Rock Band Is Rockin' The Holidays

Earlier this week you may have read about what I received for Christmas. Something else that made its way under the tree is Rock Band, one of the hottest video games to hit the market this Christmas season. Rock Band is the game for a wannabe music star or someone who loves to rock.

For review purposes, I have the PlayStation 3 version, and from what I hear, it’s similar to the Xbox 360 version. The guitar gameplay is very similar to Guitar Hero, but it takes some getting used to.It com- bines the four essentials of a band - guitar,bass,drums and vocals into one game. The singing portion reminds me of SingStar - you match your vocal pitch to the meter while singing to the lyrics that appear on your screen.

Then there are the drums. I had the most fun playing the drums. I’ve never played real drums before, but this definitely gave me a taste of it. The drum kit has four color- coded pads and a kick pedal. As with the guitar play, you hit and match the corresponding color notes to what appears on your screen. Two of the pads act as tom- toms; the others,a snare and a crash cymbal. When you see the open bars, this is the opportunity for you to improvise and hit those drum pads randomly to your heart’s content.

Fifty-eight songs come pre-loaded on your Rock Band game disk, with song genres ranging from alternative and classic rock to heavy metal and punk. You’re not limited to these songs since you can download additional content. The available items are frequently updated and include multi-song packs, full albums or individual songs.You can purchase three-song packs from Metallica, The Police or Queens of the Stone Age for $5.49/pack or $1.99/track. Individual tracks from Foreigner, Wolfmother, The Runaways and other bands are $1.99/track. Be on the lookout for more, as these will constantly be updated.

"We are excited to unleash some of the most beloved rock songs of all time for consumers to customize their Rock Band game experience - for an amazing price,"said Paul DeGooyer, senior vice president of MTV Games."The overwhelmingly positive response from artists, managers, music publishers and record labels has set up a queue of fantastic tracks that will continue to roll out every week.”

I enjoy Rock Band as much as Guitar Hero III - it’s difficult to say which is better. Rock Band is definitely a superior party/group game since more people can par- ticipate. The guitar that comes with Rock Band seems to be cheaply made in comparison to the Guitar Hero one, and the pedal on the drum feels as if it will break if you push it too hard.However,the Rock Band guitar is larger with a longer neck, bigger fret buttons and a sec- ond set of fret buttons for solos.

One of the best game features is the graphics. The animation on each musician is detailed along with eye-appealing visual effects. Unfortunately the band world tour mode is not available online, so you can’t play with your friends that are logged on. The co-op mode is probably the most convenient for a party, since you can just pick up the instruments and go. Overall, the

game is a bit pricey, but if you enter- tain guests often, it’s worth it. Rock Band is rated T for Teen and available for PlayStation 2 and 3, and Xbox360. Prices are $49.99/$59.99 (game only) to $159.99/$169.99 (comes with gui- tar controller, drum controller, microphone and game disk). Find it at your nearest Best Buy (www.bestbuy.com), GameStop (www.gamestop.com) or online at www.amazon.com.

A True Click Chick Christmas

A couple weeks before Christmas my husband came home telling me that people at work were asking him if he was going to buy me some nice jewelry for Christmas. Over the years I’ve known him, that same question seems to come up every birthday, anniversary or Christmas season.

All I can say is that I just could-n’t stop laughing about that. In fact, I’m still chuckling about this last instance as I’m writing this. Anybody who knows me well knows that I’ll take a nice video game or electronic toy any day over jewelry. I do own the basics, which include my engagement and wedding rings, and a simple necklace - that’s it. I’m just not big a jewelry person.

So what did my husband give me for Christmas? I usually don’t ask for much, but there’s only one thing I asked for - an external one terabyte (TB) hard drive. Oh, how romantic! I know there are bigger ones out there, but I figured 1TB is big enough to hold all my data, yet still have the “wow” factor with ample space to hold additional pictures, music, etc. If you’re not sure how much a terabyte is - remember those 3 1/2-inch disks (that hold 1.44MB each)? It’s about 695,000 of those. Or, in more layman’s terms, it can hold about 250,000 mp3 songs, 285,000 photos, 400 hours of DVD quality video, or 100 hours of HD video. Not bad for a little box, eh?

As far as external drives, there are so many choices out there, but because of a $299 deal that couldn’t be resisted, I ended up with Western Digital’s My Book Pro Edition II 1TB USB/Firewire Triple Interface External Hard Drive (WDG2TP10000). My favorite part about the drive is that it comes with FireWire 400/800.

