Idealty's Domain: Let's Talk Tech

What's up everyone? Yes, Idealty has risen from the dead and I am back for a series of posts discussing some pressing things on mind. First up, after recently going through the trials of upgrading my home theater system one of the key questions I had was: will buying a "higher quality" amplifier make a noticeable improvement to sound quality? Sounds like a pretty basic and common question but weeks of google searches, forum visits, and scouring the high-fi websites such as Audioholics, SoundAndVision, and Stereophile, it was surprising to me that nobody seemed to have a simple answer to this question. On one hand, there are a group of audiophiles that believe that spending $5000+ for a boutique brand amplifier from the likes of Krell, McIntosh, Classe etc is justified for the impact to the sound quality, particularly when paired with equivalent level equipment (speakers, processor etc). On the other hand, there are those of the mindset that an amplifier should not and ...

One of the hottest topics around the web since the unveiling of the next generation consoles, the Playstation 4 and Xbox One, is how underpowered they are compared to past console generations. Both consoles use a low powered 8-core x86 CPU and a DX11 capable GPU both from AMD. Generally speaking, the CPU is of the type that one would find in a tablet or low powered laptop and is said to be about as powerful as an IvyBridge Intel core i3. The GPUs are relatively powerful with the PS4 GPU on paper sitting in between the AMD 7850 and 7870XT cards and the XB1's GPU sitting somewhere between the 7790 and the 7770. However, when you consider that the fastest GPU made by AMD, the 7970Ghz, is roughly 2x as powerful and that the fastest single GPU on the market today, the Nvidia Geforce Titan, is well over 2x as powerful then you can see how the raw specs of the next generation systems are far from state-of-the-art. While many enthusiast gamers may scoff at the idea of next generation ...

Youtube Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=drIsVogR5uo If you scour the gaming media, magazines, Internet forums and blogs from the past year or so, you will see countless discussions about whether or not the next generation of gaming delivered by the PS4 and Xbox One will reach the 1080p/60fps "holy grail" for delivering what many feel is the optimal quality experience available today. It's a discussion that has really been going on since the advent of the current generation of consoles: the PS3 and Xbox360 which both promised to deliver "full HD" (i.e 1080p) graphics. Unfortunately, only a relative handful of titles were ever released in the 8 years that delivered on that promise and that trend may continue well into the next generation of consoles. Let me explain why. Understanding 1080p 1080p is an HD resolution standard meaning 1920 x 1080 (2 million) pixels on the screen. In 2005 when the Xbox360 was released, 1080p was seen as a luxury that n...

With Sony and Microsoft unveiling their next generation consoles and Nintendo seeking to have a full coming out party for its new Wii U console, this year's E3 is shaping up to be one of the most exciting in a long time. There will likely be an overwhelming amount of gaming news, technology, and titles announced at the show that will ultimately shape the next few years of the gaming industry. After it's PlayStation meeting on Feb 20th where Sony officially announced the PS4, Sony has now gotten the industry's attention and anticipation is sky high for what the next Playstation console will really bring to the industry. Will it be a revolution similar to what the original PlayStation did for the industry back in 1995? Or will it just be an incremental step forward? We will find out over the next 8 months or so but E3 2013 is a chance for Sony to really reclaim the hearts and minds of gamers at large. Momentum seems to be with Sony already and with E3 they can really solidi...

         With all the supposed "leaks" over the last few weeks and Sony announcing the February 20th Playstation meeting teasing "The Future Of Playstation", it seems like 2013 is finally the year that gaming takes the next leap. Anticipation is high and gaming forums are ablaze discussing the alleged specs for the next Xbox (codenamed: Durango) and the next Playstation (codenamed: Orbis). This year represents the 8th year for the Xbox360 and the 7th year for the PS3 which is unusually long compared to past generations lasting ~4-5 years. Most people would expect that the advent of the next generation simultaneously means the decline of the current generation. However, I believe that we will see a fundamentally shift in business strategies from Sony (and likely Microsoft as well) that will go against that trend allowing the older system to continue to thrive long after their successors are released.      ...

Wow. It's been a busy 2 days thus far at E3. I've  been so tired and drained from my all day of travel, walking miles around the showfloor, taking pictures, waiting in lines etc. I haven't been able to sit down and write details on here yet because of limited time and internet trouble in my hotel but i'm hoping to do that tonight after the show. As a sneak peek of my experience so far, here are some of the things that I have seen and will be talking about later: Monday Sony Press Conference - I actually able to get into the Sony Press Conference and watch it live and in person thanks to the Playstation Blog. They invited 200 members of the community to make it in on a first come first serve basis. Although people were there since 4p.m Sunday afternoon camping out, I was still able to make it in at #193/200! It was an awesome experience overall but a mediocre conference from an E3 standpoint. Tuesday (E3 Day 1) When the ribbon was cut and the doors opened to E2...

What's up people. Sorry for the extended absence, but if it one thing that could bring me back, it's E3. The largest show in the gaming industry filled with news, games, and interesting people. This will be my first year actually attending the show and I'm excited. Will anything be shown for the next-gen consoles that we all know are coming? Who will win the battle of the press conferences: Sony, Microsoft, or Nintendo? What games will surprise people? How will the Wii U impact the future of gaming? What does Microsoft have to maintain it's dominance in the US? Will Sony be able to save the PS Vita and spur sales? These and many other questions will be answered over the next few days. I'll be using the blog to document my experience and thoughts for each day. So keep an eye out and I'll see you at E3!