Square Enix has announced today that it has teamed up with the company Ankama. Ankama is responsible for a free to play MMORPG called Wafku. The game Wakfu features 12 character classes to choose from and the game is turn-based with tactical combat. Each class features its own set of 25 spells to choose from and character customization features to make your character stand out from others. Here is what Mike Fischer, president and CEO of Square Enix said about the team up:

Teaming with Ankama for the North American release of WAKFU is a natural fit, given their propensity to develop story-driven gameplay experiences. WAKFU will fascinate players of all ages with its engaging storyline and beautiful environments.

Emmanuel Darras, CEO and co-founder of Ankama said the following as well:

Given our common knowledge of tactical fighting systems and engaging multiplayer experiences, Square Enix constitutes the ideal teammate for Ankama. his teaming is a key factor for the success of WAKFU’s transmedia universe that includes the WAKFU TV series, the MMO, the trading card game, the manga and the action figures.

This deal with Square Enix and Ankama should create some exciting news as the release nears for PC. Now news yet if it will be available on consoles. Check out the demo video below.

Full Press Release:

Square Enix Teams With Ankama

Tactical MMORPG WAKFU to Make North American Debut

LOS ANGELES, Sept. 3 /PRNewswire/ — Square Enix, Inc., the publisher of SQUARE ENIX® interactive entertainment products in North America, announced today that it has teamed with Ankama and will release the free-to-play MMORPG WAKFU for Windows® PC in North America. Featuring turn-based, tactical combat, players will choose from 12 character classes as they are whisked away to the vibrant, anime-style world of WAKFU.

“Teaming with Ankama for the North American release of WAKFU is a natural fit, given their propensity to develop story-driven gameplay experiences,” said Mike Fischer, president and chief executive officer of Square Enix, Inc. “WAKFU will fascinate players of all ages with its engaging storyline and beautiful environments.”

Offering a deep, tactical MMORPG experience, WAKFU challenges players to bring hope back to the universe. Players have the option to choose between 12 playable classes, each with its own set of 25 spells. WAKFU also comes complete with a full set of character customization features, allowing players to make characters that stand out from the crowd.

“Given our common knowledge of tactical fighting systems and engaging multiplayer experiences, Square Enix constitutes the ideal teammate for Ankama,” said Emmanuel Darras, CEO and co-founder of Ankama. “This teaming is a key factor for the success of WAKFU’s transmedia universe that includes the WAKFU TV series, the MMO, the trading card game, the manga and the action figures.”

For more information about WAKFU, please visit the official website at http://www.wakfu.com/na

About WAKFU

Story

In the time of Dofus, an ogre named Ogrest managed to acquire six rare Dofus eggs for the sake of someone he loved. However, she was interested only in the eggs, and Ogrest killed her in a fit of rage. After realizing what he had done, Ogrest climbed to a mountaintop and cried for several hundred years, bringing utter ruin to the universe.

Features

• Freedom of Choice – Players can choose to be an insanely-strong warrior, a magical healer, an assassin or even a summoner of plants or animals, among several other playable character classes, each with a total of 25 spells.
• Strategic Gameplay – The turn-based, tactical combat system challenges players to size up their opponents and think their way through battles
• Evolving Environments – In WAKFU, a player’s actions affect the environment. If they kill a monster, it might be gone for good, and if they mine an ore, it might never appear in the game again. Players will have to carefully choose when they should protect or exploit their environment’s natural resources
• Dynamic Challenges – Unique, area-specific quests keep players entertained as they adventure through the various parts of the world
• Wicked Humor – Players will notice an unusual sense of humor, as WAKFU is the only place where they’ll find a suit of armor that makes the wearer look like a giant rabbit
• Customizable Characters – Players can bring their characters to life with a robust set of customization features. Purple hair? Check. Grey skin? Check. A far-out hairstyle? Check.

About Square Enix, Inc.

Square Enix, Inc. is a U.S. based wholly-owned subsidiary of Square Enix Holdings Co., Ltd., a holding company leading Square Enix Group. Square Enix, Inc. publishes and distributes entertainment content under the Square Enix Group’s internationally renowned brands such as Square Enix, Eidos® and Taito® in the Americas. The Square Enix Group includes a global network of leading development studios located in North America, Europe and Japan. The Group boasts a valuable portfolio of intellectual property including: FINAL FANTASY®, which has sold over 97 million units worldwide; DRAGON QUEST®, which has sold over 54 million units worldwide; TOMB RAIDER®, which has sold over 35 million units worldwide; and other well-established products and services.

