Is there something high-def cooking over at Nintendo?

Normally, I wouldn't buy into these kinds of rumors. But there is more proof than ever now that an HD version of the Wii may be releasing next year.

Yesterday, a story was posted on one of my favourite sites, GoNintendo, concerning a rumor that the Wii HD or Wii 2 would be released near the middle of next year (Q3), and that it would support 1080P games and movies through a Blu-ray drive. This all sounds a little too-good-to-be-true to those of us that know the ways of Nintendo, but it seems that lately their ways are changing. So let's analyze this rumor logically.

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From 7 years of XP to Windows 7: What I Expected and Installation

I was going into Windows 7 with a set of goals that if 7 didn't fulfill, would make me go back to XP:
 

1. If my performance dipped to a level I wasn't happy with
2. If some of my most vital programs don't work
3. The new dock thing blew
    

    My computer has been handling Windows 7 with great ease; I would even say on par with XP. Every program that I used in XP runs great in 7, games too (having a weird issue with Call of Duty 4 though, nothing major). The dock is actually a huge surprise to me; I thought I would have a huge cluttered dock and desktop (like XP), but I'm somehow staying organized. It's probably because it looks so damn pretty I don't want to touch anything. 

 

    Installation was great too; I thought it was going to suck since I wasn't on Vista and couldn't do a nice upgrade. Turns out that the program Microsoft cooked up to transfer some personal files (like bookmarks and preferences) called Windows Easy Transfer worked great; getting the one big file before upgrading and running the big file after was only time consuming, and nothing else.

Next up: Getting settled in

Companies are updating their gadgets too quickly!

Never have I been so angry at companies like Apple and Nintendo than I am now. It seems that now-a-days, companies are updating their gadgets too quickly, bringing out improved versions of their products and leaving early adopters angry! For example: the 13" aluminum MacBook.

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Apple and the fall of the MacBook line

I consider myself one of the biggest Apple fans in the world. I think almost everything they touch turns to gold, which raises the bar for other electronic companies. With that said, I still oppose the way they market some of their products. In this little article, I'll be focusing on where I think Apple went wrong with the MacBook line.

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From 7 years of XP to Windows 7: The Intro

  Hello there. I was asked to write some articles about the recent release of Windows 7, as it seems I am the only one on the staff that doesn't go balls crazy over everything Steve Jobs touches. I honestly forgot about the release of Windows 7, as I was sitting snugly in my XP blanket for a good long time. Two days ago, however, I decided to take the plunge. I went out and got Windows 7 Ultimate, and here I am talking about it.

    This is going to be a series of articles, and this is the way they will be layed out:
 

1. Monday - What I Expected and Installation
2. Wednesday - Getting comfortable
3. Friday - Week one recap and conclusion.
    

    I hope you stick around and read this feature. Here's a sneak peek:

It's damn good.

My thoughts on Madden 10 for PS3

Just a few days ago I stopped by my local Target store to pick up Madden 10 for my PS3. I'm one of those people who end up buying the game every other year to avoid buying the same game that has only be repackaged. Even though I was totally pleased with the game play of Madden 08, I was tired of playing with the same old outdated team rosters. Since I've only had the game for a few days, I haven't had enough of a grasp to actually review the game yet, but I will put the review out in the upcoming weeks. In this post I'll only be putting out some of my thoughts of the game.

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Welcome to the future of Technizmo.

As many of you know, I've been working on a redesigned version of Technizmo for quite some time now. And it's actually been done for a week or so now, waiting for that October release date. Today, I decided I would work out the last of the bugs, and finish polishing the design so that I could publish it. So that's what I did.

Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to Technizmo 2.0

This new version of the site actually doesn't have that many new features. It's basically a visual redesign, as you can see. We've actually eliminated a lot of the unnecessary clutter from the original template to make the site look and feel much simpler and cleaner. Let me go over a few of the main updates:

blog
The blog features a new simpler, cleaner, and sleeker design. It's much easier to comment or retweet your favourite posts, and we can keep the front page looking nicer by utilizing "read more". The new site logo follows the same contemporary look of the redesign and represents a new aesthetic look for Technizmo.

video
Our video page has also been updated. It features the same contemporary design and logo of the new blog, as well as a lighter video player. Our Video page will soon be host to some exciting new content as well, so check back soon.

community
The Community hasn't changed much. We are currently working on a '2.0' forum redesign of sorts that should launch within the next few weeks. The forums do feature a new, contemporary logo, though.

