Second Look: Samsung Q1UP Tablet PC for retro gaming

My recent look at using at Samsung tablet PC for retro gaming generated quite a bit of interest from gamers, and also some moaning over the high price of entry. Now that I've traveled for two weeks with it and have done some more gaming on it, I thought it appropriate to post a follow-up for those who are thinking of adding such a system to their holiday wish list.

First, the good news: you don't actually need the $1,300.00 Q1 Ultra Premium edition, with a 1.33GHz CPU, 2GB RAM, Vista Business Edition to do Infinity Engine widescreen gaming. I down-clocked the CPU with Samsung's utility to 800MHz and suffered no loss of performance in gaming or overall system snappiness; I also downgraded my system to XP Tablet Edition (I described this in the original article). So you can pick up an XPTE Q1 with an 800MHz CPU for between $600 and $900 either new or refurbished and get the same gaming experience, but it has only 1GB of RAM. This is probably not a problem, but there are instructions online for upgrading the RAM if you decide you need to.

Ultimately, what all of this means is that you can put together a perfectly adequate Q1 tablet system for retro RPG gaming for about half of what I shelled out for mine, especially if you're willing to get a refurb unit. This might bring the project within the grasp of some readers who were excited about the idea but turned off by the price.

The bad news in this second look is that the battery life is about half what I implied in my original review. I didn't formally test the battery (I wrote the review the day after I had gotten everything set up and was able to play around with it to confirm that it worked as planned), but later formal testing indicates that I can play Planescape: Torment for 5 hours on a single charge (WiFi off, CPU throttled to 800MHz, LCD on two ticks of brightness).

Five hours of retro RPG gaming is still pretty sweet, especially given that the spare battery is quite compact. I had no problems keeping myself entertained with the unit on a roughly 11-hour flight from Paris to San Francisco.

On a non-gaming note, the Q1UP works extremely well as a mobile Skype device. It has two microphones on the bottom, the WiFi reception is very good, and everyone I've called on Skype has remarked on the clarity of the sound. While traveling in Europe, we used it like a WiFi Skype phone to do cheap international calling.
On second thought, maybe mediocrity killed the MID/UMPC

Overall, my travels with the Samsung Q1UP have slightly changed my assessment of what's wrong with the MID/UMPC form factor. Yes, it's still a drag to use a desktop OS on a small touchscreen, but the Q1UP's combination of notebook-caliber performance, long battery life, a bright 7" touchscreen, a PSP-style thumbstick that works quite well for mouse control, and generous accessories (two cameras, dual mics) go a long way toward making it a really useful entertainment and communications device for traveling with a family.

In other words, all software usability issues aside, Atom-based MIDs just don't offer the right combination of screen size, battery life, performance, and functionality to be widely compelling. Fix that, and the MID form factor might just have a future, especially if Microsoft can get its act together and offer some sort of multitouch MID/UMPC edition of Windows 7 with a completely rethought, finger-friendly interface. I'm not holding my breath, though.


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PlayStation Store Update: Can't get no satisfaction edition

Another Thursday has passed, and that means another weekly update to the PlayStation Store. This week features a brand new episode of Qore, which takes a look at Uncharted 2, Gran Turismo PSP, Brutal Legend, and the PSP Go.

On the gaming front, 2K Sports has released NBA 2K10: Draft Combine ($4.99), which allows users to create their own player and guide them through the process of an NBA draft. The downloadable game also connects to the retail version of NBA 2K10, so users can then see how their hopeful fares in the big leagues. Also hitting the store is Battle Tanks ($9.99), a multiplayer action game where you...battle tanks. Cool Boarders 3 is also available as a PSOne Classic for $5.99

Capcom is offering a pair of bundles this week for those who missed out on some of their terrific downloadable games. The Capcom Super Pack ($49.99) includes the following: Super Street Fighter II HD Remix, Flock!, Age of Booty, 1942, Wolf of the Battlefield: Commando, Super Puzzle Fighter II HD Remix, and Rocket Man: Axis of Evil with the It Came From Uranus add-on pack. Meanwhile the Capcom Combo Pack ($29.99) features: 1942, Wolf of the Battlefield, SPF2HDR, R:AoE and add-on pack.

