December 2012
Marvelous Machines of
Windows 8 Microsoft’s new OS gets some new toys
Best Games
Black to the future! Call Of Duty: Black Ops 2. Reviewed!
of 2013 What to play next year Ultimate
Holiday Gadget Guide! The best gifts this season inside!
R14.95 incl. VAT
Also in this issue: Reviewed: Halo 4 Tech jargon Why eCards are better than real ones PLUS! The Top 12 gadgets of 2012.
Ultimate Portability.
Ultimate Power.
Sony recommends Windows® 7.
Sony VAIO range available at Incredible Connection
VPC-Z227 “Beyond the Ultimate” • • • • • •
VPC-SB38 “Power wherever you need it” • • • • •
Windows 7 Pro 64-bit Intel® Core™ i7-2640M Processor 2.80 GHz with Turbo Boost up to 3.50 GHz 750GB HDD 4GB RAM 13.3” Led Backlit Display
Works the way you want.
Windows 7 Pro 64-bit Intel® Core™ i7-2640M Processor 2.80 GHz with Turbo Boost up to 3.50 GHz 256GB SSD 8GB RAM 13.1” Full HD Led Backlit Display Includes Power Media Dock with Blu-ray, and high speed graphic support
VPC-F237 “Dive into 3D” • • • • •
VPC-EH Series “Power and Simplicity” • • • • •
Up to Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit Up to Intel® Core™ i5-2450M Processor 2.50 GHz with Turbo Boost up to 3.10 GHz 500GB HDD 4GB RAM 15.5” LCD Display
Windows 7 Ultimate 64-bit Intel® Core™ i7-2860QM Processor 2.50 GHz with Turbo Boost up to 3.60 GHz 640GB HDD 8GB RAM 16” Full HD 3D Led Backlit Display
VPC-YB Series “Mobility to take you places” • • • • •
Windows 7 Home Basic 32-bit AMD Dual-Core Processor E-450 (1.6 GHz) 320GB 2GB RAM 11.6” LCD Display
www.sony.co.za/vaio
www.connectmag.co.za
issue #44
December 2012
26 FEATURES 11 Gift Giving Guide Present buying has never been easier!
20
Windows 8 Hardware A new generation of computing is here
24
Virtual Greetings How to create e-cards online
26
Holiday Essentials Get the most out of your break
11
20
24
56 58
REGULARS 04 06 08 68 72
60
News Trouble-free Technobabble Tamsin the Tech Tannie Disconnect
REVIEWS 44
64
Top 12 of 2012
GAMING 56 62
65
Editor’s Letter
Reviews Preview Special
ed’s note
y p p Ha ys!
a d i l Ho W
e are celebrating the festive season with a bumper December issue of Connect. Not only do we have a great gift guide that caters for everyone in the family (page 11), there are also 12 pages jam-packed with everything you need to turn a 2-week break into the holiday of a lifetime. Adam Oxford (new to the Connect team) will talk you through the must-have gadgets for the festive season. What should you take on a plane? Are there sand-proof beach gadgets? Going to the bush again and need to pack light? It’s all there and more on page 26. At Connect HQ, we’re loving Windows 8. So if you’re curious about which accessories or hardware to buy, Christo van Gemert has it covered. From a mouse that looks like a wedge of cheese, to a flexi Bluetooth keyboard, Microsoft’s OS accessories are just some of the cool new computing devices (page 20) you won’t want to miss out on. And if you want to know what you can look forward to next year for your console, be sure to check out our special previews feature (page 62), where we pick the top 13 titles that will hit the shelves in 2013. Tomb Raider, BioShock: Infinite, and EA’s allnew SimCity are at the top of my must-play list. From sending e-cards to smart shopping, amazing gaming and the top 12 reviews of 2012, we do hope you enjoy the issue – it’s a good one. Happy holidays! Tiana Cline EDITOR
PUBLISHER Brett Haggard brett@connectmag.co.za EDITOR Tiana Cline tiana@connectmag.co.za REVIEWS Deon du Plessis EDITOR deon@connectmag.co.za TECHNOLOGY Christo van Gemert EDITOR christo@connectmag.co.za
ART DIRECTOR Jason Palmer jason@connectmag.co.za Junior Designer Jessica Hurwitz jess@connectmag.co.za CONTRIBUTORS Tamsin Mackay Adam Oxford
SUBSCRIPTIONS subscriptions@connectmag.co.za ADVERTISING Dorothy Haggard dorothy@connectmag.co.za
Connect is a joint venture between Hypertext Media Communications and Incredible Connection
Contact Hypertext Media Communications (011) 023-8001/4 info@hypertext.co.za FAX 08654 83304
A4_M
Memory Card Range
www.verbatim.com Verbatim is part of the Mitsubishi Chemical Holdings Group
A4_MemoryCardRange_Advert_SA_Oct12.indd 1
22/10/2012 15:30
in the news...
Headphones with a heart
House of Marley’s awesome new cans mix fashion, compassion and hifi quality sound. Hardcore games are good for you!
UltraHD launches in SA Just when you thought HD high definition video was good enough for your TV, along comes a whole new display standard for flat screens. Ultra HD – previously known as 4K – has four times as many pixels as HD, with 3840x2160 versus the older standard of 1920x1080. That means sharper pictures and bigger screens – but also increased cost. Sony is first to launch an Ultra HD set in South Africa, but with prices starting at around R200K it’s going to be a while before we hang one on our wall. More on this next month.
6 | connect | December 2012
Despite their constant bad press in certain sections of the media, it could well be that fast paced first person shooters can make you a better person after all. Speaking at a recent TED conference, Cognitive Scientist Daphne Bavelier analysed the effects of playing Call of Duty: Black Ops and found that many common perceptions – like games making eyesight worse and reducing our attention spans – weren’t just wrong, the truth was the dead opposite. Gamers are smarter than your average human. But we knew that anyway. http://bit.ly/ SJhMkM for more. > Did you know? Since it launched in 2010, gamers have spent more than 68,000 years’ worth of time playing Call of Duty: Black Ops
Children of the rich and famous have a hard time of it. Never needing to work for a day’s wages, they tend to go one of two ways – either keen to prove they can make it on themselves or hitting the headlines while splashing out on mummy and daddy’s credit cards. The scions of reggae legend Bob Marley, however, defy all expectations and cliché, however. Two years ago, they got together to form the One Love Foundation, dedicated to spreading their father’s beliefs and ideals across the world. One Love (www.1love.org) funds small scale projects targeted at helping individuals from poor backgrounds achieve their dreams, changing the world one good deed at a time. And to fund all this, they’ve launched a range of headphones and earpieces using Bob Marley’s image and lyrics. The headphones themselves are manufactured using reclaimed or recycled materials wherever possible, in keeping with the singer’s philosophy. Unlike most modern electronics, which are mass produced in sweatshops, these are hand built to – it’s claimed – a very high standard. While Connect was at first suspicious that this was all a cash in on the great man’s name, we’ve tried them out and... let’s just say you’ll have to read our review next month to find out just how good they are, but Dion hasn’t taken them off of his head for a week. Rohan Marley, one of the brains behind One Love, was in Johannesburg for the South African launch of the range. As part of his visit, he visited Eqinisweni Secondary School in Tembisa, Mirand, where the House of Marley will be funding a new music room for the pupils there. One Love is also sponsoring local bands and sports people looking to make their first big break. Could more consumer technology be made and promoted like this? Hopefully, it’s a great model for others to follow.
Vivo Tab RT here by mid-December Want a Windows RT tablet? Devices running the lightweight version of Microsoft’s new operating system have been few and far between so far, as manufacturers struggle to get them out of the door and into stores. Connect has been tipped off by ASUS, however, that the Taiwanese company – which also makes Google’s Nexus 7 tablet – is hoping to get its awesome Vivo Tab RT into South Africa before Christmas. If it does make it, it’ll be top of our letter to Santa because the two part tablet is currently our favourite Windows 8/ RT device. It combines a touch sensitive 10inch screen and a keyboard dock with a second battery secreted inside, and based on our experiences with the almost identical ASUS Transformer Prime – the company’s flagship Android tablet – it’s going to be great.
techno jargon // by Deon Du Plessis
This month, we present you with a smorgasbord of acronyms. Enjoy! API
GUI
Application Program Interface. Used by programmers, this term means a set of commands, functions and protocols that can be used to create software for specific operating systems. Doing it this way means programmers can make use of certain functions without having to create them from scratch.
Graphical User Interface. It’s also pronounced “gooey” by those in the know. A GUI is basically the visual elements like icons and menus that are clicked on with a mouse cursor in order to operate a computer program. You’ll see plenty of references to Windows 8’s new “GUI” online, for example.
BCC
MPEG
Blind Carbon Copy. By using the BCC field in e-mail programs, you’re able to send an e-mail to someone without their address appearing on the list of recipients. It’s handy for office politics, but be careful with it – misuse of the BCC field can have embarrassing consequences!
Motion Picture Experts Group. This organisation is responsible for the development of new and more efficient ways to store digital audio and video files. Basically, they make the music and video files you view on your computer look better yet take up less space on your hard drive over time.
DCIM
OCR
Digital Camera Images. Anyone who has used a digital camera has found a folder called DCIM on their camera’s memory card. This is the default location all digital cameras use to store the pictures they take.
Optical Character Recognition. This technology is used to translate scanned text documents into digital document files by recognising each letter and converting it into something a computer can interpret.
DDR3
P2P
DDR means “Double Data Rate”, and is typically found in reference to memory technology. DDR3 is simply the third generation of the technology, and uses less power than DDR2 while transferring data twice as fast. Faster memory means faster PC performance.
Peer to Peer. This refers to a type of network made up of individual computers connected to each other via the Internet. This allows for direct connections between PCs to be established and files copied without the participation of a centralised server.
8 | connect | December 2012
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2012/10/01 3:29 PM
gift giving guide 2012 //by Tiana Cline & Deon Du Plessis
Great Gift Giving A
s we move further away from the turn of the century, at least one thing is becoming clear: technology is improving by leaps and bounds every year. That means the gadgets you’ll find on store shelves are thinner, faster, lighter and packed with even more awesomeness than ever, and for techconscious consumers, that’s fantastic news. As a result, gadgets are becoming increasingly desirable, making festive gift-buying both easier and more difficult than in years gone by. Do you buy that one awesome thing your friends or family have been drooling over but that they might not use every day, or do you buy them something that’s maybe not as flashy, but that will probably see more daily use in the coming year? Decisions, decisions. To try to make the choices you’re facing this holiday season somewhat easier, we’ve rounded up a smattering of gift ideas that are suitable for many different situations and recipients. Because of the sheer volume of products covered, we haven’t gone into huge detail about each, but we’re hoping that our selection will at least give you a few ideas as to what’s out there, and a ballpark figure of how much things will cost. No matter what you choose, we wish you all the happiest, safest and most satisfying holiday season ever, from all of us here at Connect. Happy shopping!
www.connectmag.co.za | 11
gift giving guide 2012 04
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Toys for Boys When it comes to gifts for dads, brothers, male friends or cousins, etc., it helps to think of them as big boys. They might act like adults, but trust us, deep down, the dudes in your life are really just teenagers who love to play and be entertained. With that in mind, here are some manly ideas for your favourite male friend/relative/co-worker, ranging from the world’s best tablet computer to a set of high-power, high-class speakers.
01 Capdase iPad Keyboard + Cover
02 Sennheiser PC21-II Headset
R699.95
R399.95
Protect and augment your iPad this festive season with this cool highquality keyboard/cover combo from Capdase. The keyboard is more comfortable to type on than a touchscreen, and having an extra fauxleather layer of protection to keep your Precious safe and scratch-free will set your mind at ease.
If it’s a high-quality headset you’re after, you can’t go wrong with Sennheiser’s PC21-II. Top-quality audio and a sturdy build mean many hours can be spent Skyping far-away friends and family that can’t spend the holidays with you.
12 | connect | December 2012
03 Apple MacBook Air
04 Asus UX31A Ultrabook
05 Apple Magic Trackpad
R12 999.95
R14 999.95
R799.95
The Air is Apple’s smallest, most portable and quite possibly nicest notebook ever, with a powerful processor, decent graphics capabilities, and a fast SSD that helps Mountain Lion simply fly.
