I used to hate on Russel Westbrook, but I’m actually happy that he’s the cover athlete for NBA Live. He’s worked hard this season, and he deserves some accolades and endorsements. He goes hard every night which is something that won me over, as well as his miserable interesting taste in fashion. Everybody’s a critic right?
The only sucky thing about being on the cover of NBA Live is that it’s not NBA 2K. Live has fallen to the number two spot in terms of must have NBA games and Live is playing catch up. Honestly, I haven’t played an NBA Live game since PS1 / PS2 days. You can check their announcement trailer below. Their E3 demo was interesting but I’m in a wait-and-see stance.
I had the pleasure of checking on a unique pair of headphones for the past month and below are my thoughts. Initially, I thought they were just a regular pair of mundane in-ear buds like many you can from other headphone manufacturers like Beats, Sony, or Bose. Honestly, I wasn’t that wrong, but I wasn’t right either…
The Good:
Customobility. I feel like I made that word up, but I don’t care. Long story short, for being a really simple pair of in-ear headphones, they offer quite a bit of customization options. Not just the size of the ear tips either which come in XS, S, M, and L. But the eartips actually swivel. This is important because this is the main reason why I’m not such a big fan of in-ear headphones. I can never quite get the earbuds to sit comfortably in my ear and these swiveling tips really helped. Another big deal was the “c-tips” that kind of hook onto the curvature of your ears. They also have different sizes here as well so they’ve got most ears covered. I was a little skeptical at first, but they did go a long way in providing comfort and for stopping the headphones from completely dropping out of my ear every time I turned my head. Lastly, they have some cool colors. I got a white pair and I’m giving away the red pair. Check out details below.
The Bad:
The mic wasn’t very convincing and I ended up not using it at all. Granted, I live in NY and there is always tons of ambient noise so this is a factor. But if you are in a busy city like me, you may end up having to take the headphones out and speaking into your phone normally.
The “c-tips” I added to “The Good” section because they were useful. However, if your jogging, working out, riding in a packed subway, or doing any other activity that causes large movements they really didn’t help as much as I’d like. The cord would get trapped on my bag or jacket button and would plop right out of my ear. Now this is more of a mark against cord based headphones in general than a knock against Audio-Technica. I really don’t see this problem going away for cord-based headphones.
I did like the volume notch on the side of the mic, but it was really easy to move so every time I’d start my music, the volume was either too low or too high because the notch wasn’t where I left it. I advise caution here.
Summary:
A cut above the rest I’d say, but not by leaps and bounds I’m afraid. If you’re just looking for some inexpensive headphones that will take you from point A to point B I’d say these are a good choice since they offer better than normal comfort and versatility. Sound is not going to be ear melting and there really aren’t any other features that will fulfill your wildest audiophile dreams. You’ll need to come out the pockets a little more if you want that, but they are a great middle-of-the-road headphones for a normal commute.
Win a Pair!
I do have an extra pair sitting here and I’d love to give it a way. Just write in the comments, tweet, facebook or other social media that you see this post on why you need these headphones before March 31st. I’ll get in touch and send them over!
I won’t waste time with the intro as you are likely running out of time. Here are five super quick, but thoughtful things you can plan for your main squeeze before tomorrow!
Unique Dinner / Weekend Trip – While most men will be trying to take their hubby out to an exclusive spot in the city, try thinking outside of the box. There are bound to be really nice romantic and small spots around that many people haven’t quite thought of. The trick is to not get too caught up in the hype and don’t be stuck on one burrow. There are plenty of other burrows that aren’t as far to get to as one might think. You can also try diner on the water. Spirit Cruise offers a nice weekend cruise around the city for about 3 hours. You can also try a quick weekend escape to upstate NY in a cabin or nice little cozy hotel. It’s super quick, and your lady will definitely appreciate it.
Something Homemade – This can be tricky, but if done right can yield a great return on investment. Check Youtube, there are tons of inexpensive arts and crafts ideas floating around that can be done in a few hours if you are willing to put in a little time and research. Women love knowing that you spent time doing something meaningful so money isn’t always the solution – though it does help! I’m not going to tell you all my ideas, but if you can squeeze in a heartfelt, handwritten letter – you’re golden! You can even try having someone write it for you with a fancy pen from a stationary store if you have terrible handwriting skills. Don’t neglect presentation.
