Official LG G3 videos tease handset ahead of launch

LG has released a selection of new LG G3 videos, once again teasing the upcoming phone’s design, camera and display ahead of launch.

With all manner of LG G3 leaks and teases having emerged in past weeks, prematurely confirming the phone’s full specs, features and design, LG has now got in on the action, outing a trio of ‘official leaks’ in the form of teaser videos.

With the three videos looking individually at the phone’s screen, camera and design, the latest leaks have officially confirmed that the phone will benefit from a stunning 2560 x 1400p QHD panel, brushed metal body and an advanced laser-based image focussing system.

You can watch the trio of LG G3 teaser videos, officially outed by the Korean manufacturer below.

The latest premature look at the eagerly awaited Samsung Galaxy S5 and HTC One M8 rival comes just days before next Tuesday’s May 27 official launch event.

Earlier this week the full LG G3 specs sheet leaked, revealing the phone will be powered by a quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 processor, 3GB of RAM and Google’s Android 4.4.2 KitKat OS.

With a 13-megapixel rear-mounted camera, an edge-to-edge display and rear volume and power controls, the LG G3 is shaping up to be something of a smartphone powerhouse.



Read More: Samsung Galaxy S6 release date

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PS4 already profitable for Sony

The PS4 is already turning a profit for Sony, just six months after launch, the Japanese gaming giant has confirmed.

With past console offerings, such as the PS3, having been offered up as major loss leaders – costing Sony money on a hardware front it hoped to redeem in lengthy software sales – a change in approach has seen the PS4 profitable from the off.

"From a profitability perspective, PS4 is also already contributing profit on a hardware unit basis, establishing a very different business framework from that of previous platform businesses,” Sony’s President and CEO Kaz Hirai said speaking during Sony’s Corporate Strategy Meeting this week.

Despite moving to a more traditional architecture, it had been widely expected that the PS4 would make a loss for Sony in its early stages.

Although the PS4 is turning a profit for Sony, the manufacturer recently announced overarching company losses having disbanded its Vaio laptop brand.

It is currently unclear whether or not Microsoft’s Xbox One is being sold at a profit or a loss, although the recent decision to remove Kinect from the equation, cutting the price in the process, is sure to have altered the company’s financial approach to the console.

Recent sales figures have shown that the PS4 is eclipsing sales of the rival Xbox One, selling more than 2 million units globally than the Xbox has even shipped.



Read More: Xbox One vs PS4

Via: VideoGamer

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Microsoft announces discounted Windows 8.1 with Bing for computer manufacturers

Microsoft is aiming to help OEMs reduce device costs by offering cheaper versions of Windows, which will ship with Bing as IE's default search engine.

The OEMs will not be allowed to change the home page for IE, but end users will be able to switch to another search engine at any point they want. Clearly, the idea is to encourage people to use Bing, but without falling foul of global competition and antitrust laws. Something Microsoft has had issues with in the past.

It has not been made clear how much the discount is, but then Microsoft doesn't make it clear how much it charges OEMs anyway, so those numbers will remain forever out of our reach.

This announcement complements some of Microsoft's other recent decisions with Windows. The firm recently announced that Windows Phone 8.1 and Windows 8.1 would be free on all devices with a screen size below nine-inches. The idea is to drive OEMs into adopting Windows, especially on phones and tablets, where it is struggling against iOS and Android.

Microsoft also mentions in a blog post that smaller devices also get one year of free access to Office365, it's cloud-based version of the Office suite.

The end result of this should be that low-cost hardware solutions can now run Windows. This could mean that Google's Chromebooks get a more robust set of competitors than it currently does. And Microsoft is very keen to get people using its cloud services and away from Google's similar offerings.

Read more: Microsoft Windows 8.1 review

Via: The Next Web

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Smartwatches aren't a waste of time, no really!

OPINION After a few weeks of actually using one, Andy decides there may be some merit to smartwatches after all.

I've written about technology for what I consider quite a long time now, and anyone who does this for long enough will tell you it's oh so easy to default to jaded cynicism at all times. In an industry so often fit to burst with empty promises, half truths, and so-called 'game changers' it's the only defence to retain sanity and perspective.

Recently I've directed my finely tuned scepticism at smartwatches. Here, I thought, is a classic solution to a problem no one needs solving. Not quite as bad as Android and Windows hybrid laptops/tablets, admittedly, but definitely in the same cesspit. Samsung's original Galaxy Gear, a product whose abject crapness was only outdone by its extortionate price and overexposure, was exhibit A for the prosecution. It was a pretty strong case only slightly mollified by the Gear 2 and cheaper (and more sensible) Gear 2 Neo.

But before the Galaxy Gear was (and remains) and Pebble smartwatch, the Kickstarter that arguably set off the initial smartwatch dash. And just recently I spotted one on eBay for £80 and decided I ought to (in the name of journalistic enquiry) buy one so I could slag smartwatches off with some authority.

Instead, the Pebble convinced me there's something to this smartwatch business after all.

