inSYNC - Issue 4, February 2014

2 inSYNC Magazine | February 2014

inSYNC

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Editor - George HallWebmaster - Tom Barton

Social Network Manager - Tobi Stidolph

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inSYNC is published by the Wolf Group. Wolf Group registered address: 155 manners Road, Southsea, Portsmouth, Hamshire, PO4 0BD, UK

The Team

Design Editor - George HallTechnology Editor - Tobi StidolphGaming Editor - Jack Whiteaway

Sports Editor (inSYNC Portsmouth) - Tom Emmans

Contributing Team

3February 2014 | inSYNC Magazine

Contents

1 Cover On the cover this month: The Wolf of Wall Street, 3D TV, Jordan Belfort, Tech for Pennies and Sub Focus Live.

2 inSYNC Subscribe today and meet the team.

3 Contents Your here now! See what’s in inSYNC February 2014.

4 Editor’s Note See what Editor George Hall has to say about inSYNC’s latest Issue.

5 Byte-Size News Take a look at some quick, entertaining stories from the past month.

6 The Shadow of Mordor inSYNC’s look at the next upcoming Lord of the Rings spin-off game.

8 inSYNC Advert Getting married? Take a look at dividephotography now.

10 The Differences Between UHD and 4K A look at a growing problem in the Consumer Electronics Industry.

11 Tamron We show off Tamron’s upcoming, budget lens.

12 Are Next Gen Games Worth the Price? We see why it is a problem for consumers as console games hit £55 plus.

12/13 inSYNC on Kindle If you have an Amazon Kindle Fire HD, get inSYNC now.

13 f.lux See how this new software can help you at night.

14 Sub Focus See our review of Sub Focus’ gig, live at the Concorde 2 in Brighton.

16 Buy Brand New Tech for Pennies Find out how people are saving upto 95% of cash on top high-street tech.

17 Advertise with inSYNC Get more info on promoting your business with us.

18 Blues News Everything you need to know about Portsmouth FC’s January.

21 Featured: The Wolf of Wall Street See the incredible performance of DiCaprio in one of Scorsese’s best ever pictures.

24 inSYNC Advert Get your business out to the world.

25 Jordan Belfort: The Real Wolf of Wall Street We meet Jordan Belfort, and his reaction to the film of his life.

26 Is 3D TV Dying? We look at why 3D was a 5-year fad, and is not hear to stay!

27 Technology in British Sport inSYNC looks at the neccessity of goal-line technology in modern, top-flight football.

28 Music: Festival News See which festivals have announced what so far in 2014.

29 what’s on: Portsmouth Your guide to what’s happening this month in Portsmouth and the surrounding area.

30 Sony’s Waterproof MP3 Player A quick review of Sony’s new MP3, sold inside bottles of water.


Editor’s Note

Editor’s NoteIssue 4, February 2014

This is the most exciting month yet for inSYNC. We have got a lot to show you, and even more on its way. This month sees the release of our first regional inSYNC edition. As well as our usual, national guide on business, technology and music, we have made inSYNC Portsmouth, which is city-specific. inSYNC Portsmouth includes our featured Blue News segment, written by Tom Emmans. This gives you all the latest up-to-date news and gossip from Portsmouth Football Club and Fratton Park. In addition to this we also have a what’s on guide for Portsmouth; giving you information on many local events on in February. If you want us to publish your event in inSYNC next month, just contact us on our website (details below). We have taken a big leap forward with some of our best articles crammed into February’s inSYNC. We take a look at Martin Scorsese’s smash box-office hit, The Wolf of Wall Street, starring

Leonardo DiCaprio and Jonah Hill (page 21). We see how 3D TV is slowing dying out, mainly with the recent introduction of 4k (page 26). We also have seen how many consumers are now saving upto 95% of the RRP price on loads of top technology brands including Apple and Samsung (page 16). As well as this, we have a new Music Editor, Luke Jackson, who has done a review of inSYNC’s visit to Brighton to see Sub Focus perform his DJ Set. This month we have also launched our Spotify inSYNC Top 30. Take a look on Spotify and follow our playlist to get out latest playlist. We have got a nice range of songs from Arctic Monkeys to Palma Violets. Don’t forget to read inSYNC Issue 5 next month as we have some more exciting live reviews coming up. Editor’s Pick: I would suggest you look at our article of the use of Technology within British Sport (page 27) as it really gets behind the growing neccessity for FIFA to join cricket, rugby and tennis, and start widely using goal-line technology within modern, top-flight football. Especially in big leagues like the Barclays Premier League, and at International Tournaments like the upcoming World Cup in Rio de Janeiro this summer. Keep up-to-date with all the latest technology news inbetween issues, at www.insynctm.com. Also follow us on Twitter @insyncmag. We are also on Facebook, Google+, Blogger and Instagram.