Pretend You Forgot and Order In – This is a nice one that I’d like to try out sometime. Just plain pretend you forgot, but make sure she’s over your place. Then have everything from flowers, a letter, chocolate, meal, and even movie all come to the door. Have her answer so she starts to get the hang of it. She’ll be pouting pretty hard at first so stay calm and don’t ruin it with your dumb attitude.
Flowers – There’s a reason this tradition hasn’t died out. It still works. Don’t ask me why, but it just does. No need to reinvent the wheel on this one. Again, I’d try to be unique to show some extra thought.
Ice Skating in Unique Place – Yes, I know – this one is overdone your thinking and it will be busy. Well, that’s because you’re probably only thinking about one of two skating rinks in the city. Did you know Brooklyn has a really nice skating rink in Prospect Park that opened late last year? Queens also has a nice skating rink. And there are many others throughout the burrows. Do a little research and you might be surprised at how many skating rinks there are around. Don’t get too stuck on Manhattan. These places might not be as full as the Rockefeller Skating Rink. Think outside of the box and you won’t have to spend an arm and a leg unless you want to of course.
So she dumped you. Stop being a pansy and MAN-UP! Now, I recognize you haven’t done that yet which is why you’re reading this article so I’ve got three great ways to get even with your ex for breaking your heart.
#1 Mail her Glitter
Chances are she likes glitter anyway so you’re actually doing something really sweet! It’s just that the glitter will be wrapped in paper left to wander about where it will. She’ll be cleaning it out of her apartment for weeks! Hehehehehehe.
#2 Print out her picture and…
make a dart board out of it. Blast Hall and Oates: “She’s Gone” on full volume for best effect. Tears may be a side effect for less manly men. Ignore them and keep flinging darts. Acknowledge feelings? Pffft that’s for wusses.
#3 Become Super Ripped
Remember all the times she gave those subtle jabs about your gut? You pretended not to care, but you were silently crying inside? Well, get the ultimate revenge and get super jacked so you can strut your stuff on the beach. Then you can imagine how she’ll be all lusting after you when you post you’re jacked abs on Instagram and Facebook, then she’ll DM you and she’ll be all like “I’m so sorry, I was wrong blah, blah, blah” …THEN you can be like “I’m sorry I’ve moved on” HA!
All of the above is the advice you should take, but there are some of you who will probably think this is a ridiculous list – taken from a man with the emotional age of a 5 year old. Well, to you sir I say “that’s what you are, but what am I?” However, because I’m a nice guy, I’ve prepared a list for the less manly among you so that you can have something too. Besides, I have to look out for all my peeps.
Alternate Top 3
#1 Fun activities
Don’t hang in the house all day. Hang out with your boys, or even some lady friends. It will help you to talk through some of the emotional baggage you may be hanging on to. If you’re not manly enough to stuff your emotions away the right way, then you may as well express them to people who pretend to care.
#2 Self Reflection
This one is dangerous so proceed with caution. Thinking through your past actions may have harmful results like remorse, and may in some serious cases cause you to empathize with others. Yes, even your ex. You may even want to, dare I say it…apologize for past jerk-like behavior. Again, this is the route for suckers who can’t be a man and stay the course.
#3 Respect Her Choice
Now if you had been doing this in the first place, you probably wouldn’t be here reading this article now. That said, you’ve got to recognize that the choice to move on without you is hers and hers alone. You’ve got to accept this like a man. It’ll sting for a little bit, but if it makes you feel better, just remember – she’s making a terrible mistake. You’re right and she’s wrong and you’re the best man she’ll ever have even if she disagrees. Now doesn’t that feel better?
I can’t wait to play this game because of how social it looks. I don’t really play a ton of games with other people, but this looks like one that will be super fun. The realism looks crazy! The Ubisoft team has done a great job with the physics for in-game items like the way glass shatters and how your cover deteriorates over time. You can play with a team of friends and can customize your weapons load out which is awesome. I love how open world it is. They give you a ginormous map, and it’s totally up to you to go wherever you want to go next. You level up your gear by winning skirmishes which introduce you to stronger opponents. Release date is still TBD, but it should be coming out sometime this year.