The UX31A Ultrabook is incredibly well-built, with a polished metal chassis and superb hardware driving the Windows experience. Grab one before the end of February, and upgrade to Windows 8 for next to nothing!
Use the magic of multi-touch gestures on your desktop Mac using Apple’s wireless, multitouch trackpad. No more will Apple notebooks have all the fun!
06 Apple iPad 3 From R5 299.95 Apple’s 3rd-generation iPad has everything going for it – looks, speed and the most high-resolution Retina display available on any tablet. It’s smooth, it’s fast and it’s connected to Apple’s iTunes store, which gives you access to applications that can do just about anything you can imagine!
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07 iRig Stomp R999.95
08 Netgear NeoTV 550 R2 399.95
This innovative little gadget turns your iPhone or iPad into a multieffects unit for your guitar with amplifier emulation. It comes with a free copy of AmpliTube, an app that gives you full-featured guitar and bass tones featuring some of the most famous guitar amp sounds on the planet.
This excellent media player plays all popular video and music files, and outputs to your TV over HDMI. It supports awesome surroundsound technologies like Dolby Digital and DTS 2.0 that take advantage of any home cinema speakers you may have; all you need to do is add some storage and your favourite digital media.
12
09 House of Marley Soul Rebel
10 Apple Airport Express
11 FIFA 13 PC
R599.95
R1 099.95
When Christmas lunch is done and everyone is stuffed and happy, it’s time to chill. These eco-friendly, high-quality in-ear headphones offer a fantastic way to make the most of your holiday downtime, by cocooning you in your own private sound cloud.
The Airport Express offers the easiest way by far to set up a dual-band, N-class home network, thanks to a handy setup assistant built directly into iOS6. It even has a Windows app that lets Windows PCs use it too!
Sports enthusiasts will love this year’s iteration of EA’s ultra-popular football game, FIFA 13. Improved graphics, better ball control and a large number of game modes will keep avid soccer fans glued to their PCs, Xboxes and Playstations for hours on end.
R399.95
12 Logitech Z906 Speakers R5 999.95 Logitech’s top-of-therange speakers are brilliant when connected to a TV, PC or anything else that has the appropriate connectors. With 7.1 surround sound and THX certification, games, movies and music sound absolutely incredible!
www.connectmag.co.za | 13
gift giving guide 2012 01 02
03
05
06 04 01 Nikon CoolPix S30 Camera
02 Fellowes Mousepad
03 BenQ Joybee GP2 Projector
R99.95
R7 499.95
It’s all about ergonomics! A mousepad not only keeps the bottom of your mouse (or table top) clean, it offers a non-reflective surface for better tracking and speed – it’s also more comfortable on your wrist. We particularly like the look of these 2 petite options from Fellowes: Smarties and Paperclips.
Watch here, watch there, watch everywhere! That’s the motto of this tiny pocket projector. It’s as easy as plugging in your iPhone and sharing your videos and photos on-the-go. The best bit? It’s compatible with other smartphones, tablets and media players.
R899.95 Looking for a durable holiday camera that’s easy on the eyes? We suggest you pack Nikon’s S30 – not only can it survive being dropped from a height of 80cm, it’s waterresistant up to 3m as well. Bigger buttons mean that everyone in the family will be a pro photographer in no time. Available in pink, blue and white.
04 Logitech K360 Wireless Keyboard R399.95
14 | connect | December 2012
05 Golla Compact Bonnie Camera Bag
06 Urbanears Plattan Headphones R599.95
R149.95 Convenient, compact and creative, the K360 wireless keyboard from Logitech is part of the company’s limited edition colour collection. Our pick is the white keyboard, which features a delicate pink, baby blue and purple paisley design. And yes, you can get a mouse to match!
A pretty and practical way to protect your camera, this brightorange digi bag sports a white floral design and comes with a caribiner that allows you to attach the bag to almost anything, like a belt loop so you can wear your bag on your hip, or a neck strap. We love the extra inside pocket – great for storing memory cards.
With origami-esque folding abilities and an oh-so-smart fabric cord, the simple Scandinavian design on these trendy headphones makes them both trendy and clever. We also love the monochromatic colour options and Zoundplug, which you can use to share your music with a friend.
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For the Ladies There’s more to picking out the perfect tech present for the woman in your life than buying something pink. Today’s gadgets are all about living a digital lifestyle. So whether you use your Xbox Kinect for a workout, or want those headphones to match your hard drive, here are some neat options for every girl geek.
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07 Microsoft Wedge Touch Mouse
08 Seagate Backup Plus Hard Drive
R799.95
R1 499.95
What is that cute triangle you’re holding? It’s your new Bluetooth, Windows 8-compatible Microsoft mouse. This tiny number sports more than a compact design, it has 4-way touch-scrolling and wireless Bluetooth connectivity – no USB transistor to take up precious port allocation. It may be pricey, but it’s definitely worth popping into your handbag for mobile meetings.
It’s important to keep a backup of all your personal data… but what about social media? This hard drive offers a stylish storage that also lets you link your Facebook, Flickr and YouTube accounts directly to your drive, making sharing and protecting things online easier than ever before. Oh, and 1TB is more than adequate when it comes to space.
09 Nintendo DS Lite R999.95 Nintendo’s portable gaming console is so much more than Mario on 2 screens. There are titles like Sudoku, Brain Age 2 and other lifestyle and puzzle options to make this a must-have gadget, no matter your gender or age. If Nicole Kidman, Liv Tyler and Kristen Bell have one, you should too.
10 Hama 15” Digital Photo Frame
11 Your Shape: Fitness Evolved 2013
12 Ozaki iStroke L Stylus
R1 499.95
TBA
R349.95
If you’re looking for a bigger digital photo frame to show off all your beautiful images, this is it. Large in size and resolution, with a built-in card reader, you can save your pictures to an SD card and experience features like zoom, automatic image rotation and slide show – there’s even a timer and clock/ calendar/alarm option.
Cancel your gym contact and create a personalised exercise routine using Your Shape for Wii U! With over 125 different workouts and 215 moves, no matter if you’re looking for strength building, cardio, stretching or relaxation, you’ll get a virtual personal trainer and a community of caloriefighter colleagues.
This double-duty gadget from Ozaki is a stylus and pen in one. If you’re in need of a more precise tool that relieves finger pressure, the soft tip on the iStroke L offers a more sensitive touch – you’ll also avoid getting those telltale fingerprints and smudges on your touchscreen.
www.connectmag.co.za | 15
gift giving guide 2012 04
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Kid Stuff What do you buy for those tech-savvy kids out there? Surely they have everything? Think again – there’s so much more you can plug into a USB port these days! Here are some age-appropriate options for gadget-enthusiastic little ones.
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01 Skylanders Giants
02 Parrot A.R. Drone 2.0
R799.95
R1 499.95
If you can imagine toys coming to life, then you’ll adore the Skylanders series. Giants is the must-have sequel and, included in this Activision game, are 3 action figures that when placed onto a connected portal (also included) light up and appear in the game!
What else can you do with your iPhone? How about flying a high-tech quadricopter equipped with an HD (720p) video camera to take surveillance footage of your neighbourhood? You can even do flips at the push of a button. Even better, this pricey toy can also be used with an iPad, iPod Touch and Android devices.
16 | connect | December 2012
03 PSP Bundle R1599.95 What could be better than a PSP? Well, how about about one that comes with a 2GB memory card and 3 top titles. This portable bundle has something for everyone with Gran Turismo, Tekken and God of War: Ghost of Sparta – it’s racing, fighting and action in one pretty package.
04 Joby GorillaPod Flexible Tripod
05 shoX Beat Box
06 Apple 2GB iPod Shuffle
R249.95
R599.95
R199.95
Take your music to the street with a teeny-tiny beat box from shoX. This sweet mini speaker (in pink or black) pumps big and clear sound and has a built-in microSD card reader to take your portable music experience to the next level.
It’s small, colourful, wearable (just clip it on!) and lets you take hundreds of songs with you wherever you go. This is the Apple iPod Shuffle and with a good 15 hours of battery life, it’s a long-lived music library as well.
It’s a small and sleek stand for your smartphone. It’s also an on-the-go tripod solution to help you take great pics. With flexible, spiderlike legs and a flexible mount, just clip in your gadget and you’re good to go.
07 Nintendo Wii U
08 Britannica 2012
R4 599.95
R499.95 (Ultimate Edition) R299.95 (Deluxe Edition)
What makes the Wii U different from the other consoles out there? The GamePad, a tablet-like controller that adds a 2nd dimension to your gameplay. So get it. And then buy exclusive titles like ZombiU, Wii Fit U and New Super Mario Bros. U.
When you need the facts, turn to the Encyclopaedia Britannica for accurate information supplied by Nobel laureates, historians, curators, professors and other noted authorities. With more than 100 000 articles, Britannica 2012 has more content than any other reference software.
09 Uniross rechargeable battery pack R199.95 Tired of buying batteries for all your kid’s gadgets and gizmos? It’s time to invest in a Uniross rechargeable battery pack. Go green by being considerate of the environment, save money, and always have portable power at your disposable – you have nothing to lose!
10 Cobra microTALK walkietalkies
11 Leapster Explorer GS
R649.95
The bestselling LeapFrog range for kids is an educational force to be reckoned with! Meet the Leapster GS, a kid-friendly handheld gaming system with a built-in camera and video recorder, motion sensor and stylus. And as an added bonus, the GS comes with 3 apps: Pet Pad, Escape of the Sillies, and a choice of 3 engaging educational games from the LeapFrog App Centre.
R899.95
There’s more to a set of walkie-talkies than meets the eye. Take these babies from Cobra. They work at a distance of 40+ kilometres, use auto squelch – this picks up the background noise and cancels it out – and have a cool backlit screen. Perfect for sleepovers? Definitely!
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12 Microsoft LifeCam Cinema Webcam R799.95 It’s no fun talking to your friends and family overseas when you can’t see them or hear them properly. Luckily, the Microsoft LifeCam has pixel-perfect HD video chat, true colour technology (no, I’m not sunburnt!) and noisecancelling. All the better to hear you with.
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10 www.connectmag.co.za | 17
gift giving guide 2012
The Boss By putting a bit of thought into your gift choices, Christmas 2012 could help to make the upcoming work year better than it’s ever been before. Alternatively, you could find the perfect gift for a colleague or even your boss!
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01 Logitech Solar Keyboard K750 R799.95
02 Netgear Wireless Dual-Band Router N600
03 HP Ink Advantage 5525
04 Photofast i-Flashdrive 8GB
05 Belkin 4-port USB Hub
06 Ergo-Tilt Notebook Stand
R1 499.95
TBA
R169.95
R149.95
A cost-effective colour inkjet printer might not be the sexiest Christmas gift, but next year’s budget will be hugely grateful you chose one of HP’s new Ink Advantage printers. This one prints, scans and copies, but uses a lot less ink to do it, resulting in more prints per cartridge. Also, cartridges are supercheap at around R350 for an entire set.
Makes moving files back and forth between PCs and Macs, iPads and iPhones an absolute breeze. It’s recognised as additional storage on any compatible i-Device, and works as a regular memory stick on PCs, making file transfers between devices much less of a headache than ever before.
It’s not the most hightech item, but this handy USB port can give you more places to plug in your printer, camera, wireless dongle, USB stick or external hard drive. With Ultrabooks becoming popular in the workplace, their limited USB port count is begging for extra capacity, which this hub provides.
Notebooks placed flat on any surface ultimately create discomfort for the user due to the unnatural posture they are forced to adopt. The Ergo-Tilt notebook stand ensures notebooks are kept at an optimal angle that encourages users to adopt a more natural sitting position when the notebook is in use.
R2 499.95 This wireless keyboard makes the most of Logitech’s expertise in keyboard design, while also including a brand-new innovation: Solar power. With no need for batteries and an incredibly comfortable and convenient key layout, the K750 will keep you typing and battery costs down.
Future-proof next year’s network with this dualband router from Netgear. It might look plain on the outside, but the inside hides advanced 2.4GHz and 5GHz networking features, as well as incredible wired and wireless performance.