A rough diamond in even rougher company

And that's despite it being a very sketchy first-gen effort. It looks... well, it looks naff; the app ecosystem is not especially useful (on iPhone at least), and the e-ink screen is small and isn't touch sensitive, which means there's a mess of ugly plastic buttons on the edges.

But despite all this, the Pebble works. The four to five day battery life helps, as does the knock down price, but above all it's proved to me that simply getting push notifications to your wrist is a useful and desirable thing. That's all the Pebble is good at and it's enough for me to like it.

There's something genuinely liberating about feeling your phone buzz in your pocket and knowing you don't need to instantly take it out to find out why. Instead, I just glance at my wrist, and I quickly decide whether I really need to do anything about it. Nine times in ten I don't, and it's refreshing.

This is helpful in all sorts of situations. When I'm in a rush I don't slow myself down; when I'm sat on the train I don't have to awkwardly prise my phone from my pocket; when I'm driving I can glance at a message and keep both hands on the wheel; and I can decide whether to take a call without even looking at my phone.

These are all small little conveniences, but they add up to a greater whole and I haven't even mentioned my favourite benefit yet. Thanks to Google Maps' walking directions, I can find my way around town using just the text directions pushed to my watch. No more meandering about, phone out front trying to dodge pedestrians as I go; no more worrying about advertising my expensive smartphone to would be thieves.

Despite the basic screen this works surprisingly well, so imagine how much better it could be on a watch with a proper screen that could show small segments of maps and more useful information?

That's exactly what Android Wear looks to offer, among many other things, and my experience with the Pebble has me genuinely excited for what the Moto 360, Android Wear and the iWatch have to offer.

Smartwatches? I believe.



Next, read our guide: What is Android Wear?

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LG G Watch hits retailer’s website ahead of G3 unveiling

The LG G Watch has popped up on a UK retailer’s website, suggesting the smartwatch could be showcased alongside the LG G3 next week.

With the flagship LG G3 handset set to be formally unveiled in London next Tuesday, May 27, the Korean manufacturer’s new smartwatch could be about to join the party, being listed as “Available Soon” through a third-party seller.

Although the first Android Wear watch has appeared on UnlockedMobiles.com, there is currently no detailed release date information beyond the fact that the wearable is ‘coming soon’.

To date, LG has confirmed only that the LG G Watch will be available to consumers during Q2, so a narrowing window which ends on June 30.

With the retailer’s G Watch holding page adding backing to previously claims the timepiece would be unveiled formally alongside the G3, it has also been suggested that the watch will be demoed fully for the first time during Google I/O next month.

The LG G Watch is set to become the first Android Wear smartwatch to hit the market having been announced alongside the round-faced Motorola Moto 360 back in March.

The watch, which is set to be available in black or white and gold colour schemes, will work with a range of Android handsets, offering wrist-based messaging and call alerts, as well as a range of mapping and music management features.

We will be on hand at the LG G3 launch event next week, so stay tuned to see if the G Watch rears its head.

Read More: Samsung Gear 2 review

Via: GeekyGadgets

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DriveClub Developer: We learnt ‘an awful lot’ from mobile games

DriveClub is set to bring a range of new social and community elements to the racing genre later this year, and now the title’s developer as revealed how the team learnt a lot from mobile gaming.

With the mobile gaming sector starting to eat in to the core market, Simon Barlow, DriveClub’s Assistant Director has suggested the upcoming racer will benefit from a number of mobile gaming influences, especially on the social front.

Questioned on how much influence DriveClub has taken from the mobile sector, Barlow told us: “To be honest, an awful lot.”

Delving a little deeper, he added: “It’s not [just] the obvious stuff. It’s not just the social connectivity that’s obviously prevalent throughout all smartphone usage, what we have really picked up on from mobile games and the mobile experience is the immediacy of the experience and the fact the large amount of content is push content.”

With Barlow suggesting that mobile gamers are often new to the industry, he has revealed that the Evolution Studios developed game will look to appeal to all range of gamers – building on the expectations mobile gamers are now brining to the table.

“A lot of people that play mobile games, I would say are more causal gamers the kind of people that are probably new to gaming and so the games have to deliver a lot of that content to that gamer,” Barlow told us.

He added: “In DriveClub because we are trying to be this open accessible game, despite the fact that we have this authentic handling model that we hope people will like and appeal to broad type of racing fans, we are hoping that anyone can pick it up and play it.

“In order to get that content to them you have to push it to them. You can’t expect them to push their way through it. That’s a direct take from mobile gaming. That real immediacy.”

Having originally been pegged to be a launch title for the PS4, DriveClub has been hit by a number of delays. The game will now launch in the UK on October 10.

Read More: Best Games 2014

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Half-Life 3 confirmed by Valve developer

Half-Life 3 is real and it’s in the works right now, a former Valve developer has confirmed.

Speaking in a Twitch interview with goRGNtv, former Valve employee and one of the creators of Counter Strike, Minh Le, has revealed that the Steam owner is currently piecing together the eagerly awaited Half-Life 3, although there is currently no word on when it will launch.

Questioned on the existence of Half-Life 3, Le started off coy before offering a few, more juicy details.

