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Isaac Clarke, the unluckiest space engineer of the 26th century, is more unfortunate than ever in Dead Space 2. 2008′s superb Dead Space took the style of survival horror shooter action exemplified by games like Resident Evil 4 and meshed it with an atmospheric deep-space setting and some terrific, distinctly sci-fi gameplay elements, creating something that felt simultaneously familiar and unique. Dead Space 2, on the other hand, will feel thoroughly familiar to those who have played the original; its few improvements over Dead Space are minor tweaks rather than game changers. But blasting the limbs off of hideous necromorphs remains tremendously satisfying, and although the pacing lags a bit during the game’s middle portions, this second outing packs more than enough scares and surprises to make stepping back into Isaac Clarke’s suit extremely worthwhile. In addition, a new multiplayer component successfully translates Dead Space’s particular breed of dismemberment-focused combat into a pulse-pounding team-based experience that casts you as both humans and as the foul necromorphs. And, at least at the time of release, the PlayStation 3 version includes a hefty bonus: the great on-rails shooter Dead Space Extraction (previously a Wii exclusive), at no additional cost. As long as you’ve got the stomach for it, Dead Space 2 is one sci-fi horror thrill ride you definitely want to take.

6286463NoneIsaac should know that this is no time to hang around.

The first few moments of Dead Space 2 smartly accomplish a good deal in a very short amount of time. We get a glimpse into Isaac’s psychological state, his psyche still tormented by the painful loss he experienced on the Ishimura during the events of the first game. We also learn that the three years since then have been little more than a blur to Isaac–he’s in some kind of hospital facility, but has only the vaguest memories of his time there. And almost before you can say “necromorph outbreak,” you take control of Isaac as he runs for his life from the hideous creatures who, for reasons that aren’t immediately clear, have suddenly appeared and started slaughtering the human population here in the Sprawl, a vast urban area on Titan, Saturn’s largest moon. Isaac, who said not a word in the original game, has a voice here, and although he’s a bit bland as a character, the intensity of the action that surrounds him makes you feel invested in his desperate struggle for survival. Revealing glimpses into the world of Dead Space–such as a trek through a Unitology center that sheds light on the inner workings of the church whose activity is inextricably linked to the necromorph outbreaks–keep the momentum rolling during the early chapters. The game later falls into predictable rhythms for a while, but it picks up steam again toward the end, as the story goes to some unexpected and exciting places and puts almost as much emphasis on Isaac’s struggle against his own demons of guilt and regret as on his battles against the necromorphs.

But those battles against the hideous undead mutations remain front and center, where they belong. The key to dropping necromorphs is still blasting off their often frighteningly pointy limbs, which you do with a number of repurposed mining tools and a few actual guns, all of which feel powerful and are immensely fun to use. All of the weapons from Dead Space return in this sequel, including the plasma cutter and the line gun, which fire beams of energy capable of slicing necromorph limbs clean off. Another returning weapon is the ripper, a terrific tool whose spinning blade can result in a noisy, grisly end to necromorphs who make the mistake of getting too close to you. And there are a few new weapons as well: the detonator lets you place laser-triggered trip mines to set explosive traps for approaching necromorphs, and the javelin gun fires spikes at such a tremendous velocity that any necromorph unfortunate enough to be in their path is likely to find itself impaled to a wall.

Show no mercy to necromorphs who have boarded the subway without a ticket.

As you progress, you can upgrade your weapons with nodes that you collect, making them noticeably more effective at limb-ripping and laying waste to necromorphs, resulting in a satisfying sense of progression. What’s more, it seems kinesis technology has seen remarkable advances in the three years since Isaac’s fateful trip to the Ishimura, and it’s now a much more effective offensive tool. Using this ability to pick up severed necromorph limbs or any of the sharp rods conveniently scattered across the Sprawl and hurl them at necromorphs is no substitute for a trusty plasma rifle by your side, but it works well in a pinch. There’s a delicious feeling of dishing out poetic justice in turning the necromorphs’ own limbs against them, and making use of this tactic is an effective way to conserve your often very limited ammo supply.

