Posts by Elsie

EA reloads, aims at Activision, goes for headshot

MW3 more sales then BF3?

This might be true for Konsole Kiddies but for real gamers, i.e. those on a PC playing online with a keyboard, mouse and a better field-of-view, BF3 is going win hands down.

Impatient punters trade PS3s for Xbox 360s

I'll scream and scream and scream ...

.... until I'm sick!

I can hear the bleats up and down the land as Konsole Kiddies can't sit in front of their TV's for hours getting meaningless "achievments" in video games. If this alleged run to change to Xbox doesn't prove that some are dangerously addicted to their games consoles, then I don't know what will.

Personally, I think the break is great and would hope that they use the time to attain a real life achievements, i.e. something to be proud of instead of gaming points?

Identity theft isn't a laughing matter but this console swapping malarky reminds me of the time we locked a horse racing addicts bike so he couldn't get to the bookies at dinner. Watching him hop around begging for the key or for someone to take him to the shop was hillarious.

World 3D TV sales to jump in 2011

Lol at the expected increased sales

There isn't enough HD content being broadcast to warrant the huge number of HD TV sets being sold. The reason so many sets are sold is because it's very hard to buy anything other than a HD TV. More manufacturers are jumping on the 3D bandwagon and making 3D the standard so it means that they'll sell more 3D TV's, despite the fact there is a:

A) Sweet FA to watch on them

and

B) Most people I know couldn't give a 4X about wearing glasses and 3D

My local cinema manager admitted to me last week that despite their being more screens showing Thor in 3D, the 2D showings had sold more seats. I'll admit that I simpy can't 'see' 3D in movies or on TV, no matter what glasses I wear or where I sit I see a blurred or ghost images and a screaming headache. I'm not the only one that has this issue and so I'll never go to see a 3D movie or buy a TV with functionallity I'll never use.

Star Wars: From dream sci-fi bride to perfect Blu-ray wife

Gotta agree with the others

Lucas has had money out of my wallet at the box office and through video and DVD sales. He can stuff a Rancor where the sun don't shine if he thinks I'm coughing up again.

The Osborne 1: 30 years old this month

The Osborne One?

I thought this was a reference to the number of brain cells residing in the current chancellors skull.

D-Link Boxee Box DSM-380 media streamer

The remote control ...

... is absolutely gorgeous but £200 for a streaming device? That's damn criminal! Our collonial cousins pay virtually half what we do for the same device. Rip off Britain is alive and well.

I'd been following this device for a long time and I'd love the remote but there was no way I was going to spend £200. I bought a Acer Revo dual core net-top with 2GB RAM and 250gb HDD for less than the cost of the Boxee Box. With Windows 7 and an installation of XBMC I get the best of both streaming and full PC capability on my TV. I would still love to be able to use the Boxee remote control though, that's a sexy piece of kit.

If any execs from D-Link are reading this I hope they take away the feeling that maybe their pricing was / is way too high.

Roberts Stream 63i

Splash!

That's the sound of Roberts running off the end of the dock ... and missing the boat.

£350 for an iPod dock that acts as an internet radio / streamer? Why not just buy an iPod dock, the excellent Tune-In app and save save yourself a couple of hundred quid in the process?

If this device was £99 - £120 (which it should be) then I'd be clicking 'buy' now but £350 would (almost) but me an iPad which would be far more usefull or a decent laptop and speakers. I'd really like a unit like this for my kitchen but not at this price.

MSI tabulates WindPad Windows tablet

Er, no thanks

I had an MSI Wind netbook with XP and whilst that was portable, it had an appauling battery life and very slow hard drive making it a chore to use. Now that I have an iPad (which does have faults), I a tablet from a company like MSI would have to be exceptional to make we want to buy from them again.

World+Dog says 'no thanks' to 3D TV

Anti-piracy

Oh c'mon people. The main reason that 3D is being pushed by the film studios is to try and combat movie piracy. They've seen their multi-million $$$ film compressed into a perfectly watchable 700mb file and squirted around the internet. To try and stem this flow they're pumping out a series of truly awful movies where sticks / guns / objects are pointed at the screen to scream "I AM IN 3D!". Film makers ought to concentrate on the art of story telling and not this 3D gimmick.

