPU systems. Can it
perform as well as the smaller version though? We will soon
find out.
The Dark Power Pro 10 units are the high-end series of Be
Quiet, a reputable German manufacturer. This series consist
of six units, with their outputs ranging from 550W up to
1200W; however, only the units up to 850W are 80Plus
Platinum certified. This also means that today we also have
on our bench table the most powerful 80Plus Platinum
certified Be Quiet has to offer at this point of time.

5
• Virtually silent operation achieved through a broad
array of meticulous optimizations, including use of be
quiet!’s custom-designed 135mm SilentWings® fan
• SilentWings fan features airflow-optimized fan blades,
fluid dynamic bearing with copper core and high
quality IC motor controller for the quietest possible
operation
• 80PLUS Platinum certification and up to 94% power
conversion efficiency let you do more work with the
same power and reduce your power bills
• 850 Watts of continuous power provide deep power
reserves for demanding computing applications
• NVidia SLI and AMD CrossfireX multi-GPU
certifications allow you to build intense Quad-GPU
systems with utter confidence
• Cable management with extra long cable reach
simplifies component installation and reduces
annoying clutter, increasing airflow and improving
cooling in even the largest PC cases
• Overclocking key allows switchover between
quadruple independent +12V rail mode and high-
performance single-rail operation
• German product conception, design and quality
control
Continuous power (W) 850
Peak power (W) 950
Form factor ATX 12VVersion 2.31
Form factor EPS 12VVersion 2.92
Modular cable management Y
Special technology LLC - DC/DC
Voltage (Vac) 100 - 240
Frequency (Hz) 50 - 60
Input current (A) 10 - 5
PFC active
Power factor at 100% load 0.99
Compliant to Intel C6 mode Y
Power consumption in
standby (W)
0.325
Average life time (h / 25°C) 300.000
Operating temperature up to
(°C)
40
12 V Rails (Multi-Rail
operation)
4
12 V Single Rail operation Y
Overclocking key Y
Output
+3.3V (A) 25
+5V (A) 25
+12V1 (A) 30
+12V2 (A) 30
+12V3 (A) 45
+12V4 (A) 45
+12V5 (A)
+12V6 (A)
-12V (A) 0.5
+5Vsb (A) 3
Max. combined current 12V
(A)
70
Max. combined power 12V
(W)
840
Max. combined power 3,3V
+ 5V (W)
140
Hold-up time (ms) 21
SITEX 2012 @ Singapore
EXPO Floor Plan and
Exhibitor List
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/sitex-2012--singapore-expo-floor-
plan-and-exhibitor-list/17948.html
November 19th, 2012
SITEX 2012 IT Exhibition Sales @ Singapore EXPO will
open on Thursday and run through this weekend! All the
action will be happening at Singapore EXPO (Changi South
Ave 1) Halls 4B, 5 and 6. Check out the official floor plans and
list of exhibitors to start planning for your shopping sprees!
SITEX 2012 IT Exhibition Sales @ Singapore EXPO will
open on Thursday and run through this weekend! All the
action will be happening at Singapore EXPO (Changi South
Ave 1) Halls 4B, 5 and 6. Check out the official floor plans and
list of exhibitors to start planning for your shopping sprees!
Surfers find fossil on beach
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/surfers-find-fossil-on-
beach/17946.html
November 19th, 2012

6
Two surfers enjoying an particularly low tide on a Santa Cruz
beach, have come across the skeletal remains of a whale
Some surfers enjoying the waves at a Santa Cruz beach
during an "extremely low tide", were walking across part
of the seabed where the ocean had receded, and stumbled
upon some bones. The bones, a row of vertebrae, were
photographed by one of the surfers, a Redditor calling
himself "Donkahones". Donkahones uploaded the picture
along with the caption "So I went surfing and saw a
dinosaur".
Whale, what do you know?
It wasn't a dinosaur precisely, but it was still something
old and extinct. Director Gary Griggs of the Institute of
Marine Sciences at the University of California, spoke to the
Huffington Post, and gave his views on the findings. In his
opinion, the bones are from an ancient, and extinct species
of whale from the Pliocene-era, some 3-5 million years ago.
He bases this opinion on the rocks the whale bones were
found in, a sedimentary rock known as a Pliocene Purisima
formation. "They... formed in a shallow marine environment
and contain lenses of mollusk shells... as well as numerous
marine mammal fossils" he explains.
This is not the first time a find like this has been discovered
in the area. During the construction of a seawall in 2009, a
similar, 44-inch vertebrae of a fossilized whale was found as
well.
Oakland airport traveller
apprehended for having
suspicious watch
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/oakland-airport-traveller-
apprehended-for-having-suspicious-watch/17943.html
November 19th, 2012
An artist traveling from Oakland airport, California, was
arrested for having a suspicious looking watch which looked
like a bomb detonator, however the device turned out to be
an art project.
Geoffrey McGann, an artist traveling out of Oakland airport
in California, was arrested Friday while trying to get through
airport security. The reason for his arrest was a decorative
watch he was wearing, which had cables and switches
coming out of it. The security personnel at the airport
noticed the watch and identified it as a possible device for
detonating a bomb. McGann stated that the watch was just a
watch, decorated unusually as an art project, but that it was
not a detonator. A bomb squad was called in and the airport
was swept. Unsurprisingly, there were no explosives in the
watch. McGann was also wearing suspicious boots, which
were unusually large and filled with insoles.
Geoffrey McGann, having a pretty bad day
McGann was taken into custody and moved to Santa Rita
Jail in Dublin, where he is still being held on charges of
possessing materials to make an explosive device, according
to the local Sheriff's department. This sounds like a nonsense
charge, and perhaps the most obvious reason McGann is
innocent is that nobody with an actual bomb would likely
wear the detonator on his wrist, visible for all to see. This of
course brings up the point that Mr. McGann doesn't seem
very clever: You simply do not go into an airport with stuffed
boots and wires coming out of your watch.
Fuji Film says 1 Tbyte discs
possible 2 years
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/fuji-film-says-1-tbyte-discs-
possible-2-years/17930.html
November 19th, 2012
In a recent research paper from Fuji Film, the company
stated they are working on a new recording method in which
a disc can hold 1TB of data by the use of a two-photon
absorbtion technique.
In a paper titled, “Two-photon Sensitized Recording
Materials for Multi-layer Optical Disk”, Masaharu AKIBA,
Eri GOTO-TAKAHASHI, Hiroo TAKIZAWA, et. al.,
elaborate on a method in which optical discs can be
recorded differently. This new method makes use of a two-
photon absorption technique in order to manufacture heat
and can be used on multiplayer discs. The two-photon
absorption can be focused on a minute area of the focal point
of the laser beam so it can provide the possibility for more
layers for recording data.
Two-photon absorption is basically defined as the
absorption of two photons (identical or different wave
lengths) at the same time, done in order to excite a molecule
from a zero-point energy state to a higher energy state. Fuji
claims that this new way of recording can give a recording
density of 25Gbytes per layer and 20 layers per side thereby

7
giving you a disc capable of holding 1Terrabyte of data. Fuji
even boasts that it may be possible to have discs holding as
much as 15Tb of data in the next few years.
While the actual production of the disc remains to be seen,
the data supported by the findings from the Fuji team have
proven the concept with empirical data. Fuji feels that these
new type of storage discs will be even less expensive to
produce than the popular Blu-Ray disc as well.
The data and findings on the new recording technique can
be seen here in a PDF document or directly from the Fuji
company website.
Cisco will acquire Meraki
Incorporated
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/cisco-will-acquire-meraki-
incorporated/17939.html
November 19th, 2012
Cisco Systems Inc. is offering over 1 billion dollars and
other special incentives to acquire a privately owned cloud
networking company called Meraki Inc.
The acquisition of Meraki Inc is the latest acquisition in just
one of many companies that Cisco has been acquiring.
Cisco Systems has been on something of an acquisition
run of late, and they just recently announced a 1.1 billion
dollar deal in acquiring Meraki, Inc. According to Cisco
the deal should be going through by January 2013. This
latest deal will help Cisco provide improved security when
it comes to cloud managed Wi-Fi networks for mid-
sized corporations and businesses. The California based
Cisco Systems is currently the world’s largest producer of
computer-networking equipment.
This latest acquisition announcement from Cisco comes
just a few days after their November 15th
announcement of
the company’s plans to acquire the company, Cloupia. A
relatively new company, Cloupia is headquartered in Santa
Clara, California and operates as a software data center that
manages and automates cloud data. The company offers
numerous products such a cloud computing services and
helps other companies make transitions over to private and
public cloud environments.
On Cisco’s company website Hilton Romanaski who serves
as Cisco’s Head of Corporate Business Management says
that the acquisition of Cloupia would allow them to “provide
a single, ‘pane-of-glass’ management across Cisco and
partner solutions including FlexPod, VSPEX, and Vblock.
Romanaski goes on to say; “Mergers, acquisitions and
investments are a key part of Cisco’s build, buy and
partner innovation framework and supports our strategy of
providing best-in-class solutions for customers.”
It is quite apparent that Cisco’s recent acquisitions of
many companies is an effort to help the computer-
networking corporation expand their base and perfect
their Cloud Computing organization to work as part of
their growing Cisco Open Network Environment. But
combining networking storage, management solutions and
interconnecting all of our computers and mobile devices
only makes sense, and it seems Cisco wants to remove any
future competition in this department.
To read more about the Meraki acquisition you can
visit Meraki’s FAQ page here.
ASUS Padfone 2 Singapore
Event for VRForum members
(15/11)
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/asus-padfone-2-singapore-event-for-
vrforum-members-1511-/17937.html
November 19th, 2012
Last Thursday, more than a hundred esteemed members
from our forums came down to Ibis Hotel for an exclusive
hands-on session with the ASUS Padfone 2, which will start
selling at the upcoming SITEX 2012 later this week.
Last Thursday, more than a hundred members of our
VRForums community were invited to an exclusive hands-
on/sharing session co-organized by VR-Zone and ASUS. The
dinner event was one of the largest consumer electronics
preview sessions ever held in Singapore and the objective
was to spread the message about one of most powerful
and feature-filled smartphones around - Padfone 2, which
is the second iteration of the revolutionary 2-in-1 Android
smartphone-tablet combination by ASUS.

8
Representatives from the Padfone team in Taiwan gave a
short presentation about the innovations in the Padfone
2, including its top of the line hardware specifications
(quad-core Qualcomm S4 Pro with LTE, 2GB RAM, 13
MP camera, 4.7 inch Super IPS+ Display) and the much
improved tablet dock from the original Padfone. They also
carried along with them a truckload of sample sets for the
audience to try out and solicit user feedback.

9
At the end, one lucky forum member won himself a Padfone
2 from the lucky draw. Later this week, interested buyers can
get the Padfone 2 at authorised retailers from S$848 (32GB)
or $1099 with the tablet bundle. StarHub will also offer the
tablet bundle with a range of attractive mobile price plans.
Twin Bird to release
waterproof wireless TV
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/twin-bird-to-release-waterproof-
wireless-tv/17936.html
November 19th, 2012
Ever wanted to watch your favorite show in the bathtub but
were too afraid of frying your TV's circuits? Twin Bird might
have just the product for you!
Due for release in late November at a price of 50,000
Yen, the Wireless Zabady (VW-J108W) is a waterproof and
wireless TV from the clever folks at Twin Bird Inc.
The device has a 10.1-inch waterproof LED monitor,
and comes with a separate digital terrestrial TV tuner/
transmitter which sends image and sound data wirelessly to
the monitor. Television signals are first picked up with the
tuner before being sent through the air to the waterproof
monitor, allowing you to enjoy TV without being tied down
to cables and weighty TV sets.
Now for the cool part. When they say waterproof, they mean
it. This doesn’t just mean it prevents against water droplets
that happen to splash on it, oh no. You could literally
take this sucker into the shower with you and nothing
would happen. How is that possible? Well, the monitor
adopts a fully waterproof structure which conforms to IPX7
standards (water won’t enter the device after 30 minutes
of submersion in 1m deep water). So if you drop it in your
bathtub no need to worry, just fish it back out again. This
puppy was made for the bathroom and kitchen, where water
is an ever-present factor.
Of course, what good would TV be without sound? The
Zabady comes complete with a built-in speaker, and the
battery lasts for up to 5 hours of continuous use. Should be
long enough for any bath-lover. Unfortunately, the device
takes 6 hours to charge up, but you can always leave it on to
charge at night. The unit has a power consumption of 5.5W.
Dimensions of the monitor unit are 305x36x180mm, and it
has a weight of 1.2kg. A charger station is included, which
can also be used as a television stand.
The tuner unit supports terrestrial digital broadcast, and
comes equipped with a miniB-CAS slot. It has dimensions of
225x160x35mm, and a weight of 420g.
And if that’s not enough, the device even comes complete
with a waterproof remote control!

10
Motor Magazine's carry bag
charges mobile devices on
the go via solar power
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/motor-magazine-s-carry-bag-
charges-mobile-devices-on-the-go-via-solar-power/17935.html
November 19th, 2012
A new innovative piece of kit has come from the last place
you’d expect it. Just how well does it charge your phone
though? Click on the article to find out!
Motor Magazine Ltd, like their name suggests, publishes
magazines about motor vehicles. While it’s not odd that they
would offer a bag made for motorcyclists, the innovation
that goes into the bag is the interesting part. Their new bag
“Halos” has just been released on the company’s web store,
and it’s no ordinary bag.
Priced at 31,290~47,040 Yen, the Halos bag conveniently
charges up your phone while you carry it around. Not only
that, but it does it via SOLAR POWER!
That’s right, a solar panel actually wraps around the front
of the bag, meaning that when you’re riding around in the
hot sun it will actually be charging up any device you have
inside it. And if you happen to go out a lot at night, there’s
also an optional battery available that gives you the same
functionality sans the dependency on our large hot friend in
the sky. It has a capacity of 2,000mAh and is ‘card sized’,
which is probably really small.
That’s not all either. The bag comes in a total of 7 different
variations, and you can choose from a shoulder bag, camera
bag, backpack, messenger bag, etc. Apparently each bag is
handmade by experts too; this is no shoddy Chinese knock-
off.
Taking a closer look at one of the bags, the dimensions of
the shoulder bag (size L) are 380x200x330mm, and it has a
weight of 1,130g. It carries a 2W output solar panel.

1
geeks.
Apple opens official eBay
store for refurbished
products
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/apple-opens-official-ebay-store-for-
refurbished-products/17977.html
November 20th, 2012
Apple is testing a new eBay store that sells refurbished
products, according to sources close to 9to5Mac.
The store, simply called Refurbished Outlet, was discovered
around a month ago, selling revamped MacBooks, iPods,
and iPads, but there was no indication that this was an
official store run by Apple until 9to5Mac got its hands on
some as yet unconfirmed information.
“We discovered that this is in face an Apple-run Store within
eBay,” the site reads. “It is in trial, and it could open the door
to much bigger things. No one would go on the record at
eBay, however.”
The store also has a few giveaways that Apple might
be in charge, including similar conditions for refurbished
products, such as a one-year warranty and new battery, the
same prices as refurbished products sold by the company
elsewhere, and the overall design of the Store. Of course,
it could just be an elaborate mimicry of Apple's style, but
9to5Mac claims to have information that suggests otherwise.
If this is Apple's first foray into selling outside its own stores,
it could pave the way for the sale of new devices on eBay, and
will give the technology giant an even larger audience and
the option to pay by PayPal.
Woman arrested in India over
Facebook post
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/woman-arrested-in-india-over-
facebook-post/17975.html
November 20th, 2012
An Indian woman was arrested for posting a comment on
Facebook criticising the government, while a friend of hers
was also arrested for simply “liking” the post.
An Indian woman was arrested for posting a comment on
Facebook criticising the government, while a friend of hers
was also arrested for simply “liking” the post.
Shaheen Dhada was arrested on Monday for her message
on Facebook that found fault with the shutdown of Mumbai
following the death of politician Bal Thackeray. Her friend
Renu Srinivasan was also arrested for clicking Like.
Both individuals were later released on bail and both
apologised for hurting people's feelings. Srinivasan said they
were making the apologies to keep themselves and their
families safe, stating that they “don't want any violence.”
This is likely a reference to a mob attack on the clinic
of Dhada's uncle following her comment. Nine people
connected to the attack have been arrested, with the police
still looking for others.
The women's arrests follow clamp-downs on anti-
government sentiment throughout the country, resulting
in staunch criticism by free speech advocates, including
Markandey Katju, Chairman of the Press Council of India,
who labelled the arrests as a “criminal act.”

2
Until the government in India becomes less sensitive to
comments made on social networking websites, people in
the country will need to be careful about what they post
online.
Image Credit: Associated Press
John McAfee reveals his
disguises
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/john-mcafee-reveals-his-
disguises/17973.html
November 20th, 2012
John McAfee, founder of the anti-virus company that bears
his name, has revealed a number of the disguises he is using
to evade police, who want him for questioning about the
murder of his neighbour.
John McAfee, founder of the anti-virus company that bears
his name, has revealed a number of the disguises he is using
to evade police, who want him for questioning about the
murder of his neighbour.
McAfee wrote on his blog that he has been dressing up as
a Guatemalan street seller, using shoe polish to darken the
colour of his skin, browning his teeth, and stuffing his face
with chewed bubble gum to make his face look fatter. He
said he also stuffed a shaved down tampon into his right
nostril and dyed the tip brown to give his nose an “awkward,
lopsided, disgusting appearance.”
McAfee also donned different, ragged attire and adjusted
his posture to look shorter. He used broken English with a
Spanish accent to fool tourists and reporters. He even claims
to have almost sold a dolphin carving to a journalist from the
Associated Press.
Not one to stick to the same routine, McAfee also pretended
to be a drunk German tourist, who yelled vulgar things at
passers-by. He wore bandages on his face, which seems like
a lot less work than the Guatemalan disguise.
Apparently not what John McAfee looks like now
Yet for the all the hassle he claims he has gone through to
stop police, who he thinks will kill him, from finding him, he
decided to blog all the details for everyone to see. And all of
this despite telling The Telegraph previously that revealing
any of his disguises would be “foolish.”
It might be that McAfee never did any of this and is hoping
to effectively make everyone a suspect, since he could be
disguised as anyone, or it might just be that he is, as Belize's
Prime Minister described, “bonkers.” He certainly seems
to be revelling in the attention he is getting, despite the
seriousness of the allegations made against him.
McAfee is offering $25,000 to anyone who catches the killer
of his neighbour and plans to publish any information he
gets on his blog. In the mean time we can probably expect
to see updates about the other exaggerated diguises he has
up his sleeve.
Image Credit: Sofia Munoz/Associated Press
Rapidshare utilizing datacap
restrictions to keep pirates
away
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/rapidshare-utilizing-datacap-
restrictions-to-keep-pirates-away/17972.html
November 20th, 2012
Rapidshare, in an attempt to distance itself from pirates,
and perhaps avoid the headaches Megaupload faced, have
decided to impose a datacap restriction on their downloads.
Rapidshare, a big contender in the file sharing business, has
taken steps to distance itself from internet piracy. Earlier
this year, Kim Dotcom's Megaupload file sharing service was
taken down by the US government, and it seems Rapidshare
wants to avoid landing itself in the same place. To keep
pirates away, Rapidshare has thus implemented a datacap
restriction on their downloads, limiting the amount of data
which can be downloaded from one file over a certain period
of time.
The new restriction will put a 1GB per 24 hours limit
on files uploaded for free, whereas subscription users will
be allowed a datacap of 30GB for their files. This data
restriction will apply to publicly available files, whereas
personal files shared from user to user (akin to dropbox), will
be unaffected.

3
"No download for you. Come back, one day!"
Since high data traffic on these public files will be impossible,
pirates should be more or less unable to distribute
copyrighted material via Rapidshare. However, smaller files
such as documents, or files which will be downloaded by
a limited number of people, will be largely unaffected.
Unfortunately, any legitimate file of substantial size will be
impacted as well.
The datacap might be a risky move for Rapidshare: Whether
they like it or not, a significant amount of the traffic they have
comes from piracy, and if this is stopped, who knows what
Rapidshare's fate will be, especially with the new "Mega" just
around the corner to scoop those pirates up. It's possible
that without the pirates, Rapidshare might become a much
smaller and more timid beast than it currently is.
Star Citizen crowdfunding
has ended - game devs rake
in $6.2 million
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/star-citizen-crowdfunding-has-
ended--game-devs-rake-in-6.2-million/17971.html
November 20th, 2012
Crowdfunding for Star Citizen has ended and Chris Roberts
and his dev team have managed to amass a whopping $6.2
million dollars
We've covered Chris Roberts' new game Star Citizen rather
extensively recently, as the game has been in the midst
of crowdfunding since the end of October. As the game
has received more and more pledges, the developers have
revealed new features and increased the scope of the
game. In the past week, during the last few days of the
crowdfunding effort, they blasted their way past the previous
world record for crowdfunding, when they hit $4.2 million.
When the effort finally ended yesterday, the game had
received $6,238,563 in pledges. This is more than 300% of
what the Star Citizen team were originally hoping to get, and
even now, some funding is trickling in.
Pew pew pew!
The final game will have a single player campaign with over
50 missions, a persistent universe with 100 star systems
to explore and several starships to fly around in. Further
more, zero-g combat outside your ship, landing at space
ports and being able to take part in several professions, all
set in an MMO universe, will keep players entertained for
quite a while (hopefully, at least). The development team is
estimating the game's release at 2014, and those who have
pledges can take part in the alpha and beta versions as well,
which will become available within 12 months.
GTA IV vs. V graphics
comparison
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/gta-iv-vs.-v-graphics-
comparison/17970.html
November 20th, 2012
Recently, there's been a bunch of comparisons showing up
online of how Grand Theft Auto V looks when measured
against Grand Theft Auto IV. Check out some of the best
comparisons here!
Recently, two comparisons between the graphics of GTA
IV and GTA V have grabbed my attention. They're
interesting because they do a very good job at showing the
advancements in technology over the past few years. Two
screenshots side by side don't really do it if you want to make
a proper comparison, and the two comparisons we present
below have understood that, going to great lengths to be
accurate in their demonstration.
The first comparison is a GTA IV recreation of trailer 2 for
GTA V done by a YouTuber by the name of Golonka. Watch
them side by side at YouTube Doubler, or check the remade
trailer out by itself below. Admittedly, certain things are
lacking in the comparison, such as facial expressions or lip
syncing, but other than that, there's been a lot of effort put
into it. It should be pointed out though, that this version of
GTA IV does not seem to be running on maximum graphics
settings.
The remade trailer

4
The original trailer
An even more impressive screenshot comparison is on the
next page, so keep reading!
Harman International
releases first ever Lightning
compatible iPod speaker
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/harman-international-releases-first-
ever-lightning-compatible-ipod-speaker/17966.html
November 20th, 2012
The folks at Harman International are a brave bunch,
releasing a speaker compatible with only a handful of
devices. However, those carrying iPhone 5s and looking for
a boost in volume should be grateful; their Lightning ports
finally have a use!
Launching in early December in Harman’s JBL brand, the
Onbeat Micro has an estimated price of 9.980 Yen ($122).
Like it’s simpatico partner iPhone, it comes in both black
and white colors, but the white model apparently won’t be
available until January 2013.
The Lightning port, while still not quite as ubiquitous as
say USB or even Firewire, has been getting a fair amount of
exposure due to Apple’s big sellers such as the iPhone 5 and
iPad mini. Any Lightning compatible player can be placed
directly onto the device and it will connect to the speaker. In
addition to the iPhone 5, it is also compatible with the 5th
gen iPod touch and 7th
gen iPod nano.
This speaker also got some press coverage at the previous
Apple press release held back in September when the latest
iPod touch and nano were unveiled, as it was given as an
example of Lightning connector compatible products that
can be used with the popular music players.
If you want the speaker without having to pay Apple Tax
though, don’t worry! There is still a USB port in the back of
the unit, allowing you to connect USB players and also other
iOS devices using a USB to Dock cable. It even comes with a
mini-stereo analog port too.
The device comes with an AC adaptor, but can also run
on 4 single-cell batteries. Another cool feature is that its
possible to charge your music player when its connected to
the speaker when it is running on AC.
The speaker contains two full range 25mm diameter bases
facing upwards from the base of the unit, and even though
the device itself is rather small, placing it at a higher location

5
can give you the rich sounds you want to pervade through
your living room.
The speaker’s amplifier is digital, with an output of 2Wx2ch.
It has a playback frequency band of 110Hz~20kHz, and
utilizing its own unique digital signal processing feature,
playback on the speaker has a natural feel to it.
The dimensions of the device are 168x168x54mm, and it has
a weight of 360g.
Halo 4 update brings Spartan
Ops episode 3 & newTeam
Snipers playlist
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/halo-4-update-brings-spartan-ops-
episode-3--newteam-snipers-playlist/17956.html
November 20th, 2012
Players can hone their headshot skills in Halo 4's new Team
Snipers multiplayer playlist, or team up with friends in the
newly released third Spartan Ops episode, "Catherine".
Whether you're the type of gamer who enjoys competitive
MLG-style multiplayer, or you enjoy taking on hordes of
enemies with a group of friends, Halo 4's newest update has
you covered.
The update itself adds a brand new Team Snipers playlist,
which was brought back due to popular demand, allowing
gamers to hone their dead-eye skills and heighten their
accuracy.
Along with Team Snipers, Halo 4's update also brings a new
Spartan Ops episode, continuing the weekly tradition of new
content with five all-new chapters of frenetic co-operative
missions. Episode 3 "Catherine" continues the story arc set
in motion by the previous episodes and features a reprisal of
Dr. Halsey.
Dr. Catherine Halsey is one of the most prominent and
important figures in the Halo universe, as she is directly
responsible for the SPARTAN program and for Cortana's
incredible psyche.
Additionally players have new Weekly Challenges to
complete in Campaign, War Games and Spartan Ops,
offering bonus XP for those who accomplish the set goals.
For more information on the new Halo 4 playlists or Spartan
Ops, please visit Halo Waypoint's official website.
Human rights group seeks
ban on Killer Robots
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/human-rights-group-seeks-ban-on-
killer-robots/17965.html
November 20th, 2012
If the thought of a Cyberdyne Systems' Skynet takeover
by cyborg robots scares you, you are not alone. Now a
major human rights organization agrees and is seeking a pre-
emptive ban on any future 'killer robot' technology.
We saw the warnings in the Terminator movies, and if the
thought of Cyberdyne Systems’ Skynet takeover by cyborg
robots scares you, you are not alone. Now a major human
rights organization is seeking a pre-emptive ban on any
future technology that could lend or give rise to sentient
machines.
In a recent press release by the Human Rights Watch,
the group has stated a serious case for the total ban
on the future development of technology that could lead
to any type of autonomous killing machine. The 50-
page report titled, “Losing Humanity: The Case Against
Killer Robots” lends serious concerns and gives examples
about what could happen if autonomous killing machines
are developed. The report was published by the non-
government agency, Human Rights Watch and Harvard’s
School of Law, International Human Rights Clinic.
The main reason the groups are calling for a pre-emptive
ban on any future implementation of autonomous killing
machines is not only because of the danger involved. The
groups stress that the ethics in creating such a machine that
lacks empathy, emotion or any real reason in taking out
a human life for defense or offense is questionable. And
while many critics of the paper may scoff at the idea that
someone would actually create or pay for such a weapon
design, believe it – it is all ready happening to some extent
with drone technology.
The United States, Russia, China and Korea are a few major
players that are seeking and have developed impressive
drone technology. And if you are following the crisis
involving Gaza and Israel right now, you may have seen the
“Iron Dome” defense system in play or the images taken
by drones flying over Gaza picking out their targets with
extreme accuracy.
Currently the U.S. is the main holder of the most advanced
drone technology, but for the time being human still control
what they can and cannot do. It has been said that in
the coming years the control of drones will switch from

6
humans to computerized machines. The Human Rights
Group clearly points out in their report that these so-called
‘killer robots’ may very well pick and choose targets on their
own without any need of human instruction.
In the report The Human Rights groups have proposed the
following:
• Prohibit the development, production, and use of fully
autonomous weapons through an international legally
binding instrument.
• Adopt national laws and policies to prohibit the
development, production, and use of fully autonomous
weapons.
• Commence reviews of technologies and components
that could lead to fully autonomous weapons. These
reviews should take place at the very beginning of
the development process and continue throughout the
development and testing phases
The report also goes over a few facts concerning what the
U.S. is doing in regards to robotics. They write,
Military policy documents, especially from the United
States, reflect clear plans to increase the autonomy of
weapons systems. In its Unmanned Systems Integrated
Roadmap FY2011-2036, the US Department of Defense
wrote that it “envisions unmanned systems seamlessly
operating with manned systems while gradually reducing
the degree of human control and decision making required
for the unmanned portion of the force structure.”
It is important to note that the banning of weapons in space
was a serious issue in the early 1960s but many at the time
thought the idea was a bit paranoid. Nevertheless, a treaty
was made and jointly agreed upon and signed by the U.S.,
U.K. and the Soviet Union (Russia) in 1967. The treaty
became known as the “Outer Space Treaty” and now has over
100 nations agreeing to it.
All of this talk about killer robots and outer space just makes
you wonder if one day we’ll see a woman like Sarah Connor
warning us of impending doom. If it does come to pass, I
just hope they send back some sexy girl robots.
Removal of multiplayer map
from Black Ops II leads to
outcry.
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/removal-of-multiplayer-map-from-
black-ops-ii-leads-to-outcry./17968.html
November 20th, 2012
After Treyarch removed the Nuketown 2025 map from
online matchmaking, causing an outcry from it's fan base,
the developer has now caved to demands and put the map
back into rotation.
Any gamer who pre-ordered Call of Duty: Black Ops II, or
who purchased the hardened or care-package editions of
the game, received the Nuketown 2025 bonus multiplayer
map, a remake of the ever popular Nuketown map from the
original Black Ops. In addition to the map, these gamers
were also given access to the launch weekend double XP
event. Unfortunately, when the bonus XP event ended, so
did the map.
I'd love to live in a place with as ominous a name as
"Nuketown"
The map, though still playable in private matches, was
removed form public matchmaking. This surprised a lot
of players, including me, since the description for the
Nuketown 2025 game mode read "Nuketown 2025, all day.
24/7. We never close." Not quite so. David Vonderhaar,
game design director for Treyarch, tweeted this message
as the double XP weekend ended: "Double XP weekend is
official over. That means Nuketown 2025 / 24-7 is as well. I
know. RIGHT? Don't kill the messenger. +"
As Vonderhaar predicted, the removal of the map lead
to a massive and widespread outcry from the players
which continued for a full day , before Treyarch reacted
to it and reinstated the map. Treyarch has stated that
Nuketown 2025 was originally meant as a publicity stunt;
an incentive to pre-order the game, and that it has a short
lifespan and was always meant to be temporary (it was
scheduled to return during special events though). However,
following the fans' reaction, they have put the map back into
public matchmaking permanently. Nuketown 2025 is now
available through the Chaos Moshpit game mode.

