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Pebble Time Puts a Color e-paper Display on Your Wrist
Cute Avengers: Age of Ultron phone charms are deteailed & awesome
7 Greatest Text-Based Adventure Games Ever
Sony’s Google Glass Rival to Launch in March

Pebble Time Puts a Color e-paper Display on Your Wrist

Posted: 24 Feb 2015 11:03 AM PST

Gadget lovers didn’t mind that the original Pebble was already two years old when they voted it as yesteryear’s best smartwatch. It was functionality they were after, not bells and whistles, and that’s exactly what they are going to get with Pebble Time, as well, just with a color e-paper display.

Bear in mind that the e-paper display is not the only thing Pebble Technologies have changed over their basic model, but this is definitely the main new feature. Other significant differences include a slimmer case, the addition of a microphone, and buttons that react what the owners of the classic Pebble are used with. The changes in hardware are also reflected in the software of the smartwatch.

The included microphone can be used for replying to notifications. In no time, all Pebble Time users will look like spies and secret agents, with the mention that they surely won’t wear tuxedos at all times and they won’t invariably order shaken Martinis. In addition to that, Pebble Time comes with a timeline UI, user being able to see past, present and future notifications at the press of a button.

In good ol’ Pebble fashion, the company turned to crowdfunding to help the color e-Ink smartwatch make the jump from a concept to a mass-produced device. Since their first smartwatch made history on Kickstarter, Pebble Technology used the same platform for this project. Needless to say, the initial funding of $500,000 has been reached within a few hours since the campaign’s beginning, and at the time of writing backers had pledged over 9 times that. Early birds had the chance to secure a Pebble Time for $159, while regular backers can get one for $179. It should be noted that the color e-paper smartwatch will be available in three versions differentiated by the color of the wristband.

The estimations on Kicktraq are absolutely ridiculous, currently trending toward $136,443,872. I doubt it that this trend will continue until the end of the campaign, but chances are that Pebble Time will break the record established by its predecessor and possibly even the one set by the Coolest Cooler last summer.

All in all, Pebble Time seems to push all the right buttons, proving that wearable tech companies don’t need to launch golden smartwatches to keep users happy.

Be social! Follow Walyou on Facebook and Twitter, and read more related stories about Pebble’s new Android app store, or the Wellograph watch that displays fitness and health stats using an infographic UI.

Cute Avengers: Age of Ultron phone charms are deteailed & awesome

Posted: 24 Feb 2015 10:12 AM PST

It’s amazing how much we know about Age of Ultron before it’s even been released thanks to the merchandising. Take a look at the characters as depicted by these cute phone charms.

Meet this official set by Beast Master, a collection of phone charms coming out this year with 5 different designs based off of the heroes from Age of Ultron. And we use 5 loosely, as quite a lot of them are actually just iron man. The other most well known characters, Captain America and Thor are also depicted along with the Iron Man Drone, Iron Man himself, and the huge Hulkbuster:

These aren’t your regular phone charms: the design is otherworldly, feature incredible details with the likeness of the heroes, and even some of them have LED functions. Apparently, the Hulkbuster (the biggest one of the bunch) lights like a Christmas Tree, while the rest feature lights on their chest or eyes, depending on their powers/costume. Because Cap is basically just a strong dude he features no lightning, but just a shiny shield, yet, did you see the detail on his helmet and suit?

The figurines are 3-4 inches tall each, which makes us question how functional they are, but they would look great even in display. You can acquire the entire set for some $70 to $80 USD, which might sound expensive for phone charms, but we think these are so much more…

Via iO9 via Kids Logic

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7 Greatest Text-Based Adventure Games Ever

Posted: 24 Feb 2015 07:00 AM PST

The first time I encountered a Text adventure game for DOS (or so I thought) was in the movie Big (Tom Hanks becoming a grown up due to a wishing machine). Turns out that game wasn’t real (although someone made a version of it not too long ago), but it did open up a world of games in which you have to write down ‘look around’, ‘go north’ or ‘open door’ quite a lot while trying to figure out what the hell is going on.

Although a lot of these games did seem to be quite similar to each other, there have been a few that have stood out and get the label of ‘classic‘ or ‘groundbreaking‘. I didn’t rank them. I found it too difficult to choose. Still, if you’re looking for a good text-based adventure that still holds its own in the day of ‘Witcher 3‘ and ‘Bioshock‘, these are the games worth trying out.

Planetfall

Maybe the best one ever (despite promising not to rank them). What’s going on in this one? Via Abandonia: The Planetfall story begins just after you have transferred to the Spaceship Feinstein where you're superior, Ensign First Class Blather, is making your life miserable. You have been assigned the rank of Ensign 7th Class and your most important duties are that of custodian. Obviously this is not why you enlisted in the Stellar Patrol. Just as you are contemplating going absent without leave your fortunes take a dramatic turn and you find yourself in a situation that just may define the rest of your Stellar Patrol career.

