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fantasyresident · 5 years ago

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My Review For Pokemon Sword and Shield (Spoiler-Free)

The road to Sword and Shield could be considered interesting to say the least. Shit hit the fan with everyone’s accusations, complaints, and grievances before the game even came out. Death threats, fake leaks, ridiculous critics, you name it. As a dedicated Pokemon fan, I saw huge potential with Sword and Shield, and I have officially completed Shield just a couple days ago. Reviews from official critics like IGN and Gamespot mainly praise the game giving it scores of 9.3 and 9 respectively. But then others off to the side of these major critics are saying the game “isn’t worth the $60″. I can say after playing the game myself to its completion (plus some) that the game is definitely in my view worth the money. I will break down my opinions of these entries by categories of Mechanics (how well the game works, how much gameplay there is, and how valuable the gameplay aspects are) Story (how good and effective the plot of the game is) Characters (how good the characters within the plot are) Dialogue (how good the writing of the game is) and Visuals (how good the game looks from a visual perspective). Here I go.

Mechanics: (9.1/10)

Sword and Shield is jam-packed with excellent features and gameplay elements to endlessly enjoy. The new Pokemon Camp feature is the best, most interactive way of playing and building your friendship with your Pokemon. The curry cooking is very simple, but it is more interactive then just giving a floating PokePuff or Bean to a Pokemon and having them chew it slowly right in front of you only to give it yet another one until they cannot eat anymore. You can throw a ball to have your Pokemon play fetch with you, speak to your Pokemon, and have them play with the little wand toy. While you cannot pet your Pokemon like in the past, the new features feels so fresh and even just watching your favorite Pokemon interact on their own is a worthy replacement for old systems like Amie and Refresh. Aside from Camping, the Gym Challenge was by far one of the best features. Gyms actually for the first time ever felt like full-fledged Gyms. Each Gym has their own special challenge in the beginning, and each one helped diversify the experience rather than tossing you into a room with randomly arranged trainers and the Gym Leader standing at the end waiting for you to get through the maze. I particularly loved Allister’s Gym Challenge, but every one of the challenges was a fun light-hearted experience. Many nuisances from the game that lingered in the past main titles have been removed, like no longer having to farm heart scales just to experiment with different move sets, having a Pokeball throwing shortcut, having a name rater posted in every Pokemon center, and many other quality of life improvements. The only problem I find with the mechanics of the game is the pop-ins. NPCs (ones that move from place to place), wild Pokemon, and berry trees all have their pop-in moments in the game. As you approach them, they come into view normally from a mid-range distance, and fade away again if you get too far away. This isn’t a huge deal when it comes to the experience as a whole, but it did slightly rob from the otherwise fresh Wild Area experience considering the pop-ins are the worst there. Lagging while online in the Wild Area is also a slight problem, but not too persistent of a problem.

Story: (8.5/10)

The story of Shield very much reminded me of the Pokemon anime in a sense (Swords being no different other than Pokemon variations). The narrative mainly focuses on the lovable and colorful cast of characters rather than a constantly changing dynamic plot. The plot is pretty big (not a Dynamax pun I swear), but it’s mainly told through your trainer character’s perspective, so the secrets of the unfolding plot occur through the perspectives of the adult figures, which you eventually see around the end. It’s not a complex story, but I found it to be very solid, kind of like a Pokemon movie. The characters carry the story along smoothly, and it’s a nice “save the world” Pokemon plot. There’s not a bunch of lore for the region, but what lore is explained is very suitable for the Galar region and I found it to be pretty interesting. I feel like the ending wraps up a little quicker than in usual Pokemon games, but the post-game story helps to finalize things even if it contains two very weird parodical characters. I think the point of the game’s plot is timely (for a reason I cannot elaborate upon for non-spoiler purposes, but to anyone who finishes it, you may know what I mean). I feel like it really connects with a real-world issue that the world is facing currently. Additionally, the story’s presentation was handled very well in most parts, I really liked the mid-battle cutscenes and the scripted battles that remind me of classic RPGs. While I don’t think the plot of Sword and Shield beats the darker dynamic plot of Sun and Moon, it’s good and solid all the same.

Characters: (10/10)

As I briefly mentioned in the story segment of this review, the characters are some of the biggest stars of this game. Each Gym leader stands out and have their own little backstory. These backstories aren’t told through cutscenes, but you can read their biographies on the back of their League cards which I thought was a good way of telling us more information about the Gym Leaders than we got with them in the past titles. Gym Leaders are normally just treated like pretty designs and then thrown away by the post game. Sword and Shield however puts each of them in the spotlight more and they all get some time to shine. The designs for the characters themselves I find to be particularly amazing. Personally, Piers, the long awaited Dark-type Gym Leader was my favorite, but every single one of them had something interesting in store. Aside from Gym Leaders, memorable characters like Marnie, Bede, Sonia and Leon really help liven and enrich the experience. I felt really invested in these characters, and when I feel that invested in the characters of a video game, I consider them a smashing success.