3D is simply a gimmick and after spending > £1000 on a Panny plasma last Christmas, there is no way I'm going to be doing the same again ... and inevitably losing / breaking the stupid glasses.

Gamers demand CoD: Black Ops money back

PC games are dying?

ROFL!

A group of my friends have just come back from DreamHack 2010 in Sweden with more than PC 10,000 gamers taking part from all over the world. That's an awful lot of people shipping their PC's around the globe for a gaming LAN. Does that sound like something that's dying?!

I can't imagine 50 console kiddies turning up for a LAN with their 360's / PS3's ...

FPS on consoles?

A real "gamer" would use a PC, WSAD and a mouse ... The article should be entitled "teenage boys have a tantrum about COD :p

Paris ... because she knows that FPS games with on consoles with joypads are just wrong.

Top Ten Arcade Classics

Lol @ all us oldies

All these games bring back loads of memories of feeding 10p coins into machines in Skegness arcades only for my Mum or Dad to stand behind me telling me they're leaving and to hurry up!

This kind of thing is always going to cause a big debate but this list should include at least one vertical shoot-em-up scroller ala 1942, Halleys Commet or my personal favourite Flying Shark. This was the only arcade game I ever completed and on a few occasions, managaed to do so on a single life. I got so good the Leicester arcade I played in up the difficulty to make it harder!

There are other notable omissions such as the aforementioned Asteroids, Gorf, Mr Do!, Crystal Castles, Centepiede (remember the trackballs?!) and countless others that are slowly dissapearing from memory. I remember my Mum and I playing "Boot Hill", a B&W shooter with a cowboy on each side of the screen - and she always used to beat me!

I need to get MAME running again ...

Acer outs mega-format media box

360 / PS3 can do most of this?!

Most readers of El Reg will already have a 360 or a PS3 which can do most of this media streaming malarky anyway. Besides, if I was going to have another device under my TV I'd rather spend anoher £80 and get a Revo 3610 to have full PC functionallity with my TV.

Three is voted the best UK network

No kidding ... I think Three are brilliant!

I've got a HTC Desire with Orange and I consider my self "lucky" to be able to call or text, nevermind use the internet. Most of the time at work I have a max of 2 bars and that normally drops to 0 if I've just received a text. Even after the fabled 'Everything Everywhere' changes (which I have signed up for), coverage is no better.

When I bought my WiFi only iPad I also got a MiFi dongle from 3, along with a 2gb a month for a fiver "Sim Zero" contract. Using the MiFi, I get 3g almost everywhere I've been and I can connect upto 5 devices to it at a time. I take the 3 MiFi with me everywhere. If I want to use the internet on my iPad or Desire, I connect via the Mifi and surf away.

The 3 MiFi even gave me full signal when we rented a cottage on Hadrians Wall, right on the Cumbrian / Northumrian border! I can understand why 3 got this award as my experience with their MiFi dongle has been superb!

Samsung names Galaxy Tab launch date

How much?!

My 64gb iPad cost me £600 and from what I've seen of the Samsung I wouldn't be tempted to jump to Android.

F1 2010

Pitting Frustration

When you enter the pits your tyres are changed but you can't leave until the 5/6 other cars that have pitted behind you are let out ... you have to wait for them all to dissapear before being released. It's damned annoying!

Virgin Media launches 3D movie rentals

VM ought to ...

.... concentrate on getting more HD content to those of us that have bought HD ready sets instead of this 3D fad.

After spending almost £1,000 on a 46in Panny Plasma there is more chance of Jobs allowing Flash to run on the Jesus phone than there is of me buying a 3D TV, Besides, who really wants to sit in their lounge wearing 3D glasses (that can easily be lost or broken and cost £££ to buy) just for the occasional moment when someone points an object / drives a vehicle / throws something towards the camera.

