Well, as we all know by now, Grand Theft Auto IV, arguably the biggest release of the year and a truly cultural event, was released today. You can hardly move on the internet for discussion about this notorious sequel, but Destructoid would be wrong to ignore that discussion and simply not provide its views on the current-gen revitalization of Rockstar’s flagship.

For me, it wasn’t the so much the violent content of the game that proved the most controversial, but the actual gameplay mechanics themselves. Rockstar seems to have gone to a lot of effort to makes this new installment of the GTA franchise a very different, very new experience. Some of the changes were for the better, others not so much.

Hit the jump for our take on some of the biggest changes in Grand Theft Auto IV.

Via Destructoid

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Just as expected, Sling Media has released updates to its SlingPlayer Mobile for all Windows Mobile (that includes both touchscreen and non-touchscreen; Professional and Standard) version as well as S60. Following on the announcement that SlingPlayer Mobile will be coming to UIQ, SlingPlayer Mobile for Windows Mobile gets upped to version 1.6, while S60 users can anticipate a fresh version 1.1 release of SlingPlayer Mobile.

And, Sling has added support for the Nokia N95 8GB to the S60 SlingPlayer's official feature-list.

The updates features some revised channel logos, improved video quality on some devices, and some code-tweaks. Grab your updated SlingPlayer here.

[Via: Engadget Mobile]

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Remember all the hoopla that HTC was caught up in a few months back? Right, well all the petition-signing and class-action lawsuit-filing from angry HTC customers looking to have full video acceleration on their flagship HTC smartphones paid off. HTC gave in and promised to deliver a software update for their flagship handsets that should give users a slight boost in video performance.

So, where's the update? According to HTC, it's still on the way. They aren't saying exactly when the update will be made available, or if it will be distributed as a device-installable .cab file or an Over-The-Air (OTA) download, but they assure us it's still in the pipeline.

Anyone out there still waiting for their HTC video update? Hang tight, it's only a matter of time…

[Via: PhoneNews]

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Boy Genius has come through again with yet another internal document detailing a future device's features. The latest leaked document comes from RIM and basically puts the “official” in official device specifications.

The BlackBerry 9000, with that 3G HSDPA data connection, will apparently hit the market with a revamped web browser capable of Javascript, CSS 2.1, and full HTML support, among other enhancements. There's also support for downloading attachments directly to the device. That means we can expect a more desktop-like web-browsing experience from the BlackBerry 9000 - a welcome departure from RIM's previously clunky mobile web browsers.

The BlackBerry 9000's Picture Library will also get some update-love. Pictures can now be organized into folders and viewed all at once.

Automatic Playlist song viewing allows the user to automatically create a playlist from their library of music. Upon entering song criteria, songs will be automatically selected from the library and added to the current playlist.

And, since that HSDPA radio should be serving up super-fast data, RIM has made provisions for the BlackBerry 9000 to play nice with inline video streaming through the internet browser.

A handful of security enhancements and various theme offerings are also thrown in the mix.

The most recent launch-window projection is set for July of this year, so it won't be too long before we can actually get our mitts on the BlackBerry 9000. That is, if RIM doesn't delay the device again…

Head on over to BGR's gallery for more shots of the BlackBerry 9000's official specification documents.

[Via: BGR]

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With the leak of the HTC Touch Diamond (codename: Diamond) and the HTC Touch Pro (codename: Raphael), we've been counting down the days until the Might 6th event that HTC promises will bring the world the “next wave of HTC innovation.” The two new HTC Touch handsets will be bringing those super-sexy, high-gloss VGA displays in two variants - an all-touchscreen HTC Touch Diamond and an HTC Touch Pro (Raphael) sporting a slide-out QWERTY keyboard.

HTC is also expected to roll out an update to their HTC Touch Dual with the vertically-sliding keypad. Dubbed the HTC Touch Dual Pro (codename: Titanium), the keypad-toting Touch will sport the same specs as the HTC Touch Pro, but replace the sliding QWERTY keyboard with a 12- or 20-key keypad.

New rumblings from the Taipei Times points toward HTC actually announcing/launching the much expected devices (or at least one of new HTC Touch variants) at their press event on May 6. It's not likely that we'll see the HTC Touch Dual Pro (Titanium) make an appearance at this event. A financial executive at HTC, Cheng Hui-ming, was quoted as saying:

[HTC] anticipates revenues this year to grow more than 20 percent year-on-year, helped by sales of its new “Touch” phone next month. […] “This is the most important product for HTC this year,” Cheng stated. “With this phone, we’re confident of landing orders from most major operators.”