***ADDITIONAL NOTE***

I neglected to mention the most important characters to any Pokemon game: the Pokemon themselves! The designs of the Galar Pokemon and Galar forms are breathtaking. I love the vast majority of them and there’s very few that I think little of. The designs are themed and look very creative, I really loved the art direction for this generation’s Pokedex.

Dialogue: (9/10)

With the new Galar region, inspired off of the UK, the dialogue is bound to change. A lot of British slang is slipped in which was enjoyable even if I wasn’t familiar with some of it. Each character seemed to have their own way of speaking and I liked this individuality in dialogue. Nothing any of the main characters say seems off-putting, so I’d say the dialogue is in a very good place for a Pokemon game. It is a game that’s marketed for younger audiences, but it does a good job of not making you feel like a baby (something that prior titles also done a good job with), so the dialogue is consistently good for any audience. Some lines could be improved perhaps or less generic, but nothing stands out to me as an issue with dialogue, so I’d say the writing is pretty on-spot.

Visuals: (9.4/10)

This is perhaps one of the most controversial parts of these games, with many complaining about reused models, trees looking badly textured, and the game looking like just an “upscaled 3DS game”. While I do agree that the Wild Area trees are terrible-looking upon close inspection, I by no means view this game as just an “upscaled 3DS game”. The visuals of Sword and Shield are by far the greatest the series has to offer, with town areas and dungeons looking absolutely superb. Some critics think that the graphics need a dynamic change, but I couldn’t disagree more. Graphics are a subjective thing until you’re delaing with something like the textures of the game (like the trees.) If fans don’t like the Pokemon style, they shouldn’t be playing the games anymore. Sword and Shield mastered the style the franchise should have with the very interesting, beautifully rendered areas like the Glimwood Tangle and Ballonlea. I found these areas and others to be breathtaking upon first seeing them and I just really adored the look of these games. As for the character models, (the people and the Pokemon) they look just fine. They’re not the biggest upgrade, but they fit in well with the rest of the game’s style, so no problems in that department. If you are to find graphical flaws that aren’t only subjective, they can be found in the Wild Area. The trees and some ground textures (near water in particular) are a bit blurred and wonky. But then you gaze upon the surroundings as a whole and it looks quite nice. The lighting looks incredible in many areas, and I just found myself in awe of just about anything I was looking at. As for the animations, there are some new incredible animations (like Cinderace’s Pyro Ball) and many well-polished animations. There are however some of the same-old animations that didn’t work and still don’t work like double kick and tail whip. Overall, the visuals are extremely nice and just what I’d expect from a next-gen Pokemon game.

My Verdict:

Pokemon Sword and Shield was an exciting new adventure that brought me back to the old days of playing Pokemon, only without all the nuisance problems that once plagued the fun of the experience. This game reminded me of what it was like to wholeheartedly enjoy a new adventure with new lovable partners. The graphics and mechanics are beyond refreshing, even if some areas could be better polished. The narrative isn’t as wide as Gen 7′s, but it’s as solid as I’d expect a Pokemon story to get while not straying too far from the roots of what makes them good to begin with. At the end of the day, experiencing Galar was without a doubt worth the $60 price tag, and the memories gained from the experience is even more priceless.

Final Score: 9.2/10 👍

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tech-battery · 4 years ago

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Dell's XPS 17 Proves Big-Screen Laptops Are Back, and They're Awesome

A few years back, a lot of major laptop makers began quietly paring down the number of 17-inch laptops they made (aside from monstrously large gaming rigs), with Apple and Dell dropping the 17-inch MacBook Pro and XPS 17 respectively. However, thanks to improvements like smaller bezels and improved energy efficiency, thin and light laptops with plus-sized screens and big performance are making a comeback.

After Apple re-envisioned its big-format laptop as the 16-inch MacBook Pro in 2019, Dell made a similar move by bringing back the XPS 17 this year. While the circumstances are different this time around (especially considering 2020 is a tire fire of a year), the revival of Dell’s flagship 17-inch laptop couldn’t have come at a better time. Big-screen laptops are back, baby, and they’re even better than before.

For the big reintroduction of the XPS 17, Dell didn’t deviate too much from the classic XPS design. The XPS 17 has a tapered wedge-shaped body with a silver aluminum lid, a big carbon fiber deck in the middle, and another aluminum tub on bottom. Despite its overall size (14.74 x 9.76 x 0.77 inches) and weight (5.53 pounds), the XPS 17 still manages to feel quite sleek and surprisingly portable—until you stack an XPS 15 on top and see how big the difference really is. In some ways, the size and design of the XPS 17 feels like a mirage, because when you open it up, you can’t help but appreciate how much display you get from a system that seems smaller than it is, especially when you consider the last time we saw the XPS 17 was back in 2012, when it weighed more than eight pounds instead of five.

Along its sides, the XPS 17 comes with an ample assortment of ports, including four USB-C ports with Thunderbolt 3 (all support charging, too), a headphone jack, and a full-size SD card reader. The only ports you might be missing are HDMI and USB-A, though Dell has that covered too with an included dongle.