The Sprawl’s pressurized environment also occasionally offers a spectacularly reckless and dramatic way to eliminate some necromorphs. Certain rooms have windows that you can easily shatter with a shot of your weapon or a hurled object. The instant you do so, everything in the room–furniture, necromorphs, and you–is rapidly pulled toward the window as the air rushes out into the vacuum of space. To save yourself, as you are being pulled toward the opening, you must quickly shoot a sensor that brings a metallic emergency door down over it. It’s a risky and thrilling maneuver that brings some action-movie-style craziness to what is often a more grim and atmospheric adventure. These Hollywood set-piece moments and others that involve speeding trains, pursuits by massive necromorphs, and other surprises are great, but they’re not entirely enough to keep things from falling into a predictable rhythm for much of the second half. Still, things start revving up again as you approach the conclusion, and the outrageous final moments make for an intense and truly memorable climax.

Despite your powerful and satisfying arsenal, you still feel as if you’re in constant danger, and that’s never more the case than when you’re faced with a few of the terrifying new types of necromorphs that make their debuts here. One new variety, called the pack, resembles a twisted version of a human toddler. Individually very weak, these terrors run at you in groups, emitting bloodcurdling shrieks all the while, and if one manages to leap up onto you, it can cause tremendous damage. The other new standout necromorph type is called a stalker. These hunters display an intelligence previously unseen in necromorphs, making use of cover to try to stay hidden from you until they decide to strike, charging at you with incredible speed. It’s particularly satisfying to hit one of these charging beasts with your very useful stasis ability, stopping it in its tracks before blasting it to bits. On the other hand, these creatures are so speedy and so prone to charge at you when your back is turned that Isaac’s slow turning ability can at times become less a source of tension than a source of frustration.

The pack are one of the deadly and terrifying new types of necromorph that you encounter.

Stasis remains an invaluable part of your arsenal, but turnabout is fair play, and the bile of another new necromorph type, the puker, slows you down almost as much as your stasis ability slows the necromorphs down, leaving you extremely vulnerable for a short period of time. All of these new necromorph threats fit in perfectly with all the returning varieties from the first game, creating a diverse and deadly assortment of both short- and long-range attackers to keep you constantly on edge as you make your way across the Sprawl. Unfortunately, as in the first game, the camera sometimes contributes to the challenge. When you’re backed up against a wall and a necromorph gets too close to you, the camera often won’t show you your assailant, and targeting the creature can require you to move around to get a decent angle, which is frustrating when your health is rapidly being slashed away.

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The upside to the compressed leveling curve is that you never encounter content gaps in which you have to search for things to do or grind until you reach the point where new missions become available. Missions come to you fast and furious from the talking-head heroes and villains anxious to push you toward your next task. Or, you might receive assignments from various non-player characters strewn about the cities and elsewhere. Almost all of these characters are fully voiced, many of them rather well. Mark Hamill does an excellent job as The Joker, as he so often does in other games and on television. The mentors all sound quite good, as do a few other lesser heroes and villains. Other voice-overs sound as if they were performed by the local junior high drama club and lack the tongue-in-cheek comic timing of the better performances. The beautiful comic-book cutscenes that conclude instanced story missions and other missions, on the other hand, are consistently superb. Some are funny; others are legitimately moving. But all of them are gorgeously detailed and colored, and they’re animated as if multiple cels were layered on top of each other.

The crime rate in Metropolis is so high, it’s a wonder the property values haven’t fallen.