More information on Square Enix, Inc. can be found on the Internet at http://www.square-enix.com.

About ANKAMA

Founded by Anthony Roux, Camille Chafer and Emmanuel Darras in Roubaix, France in 2001, ANKAMA is an independent group which produces digital creations and employs over 400 people. The international success of the group’s MMORPG DOFUS, with more than 35 million players, enabled ANKAMA to branch out into several related industries: online games, publishing, animations, web design, press, mobile phone services, video games for next gen’ consoles. ANKAMA is developing Wakfu, a transmedia project composed of animated cartoon, video game, card game and comic book. For more information, visit our official website: www.wakfu.com

WAKFU and DOFUS are registered trademarks of Ankama Games.  DRAGON QUEST, FINAL FANTASY, SQUARE ENIX and the SQUARE ENIX logo are registered trademarks of Square Enix Holdings Co., Ltd.  Eidos and Tomb Raider are registered trademarks of Square Enix, Ltd.  Taito is a registered trademark of Taito Corp. Windows is a registered trademark of Microsoft Corporation.

SOURCE Square Enix, Inc.

Today at PAX Duke Nukem Forever was revealed. The long awaited game thought to be a myth is going to be completed by GearBox and released on consoles and PC in the near future. No exact dates for release yet but more will come as PAX continues. For now check out the video below and please don’t drool.

Source: CrunchGear

Img Source: Pikimal

We just got an update from Samsung, a video of a video call with Fring has surfaced on the web. Its not clear which messengers support video calling yet but its still pretty cool to see. Apple better watch out the Galaxy Tab might bring in some fierce competition.

Hey guys, Samsung has officially released a commercial for the Samsung Galaxy Tab. Check out the video below and let us know what you think.

Read the full Press Release below:

Samsung GALAXY Tab Opens a New Chapter in Mobile Industry

A New Smart Media Device, surpasses mobile boundaries, allowing you to enjoy more possibilities on the go
01 September 2010

Berlin, Germany, September 2nd, 2010 – Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd, a global leader in mobile technology, today announced the launch of the Samsung GALAXY Tab (Model: GT-P1000). Powered by Android Operating System 2.2, the Samsung GALAXY Tab is the first of the company’s tablet devices, representing a new category of mobile products for Samsung.

The Samsung GALAXY Tab brings together all of Samsung’s leading innovations to provide users with more capabilities while on the move. Consumers are able to experience PC-like web-browsing and enjoy all forms of multimedia content on the perfectly sized 7-inch display, wherever they go. Moreover, users can continuously communicate via e-mail, voice and video call, SMS/MMS or social network with the optimized user interface.

“Samsung recognizes the tremendous growth potential in this newly created market and we believe that the Samsung GALAXY Tab brings a unique and open proposition to market. There is a new and emerging consumer demand that Samsung can satisfy since mobile is in our DNA. This demand continues to grow and develop as users tap its limitless potential,” said JK Shin, President and Head of Mobile Communications Business, Samsung Electronics. “The Samsung GALAXY Tab has been designed to enable consumers to maximize their online experience wherever that may be. The Samsung GALAXY Tab is pushing the market in new directions and Samsung believes this is only the beginning of its innovations as pioneers in smart media devices.”

A new concept of mobility for media

As a new category of device, the Samsung GALAXY Tab brings a wealth of mobile experiences. Its striking 7” TFT-LCD display delivers exciting mobile experience for watching films, viewing pictures, e-reading or sharing documents. In design, its light (380g) build provides perfect portability, with its svelte dimensions making it easy to grip and use. Supporting the latest Adobe Flash Player 10.1, the Samsung GALAXY Tab fully supports swift, seamless viewing of every single page of the web.

The ‘Readers Hub,’ Samsung’s unique e-reading application, provides easy access to a vast digital library – from classical literature to the latest bestsellers and reference materials. At the same time, Samsung unveils ‘Media Hub,’ a gateway to a world of films and videos, and ‘Music Hub,’ an application giving access to a wide range of music tunes.