18 | connect | December 2012
conn
Enjoy on the Go! Enjoy media from your iPad
In the back of your car
InCarBite’s range of accessories allow for in-
car viewing and gaming, straight from your iPad
Typing on your iPad has never been easier
Bluetooth Keyboard Flip Folder Case
– Folder design with soft inner case for full
protection – Detachable soft and comfortable wrist pad and Bluetooth keyboard, holds folder case in place by magnetic connection – Compact and lightweight QWERTY keyboard designed for Apple iPad and pairs easily using Bluetooth connection – iPad-specific function keys for media control, web browsing, text editing and more
connect magazine-dec.indd 1
Bluetooth Keyboard Zip Folder Case – Zip closure combined with Soft Jacket design
offers perfect fit for full protection – Detachable Soft Jacket case and Bluetooth keyboard held in place with magnetic technology – Built-in expandable folder for stylus – Compact and lightweight QWERTY keyboard designed for Apple iPad and pairs easily using Bluetooth connection – iPad-specific function keys for media control, web browing, text editing and more
2012/11/16 8:10 AM
windows and you //by christo van gemert
The machines o
Window
Windows 8 might be making its way onto millions of existing computers, through Microsoft’s affordable upgrade program, but the new operating system will also birth a whole new generation of computing devices.
W
indows 8 has been covered extensively over the last few months. Everything, from its new interface to the upgrade options, has been written about, and now that it’s finally available on shelves, we can see if Microsoft’s latest lives up to the hype. Of course, there are some things to consider here. A tremendous amount of effort has been put into making Windows 8 fresh and adaptable to future innovation. It’ll run just fine on your laptop today, but what about the laptops of tomorrow – what will they have to offer?
20 | connect | November 2012
Here and now Leading up to the Windows 8 launch, Microsoft made it clear that it wants everybody to upgrade to the newest flavour of its operating system. Cynics might point out that of course it would want this – it stands to make a lot of money, after all – but if we look at it in a positive light, we’ll see that Microsoft is offering affordable upgrade options (less than R400) for users of Windows XP, Windows Vista, or Windows 7. If you have a machine running Windows XP, which is more than 10 years old, you can upgrade to the latest and greatest for far less than ever before. And aside from computing power and the age of the
s of
ows hardware, a machine that ran Windows XP and a machine that runs Windows 7 will have very little separating them. Whatever your existing computer, the Windows 8 experience will be positive, if challenging. You’ll rely heavily on using your mouse to access the hot corners and the charm bars. Very few pre-Windows 8 machines will have the special touch hardware that makes it easy to use. If your machine is capable of running Windows 8, and you want to experience the new interface, there’s no reason not to get the software upgrade. It will run perfectly on your machine, and you get the benefit of the latest software – with all the technical innovation that includes – running on hardware you already own.
www.connectmag.co.za | 21
windows and you
Upgrade options But let’s say you already have a computer that can run Windows 8, and want to have a better experience. First we have to quantify the term “better experience”. With Windows 8, Microsoft optimised its user interface – the parts you see and click – to be very touch-friendly. That is to say, there are elements of Windows 8 that work far better when manipulated with natural gestures, as you would using the touchscreen on your smartphone. To get the best Window 8 experience, you want to give your computer the sense of touch, and that can be easily achieved. Dell has created a monitor with a built-in touch panel. It’s a regular 23” full high-definition monitor, the kind you’d find attached to many desktop PCs. Its touch capabilities set it apart, though. Now, instead
of using mouse wheels and scroll bars to zoom into a photo, you can reach out and physically manipulate the on-screen graphics with familiar pinch and zoom gestures. You can easily navigate the Start screen, open live tiles, and activate the live edges, and use other apps that were designed with touch gestures in mind. There are other, cheaper upgrade options available, too. Microsoft has its Touch Wedge mouse, which has a multi-touch surface that will give your laptop or desktop newfound touch capabilities. HP also has a large trackpad available. It looks very similar to Apple’s Magic Trackpad, but is designed to give desktop computers a simple touch upgrade. The best part is that it can be used in conjunction with a mouse, so you can retain fast pointing accuracy while gaining touch gestures on a dedicated surface.
New kids on the block Ideally, though, you’d get one of the hundreds of “built for Windows 8” computers that will be released over the coming months. You’ll get desktops and all-in-one machines with touch features and displays that can tilt to be used like tablets – they’ll make you wonder why you’ve never computed like this before! The real innovation will come from all-new form factors, and radical takes on existing mobile platforms.
22 | connect | November 2012
windows and you
Asus has one of the smartest machines we’ve seen, the TaiChi laptop. This machine features dual displays: one on the inside, as you’d expect on a laptop, and another on the outside of the lid. The second display is touch-enabled and allows the TaiChi to double up as a tablet when the lid is closed. Lenovo has a device called the IdeaPad Yoga. As its name suggests, this laptop can be twisted around, and when its display is folded back completely, with the keyboard facing the wrong way, it transforms from regular laptop into convenient tablet. Dell also has an extremely innovative take on the convertible laptop: its XPS Duo has a 12” display built into what looks like a regular laptop lid. However, a very nifty swivelling mechanism lets the screen rotate on its axis and flip to face backwards – all inside the existing frame. That way, it can be closed onto the keyboard and treated as a tablet. There are also hybrid laptop/tablet devices from companies like Acer, Samsung, and Asus. These machines all take their inspiration from the original Asus Transformer Prime, an Android tablet that had a keyboard dock. The Windows 8 variations of these hybrid machines will look like regular laptops. Open the display to reveal a keyboard and touch pad, use it as you normally would, and close it to send it into a power-saving state. Or you could just remove the display from the keyboard, and now have a standalone tablet – running all your usual Windows applications – and take your
24 | connect | November 2012
regular desktop computer with you on the road. The biggest innovations will come from these devices, as manufacturers find ingenious ways to package more batteries and storage into the keyboard dock sections, for more disk space and battery life when you eventually plug the screen back in. Finally, there will be the inevitable barrage of tablet devices. Windows 8 is so heavily optimised for a touch experience that even Microsoft ventured into the tablet hardware market, releasing its own iPad competitor, called the Surface tablet. Sadly, the Surface will not be sold in South Africa, but it does open up the floor to Samsung, Acer, Lenovo, and Asus, which all have a selection of both Windows 8 and Windows RT tablets from which to choose.
how to //by deon du plessis
Create...
Greeting Cards
for next to nothing! Own a printer? Need to send out tons of greeting cards for the holidays? Read on to find out how you can do it for a lot less than R30 per card...
G
reeting cards aren’t cheap – they can cost R30 (and more!) each. This holiday season, you can save yourself a bundle by printing out your own cards, and all you’ll need to do it is your own PC/Mac and printer, which, as a clever Connect reader, you already have.
Here’s how: Step 1: Open up your Web browser and go to www.google.co.za. Step 2: Enter “Free greeting cards” in the search box and click Google Search. Choose any of the ones that come up and explore the sites for options. Step 3: Create your card. Personalise it with your own words, decorate it with a selection of clipart images or even your own photos. Step 4: Print your card. Follow the onscreen instructions to get it printed so that you can fold it up and post it. Step 5: Repeat for as many people as you have on your Christmas card list. Step 6: Bask in the glow of satisfaction that you haven’t enriched any of the big-name greetings-card companies, yet you’ve created cards for every one of your friends/relatives/co-workers.
eCards are eCheap, but not eFree Alternatively, if you’d prefer to save on postage costs instead of the card itself, consider a subscription to a premium eCard service that lets you choose from professional card designs and send as many as you like every year over e-mail. One such site is www.Hallmark.com and www.Bluemountain.com is another.
26 | connect | December 2012
www.connectmag.co.za
holiday essentials //by Adam Oxford
Holiday Gadgets Whether you’re going away or staying at home this festive season, our guide to must-have tech will help you make the most of your time off work. With our advice, you can turn a two week break into the holiday of a lifetime.
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I
t’s that time of the year, when we lock up our offices and head off to spend some time with family and friends. The schools are closed for the duration, banks have limited hours, and the shops are chaotic. So it’s time to hit the road, catch a train or plane, and enjoy a well-deserved break. Just remember that whatever you’re planning to do this December, there’s always a gadget or two that will make the experience more relaxing
and enjoyable. If relaxing isn’t your thing, and you prefer to unwind by paragliding off the top of Table Mountain, then there’s plenty of tech to make life a lot less peaceful and more adrenaline-filled, too. Here at Connect, we like to enjoy life a little more vicariously, and you’ll struggle to separate us from our screens this summer. That’s not to say we don’t know how to have fun – especially when it comes to IT-enhanced fun. Whether you’re planning on heading off overseas to go backpacking around Europe, hoping to spend some time at the beach, or heading up to the Kruger to try your chances at spotting the Big Five, we’ve put together a comprehensive list of the best tech toys and gadgets to improve the experience and make your holiday memorable. And for the very best advice, we’ve also tracked down some experts to give advice on travelling light without compromising your kit bag. If this all just seems like too much effort when you’re supposed to be enjoying a bit of R&R, we’ve also included some ideas for a Christmas at home, including ways to distract the family while you have your time off.
www.connectmag.co.za | 29
holiday essentials //by Adam Oxford
Leaving on a jetplane... Going away somewhere nice? Take the tedium out of travel with a bit of tactically deployed technology. Believe it or not, there was a time when air travel was deemed glamorous. Back then, it was the exclusive domain of movie stars and the super-rich. Only a few dozen people sat in spacious cabins and dinners were served on silver platters to make passengers feel like a million bucks. Incidentally, that was also the price of a ticket. Fortunately, prices have come down since then, but most of us still settle for cattle class when we book our tickets. And travelling in Economy Class is also why we tend to associate international flights not with the jetset lifestyle, but rather with the tedium of a 3-hour minimum check-in time, followed by being shoehorned into a tiny seat next to a slobbering drunk. Pin-sized windows designed to calm the nervous traveller means there isn’t even much of a view to enjoy once you’re on board. So if you’re heading off on a long flight, you’re going to need something to take your mind off the broken LCD screen in front of you and that whiff of chemical cleaner from the toilet behind you. Here’s the gear you’ll want.
Read in the dark Kindle Paperwhite
Amazon’s extraordinary eReader has space for a gazillion books or so, which is more than enough to keep you occupied from check-in queue to the other side of customs no matter how far you fly. The latest ‘Paperwhite’ version has a built in backlight so you can read in the dark too.
30 | connect | December 2012
Hand luggage limits
Samsung WB100
The problem with airplanes is that they’re designed to cram 500 people into a space more suitable for five. And that’s before you get to the issue of hand luggage and everdecreasing weight allowances. Grab this powerful but lightweight bridge camera from Samsung and you’ll be taking pro shots without risking your expensive DSLR in the free-for-all that is the hold.
> Pro tip! Martin Zimelka (www. martinzimelka.com) is a commercial and fine art photographer who travels extensively to shoot the natural world. He’s an expert with new kit, and helps Fujifilm assess their latest cameras in the field. Connect: What equipment do you always take with you on professional assignments? Martin: I have learnt to travel light. I started off carrying far too much equipment in a large backpack-type Lowepro bag, but now I use either one of my two Billingham bags, depending on equipment required. The camera I carry with me most of the time is not the camera I use for professional assignments. I always carry my Rolleiflex 2.8 with me, which fits snugly into every bag I’ve ever owned, but its home is in the Hadley. Together with the Rolleiflex, I have a hand-held light meter (either my Sekonic 308BII or Minolta IIIF spot meter) and various Heliopan filters for the Rolleiflex. Connect: And if you’re packing a bag to take on holiday? Martin: While I like gadgets, technology, and digital cameras, I try not to let it cloud my personal work. I don’t think twice about taking the Rolleiflex when going on holiday or trips, but often take my D700, as well as 2 lenses. Always the Zeiss Distagon 2/35 ZF.2, and either the Zeiss Makro-Planar 2/100 ZF or AF-D 50/1.8 … or both!
That’s entertainment Apple iPad 3 WiFi 32GB
Yes, some airplanes have sophisticated entertainment systems with thousands of movies to choose from and multiplayer games built in. But you can be sure your plane is the one that still has CRT screens dangling from the roof, with a vaguely orange tint to the picture. Pack an iPad filled with games and films of your choosing, and you’ll never be at the mercy of a system failure or broken seat control.