I’m not ashamed to say that Batman is on my top three superhero list. I’ve always been a fan and the Rocksteady game studio has done a fantastic job of making players feel like the Dark Knight. I love the hand to hand combat set up in the game, and I love all the wonderful gadgets. Playing the game makes me feel like the ultimate predator. Arkham Knight seems to be following that formula, but instead of allowing the franchise to get stale, they spruced it up with an all new design for the Batman Suite as well as a mysterious new, awesome looking villain. Also, you can drive the Batmobile. The vehicle is also reimagined and it’s a fearsome looking cross between a tank and a super car. Need I say more? The release date is set to be June 2nd 2015.
The Metal Gear series has often been a love-hate relationship with many players and fans. Some people argue that the game mechanics are too formulaic and not fluid enough, while others argue that the games aren’t open world enough. One thing that people don’t argue though is that the series makes for some great story telling! It’s one of those game where you can be content watching someone else play it for hours without needing to play it yourself. You can literally get engrossed in the story line. This is why I’m actually rooting for a live action movie of the game. But I digress. The Phantom Pain looks to be the darkest installment in the series yet based on the trailers. Kojima is still a jokester and there will still be the usual “sexy lady” distractions for enemies and lots of inside jokes to lighten the mood. They’ve also added a huge free-roaming world which was a big complaint about the series earlier. I’m honestly glad to hear that and I’m looking forward to playing this new installment to this iconic espionage series.
If you asked me to create a game from scratch while I was in high school, I would probably have come up with a game very similar to this one. I’m not a fan of too much magic and sorcery and dragons and other mythical creatures. Just not my style, but I love medieval games. So it’s been really tough for me because most games set in medieval times are all about dragons and magic etc… FINALLY, Kingdom Come seems to be the answer to my prayers. I’ve made due with games like Total War and other Real Time Strategy games, but to play a medieval game in first person, slashing folks with a claymore or basking skulls with a mace…music to my ears. This game is the vision of Damiel Vavra who saw things the way I saw it. It’s going to be super accurate to the period of time it’s set in, and it will offer not only swordplay with baddies, but it will offer large scale combat and a free-roaming environment as well presumably for lots of side quests. What’s great about a game like this is that it was fully funded on Kickstarter which means there were enough people like me who wanted a game like this. Most major gaming studios won’t take the chance on a game that challenges norms so it’s not that often you get something this unique. It will be out on PC, but also on consoles as well which is super cool! Release date is sometime this year.
Star Citizen is my #1 choice for games I can’t wait to play in 2015 because if you asked me to create a game in middle school (not high school as in my #2 choice) I would have thought of some space game like this. Except Chris Roberts took that boy hood dream and super charged it! Honestly speaking, this looks like it could be the biggest game in history if done right. I’m not joking. It’s got everything. Most sci fi space games are either FPSs or are space racing, or dog fighting or discovery and research etc. This game will have all of those in one! The game seems to center around the user and his or her aircraft. You’ll be able to purchase more than one of course and house them in your hanger. You’re hanger will be a real place where you can park your vehicles and plan strategies with your buddies etc. Depending on your aircraft you can have space for different friends who will – get this – man their separate and unique stations! You can potential have a comm’s officer who will hail other players in the game or who can potentially hack the communications of enemies. You will have someone manning the shields and energy consumption and the like. You can also land on worlds and have firefights with enemies just like you would in any space FPS. The universe is open and persistent and will have its own unique currency. Users will be able to make money in different ways and make a name for themselves in this galaxy. This game is so big it’s hard to wrap my head around it so check out many of the cool videos people are posting about the game. Star Citizen was also crowd funded (The game has currently raised almost 70 million dollars!) and you can purchase a ship right now if you want to support the game, however, if you just want to wait until it comes out you will be able to get these ships for free. It’s your choice. No word on actual release date, but it may be sometime in 2016 unfortunately. Another sad point for me – a primarily console gamer – is that the game will most likely be a PC game. It makes sense though as the game is so huge that it will be rumored to make even the most top of the line computers squeal in pain. But the level of detail is first class based on all the images and videos I’ve seen so far. I hope they get this one right as I’ll have to upgrade my computer so I can get in on the action!
