Category: TV

Google I/O Day One: Music, Movies, and Sandwiches

Google kicked off its Google I/O 2011 developer conference with a keynote full of announcements. Some were exciting, some were interesting, some were meh. Here are some random thoughts on today’s announcements. Of course I want to hear what you have to say about them as well. Let’s get to it!

Android Ice Cream Sandwich — The next major version of Android will be called Ice Cream Sandwich. It will combine the phone features of Gingerbread and the tablet features of Honeycomb into one mobile operating system for all devices. The UI will receive a major overhaul and the application framework — which hasn’t been detailed — should help developers code more efficiently for multiple devices.

I’m psyched to get some Honeycomb features on a phone…but I’m bummed that I’ll have to wait until Q4 2011 to get them. The UI enhancements are completely necessary; as powerful as Android is, it still feels rough compared to Apple iOS and HP WebOS. It’s a bummer that Ice Cream Sandwich will take so long, but at least it should have a cool Nexus phone to show off its features.

I’m also praying that the new application framework truly makes things easier for developers and greatly increases the allowed file size for apps (currently 50MB). After attending numerous developer panels, I’ve come to understand what a pain in the ass it is to create games for the platform. The file size limit is just stupid. Android gaming will always be a step or two behind iOS until that restriction is lifted.

Google Music Beta — The company’s cloud-based music-service is now official. Its incredibly unexciting placeholder name is Google Music Beta. As you’d expect, it allows you to store music on the cloud and listen to songs on numerous devices. Flash is currently required to use the service. Amazon recently launched its Cloud Player service and Apple is expected to announce its iTunes cloud plans next month, so this move was expected and necessary.

I was surprised by the elegance of Music Beta’s UI. It looks smooth and intuitive, which is surprising for a company that’s known for UI that’s rough (at best) and clunky (at worst). Google will allow users to store 20,000 songs on the cloud. Several writers have pointed out that this is higher than the 5GB allowance on Cloud Player, but few of them reminded their readers that buying an online album bumps the storage to 20GB.

Music Beta looks like it’s off to a promising start. Going into the conference I was kind of “meh” about the service, but the UI really surprised me. That said, I think the company is at a huge disadvantage since it doesn’t sell music. Buying MP3s from Amazon instantly adds them to Cloud Player and I expect iTunes to behave similarly. While Music Beta looks cool and smooth, it adds an extra step. On the plus side, Music Beta offers a number of free songs to download.

Movies on Market — Movie rentals will be available on Android Market. The first Android products that can use movie rentals are tablets running Android 3.1 (released today for Xoom). Android 2.2 phones will be able to rent movies in a few weeks. Google claims that it will have “thousands” of movie rentals available for $1.99 each. Movies can be “pinned” so that they can be watched offline.

I’m positive that Google is going to mess this one up. The interface is clunky — certainly worse than what I saw from a beta of the competing HTC Watch service. Netflix is also coming to Android. One huge advantage that Netflix has is that it has a consistent feel whether you’re watching through a gaming console, a phone, or a PC. Android’s movie rental service feels awkward and competes with Google’s recently announced YouTube rental service. I think it was a mistake to launch a separate service for Android. I understand that it wants to keep all Android commerce on Android Market, but it’s an enormous waste of the YouTube brand — you know, the brand known for video.

Teaming Up for Faster Updates — Google announced an initiative that will ensure that Android phones will support the latest updates for 18 months after they’re released, as long as the hardware can handle it. Working on update guidelines and efforts to speed up the process are AT&T, Verizon, Sprint, T-Mobile, Vodafone, HTC, Motorola, Samsung, Sony Ericcson, and LG.

This is smart move that should have happened earlier. Although Google is slowing down the Android release schedule, it’s still fairly frequent. New Android phones are released every week (or it feels that way). Getting the latest software update is bottlenecked by hardware manufacturers and carriers. Bringing everyone together to make the process faster will keep phones competitive for a longer period of time and, more importantly, keep customers happy.

