Cheap Flights

Air Asia is having a sale for tomorrow and Sunday only. Fare to Kuala Lumpur from Gold Coast is only $99 one way. The travel period is between 2 Nov and 14 Nov 2007.

The flight is still subject to regulatory approval though. Further conditions about the flight can be found here.

This is probably the first route that is announced for Air Asia X, the first low-cost long-haul airline. Air Asia X will fly between South East Asia and Australia, China and Europe. For more info on Air Asia X, click here.

TV Shows

Well, this year the time we (Australia) watched US drama series will change. Instead of waiting until next year for the new season to start, we get the new episodes a week after it has been shown in the US.

All the US (fall) series has begun this week and we will get to watch them next week. OK, I lied. Not all shows that screened in the US will come back next week. For example, no Grey's Anatomy yet.

Here are some of the new and returning shows next week:

• Heroes - Ch 7 - Thu Oct 4 - 9:30pm
• Bionic Woman - Ch 7 - Thu Oct 4 - 8:30pm
• House - Ch 10 - Wed Oct 3 - 8.30pm
  

Not a lot but it's better than nothing and if you're still not up to date with the shows, get them on DVD here.

Water Restriction to Stay

Well, at least this is true for Melbourne. The current stage 3A water restriction will stay on at least until autumn next year. This is despite recent (and current) rain.

But I guess it's a good thing. Water restriction makes people water-wise, without it people will go crazy and continue to use it thinking that it's unlimited.

Bikini Troops

What do you get when you gather 1000 over girls wearing just bikini? The answer is a world record. Yesterday, 1010 girls gather at Bondi beach with just a bikini to break the world record for the largest swimsuit photo shoot ever.

The attempt was a success, they got a spot in the Guinness World Records. It will be included with the book next year.

The shoot itself was sponsored by Cosmopolitan magazine (and a razor company). At one point, the girls were asked to line up to make the letter C, O, S, M, O and be photographed from the sky.

The shoot will be reported in the January issue of Cosmo which sells around December.

I was just thinking, we should do it in Melbourne as well. I wonder if Melbourne can beat the record.

pictures from heraldsun.com.au, cosmopolitan.com.au

Foxtel Price Increase

Although I haven't actually got the news from Foxtel, I have seen reports that there will be an increase in the subscription price from 1st of December 2007.

The price increase for the channel groups:

• Get Started - $37.95
• My Sport - $17.95
• My Movies - $15.95 (no change)
• My Complete Movies - $28.95
• 1 of My Escape or My World or My Playtime - $16.95
• 2 of My Escape or My World or My Playtime - $22.95
• 3 of My Escape or My World or My Playtime - $25.95
• Platinum - $105.95

Individual channels:

• RAI - $19.95
• Antenna - $19.95
• Adults 1 - $24.95
• Adults 2 - $34.95
• Games World - $6.95

The price increase will see the Lifestyle channel be included in the Get Started package from December 1st.

There will also be a new channel called Showcase that will show Emmy award-winning dramas, feature documentaries and also Australian exclusive drama. The channel will be included with My Movies package for no extra cost.

Melbourne Cup Threatened

Melbourne Cup this year might not go ahead because of the recent cases of horse influenza. Australia has experienced a bad case of horse flu especially in the state of New South Wales and Queensland. The flu has cancelled many races all around the country devastating horses owners, jockeys, and so on.

Anyway, that is not my point. Yes, there is a possibility that Melbourne Cup might not go ahead (depending how bad the flu spread across Victoria) but the sad news is that the holiday might disappear as well. Victorian Premier, John Brumby, just mentioned that he cannot promise a holiday for the Melbourne Cup if the race does not go on.

This is bad. Australia has only so few holidays as it is. Removing one would be disastrous. So I'd say Mr. Brumby, let us have our holiday, our Melbourne Cup holiday. It's only one day for goodness sake.

Another JT Show

Justin Timberlake has just added another show in Melbourne for the 18th of November and tickets are on sale now. Go to Ticketek now. At the time of writing only the Sexyback Lounge has sold out.

Brownlow Winner 2007

The award for best and fairest player in footy, the Brownlow medal, has been awarded to Jimmy Bartel from the Geelong Cats. This is definitely good news for the Cats ahead of their grand final match this weekend.