Fill up on fun
Shut out the world
So you aren’t lucky enough to own an iPad? Grab your beaten-up old laptop and a memory card full of digital movies and you can have the next best thing. It’s perfect for expanding storage on a lightweight laptop too.
Yes, the airline will supply you with a pair of headphones to listen to their in-flight entertainment system. But they’ll be rubbish. Sennheiser’s lovely HD202s, on the other hand, encase your ears in a thick plastic shell, cutting out engine sounds and the noise of that baby crying 2 seats ahead. Lose yourself in a soundproofed world of your own, and, before you know it, you’ll be landing at your destination.
Verbatim 32GB SDHC Memory Card
Sennheiser HD202
Carry-ons
Targus Rolling Case
Never mind the plane, lugging a tablet, camera and all your equipment around an airport before you fly is no fun. That’s why man invented wheels. Or more specifically, hand-luggage sized bags with wheels. Targus’ top-loading cuboid is designed to safely hold everything you take with you, with internal security straps, mesh pockets and a padded laptop space for a 15.4” or smaller screen machine.
www.connectmag.co.za | 31
Beach bum Taking gadgets to the beach can be risky, because nothing marrs a shiny new tablet like salt water and sand. So pick your kit wisely. Sun, sea, sand. And we all know what’s made of sand, right? Silicon chips, that’s what. Which is obviously why beaches hate gadgets so much. They’re jealous. A little bit of care, however, and you can pack a kit bag that’s resilient against any amount of beachrelated bashing. From tech that’s designed to be tough, to waterproof containers and cases for the rest, here’s how to enjoy the beach – 21st-centurystyle.
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Now hear this
Bose Soundlink Wireless Mobile Speaker
Want to get music off your phone and into the great wide yonder? Don’t mess around with cables to connect your handset to a mobile speaker kit – that’s just an invitation for sand to leap into your electronics and party. Grab this incredible Bose Soundlink instead. Powered by a rechargeable Lithium Ion battery, it hooks up to your music player via Bluetooth so all you have to do is push play and enjoy.
http://www.shutterstock.com/gallery-177652p1.html?cr=00&pl=edit-00
holiday essentials //by Adam Oxford
Juice it up
Energizer Portable Charger
Unless you fancy running an extension cord from your hotel window, chances are there’s no power sockets on your chosen beach to keep your tech topped up for a long day out. That’s not a problem with this portable battery pack from Watt a Saver. It will keep your phone or music player topped up while you soak up the sun.
http://www.shutterstock.com/gallery-177652p1.html?cr=00&pl=edit-00
> Pro tip! Bianca Buitendag is a professional surfer from the south coast who’s currently World Junior Champion and is sponsored by Roxy. As you might expect, she spends a lot of time on the beach.
What lies beneath?
GoPro HD Hero: Naked XG1100
The only thing better than video clips to remember your holiday by is underwater video clips to remember your holiday by. GoPro’s HD Hero kit is waterproof to 60m and will bring back the kind of low-light, high-resolution footage that Jacques Cousteau could only dream of. Whether it’s swimming with sharks, skiing around the bay, or jut snorkelling with the kids, you can shoot it with the HD Hero.
Connect: What is your greatest surfing achievement? Bianca: Qualifying for the World Tour in 2013. It has been a long year and the hard work has paid off. I won two World Qualifying series events to get there. Connect: What gadgets do you always carry with you and why? Bianca: My phone (iPhone4S) and my laptop are necessities when travelling. Mostly to keep in touch with family and friends. Connect: What would be your dream gadget to take on tour? Bianca: Probably the new iPad! Or a GPS, because we always get lost. Hahaha!
Make the booking Kindle Keyboard
Paper books may be last century, but the holiday blockbuster is alive and well. Thanks to the e-ink screen of Amazon’s amazing Kindle e-reader, you can lay back in the sun and enjoy all the season’s best books without having to turn a single page. Just make sure you don’t get any sand under the keys.
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holiday essentials //by Adam Oxford
On the slopes It may be summer here, but there’s no better way to get festive than to head north and go skiing. Here’s the kit you’ll need on the piste. Candy coated kit
Speck Candyshell Cover
The most important piece of kit you can take with you onto the slopes is a tough case for your phone. The Candyshell from Speck will wrap up your handset in layers of rubbery protection to prevent it taking a fall when you do. If you don’t have a case like this, leave your phone in the hotel safe. Trust us on this.
Stellar smart phone Samsung Galaxy SIII
Carrying a camera as well as a phone in a bumbag is weighty, a schlepp, and increases the chances of something getting smashed. Samsung’s Android superphone has an 8MP sensor for stunning scenery shots, and is powerful enough to shoot and edit HD video on the fly. Just don’t forget that case, okay?
34 | connect | December 2012
The number-1 rule of taking along a gadget when you go skiing is to make sure it’s tough. If it’s not, leave it behind. Skiing is the one sport where falling over is inevitable, and unless you want to return home with shards of glass where your phone used to be, you’ll want to go with gear that’s up to the job.
Smoke on the water (snow)
Skull Smokin Bud Rasta Earphones
We all ski or snowboard to a soundtrack in our head, a happy tune to make the experience that bit more epic. Why tax your imagination, though? These earbuds are perfect for slipping under a hat and goggles, and will keep you entertained during those long chairlift rides back to the top.
C1200595
Experience colour like never before.
Engineered with professionally calibrated technology for superbly accurate colour detail, the new Samsung SB970 lets you experience colours the way nature intended. Follow us on
holiday essentials //by Adam Oxford
In the bush Few tasks are as difficult or rewarding as capturing wildlife on camera, so if you want a long-lasting memento of your next trip to the Kruger Park, here’s what you’ll need. The natural world is strikingly beautiful, but that doesn’t mean your enjoyment of it can’t be enhanced by carrying the correct tech with you. If you’re planning a trip to a game park or national reserve this December, chances are you’ll be hoping to bring back some evidence that you’ve been there. Fortunately for the fauna of our most picturesque places, these days, when we talk about going out to shoot the Big Five, we tend to mean firing a shutter release rather than bullets. But if capturing animals on digital film was easy, wildlife photographers wouldn’t be able to command their steep professional fees. We can’t turn you into a pro overnight, but we can help you take your photo and video work to the next level.
Sharp Shooter Canon 650D
There’s no getting away from it – if you want to shoot wildlife, you’re going to need an SLR camera. You’ll find an advanced body like the Canon 650D more responsive than a compact camera or phone, and able to take shots without waiting for the focus to snap into place or the device to start up. It also has a fast 5-frames–per-second shutter speed, for capturing animals in motion and tracking them through the bush. Most important, however, is the access to professional-quality lenses that will get you up close and personal to the beasts without leaving your car.
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Ready, steady, click! A small cushion or bean bag
You can’t set up a tripod in the car, but you can still steady a long lens for that perfect shot. Place a small cushion or bean bag over the top of your car window and it’s a perfect place to rest your hands or support the camera’s body.
Seeing is believing Latest Sightings
Still rifling through the pages of an old wildlife guide to figure out what particular breed of cat you’re looking at? Try this free iPhone app for your phone instead, from www.latestsightings.com. Not only is it useful for identifying game, it also has a built-in spotter service so you can share locations with others.
> Pro tip! Andre Valadao is a professional wildlife photographer and editor of wildphotomag.co.za. Like Martin, he also advises Fujifilm on their new cameras.
Cable-free connections SanDisk EyeFi
You’ll want to show off your animal snaps fast, but how to get your pictures from camera to Twitter before the next photo opp comes along? SanDisk’s EyeFi can beam images straight from your camera to your laptop, tablet or smartphone without having to plug it in or remove the memory card. Just download the SanDisk app and you can share pics online from your mobile device without even touching the camera.
Up close and personal
Sigma 120-400mm lens
This exceptional telephoto lens has an equivalent focal length of 192-640mm, picking out details in even the most distant creature. It comes with optical image stabilisation to prevent camera shake, and a quiet hypersonic focus motor so as not to scare the animals away.
Connect: What equipment do you always carry with you? Andre: I carry a range of equipment when in the field. In nature and wildlife photography, the photographer is often faced with a huge variety of situations and conditions that require differing focal lengths and a range of specialised lenses and other equipment to capture the moment. Often, conditions dictate what images are available, and it’s necessary to be prepared for any and all eventualities. I have a large variety of gear I use on a regular basis; my main aim is to cover all the focal lengths, from wide-angle landscape-type work, to long-range telephoto work. Connect: What’s the most important piece of advice you can give someone who wants to take better photos? Andre: Join a local photography club or one of the many Internet forums and dedicated photography pages and post your images and ask for advice. Wildlife photographers are a very friendly bunch and will share their knowledge and give good advice on how to improve. It’s also a good idea to try to shoot with more experienced photographers as you will pick up a lot of invaluable, realworld shooting tips. And spend a lot of time in the field.
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holiday essentials //by Adam Oxford
Road tripping Going on a long drive? Make the kilometres fly by so fast, your kids will want to spend more, not less, time in the car. It’s a cliché, but we’ll say it anyway: “Are we there yet?” Long journeys are tough for kids and adults alike, but we can help to relieve the tedium and turn a long drive into something enjoyable for all. Want to know which in-car tech you shouldn’t be without? Read on...
Turning to tech
TomTom Go 1055 Live World
Sure, you have GPS on your smartphone, but it can’t compete with the performance of a dedicated device. And when you’re lost in a strange part of the country in the middle of the night, you really don’t want a navigation system that’s going to let you down, do you? There’s a reason TomTom is number 1 in South Africa – it’s the best.
More than meets the eye ASUS Transformer Blue
This tough tablet has a quad core processor and a massive 15-hour or more battery life thanks to a booster battery hidden in the keyboard dock, so it’s perfect for keeping the kids entertained for long periods on the road. Plus, there’s 32GB of storage for plenty of apps and movies, along with USB ports and an SD card reader so they never run out of things to do. And if you get lost, it has built-in GPS, too.
Leap of faith
LeapPad 2 Violet
Letting a youngster loose on an adult’s tablet is a recipe for scratched-screen disaster, or worse. The innovative folk at Leapster have thought about this, though, and put together this awesome child-friendly slate full of educational apps and games.
Saftey first!
Supertooth Crystal in car speakerphone
Sorry to get all serious on you now, but more than 40 people die on South Africa’s roads every day. It’s a statistic we should be ashamed of. Mobile phones are one of the primary causes of driver distraction, so pick up a Bluetooth hands-free kit like this one before you set off with your entire family in the car.
38 | connect | December 2012
holiday essentials //by Adam Oxford
Staying at home
Total control Logitech Harmony 300
Forget the hassle of going away. It’s been a long year and you deserve some R&R at home. There’s no shame in shunning the madness of holiday traffic, airport queues, expensive trips up mountains and so on. With good food, family and a bit of festive TV, you can turn a couple of weeks at home into a luxury break without bashing the bank account into submission. It’s every bit as relaxing, and look at all the fun stuff you get to do.
40 | connect | December 2012
Playtime
PlayStation 3
Sony’s latest revision to the PlayStation games console is the best yet, reducing the size of the chassis by a full 5th over the previous ‘slim’ version. It’s just as powerful, though, and also sports a built-in Blu-ray player for HD movies. It’s the ultimate home entertainment box, really.
Nothing ruins a day spent with the family more than accusatory glances and recrimination over who lost the remote control. Avoid being stuck in single-channel stasis for hours on end with this universal remote from Logitech. It’s clever enough to control everything in your lounge from one pad, and big enough not to slip down the side of the sofa.
Five holiday apps to look out for Android, iOS or Windows RT – here are the 5 best apps to download for fun.
iOS App of the Day iOS
Tradition dictates that trees will be decorated, Santa hats will be worn, and Apple will have a special deal of the day every day over the 12 days of Christmas, where it offers hefty discounts to premium apps, music and movies. We have no idea what will be on offer yet, but based on previous experience, it will be good (and Google will probably have a Play sale to compete).
Hot wheel
Logitech G27
Of course, if you prefer something a little less bloodthirsty, grab yourself a copy of your favourite racing game and a pro-grade wheel like the Logitech G27. It’s a fantastic controller for all race games, and comes with a separate set of pedals for the most realistic on-track action.