The missions themselves aren’t as vibrant as the scenes that close them. Kill a bunch of these things and interact with some of these other things is usually the extent of what you do, sometimes pausing to carry this thing over to that glowing spot. These copy-paste objectives can get old, though the mission voice-overs do provide an interesting context to some of these tasks. Villainous objectives are particularly enjoyable, as they often entail doing some horrible thing to an innocent bystander. These mission chains end with the aforementioned instances, where you get a chance to fight alongside a famed hero or villain–or beat up on one. These instances are usually more varied than your other tasks. For example, you might need to destroy computer terminals before Supergirl can utilize them. For even more mission variety, you can join other players in group instances called alerts. Alerts are longer–and more spacious–than story instances and might have you (for example) beating up on HIVE drones, taking down their mothership, and then facing a boss that may not be all that challenging but nevertheless takes a long time to defeat.

PVP arenas and group dungeons send you to a few iconic locales, such as the batcave and Bludhaven, though you will spend the majority of your time in DCUO’s two main cities: Gotham City and Metropolis. Missions send you from one hot spot to another in either of these two urban centers at a slick pace, and you won’t find any wondrous new vistas when exploring the nooks and crannies. Yet there is a good reason to keep a keen eye on your surroundings. Orbs dot the landscape, and investigating them unlocks little bits of backstory and other narrative scraps to collect. When you complete a themed collection, you earn new loot. There is another good reason to pay close attention during your travels, however: Both cities look lovely. Toxic yellow clouds hover over abandoned parking structures in a darkly lit Gotham. A derelict roller coaster is a stark contrast to the skyline in the distance. Green parks, sunny lighting, and tall skyscrapers make Metropolis a joy to travel in–and above. Some instances–warehouses, offices, and the like–aren’t particularly eye catching, and many character models are devoid of detail. Yet these aren’t huge faults in a game that excellently re-creates famous fictional cities and then encourages you to gild them with glowing rings of fire and colorful balls of energy.

Don’t hang around for those textures to fade in; you might be waiting a very long time.

Whether you prefer to stay solo or group up, DC Universe Online goes out of its way to be friendly. In some cases, simply standing near another player that performs a mission task–successfully defending a pedestrian, for example–gives you credit for the same task. Kill stealing is rare because you get credit for the kill as long as you landed a single hit on your target. Furthermore, your travel options (flight, acrobatics, and superspeed) make it easy to get across town in a relative hurry, particularly if you upgrade your travel method in the associated skill tree. Even when you’re on your own, missions stay relatively easy, though the frequency with which enemies respawn can lead to occasional frustration if you’re adventuring alone. Of course, you can always group with friends or join a league (DCUO’s guild equivalent) if you want company. And you need company if you want to take on bounties, which are familiar, powerful superheroes and villains that pop up in Gotham City and Metropolis. You can also take down opposing players by joining a player-versus-player server, temporarily activating your PVP flag to make you vulnerable to the opposition, or by joining others in the competitive arenas.

DC Universe Online’s player-versus-player arenas aren’t as potentially unbalanced as those in Champions Online, but stuns and knockbacks are prevalent, so skills that deliver and protect you from such punishment are more helpful than when you’re dishing out pain on non-player enemies like OMAC cyborgs. PVP is one of DCUO’s late-game mainstays, rewarding you with currency that can be spent on better gear, which makes you more powerful and, of course, then leads to even more gear. Grinding arenas to earn new items isn’t the only endgame option, however. Once you reach that upper limit of level 30, you gain access to some of DC Universe Online’s more entertaining options. These include larger raid dungeons, new four-person instances, and two-person dungeons called duos. Duos are particularly enjoyable, such as one in Gotham University in which you slash up (or beat up, or shoot up) swarms of mummies and scarabs before confronting a histrionic Isis. If you were hoping for a greater challenge from DC Universe Online, the endgame content is where you will find it. Don’t expect to bring down Chemo, for example, without a game plan and a good player in the tank role.

The city is so dark and brooding. It’s no wonder villains flock to it.