George Hall, inSYNC EditorTwitter @geogeohall

www.insynctm.com | Twitter @insyncmag | [email protected]


Byte-Size NewsAmazon Hoax?

Amazon, last month, delivered a customer a brand new Nissan Versa Note, which he bought online. Becuase the car was delivered in a giant box, everyone presumed that this was a hoax to make people believe Amazon was now delivering vehicles. Turns out this was no hoax. We found out that this was real, after the recipient showed us the contents of his over-sized Amazon package. After Amazon revealed, last year, it was looking into developing unmanned drone delivery, this was another step towards technological breakthroughs in the retailer’s delivery processes and excellent cusomter service policies.

After the uprising and downfall of the app game Flappy Bird, within a very short space of time, this is now the result. The game maker removed the app from the App Store on February 8th because of the ‘unwanted hype’ the game has created. However, some people have taken this overboard, and iPhones with Flappy Bird still on them are being sold for ridiculous prices online. Below, this iPhone 4S, with a rare version of Flappy Bird installed on it is currently at £5,000,200.00. This is just ludicrous, and I’m sure only people with more money than sense would be bidding on such an item. I haven’t seen anything this bad on eBay since someone sold their Olympic Running Torch on eBay for £346,000.00 back in 2012.

The latest Apple Operating System (OS), OS X Mavericks, has been imitated by the Red Star OS. Red Star is North Korea’s own OS, started by King Jong Il, before he died. The Red Star OS is installed on computers found in North Korea, and used to closely resemble Microsoft Windows. New images released of the system shows us how similar it is to Apple’s latest software. The software is believed to have been sometime last year. The software is filled with North Korean propaganda, including the calendar, which does not say 2014, but 103, becuase this is how many years it has been since former North Korean leader Kim Il-sung was born. An earlier version of the Linux-based software was made available worldwide in 2010 from a Russian student who posted it online. Since then, no one outside North Korea has been able to get their hands on the latest Red Star update.

In January we saw the release of some of the world’s first curved and flexible HD TVs. Most of these were shown off at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas. LG released the world’s first OLED Curved TV. This is the next step forward, coupled with 4K, which will proabably overtake 3D TV sales this coming year.


gaming

Lord of the Rings has always been a franchise that can bend to create something in a world that has no limits. From the success of the films, to the not so great game of LOTR: Conquest, we have all seen the films and played the games of this huge franchise. But now we have a new game. A new chapter in the world of Middle Earth. Or do we? Shadow of Mordor is a new, expanded world of the Lord of the Rings franchise, and sets itself in between the Hobbit and the Fellowship of the Ring. You follow the character of Talion, a ranger, like Aragorn. Talion seeks to get revenge for the loss of his fam-ily who were murdered the night

Sauron returned to Middle Earth. Talion is killed himself, only to be brought back from death by a spirit from the Wraith world; this is the world we see when the Ring is worn. Talion returns to the mortal world, with the ability of a Wraith, to venture deep into Mordor and seek out,

and kill, those who killed his family. This game adds a story linked with the films, and teaches us a new aspect of the One Ring and it’s origins.In this new title, we see a game that has environment changes by your actions. For example, your main quest is to hunt down the leaders of Orc’s and find those who killed your family. The great thing

about this game is that if you go into a ‘boss battle’, you may have to flee, but do damage to your enemy, that enemy will then not forget how you fought in that first battle, the next time you meet. So in this, the game has its environment and mobs change and adjust to fight you. But there are ways around this. You can twist and control enemies, using your Wraith powers, to serve under your control. You can send them to spy or assassi-nate another leader, even if that leader is harder to beat. Whilst the assas-sination attempt would fail, it would cause repercussions in the game that