Gaming goodness
Dishonored
Media mogul WD TV LiveHub
Forget DVDs and Blu-rays – digital media is the future. Western Digital’s WD TV Live Hub connects to your TV and the home network, and allows you to stream content from online sources or any other PC in the house. Plus, there’s an internal hard drive for storing movies and music of your own, which can then be streamed out over the Internet.
Got your games console? Then you’ll need something to play on it, won’t you? Our pick of the month is medieval steampunk assassination saga Dishonored, designed by members of the team that made Thief. It’s a potential candidate for game of the year, we reckon.
So, what did you do this holiday season? Thus ends our ideas feature for how to have a hightech time off work. But what did you get up to over the couple of weeks the office was closed? Here at Connect, we’d love to find out more about the gadgets that made your life a bit easier. E-mail our editor at news@connectmag.co.za, and let us know what kit made your break better.
Angry Birds Star Wars All platforms
We give up. The never-ending onslaught of Angry Birds games would be depressing, if it weren’t for the fact that they’re all so good. If you haven’t played Angry Birds Star Wars yet, you’re doing your phone, tablet and yourself a disservice.
Junior Astronaut – Breaking through the space barrier iOS
This awesome app is a great educational resource for older kids, but themed in a 1950s futuristic-style that’ll appeal to adults too. It explains everything you ever wanted to know about space. Which, in Connect’s case, is quite a lot.
Summly iOS
The innovative news-reading app designed by a 15-year-old is taking the world by storm, thanks to its clever algorithms that turn full-length stories into short, phone screen-sized bites. The theory is that long articles are hard to read on a phone, so Summly summarises your feed without losing the meaning.
DailyFive
All platforms
Stay up-to-date with tech news from the same team that produces Connect. DailyFive is a mix of news, reviews and top tips for all your gadgets and online life.
www.connectmag.co.za | 41
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product reviews
happy holidays
F
or all of us here at Connect, 2012 has been a very good year. We’ve seen some of the most amazing technology hitting local store shelves, and it has been an absolute privilege reviewing the awesome kit that has come our way these past 12 months. As we head into the holiday season, we thought it fitting to do a summary of the most impressive products we’ve seen in 2012. Consequently, this month’s reviews section is light on new products and heavy on the nostalgia. The idea is to give our readers a summary of the products that blew us away throughout the year, and we hope this will have a knock-on effect of inspiring a gift purchase or two. From my side, I’ve enjoyed watching 2012 unfold, and should the world NOT end on the 21st of December as the end of the Mayan calendar suggests it might, and the rand stabilises, I believe we’re going to have an even better 2013, certainly from a technological standpoint. That’s all from me for the year. I wish you and your loved ones a safe, happy and satisfying holiday season, and all the best for the coming year. Cheers! Deon
Contents 46 47 48 50 52 54 Microsoft Wireless Speed Wheel Dell Inspiron 15R Special Edition
Leapfrog LeapPad2 Learning Tablet Solidata X8 LE 120GB SSD BlackBerry Curve 9380 Smartphone Lenovo IdeaCentre A720 All-in-One Touch PC Fujifilm X-Pro1 TomTom GO Live 1005 World GPS
Asus Transformer Pad TF300 Tablet Samsung Galaxy S3 Microsoft Windows 8 Parrot A.R. Drone 2 Quadracopter
While we make every effort to ensure pricing is accurate before we go to print, sometimes through circumstances we have no control over, the prices in Connect may differ from those you’ll see on store shelves. In all cases, shelf pricing takes precedence. www.connectmag.co.za | 43
top
12
picks of 2012
. . . p o T The
of 2012
In tech, year-end retrospectives mean a look back at some of the awesome products we’ve had a chance to play with. Here’s ours for 2012.
44 | connect | December 2012
We’ve had quite an exciting year here at Connect, certainly in terms of the products we’ve been lucky enough to review. Technology is a wonderfully stimulating field to work in, so it’s been more fun than work to put each issue’s reviews together. Every month, we’ve singled out 5 products and highlighted them as our “Top 5”. Since it’s now December, we thought we’d roll all
of our top picks of the year into a single, huge Top 12 feature, including a product we’d have included in this month’s Top 5 if we’d done things the normal way. So sit back, relax, and let us take you through some of the year’s product highlights. These are products that we loved using, or that we felt had a major impact on the tech landscape in some form or other.
top
12
picks of 2012
Dell Inspiron 15R Special Edition NEED TO KNOW • High-powered multimedia notebook • 15.6” Full HD LED-backlit screen • Suitable for both work and play R14 999.95
Back in August, we were suitably impressed by Dell’s Inspiron 15R Special Edition notebook. In the age of the Ultrabook, the 15RSE surprisingly managed to impress us with its looks, but better than that it also managed to back those looks up with excellent performance and more versatility than any Ultrabook could offer. Its performance is driven by Intel’s quad-core Core i7-3612QM chip and a very generous helping of DDR3-1600 RAM (8GB). While it won’t win any competitions that measure hard drive performance against that of Ultrabooks running SSDs, its 1TB of storage more than makes up for the fact. The aforementioned versatility comes from its Blu-ray disc drive that also burns DVDs, a Full HD screen on which to enjoy Blu-ray movies in all their High Definition glory and a graphics card that plays 3D games at higher frame rates than Intel’s HD Graphics 4000 chip does (which ultimately means better-looking and faster-performing games). We were so impressed by the Inspiron 15R SE that even now, we’re happy to recommend it as a great general-purpose work and entertainment notebook for anyone in the market for one. NOTEWORTHY SPECS
Microsoft Wireless Speed Wheel NEED TO KNOW • Steering wheel for Xbox 360 driving games • Completely wireless! • Rechargeable battery included R599.95
The Speed Wheel is a wireless controller for your Xbox 360 that works fantastically with all of Microsoft’s gaming console’s driving games. As it’s completely wireless, you simply hold it out in front of your body and turn it whichever way you want your car to turn. It’s surprisingly accurate, too, and we found that with a bit of practice, we were better at driving using the Speed Wheel than we ever were with our regular controller. Most of the controls found on a regular Xbox controller are present, all except the shoulder buttons. You’ll find a D-pad on the left side of the Speed Wheel Overall Rating
46 | connect | December 2012
and the 4 A/B/X/Y buttons on the right side, located within easy reach of your fingers. As you might imagine, there is no force feedback whatsoever. Since that is something many gamers consider a vital part of the steering-wheel experience, the Speed Wheel isn’t for everyone. But if you’re just looking for a new and fun way to control your virtual cars that can provide better accuracy with a bit of practice, the Speed Wheel definitely fits the bill. NOTEWORTHY SPECS • Intuitive wireless steering with motion sensors • Trigger buttons for accelerating and braking • Buttons for game-specific functions • A, B, X and Y buttons for interactions • D-pad for navigation • Guide, including ring of light, start and back • Rumble feedback
• Processor: Intel Core i7-3612QM @ 2.1GHz • Operating system: Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit • RAM: 8GB DDR3-1600 • Storage: 1TB 5400RPM • Display: 15.6” LED-backlit, Full HD @ 1 920 x 1 080 • Graphics: AMD Radeon HD7730M 2GB • Sound: Waves MaxxAudio 4.0 and Skullcandy speakers (2 x 2W) • Connectivity: Gigabit Ethernet, 802.11b/g/n Wi-Fi • Ports: HDMI-Out, VGA-Out, 1 x USB 2.0, 3 x USB 3.0, headphone, microphone Overall Rating
Solidata X8 LE 120GB SSD NEED TO KNOW • 120GB Solid State hard drive (SSD) • Theoretical read/write speeds of 550MB/s and 500MB/s • SATA 3 interface R2 499.95
This hard drive has the power to change your perception of mobile computer performance. Using Solid State memory and a fast SATA-3 interface, it’s capable of read and write speeds far beyond that of the average spindle-based hard drive, which means overall system performance that will astound and astonish you, as it did us back in March. The extra speed meant our test notebook took less than 30 seconds to go from being completely off, to arriving on the Windows desktop on a fresh install. Programs loaded faster, too, and to top it off, our battery lasted longer, as the SSD consumes so little electricity thanks to its total lack of moving parts. Things have progressed even further since then – 128GB SSDs can be had for as little as R1 200 these days, and going on our experience, it’s an upgrade we highly recommend notebook and even desktop users consider in the New Year. NOTEWORTHY SPECS
Leapfrog LeapPad2 Learning Tablet NEED TO KNOW • Educational handheld edutainment system for kids • Plays games, reads eBooks, and much more • 5” touch-sensitive LCD screen • Integrated front and back cameras R1 299.95
Having your tablet hijacked by your kids is an experience many modern parents have had. Educational toy giant Leapfrog has helped to change this with its LeapPad Learning product, an educational tablet designed especially for kids. The latest LeapPad is called the LeapPad 2 Explorer, and it’s even better than the original. While it retains the original’s look and feel (the screen is the same size and resolution as before, for instance), it has a faster processor, more on-board storage, as well as built-in cameras that set it apart. Most impressively, despite these advances, the LeapPad2 can squeeze an extra hour of operation out of the 4 AA batteries that power it. Batteries are not included, unfortunately. Because this is a device for kids, the LeapPad2 Explorer is rugged, tough and able to withstand the drops, kicks, and accidental knocks that any device inevitably experiences in the general proximity of children.
Why we like it so much, and feel it’s worthy of a Top 12 award, is because the content Leapfrog has developed for the tablet is nothing short of amazing. There are tons of games to choose from that teach kids useful skills like reading, spelling and general comprehension, as well as things like narrated interactive eBooks that kids can follow along with at their own pace. With a great selection of downloadable apps and games that draw on immediately recognisable brands, the LeapPad2 Explorer will endear itself to your child almost from the start, and free up your iPad for those truly important adult tasks, like playing Angry Birds.
• Controller: SandForce SF2281 • Size: 2.5” • Interface: SATA-III (6Gbps) • Max Sequential R/W speed: 560/520Mbps • Max Random R/W IOPS: 40 000/60 000 • Capacity: 120GB • Warranty: 2 years Overall Rating
NOTEWORTHY SPECS • Screen size: 5” @ 480 x 272 • Memory: 4GB • Processor: 550MHz • Camera: 2MP front and back • Batteries (not included): 4 x AA, delivers up to 9 hours • Ports: USB, headphone jack
Overall Rating
www.connectmag.co.za | 47
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picks of 2012
Lenovo IdeaCentre A720 All-in-One Touch PC NEED TO KNOW • High-performance all-in-one family PC • Senses up to 10 simultaneous points of touch • Screen folds into various positions, including flat R21 999.95
BlackBerry Curve 9380 Smartphone NEED TO KNOW • Budget BlackBerry phone • First Curve to have a touchscreen • 800MHz processor R2 799.95
Back in April, we got our hands on a BlackBerry Curve 9380 smartphone, and it made its way into our tech-loving hearts through a combination of touchscreen awesomeness, the tweaks and changes made to BlackBerry 7 (the phone’s operating system), and its price. It turned out to be a lovely, affordable and highly responsive phone which, as it came bundled with BlackBerry’s ever-popular BIS service, proved popular with South Africa’s inexhaustible supply of people who love affordable tech. Almost more importantly, it felt good to hold, maintaining a lightweight feel without undermining its class. Add to that the new Universal Search feature that has all information on the phone easily accessible through a convenient search window, and you have a winner of a phone. Even now, the 9380 is proving popular with South Africans thanks to its winning mix of features, class, looks, performance and price. NOTEWORTHY SPECS • Display: 3.2” capacitive touchscreen @ 360 x 480 pixels • Memory: 512MB internal, MicroSD card slot (expandable to 32GB) • Connectivity: GPRS, EDGE, HSDPA, HSUPA, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth • Camera: 5MP stills with geo-tagging, face detection, image stabilisation; VGA video • Operating system: BlackBerry 7.0 • CPU: 806MHz • Messaging: SMS, MMS, e-mail, Push e-mail, IM • GPS: Yes Overall Rating
48 | connect | December 2012
This monster touchscreen PC is the future of the modern desktop PC, and even though we were only able to do a First Look on it back in August, it is such an advanced machine that we felt it still warrants a place in our Top 12 for 2012, especially considering the launch of Windows 8, Microsoft’s incredibly touchfriendly operating system, that took place in October. What makes the A720 so awesome is that it not only folds into various positions that make using it incredibly easy and fun, but it’s powered by some truly fantastic hardware. It’s also huge, with a 27” touchscreen that is bright and vibrant. As everything is built right into the chassis (including Wi-Fi) and its keyboard and mouse are wireless, the only cable you’ll need is for power. With a ton of extra software that makes use of the touchscreen and Windows 8’s awesome new touch-friendly interface,
the A720 is one of the most versatile desktop solutions available on the market today. NOTEWORTHY SPECS • Processor: Intel Core i5 and i7 CPUs • Operating system: Windows 7 Home Premium or Professional • Graphics: Configurable up to NVIDIA GeForce GT 630M with 2GB of graphics memory • Memory: 2GB to 8GB of DDR SDRAM @ 1 600MHz • Hard drive: 500GB to 1 000GB @ 5 400RPM or 1 x 64GB SSD • Optical drive: DVD writer or Blu-ray combo reader • Networking: Gigabit Ethernet • Wireless networking: 802.11b/g/n Wi-Fi, optional Bluetooth • 2 x USB 2.0, 2 x USB 3.0, 6-in-1 card reader, headphone and mic jacks, HDMI-out, optional TV tuner • Weight: 11.6kg • Dimensions: 658 x 224.8 x 490.5 (mm) Overall Rating
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picks of 2012
Fujifilm X-Pro1 NEED TO KNOW • 16-megapixel mirrorless camera • Interchangeable lens system • Hybrid viewfinder R17 995.95 (body only) – Available on special request
The X-Pro1 is a camera for enthusiasts – very rich enthusiasts. At R18 000 for the body alone, and with lenses that will set you back a minimum of R7 000 per lens, this is not a camera for those not endowed in the wallet department. However, that being said, if you were to shell out the cash for an X-Pro1, you’ll get a camera that shoots images with
unparalleled quality. And that’s why we love this camera so much. It’s also the kind of camera that forces you to fiddle with everything from the lens to the camera’s controls in order to produce the best results. For enthusiasts, it offers a pure experience, one where the quality of the image you capture is up to your skills behind the lens and your knowledge of the camera in your hands. So the X-Pro1 is the kind of camera to buy for serious hobbyists rather than someone who just likes to take pictures. Seeing as it does what it does so well, we’re only too happy to include it as a Top 12 product of 2012.