7
Fake Apple apps arrive at the
Google Play Store.
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/fake-apple-apps-arrive-at-the-
google-play-store./17967.html
November 20th, 2012
A slew of Apple apps have inexplicably ended up in the
Google Play Store. However, instead of being able to run
some foreign apps on your android device, you'll find that
these fake apps don't work.
Recently, Apple's entire catalog of first party apps, including
applications such as iPhoto, Garage Band and Keynote, have
been appearing on Google's Play Store for download onto
Android devices. However, anyone who did soon found that
the apps didn't work. The $4.99 iPhoto app, for example,
doesn't start, and one user reported that it instead displays
a message "Wont open says not connected to internet when
i am"
...This doesn't look right.
Some clever users might have avoided the apps, finding it
largely suspicious that Apple's first party software catalog
suddenly shows up in a rival's app store: Apple generally
does not let their apps slip out, and the most you can hope for
is a knock off in the Play Store. Unfortunately, many users
didn't reach this conclusion, and whoever uploaded these
forgeries to the store likely made a good quick buck.
Google did remove the apps within a few hours, but
unfortunately, anyone who bought them before then are out
of luck. That's unfortunately the price you pay for having
an open platform... sometimes people take advantage. An
interesting question though, is how many people actually
bought these apps. If there were a lot, regardless of whether
the apps were fake or not, what does that say about Android's
customer base?
Long awaited FireFox update
for Android 2.2
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/long-awaited-firefox-update-for-
android-2.2/17959.html
November 20th, 2012
Older phone users running Android v2.2 now have available
to them an updated version of Firefox. Mozilla says the
update for the open source web browser was made to support
a large list of ARM v6 hardware that is on a lot of popular
but older model phones.
If you happen to have an older phone running Android v2.2,
an updated version of Firefox is available. Mozilla stated
that the update for Firefox was made to support a large list
of ARM v6 hardware that is on a lot of popular, older model
phones such as the Motorola XT531 or the Samsung Galaxy
Pro GT-B7510.
Fans of Firefox from the Mozilla Corporation (MoCo) might
be happy to know some changes have been made to the
browser and now a stable build of Firefox is available for
download in Google Play. While the highly popular open
source web browser does have a lot of updated changes,
these new changes were made in an effort to support older
Android run phones. Some of these changes include ease of
use for TalkBack, and a more secured ‘sandbox’ attribute for
iFrames.
This version of Firefox for Android is about a 17MB
download and works on all Android 2.2 Froyo and later. A
few of the new features include the ability to create a single
master password, and the ability to clear all of your history,
private data and so forth with ease. Firefox also allows you
to sync up and interact with your phone’s controls such as
your camera, battery life status, GPS and so forth.
To learn more or to download, you can find the direct link
by clicking here for a new window.
Unitcom releases special
'Kumamon' notebook
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/unitcom-releases-special-kumamon-
notebook/17944.html
November 20th, 2012
Unitcom Inc have collaborated with the district of
Kumamoto to get more people interested in the area in a new
bizarre PR move.
With preorders beginning on the 19th
of November,
the notebook is scheduled for release on December
21 and is officially called the “Kumamon no No-to
Pasokon” (Kumamon’s Notebook Computer). “Kumamon”,
despite what you might think, is not a new Pokemon, but
in fact is the district mascot of Kumamoto. “Kuma” is the
Japanese word for bear, and this fellow just happens to be a
very oddly drawn bear himself.
The notebook itself features a green-white cross hatch
pattern resembling a picnic blanket, with a daunting
Kumamon figure in a terrorizing yet super-cute bear pose

8
sprawled across the front. I guess somehow, this is supposed
to make you want to go to Kumamoto and look at bears IRL?
Oh, and there’s also a pure black edition with Kumamon’s
elliptical face in extreme-close-up.
Stare into those lifeless eyes and know the true face of
Kuma.
But you computer geeks don’t care about design do you? You
care about specs. I know I do.
The CPU is an Atom N470 (1.83GHz, with embedded
graphics), and it has 2GB memory. So I guess this isn’t
exactly high end. Anyhow, it comes with a hefty 500GB
HDD (presumably to store all your bear photos on?), and
a 1024x600 (WSVGA) 10.1-inch wide screen LED display.
(Wait a minute, I hear you cry.. this is a netbook!)
Aha, tricked you! As crazy as it sounds, the computer actually
comes in 2 models, netbook or notebook! Combine that with
the choice of different designs and that’s more Kumas than
you can fit in your pic-a-nic basket, Boo-boo!
The standard notebook model is a little more palatable to the
ultra geeky of us, with a Core i5-3210M (2.5GHz, also with
embedded graphics), 8GB memory (now we’re talking!) and
1TB HDD (that’s twice the amount of bear photos, in case
you weren’t paying attention).
The netbook model is going for 62,800 Yen (774USD), but
if you’re splashing out on a new bear-themed computer you
might as well put in the extra 10,000 Yen (123USD) and get
the notebook model (72,800 Yen or 897USD).
Both models, strangely enough, have the same battery
running time of 2 hours 30, which personally is pretty
unbearable. But to each his own. The dimensions and
weight are 266x185x18.5mm,1.2kg for the netbook and
374x250x16.3mm, 2.8kg for the notebook.
So pick it up if you like, just don’t let any hungry bears steal
it from your picnic table!
PS Vita System Software
Update 2.00 Now Available
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/ps-vita-system-software-
update-2.00-now-available/17963.html
November 20th, 2012
Sony Computer Entertainment has finally released the
Playstation Vita's software update 2.00. Some of the new
things in this update include improved web browsing
functionality, a mail app upgrade, and more.
A new update for the Sony Playstation Vita's firmware is now
available as of November 20, 2012. A good majority of the
new upgrades, options and features in this update has to do
with enhancing the portable unit's internet and networking
functionality. In addition, this update also marks the official
inclusion of the Playstation Vita to the Playstation Plus
premium service.
PS Vita's new mail app in the 2.00 update
Specifics of the added features in the new update are as
follows:
1. Playstation Plus is now available on the unit. Users
of the console can now enjoy several premium
services such as free game downloads, purchase
discounts, download/upload of cloud-based save data,
and exclusive download content packages.
2. An email option has been added to its home interface.
The PS Vita now has an email client app, enabling you
to view or download email in your registered email
address when it is connected to the internet.
3. Content management is enhanced. Data transfer and
file management is now made more versatile for the PS
Vita. For example, you can now send and receive files
to and from your PC via wi-fi.
4. Browser layout and functionality is improved. The PS
Vita can now "economize" web pages to make them
load faster, and now has better compatibility with
JavaScript and HTML5 content.
5. The "near" feature's screen gets a minor refit, and
gets added with more features. Additionally, the friend
activity menu is now moved to the LiveArea Friend
menu.
6. The map app now includes weather information. The
map will now show weather forecasts, and can send
overall ground data to the registered email address in
the PS Vita.
7. Notification systems can now be edited. This
includes all other apps that provide notifications and
announcements.
8. There are now more apps that also use the PS Vita's
hard buttons. This is supposedly made to make access
and editing in apps faster and easier.

9
Republic Wireless available
to public - unlimited cellular
for $19/month
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/republic-wireless-available-to-
public--unlimited-cellular-for-19month/17957.html
November 20th, 2012
Today, wireless provider Republic Wireless announced the
formal launch of their low cost wireless service. With special
VoIP WiFi/Cellular based technology, the company provides
cheaper features at potentially superior quality.
Plans for the new service are quite simple: unlimited
everything for $19.00 a month. Republic Wireless will
now number among several popular low-cost MVNOs
that operate on Sprint's cellular network, including Virgin
Mobile, and Boost Mobile.
Republic Wireless is unique in the way that it will place
phone calls. Rather than running them through traditional
networks, calls placed through the service will be VoIP
based, meaning that they will be transferred over the
internet. Because of this, utilizing a technology that Republic
Wireless has labelled 'Hybrid Calling', calls made with the
service will be alternately placed over WiFi or cellular
connections.
This hybrid technology could potentially increase quality
of service, due to the large availability of WiFi networks,
and their generally superior dependency and transfer rates.
Obviously, this means that any phone used on the new
service will need to be smart in some degree - those lacking
WiFi capabilities cannot use the hybrid technology.
The first phone that will be available with the service is
the Motorola Defy XT, and Android based smartphone
supporting the Hybrid Calling feature. Republic Wireless
announced that it later intends to offer a variant of the LG
Optimus as well.
For those interested in signing up for the service, the XT
phone is now available for pre-order from the Republic
Wireless website, at a cost of $249. A $10.00 startup fee is
required, and one month of service. Republic Wireless has
not yet announced when the device will ship.
Speed and memory specs
revealed for Nintendo's Wii U
console
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/speed-and-memory-specs-revealed-
for-nintendo-s-wii-u-console/17947.html
November 20th, 2012
Nintendo's reluctance to provide certain data on it's new Wii
U console led the geeky gurus at PC Perspective to crack open
their own system and publish their findings to the internet.
Some of the data itself hasn't been confirmed, however, and
still remains guesswork.
Nintendo's brand new handheld console has been shrouded
in mystery in terms of many hardware specifications...but on
launch day, the team at PC Perspective--a popular techno-
geek website--took the opportunity to shed some light on the
system's specs in their official Wii U teardown.
PC Perspective's launch day livestream teardown didn't
reveal many of the burning questions that hardcore geeks
and gamers have been asking about the Wii U--like what the
system's GPU is like--however they did identify how much
system memory the Wii U has as well as the overall memory
speed.
According to their findings, the Wii U contains 2GB of
Samsung DDR3 memory. A user on the Beyond 3D forums
named AIStrong says this means that the WIi U's memory
runs at amaximum speed of 17 GB/s:
"PCPer did a teardown. Great stuff... they actually
read off the RAM chip (SMRT!). There's only 4 chips.
Samsung K4W4G1646B -> DDR3 4Gbit, 1.5V,
800/933/1066 speed bins -> I'm pretty sure that
means "DDR3-1600/1866/2133" data rate.
256Mx16 would imply 16-bit I/O per DRAM... So...
17GB/s at most for main memory bandwidth. They
didn't mention the rest of the numbers on the DRAM,
but they ought to have high res photos later."

10
A recent NeoGAF forum thread reveals that the Wii U's
system memory actually runs at a maximum speed of 12.8
GB/s, and that the original figure was a guess based on
Samsung RAM speed.
To compare to current generation consoles, Durante, a user
on the NeoGAF forums, has compiled memory speeds for the
Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3:
360: 22.4 GB/s + eDRAM for framebuffer
PS3: 25.6 GB/s main memory BW + 22.4 GB/s
graphics memory BW, no eDRAM
GTX 680: 192.2 GB/s
The Wii U's eDRAM amount and speed have yet to be
determined, however it's kind of strange how Nintendo
wouldn't release this data to the public in the first place.
Many consumers enjoy knowing these kinds of specs and it
allows them to weigh both the pros and cons of the console
rather than just impulsively buy a product.
Also it's worth mentioning that this information has been
gleaned from third-party resources on launch day, and that
we probably won't know the full specs of Nintendo's newest
console until more geeky gurus have had time to study its
inner workings.
The data within this article is reported from various
third-party websites including PC Perspective and multiple
forums. I make no claims to the authenticity of the data
within this article nor do I confirm or deny any of their
findings.

1
geeks.
Researchers develop body
measuring scanner for online
clothes shopping
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/researchers-develop-body-
measuring-scanner-for-online-clothes-shopping/17995.html
November 21st, 2012
Researchers have developed a body scanning tool that can
measure people for more accurate clothes ordering online.
The London College of Fashion, University of Surrey and
Bodymetrics have teamed up to create a solution to a major
obstacle holding back online sales of clothes: not being able
to try them on and therefore not knowing whether or not
they will fit.
Users can, of course, simply try an old-fashioned measuring
tape, but many people do not know how to properly measure
for clothing, making it difficult to pick out the right size,
especially when some stores and countries use different
labels for sizes, where, for example, an Asian medium is an
American small.
The system allows users to input their height and then take
a full-length photo with their webcam or smartphone. The
software then creates a 3D model based on the information
gathered, producing what the researchers claim is an
extremely accurate measurement.
In the first half of the year only 14 percent of online
sales in the US were for clothes, according to ComScore,
while the London College of Fashion estimates that between
30 percent and 60 percent of clothes bought online are
returned, largely due to not fitting properly.
Bodymetrics already uses scanners in Bloomingdale's in
the US, Selfridges and New Look in the UK, and Karstadt
in Germany, employing motion sensors from Microsoft's
Kinect device, but the ability for people to scan and
determine their measurements at home will be a major boon
to online clothes retailers.
Nintendo releases trailer for...
a book!
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/nintendo-releases-trailer-for...-a-
book-/17988.html
November 21st, 2012
Nintendo is releasing a book about the Legend of Zelda and
they've just made a trailer for it - check it out here.
Last year, Nintendo released a book titled "The Legend of
Zelda: Hyrule Historia"; an encyclopedia of everything Zelda
related. The book was only released in Japan, but was hugely
popular and became the subject of many fan translations
into English. Now, Hyrule historia is getting released in
English via Darkhorse comics, and when this was announced
earlier this year, pre-orders took Amazon by storm, quickly
lifting it to the No. 1 best seller spot.
The hardcover book will feature a detailed presentation of
the making of the Legend of Zelda series, including concept
art, stories about the development, as well as Zelda history.
Perhaps the feature fans will be most interested in seeing, is
the official Legend of Zelda timeline; something which many
fans have tried to piece together themselves throughout the
years, with varying success.
Nintendo has seen it fit to calm the excitement of their
fans by releasing a trailer for the new book, which is rather
unorthodox. Check it out below!

2
Activision releases Family
Guy video game
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/activision-releases-family-guy-video-
game/17994.html
November 21st, 2012
Activision and Twentieth Century Fox have released Family
Guy: Back to the Multiverse, the latest game for consoles
based on the hit animated comedy series.
Activision and Twentieth Century Fox have released Family
Guy: Back to the Multiverse, the latest game for consoles
based on the hit animated comedy series.
The game features a brand new story based around the
parallel universes encountered in the Season Eight episode
Road to the Multiverse. Players will be tasked with saving
Quahog from Bertram, the arch-nemesis of Stewie.
Gamers can play as Stewie or Brian and can make use of
a number of unique special weapons and abilities. Co-op
and competitive multiplayer modes will add some life to
the experience once the single-player campaign is complete.
Additional challenges, multiplayer maps and even playable
characters can be unlocked through gameplay.
Players will also encounter a full cast of Family Guy
characters on their journeys, fully voiced by their original
voice actors from the TV show. The developer promises
plenty of references and “gut-busting jokes” reminiscent of
the irreverent series itself.
A previous Family Guy video game launched in 2006,
but poor controls and repetitive gameplay led to negative
reviews. The comedy was a redeeming factor, however, and
will likewise be the primary attraction for this latest title.
Family Guy: Back to the Multiverse is available on the Xbox
360 and PlayStation 3 for $59.99.
Google labels UN treaty
conference as threat to
internet
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/google-labels-un-treaty-conference-
as-threat-to-internet/17993.html
November 21st, 2012
Google has criticised an upcoming United Nations
conference on the internet as a threat to free speech online.
The meeting is designed to negotiate a new international
treaty on how the internet is governed, replacing an old
treaty from 1998, but Google believes this will hamper things
for users and internet-based companies.
Google said a number of countries will try to take some of the
decision-making on the technical specifications and domain
name system away from the US and into an international
organisation, which it found objectionable.
It claimed that the proposals could allow some governments
to censor legitimate speech or cut off internet access, while
also forcing online services, including popular ones like
YouTube, Facebook and Skype, to pay fees to reach people
in certain countries.
The search giant found fault with the fact that the conference
was open to governments only, not companies with a stake in
the internet, but the UN's International Telecommunication
Union said countries are free to invite companies to be part
of their delegation.
Google is asking users to sign an online petition against
the conference. The protest will likely be backed by other
internet companies that traditionally compete with Google,
but who have supported its fight against restricting the
internet in the past.
Negotiations on a new treaty begin in December.

3
Image Credit: Google
Bandai breathes new life into
Tamagotchi
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/bandai-breathes-new-life-into-
tamagotchi/17992.html
November 21st, 2012
If you grew up in the 1990s, you will remember the craze that
was Tamagotchi, and those little digital lives are about to get
new life thanks to a new line of products and a dedicated
website from Bandai.
If you grew up in the 1990s, you will remember the craze that
was Tamagotchi, and those little digital lives are about to get
new life thanks to a new line of products and a dedicated
website from Bandai.
The Japanese toy maker set up a website called Tamagotchi
L.i.f.e. (Love is Fun Everywhere), where users will be
able to read and share stories about Tamagotchi, watch
webisodes, engage in charity, and even download an
upcoming Tamagotchi app for iOS and Android, set for
release in Spring 2013. A blog will detail the latest news
on Tamagotchi, including details on a new line of “lifestyle
products.”
Bandai is capitalising on the fact that the original
Tamagotchi devotees will now be in their early 20s and
will perhaps feel a bit of nostalgia about their digital pets,
but might not be so keen to engage them if they are still
considered “toys.” The solution is Bandai's emphasis on
Tamagotchi as a kind of fashion accessory, with the website
focusing on the “lifestyle” of Tamagotchi as opposed to
simply the products themselves.
“This is an exciting and important step in the evolution of the
Tamagotchi brand,” said Naomi Tobita, Chief Tamagotchi
Officer (yes, that is a real title, it seems) at Bandai. “We’re
delighted to provide the young adults of today with an
updated presentation of the brand they loved as children
in a fashionable, fun and fabulous new way to experience
Tamagotchi.”
Tamagotchi launched in Japan in 1996 and in the US a year
later, selling over 78 million units in 54 countries to date,
and creating one of the icons of the 90s generation. It takes
its name from a portmanteau of the Japanese word for egg,
tamago, and the English word watch, and it is a word we will
likely hear a lot more of in the coming months and years.
SITEX 2012 Shopper's Lucky
Draw Details!
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/sitex-2012-shopper-s-lucky-draw-
details-/17991.html
November 21st, 2012
For every $100 spent or deposited in a single receipt at
SITEX 2012, shoppers will get a chance to win attractive
product prizes like 60 inch LED TVs and other electronic
devices. For ladies, there is even a instant lucky dip targeted
for them!
Samsung 60" Full HD 3D
Smart LED TV worth $7,499
(Model No.
UA-60ES8000M)
Samsung 55" Full HD 3D
Smart LED TV worth $4,599
(Model No. UA-55ES6700)
Philips 55" Smart 3D LED
TV worth $3,799
(Model No. 55PFL5507)
Toshiba 46" Smart LED 3D
worth $2,499
(Model No. 46VL20E)

4
Philips 40" Full HD 3D
SMART LED TV worth
$1,799
(Model No. 40PFL5507)
Nikon 24.2MP DSLR with
AF-S18-105mm worth
$1,349
(Model No. D3200BK
KIT18-105)
Olympus 12.3MP Micro Four
Thirds worth $998
(Model No. E-P3/1442 WH/
SL)
Philips Sound Bar worth
$699
(Model No. CSS-5123)
Philips 5.1 Channel Blu-ray
Home Theatre worth $599
(Model No. HTS-5563)
Canon 16MP Powershot
worth $499
(Model No. SX500IS)
• Participants are entitled to one lucky draw coupon
for every S$100 spent or deposited (single receipt)
during SITEX from 22 to 25 November 2012 (up to a
maximum of 20 entry forms per pax).
• To enter, simply drop the completed Lucky Draw
Coupon into the Lucky Draw Box at the Redemption
area (Hall 6).
• Results of the draw will be published in The New
Paper and www.sitex.com.sg on 12 December 2012. All
winners will be notified by email/phone.
• All prizes must be collected by 8 February 2013
(Friday), 5.00pm, from Singex Exhibition Ventures
Ptd Ltd (#02-01 Singapore EXPO, Foyer 1) or
designated prize collection centres.
• Unclaimed prizes will be donated to a charitable
organisation chosen by the Organiser. The winner
whose prize is forfeited is not entitled to any
compensation not withstanding non-receipt of
notification.
• As a participant of the draw, he/she hereby authorises
the Organiser to disclose and publicise his/her name,
and other particulars deemed appropriate by the
Organiser.
• All staff of Singapore Infocomm Technology
Federation (SiTF), Singex Exhibition Ventures Ptd Ltd,
and their agencies are not eligible to participate in the
draw.
343 Industries looking for
devs with MMO experience
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/343-industries-looking-for-devs-
with-mmo-experience/17987.html
November 21st, 2012
343 Industries, the Microsoft owned game studio which
developed Halo 4, is looking for two new developers with
experience making MMOs for a future project
343 Industries, the studio behind Halo 4, has just released
new job listings for two software development engineers
to part take in "building the next generation of backend
services to power Halo 4 and our new game saga." The
listings further specified that the ideal candidate would have
experience in MMO development. This follows other listings
posted last week wherein 343 Industries announced they
were looking for staff for "incubation projects".
343's latest title, Halo 4, was released on November 6th.
This seems to indicate that a Halo MMO may be in the
works, and it wouldn't be the first time. Microsoft's now
closed Ensemble Studios was working on a Halo MMORPG
nicknamed "Titan" until it was canceled in 2007. It seems
very likely Microsoft hasn't quite given up on the idea yet.
Job listings at 343 industries form back in July seems to
suggest the studio is also working on next generation titles.
Whether this new MMO project is going to be next gen
remains to be seen, but I wouldn't count the possibility out.
Army looks to using EMP
grenades
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/army-looks-to-using-emp-
grenades/17986.html

5
November 21st, 2012
The US Army is looking to combat IEDs utilizing the same
kind of technology often seen in sci-fi movies and video
games: EMP grenades.
Today, the biggest threat against America's troops in
Afghanistan is the IED, or Improvised Explosive Device.
Combating this threat is difficult and dangerous. Jamming
vehicles, robots and Explosive Ordinance Disposal teams
have to be called in whenever an IED is discovered in
order to neutralize it. It's an expensive and time consuming
procedure, and unfortunately, though the US military has
become better at detecting IEDs, some of them are still only
discovered as they go off.
In order to simplify the procedure, bringing IED disposal
down to an individual level, the US Army is looking into
developing an EMP Grenade. The grenade would be portable
and light weight enough to be carried by individual soldiers,
and could be tossed near an IED to neutralize it. Indeed, it
could even be tossed into a room where an unknown IED
may exist, and neutralize the threat before it's even detected.
"When the pin is pulled, mr. Grenade is not our friend"
EMP, or Electro Magnetic Pulse, is a technology in which a
strong wave of electromagnetic energy is used to overwhelm
the circuitry of electronic devices. This is useful in IED
disposal as many of them have electronic components. IEDs
frequently have remote triggers, and in this case, EMP
technology would shut down the device's circuit boards
and make detonation (or indeed communication with the
trigger) impossible.
For the companies participating in the development of the
device, the US Army has put a few restrictions on the design.
For instance, it has to be small enough to be portable, in
the same size range as “hand or robot delivered munitions,
40 mm grenades, Rocket Propelled Grenades (RPGs), and
Stinger, Hydra, and Javelin missiles."
Additionally, the designers have to choose how to implement
the EMP technology, as the grenade could either be explosive
or non explosive. An non-explosive EMP device emits a
series of compressed electromagnetic pulses at an ever
increasing frequency, which should fry the circuitry of the
targeted electronics. Unfortunately, non-explosive devices
tend to be large and expensive. An explosive EMP device on
the other hand, is much more powerful, and smaller, but
uses superconducting materials to store the electromagnetic
energy inside, and those materials have to be cooled. In
addition, an explosive EMP grenade would most likely
destroy itself during detonation, making it a one-shot device.
Of course, the same goes for a fragmentation grenade, so
perhaps self-destruction isn't a major concern.
It's going to be very interesting to see how the development
of the EMP grenade continues and seeing it used in the field
one day may really turn the tide of the war. However, they
do have to get there first, and they seem to have a lot of work
left. Even if the grenade works perfectly for example, there's
still the issue of protecting the army's own equipment from
being disabled by the grenades.
ASUS PadFone 2 (White
Edition) Preview
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/asus-padfone-2-white-edition-
preview/17982.html
November 21st, 2012
Our electrifying colleagues at Chinese VR-Zone have
published exclusive snaps of the elusive white edition of the
Asus PadFone 2 on their site. More details after the break...
At the Milan and Taipei launch events earlier last month,
ASUS showed off a gorgeous white edition of their
revolutionary PadFone 2 which will be selling in December.
No details are given about respective country availability yet
but we can confirm that the hardware specifications will be
identical to the regular black-ivory version (Qualcomm S4
Pro with LTE, 4.7 inch Super IPS+ screen, 2GB RAM). An
update to the latest and greatest Android 4.2 Jelly Bean is
also on the cards.
For Singapore consumers, the Padfone 2 will start
selling tomorrow at SITEX 2012 from $848 (32GB) and
$1099 (with Padfone 2 Station tablet) without telco line
subscription. At the same time, StarHub will also announce
their exclusive LTE plan bundles.