I’m using the FireWire 800 for all my data transfers, of course. For those not fortunate enough to have a FireWire connection, you can use USB 2.0.

If 1TB isn’t enough, you can double the My Book Pro Edition II to up to 2TB of storage. Find the 1TB for $399.99 (sorry, the $299 deal I found is finished), 1.5TB for $599.99 or 2TB for $699.99 on Western Digital’s website (www.wdc.com) or on www.amazon.com.


Christmas didn’t stop at the terabyte. I also received a Magellan Maestro 3140, an in-car GPS device, but really it’s meant to be shared. With a trip to cover the Consumer Electronics Show and Macworld for you folks next month, I wanted to finally buy a GPS for driving, and finding my way around. We’ll be driving across state lines, including the desert for this one, so

I want to make sure we don’t end up lost, especially around the city areas.

As with the terabyte, the Magellan Maestro 3140 was a steal with a $199 price tag. Yes, there are a plethora of other GPS devices to choose from, but this was at the top of the list because of the price. It initially came out in May of this year, and features an integrated antenna and battery (chargeable in the car), SmartDetour (feature to help you route around traffic), QuickSpell (for quick data entry) and the SIRF Star III GPS chips for fast position fixes and reliable satellite acquisition.

AAA TourBook travel information and roadside assistance are integrated into the box, and you can customize your Points of Interest (POI). The POI feature comes in handy whether you’re looking for the next gas station, Italian restaurant or Starbucks. Through its Bluetooth functionality I paired it with my phone, and you can make phone calls through the device directly to numbers that are already preprogrammed in its database. I thought that was smooth.

From what I’ve seen of it so far, it successfully takes me from Point A to B, but noticeably not the most direct route. Additionally, it seems a bit slow when recalculating routes (when you miss a turn, etc.). I enjoy the Bluetooth capability and its clean-looking 4.3-inch touch screen display. I guess I’ll see how it fares on the mainland next week. No more $199 deals, but you can find it at your nearest Best Buy (www.bestbuy.com) or on www.amazon.com.

The bottom line: I’ll take a terabyte over 24 karats any day ...

Bringing VUDU Magic To Hawaii

In the past couple years I’ve switched between Netflix and Blockbuster’s online service. The two companies have been so competitive with each other, it’s been difficult to decide which to stick with. Then there’s the Bluray vs. HD-DVD war. Decisions, decisions, decisions.

Here to give you another choice is VUDU. It’s a little box that offers you instant access to about 5,000 movies - from mainstream blockbusters to independent films and more are added every week. The best thing about it is these movies are offered to you in High-Definition (HD). There are no activation or subscription fees, and the rental prices range from 99 cents to $3.99, or $4.99 to $19.99 for purchase. The VUDU interface reminds me of the TiVo Digital Video Recorder, probably because VUDU was designed by a group of former TiVo engineers.

Hawaiian Telcom just announced it will be testing VUDU’s video-on-demand (VOD) service in Hawaii. “When powered by Hawaiian Telcom High-Speed Internet service, particularly the 7 or 11 Mbps service, the VUDU experience is incredible,” says Hawaiian Telcom vice president-sales and marketing, Tom French. “We’re delighted to introduce Hawaii to this exciting new service just in time for the holidays.”


Measuring in at about 2 inches high by 8 inches wide, the VUDU box is very small and can easily hide in the midst of all your other home entertainment equipment. It reminds me of a slightly bigger but black Apple TV or Mac Mini. For your HDMI output, you can specify 480i, 480p, 720p, 1080i or 1080p resolutions. If you have an older TV, it also has composite and S-Video outputs. It connects to the Internet directly through Ethernet (no WiFi), and has a USB port for future expansion. You’ll see a little antenna on the back too. At first I thought it was for Wi-Fi, but it’s actually for the radio frequency (RF) remote control, so you don’t have to worry about controlling it via line-of-sight only.

The built-in hard drive is 250GB, so you can store a few movies on there (about 100 hours’worth). When you rent, you have 30 days to watch the movie before it disappears off the box. But once you start watching it, your viewing period is only 24 hours. VUDU has deals with just about all the major studios out there - Disney, Fox, Sony, Lionsgate, Warner, Paramount, Universal and more smaller ones. There will be about 10 to 20 new movie titles added each week, with TV shows to be added soon as well.

