#6 Any Light Gun Game Ever Created

For: Everything from Arcades to the PS3

Physical Effort Required:Not Much

Mental Energy Required: Not Much

It doesn’t matter if we’re talking about Time Crisis, House of the Dead, or Duck Hunt, light gun games as a whole take a lot of the exertion out of playing video games. All you need is one functioning arm and decent vision for you to partake and excel in them.

Most light gun games also restrict your movement completely, which is why they’re referred to as “on-rails shooters,” because it’s as though you’re on a track going through a fun house filled with video game enemies. But I’m not knocking light gun games. Resident Evil: Umbrella Chronicles and The House of the Dead games, are some of my favourite titles that are devoid of many of the frustrations of more involved titles, including having to worry about where you’re supposed to go next.

#2 Let’s Tap

For: Nintendo Wii

Physical Effort Required: Virtually None

Mental Energy Required: Minimal

What’s lazier than a video game where you don’t even have to pick up the damn controller? In order to get your little translucent jelly man to run around a track, knock blocks off of a tower, or engage in any of Let’s Tap’s other mini-games, all you do is set the Wii Remote down on a surface such as an empty pizza box on your granny’s coffin and tap near the controller, which then senses your vibrations–that’s it!

You could be half dead, lying down on the couch with your face turned towards the television screen and you should still be able to muster up the strength to lift your index finger up and down. People slam Wii games for being too simplistic, but sometimes a game that allows you to play it with zero effort like Let’s Tap is what you’re in the mood for.

Have A Lazy Summer All Year ‘Round!

Let’s face it–for the most part, video games are only demanding less and less from the player, especially with beginner difficulty settings and tutorials coming standard with most new games.

Several days ago, Nintendo took this to a new level when they revealed that in New Super Mario Bros. Wii, you will have an option where you can actually have the game play itself. If you can’t get past an obstacle in the upcoming platformer, you can simply press a button and the game will not only show you what to do, it will do it for you.

But that’s not necessarily a “bad” thing, is it? Not every game has to be uber-grueling. Hell, I remember the days when some games only supplied you with one life and once your health bar was depleted you were forced to start from the very beginning of the game. We take a look at several great games that don’t feel like a chore to play.

#3 Dead Space

For: Xbox 360, PS3

Physical Effort Required: Medium

Mental Energy Required: Little… if you press R3

Okay, hear me out before you scoff at this entry. While it is possible to play EA’s Resident Evil-slaying horror masterpiece Dead Space without using the game’s built-in “never get lost option,” for some gamers like myself it’s just too hard to resist abusing this GPS. Besides, I don’t care who you are, wasting a lot of time struggling to figure out what you’re supposed to do in game is never fun on any level.

To activate Dead Space’s objective finder, you click in the right analog stick (R3) and a glowing blue line will appear that shows you exactly where you need to go. The point of the feature is to have a little help during those times where you’re really stumped and are becoming increasingly more frustrated. Of course, if you’re like me and love linear games, you can just hit this every two seconds to radically transform Dead Space from a fairly difficult survival horror game into a non-stop Necromorph slaughter fest.

Shane O’Neill
CIO.com

Here we highlight top-selling netbooks, from the (relatively) high end to the under-$300 range.

HP 2140 Mini-Note
This is Hewlett-Packard‘s tough business-class netbook, designed for road warriors who need durability and long battery life (six-cell battery, seven-plus hours).

Cost: Approx $456.99
Screen size: 10.1 inches
CPU: 1.6GHz Intel Atom N270
RAM: 1GB, expandable to 2GB
Storage: 160GB hard drive
Battery: 6-cell
Operating System: Windows XP Home
Weight: 1.36Kg

Samsung NC10
The NC10 cool blue netbook is Samsung‘s general purpose offering with strong battery life (6 cell) and a slightly larger keyboard than most netbooks.

Cost: Approx $434.95
Screen size: 10.2 inches
CPU: 1.6GHz Intel Atom N270
RAM: 1GB
Storage: 160GB hard drive
Battery: 6-cell
Operating System: Windows XP Home
Weight: 1.31Kg

Dell Inspiron Mini 9
The super-light Dell Inspiron Mini 9 offers the choice between Windows XP Home and Ubuntu Linux. Windows XP will cost you more.

Cost: Ranges from $250 to $400, depending on how machine is customized. (Source: Dell Website)
Screen size: 8.9 inches
CPU: 1.6GHz Intel Atom
RAM: 512MB (Linux) or 1GB (Windows XP)
Storage: 16GB SSD
Battery: 4-cell
Operating System: Windows XP Home or Ubuntu Linux
Weight: 1.04Kg

MSI Wind U100
MSI Wind netbooks usually crack the top best-sellers lists. Key features are its light weight and ergonomically designed keyboard, which is just 20% smaller than a full-sized laptop keyboard.

Cost: Approx $379.99
Screen size: 10 inches
CPU: 1.6-GHz Intel Atom
RAM: 1GB, 2GB max
Storage: 160GB hard drive
Battery: 6-cell
Operating System: Windows XP Home
Weight: 1.17Kg

Lenovo Ideapad S10
The Ideapad S10 is Lenovo‘s recent entry into netbooks. The standout feature of this glossy white netbook is a touchpad that supports multi-touch gestures through fingertip movements on the touchpad.