6
For more pictures, hop on to - http://chinese.vr-
zone.com/41782/asus-padfone-2-white-to-launch-in-101-
itmonth-11212012/
NASA discovery on Mars said
to be "one for the history
books"
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/nasa-discovery-on-mars-said-to-be-
one-for-the-history-books-/17980.html
November 21st, 2012
For sometime now NASA's six-wheeled Mars rover has been
rolling along, taking incredible pictures and samples of rock
and earth. Now NASA says the rover has something “for the
history books”
It will be some weeks before they can officially announce
what it is exactly. So, has NASA found past or present signs
of life on Mars?
A recent report from the U.S. National Public Radio (NPR)
announced a stunning revelation on November 20th
, 2012
by NASA. According to NASA the news is said to be very
exciting and while they would love nothing more than to
reveal what it is the rover has found, they are bound by policy
to keep it silent until all the tests are made, all possible errors
gone over and all data is complied. Until then, we can only
guess.
A John Grotzinger who serves as the chief principal
investigator for the rover operation spoke to NPR and said,
“We’re getting data from SAM as we sit here and speak, and
the data looks really interesting…” The report goes on to
say that NASA’s scientists controlling the rover are saying
the arm on the machine, affectionately called “SAM”, has
made the discovery that the team is now going over. SAM is
mobile lab and analyzer all in one. After the unit analyzed
all the material collected and sent the data back to NASA,
Grotzinger stated that the data would be “one for the history
books. It’s looking really good.”
While those of us following the exploration of Mars by
NASA’s rover are very excited to hear the recent news, we can
only guess at what that find is. But with NASA using words
like “history” and “really interesting”, we can only suspect it
means exactly what we are thinking – signs of past life, or
life itself.
Google to create its own
AirPlay esque service
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/google-to-create-its-own-airplay-
esque-service/17979.html
November 21st, 2012
According to tech website GIGaom, Google is currently
developing its own media streaming functionality, for
Android devices and Google TV. The technology that the
company is hoping to persuade device and software makers
to adopt would be similar to that of Apple’s AirPlay media
solution.
It could be said that the fascination with watching movies on
four inch screens is dying off - movies are, and have always
been made for the big screen. But now that most media is
mobile and digital, a problem exists that needs solving - how
to get all that media onto TVs.
TVs have developed over the years, and so have
smartphones/tablets. But unfortunately, technology to
correlate these two has not progressed as quickly. While
DVD burning is a possible method to watch digitally
purchased films on television sets, expense, complication,
and problems with format size makes this technique
obsolete and disliked.
With the introduction of the Apple TV, Apple sought to
introduce a simple and elegant solution to this problem.
It has been widely successful - using AirPlay functionality,
integration between Macs and iOS devices allow music
and video to be streamed to users’ television sets. Using
automatic detection and synchronization, the whole method
ends up requiring very little manual effort. Users get an easy
and virtually seamless media experience, and Apple gets
more sales on its new hardware and media store.
AirPlay functionality, with an iPad and Apple TV streaming
to a TV set (Image credit:Apple)
So, it works out for everybody - everybody, of course, except
for the competing brands, which would rather your living
room be filled with their own equipment. This year, for
instance, Microsoft introduced SmartGlass - an application
to synchronize media between Windows 8 and Xbox devices.

7
So it makes sense that Google, auto maker/ISP/
search engine/advertisement/media provider/TV service
extraordinaire would want in on the fun. Devices using
Google’s Android OS fill the mobile market – and the beauty
of Android (even if there are also blemishes) is that it comes
in many shapes and sizes.
From smartphones, tablets, to non-cellular media devices,
the availability of Android software with which to obtain and
consume mobile media is very large. Combining this empire
of hardware and related services with Google’s own TV box,
Google could prove to be a formidable player in this new
territory of digital entertainment.
Disney buys LucasArts:
Star Wars video games
threatened?
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/disney-buys-lucasarts-star-wars-
video-games-threatened-/17974.html
November 21st, 2012
On October 30th, The Walt Disney Company purchased both
Lucasfilm, LucasArts, and therefore gained all the rights to
such things as Star Wars for $4 billion. Gamer's concern is
over the LucasArts studio, and all of the many games it holds
sway – Star Wars: The Old Republic being only one of a large
lot.
On October 30th
, The Walt Disney Company purchased both
Lucasfilm, LucasArts, and therefore gained all the rights to
such things as Star Wars for $4 billion. Gamer's concern is
over the LucasArts studio, and all of the many games it holds
sway – Star Wars: The Old Republic being only one of a large
lot.
“Disney bought all Lucasfilm companies, including
LucasArts. For the time being, all projects are business as
usual. We are excited about all the possibilities that Disney
brings,” Lucasfilm publicist Barbara Gamlen said. In the
same press release, it was stated that a new episode of Star
Wars is already in production.
This could be good. Or this could be very, very bad.
The way that it could be good is that LucasArts has been
slowly whittling away – we've seen some strange things
from the studio (not to mention Lucas himself). Things that
seem to work against fans, not with them. Calls of rebellion
have rung out a few times recently, for new management,
new staff, and new ideas. Well, if this doesn't put a fresh
turn on the material LucasArts has been producing, nothing
will. Some point to the success of The Avengers, and give
credit to the company for being honest to the series while
producing quality entertainment. Disney has been around
for a long time, and doesn't seem to be stopping any time
soon. Perhaps they will know what's best for the dying
company that is LucasArts.
The way that it can be bad, however... well, the following
picture can give you some idea.
Fans are already starting to cry, weep, and generally pull
out their hair in anguish over Disney-styled Star Wars
objects. We've seen Micky and Minnie as Luke and Leia
(respectively), and we won't even begin to mention poor
Goofy in the background dressed as a black-helmed Storm
Trooper. Some fans aren't sure what's worse – subjecting
Star Wars to Disney themes, or Disney characters to Star
Wars themes.
Most importantly, the future of the video games produced by
Lucas Arts... and indeed, any forthcoming games in the Star
Wars world... are in question. The studio has not mentioned
any current removal or cutbacks on the teams, including
those that currently handle the video game department.
Fans of the Star Wars (both the movie and video game series)
are holding their breath, waiting for the studio to release it's
newest content. While Disney has announced it's excitement
about the purchase... but, other than saying it would release
another film, has not spoken too much of their video game
based plans.

8
“Lucasfilm reflects the extraordinary passion, vision, and
storytelling of its founder, George Lucas,” said Robert A.
Iger, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of The Walt
Disney Company. “This transaction combines a world-
class portfolio of content including Star Wars, one of the
greatest family entertainment franchises of all time, with
Disney’s unique and unparalleled creativity across multiple
platforms, businesses, and markets to generate sustained
growth and drive significant long-term value.”
All we can do now is wait, hope, pray, and lovingly grasp our
copies of Knights of the Old Republic
Nintendo responds to Wii U
system crashes
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/nintendo-responds-to-wii-u-system-
crashes/17969.html
November 21st, 2012
Nintendo responds to a few potential problems of their new
Wii U console including slow updates and system crashes via
their support website.
Nintendo's new Wii U console hasn't had the best launch
record: from multiple reports of the system bricking to
system crashes and slow application launch times, many
Wii U owners seem to be disappointed with Nintendo's new
console.
"We are aware that users are experiencing load times
when they launch or switch between applications. We are
exploring ways to enhance features for consumers’ overall
experience.
As a whole, the gaming community--including many
professional game journalist websites--praise the Wii U,
hailing it as a revolutionary new system and has received
high review scores across the board.
Regardless, many gamers are frustrated with the console,
and a few of them are furious after accidentally bricking their
system by turning it off during the long two-hour system
update.
Also PC Perspective's teardown of the Wii U revealed that it's
internal components aren't too impressive, making the Wii
U seem overpriced in terms of hardware proficiency. The Wii
U does, however, offer many impressive features and ushers
in a new generation of handheld gaming.
The Wii U is now available in North America and retails
at $299 (Basic) and $349 (Deluxe) respectively. For more
information on the console please visit Nintendo's official
website.

1
geeks.
Microsoft planning Xbox TV
for 2013
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/microsoft-planning-xbox-tv-
for-2013/18014.html
November 22nd, 2012
Microsoft is creating an Xbox TV for launch in 2013,
according to multiple sources cited by The Verge.
The set-top box will be a low-cost alternative to a normal
Xbox gaming console, primarily designed to be used for its
entertainment features, such as video streaming. Gaming
will be limited to “casual gaming,” making it a big departure
from the console.
The device will run a pared-down version of Windows 8, with
all the core components, and it is expected to have almost
instant boot-up times.
The move marks a shift in approach to the Xbox name by
Microsoft, with the Redmond, Washington-based company
now utilising the brand for its wider entertainment product
line, not just its gaming division.
The device is expected to be unveiled next year, perhaps
with Microsoft's next-generation Xbox console, which will
be competing with Nintendo's Wii U, the latest console that
has already launched in North America and will be launching
elsewhere in the next two weeks.
A statement by Microsoft neither confirmed nor denied the
rumoured Xbox TV, but the wording suggests this might
indeed be on the horizon:
“Xbox 360 has found new ways to extend the console
lifecycle by introducing controller-free experiences with
Kinect and re-inventing the console with a new dashboard
and new entertainment content partnerships. We are always
thinking about what is next for our platform and how to
continue to defy the lifecycle convention.”
John McAfee claims
employees plotted to kill him
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/john-mcafee-claims-employees-
plotted-to-kill-him/18013.html
November 22nd, 2012
John McAfee, founder of the namesake antivirus company,
claims that he has proof that two of his employees plotted
to kill him, adding another twist to an increasingly bizarre
story.
John McAfee, founder of the namesake antivirus company,
claims that he has proof that two of his employees plotted
to kill him, adding another twist to an increasingly bizarre
story.
McAfee is wanted by police in Belize for questioning about
the murder of his neighbour, Gregory Faull, which he denies
he committed, but now he says that he was the victim of a
murder plot.
He posted a transcript of a conversation that allegedly
occurred between an ex-employee and another employee,
which he said he taped using secret recording devices on the
grounds of his $1.5 million property.
The post shows the men discussing planting a bomb at
McAfee's house and calling officials in the police force, which
they suggest are involved in the conspiracy. If the recording
is genuine this would explain McAfee's fear that the police
will kill him if he hands himself in for questioning.

2
The employees worked for McAfee after his departure from
the security firm. The plot seems to focus on the fact that
the first employee was sacked, but McAfee plans to upload a
transcript of a second recording that he says will expose the
man's links with the government.
McAfee also revealed he received a handwritten death threat,
demanding a payment of $150,000. Not trusting the police,
McAfee opted for a private investigator instead, forcing
his employees and guards to copy the note in their own
handwriting, but none matched. His four dogs were also
poisoned, which police believe may be linked to the murder
of Faull.
Recently McAfee revealed a number of disguises he claims
he has been using to evade police and journalists, but he
denies being as paranoid as many reports have claimed. In a
spat with a journalist at Wired he revealed that he fed false
information, such as purposely strange tales about “frogmen
coming out of the sea.” Something tells us that we can expect
plenty more revelations in the coming weeks.
Apple ordered to give
HTC settlement details to
Samsung
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/apple-ordered-to-give-htc-
settlement-details-to-samsung/18012.html
November 22nd, 2012
A judge has ordered Apple to hand over details of its
settlement with HTC to rival Samsung, the latest victory for
the South Korean electronics giant.
A judge has ordered Apple to hand over details of its
settlement with HTC to rival Samsung, the latest victory for
the South Korean electronics giant.
HTC settled with Apple earlier this month, carving out a ten-
year deal to share each others patents. Details of the deal
were not revealed, but analysts believe HTC was forced to
pay out between $5 and $20 on each handset it creates.
The exact nature of the settlement will now be disclosed to
Samsung's lawyers, not the public at large, and it is expected
that it will deal with some of the same patents at the heart of
Samsung's own dispute with Apple.
This will give Samsung an edge in any kind of negotiation
to end the close to 20 lawsuits the companies are engaged
in, but Samsung has previously indicated that it has no
intention on settling, despite a whopping $1.05 billion
damages payment it was ordered to pay to Apple earlier this
year, a ruling it is now appealing.
Apple has also had a run of bad luck with its legal battles,
including losing an appeal in the UK and being forced to
publish an apology on its website, not to mention a failed
attempt to dismiss a case launched against it by Motorola,
now owned by Google. This latest setback, however, could
pave the way for even more losses on Apple's side of the
patent war.
Skyrim with over 100 mods
looks beautiful
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/skyrim-with-over-100-mods-looks-
beautiful/18010.html
November 22nd, 2012
A gamer named Unreal has added over 100 mods to his copy
of The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, turning an already pretty
game into a work of art.
One of the great things with pc games is the ability to
mod their content. Assuming the right tools are available
to the public (and sometimes even if they're not), creative
individuals can alter their games in countless ways. This is
a big part of pc gaming and so, modifications have been
welcomed from day one in Skyrim. Steam and the Skyrim

3
Nexus both have massive catalogs of custom player created
content which will change the game in subtle or drastic ways.
One gamer, who goes by the name Unreal (not to be confused
with the makers of the Unreal engine), has tested over 300
mods and ended up using a mix of 100 of them, to carve his
copy of Skyrim into something even prettier than the already
beautiful Skyrim. He has changed the lighting, vegetation
density, UI and water appearance to name just a few. To
show off his creation, he created a video demonstration,
which you can check out below. For reference, the Skyrim
gameplay trailer is down there as well:
Here's what Unreal has put together
And here's the original, in case you want a reference
There's a Contra easter egg
in Battlefield 3
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/there-s-a-contra-easter-egg-in-
battlefield-3/18009.html
November 22nd, 2012
Reddit users have managed to reveal a clever and well
hidden easter egg dedicated to Contra in one of the
singleplayer maps in Battlefield 3.
Battlefield always comes with a few Easter eggs hidden
away in their games, but the one which was just discovered
by some people over at Reddit, was certainly obscure and
well hidden. The Easter egg can be found in a singleplayer
mission near the beginning of the game where you are tasked
to follow a wire into a basement, where you find and must
disarm an IED.
Here's the IED, with cables sticking out of it
On the table where the IED is sitting, there's a workbench
filled with all sorts of electronics, and in the back, leaning
against a wall, is an old circuit board. It seems perfectly
inconspicuous, but if you take care and look carefully
(looking through a scope helps), you'll notice that the board
has a sticker with the old Konami logo on it. When redditor
vtsteve discovered the logo, he did a little digging around.
A close-up of the circuit board reveals the Konami logo
What he found was that the circuit board was a very specific
circuit board. It's the main circuit board from the Super
Contra arcade cabinet. Super Contra, for those unaware, is
the 1988 sequel to the original Contra.
Wicked Lasers' Torch can
cook your thanksgiving
dinner.
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/wicked-lasers-torch-can-cook-your-
thanksgiving-dinner./18007.html
November 22nd, 2012
Wicked Lasers makes the world's most powerful flashlight,
and in a very cool demonstration of it's capabilities, they
used it to cook a turkey.
Wicked Lasers makes some.. well... wicked laser products.
They also make flashlights, and their Torch model is

4
marketed as the most powerful flashlight in the world,
shining with a blinding 4100 lumens. In comparison, the
brightness of one of those cheap plastic flashlights you
always find in the back of your cupboard shines at roughly
10-20 lumens.
The Torch's battery lasts for about 8 minutes and in the past,
Wicked Lasers have demonstrated it's ability to set fire to
paper within seconds and it's even been used to cook eggs.
Seeing as it's thanksgiving though, the Torch was used for
it's most challenging job yet - cooking dinner. Six Torches
were set up around an uncooked turkey and were aimed at
it, lights on, for two and a half hours. The result? Delicious.
Check it out below:
Some amazing Black Ops II
statistics
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/some-amazing-black-ops-ii-
statistics/18005.html
November 22nd, 2012
Call of Duty: Black Ops II was released a week ago, and
Treyarch has been collecting gameplay stats on it's players.
They've presented the stats on a website. Some of the
numbers are absolutely staggering.
Since Black Ops II was released last week, players have been
racking up some absolutely amazing gameplay statistics.
Treyarch, as with most other studios have been collecting
gameplay data. This kind of data serves an important
purpose; it allows the developers to use every player's
statistics to monitor the game and subsequently adjust
it (e.g. by adjusting the damage or accuracy of various
weapons) to ensure fairness and good fun.
However, the statistics are just plain interesting, even by
themselves, and Treyarch has created a webpage which
continuously updates the stats on a number of things in
game. If you want to check it out yourself, head on over
to Call of Duty's global stats page. We've presented a few
whopping numbers below, but bear in mind that these stats
are changing faster than they can be typed into the article.
It's amazing how dedicated people are to killing each other
online
These are some of the stats for roughly 12.30 PM GMT, on
Thursday November 22nd, 2012:
Hours played: 88,230,297
Shots fired: 202,808,263,226
Total kills: 10,179,642,070
Dollar value of destroyed oil barrels, at $80 per barrel:
$1,017,645,506
Zombies Killed: 9,049,655,020
Players who have reached Prestige: 1,830,455
Kids want iPad for Christmas;
good luck Santa!
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/kids-want-ipad-for-christmas-good-
luck-santa-/18006.html
November 22nd, 2012
If you believed in Santa (maybe you still do now) when you
were a kid, then perhaps you may also remember the letters
which you wrote in details telling Santa how good you were
and that all you wanted was a Pentium II. Okay, maybe just
a few of us wanted a processor back then as a kid, but kids
in this day and age want gadgets. Not just any gadgets mind
you, but toys from the most expensive brand.
A survey conducted by Nielsen Wire has revealed that 48%
of U.S. kids aged 6-12 intend to ‘buy’ an iPad within the next
6 months. Second on the wish list is Nintendo’s latest Wii U
game console, followed closely by three other Apple products
—the iPod Touch, iPad mini, and iPhone.
Consumers 13 years of age and up also have the iPad as
their top choice of gizmos to buy within the next 6 months.
However, the only other Apple product to make the top 5
most wanted list for this age group is the iPhone. Still, the
Apple brand dominates the American culture as kids ages 6
to 60 want in on the Apple bobbing this holiday season.
Tablets other than the iPad are also coveted tech toys, but
clearly they’re not as popular as the iPad among kids 6-12.

5
The iPad, too, is more popular among mature consumers
(13+), although older folks are more inclined to consider an
iPad alternative.
If Santa outsourced his manufacturing, Apple (and by
extension Foxconn) would probably be able to fulfill most
of the requests of the good little boys and girls, but even
Santa may not have the budget to leave an iPad under every
Christmas tree.
World's oldest computer
turned on again
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/world-s-oldest-computer-turned-on-
again/18004.html
November 22nd, 2012
The oldest working digital computer has been turned on and
is currently functioning as an exhibit in the UK National
museum of computing.
The WITCH, or Wolverhampton Instrument for Teaching
Computing from Harwell, is the oldest digital computer still
in working order. When it was first built in 1951, it was used
for nuclear research, and at the time it was one of perhaps a
dozen computers worldwide. The WITCH weighs in at three
metric tons and is the size of a room, and since 2009, the
UK's National museum of computing has been restoring it
to working order. Now, with the restoration complete, it has
once more been turned on and is now functioning as an
exhibit at the museum.
The WITCH in the 1950's...
The computer was mainly used for calculating algorithms,
and could work at roughly the same pace as a human with a
calculator. User input was handled via strips of paper, and
the computer's output was stored on paper strips as well. "To
see it in action is to watch the inner workings of a computer --
something that is impossible on the machines of today," said
Kevin Murrell, museum director. Indeed, when the WITCH
is turned on, there is stuff to see, with printers spinning up
and lights flashing.
And fully restored today
The digital information in the computer was relayed by
using telephone switch boards.The WITCH also utilized
hundreds of dekatrons (pictured in the header image), large
valves with neon lights which were used for counting. Each
dekatron could hold one digit in data. It's astounding to
think of how far computers have come in just 61 years, and
how quickly technology is advancing.
Nokia shares spike by 12%:
Is the Lumia 920 doing that
well?
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/nokia-shares-spike-by-12--is-the-
lumia-920-doing-that-well-/18003.html
November 22nd, 2012
Yesterday, shares of Nokia (NOK) climbed 12% to $3.40 per
share. The stock has slumped for several months now, so the
sudden jump has a lot of analysts scratching their heads. So
what is the impetus behind this shot of good luck for Nokia?
Share prices usually reflect the expectations and perceptions
of investors. Back in July a similar occurrence happened.
Even though Nokia was leaking money like a rusty boat, their
stock rose 12% thanks to the 4 million shipments they made
of the Lumia.1
So can the Lumia 920’s success be thanked for this sudden
jump in Nokia’s share prices? Well, the phones certainly do
improve a lot upon the fundamentals which the Lumia 900
introduced. Being a Windows 8 device, it contains higher
specifications such as 720p resolution, dual-core processor,
and larger storage. It contains Nokia’s critically acclaimed
Nokia Maps, which is rather competitive compared to
Google Maps and definitely blows the laughable iOS Maps
out of the water. Not only this, the device supports wireless
charging, NFC syncing, and an extremely good camera.
So it comes as no surprise that the Lumia 920 has been
shipping in truckloads; in fact the demand for the new device
was so strong that it has been selling out. A Nokia phone

6
selling out, fancy that! And the phone may do even better in
Asia than it did in Europe when it finally releases there.
Nokia is rumored to be launching the Lumia 920 and 820 in
Asia in December2
just in time for Christmas. The success of
these phones in the region will greatly contribute to whether
or not Nokia can keep up this momentum. The good news
though is that Nokia have a good track record in areas such
as India, and have sold many handsets there even during
their ‘off-peak’ season in the previous years.
Of course when there’s money on the line, traders can be
a skeptical bunch. When big analysts or banks downgrade
stock ratings on companies, many sell blindly despite
what products a company offers. There have been rumors2
though, that investment Goldman Sachs and Morgan
Stanley downgraded Nokia’s stock rating on purpose so that
they could secure more shares of the company, while in
secret they knew the company was about to bounce back.
Word of this has gotten out now, and traders may be jumping
back on the Nokia train once more.
If this 12% bounce in stock price has enough momentum (i.e.
trading volume), it may be just what is needed to get Nokia
back in the game.
And as we all know, more competition is always a good thing
for consumers.
Russian censorship of the
Internet goes into effect
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/russian-censorship-of-the-internet-
goes-into-effect/18001.html
November 22nd, 2012
A controversial new Russian law went into effect today
that bans or blacklists any website the government
sees as objectionable. The Russian Telecommunications,
Information Technology and Mass Communications agency
will be managing the censorship.
This new SOPA-like law that went into effect on November
21, 2012 gives the Russian government the power to
immediately shut down, block or blacklist any site in the
country that the government deems objectionable or illegal.
Passed in July 2012, the law was fought hard by many
Internet anti-censorship groups that included the popular
Russian search engine Yandex.com and the Russian version
of Wikipedia, which went black for 24 hours.
According to Russian lawmakers the new law was made in
an effort to protect young children from seeing material that
would be objectionable, such as child abuse or drug abuse.
The law allows for websites inside the country to be shut
down entirely, while sites outside of the government’s reach
would simply be blacklisted, which is essentially an outright
blockage of that IP into the country through the Russian
Internet service provider.
This latest passage in Russia has many worried that other
super powers may follow suit with Russia. Currently many
nations have some form of censorship such as China and
many Middle Eastern nations. Google Incorporated is
asking its users to help them fight the United Nations
attempt at deciding whether the Internet should be
regulated. In reply to the UN meeting, Google has up a
special web page with a tagline that reads, “A free and
open world depends on a free and open web”. Google
says their efforts are to prevent the upcoming vote by the
UN’s International Telecommunications Union (ITU) on the
future of the Internet. Part of the ITU’s goal would be on
how the Internet is viewed, if it needs to be regulated and
if the United States should remain the chief overseer of the
Internet.
Steven Milunovich's
Prophecy: iOS is the New
Windows
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/steven-milunovich-s-prophecy-ios-
is-the-new-windows/18002.html
November 22nd, 2012
Apple has had its own fair share of bad luck recently, but the
infamous analyst from UBS thinks Apple is still on the up,
and even believes in a future of computers ruled by iOS.
The decline of demand for the desktop PC is no secret.
Both Hewlett Packard and Dell Inc. have showed steady
decline in demand for their IBM-clone PCs in the past few
quarters. While this may change now that Windows 8 has
been unveiled, it’s still not a good sign.
That’s not to say that it’s all peachy for Apple, either. The
Cupertino software & hardware juggernaut reached its peak
in share prices on Sept 21st
($705.07), but has fallen 21% in
November. Of course, that wasn’t enough to strip Apple of
its position as most valued public company. The number 2
spot is given to Exxon Mobil, who is valued at $401.3 billion.
That’s still a fair way lower than Apple, who is currently
valued at $528.4 billion.
Many believe that the next main competition of the
electronics space will take place with tablet computers, and
the big three all have their own entrants. Apple’s iPad has
been a consistent seller since its release 3 revisions ago.
Microsoft has finally thrown its hat into the hardware ring
with its Surface product, and Google have also released a
Nexus tablet. Add to this the foreign resistance of Samsung,
and a whole bunch of Taiwanese/Chinese makers willing to
get a piece of the action, and you have one hell of a fight on
your hands.
So what is it that makes UBS analyst Milunovich think that
iOS has the upper hand?
Well, for one, Milunovich doesn’t think the aforementioned
competition have what it takes to last, especially this late in
the game. While he did express some hope for Samsung, who
has a 20% share thanks to their early start, the iPad’s 50%
market share is still a force to be reckoned with.