NOTEWORTHY SPECS • Image sensor: 16 megapixels • Video: Up to 1 080p • Lens system: Fujinon X mount • ISO range: 100 – 25 600 • Rear display: 3.0” LCD • Storage: SD card slot
Overall Rating
TomTom GO Live 1005 World GPS NEED TO KNOW • State-of-the-art GPS with 5” screen • Maps for lots of countries • Includes HD Traffic and speed camera location services R3 799.95
Our experience of the GO Live 1005 was that it’s everything anyone could ever possibly need from a GPS device. That may seem like an overstatement, but when it boasts maps for over 60 countries, TomTom’s almost clairvoyant HD Traffic Service, access to emergency services and extensive Points of Interest coverage, in addition to a well-engineered mounting bracket and a huge 5” screen, you start to see what we mean. TomTom’s HD Traffic Service is perhaps the biggest and best of these features, as it provides you with live traffic information that’s updated every 2 minutes. It’s super useful for avoiding clogged routes and jams caused by accidents on your daily commute. And then there’s 50 | connect | December 2012
hands-free calling courtesy of Bluetooth technology, a whole lot of voices to choose from (including Afrikaans!), and even a MicroSD card slot so you can play your favourite MP3s through the device if you so desire. This is one of the best GPS devices on the market today, and one that’s well deserving of a place on our Top 12 list. NOTEWORTHY SPECS • Screen: 5” 16:9 capacitive touchscreen • Connectivity: Bluetooth (for hands-free calling) • Memory: 4GB internal, MicroSD card slot • LIVE services: Yes, free for 1 year • Spoken navigation languages: 30, including Afrikaans
Overall Rating
Plug in your 3G dongle
Share a 3G Internet connection with friends, family, and colleagues TEW-655BR3G • Share the Internet from anywhere you have a 3G mobile connection • Compatible with USB modems from every major mobile provider • Built in rechargeable 2.5 hour lithium Ion battery under full loading • One-touch connection with Wi-Fi Protected Setup (WPS)
TEW-658BRM • Combination ADSL 2/2+ modem and high performance 300 Mbps wireless n router • Compatible with most ADSL-based Internet service provider networks
www.phoenixsoftware.co.za Like us on facebook
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picks of 2012
Samsung Galaxy S3 NEED TO KNOW • Samsung’s flagship smartphone • Runs Android 4.0 ‘Ice Cream Sandwich’ • Features Samsung’s TouchWiz interface • Wireless charging, voice control, and more R7 499.95
Asus Transformer Pad TF300 Tablet NEED TO KNOW • Asus’ latest Android 4.0 tablet and keyboard dock • Folds together for easy transport • Available in Torch Red, Royal Blue and Iceberg White Tablet and dock: R6 999.95
Asus hit on a winning formula when it released the Transformer tablets, as they’re part tablet, part notebook, and people seem to like that sort of thing. And that includes us! It’s a fresh take on an established product type and, best of all, the execution is simple, it has tangible benefits, and it just works. The TF300 tablet gets its Transformer name from the fact that it can change from a regular tablet into a mini notebook by being snapped into a handy dock (included) that has a keyboard and extra battery. The fit is very snug and sturdy, too, so it will stand up to the odd knock without getting dislodged. The keyboard is quite comfortable to type on and is, of course, a thousand times more effective than a touchscreen keyboard, plus it just feels better to use. With Android 4.0.3 installed, the Transformer TF300 is quick and responsive. Thanks to some clever engineering, the tablet itself lasts around 10 hours on a single charge. The battery in the dock adds 5 52 | connect | December 2012
hours to that for a total of 15 hours – fantastic stuff! This was, for us, one of the best Android tablets we reviewed all year. NOTEWORTHY SPECS • OS: Google Android 4.0.3 (`Ice Cream Sandwich’) • Processor: NVIDIA Tegra 3 T30L Quad-Core @ 1.2Ghz • Storage: 16GB EMMC + 8GB of free ASUS WebStorage space for life • Dock: Mobile Dock with full QWERTY keyboard (optional) • Memory: 1GB • Connectivity: 802.11 b/g/n, Bluetooth v3.0 • Display: 10.1”WXGA (1 280 × 800) LED backlight IPS panel, 10-finger multi-touch, 350nits • Camera: 8MP auto focus (rear), 1.2MP (front) • Audio: 2-in-1 audio jack (head-out/mic-in 2-in-1), built-in microphone/high quality speakers • Ports (pad): Micro-D HDMI 1.4a port, MicroSD card reader • Ports (dock): Full-sized USB, SD card reader • Battery: Up to 10 hours, 15 hours with mobile dock • Sensors: G-Sensor, Light Sensor, Gyroscope, E-compass, GPS • Available colours: Royal Blue, Iceberg White, Torch Red Overall Rating
The Galaxy S3 was a very serious effort by Samsung to knock the iPhone from its lofty perch, and depending on who you talk to, the Korean company succeeded. This is because the Galaxy S3 turned out to be an absolutely superb phone that performed well, looked good and lasted a long time on a single charge (easily a full day even with heavy use). The big 4.8” screen got a lot of attention because of its amazing looks. It’s also bright, producing a superb viewing experience that does justice to all the photos and videos you can throw at it. Yet in spite of the awesome hardware, Samsung somehow managed to keep the phone slim and slender. The phone also did a whole lot of other things that weren’t expected, and these were what thrilled and excited reviewers the world over. New feature SmartStay, for example, detects when the screen is being looked at, and keeps it from dimming while the phone is in use. DirectCall knows that going from writing a text to holding the phone to your ear means you want to call the person you were texting. Things like that. As a result, the S3 has taken the world by storm, and is easily one of the best, if not the best, Android smartphone to come out in 2012. NOTEWORTHY SPECS • 4.7” HD Super AMOLED screen @ 720 x 1 280 • 1.5Ghz Quad-Core Samsung Exynos processor • 1.9MP front-facing and 8MP rear-facing camera • Android 4.0 `Ice Cream Sandwich’ OS • HSDPA 850, 900, 1 900- and 2 100-capable • Near Field Communications-ready • 802.11a/b/g/n and Bluetooth 4.0 Overall Rating
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The Kodak HERO 5.1 All-in-One Printer, retail at a recommended price of R1299, is Google Cloud Print Ready and Kodak Email Print Ready, and allows consumers to print from anywhere, for less.
outh African consumers now have access to intelligent printing systems that are easy to use, and offer high quality photos and documents with the lowest average cost-per- page. Kodak All-in-One Printers offer something very unique in the industry – high quality printing with affordable ink – backed by more than 100 years of leading Kodak Image Science.
The Kodak ESP C310 and C110 Allin-One Printer is an entry level wifi printer retailing for a recommended price of R999.
The Kodak ESP Office 2170 All-inOne Printer for the home office, offers four great functions, print, copy, scan and fax in a compact design and retails for a recommended price of R1 499.
The Kodak ESP C110 All-in-One Printer is the entry level non-wifi printer with similar features as the C310 at a recommended retail price of R799.
All Kodak All-in-One Printers use Kodak 30 Series Inks that deliver exceptional quality and cost-per-page ink value. The system uses a one size fits all philosophy across its all-in-one range, meaning they all use the same model black and colour ink cartridgesa, available in either standard or XL sizes.
High Quality Printing with Great Ink Value! The big obstacle for home printing in South Africa has been the high cost of ink. Kodak has solved this problem by providing consumers with affordable ink that delivers long lasting, high quality photos and documents. Kodak’s proprietary pigment-based inks provide richer, more vibrant colors, and significant fade resistance and instant dry advantage over dye-based ink systems. With Kodak, consumers get crisp, sharp text documents, brilliant graphics and Kodak Lab-Quality Photos that are smudge, and water and fade resistant and last a lifetime. Colour: R149
Black: R99
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picks of 2012
Parrot A.R. Drone 2.0 Quadracopter NEED TO KNOW • New and improved AR Drone • 720p HD front-facing and bottom-mounted SD cameras • Controlled by iPhones, iPads and Android devices over Wi-Fi R2 999.95
Microsoft Windows 8 NEED TO KNOW • Microsoft’s newest operating system • Designed for notebooks, desktops and tablets • Begone, foul Start menu! R699.95
The launch of Windows 8 in October 2012 was undoubtedly a ground-breaking event in the tech world. Microsoft introduced consumers to many, many new ways of interacting with their computers, primarily through the single biggest change to the operating system since Windows 95: the replacement of the old Start menu with a new Start screen. This change paved the way for Microsoft’s take on the new “appcentric” philosophy that big tech companies are embracing these days. Now, Windows 8 is tightly integrated with a new Windows Store, where people can get all kinds of apps to make their Windows experience even better. Most importantly, Microsoft has its own version of an iTunes store. Along with these changes, Windows 8 is faster than Windows 7 was on the same hardware, it boots up quicker and is more secure. The touch-friendly interface changes take some getting used to, but you’ll get accustomed to them after a few hours of use. Windows 8 is a bit of a gamble for Microsoft, but what we’ve seen of it so far gives us confidence that it was the right move for the big software company. Only time will tell, of course. SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS • Architecture: x86-64 • Processor: 1GHz with PAE, NX and SSE2 support • Memory (RAM): 2GB • Graphics: DirectX 9 card with WDDM 1.0 or higher driver • Hard drive space: 20GB Overall Rating
54 | connect | December 2012
French company Parrot took all the feedback it received over the original A.R. Drone to heart and poured everything it learned into the new quadracopter, and the result is the A.R. Drone 2.0, every bit the improved product we’d hoped it would be. Our first impression of the A.R. Drone 2.0 was that it is a much more polished product. It looks better, it’s tougher than ever and best of all, it’s now even easier to control than before. Add to that not one, but two new cameras (one that points downwards, another that points outwards) and the ability to record all flights in 720p HD video and even the option to share flight paths with other A.R. Drone 2.0 pilots via the Internet, and you begin to understand why we liked it so much.
