New Forza Horizon Screenshots Show Off More Cars

A batch of new screenshots from the upcoming Forza Horizon racing game have just appeared on the web, courtesy of developers Playground Games and Turn 10 Studios, showing off an array of cars that will be included in the title.

Forza Horizon changes the recipe of the Forza Motorsport series by introducing an open world and featuring both races on actual tracks as well as on public roads.

We already got to admire the game in action thanks to several videos and a few screenshots, and now a new batch of images have just appeared.

As you can see above and in the gallery below, the new game is looking quite impressive and features a variety of powerful sportscars, from the Lotus Elise to the BMW Z4, Scion FR-S, Mitsubishi Lancer Evo X, or the already-revealed 2013 SRT Viper.

Forza Horizon is out this October exclusively for th e Xbox 360 but, until then, you can check out the new screenshots of the racing game below.

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IFA 2012: Lenovo IdeaTab A2107 Hands-On

Lenovo’s booth is pretty impressive here at IFA 2012 in Berlin. In fact the company owns almost an entire hall where it showcases its latest products.

Among them there are three new tablets, which have just been announced, the Lenovo IdeaTab A2107, IdeaTab A2109 and IdeaTab S2110.

As their names suggest, each slate has a different-sized display. The smallest of the three, IdeaTab A2017 is expected to go on sale in November for a suggested retail price of 199 EUR.

According to Lenovo, the tablet will be launched in the United States as well, but it will cost around 200 USD, which is slightly cheaper in comparison with the European prices.

The IdeaTab A2107 sports a 7-inch capacitive touchscreen display that supports 1280 x 600 pixels resolution. Hardware-wise, the slate will be equipped with a 1GHz dual-core ARM Cortex A9 processor and 4GB, 8GB or 16GB of internal memory.

Another important aspect is the fact that it comes with dual-SIM capabilities, along with 3G support, though the latter is optional. A microSD card slot for memory expansion up to 32GB is included as well.

The tablet is powered by Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich operating system out of the box, but Lenovo might offer owners an upgrade to Android 4.1 Jelly Bean platform in the future.

However, the company has yet to confirm any Jelly Bean updates for any of the three tablets, which have yet to be released on the market, so s tay tuned for more updates on this one.

Furthermore, we also noticed the IdeaTab A2107 comes with dual cameras, so users will be able to make video-calls or capture self-portraits with the front-facing camera.

Last but not least, the slate comes with various connectivity options, including microUSB, Wi-Fi, Bluetooh and GPS.

Keep in mind that these specifications are subject to change, so Lenovo may decide to modify some of the tablet’s hardware and/or software by the time it hits shelves.

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Via: IFA 2012: Lenovo IdeaTab A2107 Hands-On

Why Oxygen-Rich Oceanic Waters Produce Methane

An unusual class of potential antibiotic agents, called phosphonates, has been found to be responsible for the production of methane in oxygen-rich waters. The weird chemistry they are involved in results in the production of 4 percent of the world's methane, yearly.

In a paper published in the latest issue of the top journal Science, the team explains that it was analyzing Nitrosopumilus maritimus, one of the most abundant microbes on Earth, and an organism known to produce phosphonates.

“We know that about 20 percent of the greenhouse effect comes from methane and 4 percent of that comes from this previously unexplained source," he said. "You have to know where the methane comes from and where it goes to understand what will happen when the system changes,” the group says.

The new investigation was carried out by experts at the University of Illinoi s in Urbana-Champaign, with funds provided by the US National Institute of Health, e! Science News reports.

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Starting today, 40W and 25W Incandescent Bulbs Are Banned in the EU

Starting today, 27 countries in the EU will witness the phasing out of 40W and 25W incandescent bulbs, as part of a campaign which made its debut back in 2005 and which aims at compelling human society to be more energy efficient by switching to more environmentally-friendly lighting options.

As the people who started this campaign in the first place explain, “Thanks to the world's investors, it simply hasn't remained necessary to carry on heating a tungsten wire to 2000°C in order to produce reliable light and more energy efficient alternatives have got smaller, brighter and cheaper.”

In case you were wondering, the lighting alternatives now present on the market are LEDs, halogen bulbs, and CFLs (compact fluorescent lamps). Apparently, all of these are supposedly capable of delivering the same amounts of light incandescent bulbs did, whilst in the same time cutting down on energy consumption by as much as 80%.