“a spirit from the Wraith world”

that would harm your foe and could cause an uproar in their lower ranks. This would cause a great distraction for you to swoop in and kill your nemesis once and for all.Whilst this game is in pre–alpha stage, it looks fantastic, and seems to be a game that will be extraordinary when it is fully released. But we have seen it before. Gameplay and graphics seem familiar to that of the Assassins Creed series; scaling buildings, jumping down, assassinating enemies and hiding amongst others is all rema-nent of Assassins Creed. Comparisons made would seem it is very similar, which is a little disappointing considering this is an entirely new Rings game. Even the change to the Wraith world

Shadow of Mordor


gaming

stand by Lord of the Rings fans...

looks sort of like the Eagle Vision you see in Assassins Creed. Even Ubisoft themselves have seen this, with lead combat designer Charles Randall outbursting his frustration on Twitter, saying, “Seriously, can someone tell me how Assassins Creed 2 code and assets are in this Middle Earth Shadow of Mordor game?” This tweet was followed by “This is *my* code in that game!”.

Watching the trailer for the game, it does seem very similar to Assassins Creed, but is there any proof? Warner Bros could be facing a lawsuit if this situation isn’t resolved quickly. Its not like this hasn’t happened before though; the creators of the game Too Human faced a lawsuit years ago when they illegally used unreal engine in the game and were ordered to destroy any games they had. This story will be followed intensely in the coming months, to see what will happen to this game. Despite this, here at inSYNC, we can’t wait to have a go a the next adapted chapter of J.R.R Tolkien’s amazing trilogy. | Jack Whiteaway

Game Facts

Expected Release Date - Some time later in 2014

Compatibility - PC, PlayStation 3,

PlayStation 4, Xbox 360 and Xbox One

Game Genre -Action Role-Playing Game

Main Character(s) - Talion

Annoucement Date - 12th November 2013

Game Developer - Monolith Productions

Game Designers -Michael De Plater

andBob Roberts

Map of Middle Earth

8 inSYNC Magazine | December 2013

Category

9December 2013 | inSYNC Magazine

Category

www.dividephotography.comfacebook.com/dividephotographyco

07414 [email protected]


television

The Differences Between UHD & 4KWe look at why everyone keeps referring to UHD as 4K

As highlighted by the recent Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas last month, there is a growing problem within the Consumer Electronics Industry. This is the issue of people using the ‘4K’ term when description UHD. The two formats are not the same! This is partly because of TV manufacturers themselves are making the two formats synonymous with one another.

4K is relatively new within the CE Indus-try, because it is originally a professional format used for commercial video pro-duction. The 4K format is seen in cinemas, used with new digital projectors. Unlike UHD, the 4K format has a different aspect ratio. The 4K is 4096x2160 and has an as-pect ratio of 1.9:1. Yet UHD is 3840x2160 is 1.78:1. This minimal pixel difference may be the reason why so many people call UHD 4K.

Most movies now, that you view at home, at in the UHD aspect ratio. If you were to watch these on a true 4K television, then there would be black bars down each side of the screen. This would become irritating for the consumer. So, this is why it is

argued that future, next-generation TVs should be UHD (3840x2160) instead on the 4K (4096x2160). It does make sense to keep the UHD 1.78:1 aspect ratio so that watching live television does not cause problems for the user, and is present in the correct ratio.

So let me explain about true 4K resolution on the big screen. 4K is specified by the Digital Cinema Initative (DCI) Com-mercial Standard. This is another area in which 4K and UHD differ more so than most people understand. The easiest way to understand this is much like Blu-Ray is the 1080p standard for encoding and presentation, 4K has its own set if digital standards that the DCI dictates. The stand-ards are very high end, which results in the excellent screen quality we are now used to with modern television sets. 4K, though, encompasses more than just screen resolutuion. People do need to learn the difference; it may even help you being sold a tonne of bull next time your in Currys buying your lounge upgrade.

The main issue of the differences between UHD and 4K stems from a time when no one knew what next TV format would be. The Industry has only know for a short period of time that the new TV screen resolution was to be 3840x2160. And this was not the 4K resolution that enthusi-asts wanted. 4K really is different, and beyond screen aspect ratio, 4K includes a

difference in video compression, bitrates, bit depth, chroma sub-sampling and colour space. This infactuation with having the latest inbuilt technology meants that any next-gen video would be referred to as 4K, even if it wasn’t. But, this means there is now a whole technology industry that doesn’t want to let go and admit they were wrong about what we, as consumers, were receiving. This means 4K is wrong in both screen resolution and video-encoding quality.

