First shipments of Acer’s 10.1-inch Aspire One netbooks are now underway in Taiwan and Hong Kong. Large volume shipments are on schedule for the rest-of-world beginning mid-February according to the DigiTimes ‘ typically reliable Acer sources. And after watching the 8.9-inch Aspire One steal the crown of world’s best selling netbook away from ASUS, we thought you’d like to know that Acer’s version of the 1.6GHz Atom N270 netbook with 1GB of RAM, SDHC card slot, 3x USB, and optional 3G was nearly here.

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Acer’s 10.1-inch Aspire One netbook trickles out

Sure Whac-a-Butt may be a great conversation piece at your frat house, but some of us prefer the classic version. Luckily, that’s out now too. USB Whac-a-Mole is $17, but only in Korea . [ Hallyutech ]

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USB Whac-a-Mole Brings Your Carnival Fantasies into Your Cubicle [Animal Abuse]

‘Tis a shame Optoma ’s reserving its latest 1080p beamer for the overseas crowd, but we’ll set aside our envy for a tick and just join in the across-the-pond-excitement. The ThemeScene HD82 sports a native 1,920 x 1,080 resolution, 1,300 nits of brightness, a 20,000:1 maximum contrast ratio and a DLP engine.

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Optoma delivers 1080p ThemeScene HD82 projector to the UK

What else have you got going on while you’re “taking the Browns to the Super Bowl”, if you get my meaning? A Newspaper? Popular Mechanics? Why not multitask and play some mobile games! And what better way to start my “Gaming on the Throne” review series than to mention two future mobile football classics for iPhone, brought to you by Skyworks Interactive: QB PASS ATTACK and X’s & O’s FOOTBALL.

Here are the descriptions straight from Skyworks:

QB PASS ATTACK features three sound tracks, state of the art iPhone 3D graphics, and two addictive game modes, Classic and Progressive! In Classic Mode, score as many points as you can within 60 seconds by throwing the football through the scoring holes. Hit the close receiver and score 7 points. Hit the receiver further downfield and score 30 points! In Progressive Mode, score as many touchdowns as you can in four “60-second” quarters. Each pass will be counted as a down and an onscreen display will mark your progress down the field with each throw. If you come up short on fourth and inches, it’s back to your own 20 yard line, but if you can hit the far receiver when the scoring hole is lit, it’s an instant touchdown!

In X’s & O’s Football, fight your way offensively downfield to score as many touchdowns as you can in four “60-second” quarters. Playing as the coach, quarterback, and receiver you’ll have to be at the top of your game to earn every first down. Come up short on fourth down, and you’ll be hitting the showers.

As coach, first select the play from the playbook and set your receivers to run a variety of passing routes such as the curl, deep out, and post. Then as quarterback, set your players in position, hike the ball and choose your receiver. Time your pass carefully to get the ball right into your receiver’s hands, and then control the receiver to run downfield for a touchdown! Once the receiver has the ball, you can tilt your iPhone/iPod touch to control his movement to the goal line! Use the accelerometer to adjust the running direction by tilting up and down, and adjust the speed by tilting right and left

My thoughts?

QB PASS ATTACK was a great “no brainer” game. No strategy, no planning, no experience necessary. Just try to “flick” footballs through one of two holes in a backdrop, as fast as you can. While the skill required is definitely more Greg Brady than Tom Brady, the iPhone touch screen interface makes it really fun and realistic (gravity, tilt-control trajectory). It is reminiscent of many a carnival/bar game you may have played. I found it addictive.

X’s & O’s FOOTBALL is a little different. It’s five-on-five, head to head football against “the computer”. You pick routes, make passes—it’s way better than Coleco Electronic Quarterback. This game is more intense and takes a little longer to get the hang of, but is equally fun and passes the time before you know it.

Both have nice sound design, thoughtful graphic detail and at $1.99 each, are great to have in your iPhone for a moment’s respite… wherever that may be.

The Bottom Line: Recommended.

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Review: QB PASS ATTACK and X’s & O’s FOOTBALL for the iPhone.

A little creative thinking over at the Inquirer has led them to suggest that Nvidia may get left out in the cold come the new generation of gaming consoles. Intel and AMD are set to split the spoils between them, leaving Nvidia (in its glory and its ego) to play with the PC market, which, as we are constantly being reminded, is dying.

It seems that there’s some bad blood between Sony and Nvidia, and some insiders have said that the GPU contract has gone over to Intel. Kind of puts the lid back on Nvidia’s can of whoop-ass. Similarly, Microsoft may be switching to AMD GPUs for grudge-related reasons. The Wii2, or WII, or Wiii, or Twii, will likely be sporting AMD hardware because ATI has been Nintendo’s partner for a while.

Add into this the fact that AMD is probably making rock-bottom bids right about now due to the fact that if they don’t make some money they’re going to be counting their stock’s value in pennies — on their hands. I’d certainly like to see a comeback like this.

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Intel and AMD to power PS4, Xbox 720, and WiiII?

With CES over and done with, there’s really just one thing left to do: wait for all those wares that were announced to actually ship. To that end, we reckon this question is particularly timely being that a whole slew of camcorders were introduced in Vegas. Feel free to suggest an oldie-but-goodie, though

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Ask Engadget: Best flash / HDD-based camcorder under $400?

Casio has an image problem in the US. Known as a great source of cheap digital watches, sometimes people forget that they also have a line of high-end models as well. When you say Casio people usually think of the G-Shock, or the often-mocked Databank. They think geeky, not classy — but Casio does both.