We got a chance to play with HTC’s new Desire EYE. Is it the next phone you should buy? Does it live up to all the hype? Let’s find out shall we?
Design:
The first thing I notice about the Desire EYE is that it seems more playful in it’s design than some of HTC’s previous phone designs. It ditches the sleek, but drab black and grey colors from the HTC One and replaces it with a slick colored strip around the side of the phone. It doesn’t have a curved back so the phone sits flat on the desk. If you’re not used to a large phone, this phone does look pretty big and really long coming in at 5.2 inches. You will most likely have to use two hands to operate it, but HTC made some good button location choices to accomodate. The power button is below the volume rocker on the right side so righties will be able to easily toggle the screen on and off. There is also a dedicated camera button below the power button on the bottom right corner. It’s got a sort of matt finish which makes it feel comfortable in the hand, but that still didn’t make me completely take away my fears of dropping the device.
Looking at the phone dead-on, you mainly see the very large front facing camera and the dual LED Flash. I definitely have more to say about this in the “Likes” section. I didn’t realize until later that they’ve kept the speakers on the front of the device as well, but you have to do a bit of searching to find them…which is a very good thing. This phone also comes with the ability to take a micro SD card for extended memory if you need it.
Functionality:
I really liked the Operating system, but to be honest I still like stock Android better. That said, HTC does a really good job of not overloading the look and feel of the OS and it comes off feeling very light and simple. Definitely not as gaudy as some of the other Android skins I’ve come across, but that is a matter of taste. I’m not going to get into the nitty gritty here because if you’ve used an Android phone – there really isn’t too much more to note. Rather, I’d like to talk about the software that governs the impressive cameras. They’ve got a slew of things that you can do with the 13MP front and rear facing cameras that I’ll point out here. Some are really useful, while others are nothing to write home about, but this is where the Desire EYE stands out from other phones.
They’ve got Face Tracking which zooms in on your face while on a video chat session. Though a relatively small improvement, this can be hugely useful when video chatting with someone while doing something else or while walking around. I’ve been in those situations before and I find this a welcome addition. They’ve also added screen sharing support with skype which could prove useful in a business setting. However, I can’t really see myself using that feature too often, but it would be cool to show it off the one time it proves useful. Split Capture is something I’m still undecided on. It’s where you can take a selfie and a shot with the main camera at the same time. The software then merges the two pictures with your selfie on the left and the main image on the right. I think it’s really cool and is something I can imagine using on vacation or in group pictures where the person shooting can finally be involved. Voice Selfie is super useful for taking selfies with the main camera, but the front facing camera is so good I wonder if it’s necessary. I could totally use voice selfie with my current phone (Nexus 5) because the front facing camera is terrible and even worse in low light. But sometimes it’s hard to hit the shutter button from the back of the phone so just yelling out “Cheese” would be a welcome change. Either way, I think it’s a step in the right direction so I welcome that functionality.
Likes:
I really like the sound of the front facing speakers. It really is impressive for a mobile phone and the fact that they are pretty much hidden allows for more focus on the huge screen. When I’m playing games I can hear everything which is cool. currently, my palm muffles the sound since the speaker is at the bottom of my Nexus 5.
I also love the front facing camera with dual LED lights. It’s 13 MP! I mean c’mon. I love the move though because now video calls and selfies using the front camera are now totally worth it. Add to that the HTC EYE suite of camera functions and you’ve got a sweet deal.
Dislikes:
Honestly, I didn’t like how big the phone was. I’ve got smaller hands, and it’s really hard for me to do what I need to do with one hand. I’m a New Yorker and I multi-task constantly so I really would like my left hand free. I also didn’t like the message center that much, and I noticed it hung a few times. If you swipe all the way to the left you get to this center where it flags relevant news and updates. It’s not terrible and I may learn to like it if I bought this phone, but initially I was put off by it. I’d rather find an app of my choosing to do that sort of thing for me.