Inside, Dell maximizes the XPS 17's display (which comes in a multitude of options, from a 1900 x 1200 non-touch panel to a 4K UHD+ screen), with razor-thin bezels. Dell’s super tiny webcam and IR camera module, which sits above the screen, are exactly where you want them. The built-in IR camera offers support for Windows Hello face login, while the 720p HD webcam is meant to handle all your video-calling needs, though I must say that the XPS 17's webcam image quality and resolution aren’t quite as high as I’d like.

Below on its deck, Dell flanks the keyboard with large stereo speakers that feature a 2.5-watt woofer and 1.5-watt tweeter on each side capable of delivering rich, room-filling sound. And as for the keyboard itself, Dell wisely hasn’t messed with the feel of the XPS 17's keys, which are crisp and bouncy. I’m not gonna call them perfect, but the XPS 17's keyboard is pretty much my platonic ideal of how keys on a laptop should feel. And finally, there’s that huge 6 x 3.5-inch matte touchpad, which leaves just enough room for your wrists on either side while providing accurate gesture recognition and more mousing room than most people probably need.

The one potential oddity about the XPS 17's deck is Dell’s decision not to include a dedicated numpad like you sometimes see on 17-inch gaming systems. Some might bemoan that call, but on a well-rounded system like this, I think sacrificing the numpad for bigger speakers and an overall cleaner design was ultimately the right choice.

And then there’s that screen. Our review unit features the upgraded 4K 3840 x 2400 touchscreen, and I just can’t get enough. It puts out over 450 nits of brightness and has some of the richest and most vivid colors you can get from a laptop LCD panel today. If you’re intending to buy an XPS 17 to edit photos or videos, I would highly recommend upgrading to the 4K screen instead of the base FHD+ panel. Furthermore, with its 16:10 aspect ratio, the XPS 17 also provides a bit more vertical screen real estate, which is exactly what you want from a big all-purpose laptop.

The XPS 17 ain’t no slouch when it comes to performance, either. The base config comes with a 10th-gen Intel Core i5-10300H CPU, but our more expensive review unit came upgraded with a Core i7-10875H CPU, and it absolutely flies. In our CPU rendering test in Blender, the XPS 17 took almost four minutes less to render the same image (4:40) as MSI’s Creator 15 (8:33), despite the smaller Creator 15 having the same CPU.

And when it comes to graphics performance, it’s a similar story, with the XPS 17 (6:26) beating the MSI Creator 15 (8:36) by more than two minutes in our Blender GPU rendering test, once again with both systems featuring an RTX 2060 GPU. This kind of performance makes the XPS 17 a great choice for content creators, and while it’s not intended to be a competitive gaming machine, the XPS 17 is able to pump out more than 80 fps in Shadow of the Tomb Raider at 1080p with all the graphics bells and whistles turned on, so it’s not a bad fragging machine either. Thermal headroom also seems quite respectable, because while the XPS 17 will throttle itself a bit when maxed out, I didn’t notice any major lag or dips in performance during more normal loads.

Even the XPS 17's battery life is pretty solid for a system this big, with it lasting just shy of 9 hours (8:58) on our video rundown test, nearly two hours longer than the MSI Creator 15 and an hour longer than HP’s ZBook Create G7.

After using the XPS 17 for several weeks, I only really have one complaint: its price. Because even though it starts at just $1,350 for a 17-inch FHD+ screen, Core i5 CPU, 8GB of RAM, 256GB SSD, and integrated graphics, when you start upgrading components, the cost balloons quite quickly. So in comparison, our review unit, which features a 4K touchscreen, Core i7 10875H CPU, 32GB of RAM, 1TB SSD, and RTX 2060 GPU, costs more than double the price at around $2,750. And annoyingly, if you want to cut back on a few components like RAM or storage to save money, currently the cheapest model with an RTX 2060 card starts at $2,450. Thankfully, if you’re less concerned with graphics, you can split the difference for a system with a GTX 1650 Ti GPU, which starts at around $1,800, and if you’re looking for the best balance between price and performance, that’s where I’d start.

But for me the biggest takeaway about the XPS 17 is the way it fits into 2020. While a lot of people wait for the world to get back to normal, I feel like it’s also important to think about what normal even means. Right now there are millions of people who have to work or learn from home, and even when things start opening up again, a lot of people won’t be returning to the same buildings or positions they were in before. This makes it even more important to consider what you need from a personal computer.

For years, 15-inch systems have been the most popular laptop size, as they generally offered the best balance between price, power, and portability. However, if you’re the kind of person who is only going to travel with their laptop a handful of times every year (or less considering the ongoing pandemic), a bigger system like the XPS 17 suddenly becomes a very intriguing option. Not only does its bigger screen translate into more productivity (or better movie-watching) when you’re stuck at home, you also get more ports and a wider range of upgradable components.

