Thursday, November 25, 2010

Angry Bird - iPhone Games Review

Angry Birds is a wacky castle-destruction physics game where you fire birds through a slingshot in order to kill piggies. The art is funny, the difficulty curve is great, and the levels are clever.

IMG_0393

With a title like Angry Birds, you just know that this game is going to be a bit on the wacky side. And while it certainly is wacky, Angry Birds is also a great physics puzzler that mixes strategy, brute force, and luck to create a solid casual game.

The “plot” exists to justify the game, but it’s a justification that’ll make you laugh. A bunch of evil green pigs have stolen the Angry Birds’ eggs. Naturally, the birds decide that the best way to take revenge is—not to get the eggs back, oh no—but to jump into a slingshot and hurl themselves at the pigs’ fortified castles. Each level has your birds and their slingshot on the left side of the screen, and the pigs in their castle on the right; your goal is to destroy all the little piggies.

Toppling each castle, however, is often a challenge. This is one of many things I love about Angry Birds: the levels are never impossible, but usually challenging. You’ll need to shoot your Angry Birds at just the right angle and intensity in order to strike the weak spot in the pigs’ castle. Controls are super-simple: touch the bird in the slingshot, then drag back and release to fling it. You can also pinch and zoom to move around the map, as there’s typically a large gap between your slingshot and the pigs. You get points for each bit of the castle you destroy, as well as 10,000 bonus points for each unused bird.

There’s more to it than just determining the castle’s weak spot, though that alone is often a challenge enough. While you start with simple red birds, as the game progresses new bird types are unlocked with special abilities that can me activated by tapping the screen mid-flight. Blue birds will burst into three separate, smaller birds cluster-bomb-style; yellow birds gain a sudden speed boost. Black birds explode, while white birds have exploding eggs. In each level, you’re given a preset collection of birds, so using each type to your advantage quickly becomes another necessary strategic element.

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Each time you beat a level, you unlock the next one. I do wish that we had more than one new level unlocked at all times—it’s rather disheartening to be stuck just because you’re having problems with one particular scenario. The included 63 levels should last you a while. Replay value is decent; there’s a tiered ranking system that awards you 1-3 stars for your performance on each level, so you can try to improve that, but leaderboards are noticeably absent. I can’t help but feel that Angry Birds would really benefit from OpenFeint or something similar.

As for the art, well, it speaks for itself. The disgruntled-looking birds are very angry indeed, and the cute green piggies are, well, adorable. The cute and cartoony graphics offset the birds’ fierce anger rather nicely, and it’s hard not to grin while you’re playing. The music is a merry, mocking little ditty and while it does get old after a while, it also contributes to the mood of the game. (In other words: yep, Angry Birds is all nonsense.)

You won’t find any extras here. There are no leaderboards, no alternate modes, no multiplayer, and no achievements. Yet despite the lack of such frills, Angry Birds is one of the best physics-based games I’ve played on my iPod. Destroying the piggies’ castles is a huge amount of fun, the difficulty progression is spot-on, and the humor jammed into it is the icing on the cake. Yes, I’d like to see some more content, but it’s a good game nonetheless. If you like castle-destruction at all, be sure to give it a try.

Thursday, November 11, 2010

Ebook: Panduan Menjana Wang Melalui Unit Trust

Dapatkan ebook JANA WANG dengan UNIT TRUST - Panduan Pelaburan Unit Trust ini sekarang untuk mengetahui perkara-perkara penting, panduan-panduan serta tips untuk anda mengetahui bagaimana anda boleh memaksimumkan pendapatan dan wang anda serta mengelakkan kerugian dalam pelaburan.


Di dalam ebook ini, anda akan mempelajari dan mengetahui panduan serta tip-tip berkaitan pelaburan unit trust di Malaysia. Sekiranya anda :

Mencari 'Dana Unit Trust berpotensi Untuk Pelaburan' melalui internet, suratkhabar, perunding unit trust dan lain-lain dengan cara yang menjimatkan masa dan wang anda

Membuat persediaan dengan melakukan kajian dan analisis terhadap pasaran unit trust dan prestasi dana-dana unit trust sebelum membuat pelaburan

Menggunakan khidmat perunding unit trust untuk mengetahui 'Harga Pasaran Semasa' serta bersusah payah membelek surat khabar setiap hari

Bersesak-sesak di jalan raya dan kaunter untuk urusan pemindahan Wang Simpanan KWSP anda untuk pelaburan unit trust

Memilih pakej pinjaman pelaburan yang perlu dipertimbangkan untuk pelaburan unit trust

Merancang serta berkeinginan untuk menjana kewangan anda untuk persediaan pada masa akan datang

dan banyak lagi panduan serta tip-tip yang membantu anda dalam pelaburan unit trust bagi memaksimakan $$$$$$$ anda


JANGAN TUNGGU LAGI, DAPATKAN EBOOK INI SEKARANG!

Thursday, November 4, 2010

iPhone 4 Review

Apple's launch of the iPhone 4 has seen the greatest excitement for a new phone ever - and with HD video recording, a super high-res screen and ridiculously slim dimensions, it's not hard to see why.

But things are a little different now - not only was the iPhone 3GS something of a non-update to the iPhone range, but there are finally decent alternatives in the smartphone market, with the HTC Desire and Samsung Galaxy S leading the Android fight right to Apple's door.

Add to that the first major leak of an Apple product a couple of months before launch, and suddenly the iPhone 4 has a lot to do to impress.

Apple iphone 4 review

At least Apple has unleashed the big guns for this effort - before we get into the headline specs, the design itself is a massive talking point on its own.