Other new features include Read More, a new Features Carousel, a new (contemporary-styled) logo, and a new Video page. We will be adding new features (such as profile pictures for commenting) as time goes on, but we really wanted to get the redesign up and running first for all of you to enjoy.

So enjoy. And remember to submit any bugs to us by clicking 'Support' at the top. Thanks everyone, and enjoy Technizmo 2.0!

UPDATE | September 25 2009
- TweetMeme boxes removed
- AddThis button added below every post
- Post Title font changed

What happened to the iPod touch camera?

In the weeks leading up to Apple's September 9th press event, one thing was certain: the iPod nano and iPod touch would both be getting built-in cameras. At least, we thought that was certain. At the event, Apple shocked the internet by announcing an iPod nano with a built-in video camera, and no camera of any kind was included in the iPod touch.

So what happened? We saw cases for the iPod touch 3G with camera holes in the back. We even saw pictures of the device itself! Apple's September 9th press event left all in attendance scratching their heads. What happened to the iPod touch camera? Here's our best explanation for what transpired.

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Site Beta Update: 2.0

When we first launched, Technizmo was in a beta stage. We mentioned that, at any time, aspects of the site such as the logo, layout, and features may change. While there were some small changes made during our beta period, the majority of the site layout stayed the same.

Those of you who have followed me through my other sites may know that I get bored with a site design very quickly. And I've been working on a new one for Technizmo. So I'm pleased to announce today that Technizmo 2.0 is in development and is slated to launch next month! It looks really cool, and has some cool new features that I can't wait to show you guys. Unfortunately, I can't show you quite yet.

So please hang tight and look forward to the launch of our 2.0 redesign in October. I think you're gonna love it!

Whats the quality of your PC computer?

When some people think of Macs, they see an overpriced computer. Some people see PC's as a virus magnet. Both sides are both right in their own way, but I'm going to try and bring a different side to the argument. When you think of a computer, don't you usually want the hardware to be up to par? When I walk the floor at Best Buy, I usually see lots of laptops that are cheaply made by the company they come from. With that said, I'm just going to list off a few things that I hate about some PC laptops.

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Peoples response to new iPod lineup!

As some of you probably already know, I work for the Digital Life team at Best Buy. With that job, it gives me tons of chances to interact with people and all new kinds of technology. I was extremely excited when the new iPods arrived, so I was well prepared to educate our customers on the neat new features that the new iPod Nanos had in store. Pretty much everyone I spoke with were aroused by the new camera, radio, and internal speakers. With all those new features, the Nano now easily outshines the iPod Touch.

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Jared's thoughts on the Sept 9th Apple Event!

Jared's thoughts on 2nd Generation PS3

Have you had a number of reasons for not buying a PlayStation3? Many peoples main complaints were price and lack of good online. After all your input, Sony has responded to all the wants and needs of the PS3. I think the cheaper price really opens up the market for Sony. I've heard tons of people say that the PlayStation3 was just too expensive. Since Sony really Isn't winning the console war, this lower price should convince more Wii and 360 owners to invest in what Sony has to offer. I think its cool that Sony slimmed down the PS3, but I don't think it was a necessary change at the moment. I never found the past PS3 to be too big of a console for my liking. If you plan on setting up your PS3 vertically, you will need to buy the stand that holds your PS3. I totally think that's a rip off on Sony's part. One thing Sony could of added were more USB ports. Overall, I think this move on Sony's part was in the right direction. The lower price point and slimmer size will cause many new faces to finally give the PlayStation3 the chance that it deserves. I however probably wont be upgrading anytime soon. I'm satisfied with my "fat" PlayStation3, and don't find the new features convincing enough to buy. However, if I never owned a PS3 in the past, I would pick one up in a hurry. I think a PS3 and Blu-ray player for 300 bucks is a very reasonable price.