To make the problem worse within the In-dustry, there are now more UHD products being described as 4K-UHD. There are now a number of HDTVs and monitors on Amazon that have both UHD and 4K in the title. And for consumers that know the differences already, this may get confusing.

The Consumer Electronics Industry for letting this issue continue for so long. I think that actually this has only gone on so long as it seems 4K is a much more mar-ketable name than UHD for consumers when buying a new tele. Because people get set in their ways, a good solution to this would be to start referring to UHD as 2160p and 4K as 4K. So 2160p could be a great alternative to UHD, just like 1080p, 720p and 480p were before it. This does seem like a logical solution to, a now, industry-wide problem. The only problem with 2160p is that it doesn’t roll of the tounge as nicely as UHD or 4K. | Tobi Stidolph

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technology

February 2014 | inSYNC Magazine

- Filter Diameter: 95mm

- Internal Focusing (AF)

- Image Stabilisation (VC)

- Ultrasonic Motor

- Best Price: £950

- Dust & Moisture Resistant

The specifications for this lens are very impressive, as the focal length is long and mainly designed for wildlife photography. It has everything that a photographer could ask for, but, when it comes down to it, can it perform as a lens?

Well from initial tests, the answer would be yes, but it does have some minor issues, as we would expect from a lens of this power for such a reasonable price. Whilst it isn’t going to perform as well as the over-priced Canon models, that cost around £10,000,

it will still be one of the best lenses for a photographer that can’t afford the hefty price tag. But if you are very serious about your photography, then this is a great starting block to help you spring into professional photography, as it is a marker on whether you should buy the more expensive lenses.

Overall, this lens is an excellent bit ofequipment for the photographer who is thinking about furthering their career or getting better at their hobby. Its picture quality is excellent, although at lesser ranges, stability can be an issue. It is one of the finest examples of technological advancements so far this year, as it is an easily-affordable product that is quite simply outstanding at what it does. Not forgetting that this lens is an incredible 10x cheaper than any competitors that makes comparable lenses. | Jack Whiteaway

Keep up-to-date on news when the new Tamron lens is released in the UK, at www.insynctm.com. Follow us on Twitter @insyncmag.

Tamron 150-600mm

If you’re a keen photographer, then this news will come as a blessing. Tamron, world-famous lens makers, are releasing a 150-600mm lens for under, yes under, £1000. This news comes as a shock for most photographers out there as other lenses competing with this are not as cheap, or as big, unless you buy a custom lens, which usually retails for over £10,000! And, certainly not as light, as it weighs under 2kg. The price is one of the best things about this lens as it will retail in the UK for around £950, which is really great value for money. So, lets take a look at some of the specs of this lens though:

S P E C I F I C A T I O N S

- focal 150-600mm

- focal f/5-6.3


gaming

Got a Kindle Fire?

Read inSYNC now. Available from the Amazon Kindle Store and at www.insynctm.com.

The next gen game market is growing day-by-day at the moment. And with huge titles out, such as Call Of Duty: Ghosts, Grand Theft Auto 5 and Battlefield 4, prices of these titles have broken the £50 mark. With Xbox One titles and PlayStation 4 titles hitting upto £55 for a standard copy, what implications does this have on the consumer and the developer? Well with consoles selling for over £400, with one, maybe two, games, that doesn’t leave the consumer with much to spend on games. The old £39.99 for a game seemed too much back when the 360 and PS3 were hot on the shelves, but this £50 plus is just extortion from companies such

as EA who up the price because of the name, and the fact they know people will still buy the latest titles. But do they? Well not as much as they think. The consumer has few choices at the moment, so the selling of the games seem high. But they selling at an average rate, which for huge titles isn’t great. When new games come out, will we see high sellers? Or just more and more flops on the market, because people just can’t afford to pay £55 for a game. Hopefully we will see a drop in the market soon, which will force game prices down, but if not, will console games start to fade away, especially with Microsoft and Sony asking for a huge amount for their consoles. Expect a possible return for the PC game within the next few years, as the prices of console games rise ever higher. And why not? Whilst the price of PC games are still stagnant. And this is something the consumer may turn to if the prices do not start to drop. | Jack Whiteaway

Are Next Gen Games Worth the Price?


technology

Got a Kindle Fire?

