Pachter Says Xbox 360 Price Cut Coming in Early 2010

Due to increasing pressure from Sony’s PlayStation 3, Wedbush Morgan analyst Michael Pachter believes that Microsoft will announce another price cut for the Xbox 360 to ring in the new year. He told Joystiq:

We think that the PS3 will again outsell the Xbox 360 in November and December, prompting a price cut some time early next year.

Xbox 360 controller

That seems a bit crazy. Microsoft’s most recent price cut went into effect in September — a little over three months ago. I can’t imagine the company slashing prices again a few months later.

What do you think of the predicted price cut? Too soon? Or a smart way to establish who’s the boss (Moan-a! Samanth-a! Angel-a!) in 2010.

Source

Scooter + Roller Luggage = Airport Lawsuit Waiting to Happen

Trolley Scooter

Micro Mobility’s scooter luggage seems like a good idea on paper. It combines carry-on luggage with a scooter that can help you zip through the airport. In reality, I think it’s a horrendous idea. I can easily picture a college fraternity kid knocking down an old lady at an airport or an old man overestimating his scooting prowess, throwing out a hip. While there are things this product can potentially help, I think its capacity for evil is much greater.

Then again, this thing might be useful at E3. I can store press kits in the luggage and perform hit-and-runs on company mascots I despise. Hmmm….

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AT&T Releases iPhone App to Gather Data on its Crap Service

AT&T’s overpriced and mediocre (in many metropolitan areas) service is a joke. Adding a new punchline to the joke is the Mark the Spot iPhone application, which uses the iPhone’s GPS to notify AT&T of dropped calls, failed calls, no coverage, data failure, and poor voice quality.

ATT Mark the Spot

Hopefully AT&T will use the collected data to make its network suck less.

Source (iTunes link)

World’s Smallest N64 Available on eBay — The N64Mini!

Benheck.com and eBay user “zenloc” has put together “the smallest N64 portable ever made”. It’s a pretty cool piece of kit that Nintendo 64 fans are sure to love. Check out this video posted by zenloc:

The N64Mini is available on eBay. The auction price is currently $205, but I’m sure that will skyrocket in the last 24 hours. Any of you tempted by this product?

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This Week’s Videogame Releases

This is probably the last week of the year that “big” games are being released. For PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360, there’s The Saboteur, which has been getting mixed reviews and some interesting attention for its unlockable nudity. On the Nintendo DS, Link returns in The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks. Finally, the Nintendo Wii gets a dose of frights 38 days after Halloween with Silent Hill: Shattered Memories.

The Saboteur

Any of you guys and dolls planning on picking any of these games up? I have my eye on Spirit Tracks, but will probably wait until it goes on sale.

Coffee Talk #41: Create Your Own Videogame Beverage!

Welcome to Coffee Talk! Let’s start off the day by discussing whatever is on your (nerd chic) mind. Every morning I’ll kick off a discussion and I’m counting on you to participate in it. If you’re not feelin’ my topic, feel free to start a chat with your fellow readers and see where it takes you. Whether you’re talking about videogames, yesterday’s NFL awesomeness, Sergio Martinez vs. Paul Williams, or Tiger Woods’ recent “indiscretions”, Coffee Talk is the place to do it.

FFXIII Elixir 3

I’m completely jealous that Japanese gamers have the opportunity to enjoy Final Fantasy XIII Elixir by Suntory. In America, the best videogame soft drink I can enjoy is World of Warcraft Mountain Dew. It’s not nearly the same. Slapping videogame branding on an existing beverage is one thing. Having a beverage maker concoct a new brew just for a game is another. The whole thing got me thinking about videogame beverages I want. Here are a few.

Dragon Age: Origins Darkspawn Blood — This tomato-based beverage might not make you a grey warden, but its numerous vitamins and minerals would give you the morning boost you need to save Ferelden on a weekly basis. Think of it as V8, with a touch of darkness.

Leisure Suit Larry Cialis Cocktail — This drink is part energy enhancer and part male potency provider. Your body will be up for a night on the town thanks to the taurine and the Cialis will make sure your joystick is up for a night in the sack.

Uncharted Filtered Water — When you’re searching for treasure and dodging danger in remote lands, it’s tough to find a pure glass of H2O. This bottled water ensures that you don’t have to worry about parasites and microbes getting in the way of a grand adventure.

Anyway, those are some of the videogame drinks I’ve imagined. I’d love to hear yours. Leave me your excellent elixirs in the comments section (please) — bonus points will be awarded to clever use of alcohol, particularly premium tequila.

