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Pro Voltage Cosplay Shows Off Metal Gear REX Costume At Otakon

Posted: 25 Aug 2014 06:00 AM PDT

Metal Gear REX costume Pro Voltage Cosplay image 1

This Metal Gear REX cosplay is more than just solid, it is absolutely awesome.

Cosplay and robots are typically two things a person is most likely to run into at an anime convention. But on a special occasion, oh say frequenting the second biggest anime convention in the United States, Otakon, it is possible to find both at the same time – case in point, this radical Metal Gear REX cosplay from Pro Voltage Cosplay.

The talented cosplay group from New York debuted their bite-sized version of the titular mech behind the Metal Gear Solid saga from Japanese game maker Konami at this year's Otakon, and if I didn't know any better, I'd swear Hal Emmerich – the anime-loving scientist and chief engineer behind the nuclear-armed bi-pedal tank – was amongst Pro Voltage's ranks considering the fantastic quality of its build.

Mobility though, is where the Metal Gear REX costume, unfortunately, has problems. Ruby Taki, the person inside the hulking mech, only has a limited range of articulation.

Ruby can move REX's head, arms, and legs all right, but when it comes to taking a casual stroll through the open spaces of the Baltimore Convention Center, not so much. The costume has its wearer on stilts, and combining that with the heavy weight of the mech itself, well, it doesn't make for a good match as Ruby herself admits.

Thankfully, we're not judging this Metal Gear REX cosplay in Olympic gymnastics. Looks are what matter here. And in that department Pro Voltage Cosplay has done a terrific job. Check out a video of the costume being assembled at this year’s Otakon, recorded by Mike Hecxz.

I fully recommend following Pro Voltage Cosplay on Facebook, where you can see more of their cosplaying efforts. If the name hasn’t tipped you off already, the group has an affinity for the Metal Gear Solid series and has splendid cosplay of characters within that universe.

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How to Buy the Best Smartphone For You

Posted: 25 Aug 2014 05:00 AM PDT

Choosing a Smartphone

There are dozen upon dozens of smartphones released each year so how do you choose the one that will suit you best? Read our guide to find out.

Every year, without fail it's guaranteed that Apple will release an iPhone (or two) with slightly better features than its predecessors. Samsung too, will also likely release handful of handsets along with LG, HTC, Xiaomi and the rest of their Android phone-making competitors. And did I mentioned that Microsoft’s Windows Phones are picking up steam too? Don't forget Blackberry either! Sure, the days of Blackberry being on top may be over but they're still making plays for your money in more ways than one. This is all before we've discussed the phones that don't run on any of these operating systems either so it's perfectly normal to be overwhelmed by the plethora of smartphone options. But it doesn't have to be the world's hardest decision, not at all, so read our guide below to find out how to buy the best smartphone for you.

1. Operating System

As explained, there are tons of operating systems out there, each offering a varied amount of features and options. Of the OS offerings, iOS, Android and Windows Phone are the three heaviest hitters and each are vastly different. For a closed off, clean and relatively easy to use operating system, go with iOS. iPhones make you get apps from the App Store and music has to go through iTunes but if you don't know what you're doing when it comes to smartphones then the ease of use will benefit you greatly. Meanwhile, Android is almost like a PC on the go. Various file types and such are available and you can download things on the go without having to go through the rigmarole of iTunes or anything else. It can be a bit complicated but you'll appreciate the breadth of options. Windows Phone handsets on the other hand are a bit like a mullet – business in the front, party way, way in the back. Designed to help business professionals, the way Windows Phones work with Windows PCs is truly something special. Cortana, the Windows Phone assistant (and Microsoft's answer to iOS' Siri) is also a bonus.

2. Specs

The great thing about having so many smartphones to choose from is that we can choose the technical specifications we need according to our interests and uses. There are five key specs to consider when shopping around for a new smartphone and these are  – RAM, processor, camera, screen size/quality and storage. Plenty of phones worth their salt come with 2GB of RAM (only a few of the newer ones come with 3GB) as it dictates how many things your phone can do and how quickly it can do them. Standing for Random Access Memory, the smartphone in question will be able to access this pocket of data on the fly and get things done. Ergo, it's important. Processors are just as vital too though, usually offered as dual-core, quad-core or the very recent octa-core, the processor is basically the brain of the smartphone. The best phones have quad-core processors at 2GHz or over but it's recommended not to settle for anything less than 1.5.

