HDS Wants To Go To The Movies

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Thank Goodness for Gift Cards

So I got a $25 gift card to AMC theaters for Christmas. That got me thinking about what movies I would want to go see. After doing some research here is what I'm looking forward to seeing. Granted with the prices of movies nowadays it will probably be just 2. I've included the trailers as well and did note if some where redband trailers.Maybe there is movie in here you are interested in seeing too.

1. Pacific Rim - July 2013
   It's directed by Guillermo del Toro, one of my favorites, and it involves 25-story robots fighting 25-story monsters. It just doesn't get any better than that. It also features the voice of GlaDos from the game Portal just because del Toro is fan. Awesome.
   
   
   
2. Evil Dead - April 2013
   I saw the original and loved the sequels. Evil Dead 2 being my favorite. I'm bummed that Sam Raimi isn't heading this up and that Bruce Campbell isn't in it, but it does look to be going the really scary route. Here's to hoping that it turns out ok. CAUTION: REDBAND TRAILER



3. Man of Steel - June 2013
   This is from director Zack Snyder, which did 300 and being produced with Christopher Nolan who has done the new Batman movies. 300 was visually stunning and the Batman movies have had the best characters and story. Putting them together seems like a real good bet. Can't wait.
   
   
   
4. Warm Bodies - February 2013
   I'm usually not into romantic comedies, but when you throw zombies into the mix even I can get into it.
   
   
   
5. Star Trek Into Darkness - May 2013
   The first one really impressed me and I do like director J.J. Abrams work. From looking at the trailer this one looks like it will be as good if not better than the first.
   
6. A Good Day to Die Hard - February 2013
   Ok, I'll admit it. I'm a fan of Bruce Willis. Ever since The Fifth Element. The Die Hard series has always been about the underdog overcoming huge obstacles and they keep getting bigger and bigger every time. At least this time he is teaming up with his son.
   
   
   
7. Iron Man 3 - May 2013
   I've been surprised at how good the latest Marvel comic movies have been. Iron Man has been great and I think Robert Downey Jr is Tony Stark. I also like the fact that the movies are following each other so we should get a glimpse at what may be coming up in the next movies.
   
8. Oblivion - April 2013
   Don't know to much about this movie, besides what I saw on the trailer. From what I saw though it looks like it could be pretty good.
   
   
   
9. The Lone Ranger - July 2013
   Hollywood has been known to keep recycling old concepts, but after seeing this trailer sometimes it's not a bad thing.
   
   
   
10. World War Z - June 2013
    My brother-in-law was the first one to tell me about the novel that this is based on. However the novel spoke after the events of a zombie war while the movie seems to be showing what happened. The zombie scenes from the trailer look pretty crazy, like a tsunami of zombies.
    
11. Hansel and Gretel Witch Hunters - January 2013
    Not too sure about this one, but it does have some interesting weapons and the action seems to be pretty over the top.
    
    
    
12. Dark Skies - February 2013
    This one looks interesting and seems to be more of a serious alien horror movie.
    
    
    
13. The Incredible Burth Wonderstone - March 2013
    I don't have too many comedies on this list usually because I don't prefer to watch those on the big screen. However I do like Steve Carell and this one does seem pretty funny.
    
    
    
14. G. I. Joe: Retaliation - March 2013
    I saw the first one and while I didn't think it was anything special it was a fun movie to watch in the theater. As mentioned earlier I am a fan of Bruce Willis so this is just another reason why I might see it.
    

Comments

So what do you think? Anything sound interesting or is there another movie you can suggest? Let me know in the comments.

HDS Wants an LG Hecto Projector

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[Update]

Just read that this projector will be selling for $10,000. Bummer.

[Update]

75 or 90 inches? How about 100!

I've written about wanting a big TV before and the good news is they keep getting bigger. The bad news of course is I still don't have any of them. The latest one isn't actually a TV. It's a projector from LG called the Hecto. Projectors have been around for a while and are know for creating big screens, but you usually need the projector to be a fairly good distance away from the screen in order to achieve that. The great thing about this one is that you only need 22 inches to create the 100-inch screen. The other bonus is that they include the screen along with the projector so you don't need to buy it separately. It offers Full HD 1080p resolution and 1,000,000:1 dynamic contrast ratio for using in dark or lighter environments. It doesn't really miss any inputs either. It has a an ATSC digital tuner for over-the-air HD, 3 HDMI, optical audio output as well as RS-232 interface.

Pew, pew, pew

The other cool thing about this projector is that it doesn't use a standard mercury-based bulb like previous projectors. Instead it uses a laser-based illumination system. LG claims this allows the projector to run for up to 25,000 hours without replacement, roughly five times longer than the mercury-based ones(plus more environmentally friendly). It's also what provides the high contrast ratio and brightness of the projected image. In addition to lasers the projector supports LG's Smart TV platform, which includes built-in Wi-Fi so you can watch Netflix, YouTube and other apps from their app store.

