Windows Phone 7 by Microsoft

Not to be outdone by the milestones of Google’s mobile operating system Android, Microsoft also cooked up its own: Windows Phone 7. It recently launched in the US and Canada, Singapore, Europe and Australia. Asia won’t be far behind this 2011. It was released during the Mobile World Congress 2010 in Barcelona and so far, the feedback is positive.

Windows Phone 7 is the direct descendant of Windows Mobile and here are some of the new integrated features:
- cut, copy and paste
- Adobe Flash
- YouTube video-playing app

Games can be played as well and they will source from the XBox Live well. Upon its release, however, there were complaints that it lacked APIs or Application Programming Interfaces. Microsoft has also repeatedly stated that they will be strict with its content restrictions so good luck with hackers. But if gamers found it easy to hack the Microsoft Kinect, how long before the Windows Phone 7 is left untouched.

Here are more of the system requirements your device must have to operate Windows Phone 7: 

- Capacitive, 4-point multi-touch screen with WVGA (800×480) resolution
- 1 GHz ARM v7 “Cortex/Scorpion” or better processor
- DirectX9 rendering-capable GPU
- 256MB of RAM with at least 8GB of Flash memory
- Accelerometer with compass, ambient light sensor, proximity sensor and Assisted GPS
- 5-megapixel camera with an LED flash
- FM radio tuner
- 6 dedicated hardware buttons – back, Start, search, camera, power/sleep and Volume Up and Down

NVIDIA SLI Technology and Intel Sandy Bridge Form the Ultimate Gaming PC

NVIDIA today announced that NVIDIA SLI technology has been licensed by the world‘s leading motherboard manufacturers – including Intel, ASUS, Gigabyte, MSI and EVGA – for use on their Intel P67 Express Chipset-based motherboards designed for the upcoming Intel Sandy Bridge processors.As a result, customers who purchase a SLI-certified P67-based motherboard and a Sandy Bridge processor can equip their PCs with any single or dual combination of NVIDIA GeForce GPUs, including the recently released GeForce GTX 580 GPU, the world‘s fastest DX11 GPU."The combined processing prowess of Sandy Bridge and NVIDIA SLI technology will provide consumers with the building blocks for the ultimate gaming PC platform,” said Joel Christensen, General Manager of Intel Client Board Division at Intel Corporation. “Both NVIDIA and Intel continue to share a combined passion for furthering the PC as the definitive platform for gaming, and this combination will surely be attractive to anyone building or purchasing a brand new PC in 2011.With today‘s announcement, NVIDIA SLI technology is now available for all consumer-based desktop and mobile PC platforms, including the Intel Core i7, Core i5, Core i3, Core 2 Quad and Core 2 Duo processors, as well as those based on the AMD Phenom II CPU.
NVIDIA DX11 GPUs are designed to deliver the world‘s fastest performance for DX11 games, and are the only consumer GPUs to feature multiple tessellation engines for advanced graphics rendering capabilities. With a certified NVIDIA SLI motherboard, gamers have the option to add a second GeForce GPU to their PC, which can result in up to 2x the overall graphics performance.NVIDIA GeForce GPUs also provide gamers with additional features not found on any other discrete graphics solutions, including NVIDIA PhysX technology for deeper gaming immersion, as well as support for NVIDIA 3D Vision technology, delivering eye-popping stereoscopic 3D on a single display or spanning across three screens for an immersive gaming environment."ASUS is excited to bring NVIDIA SLI technology to our latest P67 based motherboards for Sandy Bridge CPUs," said Joe Hsieh, Vice President of ASUSTeK Computer Inc. "SLI is the leading multi-GPU technology and is demanded by our enthusiast customers.