Which version of DC Universe Online you choose to play depends entirely on which quirks you’re more willing to endure, though some issues are common to both platforms. Voice chat is a nice feature when it functions, though that only happens to be some of the time. Sound effects sometimes go missing or get muddled when there is a lot going on at once. Neither platform allows you to drop missions or share them with your groupmates. PC players will be immediately struck by the console-focused interface and the overzealous profanity filter, which inexplicably can’t be turned off. However, loading times on the PC are zippy, and the game runs smoothly as you soar across the skies. The PlayStation 3 version is noticeably more sluggish. Menus take too long to pop up; the frame rate chugs along every so often, or the game might freeze for a second or two; and the telltale texture pop-in common to games using Unreal 3 technology is all too prevalent. Yet all things considered, the menus are simple enough to navigate using a controller, and the combo-focused combat feels natural on the platform.

These and a few other scattered glitches aside, DC Universe Online is relatively stable at this early stage, which makes it an even more attractive option for anyone who tends to shy away from these sorts of games. If you are one of those people, DCUO’s flashy, combo-driven combat and visual pizzazz will draw you in from the beginning and keep you entertained for a few weeks. It’s also hard to ignore the license’s appeal, which is best showcased in the excellent scenes that play at the end of instanced story missions. Yet DC Universe Online tips its hand early on; in all too short a time, it stops offering any real surprises, remaining approachable but never wading too far from the shallow end of the pool. If you’ve been around the block and are looking for a new virtual world, this isn’t the universe to call home. But if you long to face off with Mr. Freeze or stop The Flash dead in his tracks, this is a fun way to flex your superpowered muscles.

Previous page

The upside to the compressed leveling curve is that you never encounter content gaps in which you have to search for things to do or grind until you reach the point where new missions become available. Missions come to you fast and furious from the talking-head heroes and villains anxious to push you toward your next task. Or, you might receive assignments from various non-player characters strewn about the cities and elsewhere. Almost all of these characters are fully voiced, many of them rather well. Mark Hamill does an excellent job as The Joker, as he so often does in other games and on television. The mentors all sound quite good, as do a few other lesser heroes and villains. Other voice-overs sound as if they were performed by the local junior high drama club and lack the tongue-in-cheek comic timing of the better performances. The beautiful comic-book cutscenes that conclude instanced story missions and other missions, on the other hand, are consistently superb. Some are funny; others are legitimately moving. But all of them are gorgeously detailed and colored, and they’re animated as if multiple cels were layered on top of each other.

6286687Doing evil deeds is what evildoers do.None

The missions themselves aren’t as vibrant as the scenes that close them. Kill a bunch of these things and interact with some of these other things is usually the extent of what you do, sometimes pausing to carry this thing over to that glowing spot. These copy-paste objectives can get old, though the mission voice-overs do provide an interesting context to some of these tasks. Villainous objectives are particularly enjoyable, as they often entail doing some horrible thing to an innocent bystander. These mission chains end with the aforementioned instances, where you get a chance to fight alongside a famed hero or villain–or beat up on one. These instances are usually more varied than your other tasks. For example, you might need to destroy computer terminals before Supergirl can utilize them. For even more mission variety, you can join other players in group instances called alerts. Alerts are longer–and more spacious–than story instances and might have you (for example) beating up on HIVE drones, taking down their mothership, and then facing a boss that may not be all that challenging but nevertheless takes a long time to defeat.

PVP arenas and group dungeons send you to a few iconic locales, such as the batcave and Bludhaven, though you will spend the majority of your time in DCUO’s two main cities: Gotham City and Metropolis. Missions send you from one hot spot to another in either of these two urban centers at a slick pace, and you won’t find any wondrous new vistas when exploring the nooks and crannies. Yet there is a good reason to keep a keen eye on your surroundings. Orbs dot the landscape, and investigating them unlocks little bits of backstory and other narrative scraps to collect. When you complete a themed collection, you earn new loot. There is another good reason to pay close attention during your travels, however: Both cities look lovely. Toxic yellow clouds hover over abandoned parking structures in a darkly lit Gotham. A derelict roller coaster is a stark contrast to the skyline in the distance. Green parks, sunny lighting, and tall skyscrapers make Metropolis a joy to travel in–and above. Some instances–warehouses, offices, and the like–aren’t particularly eye catching, and many character models are devoid of detail. Yet these aren’t huge faults in a game that excellently re-creates famous fictional cities and then encourages you to gild them with glowing rings of fire and colorful balls of energy.