7
A UBS survey of big-wig chief information officers showed
that 60% expected tablets to replace PC’s over time.
Milunovich believes that Windows may take a corporate
niche as they have done in the past, but will not win over the
home consumer market.
Apple’s own estimates state that tablet shipments will exceed
those of PC by 2016, and Milunovich is well on board with
that theory.
It just remains to be seen whether or not Apple will riding
atop this new wave of digital devices.
Facebook wants to change
how decisions are voted on
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/facebook-wants-to-change-how-
decisions-are-voted-on/18000.html
November 22nd, 2012
A letter sent to Facebook users on November 21, 2012, it
informs the near 1 billion users that the company is looking
to remove the ability of users to make or vote on changes to
Facebook as it currently stands.
The company wants to move to a newer system that allows
users to vote on new policy that lets users write to the Chief
Privacy Officer about concerns, and will be able to take part
in a live stream web broadcast to voice concerns or ask
questions.
Currently the company has a policy that states that if they
receive 7 thousand comments for a change, users (if at 30%)
may vote for that change and the decision would be bound
by Facebook to implement. Now, Facebook says they don’t
want any more user feedback to make a change as far as the
old vote is concerned. Facebook’s wants to move to a new
system that will focus on feedback about new features rather
than changing existing ones.
According to on-line site TechCruch, Facebook says that
the old rules were made back when the company only
had about 200 million users. Now that Facebook has
grown tremendously, it is time that the company makes the
necessary changes so that the site runs more efficiently.
To read Facebook’s Rights and Responsibilities page, you
may click here for a new window.
Lepa G1600-MA 1600W PSU
Review
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/lepa-g1600-ma-1600w-psu-
review/17999.html
November 22nd, 2012
To the dismay of our most hardcore enthusiasts who own
major energy consuming equipment, it has been a while
since we last reviewed a 1kW+ power supply here in VR-
Zone. Today we will try to redeem ourselves by bringing
you a review of the most powerful power supply currently
available, the LEPA G1600-MA 1600W. For those who have
not heard of LEPA before, they are the in-house brand of
Enermax, founded only 2 years ago.
To the dismay of our most hardcore enthusiasts who own
major energy consuming equipment, it has been a while
since we last reviewed a 1kW+ power supply here in VR-
Zone. Today we will try to redeem ourselves by bringing
you a review of the most powerful power supply currently
available, the LEPA G1600-MA 1600W. For those who have
not heard of LEPA before, they are the in-house brand of
Enermax, founded only 2 years ago.
There are currently several 1500W units available on the
market, including the MaxRevo and Platimax units from
Enermax; however, the LEPA G1600-MA is the only 80Plus
Gold certified 1600W power supply currently available to
consumers and the company also claims that it may even
peak at 1700W, making it the most powerful consumer-
grade computer PSU that money can buy (after the
discontinued Koolance 1700W water-cooled PSU, which has
not been available for years).
• Powerful 1600W fully rated output, peak power up to
1700W
• Surpassing 80 Plus Gold level (G1600-MA is 80 Plus
Gold certified.)
• Full Modular Cabling Design makes system upgrade
and replacement easy
• High Density PCB Design makes G1600 only 18cm
in depth, providing more space to dissipate the heat
inside the chassis
• 135mm ball bearing fan with thermal programmed
speed controller delivers silent, cool operation
• Honeycomb-shaped ventilation design increases
airflow and keeps power supply cool
• Solid State Capacitors and 105°C Japanese Grade A
Capacitors provide great reliability
• DC-to-DC Converter Design ensures system stability
• Full Bridge and Zero Voltage Switch (ZVS) topologies
provide superior performance and reliability
• Dual Sided PCB design synergizes PCB layout

8
• Six powerful +12V rails with high maximum loads offer
great compatibility with heavy-duty graphics cards
• Ability to run up to 4-Way GPU (SLI / CrossFire) and
Dual CPUs together without difficulty
• Compliance with EU ErP Lot 6 standards (lower than
1W power consumption at standby mode)
• Over Power, Over Voltage, Under Voltage, Over
Current, Over Temperature, Short-circuit protection
provide great safety to your system
• ATX12V version 2.3 and EPS12V version 2.92
compliant
Model G1600-
MA
G1600-
MA-EU
AC Input Voltage 115-240VAC,
50-60Hz
(Max.
Range:
100-264VAC,
47-63Hz)
220-240VAC,
50-60Hz
Current 16-8A 8.5-7.5A
DC
Output
+3.3V 25A 140W 25A 140W
+5V 25A 25A
+12V1 20A 1596W
(133A)
20A 1596W
(133A)
+12V2 20A 20A
+12V3 30A 30A
+12V4 30A 30A
+12V5 30A 30A
+12V6 30A 30A
-12V 0.5A 6W 0.5A 6W
+5Vsb 4A 20W 4A 20W
Total
Power
1600W 1600W
PSU
Dimension
180mm
(D) x
150mm
(W) x
86mm
(H)
Georgia Tech researchers
develop robots that can work
together
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/georgia-tech-researchers-develop-
robots-that-can-work-together/17998.html
November 22nd, 2012
We can all imagine the days when manmade robots
equipped with limitless knowledge and abilities will
somehow become beings that can think on their own—thus,
leading to our impending doom. People have managed to
develop robots that can walk upright, respond to human
signals, and even do marvelous things like ride a bike, but
we have yet to encounter a sentient being that’s completely
made of metal and silicon (at least not first hand).
Skipping the development of a single robotic entity that can
function on its own, researchers at the Georgia Robotics and
InTelligent Systems Laboratory went straight to developing
a unit of bots that can function by following the instructions
of its leader.
In this systematic robo-unit, the leader is the one that
gets the initial set of instructions, which it then relays
to neighboring bots (the followers). Conditions such as
distances between the bots will determine which of the
commands the drones will execute sent via the leader. This
sounds simple enough, but the complexity in the whole
system lies in the algorithm that will determine which bot
will do what.
“The challenge...lies in building topologies tailored for
applications that specify the total number of such groups,
as well as the cardinality of each group. We’re currently
working on developing low complexity algorithms for
building such networks,” said the researchers.
To demonstrate a simple use of the system, the researchers
set up the robots to play an extremely short rendition of
Beethoven’s “Fur Elise” on a piano table. The tune probably
won’t win the bots an Grammy or VMA any time soon, but
the prospect of robots working together in unison and good
efficiency is evident.

1
geeks.
Australia targets Google in
tax law amendment
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/australia-targets-google-in-tax-law-
amendment/18043.html
November 24th, 2012
An Australian tax amendment is hoping to close loopholes
which large companies like Google routinely use to
circuimvent tax laws and keep from paying.
Australia is one of many nations (including the United
States) which suffers from loopholes in tax laws which
allow multinational corporations to not pay taxes. Certain
countries, such as Luxembourg and Ireland, have lower
corporate tax rates than others, and so, it is becoming
common practice for large corporations to have their
corporate headquarters in these nations, even though
their largest offices and bulk of operations are stationed
elsewhere.
Google for example, has it's financial headquarters in
Ireland, and any sales made in Australia are actually going
through the Irish office, and thus subject to Irish taxation,
and not through Google's local presence. According to
Reuters, a new tax law revision would force companies doing
business in Australia to be subject to local laws on local sales.
In other words, if Google makes a sale in Australia, then that
sale is subject to Australian taxation.
The new law revision would raises the taxes Google has to
pay from 12.5% to 30%, more than doubling it. Google states
that the company is abiding by all laws(and they are; that's
how loopholes work), and that they are contributing to the
Australian economy: "We make a significant contribution
to Australia's economy by helping thousands of businesses
grow online, providing services to millions of Australians
at no cost, as well as employing 650 people locally," said a
spokesperson for Google.
This news comes shortly after several multinational
companies came under fire in the UK for the same reason.
The UK and Germany have both announced plans to
lobby for a change in international tax laws to ensure that
companies pay their fair dues.
Oatmeal studios sues The
Oatmeal
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/oatmeal-studios-sues-the-
oatmeal/18042.html
November 24th, 2012
A greeting card company known as "Oatmeal Studios" is
suing the webcomic "The Oatmeal" for infringing on it's
trademark, citing that the name is confusingly similar.
A Massachusetts greeting card company known as
"Oatmeal Studios" is suing Matthew Inman's "The Oatmeal"
webcomic. The Oatmeal recently teamed up with Recycled
Greetings in order to start putting some of it's content in
greeting card form, and Oatmeal Studios found the name
confusingly similar, and threw a lawsuit at Inman, citing
infringement.
The lawsuit claims that The Oatmeal's greeting cards are
"likely to cause confusion, mistake, or is likely to deceive
consumers." Oatmeal Studios has demanded the webcomic
change it's name and pay damages.
This is the second time in only a few short months that
Inman has gone to court. Last time, he sued website
FunnyJunk for copying his work. He won that lawsuit,
and when FunnyJunk's lawyers demanded $20,000 for a
defamation charge, Inman collected more than ten times

2
that in donations from readers, though he didn't need to pay
a cent after the Electronic Frontier Foundation stepped in.
Action games are good for
your brain, says cognitive
researcher
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/action-games-are-good-for-your-
brain-says-cognitive-researcher/18041.html
November 24th, 2012
A TED talk reveals that there are some scientifically
supported benefits to playing action games, including an
increased attention span and improved eye-sight.
Turns out there are some actual, scientific benefits to playing
action games. In a TED talk hosted by cognitive researcher
Daphne Bavelier, action games have been studied in a
laboratory environment for what beneficial or detrimental
effects they might have on players. Long standing beliefs
such as sight-impairment from looking at a screen for too
long, or gamers having short attention spans, seem to be
wrong.
Bavelier's research indicates that there's quite a few benefits
to action games: Eye sight, especially discerning detail, is
better among gamers, and their ability to see varying shades
of grey is improved as compared to the general population.
In addition, gamers have an increased attention span and
ability to multitask and to track moving objects. When
attempting to follow a number of specific objects, among a
much greater set on a cluttered screen, gamers were found to
be able to track around twice as many objects as non-gamers.
All of these things may seem like rather useless talents, but
when applied to real world situations, such as the ability
to see the various grey features of a foggy roadway, the
advantages become more pronounced. But don't take my
word for it - check out the TED talk below:
Microsoft is creating their
own augmented reality
glasses
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/microsoft-is-creating-their-own-
augmented-reality-glasses/18038.html
November 24th, 2012
Google aren't the only ones creating augmented reality
devices. Now Microsoft is coming up with their answer to
Google's Project Glass, and it's a little different.
Google has received a lot of attention for Project Glass, their
attempt at creating augmented reality glasses. Microsoft
wants to jump on the band wagon, and have taken to creating
their own glasses. Though only published recently, they
applied for a patent to this device back in May of 2011, so
chances are development is quite a bit underway already.
What makes Microsoft's glasses unique is that while Project
Glass uses a rather small transparent display, the Microsoft
glasses will utilize a full eye glass. Another difference is
that the glasses will be meant more for specific events, than
everyday use. The glasses will display text, images and video
in front of you, which would be of great use for seeing lyrics
at a concert or watching instant replays at sporting events.
As of this time, there's little information on the development
of this project (or if it's even being actively developed).
3D Printer prints cartilage for
implants
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/3d-printer-prints-cartilage-for-
implants/18037.html
November 24th, 2012
Many afflictions, including Osteoarthritis, are largely caused
by the degradation of cartilage in the joints. Unfortunately,
cartilage has very limited healing capacity - once it's
damaged, or gone, there's usually little the body can
do naturally to replace it. In recent years, science has
found ways to compensate, and efforts have been made to
regrow the tissue using a variety of methods, including a
bio-active "hydrogel" which induces tissue regrowth, and
biodegradable nanofiber spheres which can carry new cells
to wounded areas of the cartilage to help it heal properly.
Now, scientists at the Wake Forest Institute for Regenerative
Medicine in North Carolina, have created a new method,
by way of a 3D printer which can make artificial and
implantable cartilage.
This is how the cartilage printer works
3D bio printers have already been implemented to create
artificial arteries, but the process of creating cartilage is a
little different and has to use a combination of technologies

3
in order to manufacture a material that would properly
fulfill it's function. The unique technology which must be
implemented is called electro-spinning, where an electric
current is used to create fine strands of polymer fiber. The
fiber acts as a porous base, a sponge to put it simply, into
which cartilage cells can be injected and stabilize as a solid
structure. The fiber also acts as a reinforcement for the
finished cartilage structure, lending it more stability than
previous efforts.
The team of scientists, led by Professor James Yu, extract
the cartilage cells from rabbit's ears, and then inject them
into the electro spun material by means of inkjet printing.
As with other 3D printing technologies, thin layers of electro
spun mat and cartilage cells are layered on top of each other,
until a finished structure has been completed. The resulting
cartilage disc, which is completely implantable, is 10cm in
diameter and 4mm in thickness.
The finished cartilage pieces were stress tested to see how
they would handle wear and tear. Some implants were
also tested on mice. After several weeks, the implants had
assumed properties expected of natural cartilage. It may
thus one day prove successful in humans as well.
Intel SSD 525 180GB mSATA
- Speedy Gonzales for Small
Form Factors
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/intel-ssd-525-180gb-msata--speedy-
gonzales-for-small-form-factors/18034.html
November 24th, 2012
Many Ultrabooks and tablets till now have been fitted with
criminally slow and small flash drives for media storage,
which is usually the primary speed bottleneck in modern
systems. Can Intel raise the bar with its upcoming mSATA
SSD?
According to a roadmap that we have discussed about earlier
this year, Intel planned to refresh its mainstream 330 series
(with the 335 series), and provide an enthusiast mSATA
offering in the form of the 525 series which uses Intel
20nm MLC NAND with a Sandforce SF-2281 controller. The
new drive also features SATA 6Gb/s signalling speeds and
capacities of up to 240GB.
The pre-production 180GB variant that we have obtained
came with our Intel Next Unit of Computing review sample,
which currently suffers some thermal related issues induced
by heavy loading as discovered by the Tech Report. The
smart boffins at Intel are purportedly working on a fix.
Here are some speed tests that we conducted with the drive,
which should be more or less indicative of final performance:

4
Anvil's Storage Utilities - Compressed 0-Fill
Anvil's Storage Utilities - Uncompressible payload
Blackmagic Disk Speed Test
ATTO Disk Benchmark
At one glance, we can see that the mSATA based SSD 525
is in the same performance league as its larger 2.5-inch
Sandforce SF-2281 SATA counterparts (we mean fantastic
of course), which should be a no brainer to integrate in
premium Ultrabooks and SFF designs. There is no word
from Intel on when it will hit the retail or OEM channels yet.
Intel Next Unit of Computing
(NUC) - Meet your new
Overlords
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/intel-next-unit-of-computing-nuc--
meet-your-new-overlords/18033.html
November 24th, 2012
Whether or not you believe in the Post-PC era malarkey,
there is no denying that the emphasis on personal computing
has shifted on to smartphones and tablets rather than the
latest Bulldozers and Geforces. After all, it's not the size that
matters, but what you do with it...
Here at VR-Zone, we'd rather (and we think our readers too)
much like to talk about the latest in HPC (High Performance
Computing) and HEDT (High-End Desktop) frontiers than
try to pretend we care about low power solutions and
integrated graphics. Burning the Earth's precious fossil fuels
to feed our highly overclocked Piledrivers and GTX 680s
gives us an adrenaline high, and there are few greater thrills

5
in computing than turning up the clock speeds to run Crysis
3 smoothly on six monitors and to find the 48th Mersenne
Prime, or collaborate with total strangers on protein folding.
(Melt the polar ice caps to make the Internets load faster)
Just like how the space race of the 1960s gave way to fighting
pointless proxy wars all across the globe, the attention in
consumer technology has shifted to the more mundane
smartphones and tablets and ultrabooks and hybrids and
other low power "thin clients", where the actual processing
power and information storage have transitioned to the
backend servers of the cloud, usually with Intel Xeon(s)
inside. Nothing grinds my gears more than the fact that
the latest smartphones do not have external SD storage,
instead replaced by some cloudy storage facilty accessed
over ludicrously priced data plans with draconian volume
caps. No wonder the Mayans predicted that the apocalypse
will happen next month.
Today we have two subjects from our dystopian future - both
Intel NUCs, measuring a square 4 by 4 inches and not very
thick, which is small and inconspicuous enough to be an MI6
field agent. Packing an Intel Core i3 (Core i5 SKU coming
next year) also means that it can run a full fledged operating
system and x86 applications without being terribly slow like
a Brazos/Nano, or functionally castrated like my ARM based
Microsoft Surface RT.
(Meet your new Overlords - Ice Canyon and Box Canyon,
Hitman not included)
The primary difference between the two models is their rear
panel I/O configuration, D33217GKE features two HDMI
and a Gigabit LAN port, while D33217CK makes do with a
single HDMI and a Thunderbolt port. Both have three USB
2.0 connectors (two at the back and one in front) and a
19V DC power input (65W brick provided). In case you're
wondering, audio is piped over the Intel HDMI.
Popping open the hood is easy, with only four phillips
screws holding the top cover. Intel intends to sell the
chassis together with the heatsink and the motherboard,
so all a prospective buyer needs to get is some off the
shelf DDR3 SO-DIMMs, mPCIe wireless card and a mSATA
SSD to complete the system. To a systems integrator
or administrator in an under-appreciated IT department,
the standardized componentry and easily serviceable form
factor is a godsend. No more bringing out the sledgehammer
to open side panels or cheap exploding power supplies to
contend with.
Over at the other side of the board, we see a small blower fan
taking care of a tiny heatsink block. The ULV Ivy Bridge Core
i3-3217U (1.8GHz Dual Core with HT, HD4000 graphics)
has a TDP rated at an UltraBook class 17W, with the QS77
PCH adding another 3.6W. We find the lack of USB 3.0 ports

6
mind boggling, since the chipset has native built-in support
for that without the need for another 3rd party controller.
Still, you can expect more dexterous configurations to come
next year, especially with the advent of the Haswell mobile
SOC with its GT3 graphics.
A VESA bracket is also supplied with the NUC, so you can
mount it behind monitors or television screens to save desk
space and conceal wiring.
Over the next few days, we will be exploring and writing
about some usage models for the NUC. In the meantime,
you should hit our Facebook page at http://facebook.com/
vrzone for an ongoing sneak preview of what we're doing!
ARM surges into the PC
market and meets Intel in the
middle?
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/arm-surges-into-the-pc-market-and-
meets-intel-in-the-middle-/18032.html
November 24th, 2012
Your PC is powered by Intel, and your smartphone/tablet is
powered by ARM. As the two computing segments converge,
who's going to be the dominant force?
(Intel's Paul Otellini at IDF 2011)
Paul Otellini, Intel’s soon-to-be ex CEO, surprised the world
with his decision to retire after a long but fruitful career with
the chip maker. Otellini’s seven year stint with Intel as top
brass has helped it to maintain dominance in the PC market,
but as mobility becomes more and more prominent who’s
going to lead Intel into a new era of computing? Not to
mention, how will Intel react to ARM’s insurgence into the
PC sector?
Intel still has the muscle to remain the dominant force in the
PC market, but it goes without saying that the desktop PC
market is shrinking. Mobile solutions such as tablets and
smartphones are growing rapidly, and the majority of these
devices are powered by ARM-based chips.
While we don’t quite know who will captain the Intel battle
cruiser next, we do know ARM has its sight set on taking on

7
Intel in the PC space. The British chip designer expects its
processors to take up more than 10 percent of the traditional
PC or tablets market share by next year.
ARM clearly holds the lead in the mobile/smartphone
market, but Intel still has the upper hand in pure
horsepower. The convergence of PC and mobility means that
ARM and Intel will meet somewhere in the middle.
Microsoft’s recent launch of the Surface RT tablet featuring
the ARM-based Nvidia Tegra 3 chip marks one of the rare
moments where an ARM chip gets featured in a device
marketed at mainstream PC users. By mainstream PC users,
I’m trying to say Microsoft Windows users.
(A big bang for your bucks)
Samsung/Google’s $250 Chromebook featuring Samsung’s
Exynos 5250 is still trying to make its mark in the notebook
arena, but who can overlook the ridiculously attractive price
tag of a Chromebook? For professionals that are looking
into a portable device that can be used to draw up office
documents, surf the internet, and some light entertainment,
the Chromebook is a steal.
Ubuntu is also trying to take advantage of ARM’s robust
mobile processors by developing a free desktop solution that
can be installed alongside the Android operating system.
ARM is directly tackling the needs of power-hungry PC
users, and indirectly, firms on the outside are looking into
developing PC-like experiences with the current ARM tech.
Intel and ARM will be vying for the same space, and it’s hard
to imagine anyone other than Intel winning out. So for the
sake of entertainment, let’s hope both firms go guns a blazing
the whole way through.
Halo 4 Spartan Ops episode 4
trailer released
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/halo-4-spartan-ops-episode-4-
trailer-released/18030.html
November 24th, 2012
Spartan Ops Episode 4 "Didact's Hand" brings five all-new
missions to Halo 4's co-op multiplayer mode, continuing the
dynamic story set into place by the previous episodes. Jump
in to check out the official trailer!
Season 1 Episode 4 "Didact's Hand" of Halo 4's Spartan Ops
co-op multiplayer mode brings with it five new chapters full
of challenging missions and objectives for players to tackle
alone or with friends on Xbox LIVE.
The upcoming episode chronicles the nefarious Jul M'dama
and his plans to wreak havoc upon the UNSC: having
abducted a UNSC scientist, Jul--who seems to be a Sangheili
hierarch who may or may not be Didact's "hand"--looks as
if he's coercing the scientist to do...something. Whatever it
is, it's not good, and Captain Lasky and Commander Palmer
are trying to decipher the mysterious puzzle utilizing Dr.
Halsey's expertise.
Peter Molyneaux concerned
about making promises for
Kickstarter project GODUS
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/peter-molyneaux-concerned-about-
making-promises-for-kickstarter-project-godus/18027.html
November 24th, 2012
Peter Molyneaux's heartfelt reaction in a recent interview
shows fans that he's concerned about delivering false
promises to those who fund his new Kickstarter project
GODUS.
Peter Molyneux has been hailed a gaming visionary, always
thinking big and trying to revolutionize various aspects
of gaming as we know it. His influence on the successful
and popular fantasy-RPG Fable franchise is proof of
Molyneaux's ability, showing that he is more than able to
provide the gaming world with releases that explore the far-
away vistas of a particular genre.
His recent game Curiosity – What's Inside the Cube?,
however, hasn't done too well in the past few weeks,
and Molyneaux has been struggling with the game's

8
"disasterous" server malfunctions. As a result, gamers all
across the world have lashed out, leaving Curiosity to be met
with critical upheavel and negative reception.
Curiosity's recent failures have weighed on Molyneaux, so
much that he actually broke down into tears in a recent
interview when discussing the promises he's made regarding
his new Kickstarter-funded project.
Since the game is largely dependent upon Kickstarter's
crowd-funding--which relies heavily upon trust and offers
no real guarantee that the project will be finished--
Molyneaux is concerned about making too many promises
and not being able to deliver.
“I swore that when we started 22 Cans that we
wouldn’t over-promise, and I guess through stupid
mistakes we have. I have to live by those. If it
means that the project doesn’t get Kickstarted, if it
means that people use the Kickstarter to vent their
frustrations, then I guess I have to live by that.”
With GODUS, Molyneaux hopes to re-invent the original PC
"god game" Populous, and breathe new life into the genre to
make it accessible to the modern age of gaming.
So far GODUS has raised £107,268 of its £450,000 goal with
over four thousand backers, and has 28 more days before the
funding ends on Dec. 21, 2012.
It will be interesting to see how GODUS pans out: will
the project be successfully Kickstarted, and if so, will
Molyneaux and 22Cans deliver on the promises they've
made concerning in-game features and mechanics?
Only time will tell...yet Molyneaux's recent comment proves
that no matter what happens, one thing remains true:
"...I still believe so much.”
GODUS is planned to release on PC, iOS and Android. For
more information please visit the game's official Kickstarter
Page.
New teardown reveals more
specs for the Nintendo Wii U
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/new-teardown-reveals-more-specs-
for-the-nintendo-wii-u/17989.html
November 24th, 2012
Is Nintendo's new console really next-gen? A recent analysis
of the system's internal specs by the geeky gurus at
Anandtech revealed an answer that may surprise you.
Here at VR-Zone, we've reported on Nintendo's new console
quite a bit since its release on Nov. 17. We've talked about
the Wii U's bricking malfunction and system crashes as well
as Nintendo's response to these problems.
Nintendo's continued silence on the actual internal specs
of the Wii U led the team at PC Perspective to teardown
their system and publish their findings to the internet. Their
analysis answered a few questions concerning the Wii U's
memory size and speed, however other specs were unknown.
Despite Nintendo trying to hide the Wii U's innards from
the masses, it didn't take long for the team at AnandTech
to unwrap their console, get under it's skin, and report their
findings in an their recent Wii U teardown.
Both of these teardowns compliment one another to shed
light on the mysteries of what the Wii U is hiding under its
hood.
AnandTech's recent teardown not only gives step-by-step
directions on how to open up your own Wii U, but also
explains each function of the system's internal components:
There are four 4Gb (512MB) Hynix DDR3-1600
devices surrounding the Wii U's MCM (Multi Chip
Module).
Memory is shared between the CPU and GPU, and
if I'm decoding the DRAM part numbers correctly it
looks like these are 16-bit devices giving the Wii U a
total of 12.8GB/s of peak memory bandwidth.
These values may not seem very impressive, especially
when compared to the memory speeds of an Xbox 360 or
PlayStation 3.
The teardown also reveals that the Wii U's memory
bandwidth is the same as a Nexus 10 and an iPad 3/4, but

9
unlike the latter tablets, Nintendo's Wii U is supposed to
have eDRAM for both the CPU and GPU to utilize.
The teardown answers some questions that gamers and tech
gurus have been wanting to know, but for the average gamer,
the data is quite confusing.
Basically, Anandtech's data seems to point to the fact that the
WIi U isn't nearly as powerful--CPU-wise or graphically--as
gamers had once thought, leaving many to believe that it's
not truly a next-gen system.
Be sure to check out the full specs and data that Anandtech
found during its official Wii U teardown to sate your
curiosity or if you'd like to dismantle your own system and
take a look inside. But be sure you know what you're doing--
we would hate for anyone to destroy their expensive system!
Watch out Google: Microsoft
developing rival to Project
Glass
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/watch-out-google-microsoft-
developing-rival-to-project-glass/18018.html
November 24th, 2012
All aboard the AR train! Following the lead of Google
(Project Glass) and Brother (AiRScouter), Microsoft have
finally realized the importance of a real life HUD that allows
its users to view a virtual layer super-imposed upon their
field of view.
In a patent application posted today, Microsoft outlined
“Event Augmentation with Real-Time Information” via a
pair of glasses, which is very similar to the prototype of
Google Glass we saw earlier this year.
The example given in the patent consists of someone
watching a live baseball game, simultaneously viewing
statistics such as names and batting averages for the players
via the AR specs.
The above example would basically turn any real life event
into its TV equivalent, and would theoretically make people
more outgoing as they could have their cake and eat it so
to speak, getting the social enjoyment of outdoor activities
while at the same time receiving the information bursts that
internet-addicts crave.
The device has more potential than just use as an
entertainment device though, and as Brother has proved
with its AiRScouter, devices such as these can be used in
the field to train new engineers and impose blueprints or
manuals over the vision of workers, greatly raising their
productivity.
The patent also outlines a GPS device embedded in the specs,
which would allow for much richer contextual sensitive
information such as travel guides or shopping help when
you’re out on the high street. Let’s just hope they don’t abuse
the service with ads like a certain console’s dashboard…
Smile Semi Tablet makes
Japanese grade school more
colorful
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/smile-semi-tablet-makes-japanese-
grade-school-more-colorful/18022.html
November 24th, 2012
Just Systems unveils the Smile Semi, a special learning
tablet that is specifically designed to be used by grade school
students in Japan.
Japanese software company Just Systems revealed on
November 20, 2012 their newest product, the Smile Semi.
It is a 9.7-inch tablet that is optimized for correspondence
education, and is specifically targeted towards grade school
users. The OS used for it will be Android, although much of
its software will be altered and changed to fit in their own
custom learning app.

