LYSOL Healthy Touch No-Touch Hand Soap System

Well, it is the time of year again when germs lurk and spread like crazy. Us geeks are constantly touching smart phones, laptop keyboards, car steering wheels, and game controllers which are all places that breed germs. Since I am a germaphobe I decided to try out a new hand cleaning gadget called the LYSOL  Healthy Touch  No-Touch Hand Soap System.

The LYSOL Healthy Touch No-Touch Hand Soap System automatically dispenses soap once your hands are under the sensor. The starter kit includes a dispenser, one hand soap refill, and four AA batteries. Depending on where this is purchased you can expect to pay between $10.00 to $12.99 for the starter kit and about $4.00 for refills.

The soaps come in four scents:

• Refreshing Grapefruit Essence (Refill only)
• Soothing Cucumber Splash
• Aloe Vera & Vitamin E with Moisturizers
• Antibacterial Total Care

Pros:

• Easy to use.
• Dispenses the perfect amount of soap.
• Cucumber Splash smells great.
• It’s fun to wash your hands…for at least a few times!

Cons:

• Initial investment on starter kit. (Look for coupons online).
• Requires 4 AA batteries.
• The soap refills are more expensive than other soap options.

Fact Time:

Did you know that the very simple activity of frequent handwashing has the potential to save more lives than any single vaccine or medical intervention?

Although people around the world clean their hands with water, very few use soap to wash their hands.

            –From the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

Final Verdict:

This is not necessary for everyone but for me it works great in the kitchen. I can handle raw meat and then have soup automatically dispensed without having to touch the soap bottle. Yes, I am a germ freak but this has been very useful and I am happy with my purchase!

So, go buy this and show that gamers can be clean and practice proper hygiene!

Score:

9/10

Forza Motorsport 4 has zoomed onto store shelves and into the hands of car enthusiasts and racing game lovers. Forza 4 is loaded with tons of new features and improvements. The mere action of playing the game to get an overall feel for it was quite a long task simply because there are so many things that can be done and I tend to get distracted easily. With that being said this review could go on and on but I will try to highlight key points to save time. If you are like me you just want the details!

Forza Motorsport 4

Released: 10/11/2011

Developer: Turn 10 Studios

Publisher: Microsoft Studios

Genre: Racing/Driving/Simulation

Platform: Exclusively on Xbox 360

Pros:

• Huge car selection.
• Forza 3 Profile Import = Reward to those who have been a Forza fan.
• Slick and clean menu system.
• Create a car club and share cars in a club garage. Sharing is caring!
• Rivals Mode quickly becomes addictive.
• Share your screenshots and video clips!
• Hundreds of hours of gameplay.
• Ability to create and share photos, videos, car designs, and tunings.
• Autovista Mode lets you explore the cars inside and out. I have learned a lot!
• Graphics and Sound – The attention to detail is simply amazing.

Cons:

• The soundtrack has a few good songs but soon I will be muting and playing my own music.
• Would like to have seen a larger variety of decals and fonts for creating vinyls.

Wish

I want a Windows Phone 7 companion app for Forza 4 with the ability to create tuning setups, view rivals, or just see stats!

Kinect:

Forza 4 utilizes the Kinect Sensor but it is not required to play. After waving your hand to activate the Kinect modes of play the options available are Autovista, Quick Race, Hot Lap, and Split Screen.

Kinect Pros:

• Voice commands to navigate menus works great and is natural.
• Can play standing or sitting.
• Head tracking feels natural and adds a sense of realism.
• Actual driving in Quick Race and Hot Lap was amazingly accurate!

Kinect Cons:

• Head tracking requires me to sit forward and closer to the television than normal.
• Hand tracking to select items is slow and inaccurate. Recalibration of my Kinect offered no improvements.
• Choosing cars and tracks takes forever.
• Autovista using the Kinect – Frustratingly slow to do anything and I kept selecting things I didn’t want to select. I was impressed with the user interface created for Autovista using Kinect but I will still be using the controller. It is just way easier.

The Verdict:

This is a great game franchise and I wasn’t sure how much Turn 10 Studios could improve the already incredible Forza 3. I must say that my expectations were met and exceeded.