Final Fantasy XIII Suntory Elixir Commercial

Here’s the latest commercial for the Final Fantasy XIII “Elixir” beverage by Suntory. Yes, Japanese videogames get their own beverages — reason #348 you should be jealous of Japanese gamers. And also, for relaxing times…make it Suntory time.

Just for kicks, here are some old Elixir shots from my archive. Check ’em out. There’s some cool stuff below the fold.

Continue reading “Final Fantasy XIII Suntory Elixir Commercial”

Random Rants: The Four Biggest Problems with Boxing

Saturday’s fight between Paul Williams and Sergio Martinez was one of 2009’s best. It was a highly competitive scrap between two amazingly skilled pugilists. I scored the bout 115-113 for Martinez, but there were enough close rounds that I could easily see a close decision going to Williams. I had no problems with Lynne Carter scoring it 115-113 for Williams and Julie Lederman scoring the fight a 114-114 draw. The third official judge, Pierre Benoist, scored the fight 119-110 for Williams — that’s just some pathetic scoring right there. According to Benoist, Martinez only won one round the entire fight, which is laughable to anyone that actually saw the contest. While the overall scoring wasn’t as bad as Ali Funeka getting jobbed out of a title the previous Saturday, Benoist’s scorecard illustrates one of boxing’s biggest problems. Let’s take a look a the four major reasons boxing isn’t as prominent as it was in the ’70s and ’80s.

Three Blind Mice

1) Inept and/or Corrupt Judges — Boxing is one of the few sports where an athlete can put on a superior performance and lose. Using the recent Ali Funeka vs. Joan Guzman fight as an example, it was pretty clear that Funeka beat the crap out of Guzman for 75 percent of the fight. For some reason, the bout was scored a majority draw. Fights like that are such a turnoff to fans. Why would you want to watch someone put forth the effort of a lifetime only to have it decimated by three blind judges? Sadly, this is probably the least of boxing’s problems.

2) Sanctioning Bodies — The WBC, WBA, WBO, and IBF are generally recognized as the four major sanctioning bodies in boxing. Each group has its own champion and rankings. For the most part, each organization sucks. All too often these groups post questionable rankings and declare unworthy mandatory contenders for their champions. Sometimes they’ll create “super” champions, recognizing a title holder that has also won a belt from another group; this means that a weight division can have two champions — a “super” champion and a regular champion. Ultimately, it’s just a lame ploy to extract more sanctioning fees from more boxers.

Adding even more confusion is that fact that many people recognize Ring Magazine’s champions as the legitimate ones. So yeah, the sanctioning bodies or so inept and corrupt that a magazine has to sort through the muck to tell the people which boxers are really the best. That’s more than a bit ridiculous…but wait, there’s more!

Continue reading “Random Rants: The Four Biggest Problems with Boxing”

Signs Point to Ric Flair Signing with TNA…and it Makes Me Sad

Ric Flair and Shawn Michaels

I just watched Ric Flair’s “retirement” match with Shawn Michaels from WrestleMania 24. It wasn’t the most technically impressive match I’ve ever seen, but in terms of storytelling and playing with the crowd’s emotions, few can top it. More importantly, it was the perfect send-off to Flair’s wrestling career in North America. With rumors swirling that Flair will sign with TNA for a series of matches with Hulk Hogan, I’m totally bummed that “The Nature Boy” is even considering ruining his storybook ending.

Don’t get me wrong. It’s absolutely Flair’s right to make a living any way he sees fit, but he’s not “The Nature Boy” anymore. He hasn’t been for a long, long time. Although I haven’t followed all of his career, I’ve watched a great deal of it. From the NWA to WCW to WWF to WWE, I have no doubt that Flair is the best wrestler of all time. His matches with Harley Race, Kerry Von Erich, Sting, and (especially) Ricky Steamboat were brilliant. He was also able to carry limited wrestlers (Lex Luger) to excellent matches. In the ring and on the mic, nobody was better than Flair and I can’t imagine anyone topping him.

It makes me sad that there’s a whole generation of WWE fans that know Flair as this old guy with a fake tan and loose skin. They see him as this guy that hits his opponents in the balls and pokes their eyes. If Flair works for TNA, there are going to be even more fans that will see this watered-down version of Naitch.

When Yankee great Joe DiMaggio retired in 1951, his brother Tom said, “He quit because he couldn’t be Joe DiMaggio anymore.” Flair can’t be “The Nature Boy” anymore and I wish he’d take a cue from the Fuel song WWE used for his retirement run: “Leave the Memories Alone”.