We also have a pair of demos available for both Fight Night Round 4 and the previously mentioned NBA 2K10: Draft Combine. In terms of add-on content, F.E.A.R. 2 is getting a new map pack for $9.99, while Pain gets a host of new characters for $0.99 each, or $1.99 for the bundle.

DLC returns to Guitar Hero with the release of GH5, and it includes the following Rolling Stones songs:

* "I'm Free (Live)"
* "Prodigal Son (Live)
* "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction (Live)"
* "Under My Thumb (Live)"
* "You Gotta Move (Live)"
* The Rolling Stones Live Track Pack ($8.99)

Meanwhile Rock Band gamers get the following singles:

* “And She Was”— Talking Heads
* “Crosseyed and Painless”— Talking Heads
* “Girlfriend Is Better”— Talking Heads
* “Once in a Lifetime”— Talking Heads
* “Take Me to the River”— Talking Heads
* Talking Heads Pack 01 ($8.49)
* “Bat Country”— Avenged Sevenfold
* “Supersonic (Live)”— Oasis
* “Guerrilla Radio”— Rage Against the Machine
* “Going Underground”— The Jam
* “Town Called Malice”— The Jam

Rock Band: Unplugged, meanwhile, gets both "Lucid Dreams" by Franz Ferdinand and "Riad N' the Bedouins" by Guns N' Roses. As per usual all music tracks are $1.99 each.

As for the PSP, it gets a pair of new downloadable games, including the original Patapon ($15.99) and the fighting game Fate/Unlimited Codes ($29.99). Both the PSP and PS3 also get a number of different premium themes this week, as well as the usual assortment of trailers and other video content. And that's this week's PlayStation Store update.


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Microsoft's 720p requirement for developers dropped

Publish Post

It seems that the Xbox 360 requirement that games be presented in at least 720p has been "retired" by Microsoft. The news has come about thanks to Black Rock's technical director David Jefferies in a guest article he wrote for online magazine Develop. The reasoning for this decision? It will allow developers to create games with better image quality that won't be sacrificed to meet higher resolution requirements.

HD TV manufacturers have been making their 720p LCD televisions with resolutions different than true 1280x720. "The lovingly crafted 1280x720 image has gone to be replaced," says Jefferies, "by something dependent on the quality of the LCD scaler." Because of this scaling, game visuals are upsampled by TV hardware, no matter how good the graphics actually are.

As a result, developers' work to create 720p graphics are a superfluous effort; by dropping the requirement, though, Jefferies claims that developers can add visual features like extra anti-aliasing to make the image actually look better, even if it's presented at a lower resolution than 720p.

According to Jefferies, "If we instead assume that the LCD is going to rescale then, for some games, it might be more sensible to present it with a better anti-aliased but lower resolution image in the first place." Jefferies also explained that the requirement was originally waived for Halo 3, which was presented at a resolution of 1152x640.

However, the problem with LCD TVs upsampling 720p games probably won't be such a hassle in the future: "As more and more LCDs ship with the full HD resolution of 1920x1080 then this will become less of an issue, but I’ve just had a look on Amazon and all the 26" and 32" Sony and Samsung TVs are still 1366x768."


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Sony casting for reality star: a game tester?

Auditioning for reality shows is a pain: waiting in line lasts for hours, forcing you to stand around with a slew of other hopeful cast members who act as obnoxious as possible in order to attract attention from camera crews. For many of us, spending ten to twenty hours waiting around in line is time that would be far better spent sitting on a comfortable couch and playing the latest games with our friends. Now, though, gamers are getting a chance at their own reality show, thanks to Sony.