Jobs' chats on stage to unveil a new iPhone might have got a little repetitive (best this, magical that etc) but this is the first time since the first iPhone way back in January 2007 that we've seen a variation on the standard iPhone design.

Apple iphone 4 review

Gone is the traditional curved back and plastic exterior with slightly chunky dimensions; in is a chassis that's only 9.3mm thin at its thickest point and a new stainless steel and glass industrial design.

Apple iphone 4 review

If you're an iPhone fan, there's a good chance you won't like the look of the iPhone the first time you pick it up - it's the same weight as the iPhone 3GS at 137g, but it's a lot smaller, with dimensions of 115.2mm x58.6 mm x 9.3mm, so it feels like a much weightier and compact model.

The edges are stainless steel, apparently forged by winged unicorns in an iceberg (or something) to be 10 times stronger than 'normal' steel.

Apple iphone 4 review

The front and back of the phone are made of glass, which has also been treated to be a lot stronger than the normal variety we're used to seeing through and drinking out of.

This claim holds up - not only did we feel the need to drop the phone onto the floor a few times to test, someone nameless of the TechRadar team also knocked it out (an admittedly low level) window onto concrete - and not a scratch.

If you're the protective type, then you can buy an official 'Bumper' for the iPhone 4, which encases it in a small ring of rubber, if you haven't bought the handset only for its slim lines.

Apple iphone 4 review

The chassis shape isn't the only different thing with the iPhone 4 - the whole ethos has been tweaked. For instance, no longer is there a slightly plasticky rocker switch to control volume on the left-hand side, as it's now two discrete metal buttons with '+' and '-' written on.

The volume silencer rocker switch is above too, but that has also undergone the uber-metallic treatment.

Apple iphone 4 review

The top of the phone still holds the headphone jack, and the power/lock key. However, the 3.5mm port is now flush to the chassis, and the power button feels much nicer to hit than before.

There's also a separate microphone for noise cancelling next to this as well - we imagine a few people will be pushing paperclips in there before they realise that it's not for the SIM card slot.

Apple iphone 4 review

The right-hand side of the chassis is still blank - no camera button sadly, which would have been nice given the extra effort Apple has clearly put into overhauling the photography system.

Still, sleek is clearly still 'in' at the Cupertino HQ, and we can't say we blame the designers when you look at the lines.

Actually, that's not true - the micro-SIM slot is hidden away here, rather than on the top. It's the same pokey key thing/slot system as before, but this time the SIM card is much smaller - Apple says to make more room for stuff inside, we say it's just to shake things up a little bit. Either way, we bet micro-SIMs become the norm before very long in all phones.

Apple iphone 4 review

The bottom of the phone has the familiar Apple connector for charging and connecting and docking etc, and is flanked by another more microphone-y looking microphone slot and the speaker.

The front still has that one iconic button, which is much nicer to press in the new chassis, it has to be said.

Apple iphone 4 review

Overall, the design might not impress some people the first time they pick up the phone - a number of people we showed the phone to grimaced a little bit the first time they handled it.

It's a sharp and weighty-feeling phone, make no mistake - and it doesn't sit as comfortably in the hand as well as other iPhones of the past have.

But it feels premium, and at up to £600, it had better - that's a lot to pay when you consider you could get a 42-inch 1080p LCD for £200 less these days.

In the box

At least Apple has remained consistent when it comes to the packaging - apart from a new graphic on the front to make the new iPhone 4 look more mysterious, there's not a lot different to the older iPhones.

So that means: a simple Apple USB cable, a three-pin plug adaptor and some headphones. The latter is the same old set from the year before: hands free and a function button on the cord, but slightly poor quality compared to a range of other buds on the market.

Apple iphone 4 review

Oh, you also get that little tool for removing the micro-SIM card as well - but Apple should just save itself some money and stick a paperclip in there, as 99.99% of people will lose that little thing, panic, then improvise anyway. Well, we have. Twice.

Monday, November 1, 2010

ASB Loan by Maybank

ASB Financing

A term financing to purchase ASB unit trust

Valid till 30 June 2011

Eligibility

  • Individuals who are between the ages of 18 and 60 years old
  • Bumiputera

Loan Amount

  • Min loan amount : RM10,000
  • Max loan amount : Up to RM400,000 per borrower, at any one time including the balance outstanding of the existing ASB loans (if any), or up to the maximum investment amount allowed by ASNB, whichever lower

Margin of Advance

For loan amount up to RM200,000

  • Up to 100% of nominal value of ASB units
  • Up to 105%, inclusive of the GASBRTA

For loan amount above RM200,000, at any one time

  • Up to 95% of nominal value of ASB units
  • Up to 100%, inclusive of the GASBRTA

Loan Tenure

  • Up to 25 years or
  • Up to age 60, whichever is earlier

Pricing

  • Loan below 30,000
    BLR - 1.35 % (for 1st 3 years)
    BLR - 1.30 % (thereafter)
  • Loan RM30,000 & above
    BLR - 1.65% (throughout loan tenure)

View the monthly instalment repayment schedule

Repayment Frequency

  • Monthly

Repayment Option

  • Single installment only

Mode of Installment Payment

  • Standing Instruction (SI)

ASB Income Distribution & Bonus Earned

  • Automatically credited into the respective ASB unit holder's account
  • ASB financial year ends December 31

Required Documents

  • New ASB customers
    1. Application form
    2. Photocopy I/C
    3. Photocopy of latest 3 months pay slip (for financing above RM50,000 only)

  • Existing ASB unitholder customers
    1. Application form
    2. Photocopy I/C
    3. Photocopy of ASB passbook