Since this is my first article for this site, I feel that I should explain who I am before getting into my reasoning.  I am a 26-year-old PC gamer, and have been primarily gaming on PCs since Quake 2 came out, desperately trying to connect to any server that would have me on my 56k connection.

In terms of the kind of PC gamer I am, I would say that I am “that guy.”  I will always say that a keyboard and mouse is the best controller, and will always moan and groan when you tell me you purchased the latest Call of Duty title for your Xbox or PS3.  Playing first person shooters with thumb sticks is like trying to hit a home run with a broken piece of plywood.  It just doesn’t work. That being said, I absolutely cannot wait for new consoles to come out.  Why?

Graphics Are All Dated

The Xbox 360 and PS3 are pretty long in the tooth as far as hardware goes, and although it’s impressive to see what developers can still do with the hardware they are still severely limited by it.  The cores in my current PC processor are taking turns napping and my video card is now in a coma because of developers holding back to make their titles multi-platform.  There have been a few exceptions recently (Skyrim, Battlefield 3), but even those 2 aren’t really pushing the envelope.

New Control Methods

Don’t get me wrong, I am a huge fan of consoles.  That being said, I’ve always wanted to use my precious keyboard and mouse and play Halo, Resistance, or whatever other console exclusive shooter is out.  Yes, I am completely aware that there are products that allow you to do this, but I really think that it should be a native thing.  Screw balance.  There are ranking systems now.  Let the people who want to play with controllers hover in the low levels while the people who want to seriously play get up to the intermediate/expert levels.  Will this ever happen?  Probably not.  But one can dream.

Consoles ARE Better for Some Things

When I want to play competitively, which is most of the time, I’ll boot up my PC.  If I want to sit back and relax and maybe take some story in, I’ll boot up my 360 or PS3.  Cinematic storylines are a better experience on a console than on a PC mainly because of my home theatre setup.  Bigger screen, bigger speakers, more to take in. While you CAN do this with a PC, it just doesn’t feel the same to me.

Although I am a PC gamer, I am realistic.  I know that consoles are the future and that they do bring in a lot more revenue than PC games.  Whether or not I will be able to keep using my keyboard and mouse for years to come will be up to the gaming industry.

Follow Ryan Chua @THEREALCHUA

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Nokia’s flagship smartphone for the US the Lumia 900 is set to launch exclusively for AT&T with an aggressively low price of $99 according to reports from BGR.  Announced at CES 2012 the Lumia 900 is the first top-tier Windows Phone handset from Nokia for the US that comes with a 4.3 inch AMOLED Clear Back display, 1.4 GHz Single-core processor, 8 megapixel  rear facing camera with a Carl Zeiss lens  f2.2 wide-angle lens dual LED flash, front-facing camera with a wide-angle lens to fit more people into a video chat, 4GLTE and Windows Phone 7.5. You’ll get some exclusive apps such as Nokia Maps, Nokia Drive and Nokia Music all for the low price of $99 is basically a steal. Check out our hands-on from CES 2012.

With the recent rumors of the Nokia ACE coming to AT&T which looks to be an updated Lumia 800 and Verizon passing up on a high-end device from Nokia and rumored to be opting for a low-end device such at the Lumia 710 shows Nokia may be facing a tougher battle here in the U.S. than first thought.

As many of us in the tech world know Nokia is a world leader in smartphone manufacturing. Their phones are known for high build quality, extreme durability and excellent camera optics, but the problem here is that only the tech world know of this.  The name Nokia to the average consumer relates to cheap, free and  low-end. A phone that they got for free as their first phone or prepaid.  While they did offer CDMA phones, most of their phones were GSM based which limited its reach here in a CDMA dominated United States. Once the smartphone crazy came along Nokia was barely around with just unlocked Symbian based smartphone options for a price that US consumers didn’t go for and a mobile OS that while at it core was good, didn’t have the simplicity of use and the attractiveness that iOS and Android has gained here.

With Nokia partnering up with Microsoft they look to jump back into the market again but now there are newer and stronger players with HTC, Samsung, Motorola and Apple having strong brand presence with consumers today. It’s going to be tough for Nokia to push out of their past image of being a cheap and free option to a high-end premium option. With rumors of Verizon turning down a top-tier 4G LTE Windows Phone handset from Nokia may show they are still battling their past impressions. I’m sure Verizon will still come with a 4G LTE Windows Phone but they probably have tapped HTC or Samsung for this and most likely the former since they made Verizon first WP7 handset. While Windows Phone still struggles in sales HTC and Samsung are at top of those sales with solid offerings such as the Samsung  Focus from a year ago and now the Focus Flash and Focus S, and with HTC the HD7, HTC Trophy, HTC Arrive and big screen HTC Titian. Also not having any offering for the US for the holiday season hurt as well.

Even with all the factors about Nokia still can break through and get back into the picture. With Microsoft having their back in this fight you can be assured they will push as much and they can to get the Nokia brand up there with the rest of the US cell phone makers. It’s just that this road will be a tough road and 2012 they may need to take more bumps and bruises before the payoff comes along.

