Firstly, this Friday you guys will be looking at an iPad 2 giveaway video. I love giving back to you guys and I have done a holiday giveaway the past few years, so I thought this was a good way to keep up an annual tradition! Without giving away too many details about the contest one of my lucky viewers will receive a 16GB Black WiFi iPad 2. For more information please subscribe to the channel to be notified when the video comes out this week.

The next series of videos you should look forward to will be featuring the HTC Jetstream. Paradigm PR came through and provided me with the device and an HTC Stylus to review. I will be doing a review, and iPad comparison with the device. I have had almost 3 weeks with the device so be excited for an informative review!

The final series of videos to look forward to will be starring the HTC Raider. A brand new 4G LTE smartphone in Canada. Luckily for me, I will be receiving a device from both Bell & Rogers. I will be doing an unboxing, first look, review, comparison to the iPhone and a comparison between the Bell & Rogers 4G network. Look for these videos over the next few weeks!

Check my Twitter for any further updates, and until then, I’ll talk to you later!

As the iPad 2 launch or at least announcement is upon us, I wonder to myself what needs to be in the second generation of this tablet in order for me to purchase. I have compiled a list of five things I think are a MUST have in the new product. They are:

1. SD Card Slot
2. USB Reader
3. Retina Display
4. Front & Back camera (Facetime)
5. Secondary 30 pin connection to allow docking in landscape.

Those are the five things I mentioned in the video. There are some other things that I wouldn’t mind seeing and these are:

1. Mini Display and display out capability.
2. A lot lighter (weight wise)
3. I hate to say it…..FLASH
4. Wireless syncing? Apple TV can do it… (the older model)

Thanks for watching, and I’ll see you later!

This is the unboxing of the Nikon D3100 I was fortunate enough to receive for Christmas. By the time I have posted this (right now) I have actually already exchanged this Camera at BestBuy and upgraded to a 60D. The unboxing of that will be up soon! Also, I may make a video why I returned and upgraded to the 60D. For now, Happy Holidays and Happy New Year!

The Defender series from otter box has a reputation of providing extreme and excellent protection for a wide range of devices on the market today.

I have been using this case for a good two weeks on my iPad now, so lets go over the pros and cons and what I have noticed.

In terms of what comes in the box when you purchase this case, it comes with a OtterBox microfiber to clean the device screen before you apply the screen protector it comes with as well. Otterbox’s screen protectors they ship with their cases are amazing, I still have the screen protector on my iPhone that came with my OtterBox commuter series case in February.

There is only one area where the OtterBox didn’t really please me, and that was removal of the case. Installation wasn’t that big of a problem, but removal sure was. Once the case is on your iPad is is bound on extremely tight and is very hard to pry off and remove. I actually had to use a screw to pry it off.

The second thing I noticed is that when I showed my iPad case to my friends, they commented on how heavy it was. So the defender series will add a little bit off weight and bulk to the iPad, but personally I think it is totally worth it.

Even though you may think that the tiny bit of extra bulk added to the iPad is a con, it adds to the extreme protection this case offers which is excellent. The Defender features a two layer case design. The first layer encasing your iPad in a durable plastic shell, and the second layer providing a shock resistant gel like rubber shell. This case also features a removable screen cover that can easily be snapped on the front or the back of the device for transit, and doubles as an iPad stand!

Even though this case is so thorough at protecting your device it still allows easy access to all the available buttons and ports for syncing, and using headphones.

In conclusion, do you really need the OtterBox Defender? If you are just using your iPad for everyday use like around the house, or in a business office environment, then probably not, in fact I would recommend checking out the Commuter series case from OtterBox. However if you are using your iPad outside, on the job, at the construction site and or in other heavy duty areas, this iPad case is an essential for you!

iPhone OS 4.0 is on its way very shortly. Apple has officially announced that on Thursday April 8th 2010 they will be holding a press conference in Cupertino to highlight the new features and specifications of the new firmware. I may end up doing a video on this, but considering the conference is tomorrow, I would much rather make a detailed post about my predictions and thoughts on what we might be seeing in iPhone OS 4.0.

Some features I think we might be seeing rolled out on Thursday are a new home screen design, multitasking, voice to text services and a unified inbox like on the mail app in Mac OS X – there are other speculations like support for video conferencing and integrated ad support as well.

The New iPhone Home Screen has been speculated about for quite some time now. A lot of users void Apples TOS and preform a jailbreak on their device because they are sick of the default Apple home screen that hasn’t seen an update since iPhone OS 1.0. Now that the iPad has been released, you will notice Apple has now let people add a custom picture background to their device(s), so I for sure think that  a new home screen update is on the horizon.

Multitasking is something that has been talked about for a while on the iPhone OS and all mobile firmwares. We first saw it work very nicely when the Palm Pre was released last June. However it will be a tricky task trying to get it on the iPhone. 90% of all computer crashes are a result of the user being oblivious to the fact that there are 10 programs or services running and their computer can’t handle it. Lets face it, the iPhone and the iPod touch are nice devices, but they can’t handle much without lagging or crashing. If this did happen, I would hope Apple integrates a expose like feature activated by certain hand gestures.

Voice to text is something that a lot of mobile phones support these days. When the iPhone 3GS came out we were introduced to voice commands on the phone. Given the recent laws that have been passed in Canada and in the United States about using your cellphone when driving, I can see Apple including a voice to text offer for email and SMS messaging. I also think they might include a text to voice feature that reads words on the screen.

