The vision of gaming.

You know technology is moving at the pace it should be when the next generation of home consoles arrive around the same time frame that previous generations have arrived. The original PlayStation arrived in 1995 with the Ps2 in 2000 and PS3 in 2006. All other major home consoles also landed in the same years. And of course this year we have the PlayStation 4 and the new Xbox One coming to us (albeit the Wii U has already been in circulation for months now).

But as home consoles have begun their new cycle...Mobile gaming has, mobile gaming has...Well mobile gaming has switched more from the heavy hitters and been stolen by the indie developers. Cell phones and tablets have crashed the mobile market and stolen the thunder of what once happened to be ruled by Nintendo and the gameboy series of handhelds. Games like temple run, angry birds, and the smash hit robot unicorn attack (which I've personally wasted a few hours of my life on) have cornered the market and seems as if they have no plans of slowing down. Even true major companies have ported all of the best and classics down into your favorite phone and tablets, sonic the hedgehog makes many cameos on your favorite mobile system. The most successful RPG producer known to us, SquareEnix have ported many of its final fantasys alongside a few original RPGs.

The largest development company to the mobile market, and don't quote me on this please this is just the name I see on most games in the market, Gameloft appears to own Google and apple. They push out games like nobodies business. There honestly seems to be more success in the mobile market now than their is in the home market. Seeing as to how you need to build the game, test it, release it and then push patches, new levels, updates. Not to mention if the game is successful and your fans push and request sequels. Take angry birds for example? Its gone from a simple game on our androids and iPhone and is now a full $30 game that we play on Xbox via the kinect sensor, I am 100% sure the staff at rovio never envisioned this. They have a spinoff cartoon, multiple contracts with Walmart for plush toys, clothing, pillow pets the sky was once the limit but they have reached interplanetary success. All pun intended seeing as to them releasing angry birds space.

Now with the way mobile devices have succeeded, I would love to see the indie companies continue such success on home consoles. The success has been hit and miss so far with few huge successes on a home console. But just today Xbox revealed news of in development code. Now don't ask exactly what that is as even  Microsoft is still pretty hush hush on it, but the main comparison being made is minecraft. If anyone knows minecraft they understand the open ended world and customization of it. I won't go into it any further until Microsoft goes into it.

In a nutshell, as computers and phones have grown, so has gaming. Our favorite console no longer just plays games, but can download games instantly, along with movies, and Skype. They can stream the internet. But honestly what device doesn't handle minimum 3 main tasks?

Google is up to bat.

 So lets talk about this, this, this...This glorious device known as ChromeCast. If you haven't heard of it yet, which there's a solid chance you haven't, allow me to give you the rundown. Imagine apple TV, or Roku? shrunken down into a 2 CM long HDMI dongle. This Dongle runs off your wifi (or that of a kind neighbor) and uses your iOS, or android device, maybe your chrome browser or chromebook and streams music, photos, or video directly to your TV through the HDMI outlet. "Why would I want to invest in this when Googl TV and the Nexus Q both have failed?" you may be asking, maybe because its a smooth $35. Now maybe you don't have $35 just laying around, but I'm 100% certain you didn't have $100+ laying around when you were deciding on either a Google TV Box or an Apple TV box (Hell even $50 if you ever looked at a Roku box).

     But here allow me to tell you where ChromeCast will set itself apart from the competition, these are all theories of course but please, if you will hear me out. Google already released the SDK to developers, which mean any app that streams music, photos, video, or any sort of streaming media? Have just been thrown in the bag of parties participating in the success of ChromeCast. ALlow me to throw some possibilities out there for you. For the sports fanatic, you have an NBA League pass subscrption and they build the ChromCast option into your League pass app, you now have streaming games on your TV, same for NFL fans or baseball fans. ESPN with your subscription. All the top video services are now possible, crackle, Hulu, Netflix of course who're already on board, Redbox instant. Then we have our news buffs, CNN streams live Media, the NBC app also. BUT, here is the largest possibility those with digital cable subscriptions, Verizon FIOS, Time Warner Cable, Dish and DirectTV These are the companies that may or may not benefit the most, it all depends on how they market it.

    OK here's a scenario to better assist you in understanding. You're watching TV I'm your living room, something you've been meaning to watch for a while now, and your son or daughter wants to watch something? You happen to have a digital cable subscription that allows streaming of live TV and networks? Your child also has their own small HDTV I'm their room? Your cable provider recently applied the ChromeCast option within their streaming cable app, you take the Dongle into their room, plug it into their TV, hit play and voila!!! Everyone wins, and you also are blessed with the ability to control what your children are watching, and how long they watch it. I mean this just doesn't scratch the surface of possibilities, its honestly up to the developers to push how far and how successful this will be.

Too Long Away

     This article is definitely too long in the making, and I sincerely apologize for the gap in time between articles. I definitely should never have you guys waiting for so long. That is, if anyone is even out there anymore. With that said, there's been so much I've missed, there's been so much I've needed to talk about. This article will be pure word vomit, mostly opinion, and entirely too many changes in subject. Please guys bare with me.

