ea

EA Sports' Madden NFL 13 has gotten off to a hot start. Electronic Arts announced today that the newest gridiron football simulator, which launched Tuesday, sold 900,000 copies during its first 24 hours for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3.

This marks a 7 percent rise over last year's iteration, and represents the most successful Madden launch this console generation.

Read more of "Madden NFL 13 sells 900,000 in 24 hours" at GameSpot.

LG today unveiled two new IPS monitors.

The first, dubbed the EA93, is a 29-inch panel with 2,560x1,080 resolution and a 21:9 aspect ratio. In terms of connectivity, the EA93 holds up quite well, offering one DVI-D Dual port, as well as two HDMI ports. It also comes with USB 3.0.

Whereas the EA93 is being marketed as a product for entertainment-seekers looking for high-quality visuals and a movie-friendly experience, the EA83 is specifically designed for "graphics-intensive applications" required by filmmakers, photographers, and designers.

The EA83 has a 27-inch screen and a 16:9 … Read more

Late August doesn't usually mean much for video gamers...unless you're playing Madden. Like the swallows of Capistrano, the arrival of the next Madden has become inextricably associated with the start of football season for us...and, the start of Scott's endless obsession over the NFL Team We Shall Not Name. Madden as an actual game doesn't really merit much to talk about year in and year out...new rosters, slight tweaks that only a veteran player would appreciate, or game modes that few might spend the time to discover. Still, the NFL fans buy it, … Read more

Don't call it a comeback.

"The Simpsons: Tapped Out" made its quiet return late last week after suffering through one of the more embarrassing meltdowns in app history when Electronic Arts pulled the game from Apple's App Store just a few days after its first launch in March. Simpsons fans had overwhelmed the server, causing connection problems, while massive bugs made for a terrible playing experience.

The incident is a lesson for any developer looking to launch a game with any amount of anticipation: be sure you're ready for the demand. Also, don't rush … Read more

Generally, for network storage needs, I would recommend getting a dedicated NAS server, such as the Synology DiskStation DS1511+. However, if your needs are limited to casual usage, such as sharing documents and streaming music and photos, then a router with built-in network storage capability -- one that comes with internal storage or can host an external storage device and shares that with the rest of the network -- fits the bill better.

While much inferior to a NAS server in terms of features and especially performance, some routers actually have more to offer, in terms of storage, than one might expect and may just be what you need. In any case, getting a router of this type plus an external hard drive is a lot cheaper than a dedicated NAS server.

Following is a list of five top routers with built-in support for network storage that I've reviewed in recent years. … Read more

A deluge of SimCity news came from EA and Maxis at the massive Gamescom gaming expo yesterday in Cologne, Germany.

Interested architects can check out the SimCity closed beta sign-up Web page that gives anyone with an Origin account the chance to get an early preview of the urban planner. The page does not, however, list when the beta occurs or how long it lasts.… Read more

You don't need any accessories to catch up on Friday's top tech stories:

A new service called Dyle picks up live, local TV signals to watch on your mobile device. The first with this service is the MetroPCS Samsung Galaxy S Lightray 4G. But if you rather not drop $460 right now for a phone, iOS users may have another option this fall when Dyle attachments are expected to go on sale.

No price has been set, but the attachments could cost, at most, $150. And the service from then on is free. Would you pay for an … Read more

Well, that didn't take long. EA announced today that gamers can play the beleaguered Star Wars: The Old Republic MMORPG this fall for free, avoiding the usual $14.99 monthly fee. The company also announced a $14.99 price cut for the game coming in August; the cut comes packaged with a one-month subscription. … Read more

No spam in Tuesday's top tech stories:

It's not often we get a shakeup in the email world, but say hello to Microsoft's new free email account, Outlook.com. It'll eventually be replacing Hotmail, but you might want to grab your name now. There's a new, clean look and it ties in your social media contacts. It's not too far off from what you may be used to already in Gmail, as you'll be able to tell from CNET's full overview of the features.

The Mars Science Laboratory rover, called Curiosity, will … Read more