Personally, I prefer analog watches. Digitals are great, they are accurate, but they have absolutely no soul. I’ll take an analog that loses a few seconds a week, but has some personality, over a square black digital any day. And while it might be a bit of an anachronism in this day and age, I prefer to wear a watch over checking my phone for the time.

My current daily wear has been a Citizen Navihawk, but the Oceanus might just be replacing it.

Functionality
Casio has really pulled out the stops on the Super Chronograph. It’s light, the crystal is extremely tough, it’s astoundingly accurate (since it syncs itself every night with the atomic clock), you never have to replace the battery and it’s got personality. The case design also features some subtle electric blue accents. The logo on face is blue, the base of the hands are blue, and there’s even a thin blue line of metal right between the chapter ring and the bezel. It’s light, and very comfortable. As far as functionality, you’re really not losing anything with this watch. As with most high end digitals, the Super Chronograph has a stopwatch, countdown timer (both using the additional second hand) an alarm, and world timezones.

What I liked
Since the case and band are made of titanium the case has almost no weight to it (99 grams according to Casio), and the fit is extremely comfortable. One of the most remarkable things about the entire Oceanus line is that they’ve put in some seriously geeky features, but still keep that style that you’d see in other high end watches like Tag Heuer or Seiko.

What I didn’t like
There are couple of issues that came up with the Super Chronograph. As a word of warning, do not expect to be able to just pick this thing up and use it. It’s not like any other watch with this feature set. You will need to read the manual to figure out how to set the time zone, and adjust the other features to your needs.

I also had some issues with the band. I took it to my favorite jeweler to have it adjusted, and it took him about 15 minutes to get the band size changed. Also, the illumination on the hands is a bit weak. While initially it is extremely bright it fades quickly, and after about 15 minutes is difficult to read. This is surprising since I’ve owned other Casio’s that had no problem with the hands staying bright for hours.

In conclusion
If you’re a watch lover, go find a local jeweler that carries this brand. You might have some trouble finding them, but it’ll be worth it for a comfortable, high quality watch that delivers some very nice features. Expect to pay about $900.

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Review: Casio Oceanus Super Chronograph

This camouflage treehouse is actually a two level modern abode with a deck, livingroom, kitchen and sleeping quarters. [ Designboom ]

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Invisible Tree House Is a Modern Multi-level Hideaway [Treehouse]

After The Matrix and Lord of the Rings, X-Men is the must-have nerd trilogy of the decade and it’s finally going to be available on Blu-ray. Amazon is already taking pre-orders for the April 21, 2009 release if you feel ready to fork over your $55.99. ($79.99 MSRP) But come-on, you know you are going to have this trilogy sitting proudly next your hand assembled X-Men models anyway so go ahead and pre-order it already.

THE EVOLUTION CONTINUES IN HIGH – DEF

X-MEN TRILOGY

BLU-RAY COLLECTION

For The First Time All Three Action-Packed, Super-Powered Adventures

Available On Blu-ray Disc April 21st
From Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment

BD-Live Offers Exclusive Preview To Highly Anticipated Film X-Men Origins: Wolverine

CENTURY CITY, Calif. – One of the most critically-acclaimed comic book franchises of all time claws its way onto Blu-ray Disc (BD) when the X-Men Trilogy arrives April 21st in North America from Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment. Directed by Bryan Singer (The Usual Suspects, Valkyrie) and Brett Ratner (Rush Hour, Red Dragon), the X-Men saga – X-Men, X2: X-Men United and X3: The Last Stand – chronicles the ongoing battle between humans and mutants and their attempt to coexist, from their humble beginnings at Xavier’s School For The Gifted to the ultimate showdown against those that wish to “cure” them. Professor Charles Xavier (Patrick Stewart; “American Dad,” “Star Trek: The Next Generation”) must lead the well-known mutant heroes Wolverine (Hugh Jackman; Australia), Storm (Halle Berry; Monster’s Ball) Cyclops (James Marsden; 27 Dresses) and Rogue (Anna Paquin; The Piano) to fight against evil villains and use their powers for the good of mankind.

In a studio first, the discs include a BD Live feature that will allow fans to purchase advance tickets and gain access to exciting never-before-scene footage to the highly anticipated upcoming film X-Men Origins: Wolverine debuting in theatres May 1st. Boasting superior picture and sound quality for the ultimate viewing experience, the X-Men Trilogy set is loaded with deleted and extended scenes, cast and crew commentary, making-of featurettes and much more. The set also includes movie cash towards the new theatrical release as well as the studio’s upcoming blockbusters Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs and Night at the Museum: Escape from the Smithsonian.

The X-Men Trilogy – X-Men, X2: X-Men United and X3: The Last Stand will be available for a suggested retail price of $79.99 U.S. / $89.99 Canada. Additionally each will be available individually for the suggested retail price of $34.99 U.S. / $37.99. Prebook is March 25.

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X-Men trilogy finally coming out on Blu-ray, pre-order now

Windows 7 multitouch: it’s a gimmick (for now) It’s not that they don’t work, at least on occasion, it’s that they don’t really provide a comprehensive or pleasurable method for using a computer. BlackBerry Blowout: Storm vs. Bold vs. Curve 8900 We decided to take the most recent ‘Berrys — the Curve 8900, Bold, and Storm — and toss them into a big pile.

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The Daily Roundup: here’s what you might’ve missed