“I don’t think I can talk about that, to be honest, but I think it’s kind of public knowledge that people know that it is being worked on,” he told his interviewers.

The Counter Strike co-founder added: “If I was to say 'yeah, I've seen some images' like some concept art of it that wouldn't be big news.

"I guess I could say that I did see something that could be in the Half-Life universe. I mean it wouldn't surprise anyone if I said yeah they're working on it.

"To go out on a limb, I would say I did see some Half-Life 3 concept art."

Although suggesting that confirmation that Half-Life 3 is in the works is “old news by now,” Valve has yet to formally acknowledge the existence of the game.

As well as revealing that Half-Life 3 is being ‘worked on’, Le also offered some early insight into a “new Left 4 Dead” title which has yet to be confirmed by Valve.

"It wouldn't be any news if I said 'yes, I saw it' and it looks great," Minh said before adding: "I was really excited when I saw that, like 'wow, this looks great’.”

Despite Minh’s insight, it is not yet clear whether or not Half-Life 3 will be showcased during next month’s E3 conference in LA.

Read More: Best Games 2014

Via: NowGamer

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Microsoft Surface Pro 3 vs MacBook Air

Who Needs a Laptop?

Have you heard? Microsoft is sure that its new Surface Pro 3 tablet can replace the laptop. More specifically, the company is sure that it can replace the MacBook Air, which has been the go-to ultraportable laptop ever since its 2008 debut.

But how do these two devices really compare? Let’s take a closer look.

Surface Pro 3 vs MacBook Air - Design and Portability

Microsoft Surface Pro 3 - Tablet, 1.1kg (with keyboard)

MacBook Air - Laptop, 1.34kg

Microsoft has given its premium tablet quite the design overhaul with the Surface Pro 3. Amazingly, despite an increase in screen size (more on which in a bit), this is the slimmest and lightest Surface tablet yet - just 9.1mm thin and 800 grams in weight.

That’s still extremely heavy for a tablet, but also extremely light for a laptop. Of course, the stated figure doesn’t include the keyboard cover attachment. Add that and it brings the weight up to just under 1.1kg, which is still significantly lighter than the 1.34kg 13-inch MacBook Air.

The Air, for its part, has maintained the same basic all-aluminium unibody design throughout its’s various iterations, and it’s still one of the best-looking laptops out there.

While the Surface Pro 3 wins out on size and weight, not to mention that neat fold-away keyboard-cover, we’d still rather rely on the MacBook Air when it comes to typing on our laps in cramped conditions. Microsoft has improved what it calls the Surface Pro 3’s "lapability," with a more flexible kick-stand and a smarter keyboard attachment, but it remains a work-around in the absence of a rigid clamshell design.

Surface Pro 3 vs MacBook Air - Screen

Microsoft Surface Pro 3 - 12.1-inch, 3:2 aspect ratio, 2160 x 1440 (216ppi), touchscreen

MacBook Air - 13.3-inch, 16:10 aspect ratio, 1440 x 900 (128ppi)

Here’s the first area in which the Microsoft Surface Pro 3 really bloodies the nose of the current MacBook Air range. It has a significantly better screen.

It might be an inch smaller than the larger of the MacBook Airs, but the Surface Pro 3’s display is much sharper. With a 2,160 x 1,440 resolution, it packs in the pixels at a rate of 216ppi. Comparisons to the both the 13-inch 1,440 x 900 pixel MacBook Air and 11.6-inch 1,366 x 768 Air effort will be rather flattering. The Surface Pro 3 also offers much better contrast and black levels.

While you couldn’t call the Air’s display bad, it is out of date - calls for a Retina display model date back years. Apple will need to address this if it’s to keep its advantage over the ever-improving Surface range.

There’s also that the Microsoft Surface Pro 3’s display is a touchscreen to consider. You can interact with it directly - whether with a finger or a stylus. Apple will argue that it's not necessary on a laptop form factor, but it's difficult to argue with the company that gives you options.

Surface Pro 3 vs MacBook Air - Specs and Power

Microsoft Surface Pro 3 - Intel Core i3/i5/i7, 4GB or 8GB RAM, Intel HD Graphics 4400, 64GB/ 128GB/256GB/512GB storage

MacBook Air - Intel Core i5/i7, 4GB or 8GB RAM, Intel HD Graphics 5000, 128GB/256GB/512GB storage

Performance looks to be similar between these two premium portables. Both offer a choice of Intel Core i5 and i7 Haswell processors, though the Surface Pro 3 also comes with an optional i3 for those on a budget.

For both devices, you could say that the Core i5 is the standard model, and the Surface Pro 3 appears to have the slightly faster variant. However, the MacBook Air for its part has the better integrated Intel GPU - it uses the Intel HD 5000 chip rather than the HD 4440 type seen in the Surface Pro 3.

Both devices match up on RAM - a choice of 4GB or 8GB - and storage, though the Surface Pro 3 also offers an entry-level 64GB model in addition to 128GB, 256GB, and 512GB iterations.

The Microsoft Surface Pro 3 has a small advantage on the camera front, as it has 5-megapixel 1080p snappers front and back. Not that we’d ever condone using a large tablet for taking pictures, but it might play a part in your decision if you partake in frequent conference calls.