The Samsung GALAXY Tab has made rich communication truly mobile; it presents a level of converged technology that moves beyond mobile or PC to an entirely new category. Users have new powers to consume, create and communicate from wherever they are.

Powerful, always-on communication

With 3G HSPA connectivity, 802.11n Wi-Fi, and Bluetooth® 3.0, the Samsung GALAXY Tab enhances users’ mobile communication on a whole new level. Video conferencing and push email on the large 7-inch display make communication more smooth and efficient. For voice telephony, the Samsung GALAXY Tab turns out to be a perfect speakerphone on the desk, or a mobile phone on the move via Bluetooth® headset.

Powered by a Cortex A8 1.0GHz application processor, the Samsung GALAXY Tab is designed to deliver high performance whenever and wherever you are. At the same time, HD video contents are supported by a wide range of multimedia formats (DivX, XviD, MPEG4, H.263, H.264 and more), which maximizes the joy of entertainment.

While the front-facing camera allows face-to-face video telephony over 3G, the rear-facing camera captures still images and video that you can edit, upload and share, all without any hassle. As online content explodes, the Samsung GALAXY Tab is the best portable solution for every lifestyle that needs a constant connection.

The Samsung GALAXY Tab will be launched in Europe in mid September, and in other markets including Korea, the US and Asia in coming months. .

This review features a TekGoblin DoubleTake review which means you get 2 reviews from 2 different people in the same article! Why not get 2 different opinions while in the same article, read on below. First review is by Solomon M.

Alright guys, we managed to get our hands on the all new Motorola Droid 2 a few days after launch and we have to say that it definitely improves on some faults with the original Motorola Droid. Check our our unboxing video at the bottom of the post to see it in action. The Motorola Droid 2 keeps some things the same as the original Droid and some needed changes grace the device as well. The Droid 2 retains the same 3.7 inch WVGA display as previous model as well as the same camera and camcorder quality. What has improved, is the faster processor, more on-board memory, as well as a better keyboard and improved battery life, not to mention that it is the first U.S. device to come pre-stock with Android 2.2 operating system with flash 10.1.

Network:

The Motorola Droid 2 is, of course, available on the Verizon Wireless network. It is a 3G device which comes equipped with the internals to make it fly on this network operating on a CDMA 800/1900 BAND with EVDO REV. A speeds. 3G Mobile hotspot is also pre-installed on this device to enable your Droid 2 to be used a wireless router for WIFI enabled devices, for a $20 a month optional feature rate.

Body/Hardware:

Droid 2 is a touch screen device with a second layer which slides out as a tactile 4-row qwerty keyboard. It maintains the same sleek design for a touch and keyboard phone combination as the original Droid had, but it also has some unique curves. It has a 3.7-inch WVGA display (480×854 resolution), weighs 169 grams, with dimensions of 60.5×116.3×13.7mm. Standard Micro USB port for charging and data transfer and a 3.5mm headset jacks. On the inside it is WIFI and Bluetooth enabled, comes with 8GB of on-board memory in addition to a pre-installed 8GB MicroSD card (16GB total memory of the box).

The camera seems to have stayed the same on this one with the same 5 Mega-Pixel camera with dual LED flash and video capture. The frames per second has increased from 24 to 30 now, but now HD recording for the moment and we are still waiting to here back from either Verizon or Motorola if a software update for that will be released since the hardware is capable. The battery is still a 1400 mah Li-Ion, but has improved from 6.4 hours of talk time on the original Droid to 9.6 hours in the Droid 2 mostly because of the Android 2.2 operating system.

We also want to mention that the Droid 2 maintains a dedicated hardware button for easy quick access to the camera, which is something we see a lack of most other Android devices. Motorola went ahead and got rid of that obtrusive directional pad on the first Droid in favor of a wider keyboard with directional arrows instead. However, there is one thing that Motorola choose not to change which was not to include a spring loaded keyboard. So instead of having your keyboard pop right out once you nudge it out; you actually have to push the board all the way out yourself which can be somewhat of a bother especially if you are trying to hold or do multiple things with your hands at once.