Home Theater Experience

I love going to the movies and have always wanted that same experience in my home. Having a 100-inch screen that's done by a projector would certainly bring me closer to that experience. I also already checked and my current entertainment bench sits about 22 inches away from the wall so this would totally work. It's suppose to come out in March and no specifics yet on price. My birthday is in March, hint, and this would be an awesome gift. Actually any product from this blog would be an excellent gift, I wouldn't want to limit any ones giving ability.

Comments

I'm actually really intrigued and excited about this product and looking forward to seeing what the price on this will be. What do you think?

HDS Wants A Nissan GTR

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When I need to get there, RIGHT NOW!

I enjoy playing video games and one of my favorite types is car simulation or car arcade ones. When they have licensed car models I always try to save up my virtual cash to get a Nissan Skyline GTR R34. This is the fifth generation of the car that came out during 1999-2002. In the games that I played it, the car was fast and handled totally like I wanted it to. I still think it's a sweet looking car. Nissan then came back in 2007 with a newer version and ever since then it's been my dream car. I got a family to think of though so it's good to know that in 2011 it took the award for fastest 0-60 acceleration by a four seater production car in Guiness World Records at 3.2 seconds. That was a 2010 model and from what I understand the 2013 model is even faster.

Ok so it goes fast, why this one?

When I looked more into the car I realized some of the other things that it has. For example the engine is put together by one master engineer in a sealed room. Don't worry I think they let him out once he is done. That engine is rated at 545hp for the 2013 model.  Although I did hear in a Top Gear (awesome car show) episode that the total can vary, but usually it's more. The rating is like the minimum. It features a dual clutch that puts the next gear ready so that shifts are super quick. It also features unique selections for the transmission, suspension and stability control so you can tailor it to your current driving requirements. It has an all wheel drive system so even on those days that it snows the car is composed.

But check out that dash!

For most cars you wouldn't really care, but in this car Nissan got together with Polyphony Digital. Gamers will recognize this name but for those non-gamers this is the company that created the Gran Turismo games which I believe is one of the more realistic car simulation games. The screen has the capability of showing you different things about the car, including: acceleration, braking, steering, gear position, and lap time. It will also show you the g-forces. I'm a dad so the lap time would be especially handy for taking the kids to school and figuring out which way is the fastest. "That's right kids, we are going to see how fast we can go the long way again."

Don't forget the exterior

I know that beauty is in they eye of the beholder and since I'm writing this, I think this car is beautiful. Just look at it. It just looks like it goes fast. To me it also seems to have a futuristic look to it, like it could transform into a robot or some sort of flying machine. Of course the color I would go with is Jet Black which just adds to the possibility of it taking off.

Comments

Anybody out there agree? What car do you like? Does anyone have one that could give me a ride?

HDS wants a day with glass

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What thing is it this time?

The past few posts have been about products and things, but as I mentioned on my first post this blog is about dreams too. I was recently sent an email from my father-in-law which was a link to the video posted below. Things like this are what makes me think that I was born 20 years too early. I would love it if we were living life like in the video right now. The way technology is moving I hope that I do get to experience this type of future. I mean we have tablets that run on butter and TVs that can take up 2/3 of my wall so it keeps getting closer.

Perspective

I'm sure someone that was born in the 40's or 50's would have never imagined something like the iPad or thin LED TVs, so I'm sure that I will be amazed what will be available in ten years and it will be completely different from what my 2 year old son will see when he is my age. Either way I will enjoy seeing what might be and what could be. I do hope though that this is a post that I can come back to and say:

"I got what I wanted. Sent from my Corning® bathroom mirror."

Comments

Are you someone who wishes to live in the future or is there a different time you would prefer? Or what thing exists now that you didn't think would be possible? Let me know in the comments below.

HDS wants a Nexus 7 tablet

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Butter on toast, but butter on Jelly Bean?

Google has now come out with the Nexus 7 inch tablet and along with that a new version of Android. One of the things I like about iOS devices is how smooth it feels and Android just never seemed to feel the same. I currently use a Samsung Infuse phone and it wasn't until rooting it that it seemed to feel a little better. Every now and then it still feels a little jerky. The latest version of Android, code named Jelly Bean, is suppose to be a lot smoother than previous versions. This is thanks to a project called "Butter". I'm sure it also helps to have some good stuff under the hood. Here are some of the specs:

• 7" 1280x800 Corning® glass display
• 4325 mAh battery good for 9-10 hours
• NVIDIA® Tegra 3 quad-core processor
• 12-core graphics processor
• 1 GB RAM
• 1.2MP front-facing camera
• 8 or 16 GB internal storage