Dubbed "The Tester," open casting for the show is set to start soon, according to the Playstation Blog. An undisclosed number of hopeful gamers will "face-off in a series of elimination challenges designed to test their mental toughness, endurance, and video game knowledge as they compete for a job working as a PlayStation game tester." The show's winner will get a job working in the Quality Assurance department at Sony's San Diego offices.

In the meantime, anyone interested in being a part of this show can try out for a cast position on the official audition site. According to Eurogamer, the show is being created by 51 Minds Entertainment, the group behind many of VH1's hit "celebreality" TV series. The series will supposedly be hitting the Playstation Store this winter, and viewers can purchase individual episodes or buy a series pass.


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Mozilla makes much ado about nothing over browser ballot

Microsoft's practice of including a Web browser with its operating system has faced renewed scrutiny this year. Following complaints from Opera and Mozilla, the European Union has applied pressure to Microsoft and has compelled the company to present users with alternative browser options. Microsoft has proposed a browser ballot system that will give users the ability to choose which Web browser they use with Windows. Mozilla vice president and general counsel Harvey Anderson has responded to Microsoft's proposal and has expressed concern about several aspects.

Anderson's primary concern is that various mechanisms in the operating system that are controlled by Microsoft could create conditions that encourage users to unintentionally reset their default browser to Internet Explorer.

Microsoft's proposal specifically addresses some of these issues, but the language is somewhat vague and there is a lot of room for different interpretations. Anderson wants there to be no ambiguity or room for Microsoft to circumvent the intent behind the proposal. Despite these concerns, he thinks that the browser ballot proposal has the potential to be a reasonable and effective remedy if Microsoft conforms with it in good faith.

When Internet Explorer is launched, it will display a message asking users if they would like to make it the default. Anderson wants to make sure that this prompt is only displayed when the user intentionally launches Internet Explorer, not when Internet Explorer is launched automatically by platform-related behaviors.

"Not offering updates through Windows Update to an off-switched IE is a good start. But most users won't have IE turned off, even if they have other browsers as their default. When IE is not the default, any launch of IE, user intended/initiated or not, may prompt the user to restore IE as his default browser," he wrote. "This may be a reasonable action for an intentional user-initiated launch of IE, but it's an abuse when it's not user-initiated and has the impact of undoing user choice."

Although his concern on this matter is understandable, it's worth noting that Microsoft already conforms with some of his expectations. In Windows XP, the message prompting users to make Internet Explorer the default browser is not displayed when the browser is launched by selecting the Windows Update item from the start menu. In Windows Vista, the update system doesn't use the Web browser at all. Other Web related features, such as the "Windows Catalog" in the start menu, launch in the user's default browser.

Anderson is also concerned about the behavior of other Microsoft applications, particularly Microsoft's dominant Office suite.

"Microsoft Office 2007 and other Microsoft programs should not 'hard code' links, shortcuts, or icons to launch an already installed IE when IE is not the default browser. If Microsoft applications need to launch a browser, they should only launch the user's default browser."

In my extensive tests with Microsoft Office 2007 and other Microsoft software, I was unable to find any instance where the user's default browser setting is ignored. During my tests, links in Office 2007 were all properly opened in Google Chrome, my default Windows browser. It's unclear exactly what Anderson is referring to, but it would sure help illustrate his point if he could provide even one example of a Microsoft program launching Internet Explorer when another browser is set as the default.

Anderson says that there are some unanswered questions about how the browser ballot provisions will be applied to OEMs and hardware vendors that ship computers with Windows preinstalled. In particular, he says that Microsoft's proposal doesn't stipulate whether OEMs are required to display the browser ballot screen in their default Windows installations. He believes that the proposal should be clarified to specifically address this issue. It's worth noting, however, that the proposal does include detailed provisions stating that OEMs will be able to preinstall any browser of their choosing and that Microsoft will not use threats or partnership incentives to compel OEMs to choose its Web browser.