Software:
The Droid 2 comes packed with Android 2.2, the latest Android operating system update, and Verizon has gone ahead an included several pre-installed on the devices such as 3G Mobile Hotspot, Skype Mobile, NFL Mobile, Need for Speed:Shift, Blockbuster, and Quickoffice. The Droid 2 also comes with the new user interface (UI) that Motorola debuted on the Droid X which is known as “TI OMAP” and brings 7 customizable home screens similar to HTC Sense. It also comes with Adobe Flash 10.1, pinch-to-zoom, Swype optional on-screen keyboard, and full Exchange support. Verizon Wireless will be offering the capability of using the Droid 2 as a mobile hotspot for an additional $20 a month for an allowance of 2GB tethering; which is in addition to your monthly required data rate of $30 for your mobile device.

Conclusion:
In all the Droid 2 looks like a moderately healthy improvement from the original Motorola Droid and, aside from the 1GHZ processor upgrade, it offers some incremental improvements all around. Current and prospective Verizon Wireless customers who are looking for a solid Android device which offers a hardware qwerty keyboard, the latest Android software, and a faster device than other Verizon smartphone hardware keyboard options such as the LG Ally, Motorola Droid 1, Motorola Devour, and Blackberry Curve should definitely keep this device on their short list. Please leave your remarks or opinions in the comments field below and share your own experiences if you own or have used the Motorola Droid 2.

Below is the DoubleTake Review for the Droid 2 by Chester Kominowski.

With my first look at the original Droid, I was impressed with the specifications & style of the phone.  Improvements I was hoping for in the second Droid were; a keyboard that included a separate line for numbers, a faster processor and an improved camera.  I’ll start with the design of the Droid ll.  Holding the phone, one of the first things I noticed was the weight. It’s slightly heavy, weighing in at 169 grams.  The style of the phone emulates the Droid but is more rounded off, giving it a sleek feel.  The first droid had a more of a robotic feel to it, that later became a selling point in commercials.  At a first look it could most certainly be called aesthetically pleasing.  Now let’s move on to the operation of the Droid ll.

After sliding out the keyboard, to my dismay I noted that the full QWERTY, like its predecessor, lacked a line dedicated to numbers.  Not entirely discouraged I continued to explore the operating system and how Motorola incorporated its software with Android Froyo (Android Version 2.2).  Being familiar with Android’s previous version, 2.1 Éclair, in my own personal device, made it easy for me to explore the phone.  The phone itself runs well, but the transition between home screen windows isn’t nearly as smooth as the Samsung Captivate or iPhone 4.  I also tested the phone’s ability to send and receive calls and text messages. I had little trouble in either area and found the menus and screens to be self explanatory.

A few noteworthy advancements on this phone are the ability to use it as a wireless router and the addition of flash 10.1. First experimenting with the wireless router I was surprised that my laptop was able to load an email page at a respectable speed, given the location was a TGI Fridays in Lafayette, Indiana & had a 3G signal.  The downside to the routing capabilities is, as you might have guessed, it’s a battery drainer!

For Android users out there now the phones on the market have a lot of the same specifications going around; a 1Ghz processor, 512 RAM, internal hard drive at least 8 Gig and a touch screen interface.  Basically, what a cell phone user is looking for now is a device that he/she personally likes; whether it has a physical keyboard or not.

In summary the Droid ll is a great phone. It does have a physical keyboard–an advantage for users who can’t let go of pushing a button.  The phone continues to compete with general specifications of the other leading Android phones and the iPhone, along with some improvements (flash 10.1 & wireless router).  Thanks for reading comments would be appreciated !

TekGoblin Official Rating: 3.5 Gears

Twitter has officially launched their Twitter App for the iPad. Now I know there are other Twitter Apps for the iPad so why should you get this one, let me tell you.

The new Twitter App just looks amazing and allows you to navigate Twitter differently than before. For example, in your time line you can just pinch a tweet to expand it and collapse it. Also if you touch a tweet that has a URL in it, a window will slide in next to your time line and load the web page. If you simply touch a normal tweet it will open up the users profile and actions you can perform on that user for example: follow, share, mentions, favorites, tweets, and lists.

The new Twitter App is sleek and easy to use and I do recommend that you try it out it is available on the App store at the link below.

The Nano includes a built in FM radio, a clock, Nike Pedometer integration. The Nano has a clip on the back so you can easily clip it to your shirt instead of using an armband.