Summary:
All-in-all, the phone is a solid buy. I could recommend it without hesitation. Sure, there are some things that didn’t float my boat, but the HTC Desire EYE really shines when it comes to it’s cameras. Android phones haven’t had too leaders in the camera category, but I’d say that the Desire EYE is one such phone. If you’re into selfies and a really big screen, you should give this phone a try.
Hello my name is Ms. S, I am 28(again) and I reside in NY. I am an average girl with an above average ability to formulate an opinion on just about anything. If you put me in a room with anything or anybody, I can yup form an opinion, What can I say it’s a gift and for you lucky readers out there I have been given the opportunity to share my opinion on what is Manly about the Man. So let’s get started. My task is not to convince, degrade, penalize nor preach but simply give it as I see it. So take the sense from the non-sense and you just might understand what’s Manly-about a Man…. well in my opinion at least…….
The three C’s
So I was at work the other day speaking with a co-worker, the conversation somehow turned to dating and she started to speak of past experiences, she laughed, she cried it was moving truly but then she spoke about the importance of the three C’s. Intrigued, I stated “Elaborate”, she stated you don’t know the three C’s? “No” I stated genuinely interested now, “what are they”? “Car, Crib and Credit”, I laughed because I didn’t expect her to say crib and she chuckled but only slightly. “I don’t date anyone with out it”. She stated that she and her other girlfriends felt the same way. I thought about what she said
‘The three C’s’ was not a new idea, women have been preaching it since the Women’s lib movement backfired. Yup, I said backfired but that is a topic for another time. Were was I , oh yes the three C’s – so this was not a new concept yet it seems to rear it’s head in so many generations of women who are looking and dating Men, why?
And here’s my opinion ….
Because the relevance of men being providers has not, nor will it ever change. ALL -that’s right I said it – All are still looking for security; looking for men to prove that they can provide when it comes to joining their lives romantically to women. It has been proven over and over. It’s just that society, lazy men, over-zealous women, etc… are trying to change this natural role. I can already here you “So the fact that as a man I may want her to share in paying for something makes a man lazy? Well let me think about it umm… “Yes”.
You wanna know what’s Manly about a Man? Providing. Showing me you have somewhere to put me when you wanna sex me. Something to put me in when you need to show me off, and being able to buy the damn ring when you realize what you have.
This past week was CE Week in New York City. Lots of technological goodies were on display. Some Awesome, some not so much, but they were all quite unique in some way. I spent some time going around to most of the booths and here were the items and companies that stood out.
Sodacase:
Sodacase had some impressive cases for the iPhone 4- 5, Galaxy S2,3 and Note. They also have cases for all the iPads as well. The production was really high quality and there was texture to all of the designs – including the one I made (to the right). What really made the process cool was their use of www.makeryapp.com which allows you to upload any image you want into pre-determined templates. If you have a hot design, you can upload it to the site and have them ship you a nice stylish case. One con I had was not being able to position the image exactly the way I wanted, but I was still happy with the final product. One other reason they are cool is that they gave me a code which will give my readers $10.00 off their own purchase at www.sodacase.com. Like me on facebook or follow me on twitter referencing the discount and I’ll send you the code. Crimson’s “Photo-eazl I just had to write about this little do-hicky. It’s a small easel for your camera, or whatever small device you have. You can screw the camera at the top, or hold your cell phone or tablet at the bottom because of two notches that protrude. It really reminds me of a swiss army knife except for holding stuff up. The founder was nice enough to let me try one out and I’m really liking it thus far. It’s quite sturdy. I did suggest to him however to add a grip so you can hold it like a gun more naturally for sweeping shots with the camera, and to possibly add something to connect to a monopod for those tough to reach angles. Let’s see if he listens. Mobio – “Go”, “Pivot”, “Grip” The Mobio products were really interesting. They all work with a magnetic mount which is sphere which you can swivel at will. Each product had the same premise but slightly different design. The “Go” was designed for in-car use, the Pivot was for desktop used, and the “Grip” was for your hand (in the image to the left). I liked the “Pivot” the best because it looked really nice when you have your iPad on it. The only drawback was that you needed to stick the mount onto your device. You could technically remove it but it might take some prying. That said, I’d probably stick it to a case so I didn’t have adhesive on my device.