Cost: Approx $349.99
Screen size: 10.2 inches
CPU: 1.6-GHz Intel Atom N270
RAM: 1GB
Storage: 160GB hard drive
Battery: 3-cell
Operating System: Windows XP Home
Weight: 1.17Kg

HP Mini 1000 XP Edition
The Mini 1000 is renowned for its slimness and spacious keyboard, which HP claims is 92% the size of a full-size laptop keyboard.

Cost: Approx $329
Screen size: 8.9 or 10.2 inches
CPU: 1.6GHz Intel Atom N270
RAM: 512MB or 1GB
Storage: Up to 80GB hard drive or up to 32GB SSD
Battery: 3-cell or 6-cell
Operating System: Windows XP Home
Weight: 1.13Kg

Acer Aspire One AOA150-1126
The Acer Aspire Ones battle the Asus Eee PCs for the top-selling netbook. This light-as-a-feather netbook boasts nearly six hours of battery life, a stylish look and sharp screen resolution at an affordable price.

Cost: Approx $319
Screen size: 8.9 inches
CPU: 1.6GHz Intel Atom N270
RAM: 1GB
Storage: 160GB Hard Drive
Battery: 6-cell
Operating System: Windows XP Home
Weight: 0.997Kg

By Billy Joe I. Allardo

AMD’s Spider platform is designed to work optimally by working the Phenom processors and chipsets with ATI’s new HD graphics cards. Here’s a basic run-down of what you’ll need to build a high-end rig based on AMD’s quad-core Phenom X4 processor.

Processor
AMD Phenom X4 9600 2.3GHz

As the system’s central figure, the processor basically dictates what other components belong in the system. Nowadays, a multi-core processor is a must-have inside every new performance PC to ensure that the system can hold its ground when it comes to multitasking environments and resource-heavy applications. The Phenom X4 9600 features a 65nm process that the results to less power use and heat emission and a HyperTransport bandwidth of 1.8GHz. Attach a capable cooling solution and this quad core processor has enough power to handle the workload.

Motherboard
Gigabyte GA-MA790-FX-DQ6

The motherboard is the backbone of the PC, so it is important to secure one that provides the best possible features and support for future upgrades, such as multi-core processors, multiple graphics cards and whatever level of connectivity you require. Currently the top dog of AMD’s 700-series chipset, the AMD 790FX chip allows the board to prop up Socket AM2+ processors plus PCI-Express 2.0-based graphics cards that support ATI’s CrossFire X multi-GPU technology. This board also has a number of expansion slots, connectivity ports for external Serial ATA devices, and four PCI Express x16 slots for a multi-GPU configuration.

Graphics Card
ATI Radeon HD 3850 1GB

The Radeon HD 3850, along with the other graphics cards built using ATI’s R600-based cores, slipped to the mainstream bracket after the brawnier Radeon HD 4-series hit the market halfway through this year. Still, the ATI Radeon HD 3850 offers enough punch to take on tough graphics processing tasks and HD videos such as the Blu-ray format. If one card isn’t enough, you can spring for an identical card and run them together on a Crossfire X configuration, which is supported by the motherboard. That should be easier to do from here on out, ever since the emergence of newer HD 4-Series cards have made these performers more affordable.

Hard Drive
Seagate ST3250620NS 250GB

The current crop of games and high-definition movies will require storage. This Seagate drive features a 250GB capacity—probably the minimum you’d want to get for the long run (although more is always better). But it features a reasonably fast 7200rpm spindle and a 16MB cache for quick access times and application loading.

Memory
Corsair DOMINATOR TWIN2x2048-8500C5D2GB 1066MHz

Having at least 2GBs worth of performance memory is, in a way or two, an investment. Especially now that the use of dual- and quad-core processors is becoming prevalent, adequate memory with a high bandwidth is critical for optimizing performance. The bandwidth of this Corsair memory module pair adequately matches the multi-core processor we’re using. These modules are also built with heatsinks to keep down the heat.

Chassis
Cooler Master CM960

The chassis holds everything in, so make sure that it has enough space for your hardware – including future expansions. Intake vents and cooling fans are important for maintaining a stable temperature, while additional connectivity and expansion slots–such as multiple dive bays and accessible connectivity ports–help you in the long run. The Cooler Master CM690 has a spacious interior, and features removable HDD racks, and can fit up to seven 120mm fans.

Power Supply Unit
Cooler Master Real Power M-850

A higher wattage gives the PSU a higher power ceiling, allowing it to accommodate more hardware with high-powered demands. With 850W at its disposal, Cooler Master’s Real Power M-850 gives you the space for additional hardware in the future. It also offers support for high-end systems and features modular cables that allow you to remove unused lines to reduce cable clutter.

Optical Drive
Lite-On 4x BD-ROM

While a CD/DVD burner is almost standard now, a Blu-ray drive should set you up—entertainment wise– for the next few years. A Blu-ray burner also helps with backups; the ability to store more than 25-50GB of data on a disc and out of your hard drive never hurts.

We ran some tests in order to gauge the setup’s performance. It did well and the scores it garnered were far better than the ones posted by our current test bed in the productivity apps. It notched a 127 score in Sysmark 2007 and posted a whopping 3DMark 2006 score of 10586.

The setup got rates of 152 and 57.3 frames per second in First Encounter Assault Recon and Company of Heroes, respectively.

A Quick Look