There are a lot of fresh additions to the series including the Top Gear integration which results in more fun for us. The Community section fosters even more sharing and participation to an already active community.  I was expecting a little more responsiveness with the Kinect sensor. However when it came down to driving with Kinect they landed it! I did not think I could navigate a track so accurately (not that I am amazing with a controller).

The depth and detail of this game cannot be conveyed in a review or even through the demo on Xbox Live. You will really just need to try this one out in order to appreciate the stunning visuals and massive attention to detail.

Score:

9.5/10

Fruit Ninja Kinect has made the leap from mobile devices to the Xbox 360 this week! Finger slashing is no more. Now it is time to slice and dice that fruit with those ninja arms of yours. You will quickly realize that those ninja reflexes require a lot of energy and you will be thankful that the games tend to be short.

Fruit Ninja Kinect:

• Halfbrick Studios
• Xbox Live Arcade
• 800 Microsoft Points (see money saving tip below)
• 1-2 Players (Local Only)

Fruit Ninja Kinect comes with the same game modes from the mobile versions including the Classic, Arcade and Zen modes. The Kinect version adds Party mode which will pit you against another opponent locally. In this mode you can either choose to work cooperatively or compete against each other.  As you progress you will unlock Sensei’s Swag which consists of new blades and backgrounds that can be selected in the Dojo.

Pros:

• Same fun addictive gameplay that I love from the mobile version
• 2 player mode allows for cooperative and competitive action
• Motion tracking is excellent and can capture your fastest ninja moves
• Crisp and vibrant graphics
• Leaderboards are great motivation and easy to navigate

Cons:

• No fruit slicing over Xbox Live
• Navigating main menu takes a little practice

The Verdict:

This simple game is genuinely fun. Often with Kinect games I find myself bored while waiting for load screens just standing around waiting during cut scenes. Fruit Ninja Kinect is great because you instantly slice into action and there is no learning curve. You do exert small but exhaustive bursts of energy during the game but I was able to quickly recover to keep playing. If you are a fan of this on your mobile device you for sure will love the Xbox Live version.

I was very impressed with the accuracy of the motion tracking. In Arcade mode I could precisely slice around bombs and hit some tricky fruit combos. The only lacking aspect to this game is the inability of competing head to head over Xbox Live. It would be so fun to out slice my friends or at least try too!

Score: 9/10

Money Saving Tip

If you are interested in Fruit Ninja Kinect but want to save some money then wait until September 13th, 2011 when The Gunstringer is released. This game looks to be very promising and it will include a code for a free download of Fruit Ninja Kinect! As of right now The Gunstringer is slated to retail for $40.00 and Fruit Ninja Kinect is worth $10.00 (800 MS Points). Additionally, The Gunstringer will also include free DLC titled “The Wavy Tube Man Chronicles” and if that just is not enough if you preorder from select retailers you get 2 tokens for a free Avatar Prop from the game.

Whether you decide to buy it now or wait until September I highly recommend at least trying the free Fruit Ninja Kinect Demo out now on Xbox Live.

Last night we tried out Avatar Kinect for the Xbox 360 and have included the video from that session. Check it out and let us know what you think! We found that Avatar Kinect is not perfect by any means. Overall, it is definitely worth a look just for the initial fun aspect of it. Plus, you will get some easy achievements and that is never a bad thing. However, don’t wait too long because it is only free for the first 45 days and it would be very sad for you to miss out on those 50 easy achievement points.

Also, if you have made any videos with Avatar Kinect post them on our Facebook page wall. We would love to see them!

PROS

24 different stages

5 minutes of recording time

Ability to upload and download video at KinectShare.com

Emotes

Video quality is surprisingly good

Great eyebrow tracking and picks up smiles perfectly

CONS

Unable to move legs

Limited movement of head

Hands can glitch through body parts

Mouth movement is not very accurate

Tip:

Use a headset mic to avoid the Kinect distortion and feedback noise.

Brunswick Pro Bowling

Far Sight Studios/Crave Games

• Players 1-4
• Kinect Sensor Required
• Voice Enabled
• Activity Level: Active

I have been waiting a couple of months for the release of Brunswick Pro Bowling but I found it odd that the game had released last week and I had not heard anything about it.  I looked on my usual gaming sites and found no reviews and none of my friends were playing it on Xbox Live.  I started to become concerned that maybe the game was going to be a flop.  I hopped on Amazon.com to order the game and saw two people give it one star.