Conversely, the MacBook Air is better connected, with two USB ports compared to the Surface Pro 3’s one.

Surface Pro 3 vs MacBook Air - Windows or Mac OSX?

Microsoft Surface Pro 3 - Windows 8.1

MacBook Air - Mac OS X 10.9 Mavericks

Possibly even more than the form, your choice between these two devices will probably come down to your OS preference. It’s an age-old question - are you a Mac person or a PC person?

The two platforms have arguably never been more distinct. Mac OS X continues to be a rock solid traditional OS built on little icons, overlapping windows, and folders. It’s mouse/touchpad-driven, and closely related to the desktop operating system you were using in the '90s (albeit considerably sharper).

Windows 8.1, on the other hand, is a divisively bold attempt to reinvent the OS for the modern age. As such, it’s built around touchscreen inputs, and is designed primarily with tablet-sized screens in mind.

Don’t expect Apple to join Microsoft in this convergent way of thinking. It believes that laptop operating systems should remain separate from mobile ones. So your choice here is almost a philosophical one.

We’d say that for sheer productivity and efficiency, Mac OS X remains the better option. If you often find yourself with a heavy workload whilst out and about, working with documents and spreadsheets and creative projects, Mac OS X is tough to beat.

For a slightly more casual approach, or if you’re heavily tied into the Microsoft ecosystem (Office is a difficult thing to shake), Windows 8.1 might be more suitable for you. It is a also better for games.

Surface Pro 3 vs MacBook Air - Battery Life

Microsoft Surface Pro 3 - 9 hours web browsing

MacBook Air - 12 hours web browsing

The MacBook Air has legendary battery life, which works out to around 12 hours of web browsing.

Microsoft shouldn’t feel too bad for falling short with the Surface Pro 3's nine hours, as none of its direct Windows Ultrabook rivals have managed to match it. And besides, nine hours of web browsing is still pretty decent.

We’ll have to wait until we have a Surface Pro 3 in to test before we can test its stamina in real world scenarios, but it looks like the MacBook Air retains an advantage here.

First Impressions

An initial glance at Microsoft’s new tablet-laptop hybrid fails to tells us definitively whether Apple needs to be worried. The company line would probably be that Microsoft is making a mistake in continuing on its "jack of all trades" path.

But what’s clear is that Microsoft is gunning directly for the MacBook Air with the Surface Air 3, and has made improvements to its formula accordingly.

The device is now more usable as a pure laptop, with a larger, square display and a better kickstand. It’s also lighter and thinner than the MacBook Air, thus robbing the Apple device of one of its key selling points.

As a pure portable workhorse, though, we can’t see the Surface Pro 3 taking the MacBook Air’s crown. We remain open to being convinced otherwise, but there remains much to be said for having a pure, speedy OS X experience on a tiny, rigid clamshell device.

What the Surface Pro 3 does mean for Apple, if anything, is that it needs to improve. The next iteration of the MacBook Air simply must have a Retina display and an even sleeker chassis if it’s to avoid a bumpy ride from this bright new challenger.



Next, read our best Windows laptops and tablets round-up

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Philips 55PFS6609 TV Review

What is the Philips 55PFS6609?

The Philips 55PFS6609 is a full HD 55-inch TV equipped with a dual-core processor, an ultra-slim aluminium chassis, and a two-sided incarnation of Philips’ exclusive Ambilight technology, which uses LED to create ambient light with a similar hue and intensity to what's on-screen.

Philips 55PFS6609: Design and Features

The 55PFS6609 is a seriously gorgeous TV. Its polished aluminium finish, ultra-slim bezel, striking gloss white rear and remarkably minimalistic open stand all set it apart from most of its current rivals. Especially when you also throw into the mix the not at all insignificant matter of Ambilight.

This exclusive Philips technology finds – in this instance – rows of LEDs mounted on the TV’s rear left and right sides able to emit light that matches, with remarkable accuracy, the colour content and intensity of the pictures you’re watching.

This year there are some significant extra features associated with Ambilight too. The most fun new feature is the football mode which, in conjunction with the Ambilight TV app for iOS and Android, illuminates the wall behind your TV with the colours of your chosen country flag and flashes in celebration when your team scores. Awesome!

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There’s also a welcome new Gaming Mode, which improves Ambilight dynamics so the system can track even the most rapid of action scenes. And finally most of Philips’ new Ambilight models carry the Ambilight hue feature built in (without the need for tablets or smartphones), enabling you to combine Ambilight with Philips’ Hue remote-controlled lightbulb system.

Ambilight hue is brilliant fun and so long as you don’t use it on too high an intensity level, it really adds another dimension to your viewing experience.

Having ticked pretty much every design box, the 55PFS6609 also offers an interesting feature combination. The most striking discovery is that despite its super-slim design the set uses a direct LED lighting system – where the LEDs sit behind the screen – rather than the edge LED system we would have expected. In fact, remarkably, every set from the 6609 series down in Philips’ new range uses direct LED systems.