10
The course outline of the tablet's custom learning app
will include most subjects from Japanese grade school,
mainly (Japanese) Language, Arithmetics, Cooking, and
Social subjects. The teaching materials for each subject will
be sent to the units once each month. There are 20 lectures in
all for each subject, with one lecture lasting for as long as 20
minutes. Aside from standard e-lessons, the tablet will also
provide drills to work on what the child had just learned.
The primary theme for the development of the tablet was for
children to learn on their own without the need to push them
to do educational tasks. Just Smile used key phrases such as
"Children will be all over it" and "They'll habitually use it"
to promote its general usability and feasibility as a modern
educational device. In addition, the element of interaction is
said to be optimized for the unit, allowing children to touch,
see, listen and talk to the device as they work on their lessons
and drills.
Actual specifications of the tablet were not revealed in the
announcement. However the company said that it would
include standard tablet hardware features such as back-
cameras, speakers, microphones, and microSD/SDHC slots.
The weight of the unit is rated at 600 grams, and it will have
the overall look and feel of the first iPad.
Previously, Just Systems had developed the Just Smile, a
type of education assistance software made for the PC. They
had been releasing several updated versions of the software
since 1999. The primary interface of the software is very
much similar to the one that they are using for Smile Semi. In
fact, the company actually used their experience in building
those kinds of educational software in preparation for the
development of the Smile Semi tablet.
European Union slams the
ITU over upcoming Internet
vote
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/european-union-slams-the-itu-over-
upcoming-internet-vote/18017.html
November 24th, 2012
On November 22, 2012 the European Parliament passed
a resolution condemning the vote by the International
Telecommunications Union (ITU) that would allow the
organization to usurp power over the Internet.
Some are saying it is the boldest attempt at controlling the
Internet to date when the ITU made plans to vote on the
future of how the Internet will operate. Soon after the
ITU announced their intentions, a resolution was drafted
condeming the measure and was submitted to the European
Union. In turn the E.U. voted on the issue with the vast
majority of its 27 member in favor of condemning the ITU
over its intetions. A copy of that measure can be seen here.
The World Conference on International Telecommunication
(WCIT) will be held on December 3, 2012 in Dubai, United

11
Arab Emirates. The meeting is being conducted in an effort
to update and revise the international telecommunication
operations, which has not been done since 1988. The
ITU is an offshoot of the United Nations industry body for
telecommunications operators.
Many critics of this upcoming ITU vote have pointed out
that any treaties regarding telecommunication operations
predates the Internet, and because of this fact, the ITU has
no authority to vote on its future operations.
Google currently is voicing a lot of criticism over the ITU’s
plans and have created a special website where users can
voice their concerns and make pledges to keep the Internet
as a “free and open Web”.
Samsung adds new devices
to its Apple Lawsuit
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/samsung-adds-new-devices-to-its-
apple-lawsuit/18019.html
November 24th, 2012
Apparently securing an official Apple issued apology and
acquiring Apple's settlement details with HTC still wasn’t
enough for Samsung, as they have filed yet another lawsuit
against the Cupertino developer, this time in response to the
iPad mini, 5th gen iPod touch, and iPad 4.
As the endless patent infringement battle between our pals
A and S seemed to finally be drawing to a close, the Korean
electronics superstar Samsung stirred things up again by
filing to the US District Court of Northern California for the
addition of several of Apple’s latest devices to their ongoing
lawsuit.
Samsung states that there is “good cause” to add the
three new devices to their original claim, as the products
were not yet released at the time of Samsung’s original
submission of contentions on June 15th
2012 or at the time
of the company’s first supplementary contentions given on
October 1st
, 2012. (This just shows you how long the battle
has been going on, new devices have long since come and
gone since this whole thing started!)
According to Samsung, the iPod Touch 5, iPad mini, and
iPad 4 carry the same accused functionality as the versions
of iPod and iPad that were already given in the case, and
that the proof of these infringements is substantially similar
to that already given to the court for the previous revisions
of these devices. So basically Samsung think they can claim
more damages without even offering proof this time, I
guess. If the design and functionality of the new devices
are sufficiently similar to those which they have already
successfully gotten accused, then Samsung certainly have a
case.
On Wednesday of this week, Samsung’s Chief Executive
Shin Jong Kyun went on record to The Korean Times that
“Without Samsung’s wireless patents, it would be impossible
for Apple to produce its handsets.”
Apple and Samsung have been at each others throats since
back in April 2011, and this August saw Apple winning $1
billion in damages for claims that Samsung had infringed
upon the iPhone and iPad’s patents with its Galaxy S
smartphones (although Samsung has appealed against this
ruling).
In areas such as the UK, the Netherlands, and Japan, Apple’s
infringement claims against Samsung have been dismissed
however, and Samsung have won a few cases of their own,
such as the previous litigation brought against the iPod and
iPad outlined in this article.
Either way all those legal costs must have both firms burning
through money, and it begs the question: Can’t we all just
get along?
DreamWorks releases an
open source software
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/dreamworks-releases-an-open-
source-software/18016.html
November 24th, 2012
DreamWorks Animation SKG Inc., has recently made the
decision that their software used to create some of their
animations, which includes the upcoming “Rise of the
Guardians” will be given away as open source.
The software DreamWorks is being given away as an open
source license is called OpenVDB. DreamWorks states at
their download site,
The OpenVDB library comprises a hierarchical data
structure and a suite of tools for the efficient manipulation
of sparse, possibly time-varying, volumetric data discretized
on a three-dimensional grid. It is based on VDB, which
was developed by Ken Museth at DreamWorks Animation,
and it offers an effectively infinite 3D index space,
compact storage (both in memory and on disk), fast data
access (both random and sequential), and a collection of
algorithms specifically optimized for the data structure
for common tasks such as filtering, CSG, compositing,
numerical simulation, sampling, and voxelization from
other geometric representations.
A November 22 on-line issue of the Wall Street Journal
quotes a Mr. David Prescott who worked as a visual-effects
supervisor for the "Guardians” animation after some were
curious why DreamWorks would give away free software.
Prescott stated that a release of the software was done
in hopes that it would be adopted as an industry standard
and possibly get adapted in other software company tool kit
features, which would in turn benefit DreamWorks. The
article goes on to state that open source releases of special
animation software isn’t unique to DreamWorks and noted
that Lucasfilm Ltd. and Sony Pictures both have released
their own software as well.

12
To learn more about the free software download, you can
check out the DreamWorks site here and learn more about it.
JAXA's IMES tracks you
at malls, provides visitor
activity data
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/jaxa-s-imes-tracks-you-at-malls-
provides-visitor-activity-data/18015.html
November 24th, 2012
Japanese aerospace agency JAXA gives the green signal for
the implementation of their IMES smart tracking technology
to commercial and business establishments.
Wide use of GPS in mobile devices today made tracking
systems relatively common. However, pinpoint and precise
tracking of a very specific spot (inside a building
for example) is still not as universal. JAXA (Japan
Aerospace Exploration Agency) developed a new in-building
positioning technology that would solve this problem, and
it is now currently being rolled out on commercial and
business establishments.
Indoor messaging system or IMES technology is a
notification and tracking system designed by JAXA that
combines infrared, Bluetooth and GPS tracking systems
to actively observe and pinpoint the changing locations of
people in a certain area. It was first proposed since 2007,
and has since been continuously developed even today. The
implementation of the system makes it very different from
a standard tracker-transmitter system, because the baseline
application of the technology allows users to identify the
exact location of a person at any given point in time. It is
frequently dubbed as the "indoor GPS", and for Star Trek
fans, you might be able to compare this to how a starship's
computer is able to find specific people in their present
locations.
One of the very first establishments that were installed
with the IMES was a building around Futako-Tamagawa
station area in Tokyo. Each floor was installed with several
IMES units, all of which are ready to send and receive
human activity data for each mobile device registered in
the system. Tokyu Corporation, the management firm for
Tokyo's railways, is planning to use the positional data
gathering technology of the IMES to make the city "brighter
and more attractive".
The IMES isn’t just limited to active tracking, as the
system could also use the information for other purposes
like trying to find out if a certain district or part of the
establishment would be more crowded than others. It
integrates the tracking information with all other position-
based information to create a smart information delivery
network.
Aside from commercial establishments, there are also
proposals that suggest using the IMES in an office setting.
Japanese IT company Indigo for example, is currently
offering their IMES-based Indoor Map MashUp Manager
tool to business owners, to help actively track down
the movements of each person inside their business
establishment.
Source: Tech-On (JP)
Saudi men alerted by text
when wives leave country
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/saudi-men-alerted-by-text-when-
wives-leave-country/18029.html
November 24th, 2012
Saudi Arabia has implemented a new monitoring system
that sends text messages to the husbands of women who
leave the country, informing them of their whereabouts.
Saudi Arabia has implemented a new monitoring system
that sends text messages to the husbands of women who
leave the country, informing them of their whereabouts.
The oppressive tactic, which joins a slew of other
misogynistic policies in the country like a ban on female
drivers, elicited strong criticism from both men and women,
with many labelling it as “backward.”
The law in the country, based on a strict interpretation of
Islam, prohibits women from leaving the country without
the permission of a male guardian, who can be either a
husband, father or brother. He is required to sign a form at
an airport or border permitting the woman to travel.

13
Now technology is being utilised to enforce the ban on
free movement by notifying men when women travel
abroad, even if the women are actually travelling with
their husbands. One woman likened the approach to using
“tracking ankle bracelets.”
Badriya al-Bishr, a Saudi author and journalist, said this is
the latest move in a “state of slavery” for women. Women
only secured the right to vote in a decision made by the
country's king last year, while a ruling to allow women to
plead cases in court was decided just last month. In some
ways the country appears to want to move forward, but
government-backed moves like this latest one show that
there is still a long way to go for the equal rights of Saudi
women.
The smartphone is 20 years
old today
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/the-smartphone-is-20-years-old-
today/18028.html
November 24th, 2012
Despite the market only booming in the last few years, the
smartphone is 20 years old today, but modern devices have
come a long way since then.
Despite the market only booming in the last few years, the
smartphone is 20 years old today, but modern devices have
come a long way since then.
On 23 November 1992 IBM unveiled the Simon, codenamed
Angler, at the COMDEX trade show in Las Vegas, a brick-
shaped device that combined a mobile phone with a PDA,
allowing users to make and receive calls, and send or receive
fascimiles and emails, and use the device for other functions.
It even featured a touchscreen and stylus.
The term “smartphone” did not exist until 1997, when
Ericsson coined it, but the IBM Simon had all the tell-tale
features and functionality of what would rock the technology
world two decades later. At the time there was excitement
about the device, but only 50,000 units were sold in the six
months it was on the market, thanks largely to its high cost
and lack of consumer appeal.
Old and New: The IBM Simon beside the HTC Salsa
Twenty years might not seem like a long time, but in the
technology industry things move very quickly, and now a
cheap smartphone from Asda will greatly outpower IBM's
device at just a fraction of the price.
For example, the HTC Salsa, sold at Asda stores throughout
the UK, allows storage expansion up to 32GB, a whopping
32,000 times the storage of the Simon, which had just
1MB of space. It comes with Android 2.3, which offers over
half a million apps, which dwarfs the capability of IBM's
smartphone. It is also just 25 percent the weight and costs
just seven percent of the equivalent modern price of the
Simon: £79 compared to £1,104.
It was not until BlackBerry maker RIM and Finnish mobile
giant Nokia came along that smartphones began to properly
emerge at the turn of the century, but it was really the launch
of Apple's iPhone and the subsequent wave of Android
devices that popularised the smartphone. Yet the framework
was laid out twenty years ago today.
Finnish conduct raid on 9-
year-old, confiscate laptop
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/finnish-conduct-raid-on-9-year-old-
confiscate-laptop/18026.html

14
November 24th, 2012
Finnish police recently conducted a raid against a little 9-
year old girl, confiscating her Winnie the Pooh laptop after
the family refused to pay a fine for internet piracy charges.
At 8 am on a weekday morning in Finland, there was a
knock at the door of an ordinary family home. When the
door was opened, the family was greeted by the police, who
conducted a raid on the home, seizing evidence of an internet
piracy charge, including a Winnie the pooh themed laptop
belonging to a nine year old girl. The raid was conducted
after the Finnish CIAPS anti-piracy group determined that
copyrighted material had been downloaded illegally from
the residence.
As it turns out, the nine year old had been trying to download
a song from Finnish pop star Chisu on the Pirate Bay, and
the family had subsequently been charged a €600 fine. The
father in the family had refused to pay the fine, citing that the
download hadn't worked and that he had taken his daughter
down to the store in order to buy Chisu's CD instead.
The Finnish authorities didn't seem to buy this explanation
(or they didn't care), and so decided to simply raid the
family's house instead. The nine year old's father tries to
explain their side of the story: "We have not done anything
wrong with my daughter. If adults do not always know how
to use a computer and the web, how can you assume that
children or the elderly – or a 9-year-old girl – knows what
they are doing at any given time online?"
He also comments on the tactics employed by CIAPS and the
police to stop piracy "This is the pinnacle of absurdity. I can
see artists are in a position, but this requires education and
information, not resource-consuming lawsuits,"

1
geeks.
Atari founder doubts success
of Wii U
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/atari-founder-doubts-success-of-wii-
u/18063.html
November 26th, 2012
The founder of Atari has gone on record stating that
he believes the Wii U, Nintendo's recently-released next-
generation gaming console, will not be a success.
The founder of Atari has gone on record stating that
he believes the Wii U, Nintendo's recently-released next-
generation gaming console, will not be a success.
“I actually am baffled by it,” Nolan Bushnell, founder of
Atari, told the New York Times. “I don't think it's going to
be a big success.”
He suggested that only hardcore gamers would be interested
in getting the new machine, stating that the current
generation of consoles still have a lot of life left in them. He
said it feels like “the end of an era,” speaking of the race
between rivals to get out next-gen consoles every few years.
Of course, the Wii targeted a much wider audience than
hardcore gamers, and the Wii U is more of the same, but
it might be this similarity that stops the Wii U from having
the same resounding success as its predecessor, which
revolutionised the industry with motion capture gaming.
That said, the wider industry was as equally baffled by
the Wii as Bushnell is by the Wii U, and many doubted
Nintendo's ability to succeed then, so there might be a few
surprises in store.
Meanwhile Robbie Back, former president of entertainment
and devices at Microsoft, suggested that putting Mario on
the iPhone might have been a smarter move. However, he
added “I've learned not to count the Nintendo guys out.”
While the Wii U might not boast the kind of sales that the
original Wii had, Reggie Fils-Aime, president of Nintendo of
America, said that the company only needs one game sale per
console to make a profit, and given that customers are likely
to buy at least two games, and often considerably more, it
might just be enough to help put Nintendo back in the black.
Samsung reaches five million
sales for Galaxy Note II
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/samsung-reaches-five-million-sales-
for-galaxy-note-ii/18062.html
November 26th, 2012
Samsung has sold five million units of its recently-released
smartphone/tablet hybrid, the Galaxy Note II, making it one
of the most successful launch periods for the company.
Samsung has sold five million units of its recently-released
smartphone/tablet hybrid, the Galaxy Note II, making it one
of the most successful launch periods for the company.
The South Korean electronics giant passed the magic five
million mark just two months to the day from its 26
September launch, and Samsung believes it can push those
figures to 20 million in the near future.
The device touts a 5.5-inch screen, considerably larger than
rivals on the market and close enough to 7-inch tablets to
make it appealing to those who want an all-in-one design.
The added stylus, improved from the original Galaxy Note,
helps appeal to the business market, as well as creative types
like writers and artists. Its 1.6GHz quad-core processor and
2GB of RAM also make it a beast under the hood.

2
The Note II may be under threat, however, as Apple has
included it in its latest lawsuit against Samsung, claiming
it infringes Apple's patents. With such a strikingly different
design, and many very different features, however, Apple
may have trouble convincing a judge to implement a sales
ban.
Samsung has also enjoyed roaring success with its Galaxy
S III, which also boasts a bigger display than most rival
smartphones, albeit still smaller than the Galaxy Note II. It
sold a whopping 30 million units in 150 days and is believed
to have outsold Apple's latest iPhone in the third quarter of
this year.
Such high sales figures go a long way to ensuring Samsung
remains the top smartphone maker in the world, and it also
explains why Apple is eager to put a dent in those figures
through court action.
Study reveals increase in
Facebook friends causes
stress
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/study-reveals-increase-in-facebook-
friends-causes-stress/18061.html
November 26th, 2012
Having a large amount of friends on Facebook leads to more
stress, according to a study by the University of Edinburgh's
business school.
Having a large amount of friends on Facebook leads to more
stress, according to a study by the University of Edinburgh's
business school.
The survey of over 300 Facebook users of an average age
of 21 found that anxiety increases when more people are
added, largely due to behaviour that is acceptable amongst
one group of friends not being acceptable amongst another.
For example, posts and pictures may display swearing,
drinking or smoking, all of which might be fine with fellow
students, but since many people are adding their family and
work colleagues, and even their bosses, this can cause a great
deal of stress.
97 percent of those queried add friends they know in real
life, which is to be expected, but 81 percent add extended
family, 80 percent add siblings, 69 percent add friends of
friends, and 65 percent add colleagues, creating a potentially
tricky situation in terms of discerning which group of people
is appropriate for which content.
“Facebook used to be like a great party for all your friends
where you can dance, drink and flirt,” said Ben Marder,
author of the report. “But now with your Mum, Dad and boss
there the party becomes an anxious event full of potential
social landmines. If you have partners, parents, family and
employers the more stressful it is as they all have different
expectations.”
Marder said that people will delete photos on Facebook and
“even regulate their offline behaviour,” such as avoiding
smoking or drinking in front of a camera, in case it ends up
on Facebook for the whole world to see.
While Facebook technically has similar post settings to
Google+, where posts can be sent to a specific group of
friends only, only one third of users actually avail of this. This
is not entirely surprising, however, as this feature is far less
intuitive than Google's.
Time to unfriend some people then.

3
Intel's NUC in Corporate IT: A
Sysadmin's Dream?
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/intel-s-nuc-in-corporate-it-a-
sysadmin-s-dream-/18045.html
November 26th, 2012
True story - the boffins at the IT Department in most
organizations, especially the non-technology ones, are
usually viewed by management types as a cost center rather
than a value-added function, despite being as essential as the
other employees to the operations backbone of the company.
The myraid of users that they service (bosses and minions)
demand a fast and productive workstation so that they can
do their work uninterrupted, preferably not occupying too
much desk space (already cluttered by stacks of incessant
paperwork, photographs and sweet wrappers) or bottom leg
room (restless leg syndrome). Meanwhile, the overworked
sysadmin wants an elegant solution that can easily deployed,
serviced and be remotely managed to minimize as much
downtime as possible. The pointy-haired, slaver driving
boss doesn't care if the system stops responding because
he unknowingly kicked the mechanical hard drive into
oblivion, or the clueless intern (who happens to be the boss's
daughter) accidentally introduces a virus onto the network
because she plugged her own unauthorized thumbdrive in to
view her Justin Beiber pictures.
Are these situations familar to you?
Enter the Intel Next Unit of Computing...
Already from the picture below, one can see the obvious size
and form factor benefits of the NUC relative to the traditional
workstation box. The mobile i3 dual-core processor (four
threads with HT) should be able to handle most office
productivity applications such as Microsoft Excel and CRM
packages with ease, so you're not sacrificing any compute
performance with the chassis downsize. At less than 20W
of power consumed when in operation, the NUC is also a
significantly greener solution than the standard PC, which
should please the beancounters and eco-mentalists.
The bundled VESA bracket allows the NUC to be mounted
behind monitors to save space and consolidate wiring.
Of the two models (the other being the Thunderbolt
equipped D33217CK), the D33217GKE has the more viable
Gigabit Ethernet option for the corporate user to access the
office network, and the administrator to mass deploy system
images/updates in a jiffy. The provision of a Kensington
Lock hole also prevent the NUC from being spirited away by
vengeful office colleagues or rival spies.

4
Sysadmins and their system integrators will appreciate
the fact that the NUC uses fairly common off the shelf
components like DDR3 SODIMMs (up to 16GB from two
8GB sticks) and mSATA/PCIe expansion, so they can
stockpile parts somewhere in a drawer for a quick change.
The use of SSDs for storage, other than obvious speed and
productivity benefits, also means no more heart attacks from
data loss due to a dodgy mechanical drive failure, which is
usually the number one cause of downtime in most corporate
environments.
The other common causes are exploding power supplies and
dust clogged CPU fans causing performance throttling, both
of which will not manifest in this setup.
To meet security and privacy regulatory compliance, the
NUC can be remotely disabled (data is encrypted) if it
becomes misplaced or exceeds the set number of login tries.
Some other useful security features for IT Administrators
include
• UEFI Secure Boot to prevent malicious boot-time
routines from being loaded (from malware)
• VT-x support for Hardware Virtualization of
sandboxed software
• Password for UEFI BIOS
• Wake on Lan for software updates
Intel's NUC in the Home: Part
of the Furniture
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/intel-s-nuc-in-the-home-part-of-the-
furniture/18044.html
November 26th, 2012
In the first of a four part series, we explore why the
Intel Next Unit of Computing is the ideal low power
HTPC (Home Threatre PC) with its rich media creation
and consumption capabilities, made possible by its mobile-
oriented 3rd generation Intel Core processor and purpose
built form factor.
Last weekend, we did a brief introduction on Intel's
Next Unit of Computing (NUC), which is part of the

5
chipmaker's concerted push towards small footprint devices
in the so-called Post-PC era, alongside other products like
Ultrabooks and Atom tablets. Its petite 4.5" x 4.4" x 1.5"
form factor allow easy and organic integration into many
daily usage scenarios, without compromises on application
compatibility thanks to its X86 roots.
In our first of a four part series, we explore some of the
factors that positions the NUC as an ideal low power HTPC.
(Can you see where the NUC is in this typical living room set?
Hint - Bottom Right Shelf)
Powered by a 22nm ultra-low voltage "Ivy Bridge" Core
processor designed for mobile computers, the NUC offers
one of the best power-performance ratio in its class (< 20W)
which qualifies it as a media consumption device that is
switched on and used all-day without racking up massive
power bills or spoiling the home environment with a noisy
fan. The HD4000 graphics engine in the dual-core Core i3
processor also integrates DirectX 11/GPGPU capabilities, a
Multi-Format Codec Engine that even allows simultaneous
4K video decoding and QuickSync for fast video transcoding.
As we've mentioned in our earlier preview, the NUC will
be available next month in early December with a choice
of either a Thunderbolt (D33217CK) or Gigabit Ethernet
(D33217GKE) equipped model, both with full-sized HDMI
and three USB 2.0 ports. We reckon that most users will
choose the latter owing to the fact that Thunderbolt adoption
in the storage and multi-media realm is not exact prevalent
yet.
Storage in the NUC is handled by a mSATA based SSD,
which guarantees snappy loading times and file transfers,
albeit still with relatively small capacities (currently up
to 256GB) to store your movie and music library. For
more disk space, users can hook up an external USB/
Thunderbolt hard drive, connect to the house NAS appliance
via Gigabit Ethernet or Wifi, or simply stream from some
cloud service over the Internet somewhere. With Intel's
Hyperthreading providing four logical CPU threads, the
system can still be responsive when playing media content
even with many programs running in the background, such
as your BitTorrent client downloads and stock ticker.
Since the NUC is essentially a barebones system that uses
generic parts with almost universal driver compatibility,
users can choose to load virtually any operating system
of their choice - including Windows 7/8 (with the Media
Center add-on pack), Linux (XBMC) for the more technically
inclined or *gulps*, even Hackintosh. Being a full fledged
X86 processor also means you have the freedom to run
any of your favourite applications or games, without being
confined to the limited selection of an App Store or have
a good experience only with obscure GPU accelerated
applications.
In short, the NUC can be used as a regular PC (office
productivity, light gaming, surfing, media consumption),
something which most other <20W devices cannot do.