3D deserves to fail.

Microsoft waves Zune Pass at UK

Way to go M$, Name a new product with the same name as a failed one!

Zune. A failed device. Why not call this new service:

Inland Revenue (in fact, any Govt controlled) computer system

Sinclair C5 or QL

HD drives

Vista ...

There are a billion names they could have chosen, to name it Zune smacks of blind stupidity. Then again, I thought "Wii" and "iPad" were laughable ...

Warner Bros flogs Nikita on iTunes

£2.49 an epsiode ... £35 for a "season pass"?

LOL, like WTF!?!

Hello!!! McFly!!!!

These shows are going to be aired in the UK and they're expecting viewers to pay these prices, eespecially when they'll be shown on free-to-air channels in a couple of months? The DVD box set of these shows wouldn't cost this much!

50p per episode a tenner for the series (as long as I could keep the shows) would still be too expensive but at least I would consider this price range. The prices they want to charge are laughable.

Road test: putting the iPad to work

Great article ...

... but you forgot to mention some other things which the iPad has over a notebook such as:

Instant on - press the button and start using it. No waiting for the OS to load / shutdown

No Windows or Anti Virus updates needing shutdowns so the upgrade can be finished

Crashes / lock-ups / Service hangs don't happen on the iPad

No notebook / netbook is as sexy as an iPad and everyone wants to have a play ...

I have to admit being a huge hypocrit as when the iPad came out I was like the rest of the Anti-Apple brigade on here but once you get your hands on an iPad you dont want to give it up. For my family and I, it is the best gadget I've ever bought ... but I still wouldn't buy an iPhone!

Jimmy - because he needs to spank me for buying an Apple product and liking it.

Pundits predict plunging iPad market share

Shields Up! Fire at will Mr Worf!

I used to be abusive about the iPad thinking WTF?! is that about.

Then I got to play with one and fell in love. Yep, it's locked down, it uses iTunes (grrrrr) and there are other things it won't do but it's stunningly beautiful and easy to use that you forget the flaws. Besides, I can sit on my sofa and slide my fingers over the screen just like it's a datapad or console on Star Trek. I like the iPad, my family loves the iPad; it was my money and my choice!

Samsung gives sneak peak of iPad basher

Ah, but you can stream!

@Allshare

There is a (recently released) app called Air Video for the iPad / iPhone / Touch which allows you to stream media from your home PC, even encoding it on the fly. I've installed the app on my iPad and can watch virtually any movie stored on my home network, including MKV's. Admittedly, this should have been incorporated by Apple from the start and I hope that Jobs and his goon squad police don't remove it from the app store.

As for the arrival of this Samsung, I hope it's the start of some great non-Apple tablets in both Android and Windows forms. Whilst I love my iPad, I'm looking forward to getting another pad of my own and leaving the Apple device with my wife and kids. I just hope that the Android / Windows devices are as user-friendly, long lasting, reliable and wonderful to use as the iPad.

We shall see!

119 iPad apps for admins, coders, and geeks

@petur

Get a Linux laptop? You are joking, aren't you?

I get enough "Daaaaad, why can't I do this / that?" on our W7 and XP laptops. I'd have to be a sadistic freak if I wanted to introduce a new technology into the house and deal with the constant barage of:

Facebook looks funny?

Why don't my games work?

Why can't I download this?

etc. Just like the Wii, the iPad can be picked up and used by anyone from 3 to 103. It's simple, it's intuitive and whilst it does have it's limits, in my opinion the benefits outweigh these. OK, it isn't as powerful or productive as a fully fledged laptop but for casual / family use it's superb - and as I mentioned above using LogMeIn I can get back to my PC's and do the powerfui stuff anyway! As I said before, an iPad is not something to need, it's something to want.

I've bought a device that I like, that my wife and three kids love and everybody that comes around wants to play with.

Now show me a Linux laptop that has that appeal!

The iPad is like Paris Hilton

Looks stupid, sounds absolutely ridiculous, why would you ever want to lower yourself to say you liked it ... but if you ever got a chance to 'play' with Paris, especially after dark with night vision, you wouldn't say no and you'd want more.