Where’d you get that staff? It’s absolutely stunning!

Whether you prefer to stay solo or group up, DC Universe Online goes out of its way to be friendly. In some cases, simply standing near another player that performs a mission task–successfully defending a pedestrian, for example–gives you credit for the same task. Kill stealing is rare because you get credit for the kill as long as you landed a single hit on your target. Furthermore, your travel options (flight, acrobatics, and superspeed) make it easy to get across town in a relative hurry, particularly if you upgrade your travel method in the associated skill tree. Even when you’re on your own, missions stay relatively easy, though the frequency with which enemies respawn can lead to occasional frustration if you’re adventuring alone. Of course, you can always group with friends or join a league (DCUO’s guild equivalent) if you want company. And you need company if you want to take on bounties, which are familiar, powerful superheroes and villains that pop up in Gotham City and Metropolis. You can also take down opposing players by joining a player-versus-player server, temporarily activating your PVP flag to make you vulnerable to the opposition, or by joining others in the competitive arenas.

DC Universe Online’s player-versus-player arenas aren’t as potentially unbalanced as those in Champions Online, but stuns and knockbacks are prevalent, so skills that deliver and protect you from such punishment are more helpful than when you’re dishing out pain on non-player enemies like OMAC cyborgs. PVP is one of DCUO’s late-game mainstays, rewarding you with currency that can be spent on better gear, which makes you more powerful and, of course, then leads to even more gear. Grinding arenas to earn new items isn’t the only endgame option, however. Once you reach that upper limit of level 30, you gain access to some of DC Universe Online’s more entertaining options. These include larger raid dungeons, new four-person instances, and two-person dungeons called duos. Duos are particularly enjoyable, such as one in Gotham University in which you slash up (or beat up, or shoot up) swarms of mummies and scarabs before confronting a histrionic Isis. If you were hoping for a greater challenge from DC Universe Online, the endgame content is where you will find it. Don’t expect to bring down Chemo, for example, without a game plan and a good player in the tank role.

Is that not the sweetest ‘stache you ever did see?

Which version of DC Universe Online you choose to play depends entirely on which quirks you’re more willing to endure, though some issues are common to both platforms. Voice chat is a nice feature when it functions, though that only happens to be some of the time. Sound effects sometimes go missing or get muddled when there is a lot going on at once. Neither platform allows you to drop missions or share them with your groupmates. PC players will be immediately struck by the console-focused interface and the overzealous profanity filter, which inexplicably can’t be turned off. However, loading times on the PC are zippy, and the game runs smoothly as you soar across the skies. The PlayStation 3 version is noticeably more sluggish. Menus take too long to pop up; the frame rate chugs along every so often, or the game might freeze for a second or two; and the telltale texture pop-in common to games using Unreal 3 technology is all too prevalent. Yet all things considered, the menus are simple enough to navigate using a controller, and the combo-focused combat feels natural on the platform.

These and a few other scattered glitches aside, DC Universe Online is relatively stable at this early stage, which makes it an even more attractive option for anyone who tends to shy away from these sorts of games. If you are one of those people, DCUO’s flashy, combo-driven combat and visual pizzazz will draw you in from the beginning and keep you entertained for a few weeks. It’s also hard to ignore the license’s appeal, which is best showcased in the excellent scenes that play at the end of instanced story missions. Yet DC Universe Online tips its hand early on; in all too short a time, it stops offering any real surprises, remaining approachable but never wading too far from the shallow end of the pool. If you’ve been around the block and are looking for a new virtual world, this isn’t the universe to call home. But if you long to face off with Mr. Freeze or stop The Flash dead in his tracks, this is a fun way to flex your superpowered muscles.