Historically, direct LED lighting systems have delivered superior contrast performances to their edge LED counterparts. This one, moreover, is supported by a Micro Dimming Pro system that divides the picture into thousands of small sections for more accurate analysis by – and thus more accurate results from – Philips’ image processing systems. The Pro bit indicates, moreover, that the picture optimization system can also run in conjunction with an ambient light sensor built into the TV.

Please note, though, that Micro Dimming Pro doesn’t deliver any local dimming, where separate sections of the LED lights can be controlled individually.

The 55PFS6609’s processing systems are built around the combination of a dual-core ‘brain’ and Philips’ Pixel Precise HD engine. Given that the 55PFS6609 sits pretty high up in Philips’ range – especially as the 8000 top-end series are not being brought to the UK – it’s perhaps surprising that the 55PFS6609 doesn’t carry Philips’ top-line Perfect Pixel HD engine. But there’s actually a pretty simple answer as to why Philips has applied its step-down processing engine to the 55PFS6609: price.

Philips is convinced the most important thing it needs to achieve this year on its long road back to AV recovery is price competitiveness with its cut-throat rivals. And so the 55PFS6609 can be found selling right now for £1,200 – a very fair price for a TV that looks as great and carries as many features as this Philips model.

It’s also important to stress that Pixel Precise HD is hardly some ‘back to basics’ engine. It includes elements designed to tackle almost every element of picture quality, including contrast, colour, sharpness and motion reproduction, all of which can be adjusted – or deactivated - to suit the demands of a particular source and your own tastes.

A combination of the set’s scanning backlight, natural 100Hz refresh rate and frame interpolation, meanwhile, delivers a pseudo 400Hz effect, while the TV’s 3D playback is based around the full HD active system, with two pairs of free glasses provided.

Connections on the 55PFS6609 comprise four HDMIs, two USBs (which support both recording from the Freeview HD tuner and playback of photo, video and music multimedia from USB storage devices), and both LAN and integrated Wi-Fi network options for streaming from networked PCs or going online with the latest Philips Smart TV system.

We’ll look at this system in detail in a future separate article, but we’ll quickly say here that it’s a solid improvement over the very content-light and rough and ready-looking system from 2013, running much quicker and looking a whole lot prettier. The system is capable of learning your viewing habits and recommending content accordingly, and there seems to be more content too, with highlights of BBC News/Sport/iPlayer, Netflix, YouTube, Spotify and Blinkbox. There’s still no 4OD, Five Demand, ITV Player or Amazon Instant/Prime at the time of writing, though.

Philips 55PFS6609: Set Up

The initial set up routine that kicks in when you first switch the 55PFS6609 on is pretty decent, to a point. It guides you through source connection, tuning and network connection quite nicely, though things get a bit strange with the small section at the end where it tries to help you get pictures to your tastes. In short, we didn’t entirely feel sure what we trying to accomplish here, and the control system involved is also rather odd.

As ever with Philips TVs you need to take care with the settings for its processing tools. Certainly you should only use tools like a the dynamic contrast system, noise reduction systems and, especially, the HD Natural Motion systems on their lowest power settings at most, and you may find you prefer to turn some or even all of the processing tools off with certain types of footage.

Certainly noise reduction has no place in an HD picture in our opinion, and the HD Natural Motion while useful for some broadcasts can also be problematic with films, where even the lowest setting can cause some unwanted side effects like flicker and shimmering halos around moving objects.

The notion of adjusting processing elements on a per input and even a per programme basis obviously doesn’t make the 55PFS6609 the easiest TV to use. But in truth it’s not as complicated as it sounds, and our experience in the end was that we only really felt the need to make changes relatively rarely – mostly when watching films.

We would say, though, that we often found ourselves wishing that Philips organized its basic picture controls in a more straightforward backlight/contrast/colour/brightness/sharpness list format rather than dividing these core settings up into separate areas.

Our main recommendations are that you turn off the Super Resolution feature (which generally just turns sharpness into noise) and, if you’re watching a grainy film, that you turn the sharpness down maybe even all the way to zero. Plus if you become aware of aggressive shifts in the picture’s overall brightness level try adjusting the ‘Contrast Modes’ feature to Standard or even off rather than using the Best Power and Best Picture options, and make sure the Dynamic Contrast feature is set to minimum or again turned off.

We didn’t find the set’s presets particularly helpful either, with each provided option only treatable as a ‘starting point’. For instance, the Movie mode does a decent job of optimizing backlight levels and colour temperature for film viewing, but it also leaves far too much noise reduction on, along with the Super Resolution feature which plays havoc with any film that’s got a bit of natural grain in it.

From this it’s clear that usability remains an area Philips needs to work on, as the effort required to optimize picture quality – at least with films – remains higher than it should be. Especially in a world where 90% of people apparently never adjust their TVs again once the initial installation has taken place.

One final point to add here is that the TV is equipped with day and night ‘ISF’ presets so that a qualified ISF calibrator could be paid to come round and do all the tricky set up work for you, on a per-source basis. This will cost you anywhere between £250 and £450 though.