Cameras are only important depending on how many selfies you plan on taking or how often you want to share snaps of your lunch on Instagram but alas, a 5 Megapixel rear camera is my personal benchmark here. Because lots of phones have two cameras these days, the front-facing camera will often be 2 Megapixels or even worse but the rear camera is the most important one to consider as even if your front camera never shows your face in good quality, you can always flip your phone around.

Your preferred screen size will depend on how big your hands are. If you have dainty digits then anything above 5-inches is going to be a hassle and if you've typically used quite small phones than the jump to a much larger handset is going to be cumbersome at first and may take some getting used to. You'll also want to factor in screen quality. Individual labels for screens are significantly less important but if you make sure that the phone can display things in 1080p HD at least (if you could see some examples of this if a demo is available, that would be particularly helpful) before you consider buying.

Internal storage is a spec that you'll want to consider if you have a lot of music, plan on taking a lot of photos or if you're going to be watching lots of media when you're out and about. Even if you can't afford the highest level of storage (this is often the 32 or 64GB version of the phone) then consider if the phone allows for microSD cards as these can store extra media and apps that your phone doesn't have room for.

3. Design

As the iPhone is known for its rectangular, straight-edged design, while Samsung's line of Galaxy smartphones are plastic and round and the HTC One line is both round and metallic (the HTC One's metal unibody design was a back of the box feature), you'll understand that they are all vividly different. The Nokia Lumia line of Windows Phones also boast boldness over everything which could also potentially sway your decisions.

The reason it's important to consider design is not just because you want to show off how slick your phone looks, but because in the long-run picking a phone with a design you don't love can grate on you. The Samsung Galaxy handsets for example, are very comfortable on account of that plastic but when you've paid several hundreds of dollars for a phone, a plastic back may not be something that you're best pleased with, the straight edges of the iPhone can make the phone fit oddly in some hands and the Lumia's brightness might make you think twice if you're preparing to use it for Serious Business.

What's also key is that the more popular the phone, the more design options you have thanks to the availability of smartphone cases. iPhones are the number one here but HTC and Samsung's flagships also have a variety of cases on offer. The Nokia Lumia line offers a very good range of colours and styles as it is, so although there are scant few cases for them available, you'll still be able to change it up a little.

4. Price

Finally, the cost. This will often be the deciding factor in whatever you buy – in the smartphone market or not – and rightly so. Smartphones come in budget, mid-range and high-end flavours. Budget phones are valuable purchases if you are perhaps new to the smartphone game, don't plan on using apps extensively and aren't looking for the quickest thing out there. You can pick up a budget handset for $200, which is somewhat of a bargain. Mid-range phones don't skimp on quality too much though and you can get high quality specs at much lower prices, thankfully and although you'll have to compromise on some specs, mid-range phones don't need them to get a good performance. High-end phones are obviously the most expensive and can run you upwards of $400/£400 depending on your local currency. You will be getting the best there is but they also come with pricier contracts and if you're one who is easily swayed by the allure of the latest and greatest, keep in mind that something better will come along in the next year and it will cost you if you want to constantly upgrade.

So these are the key points to remember when buying a smartphone that suits you, but what else do you think people should look out for? Let us know in the comments.

Be social! Follow Walyou on Facebook and Twitter, and read more related stories, Smartphones That Use Sound to Recharge Put Beefy Batteries to a Rest, Xiaomi Overtakes Samsung as China's Leading Smartphone Vendor

Sony’s weekend: hacks & bomb threats

Posted: 24 Aug 2014 05:45 PM PDT

psn

How was your weekend? Upset you weren’t able to play online on your PlayStation devices? At least you didn’t get a bomb threat.

Despite the excellent year so far that Sony has been having with the unparalleled success of the PS4, they have run across a few bumps. Granted, this has nothing to do with poor decisions or planning, but with hacks & bomb threats instead.

The PlayStation Network was hit by a series of DdoS (distributed denials of service) attacks which made it inaccessible to a huge portion of the gaming ecosystem. Note, this is different from a hack where actual data is obtained from customers or the service themselves, and all it did was preventing gamers from enjoying their preferred online experiences.

Gamers & users who attempted to log-in into PSN were greeted by a message claiming the service was down for maintenance, well ahead of the scheduled time. Apparently, these hackers did not only attack Sony, but other online services such as Blizzard Entertainment, League of Legends and Path of Exile.