Read inSYNC now. Available from the Amazon Kindle Store and at www.insynctm.com.

f.lux: The New Software to Help Your Sleeping

Computers and mobile smartdevices are designed so that the screen emulates sunlight. To lookl at sunlight during the day is fine, but when it gets to 10pm or 2am then this can cause problems with your vision and sleeping pattern.

f.lux is a piece of software available for PC, Mac, Linux, iPad and iPhone, for free, that makes the coloursof your computer’s or smart-device’s display adapt to the time of day. This means warm colours during the night time and like sunlight during the day. From a health point of view, it is fair to say that if you do a lot of computer work at night then the bright computer or tablet display could mean your staying up way too late. Your screen brightness could be causing you to stay up later than normal; this is a physcological effect of the brain. f.lux’s two main functions, are to help you sleep better and to make your computer screen look better during hours of darkness.

f.lux also makes your any of your devices’ screens look like the room your are situated in. The software functions on your computer or mobile device twenty-four hours a day, regulating the screen colour and brightness. When you first download the program it will tell you your exact location, which you can confirm. It does this so that it knows when sunrise and sunset is where your are. This means the night mode will not kick in at 5pm in the summer month; and it won’t kick in when you’ve already had 5 hours of darkness in the winter months. f.lux can also tell whether you are inside a building or outside. This is particularly handy when f.lux is being used on an iPhone, iPad or iPod Touch.

You can also tell f.lux what kind of lighting your house or office contains. This will regulate colours according to the room. Once your set up, it easy, you don’t have you do anything else. f.lux will work constantly, in the background, ajusting the colours of your display! If you think that f.lux is another typical, boring piece of software, think again. This can really help you when using your computer or tablet, and can also give your screen an awesome night-time, coloured tint.

Download f.lux now for you Mac, PC or Linus from www.justgetflux.com. Or download it on your iPhone or iPad from the Apple App Store. | Tobi Stidolph

14

music

inSYNC Magazine | February 2014

SUB FOCUS Live in Brighton

Sub Focus - DJ Set

DJs Fono and Billon kicked off proceedings at Concorde 2 in Brighton on Saturday night (8th Feb), and it was immediately known that the young, vibrant crowd were up for this 5 hour set.

The London-based producer is becoming evermore well known outside the Drum and Bass scene, in which he first made his mark, with pulsating performances and bangers that have had festival crowds craving for more.

Far from the hyped-up festivals of the British summertime, and the over-marketed concerts, Concorde 2 had an excited, and most certainly intimate feel to it. It is only a small gig venue, fitiing upto to 500 people in it, but it often makes the experience that much better; it gets you ever-closer to the performer(s) on stage.

From the outset of Sub Focus’ energetic set, it was clear that he was not here to disappoint. Dropping his favourites ‘Falling Down’, ‘Turn It Around’, ‘Endorphins’, ‘Safe In Sound’ and ‘Turn Back Time’, as well as the old-school bangers ‘Timewarp’ and ‘Rock It’, that had the crowd in full voice. Further boosting the mood of the crowd was MCID, combining singing and rap as well as taking good care of the crowd; he definitely did more than his jobs worth.

The thing that let Sub Focus’ gig down, though, was the timing. Doors weren’t until 11pm, and Sub Focus didn’t make it to the stage until about 1am. And although the tunes were hitting it off, by the time 2am came around the amount of energy required to continue made it evermore tiring. Despite this, the crowd did not throw in the towel, and made the experience better.

My final word on Sub Focus would be that it was a great night, and I would imagine you would struggle to find anyone who attended who felt differently. Sub Focus and his music is growing quickly, and his latest single ‘Turn Back Time’ has recently found itself launched into the mainstream charts. This said, I would really suggest that seeing Sub Focus in the next few years in a smaller venue, before he plays a huge set. | Luke Jackson

Luke Jackson - inSYNC’s New Music Editor. More Live Gig Reviews Coming in inSYNC Issue 5, March 2014. Keep up-to-date with the latest music news at www.insynctm.com or follow us on Twitter @insyncmag.

15

music



technology

Mainly due to the recession, a lot of shops and online retailers are always bombarding us withmoney-saving deals. Yet few companies can make good on their claims. Yet a concept of shopping that is actually fun, and could save you money, is now becoming more popular than ever.

A lot of people have now jumped on the ‘online auction bandwagon’. A site called MadBid has realised that how to sell brand new tech to consumers for close to nothing. The auction site is often referred to has ‘The Gambling eBay’.

