Decepticon Symbol

Autobot Symbol

My main comment would have to be aimed at the cameras in this film, they just couldn’t take there eyes off actress Megan Fox’s chest. In my opinion it was an awesome follow up to the first film, with a very large attitude this film rocketed and has hit our cinemas with a bang and by the looks of things there will probably be another film in the future. I enjoyed this films teenage humour and was shocked out my seat with the attention to detail and frenzy of fire power! I thought it was ‘Mind-blowing’.

This film really had and impact on me and an impact of even more transformers with a lot more variety. these monsters ranged from a household hoover to the biggest robot so far. I would give this film an incredible 4 stars!

‘A real must see’

Transformers – ROTF Review is originally from: MattyBatty.co.uk

I think you can all guess that I will be doing the same on this review as I did on my Mario kart review which is tell all you about my top 3 singles characters and top 3 doubles set-ups.

I have all the extra unlockable characters and if you wish to know what they are please highlight here: Fly Guy, Paratroopa, Petey Piranha and Wiggler!

Here they are:

Mario Power Tennis

I like this game as it really emphasises the movement factor of Wii games. There are many moves and many characters. By moves I  mean slices and smashes and when I say characters I mean all the classic Mario characters you can think of.

Furthermore each character has their own unique offensive and defensive power moves, For example: Bowser’s offensive power shot is a super fast and powerful shot. On the other hand his defensive power shot allows him to tuck into his shell and whiz around the stadia in order to reach shots that would be considered ‘unreachable’. Defensive power shots are designed for getting to the opponents offensive power shot. (well that’s what I use them for and if you think that’s a bad idea the please go ahead and tell me what I should be doing!)

In my opinion this is a fantastic family game with few flaws. The games main up-side is the graphics as it has been updated from a Gamecube game and the graphics are still great. Another up-side has to be the range of characters, options, special moves and shot variety, it’s just endless. The final family factor of this game is the ability to do special games such as ‘Artist on the court’. In this mini game you get to fling paint balls at a painting on a wall but you have to place the different colours in the right place, this can even be done in a pair.

Although the game does have a few down-sides I would say they are just minor problems. I don’t want to put the game down buy mentioning these as it is a great and very fun game but they can be quite irritating and must be mentioned. Well, to start with if you want to do a doubles tourney you have to do it with a COM not a friend. The other thing I’m now going to discuss with you can be quite irritating indeed and it is that the game can sometimes receive your movements wrong and cause you to lose the point, set or even the match! But if you have the new Wii motion plus remotes this shouldn’t be a problem. Right…?

I would rate this family fun and punchy Nintendo game a reasonable 3 star game as it is very good but it might have a couple of flaws in the multi player options and can be completed quite quickly and by the way, it gets a bit boring after that. If I have missed something or made a mistake please comment on the review and correct me. Also you can post in your own opinions on the game with the comments box. That’s what its for; please make the most of it. Thanks, and thanks again for reading.

Mario Power Tennis Review is originally from: MattyBatty.co.uk

My Nokia 6220

It may not be the best looking phone on the market, but the Nokia 6220 Classic has just about everything I need from a phone. This phone ticks all the boxes. A 5MP camera with a Carl Zeiss lens, 3G internet, GPS Navigation and a MicroSD slot, all squeezed into the sleek, ergonomic design. This is clearly a business-oriented smart-phone, but I believe it’s greatest strength lies in it’s incredible camera and instant photo-sharing ability, making a digital camera virtually redundant!

Not only do you get all these gadgets, you get them in a neat little package weighing only 90g and measuring just 108×47x15mm. Not bad for a smart-phone! Because of this, you won’t have a problem handling it, especially with the matt backing and logical key placement. Beware however, the placement may be logical, but the material certainly isn’t! It looked great in the box but after just one use the front of the phone was awash with smudges and streaks. I can’t imagine trying to text whilst enjoying a greasy meal!