Unified inbox is desperately needed on the iPhone. Anyone that currently has an iPod touch, iPad or iPhone and uses the mail app for multiple emails is familiar with the HUGE pain in the ass that occurs because there isn’t one inbox where all your emails go to, they are all separate. So for instance on my phone, I have 4 emails set up. 1 is a Gmail account and the others are @lukedimarco.com accounts. If I am in my Gmail inbox checking email and I get a message from my @Lukedimarco.com account, I have to sign out of the Gmail and click my way back through to the inbox I want. So much time would be saved if there was one unified inbox for everything to come through.

These are just some of the features I assume we will be seeing for sure tomorrow, and  yes, they are just predictions. What are you hoping for in the new iPhone OS or in the new iPhone in June? Let me know in the comments below!

In an apparent attempt to steal some buzz from Apple’s brand-new iPad, Hewlett-Packard on Monday released some details about its “slate” computer, which will go on sale later this year.

A new blog post and video highlight some apparent differences between the two gadgets: The HP device has two video cameras, a USB connection and also support for Flash animations.

The lack of those features has been a consistent gripe among iPad reviewers.

Like the iPad, the HP gadget is a medium-sized, touch-screen device that acts kind of like a laptop without a keyboard, and kind of like a stretched-out smartphone.

The HP Slate looks like an incredibly device that is much more feature enabled than Apple’s iPad. Personally I think the two cameras the device

supports is a huge step ahead of the iPad. It will be so handy for Skype calls and conferences.

I am not sure if I will be getting an HP slate, however if I keep hearing and seeing these fantastic things about the product I will definitely consider picking one up. I would love to have one more than anything else, so if you have any connections with HP…hook a brotha up!

I will be getting an iPad for two reasons. One, when the iPad is hacked and jailbroken – the device it going to be so much more capable that it is now, and because I was going to buy a Kindle in January before the iPad was announced, and I held off until now.

Any questions or comments? Leave it in the comments section below – more content coming soon!

“We used tech skills we developed going back to ‘Baldur’s Gate’ [in 1998],” Hudson explained. “Writing for ‘ME2′ was the hardest thing we’ve ever done.”
“Mass Effect 2″ has 15 to 20 percent more dialogue and 30 percent more key decisions — choices that affect the game’s outcome — than the first game, said Hudson, who believes the voice acting in the new game is more movie-like than the first one.
“It took several months of voice work, and often we would bring back an actor to get the right inflections for the character and the scene,” he said. “There are hundreds of characters in the game that needed voices.”
Although “Mass Effect 2″ is being billed as a dark second chapter in the trilogy, there are laugh-out-loud moments of dialogue. Playing the game reveals that even its tense moments are given a softer edge with unexpected comic exchanges between characters.
For example, in one scene, Shepard tries to persuade a character not to follow orders that could lead to a “suicide mission.” Without missing a beat, Shepard’s squad mates look at each other as one says, “We can ignore suicidal orders? Why wasn’t I told about that?”
“Mass Effect 2″ also offers players the opportunity to interrupt a conversation and create a whole new path. During a scene when another character is talking, icons will appear to let you change the conversation with a Paragon move (good) or Renegade move (bad).
Side plots tie into the main story more than in the first game, so even these chat-interrupting choices could have an impact later on.
“Things can happen in conversation,” Hudson said when asked about the interrupt feature. “It makes the conversation feel alive.”
Work has already begun to complete the final chapter of the “Mass Effect” trilogy. And gamers shouldn’t assume that Shepard makes it to the end of “Mass Effect 3.”
Hudson said Shepard can die a final death if the player makes wrong choices or inspires bad loyalty from his crew.
“We made it so you’ll still get a satisfying ending, but yes, Shepard can actually die,” he said.

We got lots of rain here in my town last night, and to my surprise when I began walking to school, I noticed that I probably could have taken a canoe to school. There was minimal accidents, however a bus did T-Bone a small Pontiac Sunfire, but everyone was good. There are some excellent clips on CTV.ca of the flood as well. This was taken right at the corner of Elgin and Division infront of the Nissan dealership. Click the photo to the left to enlarge!

In Computers class this year, we didn’t do much. However, we did surf Swagbucks everyday. It is actually brilliant. I had someone sign up under my referral, than someone signed up under their referral and the pyramid kept growing and growing. In the end, I wound up with like over 700 Swagbucks, and everyone else got their 100 or so to buy their Swagbucks.com T-shirt and Keychain! At our school it is required you were a uniform to school that they provide, but we recently had a dress down day and we decided we would team up in the honour of Swagbucks and wear our kickass shirts around the hall.

The TSA released a statement regarding the new changes, it said:
“Passengers flying from international locations to U.S. destinations may notice additional security measures in place. These measures are designed to be unpredictable, so passengers should not expect to see the same thing everywhere. Due to the busy holiday travel season, both domestic and international travelers
should allot extra time for check-in.”

Also, according to a post on Twitter, the new security measures will add body searches and the electronic ban will be for international flights only. The New York times also stated that once the plane begins descending, you will not be able to leave your seat (I didn’t think you were supposed to anyway.)

Personally for people like me and other Tech Heads, this sucks! I am flying to Hawaii in March for a Rugby tour with my high school, it’s a 13 hour flight from Toronto to Honolulu. What the hell am I going to do without my laptop or other entertainment for 13 hours?! I am going to go insane. What about flights from China and other European countries? Even longer!

I personally think all these attempts on American lives are terrible. But holy shit, when I flew to Dallas last year the security alarm went off because of my PSP games and then I was searched by hand because of it. How are these guys getting small explosives by security?

Just a thought to ponder on. I see why they have done this, obviously to make the flights safer. But man, there has got to be another way lol.