HTC, once the darling of virtual reality, are now just one of many manufactures in a VR market that still seeks to define itself. Up against their old foe, Oculus, as well their one-time partner, Valve, and countless iterations of Microsoft’s also-ran Windows MR, is HTC still a player in the VR space? Continue reading HTC reveals its plans for the Vive Cosmos VR range
Jurassic World Evolution: Return to Jurassic Park DLC PC Review
Frontier Development’s latest expansion, for Jurassic Park Evolution, their dinosaur park management game, entitled Return to Jurassic Park, adds a bit of nostalgia for long-time fans.
The inclusion of the original 90s-era Jurassic Park has been the most requested feature by fans of Frontier’s Jurassic World: Evolution. With Return to Jurassic Park players get exactly what they wished for. Continue reading Jurassic World Evolution: Return to Jurassic Park DLC PC Review
The Walking Dead: Saints and Sinners VR PC review
New Orleans is the setting for The Walking Dead: Saints and Sinners, a VR game based on the comic book by Robert Kirkman.
Similar to Telltale’s Walking Dead games, Saints and Sinners is not a tie-in with The Walking Dead TV show. This is probably fortunate, as The Walking Dead: Survival Instinct, the 2013 game based on the TV show was not very well received.
Played via Valve’s SteamVR platform, Saints and Sinners is compatible with the Value Index, HTC Vive, Oculus rift and Window Mixed Reality VR platforms. I tested the game using HTC’s original Vive and the new Vive Cosmos, both without technical issues. Continue reading The Walking Dead: Saints and Sinners VR PC review
The FIA Certified Gran Turismo Championships comes to Sydney
With all the glitz of the Formula One Championship circus, the FIA’s most curious motorsports competition, the FIA Certified Gran Turismo Championships, rolled into Sydney last weekend on the first leg of the 2020 world tour.
Sydney’s iconic Luna Park hosted 50 drivers from 18 different countries. The park’s Big Top venue set the stage for the third year of the FIA Gran Turismo Championships. Attending the event was a president of Motorsport Australia, Andrew Papadopoulos, who was joined by Kazunori Yamauchi, the CEO of Polyphony Digital and creator of the Gran Turismo games. Continue reading The FIA Certified Gran Turismo Championships comes to Sydney
Epson launches new, fast and powerful large-format document scanner
Epson Australia has launched their WorkForce DS-32000 large-format document scanner, expanding their existing line-up of commercial scanners. The scanner has been designed to meet the needs of high-volume enterprise and service bureau office environments.
With modern offices increasingly turning to digital document management systems, it is important that paper documents are properly scanned and legible for their intended user. The ability to quickly scan large volumes of documents to create archive-quality, searchable documents is essential to ensure the smooth running of the modern office. Continue reading Epson launches new, fast and powerful large-format document scanner
Monster Energy Supercross – The Official Videogame 3 PC review
Motorcycle simulation veterans, Milestone, get down and dirty for some two-wheeled racing with Monster Energy Supercross – The Official Videogame 3.
The game allows players get to partake in the official 2019 Monster Energy Supercross season. The game features races in both the 450SX and 250SX classes across 15 official circuits and stadiums. Continue reading Monster Energy Supercross – The Official Videogame 3 PC review
Journey to the Savage Planet PC/Xbox One review
Colourful indie planetary exploration game, Journey to the Savage Planet offers players a humorous adventure on an alien world.
No Mans Sky, that was my first though as Journey to the Savage Planet started up; there are definitely artistic similarities between Hello Games’ space survival game. Then, as I started exploring, trying to repair my ship, I thought Outer World; both games share the same sort of humour. In truth, though, Typhoon Studio’s Journey to the Savage Planet doesn’t play like either of those other space exploration games. Continue reading Journey to the Savage Planet PC/Xbox One review
Skullcandy Crusher ANC Bluetooth headset review
I’ve reviewed a fair number of headsets, usually of the gaming variety, but I can’t say that I’ve ever tried a pair with active noise cancelling. Skullcandy’s Crusher ANC Bluetooth headset is a stylish bit of kit incorporating active noise cancelling and a few other surprises.
Active noise cancelling works using a microphone to listen out of ambient noise and then outputting an opposing wavelength, effectively cancelling out background noise. Anything below the frequency of a human voice tends to be shut out. So, you are still, unfortunately, going to hear the kids screaming at each other.
Another stand-out feature, which is new to me, is the optional, and adjustable, haptic feedback. As a life-long fan of bass, this feature, that Skullcandy calls Sensory Bass, vibrates the earpieces to match the bass sound, allowing you to “feel” the bass. I kind of like it, even though I feel it emulates having your volume turned up too much.
The headset’s sound quality is superb. And, with the active noise cancelling, I didn’t feel the need to crank the volume up high. The Sensory Bass at a moderate setting emulated an eardrum shattering audio experience, without actually shattering my eardrums. Of course, you can max it all out with the volume and vibrations taking me right make to my clubbing days standing right next to the speakers.
From a practical point-of-view, I found the headset to be an incredible addition to my PC gaming setup. In the Sydney heat, the gaming review PC’s cooling system is working hard to chill all those tweaked components. Whilst I have a top performing PC, it can get noisy in the Summer months. But, with Skullcandy’s Crusher ANC, the active noise cancelling completely shuts out PC case fan noise, enabling even the most subtle sounds to be clear and crisp without a fan droning in the background. To be honest, it’s going to be difficult going back to gaming with a regular headset.
I’m certainly not groovy and extrovert enough to wander about sporting such a beautiful headset for general mobile phone audio use. I’m sure, however, that many of you would have no qualms showing off what has to be one of the stylish headsets I’ve worn.
The Crusher ANC is available in black and red. I was sent the red to test, a deep burgundy red, with soft leather-look cushions. The headset folds up to fit in a neat-looking protective zipped travel case that has a space for the included audio jack and USB-C charging cable, as well.
The headset is well constructed. Whilst initially I was concerned that was a bit flimsy, there is a flexible metal strip running between the cups that give it a bit of reinforcing. Overall, the headset has a nice finish and feels a lot less plasticky than other headset offerings.
Using a downloadable mobile app, the headset audio can be tuned to create a personal sound profile, just for you. Whilst I was able to pair the headset with my phone, the app couldn’t find the headset. You may have better luck.
Being Bluetooth, the headset does not come with a wireless dongle, so your devices will need to be Bluetooth compatible. This shouldn’t be a problem for mobile devices, but if you want to use the headset with a PC, you may need to check that it supports Bluetooth. If it doesn’t, you can pick up a USB Bluetooth dongle for under $20. You can also use the included wired audio jack.
The Skullcandy Crusher ANC is not cheap at A$599.95/NZ$599.95, but unlike many prestige-priced headsets, Skullcandy are offering some premium features. The active noise cancelling and haptic bass feedback are so effective that you’ll wonder how you coped without them. Be it for use with your phone around town, on an aeroplane or gaming on a PC/console the Skullcandy Crusher ANC offers a fantastic audio experience.