6
Some of the suitable peripherals for the NUC include a
keyboard/trackpad combo such as the Logitech K400 or a
media center remote to wirelessly interface with the HTPC
if you're seating on a sofa some distance away. If you're into
the touchscreen monitor fad, then a stylish display like the
Dell S2340T should provide a full-HD 10 point multi-touch
interface. WiDi support also eliminates unneccessary wiring
with compatible display devices. In case you are wondering,
audio output is over HDMI so you either use your HiFi AV
transceiver or built-in television speakers for sound.
Apple jumps ship: Reports
suggest Apple will ditch
Samsung battery
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/apple-jumps-ship-reports-suggest-
apple-will-ditch-samsung-battery/18050.html
November 26th, 2012
Apple and Samsung haven’t been the best of pals lately, but
their cooperation is vital to ensure the manufacture of new
iPhones and iPads, as Samsung makes a lot of parts for the
devices. Apple may be looking to change all that as they
switch manufacturer for their batteries.
Apple has tried in the past to reduce its reliance on the
Korean manufacturer in the past by drafting the production
of its components to other companies. Only recently Apple
have just denied rumors that they were seeking to acquire
displays from a company other than Samsung. However up
until now, Samsung SDI has continued to make batteries for
each revision of Apple products.
Apple has purportedly replaced Samsung’s batteries with
products from Chinese companies Amperex Technology Ltd
and Tianjin Lishen Battery.
Although this may have not been Apple’s decision, and
Samsung SDI themselves were reported to have stopped
supplying Apple. It is unclear who sparked this decision,
but combine this with Samsung’s decision to raise processor
prices for Apple, after the Cupertino developer internalized
part of the processor design process and removed design
components for it's A-series processors out of Samsung’s
reach. This is also corroborated by rumors that Apple
has been preparing TSMC et al to take over future chip
manufacture.
Conflicting reports exist, as Apple continue to deny rumors
and Apple CEO Tim Cook himself stated during a recent
conference call that Samsung would continue to be an
important partner for Apple in the near future.
While there seems to be more rumor than hard facts about
the split growing between the two companies, logically it
makes sense, as endless legal battles force the Korean and
American device makers further into bitter rivalry. However,
Samsung’s huge manufacturing capacity will be hard to
replace, so Apple may have to think twice in the end.
Thanks,Thanksgiving! Web
shopping up 71% from last
year
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/thanks-thanksgiving-web-shopping-
up-71-from-last-year/18051.html

7
November 26th, 2012
With more and more computing devices entering the hands
of the public, it comes as no surprise that web shopping
is steadily outgrowing its brick-and-mortar equivalent.
However, this year showed even more impressive results,
with web traffic to retail sites almost doubling year over year.
According to stats from Experian Hitwise, web traffic on the
holiday of turkey-and-football was up 71% across the top 500
retailers compared to the same time last year. Shoppers from
the US alone accounted for more than 181 million visits to
the retail sites, with Amazon taking the top spot at approx. 25
million visits on Thanksgiving Day. Walmart followed close
behind with 24.6 million visits, and Target took third at 11.5
million visits.
While Experian Hitwise doesn’t count mobile stats, thus
skewing the data a little, traffic to shopping sites increased
by about 8% throughout the holiday week compared to the
previous year.
In other electronic shopping news, PayPal reported that the
volume of recorded mobile payments worldwide increased
by 173% compared to the same time last year, showing a
global trend to accept the concept of online payments more.
PayPal's owner, eBay, had it twice as nice as their own
shopping site saw a 133% increase in shopping compared to
Thanksgiving last year.
The infamous Black Friday was an even greater success for
electronic payment service PayPal, as they achieved a 193%
increase in mobile payments YOY.
Overall its good news for web retailers, bad news for brick
and mortar stores worldwide!
Un-hackable
telecommunications
networks soon to be the
norm
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/un-hackable-telecommunications-
networks-soon-to-be-the-norm/18048.html
November 26th, 2012
Researchers with Toshiba’s European research laboratory
are saying they have a way of protecting telecoms networks
using special quantum cryptography.
In a recent paper titled, “Coexistence of High-Bit-Rate
Quantum Key Distribution and Data on Optical Fiber”,
researchers say they can protect these networks without the
need of dedicated fiber optic links. The synopsis of the paper
reads in part:
In the world of traditional communications, it is
impossible for one person who receives a set of
encryption keys from another to know whether or
not the keys have been seen by the eyes of an
eavesdropper. However, quantum key distribution
(QKD), which encodes keys in the quantum states
of a medium, can achieve the impossible by
exploiting the fundamental quantum property that
any eavesdropping on a quantum state always
leaves a trace.
Telecoms networks are often prey to malicious hackers
trying to cause mischief or even harm to Internet data. Using
new advances in quantum cryptography, the researchers
have come up with new code encryption that is theoretically
un-crackable by malicious hackers. Furthermore the new
encryption supposedly lets one know if someone was trying
to decipher it.
The encryption research was done by Cambridge University
in conjunction with Toshiba European research laboratory.
They claim this research will eventually be protecting all
manner of data ranging from private company data, personal
identity and credit card information.
It is said that many military agencies and governments
may already be using a very similar type of encryption
technology. However, the information taken from the
research states that the quantum keys are being sent on
separate lines carrying the information to be decoded or
encoded.
The research on the new encryption techniques can be found
in the scientific journal, Physical Review X.
CALTECH breaks data
transfer record at 339 Gbps
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/caltech-breaks-data-transfer-record-
at-339-gbps/18047.html
November 26th, 2012
Physicists at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech)
say they have achieved an astounding data-transfer speed of
339 gigabits per second, which is equivalent to 1 million 2
hour movies per day.
The website detailing all of the information is titled, “Super
Computing 2012: Enabling Scientific Discoveries With
The LHC Data Distribution Over 100 Gigabit Networks."
Scholars working on the project credit new advances with
fast data transfer technology (FDT) and express in part on
their website:

8
One of the key advances in this demonstration was Fast Data
Transport (FDT; http://monalisa.cern.ch/FDT), an open
source Java application developed by the Caltech team in
close collaboration with the Polytehnica Bucharest team.
FDT runs on all major platforms and uses the NIO libraries
to achieve stable disk reads and writes coordinated with
smooth data flow across long-range networks.
At blazing transfer speeds that blows any fiber optic transfer
speed out of the water, these scientists at Caltech working
with other universities and researchers are breaking data
transfer speed records that were only theoretical a few years
ago. They have also successfully transferred 187 Gbps of data
for two-way transfer of information on a single link, and are
looking into new means of data transfer that will triple in
speeds over the next few years.
According to Caltech, the not so distant future means data
transfers up to 1 terabit-per-second, which is 1 thousand
Gbps - and we thought Google's high-speed fiber optic
Internet was fast at 360mbps.
To learn more about CalTech’s fascinating research you can
visit their site here.
Sierra Leone teenager makes
FM transmitter and battery
from junkyard scraps
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/sierra-leone-teenager-makes-fm-
transmitter-and-battery-from-junkyard-scraps/18049.html
November 26th, 2012
Regardless of the living conditions and time, the human
spirit will never cease to amaze us. Take for instance a 16-
year boy from Sierra Leone who found ways of inventing
gadgets using nothing more than scraps from the junkyard.
Kelvin Doe never took an engineering class and probably
doesn’t even know what a RadioShack is, but somehow he
still managed make his own FM transmitter and a battery
that can pump enough juice to power the lightings in his
family’s home.
Going by the name of DJ Focus during his radio broadcasts
using his homemade FM equipment, Kelvin reaches out
to his community with music as well as issues and news
relevant to the people that are tuning in. He and his staff
(average age of 12), have interviewed guests from sporting
events, and scheduled special DJ events to prove that neither
age nor lack resources can prevent them from pursuing their
passion.
(Kelvin with his homemade FM transmitter and battery.)
“If we have a radio station in my community the people can
be able to debate about issues affecting our community and
Sierra Leone as a whole,” he said. “People normally call me
DJ focus in my community, because I believe if you focus you
can do invention perfectly. I DJ every day.”
David Sengeh, also a native of Sierra Leone and a MIT
doctoral student, first met Kelvin at a “Summer Innovation
Camp” in the teenager’s country. Sengeh immediately
saw Kelvin’s immense potential and personally made it his
mission to help broaden Kelvin’s mind by bringing him to
the U.S. Once in the States, faculties and students at MIT
(among other institutions) showered Kelvin with hoards of
useful information which Kelvin said he will pass on to his
family, friends, and colleagues once he goes back home.
According to World Bank 2011 statistics, Sierra Leone’s GDP
is $2.24 billion, and if you compare that to the $15.09 trillion
of the U.S.’s it just goes to show how scarce resources can be
for Kelvin and other children who have aspirations to learn
about technology and obtain higher education.
Sengeh acknowledges that there are more kids like Kelvin in
Sierra Leone, as well as Africa as a whole, and it’s important
to remember that Kelvin “is not the only young person…
ready to embrace [the] opportunities” given the chances.
“I love inventing,” said Kelvin. “I want to help my family
to provide the facility for them. My next invention will
be a windmill for people to use for electricity supply. [My
aim] is to promote innovation among young people in Sierra
Leone.”
New evidence - Kim Dotcom
lawyers want case dismissed
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/new-evidence--kim-dotcom-lawyers-
want-case-dismissed/18035.html
November 26th, 2012
Kim Dotcom is seeking to have the case against him
dismissed because of evidence suggesting the FBI forced him

9
to preserve 39 pirated movies from another case unrelated
to his.
According to Kim Dotcom’s lawyers, the 39 movie files
were uploaded after the FBI investigated a website called
‘ninjavideo.com', and that the site used the cloud storage
database from megauplaod.com to store the movies in 2010.
In turn, the FBI made a seizure on megaupload.com.
The 39 files were identified during an investigation into the
NinjaVideo website, which had used Megaupload's cloud
storage for their pirated movies. The FBI later seized
the Megaupload site and based that seizure on the same
files being stored even though Kim Dotcom says he was
cooperating with the FBI as much as he could.
In a statement to the press, Kim Dotcom said the FBI used
the fact that the files were still stored on Megaupload’s cloud
server to get the warrant. They then used his trust and
cooperation to double cross the New Zealand resident. The
district court of New Zealand is now seeking that the FBI
provide them with all evidence and files relating to the case.
However, the US is trying to appeal the request.
Currently Kim Dotcom’s US lawyer, Ira Rothken, is working
to have the US court drop the seizure of megaupload.com.
Rothken says this latest revelation in regards to the 2010
seizure of NinjaVideo only proves that the case against
Dotcom should be dismissed and was an illegal seizure.
Was Black Friday the day of
reckoning for the laptop?
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/was-black-friday-the-day-of-
reckoning-for-the-laptop-/18039.html
November 26th, 2012
Since the launch of the iPad back in 2010, the tablet has
grown greatly in popularity. While laptops have clenched
onto their position as the leading computing device for years
now, this year may be the year that notebook computers
fall from grace. And Black Friday’s bonanza sales on tablets
certainly didn’t help the cause of the traditional computer.
While most analysts agree that tablets will outsell laptops
in North America next year, it will still take some time for
the new era of computing to sweep up the rest of the world.
Analyst Richard Shim of NPD predicts that it will take until
2015 for the rest of the world to catch up to the new trend in
mobile computing.
But is Shim’s prediction of Black Friday being the catalyst
for tablet’s success over notebooks valid? Well, while non-
apple tablets have been bulky, pricy offerings during their
first generation, real competitors to Cupertino’s all-purpose
slab have really started to kick off this year, with the new
Kindle Fire HD and Nexus 7 showing us what “affordable”
tablets were really capable of.
The traditional upgrade cycle of notebook and desktop
computers has thus been disrupted by the rise in tablet
computing, and this has been clearly reflected in Black
Friday’s sales, where tablets have a much more substantial
presence in stores than laptops.
Some analysts however, feel that the low-cost Android
tablets for under $100-$150 are in fact hurting the cause
of the tablet. Certainly top brands such as Samsung, Apple,
Google, and Microsoft didn’t discount their flagship models
too much, as it would have damaged their reputation. Apple
gave out some vouchers, but Microsoft probably felt that its
surface was already competitively priced, even during the
hectic sales holiday of Black Friday.
NPD’s Stephen Baker feels that “the budget Android tablets
are generally not good for the tablet market."
"They generally send out a price message that is not realistic
for the major brands,” he added.
For now at least, it seems that tablets are in style, and laptops
are not. It will be the sales figures for this year that tell us
the whole story though.
Hewlett Packard denies sales
to Syria
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/hewlett-packard-denies-sales-to-
syria/18036.html
November 26th, 2012
In a recent press release from Hewlett Packard (HP), the
company stated that some of their products might have been
sold in Syria.
However, the company made it clear that the sales would not
have been direct, but done through distributors or other re-
sellers of their products.
Recently the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
asked HP to provide them with information on all sales to
places that are being blocked due to embargo. In particular
the government agency’s Office of Global Security Risk was
seeking information about an HP surveillance system that
was installed in the war torn nation of Syria. HP stated
that they had not sold directly to Syria but that an Italian
surveillance company by the name of ‘Area SpA’ more than
likely purchased the HP needed electronics from a vendor
and then sold them directly to the Syrian government. HP
said that many foreign electronic outlets sometimes find
ways around their own bans of sales to countries that have
embargoes on them by the United States.
This latest story on HP comes after a recent scandal where
the HP owned company, Autonomy, was written down by
as much as 5 billion dollars. Autonomy was acquired by
HP last year, but was recently accused of altering facts on
company values in an effort to inflate sales. Mike Lynch who
founded Autonomy said that HP is just using his company as
a scapegoat due to their poor sales. He also added that there
was no way that accounting errors could have devalued his
company by 5 billion.
HP has been hurt greatly by the new trend in tablets and
other hand held computer devices over traditional laptops
and home PCs. This past year alone HP has dropped down
by about 14% in sales.

10

1
geeks.
Burglars exploiting bug in
electronic hotel locks
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/burglars-exploiting-bug-in-
electronic-hotel-locks/18082.html
November 27th, 2012
Burglars appear to be exploiting a bug in electronic doors to
gain entry into rooms, raising serious questions about the
security of many hotels.
Burglars appear to be exploiting a bug in electronic doors to
gain entry into rooms, raising serious questions about the
security of many hotels.
The technique was demonstrated at the Black Hat hacker
conference as far back as July, utilising a simple electronic
device to override the security of the door locks. Now it
seems to have been used in a number of burglaries in the
Texas area.
The exploit has become so sophisticated that one researcher
managed to put all the electronics required to open the doors
into a marker pen, making it potentially easy to hide the
burglar's tools of the trade.
Attacks in Texas appear to have utilised a digital probe in
a small hole on the door lock mechanism to discover the
combination, prompting hotel managers to fill the hole with
glue as a temporary solution.
Over four million doors use these electronic locks, created
by Onity. The company previously said it was working to
replace the vulnerable locks. Insurance firms believe the
technique will circulate among thieves quickly, resulting in
a high volume of thefts and subsequent claims.
Apple acquired "Lightning"
trademark from Harley-
Davidson
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/apple-acquired-lightning-trademark-
from-harley-davidson/18081.html
November 27th, 2012
Applications published by the Europen Union's Patent &
Trademark Office reveal that Apple acquired the right to
use the name “Lightning” from motorbike firm Harley-
Davidson.
Applications published by the Europen Union's Patent &
Trademark Office reveal that Apple acquired the right to
use the name “Lightning” from motorbike firm Harley-
Davidson.
Apple abandoned its old proprietory 30-pin connector
earlier this year for a new 8-pin connector, which is also
restricted to Apple devices. The smaller port allowed Apple
to make thinner devices, and provide more room for other
parts, like larger batteries. The name it got was Lightning,
but it did not come without a price.
The Cupertino, California-based company secured a partial
transfer to the trademark from Harley-Davidson, which
owns the rights to use the name for pretty much everything
bar that stuff that strikes in the sky when thunder roars.

2
The partial transfer means Apple can use the name, but it
does not own it, and Harvey-Davidson can still sell partial
rights, or the full rights, to another buyer in future.
It likely means that Apple had to fork over a pretty penny
to get the name, the details of which were not revealed,
but given Apple's protracted legal battles with rivals over
patents, it was probably a small price to pay for the legal
security.
While many welcomed a smaller port for Apple devices, it
was also criticised for the fact that old accessories would no
longer be compatible – that is unless consumers fork over
another $20+ for an adaptor. Otherwise they have to buy
a slew of new products, which will keep Apple's accessory
allies happy.
Adblock Plus launches free
open source app for Android
devices
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/adblock-plus-launches-free-open-
source-app-for-android-devices/18080.html
November 27th, 2012
Adblock Plus has launched free app for Android devices that
disables adverts in the mobile browser and even inside other
apps.
Adblock Plus has launched free app for Android devices that
disables adverts in the mobile browser and even inside other
apps.
The open source software is the first of its kind of Android
that does not require a jailbroken phone. It works the same
as the Adblock Plus extension for web browsers, stopping
ads from rendering on Android smartphones or tablets,
including inside, for example, the Facebook or Angry Birds
apps.
“Mobile devices have exploded over the past few years, and
as usage of these devices has increased, so has advertising,
which is becoming more and more intrusive,” said Till
Faida, co-founder of Adblock Plus. “Mobile devices can feel
more ‘personal’ than online browsing via a desktop device,
making advertising on these devices even more intrusive and
annoying when they interrupt browsing. And by blocking
ads from rendering, Adblock Plus users can experience up to
40% faster browsing on their Android devices.”
Faida believes that mobile advertising is only beginning
and that users will soon be “bombarded,” making it more
important to be protected. He called for a new debate on
advertising standards and rules to take into consideration
new technologies like smartphones.
If the app is popular, and we expect it will be, this could
damage the revenue-making potential of Google and app
developers, many of which rely on ads to fund their free apps.
That will be little concern for most consumers, however.
Part of the solution for advertisers is in a limitation of the
app, which only blocks ads when on a Wi-Fi connection if
running Android 3.1 or higher. The device needs to be rooted
to block ads over a mobile connection.
The Adblock Plus app is available for free from the Google
Play store.
Hotline Miami sequel
announced
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/hotline-miami-sequel-
announced/18079.html
November 27th, 2012
The blood spattered action game Hotline Miami is going to
receive a sequel. The developers announced the news after
realizing that the DLC they were planning had more content
than the original game.
Hotline Miami is a top down style 2D action game,
mixing stealth and extreme violence with a dreamy 80's
soundtrack and a ton of style directly influenced by
the Nicholas Winding Refn movie Drive. The developers,
Jonatan Söderström and Dennis Wedin created the game
using game maker and released it in October to blazing
reviews.

3
While they're currently focusing their work on patching
the game, work has slowly begun on what was originally
intended to be DLC for the game. As the ideas and content
planned for the DLC grew, the two developers soon realized
that it would contain more content than the original game.
Thus, Söderström announced that it "feels reasonable to
release it as a full game rather than a DLC". Söderström
also tweeted that he was currently listening through an early
version of the new soundtrack.
Again though, the team is focusing on patching the original
game, and work has hardly begun on the sequel, meaning it'll
be a while before we get our hands on it.
Metro: Last Light receives
new live aciton trailer
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/metro-last-light-receives-new-live-
aciton-trailer/18078.html
November 27th, 2012
THQ has released a new trailer for it's upcoming game,
Metro: Last Light. Once again, it's a live-action trailer, and
once again, it's quite unsettling.
In May of this year, THQ released a live-action trailer for it's
upcoming game; Metro: Last Light. The trailer made quite
an impact and was praised for painting a chilling tale of
the moments before the apocalypse occurs which Metro's
universe takes place in. The financially troubled developer
has released a new live-action trailer, and this one is just as
unsettling, and poetic, as the first one.
We're introduced to what most of us would refer to as a
madman; a crazy person who walks the streets of Moscow
with a bible in hand, yelling to himself about the apocalypse.
The trailer asks us to consider what happens to people like
this when the apocalypse actually occurs. What happens,
is that this man whom society laughed off as completely
insane, is now heralded as a prophet, as seen at the end of
the trailer, when we see him holding a religious sermon.
The trailer is thought provoking and raises quite a few
philosophical questions about the nature of madness, truth
and all manner of other things, which is perfect for a Metro
trailer: Though Metro is predominately an action game, it's
predecessor took plenty of opportunities to ask questions
about human nature and what happens to society when
civilization ends - it's a running theme in the game, and any
trailer would be wise to include it.
Chinese chips may soon rival
Intel
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/chinese-chips-may-soon-rival-
intel/18076.html
November 27th, 2012
China's first microprocessor may soon find it's way into
routers and servers, competing with the current day Intel
and ARM architecture.
Currently, the computer and mobile market is dominated
by two architectures for their processors: Intel-architecture
and ARM-architecture. Now, the Chinese BLX IC Design
Corporation, a public private partnership with the Chinese
Academy of Sciences, is about to unveil a third contender,
based on their own design. Early next year, a chip in their
line of Loongson processors will be unveiled, which is meant
to drive computers, servers and even super computers.
Loongson chip
BLX IC Design Corporation's latest chip is the
Godson-3B1500, released in 2011 and which is said to
have twice as many transistors and being 35% more power
efficient than previous models. These older chips have
already been used however, to create china's first home-built
super computer.
The chip due to be revealed next year will be a 32nm chip,
which still falls behind Intel's newest 22nm size. In addition,
the processor chip will be incompatible with Windows,
meaning it will lose a large potential market. However,
the chip is cheap to produce, and that means it could be
used to promote internet centric computing in developing
nations, where the costs of setting up servers prohibit the
development of online and cloud-based infrastructure.

4
Microsoft may be planning to
open retail stores in Europe
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/microsoft-may-be-planning-to-open-
retail-stores-in-europe/18075.html
November 27th, 2012
Following Apple's example, Microsoft has been opening
stores in the United States, and pretty soon they may be
turning their attention to Europe.
Microsoft has been opening stores in the United States, and
a recent FT report suggests they may be bringing these stores
to Europe next. Microsoft has reportedly been in talks with
UK landlords to set up shops in the United Kingdom. Apple
has also been expanding their stores, and Microsoft seems
to be following the pattern in an attempt to catch up.
While Apple stores only sell proprietary Apple products, the
Microsoft stores sell software from a range of developers,
but all of which are compatible with desktop and mobile
versions of Windows 8 and Windows phone 8. The first
Microsoft Store opened weeks after the release of Windows
7, and today there are 32 stores across the US and one
in Canada. Since the release of Windows 8 at the end of
October, four new stores have opened, and one is slated to
open in December.
It's a Microsoft Store
Microsoft has been opening their stores near Apple Stores,
which isn't very surprising and is a common business
strategy, so you can probably expect to see something similar
throughout the UK and eventually, across Europe.
Man vs. Machine: WITCH
computer faces off against
human
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/man-vs.-machine-witch-computer-
faces-off-against-human/18073.html
November 27th, 2012
The WITCH computer, the oldest functioning digital
computer in existence, has found a new life in the UK's
National Museum of Computing, and has now taken part in
a calculation race against a human.
Last week, we reported on the WITCH computer, a dekatron
powered machine and the oldest digital computer in
existence. The WITCH has undergone serious restoration
work since 2009 and is now powered back on again at the
UK's National Museum of Computing, where it has taken it's
place as an exhibit. The WITCH, which was created in 1951,
was one of only a dozen computers worldwide at the time,
and was meant to calculate algorithms based on input on
paper strips. It worked at roughly the same speed as a human
being, and because of this, it has taken part in a calculation
race with Bart Fossey; a reenactment of one which was done
nearly 60 years earlier.
The WITCH, fully restored
Bart Fossey was hired by an insurance company as a summer
job while at university, where he utilized a mechanical
Facit pocket calculator. When he was later in charge of
checking the computational accuracy of the WITCH, he
utilized the same mechanical device. He set out to determine
if the computer's rounding produced errors in the results.
The WITCH is a much more mechanical machine than it's
modern day counterparts, and so Fossey could actually hear
from the noises it made, that he was working at the same
speed as the computer.
Fossey visited the National Museum of Computing for a
rematch, and set off to race the computer in front of an
audience. Using a Facit requires some practice, and a bit of
dexterity, and understandably, Fossey was out of practice.
But after a while, the museum reports, he "managed to keep
up with the machine for several minutes to great acclaim
from the audience."

5
Bart Fossey's epic race against the machine
Unfortunately, while the WITCH is currently operational, it
will only be reliving it's glory days for so long. Eventually,
the Museums will run out of Dekatron tubes, the digital
component central to the computer's operation, which can
store one number between 0 and 9, and at that point, its
racing days will be over.
Steam breaks six million
mark for simultaneous users
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/steam-breaks-six-million-mark-for-
simultaneous-users/18072.html
November 27th, 2012
Steam has broken the six million user mark for simultaneous
users, due partly to their ever growing user base, but also
much thanks to the seasonal Steam sale.
Over six million users were recently logged into Steam at
the same time, breaking the next million user barrier after
hitting five million earlier this year. This is partly due to
the seasonal Steam sale currently ongoing, which offers
deals on newly released titles as well as anthologies of
old games. However, as the most played game on Steam
right now is the free-to-play DOTA 2, these stats may not
be entirely temporary. Unfortunately, the consoles aren't
releasing simultaneous user stats as openly as Steam is, so
it's difficult to say how the platforms compare, but no doubt
PC gaming is far from dead.
Over 6 million user at once. Impressive!
Steam was originally released by Valve in 2003 as a platform
for updating Counter-Strike, but soon grew into a software
distribution platform and social hub for PC gamers, and in
later years, has also seen a release for Mac, PS3 and Mobile
platforms, and a version is in the works for Linux as well. In
2011, Forbes announced that Steam accounted for 50-70% of
digital game sales for the PC and The Witcher II has similarly
stated that Steam accounts for 80% of their digital sales.
Petition for PC version of GTA
V hits 40,000 signatures
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/petition-for-pc-version-of-gta-v-
hits-40-000-signatures/18071.html
November 27th, 2012
A petition to bring GTA V to the PC platform has just reached
40,000 signatures, out of a desired 100,000. Rockstar has
at the moment not released any details about a potential PC
release of the game.
A petition has been started at change.org for the PC release of
Rockstar Games' upcoming Grand Theft Auto V. The petition
is hoping for a total of 100,000 signatures, of which it has so
far managed to get 40,000 of. Rockstar hasn't mentioned a
PC release so far. In an interview with IGN, Rockstar's Dan
Houser stated that "for those asking about the PC platform,
we're currently focused on the Xbox 360 and PS3 versions
of the game and don't have any details to share about a PC
version at this time.”
"Hey 360, let's go hang out with GTA V! Oh.. hi, PC; sorry,
you can't come"
A good sign is that Houser also said all platforms other than
360 and PS3 are up for consideration. In addition, the Grand
Theft Auto games have always seen a PC release, even if
they're always much later to the market than the console
versions. Grand Theft Auto IV, for example, was released for
PC a whole seven months after the console release. Of course,
these delays are always accompanied by mod support and
better visuals, so waiting might not be all that bad.
Of course, ensuring there will be a PC release by tossing
petitions at Rockstar is not a bad idea anyway. The petition

6
cites, among other reasons for a PC release, that the
franchise has a big impact and would be missed on the
platform, that the PC is the most powerful platform and that
the modding community unique to PC gamers has always
enjoyed playing with GTA, and that this has resulted in some
of the most fun gameplay you can have in GTA.
The UN looks to Minecraft for
regeneration projects
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/the-un-looks-to-minecraft-for-
regeneration-projects/18064.html
November 27th, 2012
Through a project called Block by Block the UN Habitat
organization will be joining forces with the video game
sensation Minecraft to help people have a voice in how their
towns can be changed.
Over the last few days, thanks to the annual conference
in Paris, we have been hearing a lot of interesting, and
cool, news about the video game sensation Minecraft; and
today it was announced that Minecraft-maker Mojang will
be collaberating with UN Habitat in a new project called
Block by Block.
The idea is to bring the development plans that UN Habitat
has for 300 places around the world to 'life' and allow the
residents of those areas to take a virtual tour so that they can
help decide how those locations will change. People will be
able to change the model as a way to help decide how the UN
Habitat regeneration money should be spent.
The first place to be modeled using Minecraft as a part of the
pilot for the project was the Undugu playground, which is
found in the Kibera slum region on the outskirts of Nairobi.
"We'll be putting it into the game so people can walk
around and feel like it's as real life as possible,"
Lydia Winters, community liaison manager at
Mojang told the BBC.
The Undugu playground has been recreated by the Minecraft
modelling company Fyre UK and soon those who live around
the playground will be able to visit it virtually and see what
the UN has in mind when it comes to regenerating it.
UN Habitat hopes that by 2016 all 300 areas under
consideration for regeneration will be modelled in
Minecraft.
Get your geek on with a
projected virtual keyboard
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/get-your-geek-on-with-a-projected-
virtual-keyboard/18067.html
November 27th, 2012
Until speech-to-text software reaches a point where they’re
perfect without the need for ‘training’, we will all have to rely
on our trusty keyboards to type out our messages. There
are all sorts of keyboard on the market from ergonomics to
mechanical, but essentially they all carry out the same tasks
—typing. If typing is all you’re really looking to do with
a keyboard then perhaps a laser projection keyboard from
CTX Virtual Technologies can oblige to your needs.
The pocket-sized device will project a virtual keyboard onto
a flat surface and has optical sensors that track your finger
movements so that you can type without the need of a
physical keyboard. The device links to your tablet (why
would you need one for a laptop?) via Bluetooth or USB, and
has a battery rating of around 2 hours.
As for how much this futuristic thing costs; it’ll run you $99,
but as of right now the device is not yet available. Demands
were so high that Brookstone.com (the only outlet offering
the device) states that it cannot even accept any more pre-
orders. If you’re one of the lucky few that managed to get in
an approved pre-order, you’ll get it sometime in December.
Those interested in putting in a pre-order, check out the
product page once in awhile to see if pre-orders are being

