Halo Wars is now here. Have you played it yet? I downloaded some of the demo that was available but never got to play it yet. DARN RESPONSIBILITIES!!! I’m curious what you think though, is it a worth game to include in the Halo family? Or, is it just a game that they’re trying to gain popularity off of just by using the Halo name, characters, equipment and plot?

Let me know.

Post from: EveryJoe

Halo Wars Are Here – Are You Online?

I confess, I’m addicted to Bubble Breaker on my Windows Mobile phone. The problem is I’m actually getting bored with it. I need to find a good game or two to add to my device to break-up the monotony a little bit.

Solitaire is old as well, so wondering what everyone else is playing? I’m not really interested in any in-depth, drawn out games. Just simple stuff to play when you’re waiting in the car for someone or have a few minutes to kill between appointments.

I play Bubble Breaker as a bit of a de-stresser and opportunity to clear my mind a bit. Is there Free Cell for free for Windows Mobile? What about a free Sudoku game? Or Scrabble. Chess?

Images: Windows Mobile banner and product images of PPC-6700

Post from: EveryJoe

Need More Windows Mobile Games

There was a recent post on the ZDNet blogs about whether or not Microsoft should ditch their Zune media player to the curb and stop trying?

The revenues dropped significantly in the fourth quarter of 2008, which the article shared is really only a fight for the 30% that’s not already taken by the Apple iPod.

The post had a couple of poll questions that I felt were interesting to take a look at the data as well.

• Should Microsoft drop the Zune? NO 60% / YES 40% (1483 votes cast)
• Do you own a Zune? NO 46% / YES 40% / NO, WANT ONE 14% (1676 votes cast)

My question to you my readers is why you do or don’t like Apple iPod over the Microsoft Zune?

Are you like me and just really can’t stand the associated software, in my case iTunes? The user-interface and intuitive design and functionality of the iPod is very nice. I don’t deny that. I was immediately impressed by how things just seemed to make sense when you were using it.

In my own personal experience though, I would give up a little bit of functionality to avoid having to install iTunes on my computer again.

How about you?

Image: Product images from Apple and Zune websites

Post from: EveryJoe

Is My Opportunity to Grab a Zune Disappearing?

I’ve downloaded the demo trial of Halo Wars from Xbox LIVE. I haven’t had a chance to even play it yet, darn job!

Wondering what everyone else has thought about it if you’ve already downloaded it and played it a bit.

HALO has been one of the top games I’ve played the most since having my first XBOX and now XBOX 360. I’d say HALO along with Tiger Woods golf ever since version 2003.

What’s everyone else’s opinion been of the game thus far? Is it going to be another blockbuster for the franchise or will it be just a blip for the hardcore HALO fans?

If the strategy portion is anywhere near as much fun and detailed as what I’ve grown to love in Sid Meier’s epic Civilization series, it’s going to be fantastic for me. My only concern though is that I think I prefer playing more intellectual and strategy games on PC instead of game console.

Image: Halo Wars Promotional Email from Xbox

Post from: EveryJoe

Halo Wars Demo Download Available on Xbox 360 LIVE

Microsoft and Zune have now given me another great reason to choose the Zune over the iPod for my next MP3 player. The Zune Marketplace now offers subscription services.

With the Zune Pass Subscription I can download all the music I want and keep 10 of them as my own each month. The service costs $14.99/month, so that works out to about $1.50 per song each month. Just $.50 more than I’d normally pay if I purchased it at iTunes or Amazon. So, I can look at it as paying $5/month for unlimited downloads and listening options normally.

Right now I can get a 14-day free pass to check it out, but I’m still waiting on purchasing my 120GB Zune. Hopefully that will occur fairly soon though.

One thing I didn’t realize about the Zune pass though is that I can download all the songs I want on up to three computers for that price. This would totally work with my wife’s need to download music regularly. Hmmm…

Yet, one more reason to choose a Zune for me!

Image: Snagit of Zune website

Post from: EveryJoe

Zune Gives Me Another Great Reason

Awhile back I blogged about hearing of the Kinoma mobile browser for media. In that time I’ve used the application to take advantage of finding some YouTube videos and browsing flickr for some images to share with friends and family while on the go.

I’ve been very impressed with the browser overall. It took some getting used to it’s own way of navigation and user-interface, but it absolutely lets you view content that’s nearly impossible to enjoy with the default Internet Explorer browser that’s on my phone by default.

I could be wrong, but I think in the time since I originally downloaded the software they’ve done a complete redesign and revamping of their website. The new website does a much better job of telling you what Kinoma is all about and what features to expect from them.

If you’re looking for a better way to enjoy media from your phone when you’re on the go, you should give Kinoma a try. You can verify if your phone works with the browser on their website.

If you do give it a try, let me know what you think.

Post from: EveryJoe

Kinoma Mobile Media Browser

Microsoft

The issue is related to a bug in a device driver related to how the device handles the last day of the year during a leap year. According to Microsoft the issue should resolve itself by today, Happy New Years!

Users should be sure their Zune battery drains completely and then fully recharge. A resync may be necessary to confirm subscription content rights.

Image: Zune logo from website

Post from: EveryJoe

Microsoft Provides Info on 30GB Zune Errors

I was just doing some research on Google and noticed that "Zune" was a popular search keyword. Perhaps not too surprising given the recent news of the problems Zune users have been experiencing.

15% of all searches conducted on Google during the time period were somehow related to the Zune music player. Makes you wonder how much traffic someone is getting that may have purchased the Zune keyword.

Image: Snagit of Google Hot Trends website results

Post from: EveryJoe

Zune = Google Hot Trend

Current 30GB Zune holders aren’t too happy right now as there appears to have been systematic failure of 30GB Zunes across the land recently. Microsoft appears to be aware of the problem, but no solutions are forth-coming yet from them.

Customers using the Zune 30 might experience problems starting their players. We’re aware of the problem and are working to correct it. The Zune Social might be slow or inaccessible. Sorry for the inconvenience, and thanks for your patience!

I’m still moving forward with purchasing the Zune instead of a new iPod though. In fact, my wife offered me her iPod Nano since her new phone will serve as her music player of choice. I told her I didn’t want it because I didn’t want to have to install iTunes on my computer to manage the music on it.

Source: Zune’s Crapping Out Worldwide. MSFT Support on Vacation! – Dvorak Uncensored

Image: 120GB Zune from Zune website

Post from: EveryJoe

30GB Zune Owners Experiencing Widespread Failure

Image: Windows Media Experience website

CodyG from the Windows Team recently stopped by the blog and left a comment on an earlier post of mine where I was asking about extending my media experience to my Xbox 360.

In the comment he let me know I didn’t need to buy anything to accomplish what I wanted, I could use Windows Media Player 11 to share the music from my PC so that it was accessible on my network to be picked up and streamed from my Xbox 360. On top of music I’m also able to share photos and videos as well.

After following the instructions on the website Cody provided I was able to play around with my Xbox 360 this morning before work while my son was finishing getting ready for school and the car was warming up and deicing after last night’s freezing rain.

It all worked beautifully. I can even do automated slideshows through my TV for friends as family as well. This was a lot of the stuff I was missing out on doing since I no longer use my TiVo at home.

One thing I didn’t immediately notice about the features is whether or not there’s anyway to see and browse the album art of the albums on my system, or to display that instead of the various visualizations that are available via the Xbox 360 dashboard.

Post from: EveryJoe

Stream Music to Xbox 360 with Windows Media Player 11