“VUDU delivers what other companies dream about - instant digital gratification. We’re pleased to partner with Hawaiian Telcom to bring the next generation of video-on-demand service to the Islands,” says VUDU executive vice president-sales and business development, Tony Miranz. “Our service is about simplicity, convenience and maximizing the value of a quality broadband connection like Hawaiian Telcom’s High-Speed Internet.” VUDU is a great idea, and I enjoy the instantaneousness of it with its smooth interface, and it definitely has a great deal of potential. My small complaint is that it does not have any subtitles available (available only for foreign films). Since I’m partially deaf in one ear, I use the subtitles that come with DVDs. Additionally, it would be nice if you could transfer the movies onto an external drive to watch on your computer (since you already own it), and I think the pricing might be a little better value if it were subscription-based instead of pay-per-movie. Despite that, this is the ultimate tool for the lazy movie lover, and the closest you’ll come to Blockbuster or Netflix in your living room without having to physically go to the store or walk to the mailbox.

A special promotion is being offered to existing Hawaiian Telcom High-Speed Internet customers: The VUDU box (with remote control) will cost you $199 until Feb. 8. Otherwise, the retail price is $399 for non-Hawaiian Telcom customers or if you buy from VUDU’s web-site (www.vudu.com). Either way, each new VUDU includes $50 credit toward movie rentals or purchases.

Purchase your VUDU from Hawaiian Telcom’s Kapiolani, Kapolei or Windward Mall stores to receive the special price, or to see a demo. At these stores you also can enter to win a free VUDU (entry deadline is Jan. 31, 2008).

Assassin's Creed

Assassin’s Creed, Ubisoft’s highly anticipated game title announced well over a year ago, is finally here! It’s been in development so long that I remember seeing it at the Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) in early 2006. After all that hype I was a little disappointed with the beginning of the game. You go through a confusing sub-plot that takes place in today’s world, where you’re a teenager trying to sync with your ancestor to make you be a better person ... I think.

I thought that part was unnecessary, but once you pass it you go throughout the game as Altair, an elite assassin sent to stop the hostilities by suppressing the powers on both the Crusader and Saracen sides in 1191 A.D. during the Third Crusade. As an assassin, you are a warrior shrouded in secrecy and feared for your ruthlessness. Your actions have the capability to throw your immediate environment into chaos and shape the events of history.


There are lots of activities that keep you busy exploring - fly across rooftops, walk through crowds in the marketplace, listen to orators lecture or converse with drunks in alley corners. Once you do your official game tasks, you can venture off and take the optional tasks to explore everything including searching for the collectible flags scattered across the cities and countryside.

You, as Altair, explore three Holy Land cities: Jerusalem, Damascus and Acre. Each has its own personality and is broken up into three sections - poor, middle-class and rich. That’s a total of nine sections for nine assassinations. You focus on getting around very stealthily.You can pounce on your enemies and, using a hidden blade, do a one-stab kill or throw daggers to take them down from a distance. Of course, your main weapon is your sword. As you go, you’ll also unlock moves to use against your adversaries. Sometimes you’ll have one attacker or a whole horde to fend off at one time, but you won’t feel overwhelmed as you may in other games. If the gameplay becomes too much work, you can always hide in the crowds to give yourself some rest.

I reviewed the Xbox 360 version of the game, but I heard the differences between this and the PlayStation 3 (PS3) versions are minimal. Once you’ve unlocked all the sections of the cities you can fully appreciate flying around the cities and the beautiful scenery.


Assassin’s Creed definitely has nice graphics, and if you’re a detail-oriented person,you’ll find it especially enjoyable since you can do so much side venturing. The storyline as a whole isn’t that great, and the load times can lag at times, but my favorite part is being able to fly around the cities with ease. If you play through the main quest with no side trips, it will probably take you about 20-30 hours to complete. If you do it with all the extras, perhaps it will take about 50-60 hours to finish with all your treasures.

Assassin’s Creed is one-player, rated M for Mature (ages 17+),and is $59.99 for the PS3 and Xbox 360, and $49.99 for the PC. This is an idea for a Christmas present for the adult gamer in your life. Find it online at www.amazon.com (Amazon has convenient free shipping), or your nearest CompUSA www.compusa.com) and Best Buy (www.bestbuy.com).

For more information, visit www.assassinscreedgame.com

Robotic Gutter Cleaner

As the rainy season is upon us, and with all the windstorms we had last week, your gutter might be all clogged up with all the leaves and rubbish flying around. Fortunately, because of the lack of tall trees in my yard, I haven’t seen my gutter become congested, but I know a few people who struggle with this. For you folks who have a gutter build-up problem, iRobot’s Looj is for you. With it, those pesky climbs up the ladder while having to fiddle with your equipment will be significantly reduced.