I thought the iPad was stupid. Why would I want one but the more I got to use one, the more I wanted one as I could see the benefits outweighed the negatives. Instead of unbagging a laptop, plugging in, booting up, virus checks ... 7 mins before you can do anything ... the ipad is working in seconds. OK, so you can't see flash but in the time I've had mine it's not really bothered me. My kids love it for the games. My wife loves it for the time it saves her not having to use the laptop. We as parents love it because instead of going to their rooms or my office for the internet, they use the iPad in the same room as us. It's a far more social device than you might believe as everyone wants to hold it / play with it. I've recently installed both Dropbox on the iPad so I can transfer files and the superb LogMeIn to allow me to control my home PC's from the iPad and my 3 MiFi unit ... it's brilliant!

I admit, I am a hypocrit. I abused the iPad when it came out but now I love it. There will be an Android / Windows device (eventually) that is comparable to the iPad but I'd be willing to bet they'll be less reliable and have inferior battery life than the iPad. Finally, in my eyes the iPad is not a device anyone needs but it is a great device to want, hold and use.

Paris. Because like the iPad she is great in bed.

Apple kills browse-and-get-hacked bugs in iOS

Jailbreak Issue?

Not JB my iPad but I wish Apple would fix the problem of mine backing up for hours on end!

Belkin Play Max dual-band wireless router

A wise friend once said to me ...

... ah Belkin. Don't touch. Ever.

It seems like this sage advice is still true and that's a shame as if this thing had worked, I would have bought one!

Paris: As she's sad because Belkn still can't get it right.

ISS crew capture robotic spacecraft

We saw both ....

... on Saturday night.

I was looking out for the ISS on Saturday night and we lucky enough to see it and Progress just in front. Pretty spectacular watching two vehicles passing overhead in line at 17,500 mph!

Apple iPad 3G 32GB

WiFi? In Public? You are joking right?

Occasionally I whip mine out, hold it in my hand and carefully use my fingers to caress it as it springs to life. I try and be secretive about this and keep it secure in my left hand knowing I can slip it back in my pocket very quickly and discreetly ... I wouldn't want to lose my smartphone, it's too important to me.

But an iPad? Would you really want to get this out in the bus queue or waiting for a train? Would you really use one of these public places to consume information over the internet? You may as well hang a sign around your neck saying "MUG ME". After all, everyone will know you're an easy touch as Jesus Jobs and co have already tricked you into coughing up £££'s for a large iPod touch.

I've played with a couple of iPad's now and I can see why those with a) Money to burn or b) not clever enough to realise Jobs is wearing the Emporers New Clothes would want to have one but it realy is a very expensive toy. An iPad is not something you need, it's something you want. And thr trouble is there are some rather big and nasty people in the world that know that an iPad is going to make a very quick profit if they nick it off you. If you really must have an iPad, do the sensible thing and buy the WiFi version and leave it at home where it belongs.

Buyer's Guide: 3D TVs

Content?

I am also one of those with one eye weaker than the other and trying to watch a 3D movie at the cinema give me a headache, so why would I even consider this in my own home?

But the real point is content. How long have we had LCD / Plasma HD screens now? 4 years? 5? How much HD content is actually being broadcast? Sky have a few channels, Virgin have about 8 but for the most part TV is broadcast in standard definition. So those of us that have already spent heavilly on HD TV's only get to watch a small percentage of HD transmissions.

If it's taken this long and HD transmissions are still in a minority, does anyone really think that 3D will suddenly become the norm? It's a gimic to try and get the public to buy gear they don't need for a lot of money and then spend extra £££ on extra sets of easily breakable, easily lost glasses.

The real reason the studios are pushing 3D is as an anti piracy method ...

Apple revamps Mac Mini as skinny HDMI box

Recession? I see no recession.

To echo other comments, HOW MUCH?! I can buy 3 Revo's for less.