They have improved the battery, it now lasts 24 hours with audio playback. The new Nano seems to be revolutionary again, we will have to see how well the new Nano performs when released. Check out the photos below with the comparison against the touch screen vs the completed Nano.

At Apples media event today Apple revealed the new redesigned Apple TV. The new Apple TV is 1/4 the size of the original. The new Apple TV includes an HDMI port, Ethernet Port, Power, 802.11n Wifi capabilities, USB, Optical Audio. The USB was seen in the video but they did not mention what the USB port was actually used for. This all new Apple TV is now $99, which is down from its $299 previous price tag.

Apple TV will no longer offer purchased movies and videos it is now only rentals. The reason behind this was cheaper prices overall, and the Apple TV can be cheaper because there is no storage inside. All video is HD when available of’course at 720p, they did not go with 1080p because they figured 720p was a happy medium between quality and bandwidth.

First run HD movies start at $4.99, and cheaper thereafter. TV shows are now $.99 in HD and no commercials, that is CHEAP. The first studios to offer TV is ABC and Fox, with more studios to join later.

Streaming from your PC will be available with Apple TV, as well as streaming from the iPad. Yes you heard right, the iPad, you will be able to view all of your purchased content that you bought on your iPad right on your TV over 802.11n. Netflix is also available on Apple TV and of’course in 720p. YouTube is also included, as well as MobileMe, Internet Radio, and Flikr.

With a pricetag of $99 we can expect the Apple TV to sell like hotcakes, I may even purchase one .

My Droid 2 finally got the notification today to update to Froyo 2.2.20. The update came a week after the official release and issues Verizon had deploying the software update. The update is very small at only 3.7mb but addresses the following issues:

• Enabled text and picture message scrolling.
• Streamlined set up of Visual Voice Mail feature.
• Improved contact sync with Corporate Exchange categories
• and groups.
• View accurate contact pictures when reviewing Recent Call Log.

Apples media press conference on September 1st will be broadcast live on Apple.com on Wednesday. The even is supposed to include music and possibly an announcement for Apple TV or new iPod Touch’s. The broadcast begins at 10:00 am PDT on Apple.com so be there or be square. I know, that was corny .

Viewing requires either a Mac® running Safari® on Mac OS® X version 10.6 Snow Leopard®, an iPhone® or iPod touch® running iOS 3.0 or higher, or an iPad™.

Source: Apple

Major Nelson has announced on his blog that there will be a new Xbox 360 controller. The new controller also features a transforming D-Pad which will transform between the classic and new D-Pad styles. Confused? This is what it looks like below:

To change between the 2 styles of D-Pads all you do is twist the button and it changes. I am not really sure why this change was needed for the controller but I am sure it will be welcomed to gamers that needed it. Controller will only be sold in the play and charge kit for $64.99 on November 9th in the US, February for the UK. Check out the video below of Major Nelson explaining the new change. If you liked the new controller let us know, even if you hated it too!

Source: MajorNelson

CultofMac reports that the upcoming iOS 4.1 update for the iPhone 4 will not correct the proximity sensor issues some of us are having. The issue is that when you hold the phone up to your ear the screen is supposed to shut off to prevent accidental inputs, but for many users the opposite is happening.

An Apple Spokesperson spoke to Fiona Martin confirmed that the fix may not actually fix the problem. TheNextWeb who actually spoke to Fiona had this to say:

Apple Australia spokeswoman Fiona Martin has acknowledged that the company has yet to fix the proximity sensor issue, something that will have iPhone 4 users up in arms when they download the update, only to find the problems are still apparent.

Apples media press conference this Wednesday may reveal more than what we initially thought. Apple may have to address the issue of the proximity sensor with us, maybe admit a hardware bug or failure, or possible manufacturing defect. Stay tuned as we get closer to Apples press conference on Wednesday.

Source: CultOfMac, TheNextWeb

Alexa is a service that provides information about websites and traffic rankings. They rank each site based on a number of factors including but not limited to overall traffic. Since the new Digg.com has been released we have been somewhat unsure how successful it has been until this small glimpse Alexa has given us.