Meanwhile, the XPS 17 doesn’t suffer from being tied to a desk or table like a normal desktop or all-in-one. And all of this comes in a package that’s not that much larger (or much more expensive) than an XPS 15. (Though you will want to make sure you have something to carry it in, because the XPS 17 definitely doesn’t fit in my normal messenger bag.) So in a strange way, 2020 was sort of the perfect time for Dell to bring back the XPS 17. You get a bigger, more powerful system from one of the best laptop lines on the market, but in a body that’s way less of a burden than its predecessors from the not-too-distant past. So even if a 17-inch laptop might not be in your immediate future, the XPS 17 has demonstrated why they’re making a comeback, and it’s done so with power and style.

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zerohour1974 · 7 years ago

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Hackintosh Joy?

The world of Hackintosh is strange world full of pitfalls and traps and is not recommended for one to run blindly into. However it is one I decided to take upon recently.

Well I say blindly that is not true I did Hackintosh a machine several years ago with Snow Leopard, and before that I had attempted to run OS X 10.2 and using Pear PC from Prasys which was more like a Bochs kind of emulator rather than a Hackintosh.

So for those not in the know what a Hackintosh is… It is the process of getting a PC to run the Mac OS X operating systems. Rather than an actual Apple Mac machine. Is it illegal, yes as you are violating the terms of the licensing agreement of the MacOS which quite categorically states that the OS must be installed on Apple hardware.

So while I await for the letters of cease and desist from Apple and they send the lawyers after me (don’t think they will really). I will explain my fun and games I had to get things running.

First I need to inform you the PC I set this up on is a Dell Optiplex 780 (so definitely not an Apple). Which has an Intel Core 2 Duo 2.93 Ghz E6600 processor, A Nvidia GeForce GT710 1GB Graphics card, 8 GB DDR3 Ram, A USB Wi-Fi card, USB Bluetooth Adapter and onboard sound. The software was being installed on an external 1TB Toshiba hard drive connected via USB.

Ok so I had read that the best way to create a boot USB stick was to setup a Snow Leopard installation and then using that as base to then write the Mac OS X Sierra (which I chose to use as High Sierra was still in beta at the time) because it would support my Nvidia graphics card and others probably wouldn’t.

First make sure BIOS is set to use ACPI which it wasn’t. So sorted that and saved.

So I downloaded a boot.iso and burned it to CD. Dug out my Show Leopard DVD (Yes I have an actual DVD) and installed it to the PC. Normally you have to reformat your drive to set it to GPT but I for some reason had done that previously to the drive so I just had to clear the existing partitions and create a Mac HFS+ Journaled one. Luckily the SL installer disc had the Disc Utility app for this reason. After installation it reboots.

After install I had to keep the boot CD in as there was no readable boot loader for the PC yet on the external drive. So load boot CD, select new Mac drive and wait for it to load.

First you have to install the FakeSMC and NullCPUPowerManagement ones which make the OSX think it’s a genuine Mac and stops the CPU from being recognised. I had downloaded few tools such as Kext Helper and others on a USB stick separate from the one I wanted to write the Mac OS on.

Next you have to setup the sound so I used a kext called VoodooHDA which is probably the most used sound driver in the Hackintosh world. Now I had to install a bootloader that the PC would see. In this case I used Chameleon only because I had used it last time I setup my SL rig and it worked.

Ok time to rebuild all the extension caches etc so it will see the drivers. Reboot all magical and working. This is all going very well. Found a disc I had with the Wifi driver (I remember it took me ages to find the right one and had to download about five different versions until I found the one that worked) so I saved time trawling around the net again.

Installed it using Kext Helper etc…Reboot, setup Wifi and it works a treat…

So far, so darned good then huh? Magic, well as I said I had installed Snow Leopard on a previous machine so doing this one was pretty straightforward.

However for all it can see the Nvidia card it can’t use it as there is no driver for it. So limited to what SL can do and no games will run as it’s using a VESA driver. Most games need Quartz Extreme which allows the usage of Open GL.

So I attempt to get OS X Sierra but for some reason although I have upgraded the system to 10.6.8 and the App Store app is installed by Software Update. Which was fun as after the Combo update you have to reinstall half of the kexts as it has updated several which you don’t want it to.

I could sit and list step by step how you do it but to be honest unless you are doing this, why bother also there are loads of guides which tell you how to do this if you do a minor Google search. Lets just say I did it and the App Store would not connect and I could not sign in using my Apple account ID for some unknown reason so I could not download OS X Sierra direct from the App Store as all the guides instructed.

Hmmm… things are going a bit wonky…

Ok off to the Internet… Various distributions exist although most of the OSX86 websites will admit it, try to get people to avoid them. You can get ones made for a price and ones that are free. I was genuinely going to try and get it from the Apple App Store but it wouldn’t let me in.

So after a scout about I download the Sierra Hackintosh Zone distro from Niresh (I will not include links but it’s not exactly hard to find). There are others out there but this is the one I went for.

Apparently you put it in a directory on the Hackintosh and run the Restore Sierra app that you also have to download from them. Try this and sod all happens.

Other way is to go back to Windows and use a program called TransMac which is what I did. Transmac is not freeware but you can trial it 15 days so all good. To buy it’s about $60. I’m in the UK so probably about £45 for a tool I may never use again we shall see.

