Blog Action Day!

As some of you have noticed over the months that I've been blogging here, I've never really discussed anything about the environment. Well today I was part of the Blog Action Day, where I blogged something about what matters to me concerning the environment. My blog was about Blackle.

Please check it out and comment on it here or there if you wish.

Images of 40Gb PS3 (Available Thursday in Australia)

Curious to see what the new PS3 40GB looks like? Here are actual, photographed in detail, shots of an unveiling of the new 40GB PS3.

One observation I made was that it seems the 40Gb revision may be using a 65nm (Nano Metre) Cell and RSX chipsets, for those who are unaware the Cell is the CPU and the RSX is the GPU used inside the PS3.

Vista is getting better...slowly ;)

A lot has been written about how Microsoft released Windows Vista too early and with too many bugs to make is a feasible platform for people looking for a relatively hassle-free platform.

If you liked being at the cutting edge then I’m sure you’d be happy to live with the bugs, but if happened to be looking a stable work platform, the general opinion was that it was best to stick with XP for a while. Now though, things are changing. Vista is getting better … slowly.

Vista is getting better ... slowlyOver the past few weeks we’ve not only seen a beta for the long awaited SP1 fall into the hands of a small pool of beta testers (of which I’m one), we’ve also seen a fair few compatibility, performance and reliability releases, specifically KB938979, KB938194 and KB941649.

I’ve installed all these updates onto several systems in the lab and what I’m noticing is that while KB938979 and KB938194 resulted in very litter overall benefit (the main benefit came from KB938979 and the fix to the “estimated time remaining” when copying or moving large files bug, but this was more of an annoyance rather than a critical problem), I’m seeing considerable improvement to both performance and reliability after installing SP1 and KB941649 on all systems. In particular, Vista startup times are improved considerably and overall reliability is infinitely better. What’s even better is that there’s no sign on a downside to applying these patches.

Several cynics have commented on the timing of these releases and wonder if they have anything to do with the imminent release of Mac OS X Leopard. While it’s easy to entertain such theories, I don’t put too much stock in them. It takes time to identify and fix issues, especially within a complex OS such as Vista. We’re not yet at the year mark since Vista went RTM so it’s still early days. Should Microsoft have been faster and more aggressive in releasing patches is a point worth debating, but that’s history now, what matters is that we’re starting to see real progress being done in bringing Vista up to scratch. Some areas are still waiting to be fixed (for example, I can easily replicate the network transfer speed bug on a fully patched SP1 beta version of Vista), I’m pleased with the progress I’m seeing.

While I’ve been highly critical of Vista as it was when it went RTM back in November of 2006, With the bundle of patches already released and Vista SP1 now on the horizon, I’m starting to see light at the end of the dark tunnel that I’ve been in for the past eleven months … and I’m hopeful that it’s not a train coming in the opposite direction!

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My Note: I've seen some major stability changes with Vista SP1 and I must say that there is a considerable improvement, those of you who are Beta testing know what I mean when I say that. :)

40Gb PS3 $699.00AUD RRP!

Well it seems that there was weight to my previous articles about a new PS3 surfacing. Even with the claims of JB Hi-fi store staff, some people just wanted to wait upon Sony to verify the claims. The funny thing was, Sony would deny any reports of a new 40Gb revision unit until October 5th where they now have not only confirmed but you can take a quick look at the unit (click on source for more).

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KEY DIFFERENCES BETWEEN NEW 40GB & OLD 60GB PS3



The fact that this unit no longer supports PS2 game playback may upset many more than the issue of this unit not playing Super Audio CD's or known as SACD (didn't really take off) as Sony has always been about keeping their backwards compatibility catalogue. Playstation has around 15 years of gaming under their belts and 7-8 years were in the PS2 generation, fact is games are still in production for the PS2. One should note ALL PS1 games are compatible with the console.

Some other hardware features not found in this model when compared to the 60Gb & 80Gb (American and Japanese versions) configurations is that this has 2USB points and no card readers...

This console in my honest opinion is more for those not concerned with playing PS2 games but wanting a cheaper entry unit into Sony's next gen gaming. I am considering this purchase and hoping I can still pick one up for at least $650.00AUD as I stated in my last post on the matter.

It's one of the cheapest Blu-ray movie players on the market, plays High definition games, free online multiplayer, Wi-fi (802.11b/g), Bluetooth, Mozilla Internet browser, Linux capabilities (can install Linux O/S distros) and an observation I made, it may also be using the new 65Nano Metre Cell & RSX chipsets which could explain why Sony have used less ventilation holes on this unit than its older 60/80Gb variations.

