Retail revenues for the video game sector tripled in 2007 as sales of music CDs and DVDs take a backseat.
According to the NPD Group, teen spending on games rose 41% in 2007 while sales of music CDs fell a whopping 45%. DVD movie sales flattened in the same period. Traditional music sales continue to drop across all age groups but the top reason for teens abandoning CDs was the appeal of video games.
The irony is that despite the image of hard-core gamers being basement recluses, living week-to-week in the same underpants, they actually spent most of their budget on non-gaming items – like CDs and DVDs.
Movie heroes are screwed. That old ploy of chopping off a baddie’s hand or finger to bypass security scanners is old hat thanks to the release of a new scanner that can tell live fingers from dead ones.
Futronic’s new FBI-approved, USB 2.0 scanner uses the company’s Live Finger Detection (LFD) technology which can detect live human fingers and reject non-live, or fake, fingers reliably. Apart from the formerly live fingers, fingers made from silicone, Play-Doh, etc. are also rumbled. According to the company:
It’s shop ‘til you drop time online these days and AOL has hopped in by agreeing to buy social networking site, Bebo, for a cool $850 million.
Bebo is the third largest social networking site after MySpace and Facebook, with 40 million members. - most of them in the UK. With AOL’s sales figures dropping significantly in recent quarters, it’s widely agreed that the online giant needs to do something to replace the users who no longer want to pay for its Web access services
Another day, another iPod dock. This is the new offering from GEAR4, the BassStation, housing a 5Watt subwoofer and a pair of 15Watt stereo speakers that promise a room-filling 35Watt of sound to impress your neighbours and scare the cat.
Since it’s not what you’d call ‘small’, I'd like to think sound clarity and quality would match the stated volume levels but, I can’t really vouch for that without a test.
After a somewhat disappointing first outing for the big green guy, there’s a lot riding on the new Hulk movie.
The first bogged itself down with too much arty soul-searching and not half enough HULK SMASH! which is why this had better crank up the destruction quota to the MAX. Ed Norton, an odd but welcome choice, fills Bruce Banner’s shoes and seems more than ready to destroy clothing and push jeans beyond any reasonable amount of pressure.
This time, Hulky is up against The Abomination so we guessing we might get that destruction after all although French director, Louis Leterrier, is hit and miss. Transporter 2 anyone?
On first looks, the new Hulk looks good but let’s hope they manage to make him believable looking because, quite frankly, I’m getting tired of cheap-looking CGI creatures whupping ass.-Martin Lynch
Retail revenues for the video game sector tripled in 2007 as sales of music CDs and DVDs take a backseat. 
Movie heroes are screwed. That old ploy of chopping off a baddie’s hand or finger to bypass security scanners is old hat thanks to the release of a new scanner that can tell live fingers from dead ones. 
Another day, another iPod dock. This is the new offering from GEAR4, the BassStation, housing a 5Watt subwoofer and a pair of 15Watt stereo speakers that promise a room-filling 35Watt of sound to impress your neighbours and scare the cat. 
Editor and Contributor | Martin Lynch
Contributor | Tamlin Magee