Another innovation from iRobot, the Looj is the first of its kind and is designed to simplify the difficult and dangerous job of gutter cleaning. It also was honored with the CES (Consumer Electronics Showcase) Best of Innovations Design and Engineering Award.


“iRobot’s products are designed to free consumers from dull, dirty and dangerous tasks, allowing them to do more of what they want to do and less of what they have to do,” says Sandra Lawrence, president and general manager of iRobot Home Robots. “We are pleased iRobot’s design innovation and commitment to create a whole new category of practical and affordable household helpers, such as the iRobot Roomba, iRobot ScoobaTM and iRobot Looj, continues to be recognized by CES.”

The Looj is controlled by a wireless remote that doubles as a detachable handle. It can clean an entire stretch of gutter from one location, which reduces the number of times you have to reposition and climb up a ladder. It’s 2 1/4 inches high, and it easily drives under your gutter straps using its three-stage auger that dislodges and sweeps out dirt, leaves and other debris (i.e. ice dams if you live on the Mainland) that cause water damage and overspills in your gutter. Note that it will not fit in all gutters, but if yours is at least 3 1/4 inches wide, you’re good to go.


The setup is straightforward: You place your ladder at the desired point, place the Looj in your belt, climb the ladder, then put the Looj in the gutter. You drive it back and forth with your remote, and it will last you about 250 linear feet of gutter cleaning, or 30 to 45 minutes. Thereafter it takes 15 hours to charge the battery. Oh, note that it’s waterproof, which makes hosing it off to clean it easy too.

Some feedback that was shared with me: It’s best to use the Looj when it’s dry, or when you know the leaves in your gutter are dry. The Looj does-n’t perform quite up to par with wet debris. Expect to do some sweeping on the ground after the Looj does its thing. It typically shoots the contents two to three feet away from your house. Despite that, I still say it beats having to climb the ladder multiple times and risk falling, etc.

Find the iRobot Looj Gutter Cleaning Robot at www.irobot.com or on www.amazon.com. There are three different models - the basic 120 is $99.99, and includes a belt clip. The 130 is $129.99, and has a holster for hands-free transport and convenient storage, while the $169.99 150 model features the holster along with an extra battery pack and additional three-stage auger. See the website for more information and video product demonstrations.

Click Chick’s Holiday Gift List 2007

With Christmas on the horizon, I’ve been receiving many inquiries on what the best tech gifts are for this year. Here are a few of my top choices (in no particular order):


Slingbox SOLO
The SOLO is essential if you’re on the road frequently and don’t want to miss your favorite TV shows. It was released in September and is a wonderful addition the Slingbox family. I think the SOLO is the best way to watch your TV shows that are at home on your computer (as long as you have a solid high-speed Internet connection).

With the SOLO, you can watch content from your DVR, digital cable box, satellite receiver or DVD player. It can connect to any of your high definition (HD) devices,but will only work with one device at a time. There are no monthly fees,and you watch it using the SlingPlayer (Mac and PC compatible), downloadable from Sling Media. You can also watch from your cell phone (Windows Mobile, Palm OS or Symbian phones) for additional fees.

The SOLO goes for $179.99 at www.amazon.com, or your nearest CompUSA (www.compsa.com), Best Buy (www.bestbuy.com).


Fisher-Price Smart Cycle
For the 3- to 6-year-old keiki out there, Fisher-Price just released its Smart Cycle,a physical learning arcade system that also is a stationary bike. Plug it right into your TV’s AV port, and your keiki will be off. As they pedal, cute character friends take them through learning discoveries, games and exciting races.

The included game cartridge has three modes of play: 1) Drive, steer and learn at your own pace while visiting Math Mountain, Shape Lake, Number Fields, Letter Creek and other stops. 2) Learn, stop and rest,but don’t stop learning: Use the joystick to reinforce important learning skills with plenty of games and activities/levels for growing keiki. 3) Race: Put the pedal to the metal while racing with cars on-screen, against the clock, or with another player.

Additional Smart Cycle Cartridge titles include Nick Jr. Dora the Explorer Friendship Adventure, Nick Jr. Go Diego Go!, Diego’s Animal Rescue, Discover the Dinosaurs, Nickelodeon SpongeBob Squarepants Ocean Adventure and Hot Wheels Barbie Fairytopia. These will run you approximately $20 each. The Smart Cycle is perfect for Slingbox S0LO, Smart Cycle, iPod Touch, Nintendo Wii indoor fun on a rainy day. It will cost you $99.99 at your nearest Wal-Mart (www.walmart.com),www.amazon.com or at Toys R Us (www.toys-rusinc.com).



iPod Touch
Based on the inquiries I’ve received, Apple’s iPod Touch is the hottest iPod (and mp3 player in general) in demand this season. It comes in 8GB and 16GB models and features a nice 3.5-inch widescreen multi-touch interface,Wi-Fi web browsing - and you can download music directly from iTunes. I love mine,which I received as a birthday present a couple months ago!