So I managed to write the Sierra Setup USB drive without using the Snow Leopard setup, so installing it and setting up drivers for it was a complete waste of time. Fun, nostalgic but ultimately useless.

Now as it’s a distro most of the kexts are built into the setup installer and all you have to do is customise it to use the ones it has. You can update them later yourself.

So I set it off installing after erasing the now redundant SL from the partition. I set it to boot using the Clover Bootloader as I heard it makes upgrading to things such as High Sierra much easier.

Installs fine and boot is set by the installer so all good. Now the fun begins. I have got to install a few drivers such as Wifi and Graphics. Sound drivers (later version of VoodooHDA) were in the distro setup so that’s ok, don’t have set them up.

Right first I attempt to install the graphics driver. I have it on the flash drive used earlier. Insert it and first problem arises. It does not come up on the desktop. SL it had come up fine not in Sierra. I check the System Information and yes it can see it, but is not mounting it.

Right not a great start. Especially as both drivers are on that flash drive.

Back to Windows… Transmac the drivers across to the Sierra drive. This program is proving more useful than I thought. Right restart into Sierra and install drivers.

Graphics Driver installs fine its a PKG (Mac equivalent of an MSI file)file so after asking for my password it installer using the standard Apple Installer app.

However the Wifi driver is a kext (also its from Mavericks so not sure it will even work) so luckily this distro has already installed a tool called Kext Wizard (the Sierra equivalent of Kext Helper used with SL). Install kext and reinstall caches etc. time to reboot to see if this works.

System starts but when it gets to the part where you login it now just turns off the monitor to you can’t go any further. Oh not good.

Now if Snow Leopard had an issue like that I could use the boot CD to get back in with this one I can’t it seems.

Ok rerun setup, erase hard drive, reinstall OS and start again. Back to where I was before I installed the two previous drivers. Thinking it was the Nvidia driver after it was the screen. I thought fine I will install the Wifi driver then I can see if I can find an updated Nvidia driver online once the setup is done. So install kext etc… Reboot

Once again it locks up at screen to login by disabling video. Oh ok then must be the Wifi kext thats the issue well it is supposed to be for Mavericks so obviously it is throwing things although it is rumoured to work. Time to reinstall again.

This time I retried the Nvidia driver which worked but when ever I restarted it defaulted back to not using it. Ok Clover Configurator you turn it on using a switch. Just mount the EFI and change a few settings in the plist file.

Well Configurator won’t mount the EFI no matter how much you try. So it won’t set the switch. Also every time I reboot my PC it is destroying the BIOS setup and I have to reset it which is becoming annoying.

Ok so not working well. I discover the BIOS issue is because the Real Time clock or RTC as better known is throwing out the bios settings.

Drop to Windows, download RTC fix for 10.12, Transmac to Sierra drive and restart. Turns out its a kext. Install kext, rebuild caches etc… Reboot, locked out of video driver again. Why? this was supposed to be for this version.

Turns out that MacOS Sierra has a system to prevent tampering with system files called SIP (System Integrity Protection) stopping me from installing kexts. I can turn it off using Clover (remember the configurator tool does not work, so no I can’t). Getting frustrated at this point and close down for the night. Feeling annoyed and beaten by the Hackintosh.

Ok reinstall for what feels like the millionth time but this time I check to see if there is a Chameleon option rather than Clover. Yes there is known as the Chameleon Enoch bootloader.

Start up so install Nvidia driver. Set up switch using Chameleon Wizard and sure enough it works first time. Ok so now I try RTC kext using Kext Wizard, you know the drill by now… restart but this time it works it lets me back in and the driver has installed. Install prefpane(basically a control panel setting screen) and setup Wifi… it works.

Ok Install RTC driver, upgrade VoodooHDA to latest version. Try to get software App Store, sign in won’t work. Test signing in with iTunes works fine. Time to go internet reading.

Find out this is common. Apparently you need to remove the drivers under network and its configuration plist and Reboot, then next time it should reset the Ethernet driver to En0 and all should work. Handy as I need to reboot for the kexts to be loaded.

RTC patch works as I don’t have reset my BIOS. Thanks for that small mercy. Sound is working still after update. Right try App Store still no joy. I decide to forgo the App Store and just download apps the normal way which seems to work.

Now the sound has this buzzing going on every time it loads. It works just has this constant buzz. I discover I have missed installing the prefpane. Ok so I do now I discover it is using a setting called Speaker which is never used as far as I have ascertained. By muting it the buzzing stops, however sound in the rest of OS is fine. However when I restart the setting does not save and the buzzing is back.

My own fault as a few pages on in the thread where I got the prefpane, it supplies you an app to put in startup which keeps the settings. Which once installed and set to load automatically has done it’s job like a trooper.

So now install a few things such as Steam and test games such as Terraria, Starbound and Batman Arkham Asylum GOTY edition to challenge the driver. All work perfectly fine.