7
accepted. Imagine all the eyes you would get at a Starbucks
if you whipped out this virtual keyboard—lots.
Which tablet maker will be the first to integrate this
technology into their mobile device?
ARM - Possible Beginning of
the End for AMD? - Part 1
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/arm--possible-beginning-of-the-end-
for-amd--part-1/18054.html
November 27th, 2012
Last month's move by AMD to license the initial 64-bit
ARM cores for its server use could signal a brave attempt
towards a new direction, as well as finally giving up any plans
to competitively fight Intel on the X86 performance front.
Aside of the still relatively healthy GPU business, what is
the impact on AMD futures? This two parter focuses on the
problem and possible solutions.
After covering AMD - among many other CPU vendors,
of course - over nearly two decades, and seeing quite a
few of these CPU vendors fall by the wayside, I thought of
the company as a kind of 'survivor', the feisty underdog or
even 'Luke Skywalker' freedom fighter which, even in spite
of the 'Darth Vader'-esque Intel shadow of the past, and,
more importantly, repeated top management blunders, still
soldiers on to provide the PC community an alternative CPU
and system platform source.
However, this past year's happenings, for the first time,
make me feel that AMD's time as a serious CPU contender
may be coming to an end. Why?
Firstly, the accumulated, consecutive top management
blunders, which now cannot just be blamed on Hector Ruiz
era any more, have become just too much for any company
to survive, even if able to take heavy blows. Yes, the troubles
started well over half a decade ago with 'Barcelona', but what
followed was even worse. Even though the decision to go
with the Bulldozer, then strip it down and release a huge
lemon, was a huge mistake, an even bigger mistake was not
doing a quick U-turn on this the moment it became clear
that both the raw performance, and power/performance are
going to suck. Abandoning that microarchitecture on time,
and refocusing on an early replacement, would have been
better, despite the resulting say a year lull in CPU sales -
which ended up depressing anyway till now. Simply, Intel
was still big enough to swallow one Pentium 4 disaster, and
still moved on just on time to the Core - but AMD doesn't
have the stamina to continue this way.
(somebody even bothered to make a viral video about the
Bulldozer)
The continued series of delayed minor CPU core
improvements in the shape of Piledriver and follow-up
Steamroller, if it gets released, didn't help the cause, as Intel
continued to widen its performance lead despite slowing
down its own tick tock sequence by over a year at this
moment - this is what lack of true competition does to the
market, like it?
Secondly, the surrounding platform infrastructure - read
uncore, chipsets and so on - followed the CPUs in being
below par across the board. Slower memory controllers
on top of truly bad cache latencies, which you can see
from VR-Zone and others's benchmarks in plenty of cases,
lower performing off-chipset PCIe v2 instead of on-CPU low
latency PCIe v3, then the delays in introducing new stuff
like USB3, SATA3, Thunderbolt etc. AMD is still stuck in 4
years old socket infrastructure for its CPUs, both desktop
and servers.
Thirdly, the relationship with the vendors, channels,
enthusiasts and yes, even media. We in Asia Pacific will
still remember how, a decade ago and before, AMD fetted
the Western press with first class paid press conferences
while the Asian press, except Japan, got, literally - nothing.
Only way later, when the crisis struck and everything
became uncomfortable coach, did they remember the Asia
Pacific. But OK, forget about the usual journalists' junket
noises, handling the vendors and channels is still far more
important.
And oh, all those 'early adopter' vendors and integrators
who supported AMD in the early Opteron days when no
big name wanted to, still do remember how AMD quickly
abandoned them once they got the biggies like Dell on-
board in those happy times prior to the first major fiasco,
the 'Barcelona' - including even upping the prices post-
launch. And, did that Dell keep AMD later on, once that
crisis struck? Of course not, they just used them for better
negotiating terms with their true parent - Intel. Now, no
major vendor at all takes AMD seriously, at least not in the
CPU business of any kind. And the smaller SI's, who depend
on the unique performance or power usage advantages of the
CPUs they peddle, are more likely to design something based
on Chinese 'Loongson' MIPS or 'Shenwei' Alpha, which we
covered here in detail, then on AMD, in the future - at least
Loongson can use AMD I/O chipsets over HyperTransport,
but too bad, they are also doing their own superior ones now.
Next point, even though not directly coupled with the CPUs,
are the professional GPUs. With GCN GPU series, AMD
actually has a superior GPU design to Nvidia Fermi for
any serious GPU computation, with much higher SP FP
and comparable DP FP, not to mention the time to market
advantage they had till this month prior to the Tesla K20
launch. Was it ever seriously used? No - the workstation card
was darn late, and the software stack is still behind Nvidia -
not to even mention the smooth ramp up of Intel MIC aka

8
Xeon Phi. This opportunity could have been used by AMD
to bundle clusters of their GPGPUs with their own server
CPUs as a good sales approach in HPC, even if the CPU
performance itself is below par. Now, well, it is gone, at least
till the high end Sea Islands GPU parts arrive.
(FirePro S10000 - missed the boat?)
Final point, of course, is the management replacement -
kicking out Dirk Meyer now seems to have been yet another
mistake, even though, yes, he was a better engineer than
a commander. The continued loss of the top engineering
brains is a great pity - till last month, AMD had the most of
the old key DEC Alpha team in one place, for instance. That
CPU architecture, till today, likely stands as the best there
was. Rory is a much more jovial type, but the 'SuperBowl
sports announcer' style of CEO talk has both pluses and
minuses here - the Chinese in Lenovo would have loved it,
though.
(AMD's current CEO, Rory Read)
Then, in parallel with this, comes the long prepared - since
Dirk's departure, it seems - ARM announcement.
Now, as pointed out by many websites, this is not AMD
crearting its own custom cores, but just licensing the initial
ARM Cortex 64-bit cores as they are, and putting them into
whatever uncore environment they can, likely something
tied to the SeaMicro interconnect they acquired for an
obnoxiously high sum of money, likely the brainchild of then
interim CEO Thomas Seifert and his connections. What does
this mean?
AMD is now entering into a field where, instead of one single
huge competitor, Intel, they will have half a dozen of huge
and less huge competitors, ALL of them with a headstart
over AMD - both in the ARM experience, custom core
and uncore design for performance and/or power focus,
customer relationships and, of course, influence within
the ARM community. Besides the mammoth Samsung and
not much smaller Qualcomm, the old gang like TI, the
server focused Marvell and Calxeda (with their own server
interconnects matching or exceeding SeaMicro one), and the
prospective Chinese ARM server CPU vendor HiSilicon, a
part of Huawei, there's also AMD's other nemesis there -
NVidia.
Like them or not, their have both CPU and GPU headstart
over AMD in the ARM world that may be extremely difficult
to overcome - ever. And, the AMD announcement would just
give Jen-Hsun Huang a good enough reason to deny AMD
easy entry in ARM market, any segment. Think Nvidia can't
do a good ARM server CPU? Think again...
Yet, for the money and resource tight AMD, focusing on
ARM means de-emphasising X86 core competition. What
then? Read the Part 2 for the possible scenarios.
Dogs can retire, scientists
develop super sensitive
electronic sniffer
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/dogs-can-retire-scientists-develop-
super-sensitive-electronic-sniffer/18056.html
November 27th, 2012
Scientists are claiming to have created a new sniffing device
that can detect a wide range of chemicals that exceeds
even the best bloodhound, and it was created in part by
inspiration from the canine’s incredible sense of smell.
For centuries dogs have benefited mankind in ways other
animals cannot by using their incredible sense of smell for
all manner of tasks. Whether it is tracking down an escaped
prisoner, hunting wild game, or sniffing out illegal drugs or
bombs - dogs are well adapted at detecting even the faintest
of odors we as humans would never detect.
Now scientists working at the University of California at
Santa Barbara say they have designed a detector that mimics
the same way in which a dog smells. The research entry can
be found on-line in the Journal, Analytical Chemistry, in an
entry titled, ‘Free-Surface Microfluidics/Surface-Enhanced
Raman Spectroscopy for Real-Time Trace Vapor Detection
of Explosives’. Dr. Carl Meinhart, a mechanical engineer,
and Martin Moskovits, a chemist, led the research on the
project.
Dr. Meinhart stated the research was partly based on a dog’s
olfactory mucus layer, which absorbs and then concentrates
airborne molecules. The odor detector uses what they call
microfluidic nanotechnology, and this technology mimics
what our canine friends are born with but on a more fantastic
scale. It is said to be so incredibly sensitive that even the
most insignificant amounts of a substance can be detected
and differentiated among other substances.
In a seperate November 20, 2012 report from the University
of California at Santa Barbara’s School of Engineering,
Dr. Meinhart stated that while dogs are currently the
best detectors for explosives and other things, they could
become distracted or bored at their jobs and possibly miss
something. This new device, according to Meinhart, never
tires and can work indefinitely. “We have developed a device
with the same or better sensitivity as a dog’s nose that feeds
into a computer to report exactly what kind of molecule it’s
detecting”, said Meinhart.
While this device can in fact detect explosives or other
substances, its uses could be limitless in regards to medical

9
research. In fact, Meinhart says that it could sample
someone’s breath and detect certain types of cancers.
(Concept illustration of the micoscale free-survade
microfluidic channel as it concentrates vapor molecules
that bind to the nanoparticles inside a chaber. A laser
beam detects the nanoparticles, which amplify a spectral
signature of the detected molecules | Image: UCSB)
Analysts are confident in
RIM's revival with BlackBerry
10
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/analysts-are-confident-in-rim-s-
revival-with-blackberry-10/18057.html
November 27th, 2012
Research in Motion Ltd all but seem to have headed for
destruction, but a surge in their share price of 17.3% on
Thursday showed a renewed optimism for the business-class
device maker.
RIM’s rally was spurred mainly by National Bank analyst
Kris Thompson, who elevated his price estimate from $12
to $15. Thompson is betting on RIM’s early 2013 line up of
new devices to propel the company enough to ensure their
survival (at least for the time being).
Thompson isn’t RIM’s only fan though, as Jefferies & Co
analyst Peter Misek changed his critical stance on the
Canadian phone maker, and raised both his rating and price
target for the stock.
RIM shares have risen in seven trading sessions in a row,
reaching their highest level since May on the Toronto Stock
Exchange on Thursday, ending out the day at $12 CAD.
(Canada celebrates Thanksgiving on a different date to the
US, in case you were wondering why the stock market was
open that day).
Share prices suggest that RIM may be back in business, and
much of the new sentiment towards the company hails from
the impending BB10 (BlackBerry 10) global platform launch
in February 2013. Telecom carriers are welcoming the BB10
operating system and the devices that run on it with open
arms, causing analysts to be more optimistic about RIM’s
future.
While still not certain, RIM are reportedly “100 percent
ready” for a January 30 launch of their new BlackBerry 10
devices. RIM’s COO Kristian Tear stated that the devices will
be available in stores “not too long after” the tentative launch
date.
Let’s wish RIM good luck, as more competition in the market
is always a good thing. It keeps the likes of Apple and
Samsung from getting too self-assured.
Review: Assassin's Creed III
(PC)
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/review-assassin-s-creed-iii-
pc-/18059.html
November 27th, 2012
With Assassin's Creed III finally out for all platforms, it's
about time we looked under the hood. Is this game a
revolutionary, or just sidenote in videogame history?
It's been a long time since I found myself bubbling with
excitement in front of the screen, or my thoughts drifting
to a game when I'm going about my everyday business. The
kind of experience which warrants that type of reaction, is
for me what separates a great game from merely a good one.
I was unsure if I'd experience this feeling with Assassin's
Creed III; it has some pretty big shoes to fill: After the
success of Assassin's Creed II and it's expansions (I say
expansions, but they are really full games in their own right),
and with the responsibility to wrap up a story five years
in the making, there is a lot that could have gone wrong,
and plenty of ways to let down a hyped audience. And while
it's true that Assassin's Creed III has it's flaws, it has gone
beyond my expectations in it's efforts to improve upon it's
predecessors. The result is, beyond a doubt, a great game,
and I am bubbling in front of the screen once more.

1
geeks.
US Congressman proposes a
"don't touch the internet" law
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/us-congressman-proposes-a-don-t-
touch-the-internet-law/18105.html
November 28th, 2012
A Republican Congressman in the US has proposed a new
law that prohibits further laws from changing or affecting
the internet for at least two years, potentially saving it from
a series of bills and treaties that some believe could hinder
free speech online and invade user privacy.
A Republican Congressman in the US has proposed a new
law that prohibits further laws from changing or affecting
the internet for at least two years, potentially saving it from
a series of bills and treaties that some believe could hinder
free speech online and invade user privacy.
Darrell Issa, who represents California, put forward a
new piece of legislation yesterday, the Internet American
Moratorium Act, that could give the internet, and many
internet-based companies, a breather for the next two years.
The move follows a number of proposed laws and trade
agreements, such as SOPA, PIPA, ACTA and CISPA, that
critics suggested would lead to censorship online. Many of
the previous proposals were designed to tackle the rise in
piracy, but they were so broad they would likely cause more
damage than they would solve.
Issa has been a major opponent of the previous legislation
attempts, but he also voted in favour of the widely-criticised
CISPA. His Twitter bio says: “I also greatly enjoy an #OPEN,
accessible & uncensored internet.”
He uploaded the legislation to keepthewebopen.com and
agreed to a Q&A on Reddit, where there are mixed views on
his proposal. Some view it as a genuine attempt to protect the
internet, while others see it as purely a political move to help
repair the image of the Republican party. Some even think
it might be a trojan horse to help undo current laws or pave
the way for significant changes to how the internet is run.
Regardless, Issa is pushing ahead with his hope that his
legislation will unburden the internet – at least for a two year
period.
Image Credit: Svilen Milev
US builds miniature "cyber
city" for computer defence
simulation
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/us-builds-miniature-cyber-city-for-
computer-defence-simulation/18104.html
November 28th, 2012
The US has built a miniature "city cyber" with a fully working
infrastructure for testing out defences against cyber attacks.
The US has built a miniature "cyber city" with a fully working
infrastructure for testing out defences against cyber attacks.
The tiny city, just six feet by eight feet, features a full
selection of critical facilities needed to keep everything
running smoothly, including a bank, hospital, water tower,
power grid, and train system, all running on real computer
systems.
The city was created by security training firm the Sans
Institute and is the answer to a challenge made by the US
military to work out ways to protect important services from
hackers.
The Institute said that there is “detailed evidence” of foreign
governments infiltrating the computer networks of banks,
companies and infrastructure, and that previous efforts to
fend off the attacks have been limited. There is a growing

2
fear in many countries of the threat of these kinds of attacks,
which could cripple a city and cause widespread chaos and
disruption, with oil companies claiming that oil supplies are
also being targeted.
Vital infrastructure like electricity grids are threatened by
hackers
The CyberCity will help train people to respond to attacks
through a serious of simulations, where hackers will target
the fully working computer systems of the miniature city's
banks, water or power supply, hospitals, and other vital
services a thriving city cannot do without.
“We've built over 18 missions, and each of them challenges
participants to devise strategies and employ tactics to thwart
computer attacks that would cause significant real-world
damage,” said Ed Skoudis, director of NetWars CyberCity.
The missions, lasting between a few hours and several days,
begin in December.
Image Credit: Zorba the Geek
AT&T celebrates 30 years of
the Information Age
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/at-t-celebrates-30-years-of-the-
information-age/18102.html
November 28th, 2012
American Telephone & Telegraph, better known as AT&T, is
celebrating 30 years of the Information Age on 12 December
with the launch of a new website to highlight how it all began.
American Telephone & Telegraph, better known as AT&T, is
celebrating 30 years of the Information Age on 12 December
with the launch of a new website to highlight how it all began.
The new site is now online at www.informationage.org,
thanks to James R. Messenger, a former AT&T employee,
author of The Death of the American Telephone & Telegraph
Company – How “Ma Bell” Died Giving Birth to the
Information Age, EMMY award winner, and two time
Academy Award nominee for his documentaries.
Messenger is credited with teaching The Theory of the
Information Age on 12 December 1982 at AT&T's Executive
Briefing Centre in New Jersey. The subsequent division
of AT&T after the US Department of Justice launched an
antitrust lawsuit against it over its monopoly of the industry
helped make Messenger's vision a reality, as it opened the
market to considerable competition, thus accelerating the
growth of the technologies of the Information Age.
James R. Messenger
“In 1982, the world’s telephone networks were analog
systems incompatible with computers,” said Messenger.
“When the decision was made to rebuild the
world’s networks as all-digital systems to facilitate the
interconnection of computers via telecommunications,
my staff and I educated the world’s leaders in
telecommunications, Information Technology, government,
business, education, and other fields, planting the seeds that
would lead to the world of high technology in which we now
live. Today, I’m turning up a new website challenging human
beings across the globe to consciously think our way into the
Information Age so that it brings the greatest advantage to
everyone.”
The website covers a brief history of the Information Age, the
people behind it, such as Ed Roberts, the inventor of the first
PC, why people have trouble understanding the Information
Age, and various theories about how to fix problems in the
world through the adoption of Information Age policies.
GameStop's Wii U waiting list
is full
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/gamestop-s-wii-u-waiting-list-is-
full/18100.html
November 28th, 2012

3
If you missed out on getting a Wii U, and were hoping to
get on the waiting list with Gamestop, you're out of luck. No
more names are being added to their list.
Nintendo's new console, the Wii U, is unsurprisingly in
short supply right now. GameStop decided to help those
who missed out on pre-orders for the console by creating a
waiting list for future shipments. To sign up on a list, you
only had a 48 hour window to sign up and you had to be a
member of their Power-Up rewards program. Once on the
list, GameStop would then call you once they got new stock
in the stores, before putting it on the shelf.
GameStop has officially closed this list now, and are not
adding any more names to it. Rumors were circulating that
GameStop wouldn't be calling to let the signers know when
new hardware had arrived, but this rumor turns out to be
false, and in a comment to Gametrailers' Side Mission blog,
they stated that the list is not canceled; only closed.
It is unknown how many people signed up for the list,
but for the rest of you hoping to get a copy, you'd best
keep searching. If you're desperate and willing to toss out
a few hundred dollars more, I'd recommend checking out
eBay, where you'll find a bunch of them selling for about
$300-500.
Google Streetview now has
over 90 ski resorts on camera
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/google-streetview-now-has-over-90-
ski-resorts-on-camera/18099.html
November 28th, 2012
Google continues it's awesome and ridiculous expansion of
Streetview, returning to the slopes and providing over 90 ski
resorts worldwide with a first person view of the snow
Google Streetview had a fairly practical purpose when it was
first implemented - instead of just seeing a location via map,
you could look at a first person panoramic view of it as
well; very useful for seeing what the house your driving to
looks like, or keeping track of what the surroundings look
like when you're supposed to make a turn. Then everybody
discovered how much fun Streetview can be, letting people
explore locations all over the world from the comfort of their
living room.
Google has since expanded upon the service, including
Streetview in absolutely awesome, and often ridiculous
places, such as art galleries and underwater, on the great
barrier reef. They even gave the Streetview treatment to the
Amazon river and the Antarctic. In 2010, while preparing
for the Vancouver winter Olympics, they mapped out several
ski slopes. Now they've returned and Google are announcing
that 90 ski resorts world wide are mapped, in countries such
as Switzerland, Sweden, Italy, Canada and the US.
Whistler Blackcomb, British Columbia
WWII pigeon message found
after 70 years; officials can't
unscramble it.
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/wwii-pigeon-message-found-
after-70-years-officials-can-t-unscramble-it./18097.html
November 28th, 2012
While cleaning out his chimney, a British man discovered
the remains of a WWII carrier pigeon, and with it, an
encrypted message for British intelligence which may never
be unscrambled.
When retired probation officer David Martin cleaned out his
chimney, the last thing he probably expected to find was the
remains of a 70 year old WWII carrier pigeon, with message
intact. The message was composed of 27 five-letter blocks,
obviously encrypted to prevent it from being intercepted
by Axis forces. When the message was later delivered to
the Government Communications Headquarters (GCHQ) in
Britain, who are in charge of signals intelligence, they found
it was not possible to decipher the message.
The message was coded using an OTP (one time pad),
a virtually unbreakable coding system. The sender and
recipient both have a one-time-use sheet with a cipher key.
The specific key is necessary for decoding the text, and is
only used for a single message. This means that if further
messages are intercepted, they will all be coded differently
and there are no copies of the key lying around either,
making deciphering impossible.

4
It is believed that the message was sent during the D-Day
invasion of France, sent across the channel to relay messages
to the British command, since radio silence was in effect.
Chances are the pigeon became disoriented or tired from it's
flight, and ended up in the chimney. The message was most
likely due to Bletchley Park, a secret military facility 80 miles
from where the pigeon was found. The message was also to
be delivered to X02, which was the designation for Bomber
Command.
The only way to ever find out what the message read is
by finding the OTP designated AOAKN, which may be
somewhere in an archive, or by finding the writer of the
message, one Sergeant W. Stot.
Dishonored DLC due on 11th
December
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/dishonored-dlc-due-on-11th-
december/18096.html
November 28th, 2012
The first of Bethesda's three planned DLCs for Dishonored is
due out in December, and it includes a lot of new gameplay
features.
Bethesda announced a while back that it would be
releasing three DLC packs for it's critically acclaimed game
Dishonored, and the first one is just around the corner.
On December 11, Dunwall City Trials will be released for
Xbox 360, Playstation 3 and PC at a price of $5, and will
focus on adding new gameplay modes and achievements,
as opposed to offering up more story missions. The new
features will include a wave battle mode, achievements, drop
assassination chains and time trials.
The other two DLC packs will go on sale in 2013, the first
one hitting in the spring and will be focusing on Daud, the
leader of the supernatural assassins in the game. Details on
the final DLC won't be revealed until closer to it's release,
but Bethesda has announced that the two later DLC's will be
more story driven than Dunwall City Trials
Cassini snaps photos of
vortex at Saturn's north pole
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/cassini-snaps-photos-of-vortex-at-
saturn-s-north-pole/18095.html
November 28th, 2012
Cassini just made a pass over Saturn's north pole, where it
found a swirling vortex at the center of the planet's Northern
Hexagon
Saturn has some interesting features, including a hexagonal
cloud pattern which mysteriously persists in the north pole
region. At the center of this cloud pattern, which scientists
believe may be caused by standing cloud formations, there is
a massive vortex, which Cassini has just photographed from
a distance of 361,000 km. The image was taken through an
infrared filter.

5
Not a hurricane I want to get stuck in...
The vortex, though quite intimidating, is tiny compared to
the rest of the planet. Below, you'll see it as a small mark at
the center of the hexagon, and just for reference, the straight
edges of that hexagon are about 13,800km long, longer than
the diameter of Earth.
The hexagon is the... hexagonal structure of a lighter color
towards the edges of the image
Windows 8 building up some
steam: 40M licenses sold in
one month
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/windows-8-building-up-some-
steam-40m-licenses-sold-in-one-month/18091.html
November 28th, 2012
Sale of Windows 8's licenses has surpassed the speed of
Windows 7’s initial launch, in terms of early-stage upgrades.
Does this mean Windows 8 is a success though, or is it just
a temporary fling?
Microsoft’s official blog states that the factors behind
Windows 8’s ‘success’ is that upgrading from Windows 7 to
Windows 8 is “super easy”, and because Windows 8 was also
designed to work well on existing Windows 7 PCs. Is that the
real reason though? Or did it have something to do with the
fact it only costs $40 to upgrade a Windows XP< Vista, or 7
PC to Windows 8 (until January 31st
, at least).
Who knows what the real deal is, but while Windows 8 stirs
polarizing opinions worldwide with its ‘tablet-like’ interface,
it doesn't appear to be slowing down sales-wise. According
to Microsoft, the OS sold 4 million upgrades in its first three
days of release, and the new 40 million mark suggests that
this upgrade-a-thon is still ongoing.
Additional sales figures were not announced (such as
Microsoft’s recent flagship Surface tablet), and its difficult to
know whether users are sticking with the Fisher Price-esque
Windows 8 or downgrading back to the warm familiar sight
of Windows 7 after a weeks use.
At this point in the game a sale is a sale, so it’s all great for
Microsoft, and they may be able to hook people to keep using
the OS thanks to the opening of their Windows Store back
in October, which apparently launched with more apps than
any other app store, and the number of apps available has
already doubled since October.
Developers who sell their apps through the Windows Store
get 80% of the profits made through it, and this continues
throughout the life of the app. Twenty percent is no small
levy, but it's a good alternative to piracy at least.
Apparently a number of apps on the store have already made
more than $25,000, suggesting that PC users really aren’t all
a bunch of dirty pirates after all, and that they are willing
to pay money for software if the purchase process is easy
enough. This mirrors Valve Software’s approach with their
Steam platform, which aims to keep users buying by offering
a pleasant buying experience.
With a direct rival to their Steam service, its also easy to see
why Valve’s boss Gabe Newell would get so upset about it,
too.
The Windows Store itself is more of a revolution than
Windows 8 is, and may spur renewed interest in developing
both apps and games for the PC platform, now that there is
money to be had.
10GB e-mail attachments
now possible, Google
integrates Drive with Gmail
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/10gb-e-mail-attachments-now-
possible-google-integrates-drive-with-gmail/18089.html
November 28th, 2012
Google has integrated Google Drive with Gmail, thereby
enabling users with the capability of sending files up to 400
times larger, or up to 10GB.