So far, so good. Hackers do these type of attacks to point out how vulnerable a system is, to call attention for whichever reason (in this case, it was because of Sony’s “corporate greed”), or even just for fun. Yet, things quickly escalated once the same hacking group tweeted a bomb threat for a mid-flight airplane of American Airlines which was carrying John Smedley, the president of Sony Online Entertainment. The plane was eventually diverted from San Diego to Phoenix, quickly changing the issue from minor, annoying hack to threats and terrorism.

Sony has yet to provide an official answer explaining when the service will be restored, and have only clarified that it’s “being adressed“.

Via Shacknews

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China Means to Replace Windows with a Home-Grown OS, Launch Due in October

Posted: 24 Aug 2014 01:45 PM PDT

China Operating System

The government-run Xinhua news agency stated on Sunday that China is working on an operating system that’s meant to compete against the ones made by Microsoft, Google and Apple.

Given this country’s recent technological progress, it wouldn’t be such a big surprise if they were serious about this whole OS deal. The Chinese operating system, which has yet to be named, will first be available for PCs, and at a later point, a version for smartphones will be developed. Considering that China is the biggest market in the world, such news should instill some fear in the other OS makers.

Ni Guangnan of the Chinese Academy of Engineering stated that “We hope to launch a Chinese-made desktop operating system by October supporting app stores.”

This is not China’s first attempt to make a (somewhat) new operating system, COS (pictured above) and Kylin being two such examples. However, the OS that’ll be launched this October seems to be the most ambitious project of them all. Ni mentioned that end of Windows XP support and the ban on Windows 8 on government computers determined domestic developers to focus on developing an alternative to Microsoft’s OS.

Chinese authorities were pretty disturbed when Microsoft announced in April that it would stop support for its 13-year old OS. As a consequence of that, the government decided to ban Windows 8 on its computers. Ni claims that in one to two years the new Chinese OS could completely replace Windows, and in three to five years it could replace Android and iOS as the main mobile operating systems. According to Ni, the plan is pretty simple: “Creating an environment that allows us to compete with Google, Apple and Microsoft, that is our key to success.”

On Wednesday, August 20, Penta Wan Jing Information Technology Industry Group acquired Red Flag Software’s assets. Since this company is the one that developed Red Flag Linux in 2000, it’s easy to assume that this acquisition has something to do with the new OS China is going to launch. Ni approved of this acquisition and even pointed out that a revitalized Red Flag could play a substantial role in the development of a domestic operating system. It remains to be seen how China’s own OS will fare against the other titans.

Be social! Follow Walyou on Facebook and Twitter, and read more related stories about how Xiaomi overtook Samsung as China’s top smartphone vendor, and the Chinese Angry Birds theme park that was inaugurated last year.

Twitch Channel Pits Fish Against Fish In Street Fighter II

Posted: 22 Aug 2014 06:00 AM PDT

Twitch Fish Play Street Fighter II image

The eyes of Twitch focus on two aquatic pals brawling each other in the famed Capcom fighter.

Not since Daigo Umehara versus Justin Wong has there been a more talked about match of Street Fighter across the Web. And it all revolves around two fierce (I think?) competitors who can't hold a fight pad or even comprehend what the heck video games are in the first place.

Pet fish, yes, pet fish playing Capcom's genre defining Street Fighter II are the main attraction for the properly named Twitch channel FishPlayStreetFighter. Using an aquarium fortified with special sensors, dived in a 3-by-3 grid, the set-up helps goldfishes Aquarius (orange) and Robert the Bruce (black) duke it out in the finest venue for virtual fisticuffs.

2014 has certainly seen some kooky, fascinating experiments within the video game streaming website. Months ago, Twitch Plays Pokémon lead the charge with a community crowdsourcing effort to to play Game Freak’s popular monster-based role-playing game, Pokémon Red, and quickly became an huge Internet phenomenon.

Not surprising, the Twitch Plays fad birthed tons of imitators in the weeks after and has now spread to include pet fish. FishPlayStreetFighter isn’t even the first attempt at the “pet fish playing video games” spectacle. No, that distinction goes to Twitch channel FishPlaysPokemon – and yup, you can easily guess what that channel is all about.

Admittedly, watching our fishy pals play Street Fighter rarely reaches the climatic heights of EVO 2014 – heck, it hardly gets climatic if ever, with some single rounds lasting long periods of time and consisting of either on-screen fighter just jumping in place over and over again. But, hey, as a pinnacle achievement for all fish kind, this is pretty darn neato.

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