It came out in 1983 and is the perfect game to introduce you into what the 1980s were like for a lot of gamers back then. It might not have the graphics of GTA V, but the story is just as compelling and does an excellent job of drawing you in.

Stationfall

Stationfall is the sequel to Planetfall. It has the same main characters, the same type of puzzles and the same type of setting, with impending doom waiting around every corner. It’s possible to play it without going through the first one, but it does take out some of the fun because Planetfall does an amazing job of developing the characters.

The Hobbit

Quite a complicated and groundbreaking game at the time. Not just because of the graphics, but because of the mechanics. You know how video games these days love to talk to you about choices and different endings pending on your decisions? Well, in the 1983 Hobbit, characters would behave differently each time you played. Yes, they had some sort of free will.

As for the story – You’re Bilbo, and only Thorin and Gandalf at your side. The options of conversation on this game are quite impressive and it’s considered to be quite a difficult game, but it should be a very pleasurable experience, even for those who aren’t suckers for anything that’s Lord of the Rings.

Eric the Unready

So what’s so special about Eric the Unready? It takes a terrible knight, maybe the worst one ever, that’s off to save the only person (a princess) that believes in him. It’s a game that surprises you at every corner and while seemingly difficult at first is very easy and simple to sift through. It’s funny. It doesn’t take itself too seriously. It’s one of a kind, still after all these years.

The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy

Don’t panic, this isn’t a mistake. Sometimes, adapting things from radio to books and then to a console works. While nothing can quite capture the magic of one of the best books ever written, the video game captures the craziness, randomness and overall fun of the original creation.

A Mind Forever Voyaging

More like a book then a game in which you have to solve puzzles, it’s a critique of the Reagan era and still one of the most impressive text based games ever made that’s incredibly difficult to stop playing, even if what you do most of the time is explore the town you’re sent to 10 years in the future (from the 1980′s).

The Pawn

The cover alone for this game is awesome, but there’s so much more. The graphics (in color!!!) are quite fantastic for this type of game, but it’s not great because of that. First off, the story has a little twist of competition – another adventurer trying to get the same items and places you are. Also, the text and commands you use are a bit less rigid than in other games, making it a much better experience.

For a bit more on modern gaming, check out the best 11 games coming out in 2015, or what you should have been getting last year.

Sony’s Google Glass Rival to Launch in March

Posted: 24 Feb 2015 05:00 AM PST

While Google Glass is still a work in progress and Microsoft’s HoloLens is still some time away, Sony prepares to launch it’s own headset called SmartEyeGlass.

Sony has not had the best of years. For the financial year ending in March the company will face a $1 billion loss as their smartphone and TV sectors fail to beat out competitors such as Samsung, Apple and LG. Just this Wednesday, Sony CEO Kazuo Hirai announced plans to focus on camera sensors, entertainment and the company’s PlayStation gaming brand.

With all that in mind, it may seem unusual then that the company is preparing to enter a brand new market with untested waters and lots of competition. Going up against the big dogs at Google who are trying to make augmented reality (AR) popular with their Google Glass headset, Sony is going to launch an AR headset of their own.

The device is still in development but it’s called the SmartEyeGlass (kudos for originality on that one) and it looks to be a partnership or Google Glass as well as a ‘lite’ version of the holographic tech demoed in Microsoft’s HoloLens headset. As the above video shows, the Sony SmartEyeGlass will use “holographic waveguide technology” in 3mm AR lenses to put info right in front of your eyeballs. Although that demo video only shows messaging, along with directions it will also have its own suite of apps. Sony has said that Facebook and Twitter have their own apps and they’ve also rolled out an SDK (software development kit) so that developers who want to have a tinker around and make software for the SmartEyeGlass can do just that.

So far, so Google Glass clone. The only glaring difference wit the SmartEyeGlass (I really do hope they change that name) is the odd attachment that it comes with. Rather than just being able to listen to your voice commands automatically, or being controlled via hand gestures, SmartEyeGlass wearers will have to use the little black gadget to swipe along its interface or press its ‘Talk’ button in order to for voice commands to be heard. That seems a little counterintuitive if I’m honest because the point of these sorts of devices is that they give you access to things easily when you’re on the go, not with fiddly controls and button presses. However, it may stop wearers from looking insane as they talk to themselves and swipe madly in front of them, so maybe Sony is onto a trick there.

Other important specs include: 3MP camera, 80 minutes of battery life (when in use), 150 minutes of battery life (when on standby) and it supports Android 4.4 (it can be connected to your Android phone too). The SmartEyeGlass goes on sale in March in the US, UK, Germany and Japan for $840, 640 Euros and 100,000 yen.

Source: Sony

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