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Watch Dogs launch trailer released

Ubisoft has released the official Watch Dogs launch trailer ahead of the game's release date on May 27.

Building the hype around the new IP just five days before release, Ubisoft has released the final trailer preparing fans for launch.

The launch trailer runs just under two minutes long and gives a brief introduction to the game's storyline.

"I saw something no-one was meant to see and so they came after me. But someone f**ked up and the wrong person died. Now, I'm coming for them", says protagonist Aiden Pearce in the launch trailer.

Within the trailer, you get a taste of the hacking powers at Pearce's disposal, as well as the game's visual effects and driving sequences.

The game launches for PS4, PS3, PC, Xbox One and Xbox 360 on May 27, with special bonus content for the PlayStation editions.

This newest trailer follows in the wake of the full leaked Watch Dogs map earlier today, which gets compared to the sheer scale of the GTA 5 map.

Read more: Xbox One vs PS4

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Zelda: Hyrule Warriors screenshots show Impa is playable character

The official Japanese website for Zelda: Hyrule Warriors on the Wii U has just gone live, revealing a new playable character.

Tecmo Koei, the Zelda Wii U publisher, has launched the official website for the game, which has given us some new details about the upcoming title.

Sadly, the majority of the site is in Japanese for now, but there are several things to be gleaned from the 27 brand new screenshots the site has provided us with.

Firstly, the game will let you play as Zelda series regular Impa, as you can see in the screenshots above and below.

We’re not quite sure how and when you’ll be able to play as Impa, as Link is still shown off in the screenshots in a rather fetching blue scarf.

The story will involve Shia the witch turning evil and kidnapping Princess Zelda, but at the moment it’s not clear how Impa will play into this.

The official site also details that the game will offer a two-player mode, where one of you can play on the Wii U GamePad and the other on the TV.

It looks like there will be a Treasure Box Collector’s Edition of Zelda: Hyrule Warrior, which will contain an art book, Triforce-shaped clock, a treasure chest box with sound effects, your very own version of Link’s aforementioned scarf, and three costume-related DLC.

Although the Zelda: Hyrule Warriors release date has been set for August 14 in Japan, there is currently no information as to when the game will arrive in other regions.

To see the screenshots in full, head to the Tecmo Koei Zelda: Hyrule Warriors website.



Read more: E3 2014 predictions

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iPhone 6 compared to all previous iPhones

The iPhone 6 dummy has been compared to all previous iPhones in an extensive photography session.

Although this is only an iPhone 6 mock-up from the leaked schematics that emerged earlier this month, it gives us a good look at how the potential 4.7-inch flagship matches up against previous iPhone iterations.

Notorious insider, Sonny Dickson has lined up this iPhone 6 prototype against iPhone models from the original iPhone right up to the iPhone 5S and everything in between.

It’s interesting to see the size differences between the iPhone 6 and the three screen sizes Apple’s phones have come though.

If the rumours are correct, the iPhone 6 could be the first major redesign the iPhone has had in years.

From the looks of the leaks we’ve seen so far, the iPhone 6 will take some design cues from the iPod Touch, with curved edges, coloured metallic body and elongated volume button similar to the iPad Air.

The iPhone 6 is expected to feature a 4.7-inch 1704 x 960p HD resolution screen and run on the new Apple A8 processer when it is launched later this year.

The new processor isn’t expected to bring huge speed improvements over the iPhone 5S’ A7 CPU, but will instead focus on big battery efficiency boosts.

As for the operating system, the iPhone 6 is expected to be the first device to run iOS 8 – a new health centric mobile operating system with slight UI modifications to boot.

Some of the photos from Dickson’s shoot are featured below, with the iPhone 6 compared to the iPod Touch in the last set.

Read more: iPhone 6 vs iPhone 5S

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DriveClub will ‘live or die on the community’ says developer

DriveClub is set to land later this year, and the game’s assistant director has stated that the title will ‘live or die’ on the activity of its social community.

The PS4 exclusive racer is to bring new social and connected elements to the racing genre, and without a continued base of active gamers, the DriveClub experience will ultimately unravel.

“It’s important for us to build a community,” Simon Barlow, DriveClub’s Assistant Game Director said speaking with TrustedReviews. “The way the game is structured, the game lives or dies on the community.”

He added: “If nobody plays it regularly it falls apart.”

Highlighting his concerns, Barlow looked to the state of the MMO genre as a warning as to what could potentially happen to DriveClub without some serious longevity and interaction from gamers.

“You look at any MMO, and certainly the older MMOs where the community is dying away a bit and going to the next one, it feels empty,” Barlow said. “The world feels very barren.

“Those games don’t work without a community. While DriveClub provides a lot more single player gaming than your average MMO a lot of those systems rely on that community."

In order to widen the reach of the game, Sony will make DriveClub available through PlayStation Plus as well as a disc-based release.

Discussing this decision Barlow stated: “We had to do everything we could to get it into as many people’s hands as we could.

“Our hope is that the game speaks for itself and that if people play it and enjoy it they will eventually upgrade or buy the Blu-ray and I guess that’s what pays for the continuity of the title.”

