This week we got our first look at Google Glass, as well as experienced one half of a new era in gaming when we got up close and personal with the new Xbox One Kinect as well as the gamepad for Microsoft's new console.
Only at Google IO in techy-savvy San Francisco could a Google Glass wearer walk the streets relatively unnoticed. A limited number of these new wearable computing devices have been among the public for months now, and they generally elicit double takes and curious stares. Just like a normal pair of glasses, Google Glass needs just a bit of adjustment to be worn properly. It mainly comes down to the nose pads, which make sure that Glass' titanium band runs slightly above the eye line, like a sunshade or visor.
Microsoft Xbox One Kinect review
For the thousands around the world who watched Microsoft's Xbox One reveal event over the Internet and on their Xbox 360 consoles earlier this week, it was about an hour filled with some fresh information on the company's forthcoming console, though it also left them with a lot of questions. So what about Kinect? The first thing to note is that the resolution has also been radically improved. You not only get a 1080p color camera that enables high-quality Skype video chats, but it's a 3D scanning device that is strong enough to discern buttons and folds on a shirt, as well as whether you're moving your fingers, if you're facing the sensor or not, and even your facial expression.
Microsoft Xbox One Gamepad review
Following a full day of presentations, interviews, tours, tech demos and teases of the Xbox One's game-changing potential, the powers that be at Microsoft finally let us get our mitts on the new hardware's controller. While our time with the gamepad doesn't allow us to tear up the blacktop inForza 5 or command a SEAL Team canine in Call of Duty: Ghosts, it does provide a peek at a few of the 40-plus improvements that have been made over its predecessor. Before diving into six separate demos tailored to show off the controller's enhanced rumble tech, Microsoft senior product marketing manager, Navin Kumar, states "precision, comfort, and making gaming more realistic than ever" were the driving forces behind designing the new gamepad.
Canon PowerShot SX280 HS review
The Canon PowerShot SX280 HS - or Canon SX280 for short - replaces the Canon SX260. There are actually two versions of the same camera, the other being the Canon SX270 which features pretty much all of the same specifications, but lacks the inbuilt Wi-Fi and GPS of its slightly more expensive sibling. A 12.1 million pixel high-sensitivity (HS) CMOS sensor is joined by the headline feature of a 20x optical zoom lens. Starting at an equivalent (in 35mm terms) of 25mm, the Canon SX280's lens is capable of reaching a fairly impressive 500mm.
This week's other reviews
Desktops
Wired2Fire Diablo Phantom review
DinoPC Titanosaurus Rex review
Soundbar
Mobile phones
Computing
Patriot Aero 1TB Wireless Mobile Drive review
Tablets
