TheIanHamilton.com

Tech Holiday!

It’s that time of year again – everyone’s off on their summer holidays. For a lot of people obsessed with tech, gadgets can be a tricky, and sometimes expensive, thing to take with you. Read the rest of this entry »

DVRs vs Sky+ (Just Watch It Live!); MITB

If you wanted to record a TV programme back in the “old days” (God, I’m sounding older than 27 here!) it was a little fiddly. Ten years ago, you had to put a video tape into a machine, set timers (or enter a code, if you had and trusted Videoplus) and hope that your show either didn’t start late, run late, or get bumped from the schedules. Read the rest of this entry »

Naughty Bear Review

If you’ve read my earlier posts, you’ll be aware that Naughty Bear was one of those oddball games that myself and my fiance were really looking forward to this summer. Unfortunately, having played it, all I can say is that this was one of the bigger gaming let-downs that I can remember.

No advance reviews came out for this game, which is usually a bad sign, as was the game’s £45 price point (no reductions anywhere, not even the token £5 in the high street to make it an “appetising” £40)… so we bit the bullet and decided to wait to rent it. Thank God we did. Read the rest of this entry »

FIFA 10 vs Pro Evolution Soccer 2010 – Delayed Review: Football’s Coming Home

With the World Cup winding down this weekend, I thought it was as good a time as  any to go back to the past (if you will) and crack out two of last year’s football titles.

Having originally been a fan of FIFA games when I first started playing on the PC, then on the PS2 and Xbox, I switched my allegiances to Pro Evolution Soccer for a few years, sacrificing the licences of FIFA for the ability to edit my own Sunderland team in PES. After all, it was around this time when Sunderland weren’t in the Premier League, so back in the days when FIFA only featured Premier League sides… you can guess why I switched! Read the rest of this entry »

We’re Doing It Wrong!

Nobody likes being told that they’re doing something wrong. Especially when you know deep down you’ve been doing it right for your whole life.

But that’s essentially what Apple told everyone on Thursday night with their “you’re holding it wrong” response to the dropping signal issue on the new iPhone 4.

When it was unveiled at WWDC, my concerns over the external aerial were more about them overheating in long calls. It turned out that Apple found a way around that: just not let you make any calls while you hold the **mobile phone**.

Don’t get me wrong. I am something of an Apple fan boy. But when you effectively tell people that they have to buy a case to make their new phone work… then you’ve got problems.

Charlie Brooker wasn’t far off the mark when he lambasted the iPhone for being such a beautifully designed bit of kit that “you need to put a condom on it to use it outdoors” (paraphrasing Charlie there…) – but to need a sheath to make the damn thing work at all? I’m just glad I waited before diving for this iPhone.

My 3GS is basically a souped up 3G with the kinks worked out. Can’t wait for the 4GS equivalent when Apple find a way around these signal woes!

iPhone 4 – Gonna Be Waiting

For Christmas I was given a subscription to T3 magazine – being something of a tech aficionado, I kinda like to keep up on the latest in the world of tech, even if these days that seems to pass for “what’s the latest mobile phone?”

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Upcoming Games… We Can’t Wait!

Well look at that – it’s mid-month again, and time for another blog post! E3 unveiled a load of new video game accessories and games for the coming year – and while there will be the majority of people licking their lips over Move, Kinect and the 3DS, it’s some of the smaller game titles that have caught my eye.

First things first, I’m looking forward to the yearly iterations of the FIFA and Madden series (and cannot wait to play even FIFA 08 on my 42″ HD TV when the move finally comes, but don’t get me started on that solicitor-delayed rant) – but there’s a few other titles that I really can’t wait to get my hands on. Read the rest of this entry »

Popcorn Hour is Go – A200 First Week Thoughts

Another month, another update. I swear, after the house move, these will get more regular!

Anyway, last weekend I took delivery of my Popcorn Hour A-200, as my hunt for an all-in-one media player for our new “entertainment system” continued. Well, it looks like I’ve found the answer, and it’s a little plastic box! Read the rest of this entry »

What Grinds My Gears: Video Game Updates

Last night, my fiance decided to have a quick game of Little Big Planet on the PS3. Although we’re currently not heavy gamers (more due to our environment than anything else), Little Big Planet is one of those games we like playing, especially to have a quick blast of the vast array of created levels. Read the rest of this entry »

Mini Thoughts: Wrestling, Kanyon, Travel, Tech

It’s been a while since I’ve done an update on here… since WrestleMania, in fact. But nothing much has really grabbed my eye, so rather than a long, badly thought out post about nothing, here’s a long, badly thought out post about a lot of little things! Read the rest of this entry »