Installed MacJournal and Writeroom which I own from Macheist Nanobundles and I upgraded Writeroom 2 to 3 and bought the new license when I had a G5 a while ago. In fact this whole report has been written using WriteRoom 3 on the Hackintosh.

So that brings to today. I still have not solved the App Store issue but for now it is functional enough to do stuff on. Sod it… Eventually I might need the App Store but as of yet. Most stuff is downloadable from outside it still.

One day I might figure what is wrong… It might need something upgrading or resetting to access the App Store but I am damned if I know what it is.

Installed Audacity and connected my Blue Snowball mic via USB. It found it and it works. also now the USB drives will detect and display. It seems Chameleon does not cause the issues that Clover did.

I am sure people will complain that Clover is the superior product, and in many ways it probably is, but if it does not work very well then I will kick it to the kerb. Faster than anything for a thing I know and have proved to work.

Maybe the latest version of Clover has fixed many of these issues but I don’t care. In time I may consider trying to move to High Sierra and once again the claim is it’s easier with Clover. Well that will have to wait and see.

As for TransMac it seems a useful tool would I invest in it. If I was going to use a Hackintosh regularly then why not it seems quite useful.

Someone who has done the Clover setup which works are probably wanting to beat me up for being stupid. Well you are probably right but I don’t care. They can also sort out the App store issue too. Good for you have a Gold star.

For now it works ok, while not perfect so I leave it at that… Nanoo Nanoo!

#hackintosh #waffle #retro #macos #nightmares

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tamboradventure · 8 years ago

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The Best Travel Gadgets for 2017

In this month’s travel tech column, Dave Dean, our resident travel tech guru, all around cool dude, and found of the tech website Too Many Adapters, rounds up the best travel gadgets for 2017.

Working out what to pack — and more importantly, what to leave behind — is a major hassle for travelers, whether you’re gone for a week or a year. Tech gear, in particular, is a problem: models and features change all the time; it’s fragile, expensive, and tempting to thieves; and it can easily distract from the experience you’re trying to have. Even worse, a lot of it just doesn’t work very well once you get out on the road.

I’ve been writing about technology for travelers since 2011, and have tested more useless gadgets than I care to remember. Occasionally, though, something stands out: a phone that’s particularly durable, a laptop that’s surprisingly good value, a little accessory that genuinely improves your trip.

Here, then, are my 2017 recommendations for quality tech gear that makes your trip simpler and easier, without destroying your bank balance or luggage allowance.

Smartphones

A smartphone is easily the single most useful piece of technology a traveler can buy. In fact, since it replaces everything from a flashlight to a camera, a guidebook to a music player and much more, many people can (and do) get away without packing any other gadgets.

You can spend under $250 for a good budget model, or close to $1000 for a top-of-the-range version. There are benefits to spending more, of course, but not everyone needs the extra features that come with the higher price tags. These are my top picks across the range:

Budget – Motorola Moto G 5 Plus. Motorola has been making good, inexpensive smartphones for several years, and the Moto G 5 Plus continues the trend. For around $230 (less, if you get the model with Amazon ads), you’ll have a phone that does all the basics well. It’s also water resistant. The battery should last all but the longest travel days, and there’s a “TurboCharger” that gives six hours more use in just 15 minutes and you can even stick in a micro-SD card so you’ll never run out of storage space. It’s easily my top budget pick right now.

Mid-Range – OnePlus 3T. OnePlus keeps turning out mid-priced phones with high-end specs, and the 3T is the best so far. For under $500, you’ll get a smartphone with more storage, RAM, and raw performance than devices costing far more. It has dual SIM slots, so you can easily switch between your home SIM and a money-saving local SIM card; all-day battery life; and a fast charger that takes it from 0 to 60% in half an hour.

High-end – Apple iPhone 7 or Samsung Galaxy S8. Android owners with big bank accounts should pick up the Samsung Galaxy S8. It’s the sexiest smartphone on the market, with a curved “infinity” display that makes every other phone look old and boring. The S8 crams a larger screen into a smaller space than the competition, and it has plenty of storage and RAM plus a micro-SD slot for ensuring that you never run out of space. Along with its great performance, it is water and dust resistant and has one of the best cameras you’ll find on any phone. For Apple lovers, the iPhone 7 gets almost everything right, with exceptional performance and build quality, a fantastic camera, and of course, access to everything in the App Store.

Tablets and e-readers

Don’t want to do every tech task on your phone? While I’ve stopped recommending any of the smaller tablet computers — when your phone has a 5.5” display, there’s little point also carrying a 7” tablet — the larger models are a different story.

Apple: iPad. The standard iPad is best for most travelers. It’s dropped in both weight and price recently, and you now get a useful, lightweight 10” tablet (Wi-Fi-only version), with enough storage, for bit over $300. It’s perfect for watching Netflix, browsing the email, and staying up to date on Facebook! (You can get one with a SIM card slot as well, but it’s a lot more expensive and only worth considering if you don’t have an unlocked smartphone and want to stay connected all the time.)