As for the buttons themselves, they’re a little plastic-y and cramped, it often takes several tries just to unlock it! Texting is relatively comfortable, but as a lefty, I often find myself pressing the camera shutter whilst typing. However, this is only a minor annoyance as the button isn’t active when the lens has its sliding cover over it, which is operated by a small switch on the back. Apart from this, the overall physical design is sleek yet robust, and gives a professional feel.

The actual menu interface is simple but unresponsive, with regular “lag” and freezing. Nevertheless, when It is working, it is easy to navigate, with the more important things such as its built in browser and music player being higher in the menu structure. Also, the screen fades from menu to menu, making it not as snappy as it could be, but adding to its professional look.

As you probably guessed, all these features and add-ons come at a price – the battery life. According to Nokia, the talk time is 2.5 hours, and the standby time is no less than 250 hours! I beg to differ, the best I could manage was a few days, maybe 3-4, or normal usage before having to charge it up. That’s good… but not as good as it should be for a phone of its type.

So, what’s the conclusion. Well, I think it does its job sufficiently, a business-oriented smart-phone. But I don’t think you should look at it as just that. It can do much much more. The camera is stunning and with its great browser and GPS capabilities, you should be quite capable of telling your friends where you are, taking a picture, and posting it on-line; all within a matter of seconds. This is why I believe the Nokia 6220 Classic is not just for business, it is a great casual phone for hanging out too!

Nokia 6220 Classic Review is originally from: MattyBatty.co.uk

First things first, my favourite circuit is probably Maple Treeway although I do like the whole of the Flower and Star cups.

My top three set-ups are:

1. Baby Mario & Concerto
2. Baby Luigi & Magikruiser
3. Bowser Jr. & Mach Bike

I have chosen Baby Mario in my top set-up although Diddy Kong is my favourite character in most Nintendo games. I think that the Nitrocycle on manual is practically unbeatable on speed. This is my best set-up but not my favourite. You see… I’ve started to get a bit bored of it and the concerto is much more fun to use, it’s also quite fast! Send in a comment if you think you can beat my time on GBA Bowser Castle 3 (2:34.167)

MattyBatty has promoted me to author so you will be seeing many more reviews from me, as that is the topic I like to cover. I’m a big fan of gaming so I will be reviewing all sorts of games. Mario Kart is my first and I hope you are looking forward to my reviews in the future! Also, another review I will be doing in the distant future covers a game I’m sure all of you are getting hyped up about – Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare 2!

I would rate Mario Kart Wii an amazing and indisputable 5 star as it covers all aspects of family game play and solo fun, my friend said: ‘It’s really good.’ Personally I couldn’t agree more! This review covered my comments on Mario Kart and a sneak preview of what’s coming your way in the future, if you want to send in your opinions and give us some games to review then feel free to comment on this post!

Harry’s Mario Kart Summary is originally from: MattyBatty.co.uk

Not only this, but there are loads more characters and cars this time. You can get small, speedy characters, like Toad and Koopa. Or you could have an average, medium-weight, such as Mario or Peach. On the other hand, you could go for a heavy character like Bowser, who’s great for smashing everyone else out the way!

Another new addition is the ability to ride motorbikes! This adds an extra element of fun to the game and of course, all the cars and bikes have their own unique skill or ability.

What else.. oh, the circuits, there are LOADS! I remember playing one of the old games with only two or three cups. This one has 8, including graphical re-works of the older ones to add a bit of nostalgia, great for Nintendo fans!

Even more fun, is the fact you can go on-line with this game. If you think you’re good enough, you can challenge fellow Karters all over the world! Or you could speed around your living room and race against your family and friends, which is where I think this game comes into its own. Like most other Nintendo games, it’s real family fun!

Mario Kart Wii Review is originally from: MattyBatty.co.uk

This is one of the main reasons why I loathe Internet Explorer. Yes… it’s Microsoft, yes… you have to have it. But it really gets on my nerves, especially as a web designer. 90% of my bugs are IE specific, even on fully W3C compliant pages! It’s actually quite a nice looking browser, the layout is simple and the options are clear, but it is let down by its inconsistencies and bugs, and its lack of add-ons.