Bartel won with 29 votes. Gary Ablett who was a fellow teammate and favourite for the medal had 20 points.

The other interesting thing about Brownlow (besides the medal) is the fashion of the player's girlfriend or partner. The night is as important for the partner and/or girlfriend as it is for the player. I guess it is always an interesting one to see what the women wear. The guys will always have a suit on and tie, pretty boring.

Rebecca Twigley made headlines a couple of years ago (2004) when she went to the Brownlow with that red dress dubbed the dress that stopped the nation (left). This year, she took a more conservative look (right).

Bree Hately had one of the most stunning dress for the night.

I would say that the overall fashion for the Brownlow was great. There was a few shocking ones but I think everybody played it safe last night.

Ok, enough of dresses, back to football. The Grand Final will be happening this Saturday 29th September 2007, 2.30pm between the Geelong and Port Adelaide at the MCG. So, stay tuned.

picture from theage.com.au, heraldsun.com.au

And it's Orange

Yes, Orange is the partner that will bring the iPhone to France. The announcement was made last week. The odd thing was that the announcement was not made by Steve Jobs unlike Germany and UK. It was Orange CEO that broke the news.

Details and pricing info are still fuzzy at this point but it will be for November release just like the other countries.

Geelong to Grand Final

Next week is the Grand Final, the one day in September that everyone has been waiting for. Geelong, tonight, is the first team to advance to the Grand Final. The second team will be decided tomorrow.

Geelong won by 5 points from Collingwood in front of 98,002 people in MCG.

picture from theage.com.au

Entertainment Update

Along with spring comes 'cleaning', an update in your life. Well, I think your entertainment collection would also need to be refreshed this spring. Here are some releases that are worth mentioning.

Music (Australia)
This spring it seems like all Aussie artists are releasing their new album and they all have excellent songs. Shannon Noll did his album in the US with the help of some famous musician, Richie Sambora to name one. Delta Goodrem is back and in the country with her new 'sexy' look. Veronicas, the twins, are releasing a totally different music from their 1st album. Rogue Traders will also release their new album next month.

• Delta Goodrem (single - out now) (album - 22 Oct)
  
• Shannon Noll (album - out now)
• Veronicas (single - 25 Sep) (album - 3 Nov)
  
• Vanessa Amorosi (single - out now) (album - 15 Oct)
• Ben Lee (album - out now)
• Ricki Lee (single - out now) (album - out now)
• Damien Leith (single - out now) (album - out now)
  

Music (International)
You can never get enough of international music talent. Here are some that is worth checking out.

• KT Tunstall
• Matchbox Twenty Greatest Hits (1 Oct)
• James Blunt
• Kanye West
• Britney Spears (single - 8 Oct)
  

DVD
There is just so many great releases on DVD, especially TV on DVD. The blockbuster Spiderman 3 is also out, so you can relive the adventure of Peter Parker and Mary Jane.

• 24 Season 6
• Prison Break Season 2
• House Season 3
• Heroes Season 1
• The Simpsons Season 10 (26 Sep)
  
• Spiderman 3
• Transformers (1 Nov)
  

Games
New release games that will keep you busy this school holiday (it will still keep you busy even if you don't have a holiday).

• Halo 3 (25 Sep) - XBOX360
  
• Bioshock - XBOX360
  

For more entertainment needs, go to BigWEntertainment.com.au.

iPhone in Germany

Steve Jobs (Apple's CEO) apparently is on a roll, bringing Christmas present early for the European countries. After the announcement for a UK iPhone, yesterday he announced the availability of a German iPhone.

The German partner/carrier is T-mobile and the phone will retail at €399. It will be available on November 9, the same time with the UK release.

The rumour is that tomorrow/today, Jobs will announce an iPhone in France. Stay tuned. Let's hope for a local (Australia) release soon.

picture from Apple Germany

More Justin Shows

All the fans of JT (Justin Timberlake) that missed out on the previous concerts, here is something just for you. JT is going to add a few more concerts at Perth, Melbourne, Sydney and Auckland (NZ).