6
For those of us who upload or download a lot of data from
the Internet, we are well aware of the limitations that E-
mail offers in this department. While some On-line Email
accounts offer transfers up to 25MB, many files today are
just enormous. Google has heard our cries and are now
combining Google Drive with their popular free E-mail
system. This combo allows users to transfer files up to
10GB in size, which is very impressive. Google has also
implemented their “smart assistant” in the file sender that
alerts the recipients in case they are unable to open the files
being sent and to also make sure the recipient has full access
to it.
Google Product Manager Phil Sharp in an official blog
message titled, “Gmail and Drive - a new way to send files”,
tells Google users that data sent through this new system
is stored on the cloud, therefore all the recipients will have
access to the most current version of the file sent.
“Like a smart assistant, Gmail will also double-check that
your recipients all have access to any files you’re sending,"
says Sharp. "This works like Gmail’s forgotten attachment
detector: whenever you send a file from Drive that isn’t
shared with everyone, you’ll be prompted with the option to
change the file’s sharing settings without leaving your email.
It’ll even work with Drive links pasted directly into email.”
This latest addition comes just after Google’s new E-mail
compose layout that was unveiled on October 30th
, 2012.
The new compose in Gmail gives little helpful popouts while
you write such as the image of the recipient along with their
contact information in the autocomplete area.
First concept art for Bungie's
new IP
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/first-concept-art-for-bungie-s-new-
ip/18094.html
November 28th, 2012
Bungie is making a new game called Destiny, and the first
concept art for the game has hit the web for us to feast our
eyes on.
Bungie is releasing a new game through Activision, the
first game in a long time which isn't Halo related, and
the rumored title for the game is Destiny. Bungie has
released the first concept art for the game as a response to a
leaked marketing document which surfaced on IGN. In the
document, it was detailed that Destiny would be "fun and
accessible", and that it would feature a "deep, tangible and
relatable" world comparable to the Star Wars universe.
The plot will revolve around an alien starship out to destroy
the earth and a number of "knights" who stand as humanity's
last defense... which sounds pretty similar to Halo. What
is very different though, is that Bungie is now in a ten
year contract with Activision, meaning they are no longer a
proprietary Xbox developer - logo icons from the marketing
documents reveals the game will see a Playstation release.
The leaked document garnered this response from Bungie:
"We're not quite ready to take the wraps off our next
universe, but in light of recent events we thought we'd give
fans something a little more official over at Bungie.net. Feel
free to drop by and say hello! There’s much more to come."
The more official something they speak of, is the concept art
below. Enjoy!
Looks promising, no?
Nintendo announces Wii Mini
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/nintendo-announces-wii-
mini/18093.html
November 28th, 2012
Nintendo follows in the custom of re-designing their console
with the newly announced Wii Mini. Jump in for specifics
and screenshots of the system's new style.
Nintendo's Wii Mini looks like a blast from the past:
its geometric design hints at something from the early
days of gaming in the 80's. The re-design of the popular
console shows that Nintendo is still paying attention to the
aging console, despite being overshadowed by it's next-gen
brother the Wii U.
As you can see in the picture above, the Open button seems to
make the console a top-loader, a change that will be welcome

7
to some and brings back old memories of the GameCube
console.
One downside of the Wii Mini, however, is that the system
does not support internet capabilities (no WiFi or Ethernet),
denying access to Nintendo's eShop:
"With the low price tag comes a few sacrifices.
Most notably, the unit is stripped of its Wi-Fi
capabilities, so the Wii Mini cannot connect to the
internet and does not support online features in
games. Furthermore, the Wii Mini will not be
compatible with Nintendo GameCube game discs,
and the GameCube controller ports and memory
slots have been removed." -- Nintendo Wii Mini
product page
Nintendo's newly re-designed Wii Mini will hit shelves on
Dec. 7, 2012 and will have a low price point of $99. For
more information on the Wii please visit Nintendo's official
website.
Scientists invent self-filling
water bottle
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/scientists-invent-self-filling-water-
bottle/18088.html
November 28th, 2012
Developers are saying they have invented a self-filling water
bottle that should be on the market in about 2 years. The
bottle is capable of pulling water vapor directly from the air
and based in part by studying the desert dwelling Namid
Beetle.
We’ve all heard of the horror stories of someone being lost in
the desert or maybe adrift at sea in a desperate need of water.
Now a team calling themselves NBD Nano are saying those
days may be over with their new self-filling water collector.
The design of the device came about after they studied
the exoskeleton of the Namid desert beetle. The insect is
capable of condensing water vapor by the small dimples
on its outer shell where the water is collected. The insect
then angles itself and the water then drains into the insects
mouth. The new self-filling water collector has applied the
same principles as the Namid Beetle, but it uses a nano-scale
surface area with water absorbing (super-hydroscopic) and
water repelling (super-hydrophobic) attributes.
Currently the designers of the water collector only have a
concept model, but have demonstrated its proven ability to
harvest water out of thin air. One of the designers by the
name of Miguel Galvez was quoted as saying that the device
can harvest as much as one half to 3 liters of water per day.
Currently the team is looking to increase the size of the water
collection model and apply its use for water production
in green houses. Their website states that some uses for
the device would be for dehumidification for households,
production of water for those in the military, and pure water
for third world regions. As the technology improves it could
very well solve a lot of the world’s water shortage problems
in farming regions like the U.S. southwest or in parts of the
Middle East.
Nano particle technology has begun to take hold in many
applications. In 2005, scientists working with MIT came
up with the very same concept that NBD Nano describes
and saw its use for anti fogging and as a film to prevent
dirt buildup. More recently MIT has developed a super-
hydrophobic film coating they are calling "LiquiGlide".
Currently 'LiquiGlide' is being aimed at food product
cotainers and condiment bottles in particular. In an effort to
prevent food waste 'LiquiGlide' prevents food from sticking
to the interior walls of its container.
Fujitsu launches Wandant,
a doggy health monitoring
pendant
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/fujitsu-launches-wandant-a-doggy-
health-monitoring-pendant/18087.html
November 28th, 2012
If you care enough about your dogs to buy them doggy
jackets for the winter months, then perhaps you may
also want to monitor the dog’s physical state. Fujitsu
has just launched the ‘Wandant’ dog pedometer, which
monitors your dog’s various canine biological occurrences
and outputs the data to your computer/phone in readable
human language.
Just like any clever naming schemes, the Wandant is exactly
what it’s named. ‘Wan’ means ‘woof’ in Japanese, and ‘dant’
is derived from ‘pendant’. Slam the two parts together and
you have a ‘woof-pendant.’

8
The Wandant monitors conditions such as the dog’s
temperature, how many steps it has taken, stool conditions,
among others, and records the doggy-data for analysis via a
graphical interface on a computer.
Fujitsu claims that the collected data will make it easier
for owners to ‘understand’ their pets better, and that it
enables ‘communication’ with man’s best friend. This
specialized doggy device is currently only targeted at
Japanese consumers, and depending on how well it does in
Japan the Wandant may drop on other markets.
Certainly, this isn’t the first pet-dedicated tech tool to come
out of Japan, and it won’t be the last. In 2002, a Japanese
toy company by the name of Takara released something
called a ‘BowLingual,’ which is a dog-to-human translator.
Although Takara explicitly claimed that the device was
strictly for ‘entertainment purposes only,’ it helped the
inventors gain some fame (Dr. Matsumi Suzuki and Dr.
Norio Kogure) when they were awarded the the Ig Nobel
Prize for ‘promoting harmony’ between species.
Oh, and who can forget the notorious dog washing machine.
(See the video above)
Regardless of how you feel about all these pet related techs,
one thing is for sure…Japanese wants technological progress
for themselves as well as their pets.
ARM - Possible Beginning of
the End for AMD? - Part 2
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/arm--possible-beginning-of-the-end-
for-amd--part-2/18055.html
November 28th, 2012
Last month's move by AMD to license the initial 64-bit
ARM cores for its server use could signal a brave attempt
towards a new direction, as well as finally giving up any plans
to competitively fight Intel on the X86 performance front.
Aside of the still relatively healthy GPU business, what is
the impact on AMD futures? As a follow-up to yesterday's
history lesson, we look at three possible scenarios that could
happen for AMD.
So, at least looking at the CPU business, AMD is stuck in
a very unenviable position right now. The X86 competitive
position vs Intel is likely the worst since the Athlon days
a decade ago across all market segments except ultra low
power, with no near end in sight, while their ARM entry will
bring multiples of that competition on both business and
technology fronts. On top of it, taking ARM now may make
the pundits ask whether AMD is really committed to stay
in the X86 at all. The company has been forcibly bleeding,
unfortunately, some of their best engineering talent, yet
acquiring resources at high price - Seamicro etc - which may
not be such a fit after all, especially if the CPU problems
aren't solved.
Nevertheless, let's take a calm look at the possible scenarios
from now on:
1 - 'Gung Ho' approach reversing the brain-drain: the
management would go all-out and somehow raise the money
to create three parallel beefed-up top CPU core design
teams: one for high end X86 for the Excavator and beyond;
another for the ultra low power X86 'Jaguar' follow ons for
tablets and such; and finally, proper ARM design team for
their own custom core. All these, of course, also assume
investment in 'uncore' and chipset support teams to support
the each core team fully, for complete up to date system
platform offerings.
This would be the optimal choice to give the market and
the user community renewed confidence in AMD as a CPU
vendor, but will need to overcome two major troubles. One
is the financial one, which only Arabs can seemingly solve at
this stage, since the US government wouldn't let the Chinese
buy AMD - and they're not interested anymore, anyway. Of
course, the implication of the resulting Abu Dhabi controlled
strengthened 'Arab Micro Devices' vs very Israeli friendly

9
Intel, where Intel Israel saved the day a decade ago with
the Core design, and whose rumoured next CEO in line is
whispered to be Dadi Perlmutter right from there, would
give interesting twists to any future major Middle East
conflict, and those come on regularly, as we all know.
The other trouble is the management attitude. AMD would
have to bring back someone like Jerry Sanders or alike to
lift the spirits. Rory could maybe do a part of the 'spirit
lifting' job with his speeches, but he's not a semiconductor
guy, let's be honest. At the very least, he'd need decision
making assistance by some proper semicon industry experts,
possibly outside the current AMD team, but who believe in
the company. Managing and supporting three CPU teams
plus a GPU team, including the APU Fusion parts in more
than just client market, would be a tough job, but it may be
the only way AMD re-gains the technical excellence needed
to be taken seriously in the market. Naturally, this would also
mean strengthening that GPU capability as well.
2 - 'Graceful Shrinking' of a managed sort, let's say: The first
step could be - as our friend Charlie said at Semiaccurate
- ceasing the high end X86 core development post today's
Piledriver, thus leaving the company with just low end X86
and ARM. If the management feels that the high end battle
is gone - since Steamroller is another small interim step, and
Excavator is two years away, unlikely to beat Intel unless
revolutionary improvements in place - this may make sense:
just focus on the still promising X86 ultramobile, tablet and
smartphone market for the next few years, while in parallel
somehow beefing up the ARM design capability to match the
incumbents in that space.
Over time, if the Windows fades away as, rumours say, its
creator Bill Gates is now seemingly focusing on reducing the
world population by deadly vaccines and chemtrail vapours
(not to mention hoarding the natural seeds for the rich in
the Arctic vaults while the rest of populace get poisoned by
GMO), the X86 will become even less important, and the low
end X86 team can go away as well, or be converted into the
second ARM team - so a possible future AMD would have
two ARM teams, one for low end mobile; another for ARM
servers. And that's where that Seamicro thing may finally
become really useful beyond servers - how about making
clusters of smartphones, each with two low power Seamicro
interconnects outside, to link to other phones directly at
the CPU level, bypassing the vendor, OS, security and other
limitations?
3 - "Gradual Collapse", also of a managed sort, like Digital
or Compaq in the past, for those who remember. Killing off
the high end would again be the first step, including this
time attempting to sell off the related IP as well. This would
be followed possibly by an announcement to, say, sell off
most or all of the ATI GPU division - few years ago, only
Intel or Nvidia would have been the prospective buyers, but
now half a dozen bigwigs would be queuing up for this jewel,
including Samsung, Qualcomm and, yes, the Chinese - the
Beijing brethren still miss the high end GPU in their portfolio
as of now. AMD management and shareholders need quick
cash, and this is one sure way to go about it.
Mubadala sends a message to AMD employees
This would be followed by turning off - or likely selling off
- the low end X86 division. VIA could maybe step in here
by asking its rich parent Formosa Plastics for some cash
to consolidate its low power X86 focus and become truly
competitive, and finally give Taiwan a noteworthy X86 CPU
platform capability. Heck, they could take the high end stuff
at the same time, and, as the vendor is still comparatively
small, I don't think Intel would have problems allowing them
to keep the AMD X86 license extensions, especially to avoid
any monopoly related questions from US FTC.
Finally, a slow or underperforming release of the first ARM
product - or even no release at all - would be the 'icing on
the cake', leading to the dismissal of the rest of the team,
if they can't be sold off to another ARM vendor. Seamicro
interconnect would then likely be sold off to someone else,
likely at minor fraction of what AMD paid for. And, that's
about it - AMD would be wrapped up and history by then.
Why not an AMD Alpha?
Actually, there is a very unlikely - but actually very
plausible - scenario as well. Remember AMD has/had
quite a few of the top Alpha CPU designers, and what was
the world's best CPU architecture, untimely murdered by
the corporate merger shenanigans, is now revived very
well in China, with 16-corers and beyond?
Well, the solution is simple. Give up X86 altogether, and
make AMD an all-RISC company with two platforms:
renewed Alpha (in partnership with Samsung, once the
Alpha 2nd source, and maybe the Chinese) at the high
end, using the Hypertransport and Seamicro for various
interconnect options, and ARM at the low end, both
server and mobile. I am very confident AMD Alpha team
could create cores, and uncores, that would not just beat
anything Intel has, but also put IBM Power 7+ and its

10
successors, currently the worlds fastest CPUs, to shame. It
would ensure long profitable hgh-end future for AMD too.
After all, it's Linux open source time, and the dependence
on an instruction set to get commercial software vendors'
ports, is lesser than ever. How about this?
Personally, I hope to see the Scenario 1 happen, for the better
of whole computer industry. Over the past 30 years, personal
computing has moved from 'space age' respected industry to
local hoodlum (Ah Beng in Singapore & Malaysia) car repair
shop level of appreciation, no thanks to the rapid decrease of
both technology innovation and true competition, coupled
with consumerism dominationg the whole industry now.
The decline or death of AMD would bring us further to
'one CPU, one OS, one everything', sea of remote controlled
Androids (humanoids, not just phone OS), controlled by
malicious One World government, by technology monopoly,
among others - sounds familiar?
Part 1 of "ARM - Possible Beginning
of the End for AMD?" can be
found here: http://vr-zone.com/articles/arm--possible-
beginning-of-the-end-for-amd--part-1/18054.html
Executive in charge of iOS 6
Maps fired by Apple SVP
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/executive-in-charge-of-ios-6-maps-
fired-by-apple-svp/18085.html
November 28th, 2012
According to a report by Bloomsberg, Richard Williamson,
the executive in charge of Apple's largely disdained Map
application, has been fired.
Williamson, "Senior Director, iOS Platform Services", is
quite possibly the scapegoat of Apple's flop of an attempt at
a Maps application, released alongside the iPhone 5 with the
iOS 6 platform.
For the majority of the iOS 6 production period, Maps
was well known for its apparently advanced 3D imagery
technology, but the application turned about to be an
extreme disappointment, and possibly the most infamous
gaffe of the iPhone 5.
It isn’t fair to point a finger at any particular person, and
call them responsible for the Maps goof. However, there
are obviously some parties that are more responsible than
others. Apple’s CEO Tim Cook stepped up and apologized
for the poorly designed Maps product, but that alone doesn't
solve the immediate problem. Since dimissing Apple's top
brass was out of the question, Apple’s Senior Vice President
of Internet Software Eddy Cue, decided to let Williamson go
and hire some better people for the job, which is precisely
what Cue plans to do.
Says Bloomsberg:
In removing Williamson, Cue wants to install a new
leadership team for the group, one person said.
A replacement for Williamson wasn’t immediately
known. Attempts to reach Williamson weren’t
successful. A team at Apple has been working to
fix the mapping mistakes, focusing first on some
of the most glaring problems, one person said. The
satellite imagery over the U.K. has been improved
and labels for popular U.S. landmarks such as the
Washington Monument have been corrected.
Bloomsberg reports that Apple does not yet have a
replacement for Richardson, but judging by the standard he
set, it isn't easy to imagine that his shoes will be difficult to
fill.
Bloatware tradition continues
in Windows 8
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/bloatware-tradition-continues-in-
windows-8/18070.html
November 28th, 2012
Windows notebook and PCs have a long history of coming
with tons of unnecessary software preloaded on them,
stealing valuable hard disk space and RAM straight out
the box. While Windows 8 throws away a lot of Windows
traditions, it appears to still cling to this one.
After all this time, this should have been an easy issue for
Microsoft to fix. While they cannot be blamed directly for
the mischievous acts of their OEMs, they could certainly
have laid down some guidelines to prevent this kind of abuse
of users. PC makers surely have an incentive to pour the
useless bloat down the throat of every buyer, since they're
like to be getting a nice sum from the software providers
themselves. Either that or they are seriously naive enough to
think that their users want their PCs bogged down with all
that worthless software. But it’s probably the former.
It’s a sad state of affairs, but the tradition continues with
Windows 8 PCs. Bloatware is back in full fashion. Several
PC makers were recently asked for a list-up of what software
came pre-installed on their computers, and the results fell
into three categories:
1. Software provided by the OEM for system functionality
(hardware drivers, system management tools)

11
2. Software provided by the OEM for the sake of optional
added functionality (Samsung’s S Pen software etc.)
3. (Trial) software provided by 3rd
parties
While category one is mostly necessary (although we could
do without some of those ‘management tools’ you enjoy
throwing on your PCs, ASUS), even optional software such
as S Pen is already dubious. These built-in programs are
often poorly written and do little to improve the user
experience.
Update managers are also horrendous, with default settings
they pop-up way too often, and besides that they steal a huge
chunk of memory just to download “system” updates which
often do anything for your PC in the first place.
As long as you keep your Windows updated you are fairly
secure, so these system updates generally only serve to
provide you with the latest edition of crappy bloatware that
you didn’t want to begin with. I get a pile of trash on my
brand new computer and I have the privilege of wasting my
time and my memory just to update it to the next poorly
written code revision. Yeah, no thanks.
The third category is not excusable at all, as it consists
of trialware and begging programs which constantly yell
at you for not paying for the full version. I didn’t even
want the damn software to begin with, and it’s popping up
windows every time I turn on the PC. These apps merely
serve as a waste of time because there is no doubt you will
uninstall them from your computer. If Microsoft really wants
to compete against Android and Apple in the mobile space,
it needs to shape up its OEMs and clean up its image.
Here is the bloatware list in full, courtesy of
informationware:
Manufacturer OEM software 3rd-party
S Pen apps (S
Note, S Memo,
S Cloud), Quick
Starter, AllShare
Play
None
Acer Ring, Acer
Cloud, Acer Theft
Shield
Microsoft
Office 2010
Trial, Microsoft
Windows Live
Essentials, Adobe
Flash Player,
Adobe Reader,
newsXPresso,
Cyberlink
MediaEspresso,
WildTangent
Demo Games,
Skype, McAfee
Internet Security
Suite trial,
MyWinLocker
TOSHIBA
BookPlace™,
TOSHIBA Disc
Creator, TOSHIBA
Maintenance
Microsoft®
Windows™
Essentials 2012,
Microsoft® Office
(60-day Trial),
Utility, TOSHIBA
Media Player by
sMedio Truelink
+, TOSHIBA PC
Health Monitor,
TOSHIBA
Recovery Disk
Creator, TOSHIBA
Resolution+®
Upconvert Plug-in
for Media Player,
TOSHIBA Service
Station, TOSHIBA
Sleep Utility,
TOSHIBA Video
Player, TOSHIBA
eco Utility™
Norton Internet
Security™ 2013
(30-day trial
subscription),
Norton™
Laptop Checkup,
SRS Premium
Sound 3D®,
WildTangent®
Game Console
AcerCloud Docs,
Acer Recovery
Management, Acer
Identity Card, Acer
Live Update, Acer
Accessory Store,
Acer Initiatives,
Acer Explorer,
AcerCloud Portal
Wild Tangent®,
clear.fi Media,
clear.fi Photo,
Cyberlink®
MediaEspresso,
AIR Gesture,
McAfee® Internet
Security Suite,
Hotkey Utility,
MyWinLocker
Suite, Nero
12 Essentials,
Amazon weblink,
Gomaji (Taiwan
only), Lovefilm®
web link, MyET,
Spotify™,
Evernote®,
Communication,
Skype™,
Kindle, News
Xpresso, Txtr,
Hulu, IVI.RU,
Netflix, 7Digital,
Spotify™, TuneIn,
Amazon®, eBay®,
Rakuten Gateway,
Adera, Cut The
Rope, Mahjong,
Minesweeper,
Pinball FX2,
Shark Dash,
Solitaire, Tap
Tiles, Treasures
of Montezuma III,
Wild Tangent®,
Wordament,
ChaCha®, Crystal
Eye, Encyclopaedia
Britannica,
iCookbook™,
Merriam Webster,
WeatherBug,
StumbleUpon,
Travel, Ctrip
Windows 8 Getting
Started Tile, My
Dell & Dell Backup
Microsoft Office
Trial (30-day),
McAfee (Inspiron

12
& Recovery, Dell
Shop App
only), eBay
(Inspiron only),
Amazon Kindle,
Amazon Taskbar
App, eBay Desktop
Icon (Inspiron
only)
Lenovo IdeaPad
Yoga 13(consumer
focus)
Lenovo Cloud
Storage by
SugarSync, Lenovo
Companion,
Lenovo Energy
Management,
Lenovo Motion
Control, Lenovo
Support Center,
Lenovo Transition
Accuweather,
Amazon Kindle,
Birzzle, Cyberlink
YouCam, eBay,
Evernote, Fishing
Joy, Intelligent
Touchpad,
McAfee®
AntiVirus Plus,
Microsoft® Office
2010, OneKey®
Recovery, RaRa,
Skype™
Lenovo ThinkPad
Twist(business
focus)
Lenovo Cloud
Storage
AccuWeather,
Amazon Kindle,
BlueStacks
-- Android
app player,
Evernote, Expense
Management, Fruit
Ninja, Microsoft®
Office (trial), Rara
-- Music, Skype™
Bing announces the top
search terms for 2012
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/bing-announces-the-top-search-
terms-for-2012/18084.html
November 28th, 2012
While we might still be a few weeks away from the arrival of
2013 Bing, Microsoft's search engine, has come up with its
list of top search terms across 19 categories; and yes there
are people who actually use Bing.
It seems that, like Christmas advertising, our end-of-the-
year compilation of facts, best of's, and other such mundane
things, start arriving earlier every year or at least that is how
it appears.
Keeping with this trend Microsoft's search engine Bing
has just released its collection of top search terms for
2012 covering 19 different categories. Now I won't bore you
with all of them (you can find them all over on the Bing
Search Blog) but here's a few of the more popular categories
and their top search terms.
People (they should have titled this one the gossip corner
list):
1. Kim Kardasian
2. Justin Bieber
3. Miley Cyrus
4. Rihanna
5. Lindsay Lohan
6. Katy Perry
7. Selena Gomez
8. Jennifer Aniston
9. Nicki Minaj
10. Taylor Swift
Next up the Technology list of top search terms which is
actually divided into two sections with the first being Social
Media:
1. Facebook
2. Twitter
3. Myspace
4. LinkedIn
5. Tumblr
6. Instagram
7. Reddit
8. StumbleUpon
9. Digg
10. Klout
Following Social Media in the Technology section is
Consumer Electronics:
1. iPhone 5
2. iPad
3. Samsung Galaxy S III / Samsung Galaxy S3
4. Kindle
5. iPad 3
6. iPad Touch
7. Xbox
8. Playstation 3
9. iPhone 4S
10. Windows 8
Of course what would a list of search terms be without the
soul destroying world of Reality TV getting its own list, well
two actually. First up is Reality TV Stars:
1. Kim Kardasian
2. Kloe Kardashian
3. Kourtney Kardasian
4. Kate Gosselin
5. Honey Boo Boo
6. Snooki
7. Emily Maynard
8. Kim Richards
9. Teresa Giudice

13
And of course if we have the stars we also Televisions Shows
1. American Idol
2. Dancing with the Stars
3. The Young and the Restless
4. The Walking Dead
5. Family Guy
6. Here Comes Honey Boo Boo
7. Glee
8. Vampire Diaries
9. The Bachelor
10. Game of Thrones
Like I said these are just a couple of the complete list of
categories for Bing's selection of top search terms but just in
case you are curious here is the complete list of categories:
Now if you'll excuse me I need to go find a bottle of aspirin
and book the next flight off of this planet because these lists
make me not want to live here anymore.
New Mass Effect 3: Omega
DLC now available
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/new-mass-effect-3-omega-dlc-now-
available/18077.html
November 28th, 2012
Mass Effect 3's newest campaign DLC returns players to the
seedy asteroid colony of Omega in a battle to restore Aria
T'Loak to her rightful place as queen of crime. Jump in for
more details and an official trailer released by BioWare!
Mass Effect 3: Omega focuses on expanding the game's
campaign and returns gamers to the nefarious deep-space
Mos Eisley known as OmegaSome players may remember
their first encounter with the asteroid-city and its femme
fatale queen in Mass Effect 2.
In Omega, players ally with Aria T'Loak--the city-colony's
unofficial former "queenpin"--and vie for control of the
station against the Cerberus general who now has dominion
over the colony.
"Join Omega's infamous leader in her fight to retake
the notorious black market station.
Navigate Omega's seedy underbelly as Aria joins
your squad and you witness her legendary biotic
powers and unrelenting ruthlessness first-hand."
BioWare's newly released trailer shows off the DLC's plot
points as well as official in-game footage, allowing gamers to
take a peek at what Omega has to offer.
The return to the seedy crime-infused station is an
interesting choice, and Aria is quite a colorful character to
ally with: remember that one rule she told you about in ME2?
Well you'll see what happens when people break that rule in
this add-on...and it isn't pretty.
Mass Effect 3: Omega is now available for Xbox 360 & PC
and will be available on Nov. 28, 2012 for PlayStation 3. Click
here for more information on this add-on.
An unlikely home for
Windows 8: Return of the
budget PC
Source: http://vr-zone.com/articles/an-unlikely-home-for-windows-8-
return-of-the-budget-pc/18069.html
November 28th, 2012
Microsoft’s Windows 8 was far from a critical success, but
does it stand to be a commercial hit in low end devices?
During the holiday shopping weekend, low-end budget
PCs running Windows 8 were all the rage at shopping
chain Walmart. HP, Gateway, and Toshiba have all teetered
recently due to the decline of the desktop and rise of mobile
computing. All three companies started to return to form
this weekend though, as their low cost Windows 8 running
notebooks were a hit.
The notebooks in question ran from $248 - $328, which
pitted them in direct competition with netbooks/Ultrabooks
and were only a little more expensive than your average
tablet computer. Of course, when using a tablet with a
keyboard a dock is usually your best choice, so the notebook
offerings worked out cheaper than a $200 tablet + $100-
$150 dock. The notebooks had average 2GB memory, 300GB
HDD, and 1.3GHz dual-core AMD processors. Some models
like the Toshiba Satellite C855D were marked from their
usual price for more than $300.
While the tablet boom certainly is booming, it still seems
some sensible shoppers just want a regular device to do

14
chores on and write the occasional word. Touch screen
technology is a great marketing device, but in reality fails
to be practical for anything more than a plaything. As
computing takes up more of our lives, a media-consuming
device like a tablet just doesn’t cut it in some areas.
Either way its good news for Microsoft, whose latest
operating system Windows 8 runs on both notebooks and
tablets, and is a cunning strategy by the Redmond developer
to ensure they get a cut of whatever trend takes hold over the
next few years.
It’s not all pie in the sky for Microsoft, as the Microsoft
Surface saw far less popularity than the Apple iPad. Fortune
columnist Philip Elmer-Dewitt commented that Microsoft’s
Store saw 47% less foot traffic than Apple at one particular
mall. Most of the items purchased at the Microsoft Store
were also Xbox360 games, not Surface tablets.
While official numbers have yet to be released, eye-witness
accounts don’t exactly convey a sense of popularity for
Microsoft’s tablet that previous iPad launches have had.
Perhaps the notebook isn’t dead after all.

VR-Zone Tech News for the Geeks Nov 2012 Issue

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VR-Zone Tech News for the Geeks Nov 2012 Issue