Nintendo Issues Health Warning to Parents: Beware of the 3DS

Scheduled to be released in March 2011, Nintendo is now warning parents that their Nintendo 3DS may be harmful to children aged six and under.  The popular, portable gaming device, which requires no 3D lenses or glasses, may strain kids' eyes and disrupt vision development.  Nintendo is also claiming that this is not just specific to the 3DS -- 3D movies that require special glasses may be hazardous, as well.

To be on the safe side, stick with the regular, 2D, Nintendo DS. 

Source(s): Yahoo

Five Steps to Cut the Cable/Satellite Cord and stream, Stream, STREAM to your TV!

If you've already read my previous post about streaming and the cloud and thinking "I'm ready, but I need concise instructions" then this is the post for you.

1. Inventory Check

So what do you have so far?

Internet connected TV-check.

Internet connected blu-ray player-check.

Video game console -check.

Digital Media Center -check.

Laptop with Blu-ray & HDMI -check.

Um, you haz everything? whattayadoinhya? Go sit on the couch!

2. What do you care most about?

Movies (Tier1:2-3 months from theatrical release)

Amazon Video on Demand, BestBuy/Roxio CinemaNow, VUDU, Kmart-Sears/Roxio Alphaline Entertainment, EpixHD, iTunes Store, Zune Store, PSN Store

all these services allow you to purchase a movie, but the availability dates vary wildly

Movies (Tier2:2-3 months from theatrical release+shipping time)

Netflix (Blu-Ray Discs/DVD)

Movies (Tier3:1month from DVD/Blu-Ray release)

Netflix (streaming), Hulu/HuluPlus

TV Shows

Stream (Latest): Hulu/HuluPlus

Stream (Older): Netflix

Digital Purchase: Amazon Video on Demand, BestBuy/Roxio CinemaNow, Kmart-Sears/Roxio Alphaline Entertainment, iTunes Store, Zune Store, PSN Store

Sports

ESPN3, MLBTV

Premium Content

HBO Go (just of matter of time for this to be an independent streaming service)

3. Make the most of what you have

Already have video game console (Wii, Xbox360, PS3)? Services like Pandora, Netflix, Hulu/HuluPlus, VUDU, Amazon Video on Demand are already available on these devices. Give it a whirl. Subscribe for a month and see how you like it. With an Xbox360 and AT&T uVerse you can experiment with some semi-cut the cord-services.

Have a laptop/desktop? All these services are available on a computer and probably the best environment to do a test drive. If you have the necessary cables to put your screen on your TV, give it a go to see how it looks. You could even invest in something like Veebeam which wirelessly transmits your lcomputer screen to your TV. But keep in mind that the content on computers are different definition from the content on TVs. For example the if you rented the movie Inception on your computer's Amazon VOD site it would be in 480p standard definition (SD) whereas on the Amazon app on your TV/media device you are able to rent the (HD) high definition 720p/1080p version.

4. If you're already planning to buy a....

Video game console: Keep in mind that a Wii can play CDs, Xbox360 CDs+DVDs and PS3 CDs+DVDs+Blu-Rays.

Laptop: Get one with a blu-ray player and an HDMI output. That'll make it super easy to watch Blu-Rays and online streaming content directly on your TV with just an hdmi cable.

Digital Media Center: You have three great options; Roku, Boxee or AppleTV. GigaOM has an excellent article on trying to make this decision.

Blu-ray/DVD player: Get an internet connected one. If you can wait, then wait. Black Friday 2010 had internet blu-ray players at close to $50. The prices are definitely falling as streaming becomes more popular.

5. Baby Steps

Moving away from cable is hard.

Start with a Netflix subscription on your laptop, see how it works out. Amazon Video on Demand and VUDU typically provide you with around $5 credit just for setting up an account. You can rent an HD movie to see how you like the service. With a nice HD tv and surround sound system, that's about 1/10th the cost of a movie theatre date!

I have an internet connected TV with apps on it. As new apps get released, I can download it on my TV. I have access to Amazon Video on Demand, Netflix and VUDU to name a few. I also have an Xbox 360, so I have access to the same content plus the Zune Store and ESPN3.

There is a great article by Mark Glaser @ PBS MediaShift. It is a bit dated (Jan 2010) but still worth a click here, where you can read about how others went about to cut the cord.

Good luck, Wannabe Techie!

source(s): GigaOm, PBS

image: Mark. A. Hicks. http://school.discoveryeducation.com/clipart/clip/thinkingcapwhoa.html

Verizon's Red Brick Road to LTE. ATT Right behind.

LTE is proving to be super fast. Even though we're super excited about the advent of Sprint's WiMax in the bay area, it is only a matter of time for the crushing to happen.

So far we've seen only tests and working pictures of LTE connectivity devices (dongles). Today we just came across images of two handsets that are not just technically capable of handling an LTE connection, but also showing an active 4G connection over LTE. Sick. Hit the links below for the deets courtesy of the folks at BGR.

Samsung-SCH-I520

HTC Incredible HD

edit1.1: looks like we have a date for the HTC Incredible. January 6th 2010.

edit1.2: the page for the HTC Incredible HD/Thunderbolt 4G is now live here.

edit1.3: Verizon is not going to keep us waiting. We'll see the 4G handsets at CES, Jan 6-9 2011.

edit1.4: AT&T isn't going to be left behind. Not only are they announcing their LTE plans at CES today, Rolling Stone magazine also outed HTC's plan for a 4G AT&T handset.

source(s): Gizmodo, GigaOM, Verizon, BGR, Cnet, Android Central

After-Christmas Sales Start Early Morning On 12/26

If you missed out on Black Friday or are just looking for bargains, you're in luck.  Retailers are overstocked with inventory and need to make room for other items.  According to Raycom and ShopperTrak, shoppers spent $7.9 billion the day after Christmas in 2009, making it the number 2 performing day of the season, next to Black Friday.  This year, 43 percent of people surveyed by American Express Spending & Saving Tracker said they planned to make a purchase on Dec. 26.

OC Register gives you a sneak peak of the the deals that will be available, as well as links to a few of the retailers' circular ads.

Wake up early, because most stores open their doors at 6am!



Sources(s): Raycom, OC Register

The Coolest, Most Useful App? Word Lens

It's one of the most unique and useful apps out there, especially if you're a traveler.  Just recently released by Quest Visual, it translates text in Spanish to English, and vice-versa.  What's so cool about it?  It does it in real-time, as you can see in the video below.  It may not be 100% accurate and complete yet, but we're assuming its future updates will create improvements, as well as added features.  One main functional element we think is missing is a screen shot button to save the image.    

Currently, it's only available on the iPhone, but Broadband Genie is reporting that it will eventually be released on Android (and included in the upcoming Nexus S).  Go ahead iPhone fanboys, keep bragging to the Android fanboys while you still can!





Source(s):  Broadband Genie, YouTube, Quest Visual