Here are the new dates and location,

• Saturday 10 November - Perth - Burswood Dome
• Tuesday 13 November - Sydney - Acer Arena
• Saturday 17 November - Melbourne - Rod Laver Arena

Tickets will be sold through Ticketek and will start at Wednesday 26 September 9:00am. The normal restriction apply, you can only get a maximum of 2 Sexyback Lounge tickets or 4 Gold/Silver tickets in one transaction.

For Auckland, the dates have been changed and another show is added, for further details click here.

Further information can be obtained from Frontier touring.

So, this time make sure you start queuing up the day before, trust me. Because if this all went like the ones before, everything will be sold out in 15 minutes. Be prepared.

iPhone in the UK

Steve Jobs (Apple's CEO) has launched the first release of iPhone outside the US. At a special media event held yesterday in London, he announced that the iPhone will be available from November 9 in the UK.

The exclusive carrier this time is O2. The phone will be the same model as the one released in the US, 8GB (so no 3G). The price will be £269 (including VAT) for the phone.

From the carrier point of view, there are 3 plans (£35, £45, £55) all with unlimited data. The contract is 18 months. Apple and O2 has also made arrangement with The Cloud so that customers can use their free Wi-Fi spot (about 7500 locations).

For further details check Apple's website or O2's website.

In other news (but still relates to Apple), Microsoft has launched the website for the new and upcoming Office Mac 2008. Check it out at http://www.macoffice2008.com/

picture from O2 website

Free Train Ride in Melbourne

This is breaking news. From October (date to be determined), Victorians will be able to travel free on trains provided they do it before 7am. It will be first trialled at 2 (busiest) train lines, Sydenham and Frankston Line. If it is successful then it will be applied to whole of Melbourne next year.

To get the free ride, commuter must get a special 10 x 2-hour ticket which is only valid for mornings. Only trains that reach the city before 7am qualifies (apparently there are 5 services that qualifies).

Note though the free ride is only for mornings, so if you want to return in the evening after work with a train then you must get another card, possibly the 10 x 2-hour ticket.

More TV channels

The next big thing in digital free-to-air TV will be coming in a few months with the introduction of high definition TV channels by both Channel 7 and Ten.

If you don't already know, the analog TV (current one) will be switched off by the government sometime between 2010 and 2012. So if you have an old TV, you won't be able to watch anything unless you get a set-top box (or buy a new TV with an in-built digital tuner)

The channels are being planned to be released on December. Currently if you have a digital TV, you will get a few extra channels, ABC 2 and SBS News are the main ones. There is also digital radio broadcast from SBS and ABC. On top of that, you will also have the EPG (Electronic Program Guide) for all the commercial channel (7, 9 and Ten). This vary with regions, so to check which channels are available to you, click here.

The content of the new channels are still vague at the moment so I guess we will need to wait a little bit more. The channel from Ten will be called TEN HD.

Road Trip Mania

Ok, we all love a road trip once in a while. How about this, a road trip from London to Sydney ? Yes ? The trip will take 3 months to complete and costs more than AU$9000. The company OzBus is doing just that.

They are doing a tour from London to Sydney by bus, passing around 20 countries. These are the countries that they will be passing: ENGLAND - FRANCE - GERMANY - CZECH REPUBLIC - AUSTRIA - HUNGARY - ROMANIA - BULGARIA - TURKEY - IRAN - PAKISTAN - INDIA - NEPAL - CHINA - LAOS - THAILAND - MALAYSIA - INDONESIA - EAST TIMOR - AUSTRALIA

The first bus just depart yesterday and the next one is due later this month. Bus route is subject to change though depending of the countries threat level.

There is also a return trip (from Sydney to London).

To get more info about the itinerary or if you want to jump into the next bus, go to the website here.

Chadstone Spring Event

For Melbournians, Chadstone shopping centre is running their regular VIP shopping event this Wednesday, 19th of September 2007.

As usual, there will be specials from all the retailers there. The specials will be available from 9am to 11pm so it is really shop 'til you drop. For a full list of the offers, click here (pdf file).

