Yes, ladies and gentleman, it’s the holiday season, and there are a ton of new games, gadgets and gizmos consumers will clamor for during the next three weeks. Here are a few items consumers will be interested in this year.
iPod, iTouch: New Generations, New Features
Since November 2001, consumers have seen more than 10 different models of Apple’s flagship MP3 player, the iPod. The company’s newest model, the iPod Touch, features wireless Internet access and a multi-touch screen seen on the iPhone, Apple’s popular cell phone.
Apple’s iPhone tops E-bay’s list of Top 25 sellers for this holiday season and has been in high demand by consumers since its launch June 29.
“It’s sexy,” Kennedy says. “I can do most things I was able to with my PocketPC and I can also download songs from iTunes Store just like the Touch.”
Available in either 8GB or 16GB, the Touch offers wireless downloading from Apple’s iTunes Music Store and Internet surfing through the Safari Web Browser.
YouTube and Starbucks content looks to be the Touch’s coolest attributes. If you are inside a Starbuck and like a song on the loudspeakers, the player can instantly recognize the song and download it with the “touch” of a few buttons.
A special YouTube built-in player allows users to search and watch featured videos on the popular Web site right from their Touch. Users also can bookmark their favorite videos for future viewing purposes.
Available now, the Touch starts at $299 for the 8GB and $399 for the 16GB.
The sixth generation of the Apple’s iPod also has arrived. Dubbed the “classic” version, the MP3 player comes with either 80GB(20,000 songs, $249) or 160GB(40,000 songs, $349) of storage. The player also sports a slimmer design and a brighter screen.
A new feature being touted by Apple is Cover Flow. Users can flip through album covers using the click-wheel, selecting songs from the track listing located on the back of the cover.
The key difference between the two models, besides capacity, is battery life. The 80GB allows up to 30 hours of playback time, 10 hours less than the 160GB version. Both versions come in either black or silver colors with an all-metal design.
Plasma Vs. LCD: What’s Best For You
You just purchased a new XBOX 360, HD-DVD Player and a few games and high-def movies. You arrive back home, hook everything up to your 10-year-old, 32-inch Zenith tube television. You expect a huge leap in graphics and picture quality. But you are disappointed. Why does my game look like a blown-up photograph? Why do the colors look washed out?
The answer is simple: Your TV’s isn’t High-Definition (HD). It doesn’t matter whether or not your sources are HD, like the 360 or DVD player, when the picture isn’t up to snuff. So now comes the big question: Which type of TV do you need?
Liquid Crystal Display (LCD) and Plasma are the two major technologies competing for flat panel dominance, and consumer’s opinions vary on which on is the best.
Michael Schneider, a Best Buy Home Theater Salesperson, says plasma is better than LCD.
“Better color, better reaction time, less expensive,” Schneider said in an interview. “I don’t like losing color when it gets bright outside. You don’t get as much fade in plasma as you do in LCD.”
Last year proved to be the “year of the LCD,” according to a January 2007 press release from The NPD Group. LCD TV sales took in more than $900 million, while Plasma TVs barely missed the $400-million-dollar mark, being outsold by MP3 players, notebook computers and digital still cameras.
When asked why LCD sales won out last year, Schneider said it was a matter of selection.
“You’ve got more to choose from,” Schneider said. “You’ve got a range of LCDs from 15 inches to 50; Plasmas start at 42 [inches].”
VCU student Daniel Neville looks forward to purchasing an LCD.
“I want to hook my computer up to it,” says Neville, 20.
Neville, a junior, also owns last year’s XBOX 360 Core version, the basic model of the popular gaming console. Current generation systems like the 360 and Playstation 3 are better suited for LCD screens because of Plasma’s “burn-in” effect.
“Burn-in”, or image-retention, occurs when static images like news tickers or paused game screens are left on the panel for more than eight or nine hours. After turning off the TV, a faint outline of the image could be literally “burned” into the screen, ruining the panel’s picture and shortening its 60,000 hour life-span.
The NPD Group report indicates that 32-inch LCD screens sold the most last year, agreeing with Schneider’s analysis. Forty-two inch plasma televisions were second and 40-42 inch LCD TVs rounded out the top three.
VCU marketing professor Michael Little says big-screen retailers, such as Best Buy and
“With the slowdown in the economy,” Little says, “and the sub-prime crisis… that could slowdown consumer purchases of expensive items.”
Rock Band Simulation Generates
Videogames are still popular among students at
“I really, really want a Nintendo DS,” Tipton said. “There’s a karaoke game or sing-a-long game I saw on TV, and I was like ‘Oh, I want that.”
If Tipton is looking for a sing-along game, she may want to consider Harmonix’s Rock Band. The multiplatform game created by the same studio that made Guitar Hero will sport a Stratocaster-inspired guitar controller, a microphone and a drum set complete with the kick-pedal.
Chad Greenaway, a Best Buy Media Supervisor, compares Rock Band’s hype to last years release of the Playstation 3. He says one of Rock Band’s coolest features is its online capabilities.
“You can actually put ads out saying that you need a bassist, or you need a drummer, people will answer those ads and join your band.” Greenaway said. “You can hire and fire people. It’s going to be awesome.”
Rock Band will feature more than 50 songs, with the majority being original cuts, from established bands like R.E.M, The Smashing Pumpkins, Nine Inch Nails and The Red Hot Chili Peppers.
Retailing at $169.99, Rock Band’s Special Edition will hit retail stores Nov. 20. The package will include the game, a microphone, drums and one guitar. Guitars from the Guitar Hero series will also be compatible. The game itself retails for $59.99 for the Xbox 360 and PS3.
