O2 launches better iPhone packages

O2, the only phone network in the UK that is licensed to sell the Apple iPhone has today launched details of new packages available to new and existing O2 iPhone customers.

The phone operator had been critised for the basic package which costed £35 (approx $70 dollars) and only provided 200 anytime any network mins and 200 texts.

This has been improved considerably to 600 mins and 500 texts which puts it more in line with similar packages that O2 for the Nokia N95, however the N95 is free to buy whereas the iPhone will remain at £269.

O2 has also reduced the price of the 1200 mins / 500 text package to £45 a month from £55. Also they have introduced a battery killing 3000 minutes a month package for £75 again with 500 texts.

It's positive for O2 to be offering better deals and good news for early adopters is they will be moved across to the new plans by mid March.

Xbox 360 2.0 or something else?

Rumours are abound that Microsoft could be on the verge of releasing something new in the Xbox 360 stable.

Brier Dudley, from the Seattle Times, tells us that he believes Gates will reveal that Microsoft are working with Toshiba on "a digital video recorder with a hard-drive, high-definition HD-DVD drive" with "Xbox gaming capabilities".

What is that in plan English? To me it sounds like a Personal Hard Drive based Video Recorder (think Sky+ in the UK or Tivo in the US) with the additional processing capabitity to run 360 games, and connect to Xbox Live, and all your 360 accessories.

Sounds unlikely huh? What else could it be? Well it is clear that Microsoft, and Toshiba, want to shift more HD Players and right now Sony do have the advantage of having Blu-Ray as standard in the PS3 whereas you have to spend some money to get the add on HD Drive for the 360.

My money is on a new 360 spec which will arrive this fall along the lines of the Elite but with a bigger hard drive and integrated HD Drive.

I can't see MS confusing the brand by branching out into third party devices that can also play 360 games but I could be wrong, I does happen sometimes! ;-)

Xbox 360 Games of the year 2007

In our opinion the Xbox 360 has been the console of year and with that in mind, we have put together our top five games of the year for 2007. If you are getting a Xbox 360 for Christmas, you should seriously look at these titles.

5. Half Life 2: Orange Box

Excellent value for money and plenty of hours gameplay, with Half Life 2 including Episode 1 and Episode 2, Portal and the amazing online Team Fortress 2.

Five brilliant games in one - its a must have on the 360

4. PGR4 - Project Gotham Racing 4

Whilst PGR3 was technically brilliant it was a bit too anal for a lot of gamers, the smallest error costing you the race and make the whole process frustrating. PGR4 comes back much stronger and puts the fun back into the series.

With a fantastic amount of cars to choose from, incredible graphics and fantastic gameplay, its a racers dream.

3. Halo 3

Truly fantastic - there isn't much you can say about this game. At first it feels familar and you wonder if it has moved on that much since Halo 2 but as you get further into the game you get blown away by the awesome graphics and sheer scale of the battles.

This must be one of those games that anyone who owns a Xbox 360 must have.

2. Call of Duty 4

Infinity Ward have come back with an absolute stormer with COD4 on the Xbox 360. The graphics are amazing, echoing the footage we are all used to watching on channels with Sky News. The game play is gripping and the multiplayer is best of class, hours and hours of fun. Only stayed off the no.1 spot cause the single player is just a little too short (but at least you'll complete it!)

1. BioShock

Some games don't live up to their hype which leaves a bad taste in your mouth. BioShock however delivers and delivers. Gripping from the offset this creepy FPS takes you to an amazing underwater world where you really can choose your destiny. The graphics are incredible, the story line is awesome and you just won't put this down. So good, you'll start again from the beginning and choose a different path!

No spoilers here but this one is an example of the sheer power of the Xbox 360 and happily the Gadgets, Gaming and Girls Blog winner of Xbox 360 Game of the Year. Enjoy it!

Gemma Atkinson pops out!

I don't need a lot of persuading to blog about the lovely Gemma Atkinson, of Hollyoaks fame in the UK and all round hot model featured in "lads mags" around the world.

If you thought Gemma had been quiet since leaving "I'm a Celebrity" you'd be wrong. The hot young lady has been doing some promotion for Ultimo, the lingerie brand and talking about her plans to launch a pop career.

