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As far as adaptations go, Game of Thrones is surpassing expectations. It's staying true to the books (A Song of Ice and Fire by George R.R. Martin) in a way that is still absolutely watchable, even to someone who has recently read the source material. It's doing everything right... except for one thing. I hate to complain, I really do. But there's one thing that this otherwise flawless adaptation is doing that I just can't get over. It's leaving out Sandor Clegane. Well, it's not entirely leaving him out. The man known as the Hound is still there, but in a completely diminished role. He's been reduced to a nonspeaking entity who simply looks menacing. In "The Pointy End," all he had to do was show his severely mug to Sansa Stark, snarl a little bit, and she was captured. That's a shame, because his interaction with Sansa is one of the best elements of the book series. In the episode "Cripples, Bastards, and Broken Things," Littlefi

If you like sci-fi/fantasy anything, you know who Neil Gaiman is. The man is probably best known for his wonderful Sandman comic books that he did for the DC imprint Vertigo back from 1989 to 1996. He also wrote the novel Coraline which inspired the recent Henry Selick film and wrote the Newberry Award winning children's novel The Graveyard Book. Most recently he wrote the fourth episode of series six of Doctor Who, "The Doctor's Wife," which is perhaps the most acclaimed episode of the season so far. Now, Gaiman is getting a television series of his own. Perhaps after the success of the fantasy series Game of Thrones, adapted from George R.R. Martin's absolutely fantastic A Song of Ice and Fire, HBO has announced that it's partnering with Tom Hanks' production company Playtone to bring Gaiman's novel American Gods to film. American Gods is primarily a fantasy novel, though it seems more akin tonally to Carnivale than to Game of Thrones. The story, w

Boxee has announced that it will be offering an  update for computer users  this fall with a new version of the downloadable software that has a number of updates. The software update will bring a new browser, improved playback, and a lot of additional content that is on the Boxee Box right now but not offered on the current computer software. The company is also offering details for computer users on why it has taken so long to get an update. Boxee says that the effort to build the Boxee Box involved writing on a new OS and handling a different setup process, security, and a new browser had to be written. The task of writing all the software for the Boxee box was “enormous” for a small staff and at a point all the staff had to be focused on the Boxee Box to hit deadlines. The work on the Box meant the computer software didn’t get the update it needed and users wanted. The update will come this fall and Boxee says that the update timeline for the software will be more up to speed

Samsung looks set to steal the smartphone top spot from Nokia in Q3 2011, according to analysts Nomura, with the Finnish firm then facing relegation to third place as Apple ousts them the following quarter. While Nokia will maintain its lead in mobile devices overall, buoyed with its entry-level and mainstream phone sales worldwide, it’s expected to cede its position in the lucrative smartphone segment. “Nokia looks set to relinquish its smartphone crown to Samsung and Apple … Further emphasizing the shift in power to Asia is our forecast for HTC to almost match Nokia during 2012″ Nomura note The news comes as little surprise, with Nokia itself warning investors that sales look set to further disappointbefore they get any better. The announcement that Nokia expected to pretty much break even – but do no better – in Q2 2011 had a dire impact on the company’s share price, and prompted a fresh round of rumors about potential suitors eyeing a Nokia buy-out. That was strongly denied by

A while back  Etymotic  unveiled a set of earphones specifically for the iPhone and iPod touch. The headphones were called the mc3 and promises high accuracy sound, an inline control, and a comfortable fit. The company is back with a new set of noise isolation earphones that have an inline control that will work with any platform. That means the earphones will support Android, Windows Phone, and Blackberry smartphones. The MSRP for the earphones is $99 and they are available to buy right now online and in some retail locations. The earphones can be custom fit with the Etymotic Custom-fit program. The headphones promised accurate sound reproduction, high levels of noise isolation with up to 42dB reduction, and they use Accu-chamber tech. The drivers are 8mm dual-magnet moving coil offerings. The headphones come with a 2-year warranty. The headphone cable is Kevlar reinforced for durability and the Accu-filter tech has replaceable filters to protect from earwax. The maker claims tha