It's not entirely clear what the basis is for some of the issues that Anderson raises. Some of his complaints are reasonable, but many lack substance—much like the EU's entire case against Microsoft shipping its own browser by default. Market share statistics continue to show that Firefox is experiencing significant growth and that it has an especially strong presence in Europe.

As Mozilla celebrates its billionth download milestone and enjoys a 22 percent global marketshare amidst an increasingly competitive browser market, it seems difficult to justify invasive government intervention aimed at boosting competition. If the EU thinks that the current browser ecosystem represents an example of market failure, then maybe they need to reevaluate how they define competition.

Update: Mozilla's Asa Dotzler has provided some additional clarification on the Windows Update issue via e-mail. He explains that Anderson's complaint with Windows Update is that major updates of the IE browser, such as the update from version 7 to version 8, will cause the browser to launch and prompt the user to make it the default. There is certainly some strong anecdotal evidence indicating that this behavior can lead to unanticipated changes in the default browser settings, so the issue may warrant further consideration as Anderson suggests.

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The Zune as we know it is gone; long live the Zune HD

The Zune as we know it is going the way of the dodo, and its replacement is of course the Zune HD. "As you know, the new Zune HD device—featuring a touch OLED screen, HD Radio, HD video out capabilities, Internet browser and more—is available for preorder now and will be available at retail on September 15," a Microsoft spokesperson told Ars. "Additional flash Zune devices (Zune 4GB, 8GB and 16GB) and hard drive devices (80GB and 120GB) will continue to be available at retail until sold out, though we will not continue to manufacture those devices."

The spokesperson also touted Microsoft's upcoming Zune software and service and the arrival of Zune video on Xbox Live this autumn. The software giant intends to provide a "great entertainment experience through software and services across multiple screens and devices."

When Ars asked if the Zune 4.0 software would be available for the old Zunes, the Microsoft spokesperson said "yes" and also noted that more details about updates to the software will be revealed soon. In terms of firmware for the old Zunes, Ars was told that Microsoft "will also continue to provide updates for previous devices as they are needed for stability."

The SuperSite Blog was first to break the news, reporting that all of the current Zunes are being discontinued. The fate of the smaller Zunes was sealed when Microsoft officially detailed the Zune HD in May 2009. In August 2009, the Flash-based Zunes (Zune 4, Zune 8, and Zune 16) disappeared from the Zune Store and Zune Originals, leaving only the HDD-based Zune 80 and Zune 120. Naturally, suspicions were raised to sky-high levels. The store still looks as it did last month, but now we know that it's worse than just the Flash-based Zunes being discontinued; all Zunes will be gone once the stock runs out.

This is a very risky move on Microsoft's part. We learned in August 2009 that the 16GB version will be priced at $220 and the 32GB will go for $290. What if someone wants more than 32GB? Sure, there's a rumored 64GB version coming later, but some users want even more than that. What if someone wants a Zune but doesn't want to spend more than $200? What if they want a smaller device, both in size and capacity?

Recall that the original Zune 30GB is considered first generation, that the Zune 4, Zune 8, and Zune 80 are considered second generation, and that the Zune 16 and Zune 120 are considered third generation. When the Zune 30 was discontinued, some consumers were unhappy, but they couldn't get very vocal because there was a mere $20 difference between the Zune 16 and Zune 80. Discontinuing the Zune 30 made sense.

This time around, however, Microsoft's strategy is questionable. We all knew that hard drive-based media players would be phased out sooner or later, and it's completely possible that a 128GB version of the Zune HD, possibly a second-generation, will see the light of day eventually. The move is understandable on the right side of the spectrum. On the lower end though, it's not as clear as to what Microsoft is going for. A Zune HD that is smaller and cheaper than the 16GB simply won't cut it for the sake of the touchscreen and the accompanying apps. Also, Microsoft might simply think that 4GB and 8GB sizes will no longer be wanted in a few months (those who like to run with small MP3 players will of course disagree). Finally, it may be simply that Microsoft just doesn't want to keep supporting the Zune in its current form and that it sees the Zune HD as a much more profitable beast.

