Paul Lilly
Paul is a seasoned geek who was first seduced into the world of computers and technology by the Commodore 64, and through the years he’s courted a number of OSes and platforms from DOS on up to the latest version of Windows. Having joined the HotHardware team in 2011, Paul is now a mainstay of the site covering the news beat and reviews, and resident wiseguy who keeps the mood light. He’s also an experienced freelance technology writer whose work has appeared in a number of online and print publications.
Opinions and content posted by HotHardware contributors are their own.
Recent posts
As he's done every year since taking over for Bill Gates as Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Microsoft back in 2000, Steve Ballmer met with investors and analysts for an annual meeting. Having announced his impending retirement last month, this would be the last of those meetings he would conduct, offering a rare...
Read more...
Today is launch day for Apple's new flagship iPhone 5S and its less expensive sibling, the iPhone 5C. Since Apple opted not to allow pre-orders for the higher-end version, the only way to get one today is to march into a brick-and-mortar store and hope they have one in stock (word on the web is that Radio Shack might...
Read more...
Looking to learn a new skill? Perhaps you should considering learning how to build mobile apps. It's a booming business that's only going to get bigger in the coming years, that is unless users at large suddenly find themselves disinterested in smartphone and tablet devices (unlikely). How big? According to market...
Read more...
Google's open source Android operating system has grown up and matured right before our very eyes in the past several years, and the same can be said for Steve Kondik, otherwise known by his online handle Cyanogen, developer of the immensely popular CyanogenMod line of ROMs. He posted his first ROM on the XDA...
Read more...
Those who are part of the Nintendo family, as well as fans of the iconic gaming company, are carrying around heavy hearts today after learning of the passing of Hiroshi Yamauchi, the third president of the family run business and perhaps most influential Nintendo figure of all time. It was under his leadership that Nintendo made a successful...
Read more...
Say what you will about Sony, the company is nothing if not ambitious. Certainly that's the best way to describe the console maker's expectations of how well its upcoming PlayStation 4 system is going to sell in the next few months. While speaking at Tokyo Game Show 2013, Sony Computer Entertainment president Andrew...
Read more...
Yesterday was a big day for Apple device owners. The Cupertino company released its much anticipated iOS 7 update, and if you managed to update your iPhone, iPod touch, or iPad device, hopefully it went smoother for you than it did for Conan. Apple wasn't the only one dishing out new software, however. Coinciding with iOS 7, Amazon revamped...
Read more...
While console gamers called in sick to work today so they could stay home and steal cars in Grand Theft Auto V, Pandora chose to put its nose to the grindstone and revamp its mobile app for the iPad, and perhaps perform a little thievery of its own, such as stealing some thunder away from Apple's iTunes Radio debut in...
Read more...
Is there a bigger tease in the world than Rockstar Games? Not if you're a PC gamer. Again and again, Rockstar Games gropes the console community right in front of PC players by slow rolling game updates, screenshots, trailers, and other tantalizing tidbits for their platform right up until the launch of whichever Grand Theft Auto title it's...
Read more...
Google just lost another one of its Android rock stars, while Yahoo gains a beloved figure in the open source space. We're talking about Jean-Baptiste Quéru, former Technical Lead of the Android Open Source Project (AOSP), who's relationship with Google soured beyond the point of reconciliation last month when he announced he was stepping...
Read more...
It's fair to say that BlackBerry's back is against the wall at this point. By most counts, it's been surpassed in market share by Microsoft's Windows Phone platform, and the gap between it and iOS and/or Android is rather enormous. Rather than throw in the towel, however, BlackBerry opted to launch the Z30, it's...
Read more...
Ever imagined what a phablet based on Microsoft's Windows Phone platform might be like? For the time being, you'll have to keep imagining because those plans by Nokia are now on the back burner. Nokia had originally planned to launch a Windows Phone phablet by the end of this month, but with the company's handset...
Read more...
NVIDIA's more than two-year long search for a Chief Financial Officer has finally ended with the hiring of Colette Kress, a 24-year veteran of the tech industry who will serve both as CFO and executive vice president of the GPU maker, the company announced. Kress, 46, will report directly to NVIDIA presdient and CEO Jen-Hsun Huang. "We have...
Read more...
More photos of Google's rumored Nexus 5 smartphone running Android 4.4 (Kit Kat) have popped up on the web. This is the second major appearance of the supposed Nexus 5, which many believe first showed itself in some FCC filings earlier this month. In both cases, identifying markings have been covered up, but if it...
Read more...
Amazon's Instant Video service may have started out as a side benefit to its Prime membership, but it's quickly becoming the main focus and a worthy contender to Netflix. The service is now home to over 40,000 movies and TV episodes available for unlimited streaming, and over 140,000 videos available to rent or purchase, which you can then...
Read more...
The question no longer seems to be whether or not Valve will release a Linux-based console of its own -- the so-called Steam Box -- but when will it debut? Based on some comments Valve co-founder Gabe Newell made during a keynote at LinuxCon 2013, the company could launch a Steam Box as early as next week, or at least...
Read more...
For better or worse, the Internet has made it nearly impossible to keep a secret these days. Just ask Rockstar Games, the developer of the Grand Theft Auto franchise. Despite a brilliant marketing strategy consisting of frequent but limited updates on the progress of Grand Theft Auto V (GTA V), arguably the most...
Read more...
Two years is an eternity in technology, especially when you're dealing with the fast moving mobile world in which today's smartphones are obsolete almost as quickly as you unwrap them. Nevertheless, two year service agreements in exchange for subsidized pricing are the norm, though more recently, wireless carriers in...
Read more...
Old school gamers can remember playing the part of God in the game Populous, a classic title developed by Peter Molyneux for Bullfrog way back in 1989. Sequels would follow and Molyneux would eventually win over a new generation of gamers to the god genre with the release of Black & White in 2001. Continuing with a favorite theme of his,...
Read more...
Rumors of a new generation of Kindle Fire tablets are starting to heat up, and it's probably no coincidence that Amazon recently lowered the price of its popular tablet family. Amid all the chatter is the first real glimpse of what the next generation slate will look like. What's been leaked to the web is in all...
Read more...
Intel and Microsoft appear to be on the same page when it comes to touchscreen computing. With the launch of Windows 8 for x86 and Windows RT for ARM architectures, Microsoft made it crystal clear that touch navigation is the preferred method of getting around Windows, and rather than fight it, Intel jumped in...
Read more...
The biggest, most expansive installment of the hugely popular Grand Theft Auto series is set to debut next week on September 17th, 2013 for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 game consoles. This is easily one of the most highly anticipated titles of the year and could end up being the biggest entertainment launch of 2013. One...
Read more...