The 8GB is $299,and the 16GB is $399 at your nearest Apple Store (www.apple.com).


Nintendo Wii
Although the Nintendo Wii has been out for more than a year now, this seems to be the hottest game console this Christmas. The best thing is that it sure gets your butt off the couch and moving around with the wireless controller. The whole setup makes it user-friendly for “nongamers” who are interested in getting their foot in the door in the world of video games.

The Wii retails for $249.99, but a warning: It is difficult to actually find one in stock at stores or online (for a reasonable price). I noticed that CompUSA’s website (www.compusa.com) has an e-mail notification option to let you know when it can be delivered. Otherwise, don’t give up, and keep popping your head into the stores around town to check availability.


Guitar Hero III
You may remember me writing about Guitar Hero III a few weeks ago.Well,it’s high up on the list for the most fun game - especially if you love music. This game is good for hand-eye coordination as you match the notes on the screen to which button you need to push on the guitar.

It is rated T for Teen, and you can find it for your Nintendo Wii, PlayStation 2 or 3, Xbox 360, and the PC and Mac versions have been released since my previous column. You can find it at GameStop (www.gamestop.com), CompUSA (www.compusa.com) or www.amazon.com, and the prices vary from $49.99 to $129.99, depending on the platform or if you purchase the guitar bundle pack.

Happy Shopping!

Eye-Fi Card

As much as I enjoy taking pictures, I don’t always upload the photos to my computer or Flickr account right away. I found a new SD memory card that does the uploading for me - the Eye-Fi - the world’s first wireless SD memory card for your digital camera.

Setting up the card is a breeze. Out of the box it comes plugged into its own USB card reader. You plug it into your computer, and the install files for the Eye-Fi Manager program are on there (for both Mac and PC). The install process then takes you through the configuration of the card to upload to the service of your choice (17 to choose from). Since I’m a Flickr user, I have my pictures upload to there in addition to my computer.

“Digital cameras have made it extremely easy to take pictures, but the rest of the process is a hassle,” says Jef Holove, chief executive officer of EyeFi. “The Eye-Fi Card removes the barriers and lets users get to the fun part of sharing and printing their memories. We’re putting the magic back into photography.” The Eye-Fi works by using your wireless Internet connection to eliminate messing with cables, card readers or software. You turn on your digital camera, take your pictures and don’t have to worry. The uploading is done for you. The online services you can upload to include KODAK Gallery, Shutterfly, Wal-Mart, Snapfish, Photobucket, Facebook, Webshots, Picasa Web Albums, SmugMug, Flickr, Fotki, TypePad, VOX, dotPhoto, Phanfare, Snarpcast and Gallery.

As cool as the Eye-Fi is, I do have a couple of complaints. No surprise, but it uses up the juice in your camera’s battery quickly, and it uploads all the pictures you take. It would be nice to pick what photos to upload, especially if you have multiple shots of the same thing. Despite these issues, the Eye-Fi has my thumbs up.

A perfect stocking stuffer for the photographer in your life, you can find the 2GB (approximately 1,000 images) Eye-Fi at your nearest Wal-Mart (www.walmart.com), www.amazon.com, or www.buy.com for $99.99. Visit www.eye.fi.com for additional information.

eStarling Wireless Photo Frame

So now with your memory card uploading all your pictures, match it up with a wireless picture frame. eStarling recently announced its next generation frame that can do a whole lot more than just be a frame. eStarling provides a single website to log onto so you can manage all your photo assets you’ve uploaded to your various online places (i.e. Flickr, Photobucket), and you can decide which photos show up on your frame. As with the first generation eStarling, you can subscribe your frame to a photo RSS feed. The best added feature is that it has its own e-mail address.

This means anyone you give the address to can send pictures to your frame, especially helpful for tech-challenged individuals. It's fun to use with your camera-enabled cell phone as well. The next gen 8-inch eStarling comes in a black finish, and supports 800x600 pixels, both Windows and Mac, and has 128MB of FLASH memory. The eStarling frame retails for $249 for the 8-inch, and $199 for the 7-inch, and is available at www.thinkgeek.com and www.amazon.com. Go to www.estarling.com for more information.