The Zune HD has a lot of potential, but Microsoft has significantly slimmed down the Zune's potential market—especially with its biggest competitor, Apple, selling audio players in sizes ranging from 4GB to 120GB. Microsoft believes it's making a precise surgical slice, but it may just be shooting itself in the foot by giving would-be Zune owners fewer choices.

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Get Windows 7 for free by hosting a launch party (Updated)

Microsoft is finally going to take advantage of the best form of advertising for the next release of Windows: word of mouth. The world's largest software maker has partnered with House Party, apparently the world's leading party organizer, to encourage technology enthusiasts to throw Windows 7 launch parties in their communities between October 22 and October 29.

Microsoft won't let just anyone host such a party though; the company is being very selective. If you're interested in becoming an official host, there's an application process you'll have to go through over at houseparty.com/windows7. Furthermore, the offer is only open to residents of 12 countries: Australia, Italy, Canada, Japan, Mexico, France, Spain, Germany, the US, Hong Kong, the UK, and India.

Chosen hosts around the world will be among the first to see, use, and share Windows 7 with their friends, says Microsoft. If you're selected as a host, you'll receive a special Signature Edition of Windows 7 Ultimate. You'll also get a Windows 7 Party Pack to share with your guests, based on one out of four themes that you choose from: PhotoPalooza, Media Mania, Setting up with Ease, or Family Friendly Fun. Party packs will be delivered by October 10, 2009.

* All hosts will receive:
o One limited Signature Edition Windows 7 Ultimate
o One Deck of Playing Cards with Windows 7 Desktop Design
o One Puzzle with Windows 7 Desktop Design
o One Poster with Windows 7 Desktop Design
o Ten Tote Bags with Windows 7 Desktop Design for hosts and guests
* Also included in USA party packs:
o One package of streamers for decoration
o One package of balloons for decoration
o One table top centerpiece for decoration
o One package of Windows 7 napkins

US residents will also be entered for a chance to win a $750 mini-notebook computer. A total of 64 winners will be notified once all the parties are over (after October 30, 2009).

The first step of the application process is simple: you have to tell Microsoft about yourself, how the company can contact you, where to send the Party Pack, and finally pick a screen name and password (for checking the status of your application). After that, you have to confirm that "by applying for a host spot, you are agreeing to conduct yourself in the spirit of House Party—sharing a product you love with the people you love, through an experience that is fun, free, and exclusive" and that you will abide to five rules:

1. Submit only one application per household (per party)
2. Answer all questions accurately
3. Plan and host the best party you can
4. Share your party package with your guests, as intended
5. Not attempt to obtain extra party packages

Once you've agreed to all that, you have to answer six more questions (are you really surprised there are seven in total?). One of the questions of the survey is worth noting as it asks the participant what they are willing to do for the party. As such, it's clear what Microsoft will ask from party hosts:

* Host a party on any day between October 22 through October 29th, featuring Windows 7 Ultimate Operating System
* Invite at least 10 guests to join you
* Use a free party website to plan your party, invite guests, upload photos, read and post to a party blog, etc.
* Fill out an online survey after the party has happened

The second last step is to confirm a legal agreement, and then bam, you'll get a confirmation e-mail. You must then finalize the application by clicking a link. Now the rest is up to Microsoft and all you have left to do is frequently check the status of your application.

Microsoft has not disclosed how many hosts it plans to pick, but the website does insist that "host spaces are very limited." If this is the type of party you want to host, then by all means, hurry up and apply!

Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer will be kicking off the official Windows 7 launch at an event in New York City on October 22, 2009, the day of Windows 7's general availability. It looks like Microsoft wants to turn what is normally a single launch day, into a launch week. Since the beginning of 2009, the media has been praising Windows 7, and Redmond obviously wants to keep that momentum going strong.

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