Wii Console Launches on Nov. 19
Nintendo launches its Wii home videogame console in the Americas on Nov. 19. Wii will launch in Europe on Dec. 8. Wii (pronounced “we”) will retail in the US at $249.99. The price includes one wireless Wii remote controller, one Nunchuk controller and five Wii sports games on one disc, which the company claims anyone can play using simple movements. Every Wii console includes a series of on-screen “channels” that make up the Wii Channel Menu. The Wii Channel Menu is the starting point for all of the console’s functions.
Wii is equipped with a controller whose position can be detected in a 3D space. The new controller allows users to pinpoint targets in games or move through the Wii Channel Menu with ease. Nintendo believes that their controller will make gaming both easier and more intense than anything previously experienced. For example, in the Wii sports tennis game, players swing the Wii remote like a racket to hit the ball as in real life. They can add topspin or slice the ball just by angling their hands and wrist like they would in a real match.
Nintendo stated that by Dec. 31, 30 software titles will be available for Wii. Nintendo launch titles include Wii sports, a compilation of tennis, baseball, golf, bowling and boxing; The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess; and Excite Truck. While publishers are free to set their own prices for games, first-party Nintendo titles will retail at $49.99. Wii’s self-loading media bay also can play the entire library of more than 530 Nintendo GameCube titles from day one.
For the latest details, visit the official website at Wii.com.
Resource for Up-to-Date Maps
Maps.com has released an expertly detailed and up-to-date Iran Map (www.maps.com/iranmap). Details of the latest map include oil and gas fields and pipelines, key nuclear sites, major roads and expressways, railroads, historical and ruin sites, capitals and major cities and physical information. With an increasingly global future and heightened conflict in the Middle East, resources like the Iran Map are fast becoming valuable educational and reference tools.
In addition to the Iran Map, Maps.com’s online retail site offers a series of highly detailed political maps that include Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan and the Middle East. The site offers a free online reference atlas and map games as well.
Smart Parking Solution Makes Global Debut
In a reflection of the growing spirit of innovation within the region, Dubai-based Amricon, has launched its Smart Parking Solution. The application is a first-of-its-kind paid parking system that incorporates a user-operated pre-payment device which can be placed inside a vehicle and operated to pay for short- and long-term parking.
Amricon’s Smart Parking Solution compliments current payment methods and offers an alternative solution for busy people who get into long meetings as the solution automatically renews parking charges as needed by the user, thus ensuring that motorists are not levied any penalty even if they fail to renew parking charges manually. The Smart Parking Solution also spares parking inspectors from having to manually check the renewal of each parking ticket, as the paid parking period can be checked remotely through use of a radio frequency (RF) device.
Here is how the Smart Parking Solution works:
• The Smart Parking Solution user would load the prepaid pager with an amount of money either by mobile or by paying cash or credit at participating gas stations.
• The user would turn on the prepaid pager device when the car is parked at a paid parking spot.
• The prepaid pager would start deducting fees as specified in the zone where the car is parked.
• The user would switch off the device when the car is driven away.