Let’s move on to Google Chrome. A fairly recent addition to the browser market. It is very fast, but I find it a bit boring. As a new browser, it lacks features. It has no built in RSS reader, hardly any add-ons, and the layout is a little hard to follow. The only positive thing is that it has Google products integrated with it, which makes it great for using G-Mail or Google Maps.

One more contender is Safari, this is Apple’s default browser, and is used on iPods, iPhones and Macs. Because of the increase in Ipod Usage, Safari is slowly gaining popularity. But I don’t think it will make it as a popular desktop browser, as it simply lacks the features and the support of the other browsers. Yes, it looks great, but I don’t think looks are everything in the browser market.

So, to conclude this… I will continue to use Firefox, and I will continue to hate Internet Explorer. I hope this article has been informative and interesting, and I hope it has made you consider your browser choice, and to go for the one that suits you best!

Why not vote on your favourite browser…

Browsers – Comparison is originally from: MattyBatty.co.uk

Blue Nano

iPods are all the rage at the moment, so with the release of the 4th Gen iPod Nano, I decided it was time to get my own. I was concerned about the price, but I eventually caved in and spent £108 on a brand new one.

Throughout the time I’ve had it, it’s worked 99% of the time. It has had a few crashes and freezes; but to be honest, these were probably my own fault. The sound quality is great, especially with my new earphones! Also, it comes with some great games and other useful tools such as a time converter, notepad-like app, and calendar.

One thing to note though, is that you have to use iTunes. This is not ideal for me, as iTunes doesn’t get on well with windows, and decides to crash every time I try to sync.

The actual design of the iPod is fantastic. The sleek curves and the ultra-thin body makes it extremely attractive to look at, and mine is in bright blue too, which makes it stand out even more!

So, apart from the sticky click-wheel and the annoying monster that is iTunes, I have really enjoyed using my iPod, and I will continue to use it. Definitely a recommendation.

This has mainly been a summary of my experiences with the iPod. For a more in-depth analysis of all the features, why not take a look at this blog here, dedicated to iPods.

iPod Nano Review is originally from: MattyBatty.co.uk

Probably the most useful feature of  Notepad++ is the tabbed editing window. This makes it really easy to switch between files and it makes error checking much more simple. Not to mention the taskbar space saved on Windows. In addition to this, there is a find & replace option which can be used to replace a certain phrase in ALL of the currently open documents. This saves loads of time and typing.

Another useful feature which I have mentioned is the syntax highlighting. Now, for those of you who don’t know, syntax highlighting is where the program highlights different parts of the code in different colours; so it is easy to see which bit of code does what. This is especially useful while error-checking, and dramatically reduces the amount of bugs in my code. Also, if you don’t like the colours, you can modify it to highlight how you want it to.

One more thing is that it supports multiple views. This means that you can have two or more files open side-by-side, to check they are the same, or that there are no bugs. You can even lock the scrolling so they both scroll together, which makes it even more simple!

Finally, because the program is open source, there are thousands of different plug-ins to help you be even more productive. Also, because it is open source, it is completely FREE!

So, that concludes my review of Notepad++, if you have been converted, and feel you want to try it out. Head over to http://notepad-plus.sourceforge.net/uk/site.htm.

Notepad++ Review is originally from: MattyBatty.co.uk

I took this to China with me, and found it very useful. Basically, it is a battery that can be charged up from USB or mains power and then that battery can be used to charge up anything you like really! It comes with several adapters and there are many more available.

I used mine for my phone, iPod, camera and PSP, and it was brilliant. I only had to carry one charger and a small pouch of adapters, instead of the usual 2 adapters, one for mains and one for USB, and the four separate cables. Also, I only had to charge up the PowerMonkey once, and I was using it almost every day.

I would completely recommend this as it saved me loads of time and effort. Although, I wouldn’t recommend the solar panel charger as it is very slow and is rubbish here in Britain, as it’s just not sunny enough!

PowerMonkey eXplorer Review is originally from: MattyBatty.co.uk