Cushi Phone Cases:
I know what you’re thinking – I already wrote about phone cases above. Yeah, yeah, but this is worth it. The designs Cushi had were amazing – especially if you’re into urban art at all. You can’t make your own designs, but the designs they had were hot. Check out the image to your right.There’s graffiti, guns, clever phrases – the whole shebang. I also liked the fact that the designs were all padded so it had a nice feel to the fingertips. You can find more designs here
Sony’s 4k TVs
You’ve got to see it to appreciate it. All I’ll say is blades of grass man. Blades of freakin’ grass. I could see individual blades of grass on the field of a soccer match. I didn’t think I’d need this – but I do.
Here is something we are keeping our eye out for. In the market for a decent tablet but don’t want to spend the proverbial arm and leg for it? Walmart, as usual, has you covered. They’ve partnered with Hisense to develop the Sero LT and the Sero Pro tablets. These tablets will be exclusive to Walmart and are available for purchase now.
The prices are extremely competitive coming in at $99 for the Sero LT and $149 for the Sero Pro. Now I was skeptical too, but the specs are not shabby for this price range.
Serp Pro Specs:
NVIDIA Tegra 3 quad-core processor
Android 4.2 Jelly Bean
7 inch, 1280 x 800 IPS display
1GB of RAM
8GB of on-board memory
2.0MP front camera
5.0MP rear camera with flash and auto-focus
Mini HDMI, SD, and USB ports
10-hour battery life – Twonky Beam, which allows users to share local and Internet resources with other equipment via a DLNA network
Built-in NFC (Near Field Communications) to share pictures, playlists and videos clips
Bluetooth enabled, providing secure transmission of data to and from devices
Sero LT Specs:
1.6 GHz dual core processor
Android 4.1 Jelly Bean
7 inch, 1024 x 600 pixel display
Built-in WiFi, Mini HDMI, SD, and Micro USB ports
1GB of RAM
4GB internal memory
Judging from the user ratings – these bad boys aren’t too bad. We’ll review once we get our hands on one.
John Acunto, CEO and Co-Founder of GIG IT asked me to “Gig-IT”. I had to admit that I had no clue what he was talking about, but that didn’t last for long. As I spoke with he and his team behind the new Facebook game it became increasingly clear that this could be the next Big Facebook game. With the mantra “This aint no Farm” firmly embedded in my psyche I stepped forward into the light.
First, there’s the game play. It’s quite simple really. You book a GiG for your client. Your client just happens to be the likes of Flo Ryder, Rick Ross, and even Nas. You book the venue, you choose the sponsors, you can even choose what your artist wears. Now here is the cool part – you can choose your artist’s songs they will perform based on your own song list. Not only that, but you can plan everything that happens on stage including lighting, pyrotechnics and the like. When you get good – you can have your friends watch the concert you put on in REAL TIME! You can save your best performances and share them with the world for up to two weeks. Check below for the starting list of artists in the game, most of whom were at the launch party last night. You can see the awesome pics in the gallery below as well. There were appearances by Jamie Foxx, Busta Rhymes, La La Vasquez, Nas, Talib Kwele, 2 Chainz, and many, many, many more.
I mentioned to John that he should add the ability to skin your own likeness in the game so you could appear as one of your favorite artist’s crew. I think that would be hot!
The app utilizes Youtube for saving the videos that you make and you can view them on your mobile device. The game is based on ratings so you better do a good job or you’ll have your friends raggin’ on you. I interviewed B-Real from Cypress Hill who said this wasn’t the first time he was in a game and that in the old Maddens you could put in a cheat code and get him on your squad! I thought that was an interesting little fact, but it really goes to show how far music – especially hip-hop – and technology have come.
I’ll definitely be checking this game once it drops this year and I’ll keep you posted on new news. For now, check the little clip of Elle Varner tearing down the house!
Game Artist List:
1. Flo rida 2. Neyo 3. Tyga 4. Slaughter house 5. Sean Kingston 6. MGK 7. Fabolous 8. Miguel 9. 2chainz 10. Nas 11. Rick Ross
