Designs on you

PHONE giant Nokia are out to prove their phones are better by design. Just look at two of their most recent releases. The N95 (left) and 6300 (right) are total opposites. The N95 is a box of tricks. With the slider shut, you might not recognise it as a phone straight away. Just a flashy gizmo to some. But its features are really useful. With its two-way slider, MP3 buttons, 5 megapixel camera and satnav, it has to be the most sophisticated device that also makes phone calls. Take a look at the

Bond rayses sales

HIT Bond movie Casino Royale is sending Blu-ray disc sales through the roof since it was released on the high definition format two weeks ago. Nearly 10,000 were sold in the UK in the first week. And over in the States, where Blu-ray is catching on fast, 100,000 copies were sold after its release date on March 13th.
The UK sales coincided with the launch of the PS3 games

Grand Theft Auto IV trailer

We’ve got our hands on the trailer for Grand Theft Auto IV, one of the most hotly anticipated games of the year, set to arrive on the XBOX 360 and PS3 this summer. Take a look at the trailer below and prepare to be blown away by the latest instalment of this groundbreaking series.

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XBOX 360 Elite on way

Microsoft have responded to Sony’s impressive PS3 launch by announcing the XBOX Elite console is on the way.

Boasting an HDMI slot and a mammoth 120GB hard disk – twice as big as the PS3’s – the new and improved XBOX 360 is due to hit UK shelves later this year.

The Elite console will sell alongside the existing Core and Premium models which have proved so successful since the 360’s launch in 2005.

Strangely, Microsoft won’t be including an HD DVD drive or Wi-Fi networking devices with the Elite– you’ll have to fork out extra for them and that could set you back another £200.

Even stranger is the lack of a matching black HD DVD drive – you’ll have to make do with the standard off-white version.

And pricing rumours suggest that once you’ve shelled out for the XBOX 360 Elite, additional HD DVD drive and Wi-Fi facilities, you’ll have spent around £100 more than if you’d just purchased a PlayStation 3.

PS3 is fastest-selling UK console

Sony have struck a huge blow against Microsoft by selling over 165,000 PS3s in the UK in the first two days of the console's launch. The XBOX 360 sold just 70,000 units when it went on sale in here back in December 2005.

Bill Gates and co rushed out their machine in time for the festive period but left many gamers disappointed when the consoles sold out. Sony, on the other hand, decided to take their time with the PS3 and still have plenty to go round. The PS3 still has some way to go to catch up with the 10million XBOX 360s that are currently in circulation worldwide, but the early signs are looking good for Sony.

Game of the week - Virtua Fighter 5

The first must-have beat ‘em up for the PS3 has landed in the shape of SEGA’s awesome Virtua Fighter 5. With two new characters, a host of new moves and some of the best graphics ever seen on any console, this is one game that will become an essential member of your PS3 games collection. Check out the trailer below for a closer look at the game, and get a copy from www.play.com priced at £40.

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ViaMichelin sat nav ready to go

Take a look at ViaMichelin’s new X-970, a small entry-level sat nav that weighs around 136g and comes loaded with maps of the UK and Ireland. It includes free traffic updates and a Bluetooth facility that means it can double as a hands-free car kit. It’ll even read out road names for you. Other features include free map and speed camera updates, locations of big sporting events and a hotel, restaurant and tourist recommendation guide. Expect to pay around £240 for the UK version. See www.viamichelin.com for more details.

Sony announce BRAVIA projector

 

We all know BRAVIA TVs are among the best on the market, but take a look at this new projector from Sony that’s recently been added to their award-winning stable. The AW15 projector produces a 200-inch screen size and supports the 24 frames-per-second cinema-quality speed adopted by Blu-Ray players. It’s expected to cost around £1,000 when it goes on sale later this year. See www.sonystyle.co.uk for more info.

BT Reveal new home phone

We don’t review many home phones on the GadgiTs pages – mainly because most of them are fairly dull, but BT’s new Reveal model could be set to shake up the market in style. Combining a cordless handset that’s concealed in a glossy black stand, you’ll get 20 minutes of recording time out of the digital answerphone base unit and it can also handle SMS and T9 predictive texts.

It also boasts a sim-card reader, polyphonic ringtones and room for you to store 255 contacts – the hands free option also comes in handy but the lack of VoIP is disappointing. The BT Reveal will set you back around £130 – check out www.shop.bt.com for more info.

New Halo 3 Trailer

The game we’re all waiting for is set to drop in the next couple of months. Halo 3 will undoubtedly break the record as the fast-selling game ever. We’ve had a couple of sneak peaks at it already and can reveal it’s one of the most stunning titles we’ve ever seen. Check out the new trailer below and keep your eyes on the GadgiTs page for a full review as soon as we get our hands on the finished game.

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Outshining the Chocolate

AS predicted by Gadgits, LG's Shine phone has been a huge hit in the UK. The star of the Las Vegas CES show is even outselling last year's big LG hit, the Chocolate. Since the glitzy launch in London last month, the shine has sold 200,000 in Europe, compared with 160,000 Chocolate phones over a similar period. It proves that LG has really moved up a class in the design stakes and silences critics who said the Chocolate was a one-hit wonder.

Unlimited inbox

Yahoo! Mail is about to offer unlimited email storage to its customers to celebrate ten years of their service. Starting in May, users will no longer have to worry about losing picture messages which clog up their inbox. For more information click here

Onto a Shure thing

AUDIO giants Shure launched a range of mass market earphones at the Cafe Royal in Regent Street last night with a performance by celebrated DJ combo the Scratch Perverts. Gadgits was given a demo and had to admit the entry-level  pair, which will sell for around £90, sounded top notch. Each set of Shure phones comes with a selection of seven various-sized foam plugs so you'd have to have pretty freakish lugholes if you couldn't find a near-perfect fit. We noticed the Perverts  DJs hardly needed to use them to cue their sounds. Apparently the boyz are so good they can do without headphones of any kind to deliver a set described as both "dirty" and indeed "slammin".  For a full test of this product keep your eye on the News of the World's Gadgits page.