This contraption is called a diwheel and they have been around for a long time. This particular diwheel has a new wrinkle in its design that cars have today with stability control. The diwheel reminds me of something that one of the X-Men would ride around in. Both of the large wheels are on the same axel and the very cool vehicle comes from students at the University of Adelaide in Australia. The idea is that this diwheel might be the perfect vehicle for travel inside cities in the future. The two wheels in the design have a little cockpit between them where the operator would sit. The risk with the diwheel design is that the driver might end up like a hamster that suddenly stops running on their little hamster wheel and spin around uncontrollably with the wheels rather than remaining stationary. Typically, with diwheel designs the drivers just end up rocking around though, which can be a bit uncomfortable I would imagine. The diwheel created by the students uses computer hardwar

I bet there are a lot of people out there that take their iPad with them pretty much anywhere they go. I also bet that a fair number of these people have wished the iPad could make phone calls at one point or another. The gang from iPhoneIslam has made it possible for users of jailbroken iPad 3G tablets to make phone calls. The app needed to turn the iPad into a smartphone is PhoneIt-iPad and it should be on the Cydia store right now for $20. The app requires a jailbroken first gen iPad with 3G running on iOS 4.3.3. The SIM card inside the iPad needs to be one that can make phone calls. That would mean you would need a 3G SIM card from a smartphone to have this app work at all. The developers say that once there is a jailbreak for iOS 5 (which there is) they may make the app work with the new version of the OS. The app is not MMS ready, but will work for SMS messages. You can’t use a Bluetooth device for making and receiving calls with the app and there is no guarantee that the ha

When we  reviewed  the HTC Flyer Tablet with WiFi only back in May, we mentioned at the time that a 3G version of the tablet would be coming as well. We didn’t have an ETA on that 3G version of the tablet, but the little beastie has turned up at the FCC for its approvals today. That means that the new 3G HTC flyer should be on store shelves shortly. From the FCC docs it appears that the 3G version is headed to the T-Mobile network. The documents show that the tablet will operate on the GSM 850/1900 bands as well as operating on the WCDMA IV band as well. There is no mention of 4G connectivity, and we weren’t expecting 4G honestly. Other than the 3G modem crammed inside the tablets are pretty much the same. The new 3G version will have the same 7-inch 1024 x 600 screen that will work with the cool pen accessory. It will run Android 2.3 and sport the 1.5GHz Qualcomm processor of its sibling. We expect 1GB of internal RAM and 32GB of storage inside along with the 1.3MP front and 5MP

Nintendo is just coming off E3 where it unveiled some cool new stuff for gamers to look forward to. The gaming company has also announced a couple new things that will interest some gamers. One of the new items is a Wii Play: Motion game that also comes with the Wii Remote Plus controller. This is a follow up offering to the Wii Play that was around before Motion Plus debuted. The Wii Play: Motion will cost $49.99 and will include the controller and a game disc with 12 mini games. The games include Wind Runner where the player has to adjust the angle of an umbrella to fly around a track as fast as possible using wind currents. There are many more games too and some of them have unlockable levels. All 12 games will work with two players and four of the games support four players. Nintendo has also announced that it has changed the Nintendo Download publication that talks about the new downloads for the week to include 3DS titles. The publication is being revamped to go along with t

With the  HP TouchPad ‘s release  fast approaching , it’s not just  accessories  that HP is putting out there: the company has also released a handful of demo videos putting the tablet through its paces. Covering everything from wireless charging through the notification features of webOS, text-entry and multitasking, to entertainment on the 9.7-inch slate, the clips are possibly the next-best thing to actually having a TouchPad in your own sweaty hands.

HP confirmed pricing and availability for the TouchPad tablet last week, and now it’s done the same for the first batch of official accessories for the webOS slate. The Charging Dock, Wireless Keyboard, TouchPad Case and Power Charger have all been added to the company’s webstore , and are listed as “coming soon.” Perhaps the most interesting is the HP TouchPad Charging Dock , priced at $79.99, which basically does the same as the Touchstone inductive charger for webOS phones like the Pre, but in an easel format to suit the tablet. Best of all, it comes with another charger and USB cable, so you don’t have to tie up the one that comes with the TouchPad itself (a common criticism of the Touchstone), and charges the slate at the same rate as the wired AC adapter. The $69.99 HP TouchPad Wireless Keyboard , meanwhile, uses Bluetooth to hook up and has low-profile keys and auto-off that, HP reckons, means a single set of batteries are good for up to 12 months use. The $49.99 HP TouchPad C