OK, the Revo's wouldn't have the Apple OS but is Job's Jizz worth that much?

Ten Essential... iPad Accessories

Essential iPad accessories

How about the bleedin' obvious ... Common sense?

Common sense in not buying this toy in the first place so you don't need to spend large amounts of cash on making it usable.

Stephen Fry's truly terrible mistake

Tech Expert

Why do the BBC continually get tech soundbites (or rather, glowing recommendations of Apple products) from Mr Fry? His tech knowledge begins and ends with Twitter. I can boil a kettle. Does that make me a Michelin Chef cable of running a top restaurant?

As for DAB, I've given up with it at home as more often than not it drops the connection so I use an Internet readio instead. As for the car, unless I pay £££ I can't have it and my guess is it would be awful!.

Apple iPad

£400+ for a device you don't need?

I still cannot see why anyone who hasn't got money to burn would want one of these? You've already said you have a laptop and an iPod touch that you can use from you bedroom so why spend at least £400 just for a bigger screen? Having tried an iPad at the weekend it's bloody frustrating to hold and type at the same time; even short Twitter entries are a pain and it's much easier to use a phone and thumb type.

It's not exactly a pocket device so my guess is it'll be mainly used in the home ... but if you're at home andy you want to look at the net use your PC / netbook / Mac / Laptop or phone in ypur pocket. If you want to watch a movie then watch it on your TV with surround sound. We don't need (as Apple seem to infer) this "third device", the iPad serves no purpose other than to get Apple FanBoys and the Jobs loving media into a buying frenzy.

Even if people do wait for the 3g one they'll have to be tied into another mobile contract as Apple have changed the SIM card. KerrrrCHING!. And why would you take it outdoors anyway? It's not like you'll be able to type easily on the train using an iPad in the same way you can slip a phone in/out of your pocket. Besides, you might as well wear a sign that says "I am a rich mug with money to burn - please mug me".

The only saving grace of this review is that you only gave it 80%.

HTC Desire

OMFG!

OK, the Desire is my first Smart Phone but I am loving it more everytime I use it. The only niggles are the sluggish net connection I am getting on Orange compared to the Smuggies in the office with their O2 Jesus Phones but that's just because O2 has better coverage here. The battery takes a hammering and needs to be topped up so I'm running from USB in the office and then charging again overnight.

But the real delight has been showing the phone to the Smuggies, letting them play with it and see how quick and good looking it is and then asking how much they pay. £40 a month? Really? I pay £10 for unlimited data and texts ... maybe this should be called the HTC Desire app for wiping the grin from a Smuggies face?

@Andrew James

My current Orange contract finishes in July but I can upgrade now. They offered me a Desire for £99 on an 18 month contract for 300 mins, unlimted texts and 500mb internet. A grand total of £639.

The T-Mobile deal for 2 years at £10 a month for 100 mins (I only ever call my Mrs to say "I'm gonna be late do we need milk?"), unlimited internet, unlimited text booster and cost of £164 comes in at £404. Im ordering when I get home tonight and then giving my Orange Nokia phone to the kids so they can text until the contract runs out!

Just over £400 for a handheld computer / social networking / media centre oh, and a phone seems to be a bargain to me.

Panasonic Viera TX-P46G20 46in plasma TV

Adverts?

I've got the previous incarnation of this TV, the TX-P46G15B and I've got it connected to Freeview HD via the sattelite dish and I've not seen any ads on the EPG. Maybe it's something new to this TV? Very happy with my TV TBH and the benefits of this newer version (i.e. with the USB ports) are outweighed by the extra cost so I'm still happy with my purchase!

Paris because she looks good in night vision mode.

Orange to slash price of top iPhone plan

April 1st

It does say the 'deal' (Lol) starts on the Fools Day so maybe they're trying to get a joke in early? I own a 4 bedroom house in a rural Derbyshire village and I don't pay £1,800 in council tax! What a strange world we live in when people are willing to spend so much for a piece of Apple's locked down crap.

LaCie LaCinema MiniHD

How much?!