That's good news for fans of HTC's Windows Mobile-powered handsets. But, Cheng points out that the “new Touch” hasn't yet received certification (most likely of the FCC variety) and could cause launch delays. HTC has presumably already filed for FCC approval on their new HTC Touch Diamond and HTC Touch Pro, so it's only a matter of time before the device hits market - whether the device will hit US shores on Might 6th is still unclear.

Both the new HTC Touch handsets feature the glorious VGA touchscreens and offer 3G data connectivity, WiFi, 3 megapixel camera, and Windows Mobile 6.1 - in your choice of touchscreen-only (HTC Touch Diamond) or QWERTY keyboard (HTC Touch Pro) flavors.

The Might 6th event is almost upon us, so we'll know just what HTC has up its sleeves soon enough. Now, it would be really interesting if HTC pulled out all the stops and actually launched their Android-powered HTC Dream handset on May 6. One week and counting…

Keep reading for the full run-down of the HTC Touch Diamond and HTC Touch Pro spec-sheets.

• Windows Mobile 6.1 Professional
• Qualcomm MSM 7201A @ 528MHz
• 256MB ROM / 128MB RAM
• 7.2MB HSDPA / HSUPA (rev A EVDO for Sprint versions)
• 2.8″ VGA screen
• WiFi
• Bluetooth 2.0 with EDR
• eGPS
• 3.1MP Camera with flash
• Forward facing camera
• 4GB internal flash storage (Diamond only) - Samsung MoviNAND
• TV out (Raphael only)
• Orientation sensor (a-la-iPhone)
• FM Radio
• microSD expansion
• 900mAh battery
• Diamond: 51

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Now that GTA IV has hit store shelves, it’s time for the world’s anti-video game fanatics to crawl out from under their rocks and tell us all how this game and so many others ruin our kids and turn them into Jack the Ripper wannabes. Of course, all those self-righteous zealots won’t tell you the truth — nothing they state is rooted in reality.

Stop beating up video games

(Credit: Rockstar Games)

Earlier this day, a colleague of mine at CNET wrote a well-written article that discusses how critics have already attacked GTA IV without even playing it yet.

Much of the discussion centered around foolhardy demagogues who have yet to actually play the game, but somehow know that it will lead to child violence: “We’ve seen a number of clips of the game,” stated Yee spokesperson Adam Keigwin. “From the clips alone, and based on GTA and Rockstar’s history, (Yee) thought it very appropriate to issue a statement urging parents not to purchase the game for their children.”

Huh?

…

source The Digital Home

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Apple has finally managed to agree with Rogers Wireless to push the sales of its flagship handset to Canada. We talked about this on and on in the past, and I'm sad to say we don't have much of the details today.

Roger's President and CEO, Ted Rogers, issued a statement, saying only: “We're thrilled to announce that we have a deal with Apple to bring the iPhone to Canada later this year. We can't tell you any more about it right now, but stay tuned.”

And tuned, we stay…

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Nokia's S60 Web Run Time Widgets platform recently got two important partners - Plusmo and WeatherBug.

Plusmo said that it will provide users with instant access to the latest news, sports scores and other Web-based information. A simple UI and one-click access to content, as well as the automatic updates are naturally in the mix, too.

On the other hand, WeatherBug will bring “advanced, local weather information to millions of Nokia users worldwide.” The service/widget is free and will be supported by advertising, sold both by Nokia and WeatherBug. In addition, WeatherBug also secured a deal with the Finnish giant to get a place in the Nokia Download! store and nokia.mobi site.

[Via: PRNewswire, MobileBurn]

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It's Nokia Music Store for people living in Singapore. After opening its digital music stores in Ireland, Netherlands, Australia and France, the Finnish giant is entering the mobile music market of an island nation located at the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula. Again, users will be able to purchase songs from major international artists, independent labels, as well as the local Asian artists. The store is open all the time and accessible either from one of the choose Nokia devices or a Personal computer.

Individual tracks cost 2.00 Singapore dollars, most albums 16.00 Singapore dollars, while for the Unlimited PC streaming service, you'll have to pay 16.00 Singapore dollars per month… Full release is available on PRNewswire.

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It's Sidekick rumor-mill folks. Just as we reported about the two upcoming Sidekick devices, the always highly informed BoyGenius brought us the news about the new special edition Sidekick LX. Apparently, T-Mobile will be rolling out the Tony Hawk branded LX on the 16th of July, just in time for the Tony Hawk Boom Boom HuckJam skate fest. The mentioned event is sponsored by T-Mobile, giving us an additional clue there's some merit in this story.

We love special edition devices, hence, we'll keep watching for Tony Hawk's moves. At the moment, we've no information about the price nor how will the skate-friendly Sidekick look like…

[Via: Boy Genius Report]

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