Future HTC smartphones could be thinner, more lightweight and paradoxically stronger, if rumors about the company’s manufacturing processes are true. The company has turned to Chenming Mold Industrial (CMI) and Nano Molding Technology (NMT), DigiTimes reports, for a new smartphone; NMT is a system of injecting plastic components directly onto a metal shell, reducing overlap thickness in the process. The back panel on HTC’s Sensation – pictured above – shows the current system of construction. A CNC lathed metal case is combined with plastic sections, the various panels slotting and latching against each other in order to make a solid whole. The plastic components allow the antennas to do their job as well as permitting more flexibility in molding, but the construction itself makes for a thick sandwich of materials that introduces weight, bulk and cost. In contrast, NMT first etches the surface of the metal and then injects the plastic against it, meaning the plastic mounting points

Toshiba’s Thrive tablet may not be the first Android slate to the market, but it’s looking like that little extra time has given the company room to buff off some of the rough edges we’ve seen on other Honeycomb models. Up for pre-order today, priced from $429.99 for the 8GB model, the Thrive runs NVIDIA’s 1GHz Tegra 2 dual-core but also throws in a full-sized HDMI port and full-sized SD card slot. That means adding to the onboard storage isn’t as expensive as with microSD or, indeed, having Toshiba fit more flash memory. Still, there are 16GB and 32GB models – at $479.99 and $579.99 respectively – on offer too. Other specs include a 5-megapixel camera on the front, a 2-megapixel webcam on the back, WiFi b/g/n and Bluetooth, along with GPS and all the sensors you’d expect: digital compass, ambient light and accelerometer. Meanwhile, the battery is also user-replaceable, so you can switch it out for a full pack and extend your runtime. The rear cover is covered in rubberized plastic, f

Panasonic’s new LUMIX GF3 may follow the perennial trend of making gadgets ever-smaller, but with the hot-shoe gone and the mode wheel relegated to a virtual control on the touchscreen, you could well argue that the company has chased general consumers at the expense of the prosumer/professional market. It seems the company agrees, too; camera chief Ichiro Kitao, told PhotoRadar that Panasonic is planning to split the GF series into two, with one line for novices upgrading from point-and-shoots, and a second line for enthusiasts and experienced photographers. LUMIX GF series lovers had already seen one iteration of arguably unwelcome changes in the transition from the original GF1 – which had a manual mode dial, non-touch display and plenty of physical buttons – to its successor, the GF2. That ditched many of the buttons for a 3-inch touchscreen, allowing Panasonic to make the camera even smaller. As a result, we found the GF2 to be even more approachable for entry-level users in our

The unannounced goodies lurking inside the new NOOK Touch continue to show themselves, as the hacking community gets its hands on the compact touchscreen ereader. After the WebKit browser was unearthed last week, now it’s the turn of Bluetooth to be discovered: xda-developers’ zonyl spotted the extra connectivity option while hacking his ereader to add unofficial apps. Meanwhile, zonyl has also managed to get Amazon’s Kindle app for Android running on the NOOK Touch, as you can see in the demo video below. There’s also the ADW Launcher, a popular UI shell, which has made its unofficial debut on the ereader. So far there’s no way of actually using the Bluetooth, though the hope is that a future hack will allow owners to listen to audiobooks via a Bluetooth headset. For more on the NOOK Touch, check out our hands-on ; we’ll have a full review up later this week. Amazon Kindle app on NOOK Touch: ADW Launcher on NOOK Touch:

AT&T’s Samsung Galaxy S II has seemingly been prematurely pictured by Samsung Singapore , confirming the incoming dual-core smartphone by showing the carrier-branded version sitting pretty in its desktop docking cradle. The super-popular 1.2GHz dual-core smartphone is yet to make its official debut in the US, though Samsung is expected to offer versions via the main four carriers. There’s some argument, however, over whether the phone in the cradle is, in fact, the AT&T Galaxy S II or just the Infuse 4G . The fact that the buttons match up with the Infuse 4G could be a sign of that, though given the bigger phone is 71mm wide versus the 66mm GSII, it’s also possible that it wouldn’t actually fit in the cradle itself. The change in buttons wouldn’t be entirely new for Samsung: the company created several versions of the original Galaxy S for the different US carriers, some with a physical home key and others with all touch-sensitive keys. AT&T is yet to comment officially ab