Previous page

© 2011 · All Rights Reserved · St. Petersburg Times ·
490 First Ave. S · St. Petersburg, FL 33701 · 727-893-8111
Contact Us | Join Us | Advertise with Us | Subscribe to the St. Petersburg Times | RSS
Privacy Policy | Standard of Accuracy | Terms, conditions copyright

© 2011 · All Rights Reserved · St. Petersburg Times ·
490 First Ave. S · St. Petersburg, FL 33701 · 727-893-8111
Contact Us | Join Us | Advertise with Us | Subscribe to the St. Petersburg Times | RSS
Privacy Policy | Standard of Accuracy | Terms, conditions copyright

© 2011 · All Rights Reserved · St. Petersburg Times ·
490 First Ave. S · St. Petersburg, FL 33701 · 727-893-8111
Contact Us | Join Us | Advertise with Us | Subscribe to the St. Petersburg Times | RSS
Privacy Policy | Standard of Accuracy | Terms, conditions copyright

Photo gallery:
HTC Trophy

Editors’ note: In this review, we’ll focus more on the HTC Trophy’s design, performance, and differentiating features. For more on its operating system and core functions, please read our full review of Windows Phone 7.

The HTC Trophy is one of many Windows Phone 7 devices available in international markets. Since Asia and Europe are often the recipients of cool phones, while we usually get the safe options, we decided to get one in to see if we were missing out anything and the answer is not really. Don’t get us wrong. The Trophy is a solid smartphone and offers a sleek design and good performance. It’s also one of the more affordable models if you happen to live in one of those markets. However, here in the States, it will run you about $400 to purchase the phone unlocked and you can definitely get more for less from the Samsung Focus or the HTC HD7, so unless you’re in the market for an unlocked phone, we’d say go with one of the other two.

Design
Compared to the HTC Surround with its slide-out speaker and the HTC HD7with its extra-large display, the HTC Trophy might seem a bit plain, but we don’t see that as a bad thing. At 4.67 inches tall by 2.42 inches wide by 0.47 inch thick, and 4.94 ounces, the Trophy is sleek and simple, which is attractive in its own right. The slim profile makes it easy to slip into a pant pocket, and it feels light yet solid in the hand. The aluminum-like bezel and soft-touch finish on back are also nice touches, as is the yellow interior behind the battery door.

The Trophy’s display measures 3.8 inches diagonally and has a WVGA (480X800) resolution. Images and text looked sharp and bright. That said, the display washes out a bit in direct sunlight, and it’s a fingerprint and smudge magnet. The touch screen itself is responsive, as it registered all our taps, smoothly scrolled through lists, and easily zoomed in on pages using the pinch-to-zoom gesture. There is also a proximity sensor and built-in accelerometer, but as we noted in past reviews, Windows Phone 7 currently has limited landscape support.

Microsoft did a really nice job with the onscreen keyboard, however. Despite looking small and cramped, it’s easy to use and accurate. It’s almost on par with the iPhone’s keyboard and certainly better than Android’s stock keyboard. When we were switching between the Trophy and other Android devices, we found the latter to be slightly slower and more prone to mispresses.

Below the display are touch-sensitive back, Start, and search buttons. There’s a volume rocker and a Micro-USB port on the left, while on the right side, you’ll find a dedicated camera key. The top of the device features a power button and a 3.5mm headphone jack, and the back of the device houses the camera, LED flash, and speaker.

Our HTC Trophy review unit came packaged with an AC adapter, a USB cable, and a wired stereo headset.

Features
The HTC Trophy is a quad-band world phone, offering a speakerphone, call waiting, call forwarding, conference calling, voice dialing, and text and multimedia messaging. Stereo Bluetooth support, Wi-Fi, and GPS are also onboard but since the Trophy is designed for the international markets, it’s not compatible with the North American 3G bands. That means if you purchase the phone unlocked and pop in a T-Mobile or ATT SIM card, you’ll only be operating on EDGE, so keep that in mind.