For that price I'd rather buy an Asus Revo and have a fully operating (and configurable) PC. More than £200 for something my Panasonic TX-P46G15 TV can do out of the box is robbery.

Virgin Media to demo 200Mb/s broadband tomorrow

But the people that ...

.... want to use even faster speeds and be some of the first to take it are exactly the Yo-Ho-Ho-Me-Heaties that the Government / ISP's and Media industries want to get off the net. As we all know, when you download an MP3 God kills a kitten.

Jimmy - because he'd win a fight with Mandelson.

Punters: we want our internet TV

More tea Vicar?

I'm lucky enough to own a Panasonic Plasma which can access their "Vieracast" system and whilst this is OK, it's also damn frustrating as they're using a single portal for the whole of Europe. So whilst I can watch You Tube, Eurosport clips or browse Picassa (why??!) I have no interest in the German and Czech broadcasts. There needs to be more content than this to make it a viable solution rather than a gimmick. In fact, Vieracast is so poor that it's hardly used. I use the TV's network port to stream media from my NAS but that's the end of it.

As for the report saying "We don't want the internet on our TV's", that's cobblers! I'm looking forward to my final ever bonus in April so I can by an Revo to mount behind the TV and get full internet access and not be tied to the limited offer from Panasonic. We want more, not less!

Steve Jobs re-invents the portable telly

TV?

I find it rather strange that El Reg is trying to justify the existance of the iPad as something not even Jesus Jobs thought of. Portable TV ... My 4rse!

3 years ago I bought an Archos AV500 and watched downloaded TV shows / movies and took this everywhere I went. Last year I bought an Archos 5g and carried on watching downlaoded shows AND I have a touch screen and access to the 'net.

So what is so special about a BIG iPod touch? This product from Apple is a monumental c0ck up but it didn't need to be. If they bring out a version than can multitask, that can use 'All of the 'net" (i.e. play Flash) and has a webcam for Skype use, then I'll gladly pay for one.

Steve Jobs uncloaks the 'iPad'

TouchOn Steroids

Personally speaking, I really don't see the point of this I-Pod Touch on steroids. Besides the fact I could buy books to use on this device, it has nothing new.

No multi-tasking so you're stuck doing one thing at a time.

No camera so you can't use it as a Skype device

No memory card slot so you're stuck at the size you buy.

Although it has a promised 10 hour battery life you can't replace the battery ... unless you send it back to Apple for an expensive swap.

The iPad is touted as giving you the best web experience ... yet it cannot play Flash, something that millions of pages use as standard.

You have to pay an extra $130 to get a 3G slot ... and then goodness knows how much for a SIM and data contract.

I was really looking forward to something new, something exciting but the iPad for me is a huge let down. I would rather stick with my fully functional, flash capable, expandable, 120gb, camera equipped £180 netbook (with a proper keyboard) than go for this Apple product.

It won't fail as there are too many Apple sycophants that will see the iPad as a life changing gadget that they can't live without and they'll buy it without thinking. And that's a shame.

3D TV: Minority interest for years to come

More? You want MORE?

Jason7 is right, 3D is just a gimmick and only applicable to the younger generation who have better / quicker eyesight that can react to the changes. As you get older your eyes get slower and watching Avatar I thought "great film" but I could do without the headache of the glasses and effect. I would love to know the actual bums-on-seats numbers of Avatar compared to non-3D billion dollar blockbusters of the past. The only reason it's passed this mark so qiuckly is the increased cost of admission. I reckon more people saw Mama Mia than have seen Avatar ...

Having just got on the HD bandwagon with my purchase of a 46in Panasonic G15, there is absolutely no way in hell I am going to shell out AGAIN for a 3D TV. After spending > £800 on a TV I'll be damned if I'm going to be duped inot buying another, then sit in my lounge with stupid glasses and getting a headache at the same time.