Image Source: MyNokiaBlog

The Nokia Lumia 800 is the flagship Windows Phone 7.5 (Mango) handset from Nokia. Nokia is looking to lead the way for Windows Phone handset in the future. It comes with a 3.7 inch AMOLED ClearBack display, 1.4 GHz single-core processor, 512 MB of RAM, 8 megapixel rear facing camera with 720p HD video capture and 16 GB of built-in storage. It’s a uni-body design with no removable battery and no way to expand the storage past what’s build in. While it has a plastic frame it’s a very solid and well build frame with a soft matte finish which feels comfortable in the hand so far. While there isn’t much room for customizations in the Windows Phone UI, it  does include Nokia exclusive features such as Nokia Drive for turn-by-turn navigation, Nokia Maps and Nokia Music. I’m excited to finally get this phone for review and we will let you know what the final verdict is. For now check out our unboxing video below.
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This month is the 1 year anniversary of Windows Phone and Microsoft is celebrating big with a giant-sized Windows Phone in the middle of Herald Square in NYC. The event was filled with information about the Windows Phone platform and live performances highlighted by the Far East Movement. Free pizza was also passed out to the crowd.

Microsoft is also going around the country with Windows Phone parties to “Spend the Night with Windows Phone” in NYC, Dallas, Chicago, Los Angeles and San Francisco. Check the RSVP page on Windows Phone Facebook Fan page for more info. Link is below.

Windows Phone Facebook Fan page
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Nokia has officially released their first Windows Phone 7 smartphone series the Nokia Lumia and the first two phone are the Lumia 800 and the Lumia 710. Both phone pack similar features but do have things that make them stand apart from each other.  The Nokia Lumia 800 is the flagship phone between the two. It has with a 3.7 inch AMOLED ClearBack display, 1.4 GHz single-core processor, 512 MB of RAM, 8 megapixel rear facing camera with 720p HD video capture, should have about 16 GB of built-in storage and no removable battery.

The Lumia 710 comes in with similar specs as the Nokia Lumia 800 with more of a mid-range approach. It comes with 3.7 inch  TFT LCD Display with ClearBack technology for better viewing in sunlight, 1.4 GHz single-core processor,  512 MB of RAM, 5 megapixel rear facing camera. The 710 will have a removable battery and changeable backplates for different colors and designs.
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Both phones will ship with Windows Phone 7.5 Mango and will have Nokia specific apps like Nokia Maps, Nokia Driver for turn-by-turn navigation and Nokia Music (depending on which country you are in). So the software is the same on both devices where the differences lie is the hardware with the 800 having a AMOLED display and the 710 with a TFT LCD. The cameras are also different with the  Lumia 800 having a 8 megapixel camera with dual LED flash and 720p HD video capture. The Lumia 710 has a 5 megapixel camera with single LED flash and probably also does 720p HD video capture.  The Lumia 800 has much more of a premium feel and build to it with a sleek and professional look. The Lumia 710 has more of a fun and sporty look with more of a plastic build but is still has solid construction.  Check out our comparison video and make your choice on which one you would prefert to be your next Windows Phone.

The event is happing the same time as Nokia World in London and will happen right after the keynote from Nokia World at 4 AM EST. I believe that this will be where we will see the US versions of the new Nokia Windows Phone the already leaked and confirmed Nokia Lumia 800 and 710 and maybe even the superphone Nokia 900. We should also see which carriers will have which phones as well. The live blog starts at 9 AM EST and we’ll give you whatever news comes out of this event so bookmark this page.
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So this whole time we’ve been expecting the Nokia 800 aka “Sea Ray” now known as the Lumia 800 to be the flagship Windows Phone but instead it’s looking like the Nokia 900 will lead the WP7 pack for Nokia. It’s expected to come out with a 4.3 inch ClearBack AMOLED display, 1.4 GHz Single-core Snapdragon processor, 1 GB or Ram, 8 megapixel rear facing camera with Carl Zeiss lens, NFC, Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, Bluetooth 4.0 and 16 GB or 32 GB options and will run Windows Phone 7.5 Mango.

Now these are the specs that will compete with the Android superphones and iPhone 4S. These are the features that people have been waiting for Nokia and Microsoft to put into a Windows Phone and in just a few hours we will see if this is true or just vaporware.

Via BooredAtWork

Source: GSMArena

So earlier we had more leaked photos to now leaked and confirmed photos of the two new Windows Phone 7 smartphones Nokia will be bringing to Market. The flagship phone is the Nokia Lumia 800. Before it was known as the Nokia 800 and the “sea ray” but now the Lumia 800 and its expected to have a  3.7 inch AMOLED display, 1.4 GHz processor, 8 megapixel camera, 1080p HD video and weigh in a total of 147g.  The Lumia 710 is a mid-range Windows Phone  that will be similar to the Lumia 800 but sport a 3.5 inch display, 5 megapixel camera and 8 GB of built-in storage. Both devices should ship with Windows Phone 7.5  mango. Both seem to have GSM only specs on them so that is good for the overseas carriers and US carriers AT&T and T-Mobile. No word on CDMA devices which would be compatible with Sprint and Verizon.

Via: Booredatwork

Source: Winrumors