Thisislondon reports her as saying ""There was a rumour it was going to be pop, but it's completely not going to be that. It's going to be something very ballady - soul and R'n'B. Something you can sing to."

Hmmmmmmmmmmmmm we'll wait and see Gemma but if it fails at least you can fall back on main assets! I'd certainly like to!

http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/showbiz/article-23427427-details/I'm+A+Celebrity's+Gemma+Atkinson+strips+off+to+promote+her+pop+career/article.do

Nintendo Wii calls on the Cockroaches

I've heard some far fetched stories but this one takes it to another level!

The Reg reports that the Nintendo Wii supposedly gives off a high pitched frequency that attracts Cockroaches!

According to the report the little creatures respond to air movements and ground vibrations by "feeling" them on their body and the Wii gives off the right impulses!

As I said, I don't believe a word of it and having had a Wii here for a year I can safely say that I've not seen one cockroach!

You can read up here...

http://www.reghardware.co.uk/2007/12/14/wii_attracts_cockroaches/

Movies finally hit the UK Xbox 360

It's been a long time coming but finally Microsoft have released movie downloads for the Xbox 360 in the UK.

They are available for 250 marketplace points for the Standard Definition (480p Widescreen) version, which weighs in at approx 1.2Gb for the example I'm looking at (Ocean's Eleven) or 380 points for the High Definition (720p) version which is a whopping 5.1Gb. So if you are running the 20Gb hard drive you wouldn't want too many down at once!

You get 14 days after purchase to watch it but be careful, once you have hit the play button you only have 24 hours left to view it. Make sure that your broadband package isn't too restrictive about download limits - if you have a 2Gb cap then you should be thinking about changing your service to something that offers much larger downloads limits or even unlimited.

The list at the moment, whilst having a good selection of films, doesn't really set the world alight! Anyone with Sky HD in the UK would be better off choosing something from the Sky Box Office as they are much more up to date.

However if you have a nice HD screen and an Xbox 360 but no other HD content this will be a welcome addition to your viewing pleasures and for that reason alone, I give Mircosoft the thumbs up for finally giving the UK some content.

Lets just hope they keep them coming and they get some newer releases!

The following films are available right now:

300
HARRY POTTER AND THE PHILOSOPHER’S STONE
HARRY POTTER AND THE CHAMBER OF SECRETS
ZODIAC
MATRIX, THE
MATRIX REVOLUTIONS, THE
MATRIX RELOADED, THE
OCEAN'S ELEVEN
PERFECT STORM, THE
SWORDFISH
THREE KINGS
TRAINING DAY
FUGITIVE, THE
RISKY BUSINESS
SPACE COWBOYS
EYES WIDE SHUT
ANALYZE THIS
DEMOLITION MAN
EXECUTIVE DECISION
LETHAL WEAPON 4
LOONEY TUNES: BACK IN ACTION
MARS ATTACKS!
CLASH OF THE TITANS
SUPERMAN III

And coming before January 7th 2008

TMNT
WE ARE MARSHALL
BATMAN & ROBIN
BATMAN FOREVER
BATMAN RETURNS
WILD WILD WEST
US MARSHALS
DEEP BLUE SEA
SPHERE
UNFORGIVEN
MAVERICK
CONTACT
CONSPIRACY THEORY
OUTBREAK
LAST BOY SCOUT
MISS CONGENIALITY
ANALYZE THAT

Sega Dreamcast Back? Are You Kidding?

You hear some crazy stuff on the grapevine but this has to be one of the craziest stories! Rumours go that Sega is going to make a come back with the Sega Dreamcast!

How did this all get started? Well it seems that Sega renewed some copyrights back in August and updated some of the features, to include such things as "floor pads" which might lead you to think that they are planning a comeback to rival the Wii, and maybe to deliver a "Wii Fit" type package!

I imagine its more that some of their back catalogue is going to be made available, maybe with updates to include new hardware than they are trying to protect. Who knows!

However its a nice story and I for one would welcome Sega back into to the melee. They say that they are "very happy being a platform agnostic company" and hey, I'd agree with that, but to survive in this market, they need to start producing some quality games and not relying on re-hashed hits.