      First off, Google dropped android 4.3 today, alongside 4.3 they also revealed the NEW nexus 7, with an HD screen, bumped spec set slimmer profile and rocking a rear camera. Of course in good old Google/nexus fashion its launching with 4.3, and not to mention the 4.3 source code is already available for developers. I've yet to read deep into it for I've been more into world news and politics lately, American involvement into Syria and Egypt, you know all that's been happening but sadly that isn't my specialty. The main thing with android 4.3 landing alongside the new nexus 7 is that apple released their quarterly results and iPad and Mac sales are down from this time last year. Now remember the iPad mini released last year and we were all certain that would sway many users into the tablet market, but it appears we were way off, and now with the nexus 7 bringing 100% premium tablet performance to those on a budget, we're all looking to see what the fellas in Cupertino will pull out of their ass (much apologies for my wording but the point needs to be conveyed)

      Samsung, you know its been an awkward time for Samsung, not awkward in the negative sense, just awkward as in their disputes with apple, them holding the nexus 10 exclusivity. Now you have them slightly beating the galaxy line into the ground, albeit mostly successful, they're honestly putting way too many "galaxy" devices to the market. Let's be serious overseas the galaxy note 10.1 is a working phone, now I know there isn't a soul who has an 8 rich device to their face, but is that necessary? Then we have the galaxy mega...6.3 inches? As a phone? Please let's stay in the 5-5.6 inch range, you guys should work more on the internals and changing amoled technology. Then the galaxy S4 zoom is in the works? A fully working DSLR type phone? Its a great idea to try and pick up on the semi failure of the galaxy camera but please fellas don't place your hands everywhere, you don't need that.

      Ah the underdog that could, Nokia the company I'd always put my eggs in a basket with, the seemingly forgotten company statewide definitely revived themselves with the windows phone exclusivity, they then threw their eggs in one basket with the final symbian device also known as the Nokia 808 pureview, the 41 megapixel camera phone. Received with mix review but beginning of a great idea and possible series of devices, it has just been recently followed up by its WP8 little brother the Lumia 1010 which I must say? Is an absolutely gorgeous device slim, using that gorgeous screen technology that only Nokia has mastered, andntheyve ,managed to squeeze that gorgeous Carl Zeiss lens into the slim packaging. The unibody frame is absolutely mind blowing, keeping straight in line with all other lumia devices. Nokia keeps WP8 alive all their own and I'll always tip my hat to them...One final word, let's not forget there are constant rumors of a windows tablet from them.

       Motorola...My oh my the time they've had since Google purchased them, they released the RAZR line and since then just constantly refresh it, there aren't any large iterations in what the devices do Google has kept them so quiet its maddening honestly. And then, the largest prediction I said began coming to light, the Motorola X. Still slightly quiet but all the more slowly exploding tl the scene with rumors, my main prediction is still the next nexus phone will be produced by moto, even when lg broke the scene as the holders of the nexus 4 I never lost hope that the next nexus phone will be brought to us by the genius minds from Motorola...still all the quiet company but I'm sure between now and this time next year they'll break back into the light.

      Let us now forget HTC, the company that stays in the light with ever groundbreaking phones and then refreshes them once or twice and allows for them to live in legend, I mean let's be serious I still see consumers with the ego 3D....the Incredible, the original HTC One v. Its amazing how HTC keeps phones in rotation without necessarily slamming us with devices every couple of months, its actually refreshing to see a company take their time between devices. And this time taken produced us with the HTC one, which I'm certain at the end of the year may be phone of the year, and I say this as a Samsung fanatic. The aluminum unibody design, with that great camera technology, bright screen and blink feed android OEM? Just screams the possible Galaxy killer, the only thing is it doesn't have the huge cult following that Sammy has, I'm just perplexed as to why they ran away from tablets.

     I wish I could more speak on the small companies, the LG's the Asus', they stay under the radar when it comes to american shores but in Asian countries the LG's and Huawei's are like royalty, whereas Huawei is trying their best to make a full U.S. debut. Even doing it on the larger carriers. I always try to keep my eyes on them but they stay quiet and in the shadows, same for lenovo. Now you have Ubuntu making their small transition into mobile os and its just a nerds dream, so many options you know?

     Of course I saved apple for last yes? Apple apple, they divorced Samsung, signed TSMC to begin their microchip production, began building macs exclusively in america...But even with all of that? Still have had more of a down year since their stock peaked some 8 or so months ago, each quarter this year has seen a decline over the quarter of a year ago and albeit the I phones have seen a sales increase (more so upgrades from 4's to 5's I'm certain) the iPad and the Mac sales have seen a declination...might it be the fact that macs are so advanced that there are no need for a refresh yearly? The build of Os x ties directly into the chip sets to the point even older generation mwcs still run close to as smooth as newer macs. I mean yes you gave us retina on macbooks but lets be honest we didn't 100% need that when you're bumping the price tags north of $1800. The iPad mini dropped, but sadly it dropped as a 7 inch tablet with the arrogance of a premium 10 inch tablet, the price tag is still high for most Americans with the Kindle fire HD, and the nexus 7 (now the NEW nexus 7) still sub $300 dollars for premium performance. Its just  that it seems apple is now catering only to the cult supporters and no more the supporters who loved saying "omg I have an apple product". Its honestly stressful as a tech lover to see apple begi catering more to the cult fanatics and less of those who just desire apple products...It seems to be all about the profit now, instead of the old Steve Jobs vision of arming Americans with premium technology. I'm certain we'll see how they make decisions in the next few months though, I still hold a glimmer of hope for apple.

      I want to close with this, technology is ever growing, we have the new gaming systems announced, 3D movies are everywhere, Google glass is in the works, Samsung has the flexible amoled screens in production. You can't walk longer than 5 minutes without walking by some form of technological influence, even with this knowledge we must remember to work the technology and not let it work us.