Also, that photo of Christina Aguilera is there for no real reason.

Google TV Gets Android 3.1 — *yawn* I was excited for Google TV when it was announced at last year’s show. The products have been disappointing, but not as disappointing as Google’s lack of support for the service. Hopefully new hardware and new software can help Google TV live up to its potential.

Android Accessories — Google is releasing a development kit to broaden the use of Android. It wants Android phones and tablets to be used with atypical products. It showed an Android phone being used as a heart rate monitor paired with a stationary bike. This could be fun…or it could be like the Wii heart rate monitor. *joke* I expect to see a ton of crap Android “accessories” at CES 2012. I’m positive that I could make a one-hour show about it.

Android @Home — Google is also working on ways to have Android control appliances and lights in the home. This is kind of neat in the “house of the future” kind of way…but I’m scared of a micro-Skynet scenario. I don’t want to die because I pissed off my refrigerator and it ordered my barbecue grill to roast me.

Your Turn — Those are my initial thoughts on today’s Google I/O announcements. Now it’s your turn! Please let me know what you think when you have a chance.

WWE 2011 Draft Results and Analysis

WWE held its annual draft on last night’s episode of Monday Night Raw. Things started off with a bang as Smackdown chose John Cena with the first pick. Here are the result of the results…

WWE held its annual draft on last night’s episode of Monday Night Raw. Things started off with a bang as Smackdown chose John Cena with the first pick. Here are the result of the results:

  • John Cena to Smackdown
  • Rey Mysterio to Raw
  • Randy Orton to Smackdown
  • Mark Henry to Smackdown
  • Sin Cara to Smackdown
  • Big Show to Raw
  • Alberto Del Rio to Raw
  • John Cena back to Raw

Of course Cena was going to end up back on Raw. He’s the company’s top face and sells a ton of merchandise. You can’t have him on the secondary show. Sin Cara and Mysterio switching places makes a ton of sense. Sin Cara has blown a few spots due to his high-risk style; having him on the taped show will make him look better. Mysterio will probably get buried on Raw, but he’ll eventually have an incredible match or an amazing train wreck taking on Sin Cara (possibly at WrestleMania). Del Rio has been outstanding and deserves a permanent spot on the primary show. As for the other picks…meh.

More talent will shuffle this week as the WWE 2011 supplemental draft takes place on WWE.com. For now, please let me know what you think of the roster changes (please!).

Today’s Poll: Do You Like Sony Qriocity?

Not that you can currently use it on your PlayStation 3 at the moment (thanks to external intrusions), but I wanted to get your opinions on Sony’s Qriocity service. A unified approach to streaming music, movies, and television sounds great on paper, but there are separate services that do each of these things so well. I know that a lot of you are big on Netflix and some of you use Hulu. Some of you dig Pandora, while a few of you are Slacker or Last FM peeps. Do you think Qriocity can take the place of those services? Or is it just not good enough?

[poll id=”113″]

Did You Watch Game of Thrones?

My nerd friends were jazzed about the premiere of Game of Thrones, the HBO series based on George R.R. Martin’s books. I haven’t read the books yet (I really want to), so the TV series doesn’t mean as much to me as it does to several of my friends. As a newb, I found the show interesting, though the amount of characters was a little intimidating. Still, Sean Bean is cool (partially because he looks like Triple H) and that Daenerys chick has perky boobs. I’d like to see more Bean and boobs.

Any of you catch the show? What did you think?

Your Favorite WWE Edge Moment

“Hi, I’m Adam,” he said. That’s how Edge introduced himself to me during WrestleMania 22 weekend. Due to spinal stenosis, Edge is retiring as a WWE wrestler. It was cool watching him evolve from Gangrel’s sidekick to a hilarious mid-carder. While I enjoyed his goofy days with Christian the most, I was impressed that he was able to become a top face and an excellent heel. Sadly, he has to retire early (by wrestling standards). The good news is that the doctors diagnosed his affliction early and he won’t cripple himself in the ring. Who knows what could have happened if his ladder match with Alberto Del Rio went as scheduled.