Dr. Evil impressions, Zune defensiveness and a willingness to give away $28bn dollars: can you blame us for liking Bill Gates ? The Microsoft chairman has been talking to UK paper the Daily Mail , and while the focus is the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization which kicks off today, there’s still plenty of time for gadget anecdotes and singing Travie McCoy’s Billionaire . The iPod and iPad question is probably the least surprising, to which Gates points out unsurprisingly that his children “have the Windows equivalent. They have a Zune music player, which is a great Windows portable player. They are not deprived children.” As for whether he would respond to calls from some investors to return to Microsoft and take back the CEO position from Steve Ballmer, Gates’ answer is a definitive no. “My full-time work for the rest of my life is this foundation” he claims. “I’m part-time involved. But this is my job now.” It’s not just Travie McCoy songs that Gates can do – his children a

The Mac OS X Lion developer beta released last week has turned up what appears to be a new “honeypot” element of Find My Mac, promising basic access to a browser while, in the background, a lost or stolen MacBook can check in its location online. Spotted by MacRumors , the new “Restart to Safari” feature on the lock screen allows users without the password to access the browser only, rather than any files or local apps. Although Apple’s primary intention appears to be encouraging those taking a MacBook to get online and thus give the Find My Mac feature an opportunity to “phone home,” it should also find favor among users who want to give temporary internet access to others while not necessarily opening up all of their files to access. Since OS X Lion has Auto Save and Resume functionality, even after a restart all of the user’s files and apps would be reopened just as they’d left them. With the growing number of web-based apps in common use, the browser-only feature could also repla

Apple could begin selling unlocked iPhone 4 handsets in the US as early as this Wednesday, according to the latest leaks. Arch iOS insider Chronic scored what are believed to be the part numbers for the new unlocked iPhone 4 SKUs headed to Apple Stores midway through this week, including both black and white versions of the fourth-gen GSM smartphone. According to his source, four units will be available: the MC603 (16GB, Black), MC604 (16GB, White), MC605 (32GB, Black) and MC606 (32GB, White). No word on pricing at this stage, though any unsubsidized device is obviously going to be considerably more than the $199 entry-level iPhone 4 AT&T currently offers in return for two-years of contract commitment. Although Apple offers unlocked iPhones in other countries, until now AT&T has had an exclusive on the smartphone in the US and owners have been forced to turn to unofficial unlocking methods if they want to use a different carrier’s SIM. However, even if the rumor pans out, the

Panasonic ‘s new LUMIX DMC-GF3 comes as little surprise , but it does bring plenty to the micro four thirds table. The third-gen camera tips the scales at a mere 7.83oz despite packing a pop-up flash, and shoots 12.1-megapixel images along with 1080/60i Full HD video. It’s also 16.7-percent smaller and 16.2-percent lighter than our perennial favorite, the LUMIX GF2 , despite keeping the 3-inch touchscreen. In fact the only thing you do lose is the hot-shoe – the flash has shuffled across to replace it atop the lens – and so there’ll be no playing with Panasonic’s external viewfinder. Still, the GF3 is intended more as a step-up from your old point-and-shoot, with ISO 160 to 6400 support, a 0.18 second Contrast AF system and an even faster 0.1 second Light Speed AF system that boosts the sensor’s drive speed to 120fps. For macro shots, a Pinpoint AF system uses the touchscreen for easier focal-point selection. There’s also AF Tracking, user-adjustable autofocus area, a virtual mode dia

American adaptations of British television have usually been a hit or miss affair. For every Office or Dancing with the Stars that became network tentpoles, there's a Skins or Coupling that arrived with pretty significant hype only to flame out a short time afterward. When I heard what British show is in talks to be adapted next, I got a little worried. According to RTE.ie , the creator and producers behind BAFTA-winning comedy-drama Misfits are currently thinking about bringing the show across the pond for a U.S. remake. Producer Murray Ferguson did say that they want to keep all that is good about the current incarnation of Misfits while tweaking the show in consideration of cultural differences (one of the main arguments for why a network doesn't just buy the rights for a British show and air it as is), but I can't help but feel a little nervous. It's not that I don't think the team behind Misfits is incapable of making a remake work. I mean, they're obviou

