Review

Apple harvests new iPhone, iPods

An object of much anticipation and speculation over the last several months, the iPhone 5 was finally announced this week.

According to Apple, the device is 18 percent thinner than the iPhone 4S, measuring just 7.6mm. It's also 20 percent lighter than its predecessor at 112 grams. The company is calling the aluminum backplate -- which has been shown in several leaked images over the last several weeks -- the "slate."

One of the biggest additions is the new 4-inch Retina Display, with the same 326 pixels per inch found in the iPhone 4S. The phone … Read more

Nintendo sets Wii U price, unveils TVii

Wii play around for Thursday's Nintendo news roundup:

Nintendo announced that its new Wii U game console will be available in the U.S. on Nov. 18, coming in two flavors. The white "Basic" bundle is $300 and comes with a GamePad and Wii U with 8 GB of memory. But it makes more sense to pick up the $350 black "Deluxe" bundle, which includes a 32 GB Wii U system, charger, stand and Nintendo Land. Nintendo Land is a pack of 12 mini games which use the GamePad and allow 5 people to play … Read more

Yelp rolls out gift certificates for local businesses

Upping the ante in the daily deals game, Yelp announced today that it will now let small-business owners offer gift certificates directly from their profile pages.

These gift certificates don't come with any sort of discount; they're just a simple way for users to buy cash presents for their friends, family, or colleagues. Yelp came up with this idea after a testing phase where it found that keeping deals separate from gift certificates is important because most people don't like to give discounted products as a present.

Here's how Yelp explained the new feature in a … Read more

The 404 1,129: Where free Apple iPhone 5 free Apple iPhone 5 (podcast)

Leaked from today's 404 episode:

- CNET iPhone 5 Editors' take

- Apple unveils new iPod Touch with 4-inch screen

- New iPod Nano: Remembering the iPod Mini

- Apple's new EarPods were three 3 years in the making???

- Lightning Cable connects old accessories to Apple's newest port

- Apple reworks, simplifies iTunes… Read more

NHL 13: The answer to the lockout?

It's not easy being a hockey fan these days. But honestly, has it ever been? With an all-but-official lockout looming over the NHL like a dark cloud, there's not much to be excited about. Sure, the optimistic puck-faithful seem to agree a deal will be reached before Christmas, but what's there to do in the meantime?

As luck would have it, NHL 13 hits the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 consoles just a few days before the NHL's collective bargaining agreement is set to expire. Whether or not the team owners and players association decide to … Read more

The sad revenge of Kinki restaurateur after bad online reviews

People know how to upset people.

These days, perhaps the most natural method is to reach for one's laptop and say bad things about those people to all the world.

It is quite some power, one that was exercised to its fullest by one in Ottawa against another.

The first, Elayna Katz, posted two unhappy reviews of the Mambo Nuevo Latino restaurant. The Mambo's owner, Marisol Simoes, didn't react in an entirely sanguine manner.

As the Daily Mail tells it, Simoes decided to publicly besmirch Katz's sexual proclivities.

Why she went this route many might speculate. … Read more

This week in Crave: The high-flying edition

Too busy deciding whether you'd rather live in a "Star Wars" or "Star Trek" universe to keep up with Crave all week? Dial back your sci-fi daydreams for a moment and catch up on what you missed.

- Finally! Video proof that Assassin's Creed is really just parkour.

- Grand Theft Auto gets a "Back to the Future" wardrobe.

- What's that we spot overhead? Oh, just 50 flying LED drones.

- We like butt-mounted iPhone bike lights and we cannot lie.

- What if the iPhone 5 and the rumored … Read more

Amazon sets fire to the tablet market

Amazon is heating up competition in the tablet sector with three new models of the Kindle Fire that are clearly aimed at wooing those who might buy a tablet from Apple.

The Amazon assault begins with a new $199, 7-inch model with an HD screen that doubles the built-in storage of the previous entry-level Kindle Fire to 16GB. Amazon has also doubled down on that product line with a larger, 8.9-inch model that has a 1,920-by-1,200 resolution, features 16GB of built-in storage, costs $299 and ships November 20. Topping out the line is a new 32GB model … Read more

Why would a best-selling author fake Amazon reviews?

When you've sold millions of books and won awards for your writing, the pressure is off.

You can saunter from one party to another. You can perform readings to packed auditoriums. You can, just occasionally, wander into bookstores (if you can find one) and simply enjoy yourself while counting the number of times you see your name on the shelves.

Then you come home, pour yourself a substantial snifter, log on to Amazon and write a gushing review of one of your own works. Just as a nightcap, you add a scathing anonymous review of one of your rivals'. … Read more