I know that some of you discussed this yesterday, but I wanted to give Adam Copeland a.k.a. Edge his own space. He definitely entertained me (I had the benefit of flash photography) over the years. I’d love to hear your favorite Edge moments. Kazoos rule!!!

Watch the First Episode of Mortal Kombat: Legacy!

The first episode of Mortal Kombat: Legacy is here! This gritty live-action series stars Jeri Ryan, Michael Jai White, Jolene Tran (cute!), and Sam Tjhia (also cute!). The project got a lot of Internet buzz last June thanks to this trailer. I’m so jazzed that it ended up panning out!

I’d love to hear your thoughts on episode one of Mortal Kombat: Legacy. Check it out and share your feelings like a Care Bear (please)!

WrestleMania XXVII Results and Reactions

WWE’s biggest show of the year — WrestleMania — is over! This year’s show contained tons of surprises, a few great matches, and a couple of disappointments. Here are the results of WrestleMania XXVII and my reactions. If you caught the show, I’d love to hear your thoughts on it. If you didn’t, please let me know what you think of the results.

Sheamus vs. Daniel Bryan: Everyone got screwed here. This match was advertised for the WrestleMania card, but due to timing issues (I’m guessing) it became a dark match…and ended up being altered. It started out as a lumberjack match between two up-and-coming stars and got changed to a battle royal (i.e. throwaway) won by The Great Khali. Bryan Danielson is my favorite wrestler in the WWE and Sheamus has a tremendous future ahead of him. These two could have put on a show-stealing match. Sadly, they didn’t even get a chance.

Edge Beat Alberto Del Rio (Retains World Heavyweight Championship): I was shocked that this was the opening match for WrestleMania XXVII. I was also sure that Del Rio was going to get the win and have an excellent heel title reign. He has been getting a huge and well-deserved push from the WWE and I thought this was going to be his payoff. Ricardo Rodriguez, Brodus Clay, and Christian played bit roles in the match, with Edge eventually winning. After the match, Edge and Christian beat the crap out of Del Rio’s Rolls Royce. It was a good match that got the crowd warmed up, but most fans will forget about it in a month.

Cody Rhodes Beat Rey Mysterio (Raymond Stereo): I haven’t been watching much Smackdown, so I was thankful for the recap, but was still left with a feeling of, “I guess….” Rey Rey did his annual comics tribute by wearing a Captain America-like outfit. Rhodes had a mask and knee brace to play up his “disfigured” gimmick. The wrestling was actually pretty good. I haven’t watched Rhodes in a while. He has definitely improved. Rey is Rey. He has some dynamic spots and the kids love him. It was a good mid-card match, but again mostly forgettable.

Kane, The Big Show, Kofi Kingston, and Santino Marella Beat The Corre: This ring entrances took longer than the actual match. In less than two minutes, the faces did their finishers and beat the heels. This was pure filler.

Randy Orton Beat CM Punk: As expected, these two excellent wrestlers put on a very good match. Orton sold his knee injury well, which told the match’s story. Punk did an excellent job heeling it up. The match had plenty of back-and-forth action with several near-falls that the crowd bought into. It was definitely a cut above all the previous matches. I expected Orton to get the win and the crowd was happy that the face was victorious.

Michael Cole Beat Jerry “The King” Lawler: This match was a mess that took way too long. On the plus side, Lawler beat up Cole, Jim Ross was on commentary, and “Stone Cold” Steve Austin played his part well. There were some fun comedic bits, like Cole warming up in his “Cole Mine” and moving to the first turnbuckle because he lost his balance on the second one, but the match was twice as long as it ought to have been. Bryan Danielson and Sheamus were cut for this and Snooki?!? Ech.