=This is awesome. J.J. Abrams is one of my favorite people in television right now. He created (or co-created) two of my all-time favorite shows, LOST and Fringe. That's on top of his involvement with classics such as Alias and Felicity and his involvement with the upcoming new shows Alcatraz and Persons of Interest, both of whom seem to be the crowning gems of the fall television season in a way Undercovers was not. He's also directed the new Star Trek film (which hit in 2009 to become a critical darling) and, more recently, he's responsible for the new collaboration with Steven Spielberg, Super 8, which is probably the most promising summer film I'm aware of. I also love The Daily Show with Jon Stewart. Jon Stewart and J.J. Abrams will be meeting on Stewart's show on Tuesday. It won't be a landmark interview or anything like that (Stewart's interviews with political figures are best, of course), but Stewart's a well-known nerd, and I can't wait t

Game of Thrones is, first and foremost, a well-acted, brilliantly plotted medieval political drama featuring lush settings and beautiful set design. But it also is full of one HBO staple: sex. Whether it's the monologue-over-lesbian-sex scene in "You Win or You Die" or the scenes featuring Theon and the prostitute Ros, there's plenty of intercourse to be had. You'd imagine that for first-time actress Emilia Clarke, things aren't exactly comfortable while filming those scenes -- and you'd imagine right. Well, kind of right. Clarke, who plays Daenerys Targaryen in the series, actually found the scenes in which Dany, fully clothed, was taught sex positions by one of her handmaidens. "The mildly lesbian scene was most the most tricky, I found," Clarke told Digital Spy. "I think it was because Dany found it tricky." "Obviously with the much stronger scenes, Dany had to go into a different mind state to try to escape it, so I di

Glee's Chris Colfer has recently signed a deal with Little, Brown Books for Young Readers. The fast-paced adventure series, The Land of Stories, will tell the tale of twins Connor and Alex Bailey, mixing modern world and fairytale elements. “When I was 10 years old, I promised myself that if I ever had the opportunity to write this book, I would jump at the chance,” The 20-year old actor said in a statement announcing the news this past Wednesday. “This book has been at the core of my imagination for a long time and I’m excited and nervous to share it.” The first book is due in Summer 2012 and will target kids between 8 and 12 years old. Colfer is also working on a Disney Channel pilot, entitled The Little Leftover Witch, a based on Florence Laughlin’s children’s book that tells the story of a witch who is taken in by a new family after her broom breaks and she drops out of the sky. He can be seen now on the Glee Live! In Concert Tour and playing a struggling homosexual teenag

According to Deadline , Undercovers co-lead Gugu Mbatha-Raw will be giving American network television another go around as the female lead in Kiefer Sutherland's Touch. The show tells the story of a father who discovers his son can predict events before they happen, with Mbatha-Raw signing on to play a social worker investigating the father to see if he's a fit parent. The British actress joins the recently announced Danny Glover as new additions to the midseason project. It's nice to see Mbatha-Raw getting another pilot. Though I wasn't familiar with her work before Undercovers, she had a really nice presence on screen and I think she has a whole lot more to show than what she was able to show on Undercovers. By the sound of the press release for Touch, it'll likely be a gritty, highly emotional affair and judging by how much positive buzz Mbatha-Raw had coming into Undercovers from her work across the pond, I think she can handle the rigorous material. The sh

When I heard that NBC's Love Bites was an anthology, I got a little worried. Though I'm all for shows trying new things and bringing in some diversity to TV, I didn't know if the constantly changing cast of characters could work. There were going to be regulars on the show, so there'd be at least some stability, but would it be enough to keep you invested? If the second episode of Love Bites is any indication, it'll be enough, at least for me. Becki Newton's character Annie and Greg Grunberg's character Judd are still present, Annie being more of a witty observer for her friend's stories and Judd constantly trying to spice up his marriage, and floating around other people's vignettes. We may slowly be getting deeper into their respective relationship issues, but there are actually good stories surrounding them that hold up well as stand alones. This week the stand alone was again sandwiched between a story relating to a friend of Ann