I thought to myself, “Oh, it can’t be as bad as they say…I am sure they are just being overly critical.”   So, this weekend I happened to see it at Costco for $42.00 and I decided to just pick it up because really how bad could it be, right?

The Low Down

Look I am just going to be direct and to the point on this one.  Brunswick Pro Bowling is by far the worst Kinect game that I have played and that tops the demo for Namco’s Body and Brain Connection.  I popped the game in and found it difficult to even get through the first game.  I caught myself loading the dishwasher in-between frames!  Honestly, I don’t know where to begin with the amount of problems with this title.

Pros:

• It’s a bowling game
• It came in the pretty purple box
• 5 Modes – Quick Play, League, Online Tourament, Rival Challenges, and Spares Challenge

Cons:

• Menu navigation is terrible
• Sensor accuracy is terrible
• What is the point of having a Kinect if you have to point where you are going to throw the ball, before you throw the ball?  You have to extend your non-bowling arm straight out at shoulder level to activate the aiming arrow.  Then move it left or right.  Do I even need to mention how incredibly difficult this is to do not to mention how much it slows the pace of an already slow-paced game?
• Music is completely flat and boring
• Characters show no excitement and they just look depressed
• Apparently it was too difficult to come up with more than 12 achievements
• Game constantly either won’t release the ball when thrown or it accidentally throws it when I am getting ready to swing back.

The Score  2/10  -  This is the generous score!

The Final Verdict

This is the first time I have ever bought a game and felt like I was totally ripped off.  Crave Games really dropped the ball (yeah weak joke) on this one.  I was literally pissed that I wasted my money on this.  I traded it in almost immediately but I feel responsible for the poor person that buys my copy.

If you are me and liked the bowling in Kinect Sports then just stick with that.  It is tons more fun and infinitely more responsive and accurate.

EA Active 2

• EA Sports
• 1-2 Players
• Voice Enabled

One of the main reasons I got a Kinect was to use it as a workout tool.  So, naturally I bought EA Active 2 as soon as I saw a deal last week that dropped the price from $99.99 to $59.99. The game comes with a heart rate monitor and an elastic band to be used during workouts.  After playing Your Shape Fitness Evolved and The Biggest Loser Ultimate Workout, I had a laundry list of things that I would like to see added to a fitness game.  If you haven’t already, be sure to check out the article Your Shape Fitness Evolved VS The Biggest Loser Ultimate Workout.

So here is the breakdown of my observations during my first four workouts of EA Active 2.

Features:

• Heart rate monitor shows your current BPM in real time on your TV.
• Set up either a three or nine week program.
• Choose the workout difficulty that determines the length and intensity of workouts.
• Mini games like mountain biking, soccer, dodge ball, and cardio boxing are mixed into your workouts.
• Create your own workouts!
• Floor exercises like crunches, pushups, and planks.
• Warm ups, cool downs, and stretching.
• Journal to log daily nutrition and other activities.  Data is graphed to show progress and opportunities.
• Workout groups can be formed to keep each other motivated.
• EA Active 2 website lets you see your stats and workout groups.
• Two people can workout together (local play not over Xbox Live).

Pros:

• Game allows you to perform most exercises at your own pace and will wait for you.  Oh, how I used this during the pushups!  It took me awhile but I did them all!
• Good explanation verbally and visually of each exercise.
• You can use the band provided or substitute with dumb bells.  An option in-game allows you to notate the weight of your dumb bells.
• If you are broken like me…you can choose to skip exercises when selecting your exercise program for the day.  Also, if you get into a workout and your knee starts hurting then just pause the game and skip those lunges.  There is no need to hurt yourself.  Just do more of something else later.
• Finally, a Kinect game that can really work your core and you will feel it the next day!

Cons:

• Movement and tracking is okay.  However, it is easy to perform an exercise without proper form and still get credit.
• Mini games get boring real fast.  I would almost rather stick to the regular exercises.  How could cardio boxing be boring?
• Graphics are nothing special but get the job done.  I expect more for this being an Xbox game.
• Heart rate monitor seems HUGE on my arm but it does not get in the way at all.
• Long load times when game connects to EA Servers (this has been improving though).
• The navigation using the Kinect is terrible!  Don’t do it.  Read the tips below.