The Undertaker Beat Triple H: I loved hearing Metallica’s “For Whom the Bell Tolls” during Hunter’s entrance. That was cool. It was even cooler that JR was still calling the action. This match actually exceeded my expectations. After two brilliant matches with Shawn Michaels at the last two WrestleManias, I thought that this would be a letdown. It absolutely wasn’t. I wouldn’t say it was as good as ‘Taker’s two victories over HBK, but it was close — really physical, great psychology, awesome near-falls, etc. The two put on a clinic on how to combine in-ring action with emotion. It was — by far — the match of the night. That’s especially impressive when you consider that Triple H is still shaking off ring rust and ‘Taker’s body is just a mess.

John Morrison, Trish Stratus, and Snooki Beat Laycool and Dolph Ziggler: How do you follow up the best match of the night? With a lame match that generates mainstream press because a reality TV star is involved! Not even JR’s commentary could make this one interesting. I suppose I’m being unfair. The crowd got excited for Morrison’s starship pain and Stratus’ chick kick. Snooki came out to some boos, but shocked the hell out of the world with a springboard elbow and a cartwheel splash. Snooki’s surprising athleticism aside, I still wish Danielson and Sheamus had time to put on a match.

The Miz Beat John Cena: Cena was getting crazy heat for most of the match — not exactly the reaction you want your top face to be getting. The two put together some decent action, but you could tell the crowd was waiting for The Rock to get involved. The match ended with a double count out, but The Rock hit the ring and restarted the match with a no-disqualification stipulation. A few seconds into the restart, The Rock hit the rock bottom on Cena and Miz scored the pin. After a few minutes of The Miz celebrating, The Rock beat him up too. The show closed with The Rock posing and the crowd eating it up.

While The Rock definitely had to close the show, I was expecting a bigger reaction. He received a big pop, but I was expecting an enormous one. Perhaps the crowd peaked during The Undertaker and Triple H match. Some people hate the way the show ended, but I like that The Miz can move onto another feud. He’s drawing some great heat and doing extremely well on mainstream television. It also looks like The Rock vs. Cena is a strong possibility for Summer Slam 2011.

Well, that’s how WrestleMania XXVII went down. It’s the Super Bowl of pro-wrestling and I definitely want to hear your thoughts on the show. Please share!

Chris Jericho Raises His Game on Dancing With the Stars

Last week Chris Jericho looked like one of the Village People on Dancing With the Stars. While I was impressed that he was even competing, it looked like his instructor was carrying him. This week he went from the cha-cha to the quick step…and didn’t look like one of the Village People. I was really impressed with his performance. Check out the clip above — especially around the 2:55 mark — and watch Jericho strut his stuff.

Ranking the American Idol 2011 Top 11

I was all set to write about American Idol’s “Top 10”, but Randy Jackson, Jennifer Lopez, and Steven Tyler used the judges’ save this week. Instead of 10 singers on the American Idol summer tour, there will be 11. It’s coming down to the wire and I wanted to rank the last 11 contestants. Let’s go!

1) Paul McDonald — This guy is completely awesome. His voice is so unique — as if he were the love child of Bob Dylan and Rod Stewart. He dances like a total spaz and it’s completely amusing. He’s more comfortable with his guitar, but I miss his chicken-like flailing when he uses it. More seriously, Paul has a great smile and is handsome. I’m sure he’ll do well with ladies of all ages. If America is still determined to vote for boring white guys with guitars (Kris Allen, Lee DeWyze) then he should automatically win. I seriously doubt he’ll take the prize — his voice is unique, but pretty weak and uncontrolled — but I’m going to keep voting for him until he’s booted off the show. Also, he gets bonus points for being a pro-wrestling mark.


2) James Durbin — Another pro-wrestling mark, Durbin has a powerful voice and can belt out screams like a poor man’s Adam Lambert. He’s confident and knows how to work the stage. Due to his asperger’s syndrome, he makes all sorts of funny faces when he’s not singing. If he loses, it’s because America is weirded out by his weird squinting and random eyebrow raising. Rockers have done well recently, with David Cook and Lee DeWyze winning the competition. If the trend continues, Durbin’s chances should be good.