Some of the events that is happening on the day (from Chadstone's website):

• Enjoy a glass of Yellowglen Jewel Sparkling wine or Perrier Water from 5.30pm
• Special exclusive retailer offers of up to 50% OFF
• Runway Show #1, 7pm outside David Jones: The A List - featuring the most revered local and international designers Spring /Summer collections
• Runway Show #2, 8pm outside David Jones: Youth - showcasing the hottest designs for summer and beyond
• Heat one of the Melbourne Racing Club 'Fashion Stakes'
• Chance to win "12 Months of Glamour" - sunglasses to the value of $4,800 thanks to OPSM
• Chadstone FREE Shuttle Bus

The shopping 'bonanza' is only happening on Wednesday but the Spring event actually last until end of the week, from 19th until the 23th of September. Daily attractions include:

• Free hair styling at the Joh Bailey Blow Dry Bar
• Free mini makeovers and giveaways by Max Factor
• Free millinery presentations with different presenters daily

For a full details of the event, refer to the event's website.

So get your shopping gear ready, don't forget your wallet (make sure it's got money in it) and get ready to 'attack'.

Lonely People Die Young

This is one alarming fact. Today, US researchers have found that being lonely might cost you your health and lessen your life. It has something to do with the gene going crazy.

Read the full article here.

This proves us, humans, as social creatures. I don't think anybody wants to be lonely no matter what. People who say they can live alone is hiding from the truth.

Danger of Melanoma

You might not know this girl. Her name is Clare Oliver. She was 26. A couple of weeks ago, a newspaper ran a story about her and her fight with skin cancer. She said that she had only days or weeks to live but she would like to spend the last of her days campaigning and making people aware of the danger of skin cancer and solarium.

Clare Oliver passed away this morning, losing her fight with the cancer. I would like to send my deepest condolences to her family.

Her story was a sad but it shows how the reality is at the momen. She frequently visit the solarium when she was young even though she knew the danger of UV lights. She got caught in "buy 10 sessions get 20" marketing. In the end, she was diagnosed with melanoma (a dangerous form of skin cancer) and that the cancer has spread to all over her.

Her message was simple, "is your tan worth dying ?". Because of her article, in Victoria, the health minister has reacted and promised some new regulations for solarium. Tighter control with age check and parental consent will be introduced.

To read her original article that she wrote for Herald Sun, click here. I encourage you to read her story and share it with you family and friends.

Finally, I would like to say thank you Clare for sharing your story and may you rest in peace.

picture from heraldsun.com.au

Whirlpool Sued

Whirlpool, an Australian broadband community website, has been sued by 2Clix, an accounting software publisher. The firm is seeking damages of $150,000 per month and the permanent removal of 2 threads in Whirlpool's forum.

Whirlpool is a well known website in Australia. It provides a range of information about broadband news, providers and their plans. It also has one of the largest discussion forum with regards to broadband in general. The forum has more than 180,000 members although the list has grown rapidly ever since the news broke.

The firm is suing because Whirlpool failed to close down 2 threads in its forum. The threads contains suggestion by people (users) to not use the software from 2Clix because it was unsatisfactory. 2Clix claims that this 2 threads have made them to lose customers and therefore they are seeking damages.

The statement of claim can be read here, as posted on Whirlpool's website.

Whirlpool has already said that they will fight the charges even though they are a community website with little resources. Support has been coming in from all Whirlpool members, some even started donating to help Whirlpool's legal cost.

The news has started to receive coverage from major Australian newspaper and internet websites, making it a headline. To read the articles, click here (news.com.au) and here (smh/the age.com.au).

No Free HD-DVD in Australia

Well, this is just not fair. In the UK, Matrix fans were rejoicing because they got a free present when purchasing the Matrix Trilogy in HD-DVD. The gift was a brand new HD-DVD player. Yes, a free high-definition player for 60 pounds (around $150) and don't forget you get the Matrix Trilogy as well. The player was a Toshiba HD-E1 which is valued at about $800.

This is definitely an excellent idea of promoting the new HD-DVD format. Remember that Blu-Ray and HD-DVD are still fighting for a pole position in the market of next-gen format. Blu-Ray seems to be taking the lead with the help of PS3. Blockbuster will only rent Blu-Ray movies. In Australia, music giant JB Hi-Fi announced that it will only sell Blu-Ray movies as well.