Besides, this is all cobblers anyway; the HD market has proven that. How long have we had HD ready TV's on the market? How many millions of sets have been sold? How much HD content can we watch via broadcasters? The percentage is minimal! With Virgin Media I have a total of SIX HD channels of which only 2 (BBC and Nat Geo) are worth watching. The rest, Living, MTV etc are not on my TV watching radar. Yes, I could have Sky and pay through the nose but I don't want to watch countless re-runs of The Simpsons and Brainiac in SD let alone HD that they'll charge me extra for.

So for all the hype about 3D, the truth is we haven't even become a HD watching country yet and I am not going to jump ship!

Popcorn Hour C-200

How much?

Christ this thing is expensive! It might play virtually any format but a 360 / Tversity combination plays DIVX and AVI files easily and for a lot cheaper than this item. If I had this much money to burn I'd rather build a dedicated media PC and have fully functional device connected to my TV. But to spend this much on something you have to add to anyway is laughable!

Sky Player hits Xbox 360

More? You want MORE Murdoch?

Murdoch actually thinks that we are going to subscribe and pay for something we have already paid for? Well me old cobber, you can stick that idea in your digereedoo and ram it up a kangaroos bottom.

If I want to watch TV / sport on my 360:

evtv.it - for the TV programes

Justin.tv - for the sport

Tversity - to get it from my PC to my 360

And guess what, it's all FREE ... although I have paid for a TVersity license as the software is that good and I have a Virgin Media contract which includes all the Sky channels. However, besides the Ross Kemp programmes, there is absoulutley NOTHING on Sky that I'd want to watch.

Xbox 360 to go Blu, says Ballmer

What's the point?

If you want to watch movies you won't do it with a 360 which gives a Eurofighter Typhoon a run for its money in the who is loudest stakes. BD players are falling in price all the time and it won't be long before you can pick up a dedicated BD player for DVD like prices - so unless M$ is going to give them away there really isn't a point in releasing an ugly add on drive.

Sony, despite their stupid pricing model, have got it right. The PS3 has BD incorporated, is damn quiet and fails far less than the 360. I know which one I want under my TV for watching movies and playing games ... except I made the wrong choice and bought a 360. D'oh!

Sky confirms telly-on-Xbox launch date

Give Murdock more money? No Thanks!

The only things worth watching on Sky are the Ross Kemp Afghanistan series and the sport. You can download the former (if you know where look) and Justin.TV supplies the live sport. I shall not be partaking!

Archos adds Android 'andheld to PMP collection

Archos?

Just remember kids that you're ....

Likely to need to "Personalise your device" in buying codecs that should be installed already

Any USB connections are likely to be non-standard

If this has a SIM slot like the 5g, expect to be able to insert a SIM once but never, ever be able to remove/replace it.

It's likely to crash more than George Micheal on a quiet, early morning drive

When something goes wrong (and if the 5 series are anything to go by, it will) make sure you have the Samaritans number at hand. You'll need it dealing with Archos Customer Services.

Would you leave your child alone with a cabinet minister?

Nothing to hide, nothing to fear?

I have had numerous CRB checks for the visits I've had to my childrens school for trips out etc. I know the form back to front as I have to do a new one each year. I've just completed another CRB check for the teenager mentoring programme I'm working on, helping 14-16 year olds at a local school stay "on the rails". I've got absolutely nothing to hide; the CRB checks all come back saying "None Recorded" and I'm always cleared to work with the kids.

However, what if someone makes an unfounded allegation to the Police or school now? What if one of the children / parents takes slight offence with something I've said or done and makes an allegation? All of a sudden I could be barred (and maybe prosecuted) for nothing. I have got nothing to hide but I do fear that this kind of system is going to lead to a lot of geniune adults being either barred or discouraged from working with kids without justifiable reasons.

I am seriously considering my position as I feel as if I'm putting my head in the guillotine and a hacked off kid will be able to release the blade.

Endeavour heads for ISS on sixth try

@Jeremy

You need to try and get there for one mate, I saw Endeavour launch as STS118 back in August '07 and you don't just watch or hear a shuttle take off, you feel it. No kidding, from where we were on the river back opposite KSC you feel the noise in your chest.

Get there before they finish!