True Crime has had a shaky history, with United Front Games taking over development after Activision disbanded the original development team, the reboot’s scheduled release being pushed back from 2010 to 2011, and then eventually being canceled on February 9, 2011. This was due to the publisher’s decision to work on online games instead, and that True Crime just would not be good enough to compete with other games of the open-world, sandbox genre, so it seemed like there would be no hope of getting the third True Crime installment.

Luckily, Square Enix London’s general manager noticed the game and decided that it was indeed good enough, and decided to buy the publishing rights, with UFG back as the developer. The game’s said to have an elaborate combat system, making use of martial arts moves and the environment to defeat several opponents at a time.

Marketing has just started with a live-action trailer, showing an undercover police officer named Wei fending off against members of the Sun On Yee triad in a club’s kitchen. Knowledge of Cantonese isn’t needed to view the trailer, as what little dialogue it has is in English. See the trailer below.

Hasbro is also trying to build up a franchise of Battleship for itself as well, if its partnership with Activision is any indicator. Together, they’re working on a video game version of Battleship. It still sounds a tad strange, but to clear things up a little, the video game will be based on the Battleship movie. How will this be done? By making use of the premise of the movie, set in the Hawaiian archipelago.

You’ll have control of elite demolitions specialist Cole Mathis as he attempts to command a US Navy fleet as they fight within a communications dead zone. The enemy of the game is the same as the movie’s, a race of aliens with enough technology and power to be able to fight on both land and sea. As such, you’ll need to rely heavily on strategy to win. The game also employs some first-person shooter scenes, so you’d better brush up on your FPS games to catch up with this one.

The Battleship movie will be arriving on May 18th, but there’s no word on the video game version just yet, but it will be for the PS3 and Xbox 360, with special versions for the Wii, DS and 3DS coming later on. See its recent teaser video below.

Just like the desktop version, Chrome for Android Beta is extremely fast when it comes to browsing speed. No, Google was not just all hot air when boasting about Chrome, and while it may have a few kinks to work out, it rivals the stable version of Firefox, Android default browser, when it comes to performance. It also works the same way, with the ever-reliable Google Search, Google Maps, multiple tab browsing, private browsing and smarter autocomplete suggestions in the omnibox or the address bar.

If you’re worried about leaving important details in your computer, the mobile Chrome also has a solution for that, and this may be the biggest and best feature that will draw in more users. Once you’ve launched Chrome for the first time, you’ll be prompted to log into your Google account. Once that’s done, the browser will start syncing your bookmarks, most frequented sites and even the tabs you have open on your desktop, so you wont have to start over if you were working on something important. Tabs are easy to navigate with a tap or a swipe, and Link Preview helps with selecting the site you want by zooming in on the list of links.

The only drawback, aside from the Ice Cream Sandwich exclusivity, is the lack of Adobe Flash and support for the plug-in. However, this may not be such a big deal, as Flash for mobile devices is slowly becoming obsolete, and Adobe admits this. While this may be an annoyance to some, other users have found a way around this small obstacle- by using another browser that has Flash. Google may get around this hitch yet, as the browser is still in beta, and there’s still plenty of opportunity to improve the users’ browsing experience.

Currently, Chrome for Android Beta is available for download in the US, UK, Canada, France, Germany, Spain, Japan, Australia, Korea, Mexico, Brazil and Argentina, and completely free of charge. However, it’s not known if other countries with ICS will be able to get Chrome. If your country isn’t listed, you may have to wait till either Google enables it for you, or for the browser to come off beta.

(source)

The camera can also collage different photos into one image through its HDR Backlight Adjustment and quick autofocus. The iAuto is an automatic function of the camera that can detect 34 scenes such as portrait, landscape and macro for a wider range of photo shoot options. For video shoot, the camera can take 1080p Full HD videos even with fast moving objects while the Multi-Motion Move IS (Image Stabilization) assures blur-free videos.

The TG-820 is also built durable for a worry-free use. The camera is shockproof of up to 6.6 feet and crushproof to a 220 pounds weight, so parents will not have to worry for the kids dropping and breaking the camera. The camera is also a great companion for outdoor adventures since it is waterproof to 33 feet and freeze proof to 14 °F.

For reviewing photos, users will appreciate the camera’s 3.0-inch, 1,030,000-dot HyperCrystal III LCD with its high-resolution, scratch-resistant and anti-reflective features. Finally, the family can connect the camera to any HDTV via its HDMI control to enjoy the adventure all over again on the big screen.

Olympus TG-820 will be available this March for $299.99 and will come in silver, black and blue colors.

For the UK release, Sony partnered with Vodafone, which recently announced a PS Vita package prior to the official release date. The package includes a WipEout 2048 game and a 4Gb memory card. WipEout is a futuristic racing game that makes players battle one another in a anti-gravity racing league. The game is not actually free since account holders must first top their 3G Sim with £5.