2010 Annual Annie Award Nods Announced

BURBANK, CA (December 6, 2010) – The International Animated Film Society, ASIFA-Hollywood, announces nominations today for the 38th Annual Annie Awards recognizing the year’s best in the field of animation including best animated feature, television production, commercials, short subjects, video games and outstanding individual achievements. The 2010 nominations for Best Animated Features are: Despicable Me (Illumination Entertainment); How to Train Your Dragon (DreamWorks Animation); Tangled (Disney); The Illusionist (Django Films); Toy Story 3 (Disney/Pixar).Nominations for this year’s Best Short Subject include “Coyote Falls” (Warner Bros. Animation), “Day & Night” (Pixar), “Enrique Wrecks the World” (House of Chai), “The Cow Who Wanted To Be A Hamburger” (Plymptoons Studio) and “The Renter” (Jason Carpenter). Best Animated Television Productions include “Futurama” (The Curiosity Company in association with 20th Century Fox), “Kung Fu Panda Holiday” (DreamWorks Animation), “Scared Shrekless” (DreamWorks Animation), “Star Wars: The Clone Wars” (Lucasfilm Animation, Ltd.) and “The Simpsons” (Gracie Films).

Nominations for Best Animated Television Production for Children are “SpongeBob SquarePants,” and “Fanboy & Chum Chum.” (Nickelodeon), “Adventure Time” and “Regular Show” (Cartoon Network) and “Cloudbread” (GIMC).“This has been an unprecedented year for animation, as the high quality of work represented by our nominees will attest,” says ASIFA-Hollywood President Antran Manoogian. “On behalf of ASIFA-Hollywood, we congratulate all of the nominees and their respective studios.”For a complete listing of Annie Award nominations, tickets and event information, visit www.annieawards.org. Winners will be announced at the 38th Annual Annie Awards ceremony on Saturday, February 5, 2011, at UCLA’s Royce Hall, in Los Angeles, CA.Special juried awards honoring career achievement and exceptional contributions to animation will also be awarded: Winsor McCay Award – Brad Bird, Eric Goldberg and Matt Groening for career contributions to the art of animation; June Foray Award – Ross Iwamoto for significant and benevolent or charitable impact on the art and industry of animation; Ub Iwerks Award – Autodesk for the development of digital entertainment creation tools that play an essential role in animated productions, films, video games and commercials worldwide; Special Achievement Annie Award – “Waking Sleeping Beauty” for the documentary about the turbulent and fruitful years of Disney Animation (1984-1994) when the studio went from outworn anachronism to Hollywood juggernaut, creating a string of influential films and ushering in a ‘second golden age’ of animation.The Annie Awards’ black-tie ceremony will feature a lively mix of animation luminaries, celebrity presenters and comedic talent to celebrate this year’s best of the best. A pre-reception begins at 5:00 pm with the awards ceremony following 7:00 pm. A post-show celebration immediately follows at UCLA’s Royce Hall. More than 1,500 entertainment industry insiders are expected to attend the annual Annie Awards.

ASIFA-Hollywood is the largest of an international network of chapters and supports a range of animation initiatives through its membership. Current projects include an animation archive, library and museum, classes and screenings, and animated film preservation efforts. The Industry’s oldest and most prestigious award, The Annie Award is considered an important industry benchmark and an annual predictor of the Academy Award for best animated feature.

2010 ANNIE AWARD NOMINATIONS BY CATEGORY

PRODUCTION CATEGORIES

Best Animated Feature
Despicable Me – Illumination Entertainment
How to Train Your Dragon – DreamWorks Animation
Tangled – Disney
The Illusionist – Django Films
Toy Story 3 – Disney/Pixar

Best Animated Short Subject
Coyote Falls - Warner Bros. Animation
Day & Night – Pixar
Enrique Wrecks the World - House of Chai
The Cow Who Wanted To Be A Hamburger - Plymptoons Studio
The Renter - Jason Carpenter

Best Animated Television Production
Futurama - The Curiosity Company in association with 20th Century Fox Television
Kung Fu Panda Holiday - DreamWorks Animation
Scared Shrekless - DreamWorks Animation
Star Wars: The Clone Wars “Arc Troopers” - Lucasfilm Animation, Ltd.
The Simpsons - Gracie Films

Best Animated Television Production for Children
Adventure Time - Cartoon Network Studios
Cloudbread – GIMC
Fanboy & Chum Chum - Nickelodeon, Frederator
Regular Show - Cartoon Network Studios
SpongeBob SquarePants – Nickelodeon

Best Animated Video Game
Heavy Rain - Quantic Dream
Kirby's Epic Yarn - Good-Feel & HAL Laboratory
Limbo – Playdead
Shank - Klei Entertainment Inc.