Hasta La Gadget!

What, a launch of November 2010 wasn’t specific enough for you? Well, how about a Kinect launch of November 4? Microsoft just confirmed that’s the day, and as of now it’s looking like a worldwide launch. It will drop with 15 titles, including:

• Kinectimals – Nintendogs but with wild and impossibly cute animals
• Kinect Sports – Soccer, bowling, track and field games, a bit like Wii Sports
• Joyride – “Thrill of high speed kart racing, with the joy of controller-free gaming”
• Kinect Adventures – Jumping around and stuff
• Your Shape: Fitness Evolved – most amazing looking fitness game we’ve seen yet, from Ubisoft
• Dance Central – an actual, honest to gosh dance game without stupid pads — from Harmonix

So far Your Shape and Dance Central are looking the best, but Microsoft is still showing us more, and we’re thinking a few of you are going to like that Star Wars game from Lucasarts. Interestingly, no price was announced, meaning Microsoft seems to be waiting to see how many US dollars the competition decides to charge. Your Move, Sony.

Update: We have the full list of 15 titles after the break, courtesy of Joystiq. , which includes a new EA Sports Active.

Continue reading Microsoft Kinect for Xbox 360 launches on November 4

Microsoft Kinect for Xbox 360 launches on November 4 originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 14 Jun 2010 13:31:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The recently relaunched ESPN3 online portal is coming to Xbox 360 , as just announced during Microsoft’s pre-E3 press conference. Trey Wingo and Josh Elliott from SportsCenter are on stage demonstrating with footage from a USC / Ohio State game, and of course it has built in Kinect controller support. 3,500 live sporting events, instant replays, highlights, polls all at your fingertips or by the sound of your voice. The PiP stuff will be familiar to fans who have already indulged online, but with the new control aspects (and of course, HD streaming) it could give a reasonable alternative to the existing channels. The usual requirement of Xbox Live Gold just like Netflix, Facebook, etc. is present, but beyond having a TV provider / ISP that’s signed up for the package, there’s no additional charge.

Update: Wondering if you’ll have access? Check the list of ESPN3 affiliates to see if your ISP is playing ball.

Continue reading ESPN3 comes exclusively to Xbox 360

ESPN3 comes exclusively to Xbox 360 originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 14 Jun 2010 13:20:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Thought Kinect was just for kicking balls and making a fool of yourself? Oh now, you can now use it to do everything from find your friends and to control media playback. With a wave the Xbox 360 pops into a new Dashboard which you can manage by moving your hands around. It also supports voice control, enabling you to say “Xbox Play” or “Xbox Pause” or, you know, whatever. Easy!

Microsoft demos new Kinect dashboard and voice control originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 14 Jun 2010 13:18:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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There she blows. Microsoft’s Kinect (formerly known as Project Natal), real at last. Of course this unit isn’t on or doing anything, but it is striking a sexy pose next to some other black Microsoft hardware. Hopefully it’ll have an Xbox 360 Slim to hang out with after this keynote is over!

Kinect in the flesh! originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 14 Jun 2010 13:14:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Nokia announced the X5-01, a squarish slab of social phone that will be sold in Indonesia beginning in the third quarter.

The phone will be sold for 165 euros (about $200), and there’s no guarantee that it will ever arrive in the United States, where Nokia traditionally struggles anyway.

The X5-01 takes several design elements from the Microsoft Kin One, the cute little messaging phone that Microsoft launched in May. The most obvious is its squarish shape, which would seem to prevent it from being easily slipped into a pocket. And, like the Kin, the design hides a sliding hardware QWERTY keyboard.

There’s no word on what processor the X5-1 runs, but inside it Nokia has added 200 Mbytes of memory plus a 2-Gbyte microSD card. The camera can shoot up to 5 Mpixels with a 4X digital zoom and an LED flash. There’s also “loud” speakers and dedicated music keys, plus support for Ovi Music and Nokia’s Comes with Music service in some reasons.

Nokia quotes the battery life at 16-days standby time or 24 hours
music playback from a full charge.

It’s worth noting that the information is presented at the “Official Nokia Blog,” which would seem to give the information the stamp of authenticity. However, the post is written as if it were authored by an external source, with odd notes such as this phrase: “Its availability in other markets is as yet unknown.” One would think that Nokia would actually know whether or not the phone will be released in other markets, but just decline to state the fact.

Nokia also announced a cheaper 8-Mbyte version of the Nokia X6. U.S. pricing was not announced, but Nokia said the 8-Mbyte N6 would sell for 225 euros ($276.25) in the third quarter.