If you’re in any way a model aircraft enthusiast, or you have a family you’d like to share your love of radiocontrolled aircraft with, the A.R. Drone 2.0 is definitely the 21st-century toy for you. NOTEWORTHY SPECS • Onboard 1GHz, 32-bit ARM processor with 800MHz video DSP • 720p camera capable of 30fps recording • Low-latency H.264 video-streaming • Saves video to your tablet/phone or a memory stick • IEEE 802.11b/g/n Wi-Fi • 3-axis accelerometer with 2 000° per second precision • 3-axis magnetometer +-50mg precision • Ultrasound sensors for ground altitude measurement • Fully repairable: All parts and instructions for repairing available online • Built with high-tech and extremely tough materials Overall Rating
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game reviews
Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 R599.95 Black Ops 2 is set in the year 2025 (although some of it takes place in the ‘80s), and boasts an entirely new set of weaponry, gameplay mechanics and time-spanning narrative. You play David Mason, son of the 1st game’s protagonist Alex Mason, CIA agent and former Marine Force Recon Captain. What does this futuristic warfare look like? It’s a networked affair. Written by David Goyer (think The Dark Knight and Superman: Man of Steel), the single-player campaign (a direct sequel to the original Black Ops title) has more of a non-linear, sandbox feel, which means there’s more space to make decisions. You’ll be offered missions throughout the campaign – Strike Force levels – and, depending on whether you win or lose, something will change in the storyline as well as to the overall ending of the game. It’s all based on your performance during those key missions. In the combat, there are 2 key features to note. First up, you can now see behind objects using something called `millimetre wave scanner technology’. There’s also a “zoom out and watch over” mode that adds a nice strategic element to the gameplay. (And yes, you can play the entire mission using this RTS-ish view.) Together, you’ll be set for planning out the most effective assault. Looking at the multiplayer, there’s more than fancy tech and combat training to keep things innovative in Black Ops 2. For one, there’s a new create-a-class structure that removes item allocation seen in previous CoD games. So where your slots used to consist of an unchangeable primary and secondary gun, a grenade, something tactical and 3 perks, together with whatever worked for your class, your soldier is now fully customisable. This means you can choose to equip him with everything, or nothing, as long as what you pick fits into the 10 free slots. Don’t ever use grenades? Ditch them and equip with an extra perk. This means the character you play in multiplayer is more powerful, optimised and perfectly suited to your personal skillset. Another cool feature is the multiteam battles – up to 18 players on the map, with 3 to 4 teams of 3. There’s even an improved theatre mode that can create a highlights reel of your best, action-packed deathmatch game. So if you thought Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 was the same tried-andtested FPS formula as seen before, think again. Treyarch, the game’s Santa Monica-based development team, has put some exciting futuristic spins on the fast-paced action. The result? Black Ops 2 feels like 3 games rolled into 1!
56 | connect | DECEMBER 2012
NEED TO KNOW • High-dynamic range graphics and sensational gameplay • New futuristic weapons • All-new multiplayer mode
LEFT FOR DEAD? No longer just a simple survival mode, in Black Ops 2, the popular Zombies Mode is back with a series of challenging maps and missions that enable you to fight off the dead. And there are 3 different Zombie modes to try: Tranzit (a story mode set in a much larger world with additional characters), Survival (classic Zombie gameplay at its best), and Grief. The last mode is a 4-versus-4 zombie-hunting affair: 2 human teams go head-to-head; however, they can’t kill one another – they can only fight to repel the oncoming zombie horde. It’s “last man standing” so whichever team is left, wins. Between Tranzit, Survival and Grief, there is a ton of new gameplay in Spec Ops 2 – Zombies really could have been a stand-alone game.
www.connectmag.co.za | 57
C1200595
game reviews
Halo 4
NEED TO KNOW
• More of Master Chief and Cortana • All-new gameplay additions • Revised multiplayer modes At the end of Halo 3, we saw Master Chief, the game’s protagonist, stranded on the wreckage of the UNSC Forward Unto Dawn. Broken, the ship was left to float through space. He had no option but to put himself into cryogenic stasis – not knowing when he’d wake up, or who would wake him. Despite there being 2 other Halo sequels between Halo 3 and this game, it’s the 1st time that Master Chief is returning. Halo 4 opens just over 4 years after the end of the 3rd game. Cortana, Chief’s AI assistant, detects that their crippled ship is being scanned by foreign technology. She wakes him – it’s time to investigate. In the process, they discover they’ve drifted near enough to an ancient Forerunner planet called Requiem. Chief also learns that Cortana has started running rampant – a sort of insanity that afflicts all AI units that have lived past their designed lifespan. He wants to save her, but needs to get home – and that’s where the meaty part of the story lies. This is the 1st Halo game that was developed by a new
developer, called 343 Industries. All games until now were made by Bungie, but the company wanted to move on. Certain members moved to 343 to help retain that Halo feel, but also tweak the franchise. Oh, and how they’ve tweaked it. Amazingly, the 7-year-old Xbox 360 hardware pushes out a game that looks better than ever before. The lighting makes everything look a bit more dark and gritty, and even the sounds have been dramatically altered. Previously, the weapons in Halo sounded like videogame guns. Now, they sound like massively powerful and purposeful machines of destruction. Even the vehicles in the game sound angry. For the 1st time, Halo games have a visceral soundtrack that suits the on-screen action. The campaign is excellent (and better with friends, in the co-op mode), but the story leaves some unanswered questions. If you crank up the difficulty, you’ll be in for about 10 to 13 hours of challenging gameplay. However, it’s in multiplayer where things have always shone for Halo games, giving them a lifetime of months past the launch date. 343 Industries has done great things here. Halo purists may bemoan the addition of un-Halo-like features that we’ve seen in other shooters, including a sprint button and armour abilities. The latter replaces the previous single-use items, such as invisibility or drop shields. Overall, the multiplayer is now fasterpaced, but still feels like Halo, requires just as much strategy, and can be infinitely customised. R499.95
>>CONSIDER this<<
>>Buy this<<
Halo Anniversary
Halo 3
The original Halo was rereleased on the Xbox 360, having originally only been made for the 1st Xbox and PC. The remake tells more of Master Chief’s story, and has a unique mode where you can see the game in its original graphics and colours, or in an all-new shiny graphics system.
Picking up the previous instalment in the saga will be really helpful in establishing the story. It might not have the multiplayer community it once had, but it’s still fun, and will be available in bargain bins.
58 | connect | DECEMBER 2012
C1200595
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game reviews
Forza Horizon
NEED TO KNOW
Need for Speed: Most Wanted
NEED TO KNOW
• Race and chase in the city • Drive during the day or at night • Pull up to any car to drive it This is the 2nd Need for Speed game to get the remake treatment, the previous being 2010’s hilariously fun Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit. Like that game, this is set in an open world. No racetracks, just highways and city streets to terrorise in some of the world’s most exotic machinery, including a number of cars that you cannot get in Forza Horizon, the other open-world game available. Need for Speed focuses more on going flat-out, and completely ignores things like the limitations of real-world physics. Just suspend your disbelief, hit the gas pedal, and catch crazy air offramps. It can be frustrating, at times, with slow-mo crashes completely ruining the fast-paced flow of the game. AI is also quite tough to beat, even for seasoned racers. And then there’s the police presence: if you like racing games to feel like a chase scene from a movie, this will definitely be up your alley. R499.95
• Open-world racing and driving • Day and night cycle • Wide range of regular and super cars In a departure from the serious circuit racing in previous Forza games, Forza Horizon puts players into a car nut’s fantasy world: open highways and mountain passes, with access to the world’s best cars. The handling still feels like Forza, but cars have more grip, and are more fun to drive fast. This makes it easier for beginners to pick up and play, rather than having to learn how to drive before having fun. Earning money through races and insane challenges is easy, and you’ll be able to modify cars just like in the “serious” Forza games. The game world is set in a scenic, semifictitious Colorado, and when the sun sets, it really starts to look beautiful. Racing at night, though, is scary as heck. There are tons of cars, and many ways to enjoy playing online with friends, including the ability to explore the open roads – and dirty paths – together. R499.95
>>CONSIDER This<< Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit It might be from 2010, but Hot Pursuit is a stupidly fun Need for Speed game, and a great game overall. It has slick graphics, fast-paced open-world racing, and the most fun cops-and-racers multiplayer mode in known existence. 60 | connect | DECEMBER 2012
COD
CODBOII_SP_connect.indd 1
2012/10/19 03:59:47 PM
gaming special //by tiana Cline
13 GAMES COMING IN 2012 W
ith so many top titles on shelves right now – Assassin’s Creed III, Hitman: Absolution, and Medal of Honor: Warfighter, to name just 3 – it’s hard to imagine that there are a lot more to come from the video game industry. Not only can you expect series sequels in the year ahead, there are also some all-new games and relooks at already-popular franchises on their way. Here are Connect’s 13 most-anticipated games of 2013.
Aliens: Colonial Marines A video game sequel to the cult sci-fi film of 1986, Aliens: Colonial Marines is an upcoming squad-based 1st-person shooter you’ll definitely want to play. That is if you’re interested in becoming one of the most badass military outfits in the galaxy! Colonial Marines begins with an abandoned ship, the U.S.S. Sulaco, recovered in orbit around LV-426. You have to lead a group of highly trained US soldiers as they board the deserted craft to uncover the fate of the crew. What’s out there? Only the
62 | connect | DECEMBER 2012
most murderous and deadly species in the universe! With weapons inspired by the movies (including pulse rifles, motion trackers and flamethrowers), and cool drop-in/ drop-out co-op gameplay, it’s down to you to not only survive, but wipe out the Xeno infestation as well. Aliens: Colonial Marines is a new virtual chapter in the Aliens series. And seeing that it comes from Gearbox Software (the fan-favourite developers of Borderlands and Brothers in Arms), we can’t wait to get into the fight against the deadliest killers in the galaxy. , soldiers!
Crysis 3 Imagine if New York City was an urban rain forest enclosed in a giant glass bubble. This is the sandbox setting for the 3rd Crysis game, an FPS where you get to be Prophet, a soldier wearing a (customisable) Nanosuit. He’s on a revenge mission after uncovering the truth behind Cell Corporation’s motives for building the quarantined Nanodomes. Hunting both humans and aliens, you’ll get to use super-hightech weaponry and, in addition to the arsenal of human firearms, the game lets you scavenge alien weapons and deploy an all-new signature bow. The hunter is now the hunted – this is multiplayer gaming at its best. Are you ready to take them down and take back the city?
Bioshock: Infinite We loved the first BioShock game, with its eerie underwater setting, rich storyline and intelligent enemies. BioShock: Infinite, the 3rd game in this popular 1st-person shooter series, is a little different. Not only does it have breathtaking graphics, it puts you in the shoes of a former Pinkerton agent (Booker DeWitt) who is looking for a girl trapped in a floating city. From the in-depth city rail system – you put on a sky hook and go for a ride – to intense cloud combat, there are a lot of new weapons and abilities to discover. It’s an all-new BioShock, and if the amount of awards it has already racked up based on previews alone are anything to go on, it’s going to be great.
Dead Space 3 Welcome to Tau Volantis, a hostile planet with icy, sub-zero conditions and deadly enemies. There are even a few misguided humans wondering around. It may also hold the key to ending the deadly Necromorph plague forever. This is location of Dead Space 3, where the game’s never-say-die hero Isaac Clarke must overcome avalanches, treacherous ice-climbs and a violent winter wilderness. The good news is that you’re no longer alone. Dead Space 3 will have co-op gameplay where a friend can hop in at any point to play Earthgov Sergeant John Carver. So, if suspense, horror and action are your thing, EA’s 3rd Dead Space is a game not to be missed. www.connectmag.co.za | 63
gaming special Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance Komani’s ever-popular Metal Gear game series is getting a new addition – Revengeance. In a future where cyborg tech is the norm, you play Raiden, a child soldier transformed into a ninjakilling machine, equipped with a high-frequency katana blade and a soul fuelled by revenge. Now, if you think Revengeance is going to be a stealth game like its predecessors, think again. This hack-and-slash action game will have you doing Bayonetta-esque knife combos, and there’s even a “free-slicing” mode where you get to control every bit of the action. (But no talk of Kinect or Move integration… yet.) And if that isn’t enough, you’ll also have to cut out objects from slain enemies. Get ready for revenge, or vengeance… or is it Revengeance?