However, HD-DVD still is going strong. Paramount recently announced that they have chosen to side with HD-DVD. They were publishing movies in both formats before but not anymore. This means blockbuster movies such as Transformers will only be available in HD-DVD.

Actually, I don't mind if the two formats co-exist together as long as movies are not published both formats. Each movie should only be published in one format, either HD-DVD or Blu-Ray. Having 2 different players is fine, just get a PS3 and Xbox 360 (with the extra HD-DVD player) or just wait a little longer for a hybrid player that can play both formats.

Anyway, back to the Matrix. The movie is planned to be released next year in Australia (in HD-DVD) but there is no plans to distribute a free HD-DVD player with it or running a similar promotion. I guess we can only wait and see. In the mean time, if you want to check out the photos for the UK Matrix event, click here.

Britney Oh Britney

As we all know, Britney made a debut comeback yesterday at the MTV Video Music Awards. She just released a new song, Gimme More, and was performing it on the show. It was the opening act apparently and her performance left everybody (and I mean everybody) talking.

The Performance
Well, I will have to agree with most people here. Her performance was really bad. It was not Britney at all. She always give good performance, great dance. It is not the case this time. She lip-synched the whole song and did not perform a great dance at all.

This is disappointing for Britney cause this is suppose to be her comeback to music after all her problems. In some of her dance moves, you could see her waiting for something to happen or someone to catch her. It is like she is thinking about the dance steps in her head, afraid to forget some moves. It does not look natural at all which is a shame for Britney who, I think, has great dance in her video clips.

The Outfit
This is another thing that I don't understand. She was barely wearing anything. It was a disaster. I don't believe it was sexy at all (if that's the look she was aiming for). She could easily be sexier wearing the costume that the female dancers wore.

I am not going to comment anything about Britney's body. There's a whole debate going on at the moment about her body, read the article here. All I will say is that she would be better off with another costume instead of wearing just bra and briefs.

The Song
I heard the song before and I quite like it. I always think that Britney has a great voice and that she is so lucky to have it. The song itself was great, upbeat and sexy. But it seems like whoever wrote the song didn't have any other line for Britney besides "Gimme Gimme". The "Gimme Gimme" seems to be repeated way too many times but other than that I think the music is fantastic.

If you want to watch her performance, do a search. It is not that hard to find since everybody seems to be bragging about her.

picture from heraldsun.com.au

New Indiana Jones

The title for the upcoming new Indiana Jones movie has been released. It will be called, Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull.

This continue the trend of old actors trying to be young again after the release of Rocky, Die Hard 4.0, and soon to be released Rambo.

New iPods - Out Now

Apple has launched the new line of iPods, as previously speculated. As a summary, the big launch is the release of a new iPod Nano and iPod Touch. Other iPods received new look, bigger capacity and new colours. Shop Now

Another thing is the availability of iTunes Wi-Fi Music Store and Apple's partnership with Starbucks. This last one is probably only for the US market at the moment.

Also for the US market, the iPhone 4GB will be discontinued and the 8GB has been given a price cut of US$200, which made some people unhappy (those bought the phone earlier). A ring tone service for the iPhone was announced as well (not important cause we can't buy the iPhone just yet).

iPod Shuffle
Everything is still the same but with new colours and a Product(RED) addition. No more orange in this release. Shop Now

iPod Nano
Total revamp of the product. It's now smaller, able to play videos, games. Basically it's a mini version of the old iPod. There are new colours as well. As the old Nano, the lowest capacity model (4GB) will only be available with silver and the 8GB will be available in more colour choices. Shop Now

iPod Classic
Apple decided to make the original iPod a name, iPod Classic. It's got a metal casing now instead of the old black and white, and bigger capacity, 80GB and 160GB. I just can't imagine whether somebody needs that much space cause 160GB is equivalent to about 40,000 songs. Shop Now

iPod Touch
A stripped down version of iPhone. Basically, it is an iPhone without the phone capabilities. It's got wi-fi, safari (internet browser), youtube access, videos and it plays music. The navigation seems to be the same with iPhone. I guess this is to fill the gaps for people who wants the iPhone but not in the US. Shop Now

Price List
Here is the price list for the Australian market

• iPod Shuffle - $99
• iPod Nano 4GB - $199
• iPod Nano 8GB - $279
  
• iPod Classic 80GB - $349
  
• iPod Classic 160GB - $479
• iPod Touch 8GB - $419
  
• iPod Touch 16GB - $549
  

Some of them are available now, except the iPod Touch that will be available end of September (28th). Click here to shop the Apple Store.