According to Alexa Digg lost approximately 36% of its normal page views yesterday. Now that is only one day and there could be a million different factors that could have lead to the drop but eyes turn towards the recent changes to the site. Now I would’nt base my opinion on those statistics because pageviews could be down just because of the new interface digg provides, thus users do not have to navigate as deep into the site as before. Now also be aware that Alexa only counts users that have the Alexa toolbar installed on their machines, so the actual numbers may be quite different.

We will keep an eye on Digg and see if the pageviews even out or even increase again in the future. But don’t count the New Digg out just yet.

Source: Reddit, Alexa

Now this is completely plausible that Apple could come up with something like this, a small screen with all the finger gestures you would need to navigate through the Apple TV menus. Check out Dan’s story behind his design:

But you need some kind of controller to play a game, unless Apple is working on its own version of Kinect, which I doubt. An Apple Remote doesn’t really cut it, and while an iPhone or iPod touch would make a great game console controller, as has been pointed out, it’s unlikely that Apple would require one: no game publisher is going to invest in developing a game whose market is restricted to owners of two separately-purchased devices, and iTV sales would be hobbled from the start. At least one standard controller needs to be included in the box for the iTV to be a viable gaming platform, so that controller has to be relatively simple and inexpensive.

What if that simple, inexpensive controller is something like an iPhone without the screen?

Above, I’ve crudely Photoshopped this concept together. It’s the love child of an iPod touch and a Magic Trackpad. It has the same inertial and gyroscopic motion sensors as the iPhone 4, and the same multitouch surface we’re familiar with. A home button. Bluetooth. No screen.

Check out more info at his blog.

9to5Mac reports that soon iTunes may be renting full length TV shows for $1 a month. So you can subscribe to a show for a year for only $12. If iTunes actually implements this feature I believe that many people may pay for it. Although, Netflix would be its biggest competitor but you can only purchase the shows that you want instead of the monthly fee that Netflix has.

Apple already has a movie rental service through iTunes so it would just be supplemented with TV show rentals at a cheaper price. Now word yet on whether there will be differing prices for standard definition or high definition video. More information at the source.

Source: 9to5Mac

Remember this?

Now could Apple be creating some kind of smaller portable media player like the iPod Nano? Rumors have been floating around about a possible iWatch or a small iPod to strap around your arm which is more lightweight that its predecessors and full touch screen. 9to5 Mac has some design concepts that have us wondering if its going to happen.

Source: 9to5Mac

Source: 9to5Mac

Source: Twitter via Engadget

Opinion Piece from an App Developer:

Let’s take trip down memory lane.  June 15, 2010 - iPhone4’s crazy pre-order date. Ohh the chaos.  AT&T cried at the load and spoke for Apple saying that they didn’t expect the numbers AND all you kept hearing regurgitated was the same bull: “ten times more pre-ordered than any previous releases, 600,000 units”- yada yada.  Yes AT&T is the devil carrier of the iPhone, but Apple is its creator.  Yet after this halfbutt release, people seem to have been hit in the head with an apple with no eureka moment.

Let’s take another trip down memory lane, high school statistics.  For an amount of work estimate: to get an accurate sample size of how consumers will act/react to a methodology, idea, and even a product with a 99% confidence level, confidence interval of 4, a population size of the US, Apple would need to sample of <1050 people to get an understanding of what we would think of the iPhone4.

From a company who pinpoints and plans every move they make months and years in advanced it’s too hard for me to believe an “unthinkable” amount of people logged in for the preorder.  We all know AT&T lies, “we have great service…” hahaha, but Apple, really, I know you’re incorporated but come on.  Although most of the time we blindly follow – please don’t insult us, we know what a beta is.

HTC just updated their twitter status to let us know that the Froyo 2.2. update is available Today. here is what they said on twitter.

You heard right. Incredible is getting 2.2 starting today. RT @VZWSupport: @TheMichaelBK The Incredible update starts on 8/27/2010. *CH

The update should be available soon if you do not see it yet, let us know when you get it.

UPDATE: The update should come as an over the air update. Remember, patience is a virtue

Source: HTC on Twitter

Thats right guys we are giving away a ThinkGeek Doomsday USB Hub. All you have to do to enter is follow the steps below.

Just think you could have this cool ass device on YOUR desk. You can fool your co-workers into believing that you have the power to end everything with the big red button.

