Tech2

Here’s a product that had three strikes with me before I ever heard it. First there’s the name, which seems more appropriate for a Frito-Lay product. Then there’s the lineage: JBL’s smaller, less-expensive docks never impressed me. Last, Maroon 5 appears in the ads. What, I ask rhetorically, would the creators of “Moves Like Jagger” know about sound quality?

Many audio manufacturers have addressed the changes that room acoustics afflict on our sound systems. But until a week ago, I knew of no audio manufacturers who’ve addressed the changes that our hearing causes on sound.

This week may be the most eventful in history for surround-sound geeks. Yesterday, one of the biggest names in surround sound — DTS — announced it had acquired another of the biggest names in surround sound, SRS.

It’s hardly a new trend, hiring a high-end audio company to design — maybe build — an audio system upgrade for a car. Bose does it all the time, as do THX, B&W, Lexicon, and B&O

It’s win-win, better audio, a bit of extra profit, and brand exposure for the audio company. But when it’s a pairing of two storied companies like Porsche and Burmester, color me interested.

Conveniently, that color is “Yachting Blue.”

I had no intention of seeing Titanic in 3D. This wasn’t a “Hmmm, should I” type decision. At no point was the option of going to a theater and seeing this movie in faux-3D a valid option in my brain. It was up there with “run marathon,” “time travel,” and “read Twilight” on the list of things I know I will never do.

Well, last night I saw it — James Cameron’s retrofitted 3D masterpiece. And you know what, I expected to hate it. . . and didn’t. As someone who reviews 3D crap — sorry “stuff” — for a living, here’s my take.

One of the most common requests I get by email, and in comments on reviews, is to share what picture settings I've used to achieve the best image.

To put it bluntly: no. This isn't because my settings are some big secret, it's because I honestly believe sharing them is a bad idea, and I'd be doing more harm than good.

And once I list the reasons why, you may even agree with me.

I am not naive enough to think that the gaming industry's primary desire is anything other than to make money. As an industry, they're really good at it, making more than the movie and music industries combined.

The past year has seen an explosion of "Free to Play" (F2P) games that are, well, free to play. Lately, storied titles like Tribes have been reborn in this model. More titles in development aim directly at this new pricing strategy.

But is it good for games, and more importantly, is it good for gamers?