If you want to know more, cnet.com.au has posted reviews for the new iPods.

pictures from macworld.com, cnet.com.au, arstechnica.com

KTM what ?

Ever feel like driving one of those futuristic cars, the one that looks like a Bat-car. Well, you might not have to wait that long. KTM, a European motorcycle manufacturer, is going to launch its first ever automobile and damn, it looks HOT. Check out the pictures below,

what a beauty

and again from the side

The name is KTM X-BOW and they are planning to bring it in Australia next year around May. The price point is estimated to be between 80,000 to 90,000 which is (I think) about the same price with a BMW Z4.

It is rear-wheel-drive and powered by Audi's engine (turbocharged direct injection 2 litre four-cylinder petrol engine). This can produce 162kW of power. It has a six-speed gearbox and can do 0-100km/h in 3.9sec.

But, you've got to buy it online instead of getting it from a dealership so no test-drive. Another thing to note, the car has no roof, doors, boot or windscreen. So, a helmet is a must. It also doesn't have a luggage compartment. Well, I think it is basically a motorcycle that looks like a car. I'm not sure whether they will let you go without a helmet. But, the car sure looks good.

Further info, pictures and 360 degrees view can be obtained from their website.

pictures from netrider.net.au

New iPod ?

In just a few hours, Apple will host a media event in the US and everyone is EXCITED. Well, maybe not everyone but for the die-hard fans of Apple and all the geeks, this will be like a new year's eve. They will celebrate and have their own special party.

Why ? It's because the event is heavily rumoured to be releasing a brand new line-up for iPods. Earlier this year, people were expecting Apple to launch the next generation iPod which was rumoured to have touch screen, etc. But Steve Jobs (Apple's CEO) gave them a phone, an iPhone.

Recently, the iMac line-up was updated with a new sleek brushed aluminum look and a brand new keyboard design. A couple of software was updated as well. This includes iWork 08 and iLife 08.

But this time, it looks like the iPod will get the special treatment. There are several rumours going on about the "new iPod". One claims that it will have wireless, another said that it will be have a "touch" function similar to iPhone but without the phone capabilities and so on. The rumours are endless. But I guess this is what makes it exciting.

It is just amazing the amount of attention Apple get when they are rumoured to launch a new product. I read this article once titled, "Why does no one care if the Dell store go down", which is true. Because when the Apple store go down, everybody will start saying a new update is coming or start their own little conspiracy theory and sometimes this can impact on the value of Apple stock. How cool is that ?

Anyway, we can only wait and see what is the next installment in this Apple saga. Some websites will provide live coverage of the event to update the die-hard fans. So, bring it on. Apple, I'm excited.

In the meantime, check out the Apple Store for their current products.

Melb. Central Shopping Evening

Melbourne Central will be having a shopping/fashion evening on Wednesday. It is part of the Fashion Week that is currently happening in Melbourne.

Most stores will have a special on the night. Some of the offers include:

• Alannah Hill - 20% off storewide
• Armani Exchange - 20% off full priced stock
• Borders - 15% off storewide (conditions apply)
• Country Road - 15% off full priced stock
• CK Jeans - 20% off full priced stock
• Cotton On - 30% off full priced stock
• Cue - 15% off full priced stock
• DeCjuba - 30% off full priced stock (conditions apply)
• Midas - 20% off storewide (conditions apply)
• Miss Sixty - 20% off all Miss Sixty and Energie stock
• Morrissey - 20% off storewide
• Oroton - 10% off storewide
• Saba - 20% off full priced stocki
• Steve Madden - 20% off storewide

For a full list of specials, click here to download the flyer (pdf). It is all happening tomorrow from 5-9pm.