Tech Blog

[#1]

I'm in danger of disappearing.  A decade ago I sold my PS2 after a wasted weekend jamming Metal Gear Solid constantly.  I quickly became absorbed by the game and disappeared for days at a time to my living room to conquer the next challenge.

I quit cold turkey. I had to sell it.

Hopefully the same won't happen with my iPad , because it is quickly turning in to a gaming centre.

Tiger Woods PGA Tour from EA Sports, Scrabble , Backgammon , We Rule , Plants vs Zombies and now Angry Birds are sucking me in.  It starts innocently enough - there's a few minute wait at the optometrist or dentist.  Then it's a quick attack of a level before bed and then next thing you know I'm up all night trying to get my eggs back from those nasty pigs.

It just took me a couple of days to master the Tiger Woods game . Plants vs Zombies remains a puzzle on the potted plant roof level and I'm trying to quit We Rule before I end up in a Farmville cult.

Backgammon and Scrabble I rationalize as helping me to exercise my brain and expand my vocabulary, but really it's just more hours spent staring at a screen.

Apparently I've already knocked out 3 of Mashable 's 5 most addictive games , and I'm trying to avoid the article to find the other two.

When the iPad launched, many dismissed it as a big iPad , or just a touch computer.  But it's different.  It's become this multifaceted leisure device.  It's the ultimate in content consumption, and for many that means gaming.

Could this device kill console gaming?  Perhaps not, but with most games less than $5 and extreme portability and versatility, it will (combined with the iPod Touch ) put a serious dent in the handheld gaming market.  My 3 year old son is already well versed in the iPhone and iPad and I don't see him moving to a Nintendo DS like many of the other school aged kids in our neighborhood.  He's a touch interface kid.

Console gaming is more social, with many people playing in one room or networked over the web.  The iPad doesn't do that to the same level as Xbox , Wii and PS3 - yet.

What are your favourite games to play on the iPad ?

catch the buzz ... pass it on.

[#2]

Nintendo is preparing their response, I'm sure we'll be hearing a lot more about the anticipated 3DS whose screen projects 3D without glasses.  I have no idea how it works, but it's something no iP*d can do.

[#3]

The 3DS achieves its 3D effects through a technique called "Paralax Barriers" which directs alternating images into each eye.  In order to view the 3D effect properly the player will need be position in what is known as the "sweet spot" where the two images hit each eye direct.

Here is a video of how this is achieved:

http://kotaku.com/5611892/how-3d-on-the-3ds-actual ly-works

[#4]

And the 3DS doesn't really "project" 3D images. Nothing looks like it's popping out of the screen. Instead, it's like looking into a 3D box, if that makes sense.

[#5]

3d schmee d.

give me touch.

[#6]

The iPad would have to have some pretty kick-ass games in order for me to abandon my PS3!

In any case, it is a totally different paradigm.  I'm not a portable game player.  I would much prefer to sit comfortably on a sofa to play on a big screen.