Something About Bananas

A place where the latest movies, web videos, technology, gadgets, games, music, internet culture and everything in between come together and explode all over your face. Oh and something about bananas too.

I've never been a fan of Transformers the animated TV series or the comic books so this review is from the perspective of someone who has no knowledge of that Universe other that the first movie from 2007.

So what I got from the plot was that Megatron, the leader of the Decepticons is resurrected and The Decepticons continue their war with the Autobots while trying to find some key that can be used to harness the power of the Sun. Yeah it's a bit crazy.

Our hero Sam also touches a sliver from the Cube and now sees symbols which lead him to the key so he can get it before the damn Desepticons.

Sorry for the very rough summary of the plot but to be honest the only reason a plot exists in this film is for an excuse to fill the 2 and a half hours up with intense action scenes. This film is not for those who want to see a well written, moving film. It's for those who just want to be blown away by some of the best special effects, explosions and robot fighting since.....well since Transformers in 2007 really. The fight scenes have improved. You can actually see a bit more of what's going in a battle and which Transformer is getting smashed in the face. As for the other effects, they are amazing and are as realistic as if they where really happening such as a pyramid being smashed to pieces.

The film is pretty long but it's got a lot of action scenes and not much filler. The comedy is decent if not a bit too silly at times but you'll get a few laughs too alongside the blood pumping action.

I recommend this film only to those who loves action films. Yes there is a plot and some humour too. There is also of course the traditional romance side story that you see in every film between Sam(Shia LaBeouf) and Mikaela(Megan Fox) but this is all about the action. It's not smart and it's not clever but it's damn exciting and mindless fun.

I give it a 7 out of 10. Here's the HD trailer (let it buffer).


Before seeing The Hangover I thought it looked like another cheesy, bad comedy flick that cashes in on the cliche "Vegas" trip but after I saw it my opinion changed.

The film begins with four friends having a bachelor night in Las Vegas. Five minutes later in the film and it's the next morning, the groom Doug is missing, a tiger is in the bathroom, a baby's in the wardrobe, the hotel room is in pieces and the tree remaining friends don't remember a single thing.

The film's adventures begin as the three friends, Alan, Stu and Phil set out to find their friend Doug before his wedding and end up finding out a lot about the night before. From who owns that baby in the wardrobe, why Stu is missing a tooth (and a very special ring), why a Tiger was in the bathroom, why a hotel valet gives them the keys "their" police cruiser and a lot more.

So much happens in this 100 minute film and every scene is ridiculously hilarious and ties together pretty well with yet another cliche "feel good" ending, but hey, we all secretly love cliches don't we?

Easter Egg: The photos of that forgotten night are found at the end of the film and are shown throughout the beginning of the credits and really put the icing on the cake. That is to say they will have you in stitched.

I have to recommend this to any comedy lover and anyone else who isn't a dried up old prune. One word to some it up. "Hysterical"

I give it a 8 out of 10.
Here's the trailer (let it buffer as it's HD).


You may have connected your PC to your TV before and browsed the web and even watched YouTube, but now YouTube have actually created a version of their site that suits TV viewing better. Just like they have a mobile version for viewing YouTube on mobile phones they now have a TV version for viewing YouTube videos on your big 42" TV set in your living room. So if you have a few friends over there's no need to all gather around your PC monitor to enjoy all of YouTube finest content.

All you have to do is connect your PC to your TV or open up your Playstation 3's web browser and head to http://youtube.com/xl and you will be greeted with a TV friendly version of the website. No ads (surprisingly), no comments, no clutter just videos tabs for top rated, popular etc, and a handy search box. Enjoy and check out my video on the new service below.

Popular Youtuber Philip Defranco (sxephil) got a nasty punch to the face when him, iJustine and Shay Carl where making a collaborative video for a viral marketing campaign for Carls Junior Burger Restaurants. iJustine was supposed to pretend to punch sxephil but literally punched him. Here it is in slow motion.



Yesterday on June 2nd 2009 Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. unveiled their latest piece of gaming hardware, the PSPgo at their E3 keynote.

I have talked about this gadget before when images of it where leaked on the web days before E3. Read that blog for more info.

As I said in that blog post I wanted Sony to make the device an iPod Touch competitor as well as a Nintendo DS competitor by incorporating a multi-touch display with a much improved music application.

Disappointingly the PSPgo had no touch screen announced at the keynote and the only new software update was an automatic music playlist creator called SenseMe that sounds like an iTunes Genius rip-off (which I think is rubbish) and will be available on the older PSP too.
The new PSP is more an evolution than a revolution, just like when they added a microphone to the PSP 2000 and called it the 3000. Of course this time the changes are a bit more drastic but none the less it's still not a next gen PSP so to say. It's specs will be the same or similar and it will play the same games. By this, I mean it's not PSP 2. For example the PS3 has much more powerful hardware than the PS2 so developers can make much more graphically intense games with more intelligent physic and A.I. The PSPgo however will play the same games as the PSP original. No next gen mobile gaming graphics, physics etc. It is simply a new look with some cool new features.

Here are the announced new hardware and software features:

Hardware:
  • 3.8" screen which is smaller than the previous 4.3".
  • 16GB built in flash memory. The Previous PSP had no built in memory for storage.
  • No UMD drive as all games will be downloaded. However, UMD versions will continue to be released for PSP 1000-3000 owners.
  • M2 card slot. The previous PSP used Memory Stick Duo and Pro Duo.
  • Bluetooth. This will possibly enable the PSP to connect to the PS3 with Remote Play without the need for a home netowork. It will of course connect to other bluetooth devices such as headesets, headphones and maybe even mobile phones. Note the previous PSP had no bluetooth.
  • Wi-Fi. Same as previous PSP.
  • Sliding form factor. The previous PSP had a much wider "slab" form factor, 17cm wide due to the directional buttons and action buttons being placed either side of the screen as opposed to sliding down from underneath.
  • It is 40% lighter and 50% smaller than the original PSP 1000.
  • No confirmed bumps in CPU or GPU speed and no increase in the main RAM. This means the software potential of the PSPgo is the same as the PSP 2000 and 3000 as it has the same hardware power.
  • No second thumb stick (not a feature but I thought I'd let you know).
Software:

  • No new PSPgo system software (the firmware/operating system) announced so it assumedly uses the same PSP system software as the current PSP which is currently version 5.50 (not good for the current music system haters like myself).
  • An automatic playlist creator based on your current mood called SenseMe that will be available for the old PSP too. The current PSP Music system uses a folder directory structure just like browsing the Music folder in Windows so they may change to a better Artist/Album structure like Windows Media Player or the iPod to support the playlist creating. This would satisfy my MP3 playing needs. I just want a proper shuffle feature that doesn't limit me to the current folder! (Please note only the playlist creator has been confirmed. The rest is me just praying)
  • The PSP's media transferring application for WIndows known as Media Manager will be relaunched as Media Go and will have an integrated Playstation Store.
  • Video deliver service launching with 9,400 TV shows and 1,900 films.
  • Game sleep function enabling gamers to pause their game and access the XMB menu without having to re-boot the game.


The new PSP go will be launching October 1st of this year in North America and Europe for $249 and €249 and will be available in Piano Black and Pearl White. Japan will have to wait until November 1st and pay ¥26,800.

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I leave you with my Vlog on the PSPgo and some a Sony teaser of the device.







My latest video on TechTubeToday showing the brilliant cross-platform media-player/web browser running on my Windows 7 desktop and some of the popular add-ons and plug-ins for it.