Quick Afterthought: I totally forgot to give my take on the new buttons that are actually buttons that you push on. The first gen PS3 featured heat sensitive buttons for easy access. Now that they've turned them into physical tactile buttons, it seemed like a step backwards to me. When it comes down to it, its just a matter of personal preference.

Apple's 2009 iPod Event: Predictions

Every September, Apple hosts a press event to update the iPod line and usually release a new version of iTunes. This year, there are more rumors than ever as to what is going to be announced, and the event hasn't even been confirmed yet (although Sept. 7th is looking likely)!

So, when Apple does present it's new iPod lineup next month, what will be announced? Here are our official predictions for Apple's 2009 iPod Event.

iPod Classic

We don't see much happening with the iPod Classic. It would be nice to have some of the voice over features seen in Apple's 4th generation iPod shuffle, and maybe some new colors (bring back the white?). Of course, we expect the storage sizes to double, bringing the Classic up to at least 240GB of storage space. We'd also like to see some of the voice control that Apple has integrated with the iPhone 3GS

iPod nano

This is where it get's interesting. The iPod nano will be getting a camera, with the ability to take still photos! No video recording here, folks! We expect Apple to keep the same 9 colors, as well as increase the storage sizes up to 16GB and 32GB flavors. Again, voice control would be neat, but we're not holding our breath.

iPod shuffle

We don't foresee any extreme changes to the iPod shuffle either, as the 4th generation shuffle was just launched in March. However, we do believe Apple will relaunch the shuffle in all 9 of the nano-chromatic colors and perhaps release an 8GB version.

iPod touch

The biggest update of them all will be to the iPod touch. We completely expect the 3G iPod touch to get a camera that can not only take still photos, but record and edit video as well. It is likely that the new touch will feature the same processor as the iPhone 3GS, making it faster than ever, and include many of the 3GS' new features such as voice control. I'm gonna go out on a limb and say that the 3G iPod touch will also get the compass and GPS features of the iPhone, but that's mostly wishful thinking on my part. I expect that the form factor will, for the most part, remain the same, but it would be nice to get the same glossy black back as the iPhone. Oh, and of course, 16GB, 32GB, and 64GB versions.

iTunes 9

Playing it safe with this one, I believe that the rumored "social networking" features of iTunes 9 will in fact be happening. I'm not sure in what capacity ("Now Playing" as your Twitter/Facebook status?) but I believe they will be coming. I'm not sure what to think about Blu-ray. Personally, I don't see it being supported as no Macs (so far) have Blu-ray drives, but who knows. I also believe that App organization will be included, as well as some minor UI changes. And chances are Palm Pre syncing will be blocked. Again.

You might be asking "What about the iTablet/iPAD?" Well, I do not believe that Apple will announce their tablet device at the September event. Personally, I don't think we'll be seeing the tablet until 2010. And if it does see the light of day in 2009, it won't be at the iPod event in September. I see Apple releasing their tablet product as a Media Pad/eBook Reader, simply a larger iPhone/iPod touch and not as a full-fledged Mac Tablet running OS X. But hey, with all the crazy rumors about this Apple Tablet, who knows what will happen?!?

So there you have it. Our predictions for Apple's 2009 iPod Event. We'll have full coverage of the event whenever it happens, so make sure you check back in September!

STEVE ALERT So, of course I forgot the most important thing! Will Steve Jobs make his grand re-appearance to present this new iPod lineup? Yes.

What to look forward to post-E3?

The other night, I had a dream that I was at E3 2010. Nintendo was about to announce their newest games... when I woke up. And realized that E3 was only weeks ago. What to do now? Then I realized how much time we have left in 2009! And all of the events that will be going on in the fall.

First off, Apple will be announcing new iPods this September. They always do! I'll take this opportunity to give you my predictions on that: nano-chromatic iPod shuffle 4Gs, iPod touch and iPod nano with cameras, and iPod classic storage boost, perhaps bring back the white color.

Nintendo holds a Fall Media Summit each year, usually sometime in October! This could wield some exciting 2010 announcements, as 2008's event was where Nintendo announced Punch-Out!!, Sin and Punishment 2, Mario & Luigi RPG 3, Club Nintendo US, New Play Control!, and of course, the Nintendo DSi! So who knows, maybe we'll see something cool? And there's always the possibility of new Galaxy 2 and/or Metroid: Other M trailer?

