Crave

(Credit: Crave UK)

BERLIN--Those of you familiar with Android devices will appreciate the sweet, delicious irony in the photo above. Yes, there are indeed Heroes, and they're made by HTC. But they've got some competition because Samsung has an Android-powered phone now, and it's called the Galaxy i7500. We've been playing with one here at IFA.

With its all-glass capacitive touch screen and lush interface, sweeping through the Galaxy's menus was unlike anything we've experienced on a Samsung phone before. Its 3.2-inch AMOLED screen's colors are rich, its menus are responsive, and wrapped in the 12mm-thick chassis it feels like one of the finest Android phones to date.

Samsung Galaxy i7500 Android smartphone -- photos

It's impressive inside as well: a 5-megapixel autofocus camera; GPS navigation; 7.2Mbps HSDPA Internet connection; Wi-Fi, stereo Bluetooth; support for DivX, H.264, and MPEG-4 video, plus MP3, WMA, AAC, and iTunes Plus music files; 8GB of internal memory expandable with microSD cards; and a real 3.5mm headphone socket.

Plus it runs Google's Android OS, meaning it's open to a world of application downloads from the Android Market. One of the only things we can criticize at this point is the LED flash, which could've been a xenon. But really, that's nitpicking when it comes to smartphones.

(Source: Crave UK)

Samsung Galaxy

(Credit: Samsung)

Believe it our not, government bureaucracy can be exciting. If you don't believe me, then look at the Federal Communications Commission over the last few days. Most of the time the cell phones passing through the agency's gates aren't terribly exciting, but you can have periods where some highly-anticipated models get the FCC's approval. And this week was one of those periods.

Samsung's Google Android phone, the Galaxy I7500L, first popped up on the FCC's Web site in May, but it made another appearance on Thursday. Though it now offers U.S. 3G, Engadget speculates that the "L" at the end of the product name means that it;s bound for Latin America. We also spied an HTC Touch Diamond for AT&T, and a North American version of the new LG Chocolate BL40G. And not to be outdone, Nokia actually had more phones in the hopper than Samsung. See, miracles do happen.

Because the FCC has to certify every phone sold in the United States, not to mention test its SAR rating, the agency's online database offers a lot of sneak peeks to those who dig. And to save you the trouble, Crave has combed through the database for you. Here are a selection of filings from the past week on new and upcoming cell phones. Click through to read the full report.

Alcatel OT-222A
Ezze Mobile Tech VI-3
HTC Touch Diamond2 (AT&T)
Huawei G5010
LG Chocolate BL40G
Motorola Morrison
Nokia E63
Nokia (RM-573)
Nokia 2730 Classic
Nokia 5800i Xpress Music
Nokia 6750
Samsung Galaxy I7500
Samsung SCH-M710
Samsung SGH-T746
Sharp 936SH

Oh the irony...

(Credit: Dan Ackerman/CNET)

Although we have to wait until next week's show to hear of Dan's possible escapades with McLovin' and company, along with his (enviable) hands-on experiences, at this year's E3 event in Los Angeles, that doesn't stop us from giving our take on what went down.

Note to Dan: We expect some video footage of actual gameplay, NOT a 15-page slide show...we kid, but, no, really.

Oddly enough, we were all physically suffering from one thing or another before the taping of the show--Joe with his sinuses, Julie with the constant eye twitch, and Scott with...whatever--but we mustered enough strength to push forward 'cause that's how we roll. Based on what we saw of E3, we discuss who won the motion sensor/controller wars, the PSP Go, and which games we were excited to get our hands on in the future.

We also talk about what could, or should, be expected at this week's Apple Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC). Obviously, the iPhone OS 3.0 should be shown off, but what about the new iPhone? We predict what the rumored new iPhone--or what Joe calls the "iDevice"--will have, and what it needs to take back the hype from the Palm Pre.

In the midst of all the serious and informative discussion though, we find ourselves victim to double entendres and innuendos. Also, Julie strikes several poses in front of the404 banner in the podcast room, but you'll (obviously) only catch it on the video version of the show. It's all in fun.

Now that the Nintendo E3 2009 press conference is behind us, let's take a look at some of the game announcements for the Wii. While we saw a few titles we were expecting, there were a couple that came as total surprises.

Right out of the gate, we got to see a brand-new 2D Mario Bros. game for the Wii. New Super Mario Bros. will allow for four-player co-op playing and will feature new game characters and power ups.

Wii Fit Plus, the successor to Wii Fit, will arrive in the fall and come bundled once again with a balance board. Of course, the software will also be available separately for those who already own it.

(Credit: Gamespot)

While we already knew about the July 26 release of Wii Sports Resort, we did get to see archery and basketball demos take advantage of the Wii MotionPlus peripheral. Speaking of MotionPlus, Nintendo announced that the Ubisoft-developed Red Steel 2 will require the accessory to play.