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Headphones aimed at the fashionable consumer are not in short supply these days, but one would think that the last place people are concerned about gadget style would be the gym. However, plenty of manufacturers are banking on the belief that you want good-looking tech no matter how sweaty you are; hence the Powerbeats by Dr. Dre Sport Headphones from Monster. These $150 earphones offer a secure fit, integrated iPhone controls, and a sleek look–but they’re also pricey for workout headphones, and they don’t seem particularly durable or sweat-resistant.

Still, Monster has the style down with the Powerbeats. Anyone who likes the look of the overall Beats by Dr. Dre line will certainly be drawn to these athletic earbuds. Eye-catching chrome earpieces are attached to a sleek black arm adorned with the signature lowercase “b” logo. Rubber hooks are attached to each ‘bud, keeping them firmly in place during jogs and aerobics. Monster includes three sizes of silicone tips to help with the comfort and fit of the in-ear portion of the earphones.

That said, the Powerbeats may not be comfortable for all wearers, as they tended to cause this tester pain after resting in the ear for about 45 minutes. Also, there is only one set of ear loops, not removable, which could cause fit problems for some. Finally, we question the durability of the headphones, since the red cable is quite thin and the earpieces don’t seem sweat-resistant (nor is that feature mentioned anywhere on the product packaging or site).

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Features
Like the Voyager Pro Plus, the Voyager Pro UC has voice alerts, multipoint technology for simultaneous connectivity to two devices, and A2DP streaming so you can listen to music, podcasts, and apps like turn-by-turn navigation. You also get a visual headset battery meter when the headset is paired with an iPhone. The Voyager Pro UC currently does not support Plantronics’ Vocalyst automated phone service, but it might in the future.

The Voyager Pro UC comes with a USB adapter that is by default paired with the headset. You can plug the adapter into a PC or Mac and use the headset with a variety of softphone and VoIP applications that include options from Avaya, Cisco, IBM, Microsoft (OCS Lync), ShoreTel, and Skype. The Voyager Pro UC is able to make use of the simultaneous connectivity of the phone and the PC. For example, if you’re on a mobile call, the headset will communicate to the PC software and change your availability status to “In a call.” Once you’re done, the software will change it back to normal availability.

If you use Outlook, you can create a list of VIPs or favorite contacts that you communicate with frequently. You can set it up so that whenever you get an instant message or e-mail from one of these people, the headset will alert you, and then read out the subject line of the e-mail. In VoIP apps like Skype, you can also quickly switch from IM conversations to voice chat simply by putting on the headset.

Performance
As the Plantronics Voyager Pro UC has much the same noise-cancelling technology as the Voyager Pro Plus, we’re not surprised that the quality is equally as good. We paired the Plantronics Voyager Pro UC with the Apple iPhone 4, and quality was very impressive. Incoming voice quality was crisp, clear, and as natural-sounding as holding up the phone directly to the ear.

Callers reported similar results. They did report the occasional muddiness, but it wasn’t a deal breaker. Calls were free of static and noise, and wind noise was reduced as well. They said our voice quality was clear and natural for the most part, even when we were in a noisy environment.

We’re quite impressed by the audio quality of music as well. Sure, it’s not a stereo listening experience, but songs had passable sound quality.

The Plantronics Voyager Pro UC has a rated battery life of 6 hours of talk time and 5 days of standby time.

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Queens Head (2501 Central Ave., St. Petersburg; 727-498-8584) is hosting a fundraiser on Saturday (Nov. 13) afternoon for employee Melanie Gallo, who was injured in a motorcycle accident recently. The fundraiser will run from 2-6 p.m., with food, a raffle, bands, DJ and games. Proceeds will go to cover her medical expenses, and donations will be accepted.