Android: Asus Zenpad 3S 10. The Asus Zenpad 3S 10 gives you a faster, cheaper tablet, with great graphics and more storage space. It has a fast-charging option (especially useful for those huge tablet batteries) and a micro-SD slot to add even more storage when you run out. It’s a premium tablet, sleek and lightweight, and well worth the money.

E-reader: Paperwhite. If you enjoy a good book, consider an e-reader as well. I’ve been using one of Amazon’s Kindles for years, and recently upgraded to the Paperwhite. With its non-glare screen, weeks of battery life, and built-in light that doesn’t strain your eyes or annoy others in dark rooms, it’s easy to recommend. Not carrying physical books saves weight and space in your bag, and in countries where English-language books are hard to find, being able to download a new one with a couple of taps is a godsend.

Laptops

With phones and tablets having more power and storage each year, there’s less need for most travelers to carry something else. If you’re planning to do more than light work from the road, though, there’s still no replacement for a good laptop.

Windows: Asus Zenbook UX330UA. The best value for money by far is the Asus Zenbook UX330UA. The company has been making very good, lightweight, $700 laptops for a few years, and the latest model continues the tradition. It gets all the basics right — 8Gb of RAM, a 256Gb solid-state drive, excellent battery life — while having more than enough power, and weighing well under three pounds. It doesn’t make silly compromises like cutting out USB ports or SD card readers, and you can even hook it up to a TV in your Airbnb apartment to watch your favorite shows.

Mac: MacBook Pro. The Air, which used to be the perfect travel laptop, hasn’t been updated in so long, it makes no sense to buy it. The 12” MacBook is also due for an update, and with a relatively slow processor and just a single USB-C port that’s also used for charging, you’re quite restricted in what you can do with it. If I were considering one of these, I’d likely choose to save a bunch of money, and just buy an iPad Pro and Bluetooth keyboard instead. That said the older version MacBook Pro has dropped in price and only weighs 3.5 pounds and comes with old fashioned USB and SD card slots. The new model, while sleek and light, is pretty expensive and doesn’t come with these features. I prefer non-Apple products but if you were looking for a powerful Apple computer, the older Macbook Pro is the best choice.

Accessories

There’s no need to fill your backpack with gadgets, but a few well-chosen accessories go a long way. Better Wi-Fi, easier charging, simple photo backup, and drowning out noisy kids (and noisier adults), improves any trip. Here are seven accessory recommendations to do exactly that:

Multi-USB travel adapter – This is my single favorite travel accessory right now. It’s small and light, and it lets you charge up to four USB devices from a single power socket. It’s great in hostels and airports, comes with clip-on adapters that let you use it in 150 countries, and costs under twenty bucks.

Travel power strip – If you’re also carrying devices like laptops and cameras that need charging from the wall, use one of these little power strips instead. With two North American sockets, plus three USB ports, you can power everything at once. Just remember to pack a universal travel adapter as well.

Charging cord – I always pack a long USB cable for my phone, plus a small spare in case it breaks. The extra length is super-useful when the power socket is halfway up a wall… which it always seems to be.

Noise-isolating earbuds – Screaming kids, snoring dorm mates, honking horns. I shut them all out with these noise-isolating earphones. Music and podcasts sound great, they drown out almost everything (and everyone), and there’s even a little carrying case to keep them protected and untangled. When I left them on a plane in Bangkok, I went straight out and bought the same model again.

Rugged USB stick – Whether you’re backing up trip photos, storing a bunch of TV shows, or just sharing files with friends at the hostel, a USB stick always comes in handy. Go for this rugged version — it’ll stand up to a lot more abuse and costs about the same as more fragile models.

Travel router and portable battery – Multipurpose gadgets are ideal for travelers, at least when they’re done well, and this HooToo travel router definitely is. It boosts Wi-Fi networks and lets you share them among all your devices, has a 10,000mAh battery to keep everything charged up, and lets you plug in a USB stick or portable hard drive so you can copy files from your phone or tablet.

UE Roll 2 portable speaker – There are thousands of travel speakers out there, but most of them are terrible. If you like to share your songs with the hostel or around the campfire, do yourself a favor and grab the UE Roll 2. It’s slim and light and waterproof, with amazing sound for its size and up to nine hours of battery life. There’s nothing better out there for the money right now.

GRAYL ultralight water purifier – I’ve used a bunch of water purifiers over the years, and the GRAYL is the one I’ve stuck with. It’s lightweight, super-simple to use, and gets rid of pretty much every nasty you can think of, plus it functions as a normal bottle in places where the water is safe to drink. My girlfriend used it every day on a two week trip in Mozambique, and never got sick. If you want safe water everywhere you go, while cutting down on plastic use, go for the GRAYL.

***Whatever you decide to take, consider carefully how much you’ll really use it — less is more when it comes to travel, and tech gear is no exception. The less stuff you have to get damaged or stolen, the less time you’ll spend looking after it and worrying about it.

Once you’ve made your decision, protect anything fragile with a case (they’re a lot cheaper than buying replacements), and make sure anything you really care about is covered by your travel insurance. Test everything thoroughly before you leave home, so you know exactly how it works and can deal with any problems while you’ve still got time and a shipping address.

