Sandisk 16 GB

Nowadays, with all the contents, photos, videos, and music files, we need more and more storage. Two or three years ago, a 2 GB storage was considered more than enough for your mobile phones. Now, an 8 GB memory seems not enough for all that storage-eater contents. Select handsets are starting to offer a 16 GB storage like the new iPhone 3G and Samsung I8510.

But, built in storage is not as flexible as memory card. And therefor, Sandisk comes to the rescue. Sandisk is start to shipping 16 GB microSD and M2 memory cards as early as next month. While there is no official information yet which phones models will be compatible with these new capacity memory cards, chances are any handset that supporting the 8 GB cards will be able to handle the new 16 GB cards too. And the availability of the new bigger capacity cards will make the older, smaller cards cheaper too eventually.

The 16 GB microSD cards will hit the stores at a price of 70 euros, while the 16 GB M2 cards will be available for 90 euros.

First Android Handset Launched

We don't really have much choice in term of operating system for our mobile phones. Symbian and Windows Mobile have the biggest market shares. And now, enters Android, a new Linux-based operating system developed by google. Being announced nearly a year before, the first handset with Android has finally come. The T-Mobile G1 was launched today at a press event in New York City.

The handset itself has 4.60" x 2.16" x 0.62" dimension and weight 5.6 ounces. It also has a big screen, 480 x 320 3.17" to be exact. Talk about connectivity, this baby has it all. Bluetooth, WiFi, USB, GSM, UMTS, HSDPA, GPS, you name it, and it's there. It also has a qwerty keyboard that is revealed by turning the device on its side and sliding the keyboard upward. The imaging feature is taken care of by a 3.1 MP camera. The phone will come with 1GB microSD card preinstalled. The device will come in Black, Brown, and White variation.

Using a google's operating system, Google Maps and YouTube are preinstalled along with Chrome Lite, a lite version of Google's web browser Chrome. The handset itself will be available on 22 October for $179 in 2 years contract. Data plans start at $25 for unlimited data and limited messaging. You can have unlimited data and messaging for $35.

Nokia to Comes With Music

Digital music is the way to go nowadays. More and more people downloading music to their computers or portable media players. Just look at the success Apple has right now with their iPod and iTunes. And apparently, Nokia want a slice of the pie.

Nokia will launch their own digital music download service with Comes With Music. The Nokia Comes With Music bundle will include a Nokia phone and all the music users can download for a full year. After the 12 months period, the user can keep all the music they have downloaded permanently and legally. Three of the world's biggest music publishers, Sony BMG, Universal, and Warner Music Group is participating in the program along with some other smaller publishers. The first Nokia Comes With Music phones will be released on October 17 via Carphone Warehouse in UK.

Kingdom Hearts Re: Chain of Memories

People outside Japan might never played Kingdom Hearts Re: Chain of Memories, unless they imported it. But now thanks to Square Enix, the game is coming to North America on December 2 this year for Playstation 2. The game was released originally for Game Boy Advance in 2004 and then got a full 3D enhancement and released as a bonus game for Kingdom Hearts II Final Mix + in March 2007 in Japan. Kingdom Hearts Re: Chain of Memories is a card based game. It bridges the gap between the first and second Kingdom Hearts story-wise. With Kingdom Hearts: Birth by Sleep, Kingdom Hearts Coded, and Kingdom Hearts: 358/2 Days around the corner, Square Enix is definitely spread some love for the fans.

Prince of Persia Set For Desember Release

I'm not talking about the movie adaptation. So all of you movie goers can save your drool and sit patiently because last time I checked, the Prince of Persia movie is being pushed back to 2010. Right now, I'm talking about the next Ubisoft's acrobatic action adventure game franchise. It is the first next generation Prince of Persia game and marks a new beginning for the franchise. After the adventures in the Sands of Time trilogy that ends with the 2005 release Prince of Persia: The Two Throne, the new Prince of Persia game will have a new Prince with a new art style as well as a new gameplay mechanics. Players will work their way through the game with a beautiful sidekick, Elika. She is one of the last remaining Ahuras and considers it her duty to return the evil spirit Ahriman to his prison inside the Tree of Life. She is gifted with magical powers and an acrobatic match for the Prince.

The game will land in US stores on December 2, with the Europe, Middle East, and Africa later on December 4. The UK will get this game on December 5. The game will be released for Playstation 3, Xbox 360, and PC.