3) Pia Toscano — I went to high school with this girl…or girls like her. She’s pretty much what I think of when I hear the word “guidette”. There are millions like her in New York. Pia has a really powerful voice and is very polished on stage. That said, she’s kind of boring. She’s belted out great ballads, but hasn’t done anything with mid-tempo or up-tempo songs. If she can take faster numbers and show great stage energy that complements her powerful voice, she has a great shot at winning.

4) Casey Abrams — The judges are super high on this guy…and I’m not sure why. Casey has a unique voice, but often overdoes it with growls and angry faces. He’s certainly the most musically interesting and daring contestant this year, but he lacks star power. At best, he looks like some hack barista or a stock boy at Home Depot. At worst, he looks someone you wouldn’t want your niece to be alone with. He’s probably going to get some sympathy votes for finishing last and being awarded the judges’ save. That “scene” was awesome btw — he was cursing on national television, had a seizure, and fell to his knees as he was hugging Ryan Seacrest. It looked like he was trying to get into Seacrest’s pants.

5) Jacob Lusk — This guy has the most powerful voice in the competition. He brings a lot of soul and gospel-infused vocals, but (until this week) he hasn’t shown much control. You can tell that he wants to belt out everything at 11, even when the song doesn’t call for it. I’m not sure if he’s gay, but he’s definitely effeminate. America has shown that it will vote for boring white guys (Kris Allen) over talented gay men (Adam Lambert). I expect him to yell his way out of the competition. If not, homophobes will get rid of him.

6) Scotty McCreery — I love this kid. He looks like Alfred E. Neuman and his crazy deep singing voice reminds me of Giant Bomb’s Brad Shoemaker (I’m convinced they’re related. I’ve told Brad this.). He’ll do well with voters that love country music — and Idol has lots of those — but he’ll probably be voted off during a week where the songs don’t fit his style. For example, this week he butchered a Stevie Wonder’s “For Once in My Life” by tunring it into country. I’m excited to see how he’ll country-fy Elton John next week.

7) Lauren Alaina — This young lady seems to be on the decline. She showed early promise with rocker vocals, but she’s been really flat over the last few weeks. She reminds me of a poor man’s Allison Iraheta. The judges, particularly Steven Tyler, seem high on her, but I don’t expect Lauren to make the top five.

8 ) Stefano Langone — This guy has the looks and the voice, but he seems caught up in his own little world. It’s hard to connect with the audience — and get votes — when it looks like you’re singing in the shower. His looks will keep him around for a little bit, but I don’t expect him to last long.


9) Thia Megia — An obvious product of Filipino stage parents, 16-year old Thia is adorable and has a great voice. She’s also extremely boring and can’t do anything other than ballads. In five years I expect her to be singing in theme parks and on cruise ships, making people wonder, “She has such a lovely voice. Why isn’t she doing better?” Like Stefano, she just can’t connect with the audience. I shouldn’t be so hard on her future though. She’s only 16 and has plenty of time to find herself. On a side note, I love when the judges question whether the contestants know who they are as artists. This girl is 16. She doesn’t know who she is as a person, let alone a recording artist.

10) Haley Reinhart — I have a huge crush on Haley. She dresses like a filthy pirate hooker — shows lots of leg and cleavage. She can sing in adorably sweet coos or sexy growls, but can’t quite bring it all together. She’s like a (really) poor man’s Christina Aguilera. She definitely lacks confidence and seems unsure of herself on stage. That will probably be her downfall. She has the potential to finish in the top five, but I don’t think she’ll make it.

11) Naima Adedapo — I love how American Idol showed videos of her working as a janitor at an arena. A quick Internet search shows that she’s also a dance instructor. Naima can definitely dance…but her singing has mostly been poor. The rumor mill says that she doesn’t get along with the other female contestants. She loses points for her voice, her BS background story, and hating on pro-wrestling. I hope she goes home next.

Anyway, those are my American Idol top 11 rankings. Let me know which contestants you like and which ones you hate. And vote for Paul!!!