Gears of War: Judgment Said to be the most intense and challenging Gears of War game yet, GoW: Judgment is exclusive to the Xbox 360 console. It takes you back to before the events of the original GoW trilogy, to the immediate aftermath of Emergence Day (a defining event of the Gears universe). GoW: Judgment features a riveting campaign with allnew characters, weapons and enemies. The main story follows the Kilo Squad, led by fan-favourite characters Damon Baird and Augustus “The Cole Train” Cole, as they defy orders and attempt to rescue the city of Halvo Bay from destruction at the hands of the Locust onslaught.
Injustice: Gods Among Us Nothing beats a good brawler! But how about one that features all your favourite DC Comics characters like Batman, Cyborg, The Flash, Harley Quinn, Nightwing, Solomon Grundy, Superman and Wonder Woman? Injustice is a new fighting game (from the makers of Mortal Kombat) that brings together familiar superheroes, villains and locations. It’s a massive world with destructible backdrops and interactive objects – think the Batcave and Fortress of Solitude HQ. Rumour has it that stage selection in the game is as important as the hero you pick to play. Each arena has its own unique elements, and characters use them differently depending on their class.
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SimCity
South Park: The Stick of Truth “From the battlefields of the playground, a young hero will rise, destined to be South Park’s saviour. It’s an epic quest to become... cool.” Yes, it’s the same South Park humour you know and love from the popular TV show. Written and voiced by Trey Parker and Matt Stone, the game starts you off as the new kid in town facing a big challenge: making friends. As you begin your journey, the children of South Park are embroiled in a citywide, live-action, role-playing game, casting imaginary spells and swinging fake swords. But over time, the simple game spirals into a battle of good and evil that threatens to take over the world! Arm yourself with weapons and get ready to defeat underpants gnomes, hippies and other forces of evil. Fail, and you will forever be known as… a loser.
Also named SimCity, the original city-building game was released back in 1989. It was Maxis’ 1st game and marked the beginning of the simulation genre as a whole. The upcoming SimCity is a rebirth of the franchise, with a level of depth and detail unseen before. According to publishers Electronic Arts, this will be the 1st time in SimCity franchise history that
your decisions will have a long-lasting effect. There’s also a multiplayer element – will you compete or collaborate to shape the world of tomorrow? Addressing real issues like climate change and the search for renewable resources, the SimCity of 2013 is a true next-gen version of the simulation that both PC and Mac owners will enjoy. If you can imagine it, you can build it.
Remember Me Remember Me is a brand-new 3rd-person action adventure game from Capcom. Set in 2084 Neo-Paris, the game revolves around a memory hunter named Nilin. What is a memory hunter exactly? You see, not only is Nilin incredibly athletic and trained in martial arts, she also has the special ability of breaking into people’s minds and stealing or even changing their memories. When her memory is erased by the authorities, she embarks on a quest of self-discovery to recover her own identity. What if personal memories could be digitised, bought, sold and traded? It’s an interesting game premise from indie developers DONTNOD that has us excited to find out more! www.connectmag.co.za | 65
gaming special
Tomb Raider (PC, PS3, X360) At this point in the gaming calendar, everyone has seen the preview video of a much younger Lara Croft covered in dirt and on the run from an unknown enemy. The question is, will the British adventuress actually make her game début in 2013? Square Enix’ upcoming Tomb Raider is an origin story, an intense and gritty tale of how Ms Croft turned into the hardened survivor everyone now knows from the movies, novels and comic book series… there’s even a theme park ride! In the game, Lara is armed only with raw instincts and the ability to push herself beyond the limits of human endurance. She must fight to unravel the dark history of a forgotten island to escape its relentless hold. We can’t wait.
Star Trek Go co-op as Kirk and Spock as you (hopefully) live long and prosper in Namco Bandai’s new Star Trek title. It’s an original story by God of War screenwriter Marianne Krawczyk that happens to features the voices from the 2009 movie. It’s also set just after the events of the film. A virtual sequel of sorts, if you get excited by the idea of hijacking enemy battleships, jumping precariously through zero G onto moving spaceships, and swimming through subterranean waterways, you’ll love this next-gen take. The story you get also depends on which character you pick. It looks like Namco Bandai is going to take Star Trek to where no 3rd-person shooter has gone before.
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Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell Blacklist Just when you thought there could be no more Tom Clancy games, Blacklist – number 6 in the Splinter Cell series – was announced. We welcome back Sam Fisher, now the leader of the newly formed 4th Echelon unit, a clandestine unit that answers solely to the President of the United States. America has a military presence in two thirds of countries around the world. A group of 12 has had enough and initiate a terror ultimatum called the Blacklist – a deadly countdown of escalating terrorist attacks on US interests. Sam and his team must hunt down these terrorists by any means necessary, and stop the Blacklist countdown before it reaches zero. If you fail, millions will die.
tech tannie
Like a Hadeda intent on setting off your alarm in the morning,
tech Tannie decides to make you into a LinkedIn hero, even when you’re not sure it’s a good idea…
issue of the month: Q: A:
If you have questions, gripes or just seek some solace, e-mail Tamsin, our friendly tech tannie at techtannie@connectmag.co.za 68 | connect | DECEMBER 2012
How can I get the most out of LinkedIn? Linked in Sandton
Over the past few months, I’ve been getting a ton of e-mails from people about LinkedIn. Lots of peeps don’t use it yet, but it is slowly growing in popularity here, and the questions you’re asking are evidence of that. Most of the e-mails are from people who are keen to use LinkedIn properly, and want some ace tips and tricks so they can dive straight in and get great results. I’ve been using this social site for a while now and there are a few things you can do to get yourself sorted out `toot sweet’. First off, don’t mess about with your profile. Get in there and finish it. It looks awful if you have a profile that’s only halfway done, and people won’t be compelled to contact you. They also won’t see you as being very professional. Remember, LinkedIn is primarily a business networking site so you need to keep that hat on at all times when you are on it. This is also why I advise people not to link the site to their Twitter account unless they only use Twitter to make pithy and relevant comments that relate to their career, education or industry. Otherwise you have potential employers or employees reading all about that time you wore your underpants on your head or what you had for breakfast. Your next step is to join the right kind of groups. Start out with your old college or school. Join the groups that interest you professionally and let your network grow organically from there. Also make sure you don’t invite a lot of people to join your network at once and that you form contacts with people within your network gradually – LinkedIn penalises you for going over the limit. It is also worth noting that while LinkedIn now allows people to connect without having actually spent time working with each other, it is a good idea to stick with the old formula. That way, when somebody asks you if you really did work with Jessica Simpson, you can say yes and hand them her phone number. Use these tips and grow your network organically, and you’ll soon be a very successful LinkedIn user.
Q:
I have amassed an impressive array of connections on LinkedIn and I’d like to use them elsewhere, but I don’t want to sit and painstakingly type them out. Is there an alternative? Connected in Cape Town
A:
You can easily export your LinkedIn connections by simply going to Contacts and clicking on Connections on the drop-down menu. Once there, go to the bottom righthand corner of the page and you’ll see a link that says Export Connections. Click on that and you will go to a site called Export LinkedIn Connections. You can choose to export to a .CSV file for Microsoft Outlook (.CSV) file, Microsoft Express and Yahoo! Mail, or to a .VSF address for Mac or Vcard. Choose the file type and source you need, then click on the Export button, and let the programme do the rest.
Now you have all those contacts in one handy place, perfect for networking and staying in touch with important people. If you get stuck, the site has links to instructions for importing the newly exported file to Microsoft Express, Microsoft Outlook, Yahoo! Mail and Mac OS X Address book.
Q:
How do I change my LinkedIn URL to show my name rather than that long string of numbers? URL in Newcastle
A:
This is an excellent question, for one very simple reason – you are far more findable with a name-based URL than a long string of numbers. And if people can find you and read your profile, you are halfway there. The way you do this is simple: log into LinkedIn and on the drop-down menu under Profile, click on Edit Profile. The page that opens up has all the information that appears publicly about you. On the right, you will see a link that says Customise your URL. Click on this and you can change the URL to your name or business name and improve your search results. You can also see your public profile from the link next to that one, which gives you a great opportunity to see how well your words translate and how eye-catching your page is. Mine always needs work and I recommend you tweak your profile on a regular basis.
Q:
I would like to get some recommendations for my LinkedIn profile, but I’m not sure how to ask without sounding needy or desperate. What do you suggest? Keen in Kimberley
A:
Ya well no fine, bokkie, this is hardly the attitude you should have when you are trying to build a social business network. Everybody wants a recommendation and to have a profile that makes people happy, so you shouldn’t feel embarrassed about asking people you’ve worked with to give you some kind of moral support. After all, you can do the same for them, so it’s a win-win. Here are a few tips to start you off. Take the time to ask them personally, so either call or e-mail them and ask them if they wouldn’t mind if you send them a recommendation request. It can be a little off-putting if someone just demands that you give them a glowing report via the standard request button in LinkedIn. Make sure the person you ask is someone you are willing to recommend yourself so you can return the favour. And don’t make them write anything – let them decide how they would like to talk about you.
www.connectmag.co.za | 69
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disconnect //By adam oxford
Bandwidth Blues When will the wait for high-speed Internet end?
I
magine if you had to wait for a magazine to load. You’d be sitting there, on your patio or in the coffee shop, reading the words of some whining old tech-head on the back pages and just getting into a particularly dense paragraph of bitterness and bile, When You Are Slowed To A Crawl. You get the idea. Print is there, immutable, intangible and susceptible only to tears and biodegradation. Which means that the few remaining advantages of print over online is that you aren’t at the whims of data contracts, weather conditions, or the accidental toppling over of a cell mast by a passing elephant. Actually, check that – reading a magazine in the rain or wind is tough, but you are safe from bandwidth allowances and elephants. We’re constantly promised that high-speed, affordable, unlimited bandwidth is just around the corner – and yet it never quite seems to arrive. In the last month, we’ve seen talk being bandied around by network operators throughout the country of imminent fibre-optic fixed lines and 4G/LTE mobile Internet with headline speed figures in triple-digit bits per second – but the reality is that you’re about a gazillion times more likely to find you have no network coverage at all due to the wrong type of rain on the line than you are to find that your line speed has been magically doubled at no extra charge. Which is exactly what happened to friends of mine in the UK recently, whose broadband connection went from 30Mbps to 60Mbps overnight. The total cost including line rental? About R300. For some reason I can’t see such generosity from local operators being forthcoming. Not when they can charge 5 times as much for a measly 10Mbps. Why is the subject of bandwidth on my mind? Because an expensive mistake was made at Castle Oxford last week when I switched on our 3G router, which I keep as backup for when the ADSL goes down. The problem? I forgot to turn off Dropbox on my laptop. Dropbox, if you haven’t come across it before, is a wholly wonderful application that creates a folder on your hard drive that syncs with a similar folder on an Internet server. So anything you put in the folder gets uploaded to the server, and any changes made on other machines synced with the same server get downloaded to your PC. So, if you’re working on a document in the office and want to take it home, just copy it to Dropbox and as long as you have the
72 | connect | DECEMBER 2012
application installed on your PC, there it will magically appear on your desktop. My problem arose because while my laptop was sitting doing nothing on the kitchen counter, someone at my office was working late and copying files to and from our wonderful shared Dropbox resource. Not usually a problem, but within half an hour, my entire data allowance was used up, causing me to dig into my daughter’s lunch money for a top-up. We’re told by the networks that there’s no demand for unlimited tariffs, and people are happy to stick to small bundles at a gigabyte a time. But surely that’s just because we’re so used to clock-watching a data meter, not because we want to. If using something as simple and ubiquitous as Dropbox starts to cost more than my food bill for a week, you know there’s something wrong and that we’re in danger of getting left behind. I can’t believe I’m the only person to make this expensive mistake with Dropbox. I can’t believe Dropbox is the only one of the new cloud services that is revolutionising the world outside where bandwidth is cheap and cheerful. I feel a bit like I used to about hard drives – when we thought 64MB was going to be enough to last a lifetime, but quickly started counting our storage needs in gigs. Now it’s bandwidth’s turn: 100MB a day was enough for yesterday’s tech, but the modern world needs 10 times that or more to keep up. Despite it all, I live in hope. At some point, we will get those exciting new connection technologies that lead to cheap and plentiful broadband. It just won’t be soon enough.
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