A game built around social collaboration, DriveClub will see gamers enjoy an always connected racer about working together with online friends to earn further rewards.

Having originally been planned as a PS4 launch title, DriveClub has faced a number of delays and will now hit the UK on October 10.

Read More: Best Games 2014

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Samsung Galaxy S5 Active to feature OIS and Active Key?

Samsung Galaxy S5 Active Key

The Samsung Galaxy S5 Active features should include optical image stabilisation (OIS) and a new Active Key.

A tonne of hands-on videos with the rugged version of the flagship Samsung Galaxy S5 have leaked online, revealing several of the handset’s unique features.

The latest video shows off a new hardware key next to the volume rocker, known as the Active Key.

The functionality of this button can be customised according to your own needs through a new menu within the Settings.

For example, the video suggests a long press could be used to launch the Camera app, while a short press would bring up the Activity Zone, which offers access to apps like the compass, stopwatch and torch.

This Active key can also be used as a dedicated shutter button when in the camera mode, which should help with underwater photography when you can’t use the phone’s touchscreen.

A separate video also suggest the Samsung Galaxy S5 Active will come with optical image stabilisation (OIS).

However, it could be that the increase image stability comes from software image stabilisation, as it would be odd to add OIS hardware to anything but the flagship model.

This pair of new videos follows an S5 Active benchmark video leak that suggests the rugged version will pack the same specs as the flagship S5.

The Galaxy S5 Active then will come with a full 1080p HD Super AMOLED display running on a 2.5GHz quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 processor with 2GB of RAM.

There will be the same 16-megapixel rear camera and of course the S5 Active will be powered by Android 4.4.2 KitKat with the latest Touchwiz UI.

Basically the only differences between the S5 and the S5 Active will be external by the looks of it, apart from the possible OIS.

The Galaxy S5 launched with water- and dust-resistant certification, which was the main difference between the Samsung Galaxy S4 and the Galaxy S4 Active, so the S5 Active will focus on being more impervious to drops, scratches and cracks.



Read more: Samsung Galaxy S5 vs HTC One M8

Via: Sammobile

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Windows 9 and Windows Phone 9 preview coming 2015?

Microsoft should release the Windows 9 and Windows Phone 9 preview builds in 2015.

Despite Windows Phone 8.1 still not yet being widely available, Microsoft is already beavering away on Windows Phone 9, which should arrive in early 2015.

A leaked internal Microsoft document obtained by Myce mentions that the planned preview releases for both Windows 9 and Windows Phone 9 lie in Q2 – Q3 2015.

This is quite a wide launch window, as that means we could see the previews arrive anywhere between April and September next year.

Earlier rumours pegged the Windows 9 release date for April at the next Microsoft Build Developers’ Conference, so this document certainly adds weight to those rumours.

Within the leaked document is also reference to something called Windows 365, which is labelled as being “alpha based on Windows Core”.

Microsoft already has Office 365, its cloud-powered, subscription version of Office, so this Office 365 may be connected in some way.

Satya Nadella, the new Microsoft CEO, said the company is going to heavily focus on its cloud offerings and will integrate more products with the cloud going forward.

Windows 365 could be an operating system of some sorts, but the leaked document doesn’t state what devices this could be for. Could it be a subscription version of Windows?

Microsoft previously confirmed that it is looking to achieve total operating software convergence in the future, making Windows appear the same on all platforms.

It took a huge step towards this goal in April when announcing “universal Windows apps”. This allows developers to create apps that work across all Windows devices, whether that be Windows 8.1, Windows Phone 8.1 or even the Xbox One.



Read more: Windows Phone 8.1 Update - Features to expect

Via: PhoneArena

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HTC Desire 610 Phone Review

What is the HTC Desire 610?

HTC clearly spoke too soon when it said it was going to stop making so many devices in 2012 because of the cheap Chinese competition. It's cranking more phones than ever and the HTC Desire 610 is it's latest, a mid-range 4G phone that's half the price HTC One M8 and replaces the HTC Desire 601.

With great value offerings like the Motorola Moto G (and its recent 4G update) shifting our expectations for budget phones, does the HTC Desire 610 do enough to justify it’s £249/$400 price?

HTC Desire 610 – Design

Delicate it is not. Available in red, white or dark blue, the HTC Desire 610 comes in chunky two-tone plastic. The back is shiny and withstands scratches well, although the blue version we’re testing does gather greasy fingerprints easily. It doesn’t feel quite as high quality as the plastic on some phones like the iPhone 5C or high-end Nokias, but it does feel very solid.

The sides and front are covered with a grippier matt plastic, which works rather well. Not only does it prevent the HTC Desire 610 from slipping through your fingers, the two-tone design also gives the phone a stylish charm.

Unfortunately, some of this is lost by the sheer size of the phone. Measuring in at a mighty 153.1 x 70.5 x 9.6mm and weighing in at a more modest 143.5g, the Desire 610 is chunkier than it should be considering its 4.7-inch screen size and 2,040mAh battery. By comparison it’s a full millimetre taller and 1.5mm thicker than the 5.1-inch Samsung Galaxy S5. If you don’t like big phones you will want to steer clear, although this is still smaller than phablets.