The Score:  8/10

The Final Verdict:

So, there are a few things that I really miss from Your Shape Fitness Evolved like the Zen class, the Cardio Kickboxing, and even some of the games.  However, EA Active 2 has a lot features that really appeal to my personal needs.  I am plagued by injuries and the ability to create personal workouts is huge.  I can now focus on working the areas I need to and can avoid things that can cause flair ups to old injuries.  I am a little disappointed in the number of different exercises and wish there were more.  However, I don’t think it is much different than the other fitness games.  Maybe there will be some DLC in the near future.

If you like to be in control of your workouts then that might be the deciding factor to buy EA Active 2 over the other two fitness games right now.  I would not say that this game is “fun” but if you want to workout it is good for that.

Tips:

Also, if you do purchase this game here are a couple of tips that will save you much frustration.

• Use your controller to set up the game.  The navigation by hand movement is so difficult that you will curse the world by the time you get through a few menus.
• Use voice commands as much as it will let you when not using your controller.

Here is a video clip of Sue Bird from the Seattle Storm promoting the game.  I had to include this.  She is pretty much the best WNBA player ever!

Does the Xbox Kinect beat the Nintendo Wii? In the past few day’s, this is a question we’ve been asked multiple times. Before I share our opinion, I’ll give you a little background on myself and my boyfriend. I’m 25, he’s 28, and the Xbox 360 is our main console. We both favor FPS and racing games, more often than not we play over Xbox Live with a group of friends . When the Nintendo Wii first came out we were so amped to try it out we camped out in a Target parking lot to make sure we were one of the first people to have the console. We started out with only the Wii Play game that the console came with, and we were both impressed with the technology. Soon after, the Wii became only a system we would play when we had friends over. Later on, we purchased the Wii Fit thinking it would be a fun way to workout minus the commute to the gym. Just as quickly that started to gather dust. The Wii didn’t offer the community game play that we preferred. Over all we were unhappy with the user experience and games offered for the system.

We didn’t camp out in a Target parking lot for the Kinect, but after a few days of listening to friends over Live talk about their experiences, we had to have it! The Kinect seemed to be a perfect match for us, offering similar games that we enjoyed on the Wii, but also gameplay over Xbox Live and achievements. Not having to worry about throwing your controller though the TV was just a bonus. It comes with Kinect Adventure and we purchased Kinect Sports and Your Shape Fitness Evolved. Both of us are impressed with how responsive it is, not only with motion, but also with voice commands. There was no lag when playing with friends over Xbox Live, with the built in microphone it almost made it feel like they were in the room with us. It was fun to see friends Xbox avatars being used in gameplay. There are similarities between Kinect and the Wii, but with Kinects ability to read your every movement, there was just no comparison with a game like Your Shape Fitness Evolved vs the Wii Fit.  We might just be in a honeymoon phase with Kinect, but at the moment we’re in love and are excited to see where Microsoft will take it. Individual game reviews will be coming soon.

Kinect

Pros:

Reaction time
You being the controller
Built in microphone
Voice control

Cons:

Easier way to share highlight reels instantly.
Temporarily missing ability to control Netflix
Inability to control the main Xbox dashboard, but having to use the Kinect Hub.
Currently only 17 Kinect games are available

Wii

Pros:

Download classic Nintendo games
Inexpensive
Tons of games to choose from

Cons:

The standard controller doesn’t accurately translate your motion
Online play
Not high-def

Console:  XBOX 360

Final Review:  8.5/10

Pros:

• Michael Rosenbaum (Lex Luthor – Smallville) voice over for lead character
• Love the graphics & sound
• Gameplay is intuitive and fun
• As game progresses new abilities are learned
• Ability to buy/upgrade weapons

Cons:

• Storyline is kind of generic
• Bosses can be annoying to beat

Overall, this is a very solid game that I am enjoying playing.  The super cheap price tag on it now makes it a must have.  Seriously, don’t pay more than $9.99.  Just keep an eye out for it!