The February release in the UK comes after 2 months from the release of the Vita in Japan. Aside from the 3G functionality, the Vita also has a built-in GPS, wi-fi and bluetooth capability. Likewise, as an improvement from its predecessor, the Vita boasts a 5” OLED multi-touch capacitive screen for touchscreen gaming, a rear touch pad and 2 dual analogue control sticks. Finally, the mobile phone-like functionality of the Vita is completed with its cameras located at the front and rear of the device, stereo speakers and a microphone.

The UK launch of the PS Vita will take place on February 22.

(source)

The announced launch of the Consumer Preview or the public beta of Windows 8 is part of the lined-up activities before the actual release of Windows 8, which is expected this fall. The first activity was held last year (September) which was the release of the developer preview. After the release of the Public Beta, Microsoft is expected to release a “Release Candidate” and then the actual release of the operating system.

On the day of the launch, Microsoft will allow the beta version to be downloaded by consumers and installed on computers. Millions are expected to get a piece of the Consumer Preview considering the developer preview was widely downloaded by millions of consumers.

Many wonder why Microsoft has chosen the event to take place along the Mobile World Congress. Some thinks that the move may be to highlight the changes expected with the new Windows 8. It may be noted that consumers are going mobile these days, especially with the use of tablets, Android and iOS phones. While Windows 8 will still be a desktop and a laptop OS, the new OS will feature a lot of integration functions with mobile devices.

Windows fans, who are excited for the beta download, must prepare for the online traffic on February 29 to get Windows 8.

The Sound Cover iPad Case comes with a built-in powerful speaker that allows users to enjoy music, video, games and movies by boosting it by 300%. The NXT stereo is rechargeable and the internal battery can be recharged through the cable that connects the case via USB to any USB power source or computer.

This project is ultra-lightweight and thin so carrying would not be a problem. The case measures 242mm x 190mm x 13mm (H x W x D) and weighs 355g. The outer interior of the case is made of ABS and a black leather case with secure closure. It also has an integrated aluminum speaker stand with bass boost function.

Being a kick starter project and having to be made using injection modeling technique, the expenses can be too much. It initially needs a crowd funding platform to help the project raise money for production.

A standard sound cover retails at $129 while the wireless sound cover is valued at $165.

(source)

Looking at its reported features, the Miracle will be sporting a 4-inch WVGA display which also happens to be a NOVA folks! This simply means that the phone will be one of the brightest Windows powered phone out on the market. In charge of running and orchestrating its multitude of functions is the 1GHz Snapdragon processor.

LG has also made sure that it has enough storage for images and videos and that’s why it has 8GB of memory. A duo of cameras will also be present, the rear-facing camera being 5-megapixel and 720p capable while the front-facing one is a VGA camera. On connectivity, it is said to have 14.4Mbps HSPA radio and a 2.4GHz/5GHz WiFi. There is also Bluetooth 3.0 and Near Field Communication (NFC).

The Miracle should be appearing before the public come the Mobile World Congress (MWC) in Spain later this month. Release is said to be by spring. No details yet given on how much it would cost.

(source)

Google has designed two (2) programs for its “Screenwise” project that aims to increase awareness of how people relatively make use of their browsers. These are the “lightweight option” and Google’s partnership with Knowledge Networks.

The lightweight option gives user a Chrome browser extension as this will share with Google the sites user commonly visits and how it’s used. A user that sign’s up is given a $5 Amazon gift card (one every three months). The maximum amount stated by Google is up to $25 but the company still has to strategize how it will deal with users who are into the program for more than a year.

On the other hand, the partnership with Knowledge Networks (a company that undertakes surveys for companies) involves households receiving a “high end router” from Cisco and having it installed. Its purpose mainly is to record data traffic (through a firmware) during the web access made by the household. Payment for those who will participate is at $100 up front and an additional $20/month.

Details on the programs aren’t that specific yet but those interested to sign up for updates as well as register can go here.

To start with, the M600 is a wireless optical mouse. It can be easily connected thanks to its USB nano receiver (considering its size, user can opt to just leave it on a laptop or desktop’s USB port). The receiver has Logitech’s unifying receiver technology which simply allows user to connect up to five (5) additional Logitech products. It is also relatively easy to set up as user only needs to put in the batteries and plug the nano receiver onto the laptop or desktop and user is good to go.

The M600 boasts the Flow Scroll software. This software is responsible for making user feel that whenever he/she uses the mouse, the feeling is just like that of scrolling or swiping the touchscreen of his/her smartphone. Moreover, it has the Setpoint software, so it wouldn’t be a problem for ambidextrose people. Its shape allows it to be a device that’s easy to work with. If user’s finger touches any part of the surface, the mouse enables user to scroll and swipe.

Better pocket $69.99 to have one M600 mouse. It can already be pre-ordered at Logitech’s website with shipping touted be later this month.