There's always smaller events, like the Tokyo Game Show in September, and the possibility that Sony will host another Destination PlayStation event (they usually have one in the spring, but who knows). So let's look forward to the rest of 2009 and the year ahead!

Video Tour: Facebook Connect for Nintendo DSi

For my first video feature here on Technizmo, I figured I'd take you all on a video tour of the new Facebook Connect integration for the Nintendo DSi.

The Nintendo DSi is the first video game system to integrate Facebook Connect! Using the new feature, you can upload all of the awesome pictures taken and edited with your Nintendo DSi directly to Facebook for the world to see! Well, your Facebook friends at least!

The Nintendo DSi Firmware 1.4 Update with Facebook Connect is available now! Just go to System Update in your DSi Settings.

Technizmo interviews Kevin Cassidy of GoNintendo.com

How many of you are GoNintendo.com fans? They provide great news for all of you Nintendo fanboys out there. Well, Technizmo will be interviewing Kevin Cassidy (site owner). Unlike past interviews, Eric and I would rather get our community more involved with our content. With that said, Technizmo will be introducing Technizmo Insider. Technizmo Insider is where you guys get to pick the questions you want asked!

To submit your questions for Kevin, please send an email



and include your Name and Question. We will pick our favorite reader submitted questions and include them in our interview with Kevin Cassidy! The deadline for question submissions is August 7th 2009, so please hurry!

Back it up with Technizmo

I've been hit with a few computer related problems this past year. First, my Sony Cyber Shot digital camera had some type of formatting problem, so I had to send it in for service. Not too long after that, my HDD in my Dell failed me, but my point of this is to get you to back up your files. I never was big on backing up my files, but now I've learned my lesson. The most important data I couldn't get back was my 800 plus music files. It took many years for me to build up that collection, and I knew if something went wrong, I wouldn't be able to get all of that music back. There are tons of cheaper external hard drives out now, so please put some thought into getting one. I currently now own a 500GB My Book external hard drive, and it has served me great so far. I'm able to host my whole music collection on the My Book rather than on the computer HDD. I haven't noticed any skipping while playing songs or movies either. These external hard drives also feature automatic backing up features for all those non leopard owners. My second tip is that if you do happen to lose your music files, all you have to do is copy the music files from your iPod to your hard drive. Expect the files to look like "SDFHT" (random letters) if you use iTunes. I know many of you already might know this, but it is still a helpful tip! So remember, a backed up computer is a safe computer.

Apple's rumored tablet design = not innovative enough

All the tech blogs are posting tons of rumors on this Apple tablet that is expected to hit the market very soon (along with new iPods). We here at Technizmo won't go into if all these rumors are actually true or not, but it seems that a lot of people have been ignoring the actual look of the device. Many speak of of the tablet as a larger iPod Touch, but I think that would be a horrible design. Yes, the whole screen as a touch screen is pretty impressive, but would it really be cool walking around with a large iPod Touch? Before the iPod Touch hit the market, people rumored it to look something like the classic iPod but with touch capabilities. Clearly it looks totally different than that, so maybe the same logic goes with this. Leave a comment to let me know what you think.

A world with Blu-ray & Macs together

Just a few years ago, we weren't sure who would win the HD format war. HD DVD was running strong with Microsoft, while Sony was using Blu-ray as a main selling point for the PS3. We all now know that Blu-ray won, so when will the prices drop? Remember when DVD's were the coolest thing on the block? New technology is just expensive, so its just a matter of time. I even found a extremely cheap $98 Magnavox Blu-ray player online, which is a very reasonable price. So even if Blu-ray will be available for Macs in decent timing, can Apple keep their prices down?

One of PC's largest selling points is that they're cheaper than Macs, and you usually get more computer for your money. With Macs costing so much, some people turn down the option to get a Mac due to the fact that there is no Blu-ray player included as an option. I'm sure the people at Apple are aware of this, but will they do anything about it?. Unless Apple makes some type of huge change in direction to lower prices, I don't see Blu-ray coming to Macs anytime soon.

For more information on the $98 Magnavox Blu-ray player, Click Here.