While we also knew about the Wii exclusives Dead Space: Extraction, Resident Evil Dark Side Chronicles, and The Conduit, we were thrilled to see a new Metroid game unveiled. Metroid Other M seems to be a hybrid first-person meets third-person action title and will be released in 2010.

Finally, we were treated to a taste of a Super Mario Galaxy sequel. Super Mario Galaxy 2 features more 3D Mario action geared at gamers of all ages. This title is also set to release in 2010.

(Credit: Living World)

Ever since we were kids, amateur star-gazing gear never really worked out for us. And we suspect that the same would be true as adults today, whether the equipment costs $70 or $60,000. But maybe there's finally a logical alternative for the astronomically challenged.

Dvice says this Milky Way galaxy 3D model from design firm Living World, created from authentic space data collected by researchers at Japan's National Astronomical Observatory and Osaka University, is a depiction of 80,000 laser-rendered stars--with a price of 1 yen each, which comes to about $770. That's actually pretty reasonable considering that it usually costs at least $20 to name a star that you'll never own.

Eh, it's OK

(Credit: Gamespot)

After sifting through a host of reviews calling Nintendo's new Super Mario Galaxy game "one of the best Mario adventures yet", I decided to head down to my local Gamestop and pick up a copy.

Now, it should be noted that I have played each and every Super Mario game dating back to Super Mario Bros. and have always been a fan of the series. In fact, to this day, I still consider Super Mario Sunshine to be one of the better games in the Mario franchise. Further, Super Mario 64 was simply a marvel of its time and easily one of the best experiences I've ever had gaming.

But after playing through Super Mario Galaxy for the past week, I simply don't get all the hype surrounding the game. Is it a good game? Sure. Is it a great game? No.

Still not jealous over all of the awesome bonuses Nintendo Japan has been giving its customers as part of the Club Nintendo rewards program? Well, get ready to say no friggin' way!

Nintendo has announced three free bonus items that it will be giving to its platinum members of the Club Nintendo service this year. Those customers with platinum status--meaning they purchased enough Nintendo products between 10/1/2006 and 9/30/2007 for over 400 Club Nintendo points--will be able to select one of the following items:

1. Wii Super Famicom Classic Controller: A Wii controller attachment that looks exactly like a Super Famicom (the Japanese Super Nintendo) controller; available at the end of April 2008.

2. Super Mario Galaxy OST Platinum Version: Two CDs featuring 81 songs, all fully orchestrated; available at the end of January 2008.

(Credit: digitalbattle)

3. Club Nintendo Calendar 2008: A set of two tabletop calendars. Set for delivery at the end of December.

The ones most clamored for right now is--you guessed it--the Wii Super Famicon SNES controller and the Super Mario Galaxy OST, in that order.

Wii SNES RetroPort

(Credit: retrousb)

Wii NES RetroPort

(Credit: retrousb)

Apparently there is still no love stateside for the Nintendo fans, as the USA is not part of the Club Nintendo's network as yet. Doesn't mean we won't see those items being sold on eBay or Amazon once they're shipped to those lucky club members.

However, if you can't wait until then, there is an immediate alternative. Dubbed as retroports, you can plug in your original NES and SNES controllers into the Wii for virtual console gaming. So all hope is not lost!

I don't use the word "shindig" often, but Nintendo definitely threw a shindig last night at the Nintendo World Store at Rockefeller Center to commemorate the launch of Super Mario Galaxy. Dozens of Nintendo fans lined up Sunday evening to attend the store's prerelease event, an outdoor party on the Rockefeller Center plaza with a DJ, a laser light show, and a Velcro wall ride. It was like my dream Bar Mitzvah.

Mario was in attendance, of course. The giant red and blue plumber worked the crowd and let everyone know exactly whose party it was. There's something utterly surreal about seeing a man in a huge plastic Mario costume dancing while lasers flash across Rockefeller Center and a DJ plays a thumping beat.

Super Mario Galaxy looks like one of those must-have titles for the Wii. Gamespot gave the game a score of 9.5 and an Editors' Choice award. I spent the weekend with the game and at this point I have to admit that it really feels like a worthy successor to Super Mario 64. A huge variety of levels, a ton of stars to collect, and some of the best level design I've seen in years cap off this great Mario game.

Besides putting Super Mario Galaxy on sale at midnight, the Nintendo World Store also put 250 Nintendo Wiis on the block. On one hand, Mario-hungry gamers probably appreciated the many Wiis on sale. On the other hand, most people who lined up to get Super Mario Galaxy the moment it came out probably also lined up last year to get the Wii as soon as it came out.

Like this guy, one of the first in line:

Mario takes to the stars in Super Mario Galaxy for the Wii. Control gaming's favorite plumber with the Wiimote and nunchuck as you explore planetoids, asteroids, and various other celestial -oids to collect stars. The game's round worlds will incorporate some truly funky puzzles, with gravity playing a major part in their solutions. Super Mario Galaxy hits the Wii on November 12.