SEE ALSO: Best Cheap Phones Round-up



Much of the extra height comes from the chunky bezels and the inclusion of stereo speakers, one above the screen and one below. This helps with the stereo separation; we’ll go into more detail on that later. But in our eyes the 4mm bezels on the side of the screen age the design and make the HTC Desire 610 look less contemporary than it should – it’s clear that HTC focussed its major design efforts on the One M8.

Despite its size the Desire 610 is easy to hold. The soft rounded edges and good balance mean it’s not awkward to use for extended periods. It may not be the most delicate phone but the HTC Desire 610 is solidly built. From the tough plastic exterior to the robust nano-SIM and microSD slot cover, you won’t find any quality issues here.

ALSO CONSIDER: Best Android Phones

HTC Desire 610 – Screen

The 4.7-inch screen on the HTC Desire 610 has a resolution of 960 x 540 pixels. If you think that’s low for a screen of this size you’d be right. Thankfully, while the 236 pixels per inch density is not very high, colour accuracy is decent and so are viewing angles. Both videos and pictures look good and contrast is strong enough to let details become apparent even in dimly lit scenes. We’re particularly pleased that there’s no sign of oversaturated colours – a fad which seems to be afflicting an increasing number of phones and tablets over the last few years.

Brightness levels are not outstanding but are acceptable. Even on a surprisingly sunny London weekend the screen was visible enough at full brightness to be usable even, though the thin lines of the touch screen layer become visible at certain angles.

Yet there’s no getting away from the lack of sharpness. Although it’s apparent in video when compared to a 720p screen, it’s when looking at text that you’re more likely to notice it’s not quite as sharp as some phones that cost a fair bit less. Webpage text is sharp enough when zoomed out but has a faint fuzziness when zoomed in. It’s certainly not a showstopper, though, since all text can still be read comfortably.

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Motorola Moto 360 price leaks as sub-£150

The Motorola Moto 360 price has been inadvertently confirmed, with Motorola revealing the Android Wear smartwatch will set wannabe owners back $249 (£147).

Although the round-faced Moto 360 has been formally unveiled, Motorola is still to offer many concrete details or specs on the upcoming LG G Watch rival.

Now, however, the American manufacturer as accidentally confirmed the device’s cost, with the Moto 360 price to be $249.

Motorola revealed the 360 price via a competition surrounding the timepiece. Offering eager consumers the chance to win a 360 simply by designing a face for the device, the competition’s terms and conditions list the Moto 360 as featuring a $249 “approximate retail value.”

Although a direct exchange sees this US fee convert to £147, given the customary price hike for UK launches, we can see this being closer to the £200, or even the £249 marker once it makes the trip to our fair shores.

If you happen to be travelling stateside later this year though, you might just be able to snap up a Moto 360 for less than £150.

Earlier this week, leaks out of the European supply chain hinted that the Moto 360 would cost €249 on the continent, a price which converts to a little over £200.

One of the most eagerly awaited wearables of the moment, the Moto 360 looks set to take smartwatches to a new level, bringing the techy wrist wear closer in line with traditional watches.

Building the hype around the 360 launch, Mark Randall, Motorola’s Senior Vice President of Supply Chain recently spoke out on the watch’s current rivals.

Speaking exclusively with TrustedReviews, the Motorola Senior VP branded all existing smartwatches “crappy”.

“Moto 360 is a really cool device that we think solves a lot of problems that no one else has solved in the wearables space,” he told us.

“We look at the 360 and we look at what everyone has done in that space. To be honest we think they are all pretty crappy.”

He added: “We think people just don’t want to wear a lot of the devices that are out there today.”

Read More: Samsung Gear 2 review

Via: PhoneArena

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Watch Dogs map leaked in full, compared to GTA 5

The Watch Dogs map has been leaked in full and it pales in comparison to the sheer size and scale of GTA 5.

With less than a week until the Watch Dogs release date on May 27, there were bound to be an increase in leaked content surrounding the game.

However, Ubisoft probably weren’t expecting the game’s map to be leaked in its near completion.

The map was constructed in Photoshop by a Reddit user using a leaked video and there are possibly six distinct districts for the Watch Dogs version of Chicago.

The Reddit user has warned that the reproduction and size may not be 100 per cent accurate, but did say that the error margins were around 10 to 20 per cent.

If these diagrams are accurate, Watch Dogs should offer a map with a similar size to GTA 4, but nowhere near the vast landscape of GTA 5 released at the end of 2013.

To help you gauge the size, the user layered the GTA 4 map over the GTA 5 one and then added in the Watch Dogs map in between the two.

The Watch Dogs map is slightly larger than GTA 4, but is more close to that game’s size than GTA 5 as you can see below.

Check out the maps below and let us know what you think of the potential size of Watch Dogs in the comments. We’d love to hear your thoughts.

Read more: GTA 5 Guide

GTA 5 vs GTA 4

GTA 5 vs Watch Dogs (black) vs GTA 4 (green)

Via: Gaming Bolt

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