In all fairness, this does lead to some significantly lower electricity bills for the households and business that choose to use them, yet there are still some who claim that they simply do not meet their lighting requirements as well as incandescent light bulbs do.

Moreover, some specialists warn that people who are already suffering from sensitivity to LED lighting could be negatively affected by this ban, as the medical conditions they display could be made to become aggravated as a result of their becoming expose d on a regular basis to these new light sources.

According to The Scotsman, One British politician, Sheila Gilmore, made a case of how, “If nothing is done, people who suffer ill-health from low-energy lighting will be forced to live the rest of their lives in the dark.”

Furthermore, “We don't want to discourage people from using low-energy light bulbs. However, it is important to realize for some people there are real health issues arising from the use of low-energy bulbs.”

Just as a reminder, 100W, 75W and 60W bulbs were banned in 2009, 2010 and 2011, respectively.

Via: Starting today, 40W and 25W Incandescent Bulbs Are Banned in the EU

Borderlands 2 Gets Comprehensive Video Description

Gearbox Sofware has released a brand new video with its upcoming Borderlands 2 shooter, this time showcasing the game's variety of features and attributes in a comprehensive way with the help of one of its characters, Sir Hammerlock.

Borderlands 2 is out this September and developer Gearbox is continuing to detail the variety of features included in the game as well as the different add-ons that will be released for it after its launch, starting with the Mechromancer class and culminating with four different expansions that will appear until June, 2013.

Now, the studio has released a video description of the game, in which Sir Hammerlock and his British accent show off the different features of the game, from its new classes, to the much more varied world of Pandora, to the different mechanics that will allow for character customization in many w ays.

As you can see in the footage above, Borderlands 2 definitely improves upon a lot of areas from the original.

The new title is out on September 18, in North America, and September 21, in Europe, for PC, PS3, and Xbox 360.



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Square Announces Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII

Video game developer and publisher Square Enix has announced that is working on a new Japanese role-playing game video game called Lightning Returns, which will expand the Final Fantasy XIII series.

The game is being prepared for the Xbox 360 from Microsoft and the PlayStation 3 from Sony at some point during 2013, although it is not clear whether the company will aim for concurrent launches or will have some sort of exclusivity deal lined up.

 Square Enix has made it clear that it has no plans to deliver a simple sequel, but that it actually plans to create an entire new product in the Fabula Nova Chrystallis universe.

Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII will be the last game to star the heroine and will start just as the Doomsday Clock has only 13 days left until the final destruction of the universe.

The core setting of the game is Navus Partus, a chain of four islands that are linked via monorail.

The world will be altered by the day-night cycle and exploration and NPC interaction will be at the core of the game experience.

Square Enix has only shown the first region of Lightning Returns, called Luxuria and has a wide array of influences, ranging from European to futuristic.

The new version of Lightning will be even more powerful than in the two previous titles that starred her even if her appearance will be closer to that of the first title.

The game will also offer more customization options, which means that gamers will be able to change both her appearance and her weapons, with the developers promising more than 20 costumes and the ability to change some of their looks.

Lightning will be more mobile during the battles and the weapons themselves will be able to transform during the engagements, bringing the game closer to the action side.

A trailer was shown to those who attended the Final Fantasy 25 year anniversary and will apparently be made public on September 4.

Via: Square Announces Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII

New Battlefield 3 Video Shows off the Upcoming Alborz Mountains Map

Battlefield 3 is getting ready to see the release of its next expansion, Armored Kill, and, in order to get the hype going around the upcoming add-on, developer DICE has posted a video with one of the maps from the DLC – Alborz Mountains.

Battlefield 3’s multiplayer expansions feature all sorts of impressive maps, from huge ones, like the levels in the Back to Karkand DLC, to more confined ones, like the maps from the recent Close Quarters add-on.

Currently, DICE is getting ready to debut Armored Kill, an add-on filled with expansive levels, including the biggest map in the history of the franchise.

In order to attract more fans to the DLC, the studio has just posted a video that shows off one of the upcoming maps, in the form of Alborz Mountains.

As you can see in the footage above, the level has many snow-filled portions, so it’s going to be i nteresting to see how players will drive their tanks and vehicles on the new map.

Battlefield 3: Armored Kill DLC is out next month, although official release dates aren’t known as of yet.




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