A good buy in my opinion!

Ten Tips for Buying TVs

A very imformative piece, I found this great for myself and for others when asking advice!

1) Right Connection – The first question Silver says shoppers should ask is whether the superstore or specialty retail store has a delivery service that will properly connect and calibrate your TV. “Ask if they understand how to make HDMI work, because ideally you should be getting that, but it’s still novel, still buggy,” Silver says.

2) Lighting Matters - Though it may be difficult depending on the shopping environment, make sure you can view the set in lighting similar to your home’s lighting. Is your room usually bright? Go LCD. Dark? Try plasma or a projector. In between? Microdisplays, especially for value in screen size delivered per dollars spent, Silver says.

3) Where’s the View? – Speaking of microdisplays, or rear-projection TVs (RPTV), there is a catch, Silver notes: limited viewing angles. LCDs and RPTVs don’t have as broad viewing angles as plasma, so make sure you can control the angle both horizontally and vertically if you’re considering those technologies, he says. “Room lighting and viewing angles are absolute considerations, and you can’t recover from a mistake there.”

4) Have Discs, Will Travel – Don’t rely on what the stores are displaying for movies; bring your own demo material. Suggestions: something real, something familiar. A digitized Pixar movie like Cars or Toy Story is easy to make look great, Silver says, but doesn’t offer real-life brights, darks and dynamic range of colors the human eye sees every day. “Charlotte Gray with Cate Blanchette, go to the very last chapter where there are bright scenes, dark scenes—challenging scenes. The original Matrix is spectacular in HD DVD, and Kingdom of Heaven is good in Blu-ray,” Silver says.

5) Sweet Concert, Man – Another telling piece of demo material? Concert DVDs. “They’re notoriously tough because they’re dark, and it’s not film-based, it’s video,” he adds. “Dark scenes in a concert shouldn’t be full of little wormy things moving around.”

6) Be Suspect of Specs – We can give you chart after chart of manufacturer specifications, but Silver says let your eyes be the true denominator. If you have five sets lined up in a row, look for the best black levels and truest colors, even if you’re weighing 720p-resolution HDTVs against 1080p models.

7) A la Mode – TVs are shipped in “torch” mode, according to Silver, where blues are accentuated and colors in general are oversaturated. Combat this by making sure your TV’s menu includes modes “that have the words pro, theater, movie and warm.”

8) Go Big – Silver’s simple rule on what size TV: The biggest you can afford. “We believe a big picture is 35-millimeter film,” he says. “Take all the rules you’ve ever heard [for measuring the ratio of screen size to viewing distance] and throw them away. I guarantee your screen at home is too small.”

9) Good Memory – Different content sources produce pictures that need varying levels of adjustment to look good on your TV, so check that it has discrete memory per input. That means your set will remember what settings go with what connection, whether it’s cable, VHS, DVD, Blu-ray, Xbox 360 and more.

10) Darkness Rules – Since Silver can’t stress enough the importance of black levels in an image, we’ll say it again, this time with an analogy. He says to think about it like the differences of black levels in photography of daily newspapers compared with those of a monthly magazine.

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Australian 40GB PS3 unoffically confirmed (Confirmed by JB Hi-Fi store staff)

Australian 40GB PS3 unoffically confirmed (UPDATE: Confirmed by JB Hi-Fi store staff)

We've had word come through from a great source outside Sony that the 40GB PS3 is definitely on its way to Australia, and the release timing fits well with the Best Buy leaks discussed by the mothership.

The docs we've seen put the 40GB PS3 at $699, with a release date of October 11. If you haven't taken a closer look at the specs just yet because you didn't expect it to come this way, America's FCC revealed plenty of the more subtle hardware changes. -Seamus Byrne

(UPDATE - Wed, 4.59pm: A reader called up their friendly neighbourhood JB Hi-Fi and had the price and date confirmed by two separate members of the floor staff. So we're willing to call next Thursday a very safe bet for a new PS3. -SB)
Posted on October 3, 2007 12:30 PM

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PlayStation Home: 10 minutes Of New Video Footage

If you check out my previous post on Sony's 'Home' service which is much like Second Life I discussed some really neat features the service has on offer and also my take on the array of options and possibilities.

Well here is new footage of the PlayStation Home Avatar customization options and also new footage of the apartment wallpaper options a brief look at Home Square and a look a the proximity sound feature for video displays in home.

Video 1

Video 2

Thoughts and opinions...