hands-on

Here's what Batman: Arkham City on Wii U plays like

LOS ANGELES--Two Wii U games stole the show at the Nintendo press conference on Tuesday, Ubisoft's ZombiU and Warner Bros. Interactive's Batman: Arkham City Armored Edition. I was able to sneak in some time with the latter on Wednesday and found out what exactly "Armored Edition" means.

To be clear, the Wii U version of Arkham City is mostly the same game you've played on the other consoles. Sure, all the DLC available up until now is packed in, but those looking for a separate experience different than Rocksteady's epic won't find it. … Read more

Our 10 most anticipated games to see at E3 2012

Next week the CNET team hits Los Angeles for E3 2012 in search of the best the show has to offer. We've gotten the early word that consoles won't be the focus this time around (aside from the Wii U), so it'll be the software's time to shine.

Even so, major blockbusters like BioShock Infinite and Metal Gear Rising won't be at the show, so which titles are we most looking forward to getting our hands on? Click through our slideshow to find out.

Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 10.1 hands-on

SAN FRANCISCO--The announcement that Samsung's follow-up to its Galaxy Tab 10.1 would be receiving some downgrades from the previous entry, filled me with a mixture confusion and disappointment.

I just couldn't wrap my head around why the sequel to one of the premiere Android tablets would launch with a less impressive spec list than its predecessor.

Today, Samsung revealed that the Tab 2 10.1 would be released on May 13 for $400. That's $100 lower than the original Tab 10.1's list price and it fills the logic hole I believe Samsung was falling … Read more

Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 7.0 hands-on

SAN FRANCISCO--Going into today's Samsung media event in San Francisco, there was one device that I was having trouble wrapping my head around: The Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 7.0.

The 7.0 Plus released last year was quite a good tablet and not four months later, here was Samsung showing what it called the Galaxy Tab 2 7.0. Surely this device would be thinner, sexier, and more powerful than any Samsung tablet before it right? Wrong.

Samsung announced that the Tab 2 7.0 would house a 1GHz CPU (down from 1.2GHz on the 7.0 … Read more

Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 7.0 actually gets a competitive price

Today at a Samsung media event in San Francisco, the company unveiled pricing and release dates for both its Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 tablets. We took a brief look at both tablets at Mobile World Congress in February, but this is the first time they've been officially shown in the U.S.

The Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 7.0 will be released on April 22 for $250 with 8GB of storage. The Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 10.1 follows a few weeks later on May 13 at a price of $400 for 16GB of storage.

While the $400 price … Read more

CNET Labscast 23: When to buy a laptop, greatest gadgets ever, and a big goodbye

Well, it's been fun, but along with the rest of the weekly CNET Live lineup, the CNET Labscast (formerly known as Digital City) is being sent to the great podcast studio in the sky. For this final episode, the whole gang shows up, as we debate the right time to buy a laptop, and list our picks for the most influential gadgets of the modern era. … Read more

CNET Labscast 22: Too-big ultrabooks and best iPad 3 cases

Joining us this week is David Carnoy, who brings a collection of his favorite iPad 3 cases to show off. We also get hands-on with a too-big ultrabook, and debate the future of this once-promising new category.

Best iPad 3 cases and covers. Samsung Series 5 Ultrabook.

Samsung Series 9, 15-inch: Hands-on with the 13-incher's bigger brother

There's no doubt about it: Samsung's Series 9 has always been a hot-looking laptop. Thin and every bit as iconic as a MacBook Air, the 2011 Series 9 laid the groundwork for all the sleek and sexy ultrabooks we've seen so far and throughout January's CES.

We've peeked at the second-gen Series 9 13-incher a few months ago, but we also knew that a larger-screened version was on its way. I saw it at CES, and wondered how the concept of a thin ultrabook would work on a 15-inch scale. Well, it's here now at CNET, and before I dropped it off at the Labs for testing, I spent a little time with it up close.… Read more

CNET Labscast 21: iPad 3 hands-on, big ultrabooks, and an 80-inch TV

Big week, or at least big gadgets and gear, on the CNET Labscast. Forget about tiny 13-inch ultrabooks, now these slim laptops are moving into 14- and 15-inch territory, and we've got a couple of examples to pass around the room. Then Ty talks up his latest acquisition, a massive 80-inch Sharp LCD TV. It's awesome for sports (or "sport" as Ty puts it), but you can't make an 80-inch LCD for $5,000 without cutting a few corners.

But before all that, we've got the new iPad 3 (yes, that's what we're calling it), and a very eye-opening comparison of text blown up on both that and the iPad 2--be warned, it's the kind of thing you can't un-see.

CNET Labscast 20: The last Netbook, Lytro demo, and gaming on the Razer Blade

This week, we kill time before New iPad Day by checking out a late straggler to the now-dead Netbook market (no, they haven't gotten any better). Josh Goldman gives us a live demo of the new Lytro camera and its magical refocusing capability, then Scott tries running some PC games on the cool-looking, but potentially underpowered Razer Blade laptop. … Read more