To Enter:

• You must follow @tekgoblin and @mattjurek on Twitter

Retweet the following message:

• @TekGoblin is giving away a Doomsday USB Hub head on over to enter #giveaway http://bit.ly/cHjboN

Make sure you leave a comment at the bottom of this post to let us know you did the above steps and please list your twitter account name. We will then hold a random drawing of entries, and after we verify you followed the steps above we will notify the winner via DM on twitter. You will have 24 Hours to respond so keep an eye on your twitter account.

The contest will end on November 1, 2010 at Midnight EST (Date Subject to Change), the drawing will then be held promptly after.

USA Entries Only please!

ThinkGeek Doomsday USB Device DEMO from Matt Jurek on Vimeo.

Thank you to our friends over at Think Geek they have the coolest stuff head on over and check them out.

TekGoblin reserves the right to use a 3rd party service to select the winner. TekGoblin also reserves the right to revoke the contest at any time for any reason.

Today Netflix has made history by releasing it for the iPhone and iPod Touch. We have been waiting for a long time since Netflix was announced at the last WWDC conference. And now its here.

The iPhone version of Netflix is quite easy to navigate, after you have logged in you are greeted with a screen with 4 tabs at the bottom. The first tab being the Home screen features your recommendations and at the top a Resume button if you have watched something recently. The next tab is the genre section that categorizes movies based on guess what, Genre! The third tab is search that allows you to simply search for instant watch movies. And the final tab is your instant queue which allows you to play movies that you have already added to it.

I have tried and watched a show on both 3G and Wifi and they both look great! I am quite glad that Netflix supports streaming over 3G because some places I go the Wifi is either not free or is worse than 3G. Well if you are a Netflix subscriber and have an iPhone or iPod Touch get the app below!

The first thing you, (and everyone) will notice is just how incredibly sexy the Zune HD is. The sleek casing and big, glossy touchscreen are one of a kind features of the Zune HD. The body is brushed metal with plastic edging. The screen is a 3.3 inch OLED display. Beneath the screen, is a sliver of a home button. The rear of this device has a slight curve on the sides. The bottom of the device includes the Zune adapter port and a 3.5mm headphone jack. Opposite of that, at the top of the device, is a hidden power button. On the left hand side there is the media button. With this button you can bring up the media navigation menu. Here you get options for back/forward and volume adjustment.

Inside, the Zune HD is the Tegra APX 2600. This chip has a focus on HD video and complex graphics performance. The Zune HD will be able to handle intense graphical games including 3D games. The 65nm Zune HD contains a massive eight cores. The Zune HD comes in 16GB and 32GB capacities, in an array of colors with art and engraving and a purchasable Zune pass, this is the device of the century. The Zune HD has a vivid 480 x 272 OLED display, and handles multitouch input including gesture support. The Zune HD’s display is incredibly responsive and is super quick feeling just like an iPod touch or iPhone. There is one disadvantage of the OLED screen (or any screen, Apple or Microsoft) this is its lack of performance in direct sunlight. The Zune HD features a new UI. The UI of the Zune HD is just as sexy looking as the player itself. Like most touchscreen devices, the Zune HD provides a screen lock which requires a swipe to unlock. You are also able to swipe to the right, bringing up “pinned” media, recent selections, and the newest content that you added to your device. A swipe left takes you back to the main menu.

One of the biggest issues swirling around the launch of the Zune HD was the app question. Since from almost every angle the Zune HD looks like an iPod Touch competitor, applications are the next step. At the moment, the Zune HD is low on apps. The Zune Marketplace doesn’t have any 3^rd party support yet, but it is on the way. It took Apple 10 months for a Facebook application and 10 months for 3^rd party support. On the Zune HD you can download a free calculator, weather app, twitter app, and a handful of games for the Zune HD. My favorite application is MusicQuiz. This application is super addicting. There are some applications and games on the Internet that people have developed. So far no apps have unlocked the Tegra beast. These included apps are very addicting and a special part to the Zune HD.