Not bad

It does only feature the front-facing camera which I'm ok with really, that's why I have a point-and-shoot camera. The one thing that is a bit of a let down is that there is no microSD slot. So you are either stuck with 8GB or 16GB. From what I understand the operating system alone, takes almost 4GB! It's no surprise that as I write this that the 16GB version is no longer offered direct from Google due to the high demand. I know this was to keep the cost low, but maybe they could have come out with only an 8GB version but offer a microSD slot? Still at $199 and $249 for what you do get is still very impressive. Maybe I should have named this one "HDS wants a 16GB Nexus 7 tablet"

Comments

I haven't seen this in person but my nephew has one so maybe I'll have a chance to see if it smoother. How about those of you reading this? You have a Nexus 7 or do you have a Galaxy Nexus phone that has been updated to Jelly Bean? Is it really as smooth as butter? I like butter, so I would be willing to put it on Jelly Bean if it's better. Let me know.

HDS wants a notebook

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I have a whole new vision for my notebook

I guess it shouldn't be that big of a surprise that the notebook I would want is the Apple MacBook Pro with Retina display. I don't consider myself to be an Apple fan boy but since I do graphic design and dabble in photography and video editing, having that Retina display would be nice. This will also help stop those "What?" faces I get. I'll explain.

You see every time I tell people that I do graphic design they always follow up with "You must use a Mac" or "What kind of Mac do you have?". I then have to tell them I use a PC both at home and at work. That's when I get the "What?" face. If I had this I can just say "Why yes, I use a MacBook Pro with Retina display." Yeah, you have to say "with Retina display" because that is the way Apple wants it. That's easier than explaining that Photoshop and the rest of the Adobe Suite works with a PC too because it's actually software that can be used on different computer platforms and not Mac specific.

Is this vision a result of beer goggles?

It starts at $2199, but it does use the latest current tech. I don't mind something being expensive if it has the goods to back it up. This one seems like it actually does. Here is what you get:

• Intel i7 quad-core 2.3ghz up to 2.7ghz
• 15.4 retina display with 2880x1800 resolution
• 8gb - 16gb of ram
• Solid state drives from 256gb - 768gb
• Intel HD graphics 4000 and NVIDIA GeForce GT 650M with 1gb memory
• All in under 4.5lbs and less than 1" thick

So I guess I can see that it isn't just marketing fluff. It's done well in various benchmarks and I especially thought Ubergizmo's performance relative to price/weight chart was interesting. I also have to give it to Apple for the actual construction of the notebook. I have seen the old Macbook Pros and was surprised at how sturdy and high quality they felt. I'm sure this one is no different.

Comments

Does anyone have one of these yet? Has it made you a better person and changed your life? Does it make you question why everything else just doesn't compare? Are you rethinking everything, even reading this far in this post? Wait, scratch that last one.

HDS wants a big TV

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Which one is better? 75 or 90

For my first real post, I thought it would be best to start with something big. I mean 75 or 90 inches big.

Why those two sizes?

One is for the Sharp LC-90LE745U which Sharp claims is the world's largest LED TV. At 90 inches (actually 90 1/64 diagonal) it is really impressive. I measured the wall in our living room were we have our 32 inch TV (stop laughing, it seemed big when we got it) and the Sharp would take 2/3 of that wall. It would be like having a window in my wall. I would of course then have to get a Blu-Ray of looping window scenes that can play while we are having dinner. Anybody know if those exist? I know they have the looping fireplace on Netflix but a 90 inch fireplace is kind of ridiculous.
The specs are good too:

• 1920x1080 resolution
• Built-in wi-fi
• Smart TV with web browser
• Full HD Active 3D
• Full array LED
• 120hz refresh rate (Aquamotion bumps it up to 240hz)

What about the 75?

Well that is in regards to the Samsung 75-inch ES9000. Unfortunately that is only available in Korea and no mention yet if that will be coming to the US. I know that this one is smaller but I think it actually looks beautiful. It has a super thin bezel which from the pictures it almost doesn't seem to have one. The Samsung just looks more stylish and hi-tech while the Sharp one goes a little more boxy and plain. I couldn't find the specs for that one but I'm sure they are good to. It also has a retractable webcam along the top, very cool.

Why can't I have them?

As stated above for the Samsung it's only available in Korea and even if I could get it, it's priced at around $17,450. That actually makes the Sharp one look even better because that is available in the US and it's priced at $10,999, over $6,400 less! They always say you should buy the biggest TV that you can afford so if you could afford either these than the Sharp one is a steal. Even if it doesn't look as sexy. Sadly that is still over my budget so I can't have either.

Comments

Does anyone have one of these or seen it in person? What do you think? If someone has seen the Samsung one, please let me know if it is as beautiful as I think it is.