Dave runs Too Many Adapters, a site devoted to technology for travelers. A geek as long as he can remember, he worked in IT for fifteen years. Now based out of a backpack long term, Dave writes about travel and tech from anywhere with half-decent Internet and a great view. You can also find him talking about the life of a long-term traveller at What’s Dave Doing?

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touristguidebuzz · 8 years ago

Text

The Best Travel Gadgets for 2017

In this month’s travel tech column, Dave Dean, our resident travel tech guru, all around cool dude, and found of the tech website Too Many Adapters, rounds up the best travel gadgets for 2017.

Here, then, are my 2017 recommendations for quality tech gear that makes your trip simpler and easier, without destroying your bank balance or luggage allowance.

Smartphones

Tablets and e-readers

Laptops

Accessories

The post The Best Travel Gadgets for 2017 appeared first on Nomadic Matt's Travel Site.

1 note · View note

fadingfartconnoisseur · 8 years ago

Text

The Best Travel Gadgets for 2017

In this month’s travel tech column, Dave Dean, our resident travel tech guru, all around cool dude, and found of the tech website Too Many Adapters, rounds up the best travel gadgets for 2017.

Here, then, are my 2017 recommendations for quality tech gear that makes your trip simpler and easier, without destroying your bank balance or luggage allowance.

Smartphones

Tablets and e-readers

Laptops

Accessories

The post The Best Travel Gadgets for 2017 appeared first on Nomadic Matt's Travel Site.

via Travel Blogs http://ift.tt/2p9Gth6

#IFTTT #Travel Blogs

1 note · View note

vidovicart · 8 years ago

Text

The Best Travel Gadgets for 2017

In this month’s travel tech column, Dave Dean, our resident travel tech guru, all around cool dude, and found of the tech website Too Many Adapters, rounds up the best travel gadgets for 2017.

Here, then, are my 2017 recommendations for quality tech gear that makes your trip simpler and easier, without destroying your bank balance or luggage allowance.

Smartphones

Tablets and e-readers

Laptops

Accessories

The post The Best Travel Gadgets for 2017 appeared first on Nomadic Matt's Travel Site.

0 notes

coachonlinesalestuff-blog · 8 years ago

Text

GR NVIDIA Tegra 2 1GB DDR2 Memory 16GB Flash 10

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The Slider features a built in keyboard that slides out when you need it making note taking or writing an essay as easy as surfing the web. With a typing experience that far more intuitive than an on screen touch keyboard the versatile Slider switches between tablet mode and a full fledged notebook with ease. Take notes in class, surf the web, create presentations on the fly, do it all with the Eee Pad Slider. With NVIDIA Tegra 2 1.0GHz dual core CPU, AndroidTM 3.1 Honeycomb OS with ASUS Waveshare UI, Polaris Office 3.0 and the kind of connectivity you expect in a PC, the Eee Pad Slider is revolutionizing what it is to be a tablet.

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Android 3.1 Honeycomb OS (3.2 upgradable) with ASUS Waveshare UI Android 3.1 Honeycomb OS (3.2 upgradable) with ASUS Waveshare UI

Google's Android Honeycomb is a revolutionary operating system specially designed and optimized for tablets, and gives users the full web experience on the go. Supporting Adobe Flash and the ever growing Android Market, entertainment is just a finger swipe away. The convenient ASUS Launcher also allows users to launch software, manage content, access online services, and connect devices with a few simple taps.

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Cons: None as of yet. We have had it for almost a month now and its been working perfectly. I guess the charge cord could be a little longer and also the speakers could be a little louder but its not a big deal. The price is good, its not an ipad or a top of the line samsung but IMO it performs just michael kors canada sale as well.

Other Thoughts: Ohhh i forgot to mention and ran out of space in the PRO sections. But this tablet has a standard size USB 2.0 port something michael kors handbags outlet online that alot of tablets fail to have. The USB port makes it super easy to transfer files.

Did you?

Pros: I bought this unit two months ago to replace my old 17 laptop. It definitely does what I wanted it to do. It light and the charger isn huge like you see for laptops. The charger is smaller than an iPad charger. The battery life on this unit is amazing. I can use it for 5 straight hours of class, surfing the web, and Pandora and I will have plenty of battery life. The keyboard takes a little getting used to but it quite efficient. I can easily take notes in class, and I use the Polaris Office along with Google Drive to organize my homework and things. I upgraded it right away to ICS 4.0.3 which looks and feels amazing. The gaming is fun as well. The speakers are sufficient but not extremely loud. The camera works well for Skype. I would recommend this item to anyone looking for a lightweight unit that operates well in a school environment.

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The battery life is also acceptable, I get roughly 6 8 hours of use. on, low brightness, GPS off, general browsing and games mostly keyboard isn fantastic seem to miss a space about 40 of the time but it feels okay. The more I use the keyboard, the better it seems to be. I think it needs to be in Perhaps it muscle memory.

The unit is portable. The weight isn any issue for me, I normally use it at school and I leave it in my backpack.

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