Next comes the web browser. The browser was built upon the existing mobile Internet Explorer, but tweaked. The browser loads pages nicely and utilizes pinch zooming beautifully. Sadly, there are no tab options and no history. Forget about YouTube or Flash-based websites as well. These won’t work until an app comes out. On the plus side, the included on-screen keyboard is surprisingly accurate.
Zune players have always been known for their exorbitant audio and the Zune HD is no exception. Video quality on the Zune itself is perfectly crisp. At the moment the Zune HD is limited to certain video types but includes Avi and Dvix support.

Microsoft made some needed changes to its Zune software. On the Zune 3.0 Marketplace there were some bugs that crashed the software sometimes. Zune 4.0 solved these problems. Overall the software is even snappier than the 3.0 software. The new Quickplay screen basically is the same as on the device. Syncing content was smooth. It synchronizes faster than any other Zune or Apple device. The software is almost the same, but almost all glitches were worked out of it.

On the Internet you can find many modifications for the Zune HD (and all other Zunes). One of the modifications found in the interent is for the Zune to be able to use Windows Media Player instead of the Zune software.

Many reasons to buy a Zune HD over a itouch right now is the gorgeous screen, crisp HD radio, slick design, and (at the moment, not so good) web browser. Oh, and you have the awesome bragging rights to say that you own a one of a kind special device that no one else you know has.

One awesome thing that Microsoft has that Apple doesn’t is the one and only “Zune Pass”. The Zune pass costs $14.99 a month, and with this you can basically enjoy all the music you can find in the Zune Marketplace. With this you can keep ten tracks free every month; that’s 120 songs free to keep a year.

The Zune HD is a superb media player with a lot of great features, and only slightly lacks in the app department. But for Microsoft and Zune, this is “One small step for mankind, one giant leap for technology”.

Walkthrough the new Digg with Kevin Rose from Digg Videos on Vimeo.

I have been using Digg in the past few months quite regularly. But my account was registered way back. Since, I rely on Twitter for getting some traffic, I seldom use Digg. But that doesn’t mean Digg doesn’t have its uses. From a blogger, forum user perspective Digg is an essential tool which makes it easier for other users to find content you published. It’s has the backing of many publishing giants and if used correctly it can be a vital tool for research.

Digg Version 4 which promises to be better and faster than before, has been in development for some time.  Like others I awaited the Version 4 with high expectations. According to Kevin Ross Digg Version offers:

• Speed - the new Digg is faster in every way: submitting articles, loading pages, and Digging content.
• Personalization – we put a lot of thought into how people consume news and wanted to make it easy to view content from the friends, publishers, and influencers you care about. Once you start following your friends, and sources you trust, we’ll build a custom news homepage for you called “My News”. Customizing Digg will enable you to see your friend’s recent Digg or Comment, as well as the latest article submitted by a publisher.
• Friends & sharing - the new Digg is all about making it easy to see the stories your friends are Digging and commenting on, and to share interesting stories with them. You’ll notice activity from the profiles you’re following highlighted in stories, on comment pages, and even on their profile page as you navigate the site. Attach your blog or RSS feed to your profile and send your followers content as you create it.

To give you a better idea here is the screen shot of the new Digg Interface.

I already added some comments but the interface is simple and easy to use. I love the quick Digg button and thanks to the social networking integration, I can easily follow users from different networks. I didn’t get the Invite option but I guess it’s for inviting new users to Digg Version 4 and it might automatically add the new user to your followers list.

So, is the new Digg interface an improvement or just another buggy upgrade that no one wanted? Well, in my opinion, it’s a success. I didn’t fancy the old Digg but I am actually thinking of using the socially enhanced Digg V4.

Just as a test, use this link to sign-up for Digg. I want to see what really happens. And also, FOLLOW ME on Digg .

Thanks for reading.

Sources:

Digg

A video of the new Samsung Galaxy an Android based tablet that has yet to be released has been found on the internet. Till now all we have seen is pictures of it but now we have a video, check it out below.

Google officially released the ability to call people from within Gmail, a feature that existed in Google voice already. All you need to do is visit gmail.com/call and install the software if you havent already and a phone will appear under your name in your chat list. Mine has yet to appear because I think they are running a little behind so I cannot test it yet. All calls to US or Canada phones are free using this service and very low rates to other countries. Rates are as follows: More info at:http://www.google.com/chat/voice/compare.html

If you already have the feature in your Gmail please let us know how it performs. Full rates here.