White Knight Chronicle Gets Release Date

It's been so long since I heard anything about White Knight Chronicle. Last time I heard about this game was at Tokyo Game Show (TGS) last year. And after one year absence of any significant news, the latest issue of Famitsu reports that Sony is planning to release White Knight Chronicle on Christmas day, December 25 for Japanese player.

For you who don't know what White Knight Chronicle is, it is a Level5's big console RPG that's being developed exclusively for Playstation 3. In this fantasy RPG, you take control of a boy who comes into the possession of an ancient artifact. This artifact gives him the ability to transform into White Knight, a 7 meter warrior from the ancient time when such creatures nearly destroyed all of civilization.

Akihiro Hino, the president of Level5, said to Famitsu that White Knight Chronicle is Level5's biggest production yet. It's a game that tackle three elements, the Playstation 3 hardware, a large RPG, and a third element which he's not yet willing to discuss. While speaking in a vague terms only, he said that this third element is something that is indicative of the PS3. Details will be shared in the near future. In the mean time, enjoy some screens.

Vin and Tobey's Next Project

According to variety, actor Vin Diesel is set to star in XXX: The Return of Xander Cage which will follow the further adventures of the sports enthusiast/ secret agent. While the film has a title, it doesn't have a script yet. Columbia Pictures is trying to tie up a deal with producer Joe Roth before commissioning a screenplay. Rob Cohem who direct the original movie and the third installment of The Mummy is also in talks to return as the director. Before we see Vin's actions as agent Xander Cage, we'll see him in Fast & Furious, the fourth installment in the fast car franchise next year on June 12.

Just like Vin Diesel that will reprise his role, Tobey Maguire also will do the same, not in one, but two movies. According to The Sunday Times, Tobey Maguire will earn a massive $50 million for his role as a web crawler in Spiderman 4 and Spiderman 5, two sequels that will be shot back to back. As to whether Kirsten Dunst will be back as Mary Jane Watson, Sony Pictures said that we will find out in the next few days. So stay tuned.

What's up Ben?

Variety reveal that Ben Affleck has been signed up by Warner Bros to rewrite, direct, and staring an adaptation of Chuck Hogan's novel, The Prince of Thieves. The film will be renamed The Town to avoid confusion with Kevin Costner's epic Robin Hood movie. The Town revolves around a thief (Affleck) who falls in love with the manager of the bank he has just robbed. Affleck has taken over from director Adrian Lyne as director of the project. Affleck's next appears in the romantic comedy He's Just Not That Into You and a political thriller State of Play. Currently, he's filming a role in the Mike Judge comedy Extract, opposite Jason Bateman and Mila Kunis.

What is Dolby Axon?

At the Austin Game Developers Conference, Dolby Laboratories, Inc. (NYSE:DLB) announced the availability of software development kits for Dolby Axon, a voice communication platform designed to deliver a 3D voice experience in online games and virtual world that is clearer, more realistic, and more immersing.

Initial Dolby Axon features include:
~3D voice which delivers an immersing realistic 3D voice experience complete with surround panning and distance attenuation.
~Voice fonts that allows gamers to take on the voice attributes of game characters.
~Flexible API offering creative integration and gameplay options to developers, including the ability to create new voice experiences in games.
~An engine that dynamically responds to game geometry enabling gamers to experience voice communication that matches the game environment.
~Dolby voice pipeline which delivers a clear voice experience, free of unwanted noise, echo, clipping, and leveling problems.

And the benefits of using Dolby Axon are as follow:
~enhanced audio experience.
~massive scalability.
~server tools.
~bandwidth efficiency.
~flexible hosting options.

Whatever it is, as long as it brings a better experience, I say bring it on!

Diablo to Release First?

If you ask me, when Diablo III will be released, I'd say I don't know. But people at battleforums.com might know something. According to battleforums.com, Diablo III will come first before Starcraft II. If true, it means that the game will see the light of day sometimes in 2009, because Blizzard has confirmed recently that Starcraft II is on track for a 2009 release.

The website claims that they received an anonymous tip from a Blizzard employee that read "...[Starcraft 2] is still being worked on, but only by a minuscule amount of people compared to what [Blizzard] put on the Diablo 3 team." As a result, Diablo III will release before Starcraft II. It is a bit hard to believe, because Diablo III was revealed at the company's 2008 Worldwide Invitational on June 28 this year, 13 months after the announcement about Starcraft II at the same event last year. Expect to hear more about the game next month at BlizzCon event.