Buying Brand New Products for Pennies: Find Out How You Can Too...

To be fair, the whole bidding process is actually a bit of fun, and knowing how many bids to use on each auction. In the last three years MadBid has been growing rapidly, with regular customer numbers heading into the millions.

Matt Beckham, CEO of an American site very similar to MadBid, called QuiBids said “This is a new type of shopping that appeals to a mass audience. Consumers expect more when they shop these days, and QuiBids offers that,” he said.

For an auction winner, however, the true and final cost of an item is slightly more that final auction cost, because you have to add on the amount you originally spent on bids. However, the cost of bids is usually pretty low, with most winners usually saving upto 75%

The deals are 100% real and legitamit. So here’s how it works...

Products on MadBid, start at 1 penny, and everytime someone bids, the price increases by 1p. Each product has a countdown timer on it, from 5 to 30 seconds. Every time someone bids, the counter restarts. When the counter finally hits zero, the auction ends. The only slight difference to eBay is that you have to purchase bids.

The way MadBid make their money is simple. They will buy an iPad for say £400. Then say on one day they sell £500 worth of bids to people. Shoppers then use their bids on an auction. Then say the iPad is sold for £35.00. That means that MadBid taken £535 for bids and product, but only paid out £400 for the tablet; this nets them a £135 profit.

MadBid’s latest selection of technological products range from iPad Airs, HD TVs, and SLR cameras. To name some of the most recent sales at MadBid; an Apple iPad Air sold for £33.77, a Kindle Fire HD sold for £15.85, and a HP Laptop sold for a mere £20.83.

With these unbelievably low prices for top branded tech, it is natural for us to be skeptical. So how to MadBid get to offer these incredible deals?

of the recommended retail price. But what happens win you bid in an auction, but don’t win? There are two options. One is excepting part of the gamble, and the fact that you lost the bids this time. But, the other is now that MadBid has now put in a Buy It Now op-tion of some of the auctions. This means that you can just purchase the product or piece of tech in the auction. You buy the product for usually around the RRP, minus the value of the bids already placed upon the item. This means, as long as your prepared to pay the RRP, then bidding in the auction first is a no-loss proposition.

So, if you can look past the sort-of gambling side of things, and want a clever way to save up to 80% on items like a Samsung HDTV for £33.96 or an iPad Air for £16.64, then check out MadBid today. | Tobi Stidolph

17

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Blues News

January has been a very eventful month for Pompey with many dealings in the transfer window and a broad spectrum or both results and performances. Richie Barkers men as of January 31st sit 4 points above the relegation zone with crucial games drawing ever closer against teams in similar situations. In February; Torquay, Wimbledon and Accrington Stanley all must face the Fratton faithful at Fratton Park and a trip to Exeter is also a big game. But what exactly did happen in January? Was it a successful month for Pompey?

The month began with a trip to Southend that was played in torrential conditions. Many fans were expecting a humiliation giving the outstanding form that Southend have shown this season but Pompey aimed to surprise and that they did. Also slumping to a narrow 2-1 defeat, the performance was more than encouraging. Pompey had taken the lead in the first half and were ultimately defeated by 2 very well taken goals that Carson had very little chance of denying. Boos at the full time whistle had been a common occurrence for Pompey in December but the full time whilst at Roots Hall was welcomed with applause and appreciation for the many travelling supporters who, although came away with no points, came away with a smile on their faces after being encouraged by a resilient performance that showed plenty of promise for a tough game that weekend away to Oxford.

The blues continued their string of promising performances with a well-earned 0-0 draw at Oxford United’s Kassam Stadium. Over 2,000 fans made the 2 hour journey and although the game would prove to not be very entertaining, knowing Pompey had earned a point away at one of the best sides in League 2 kept the frowns upside down. Admittedly, Pompey did run their luck several times in the game with Oxford narrowly missing many times and Carson having to make 1 or 2 very decent saves. However, a point at Oxford in rare sunny conditions for the time of year would prove to be a good result by any standards and filled players and fans alike with plenty of confidence for a home game against Mansfield Town the next weekend.

14,686 fans packed into Fratton Park to watch Pompey fail to keep their run of good form going with a 1-1 draw at home to Mansfield. Although it wasn’t a defeat, it was a game that Pompey are expected to and should have won. Going 1-0 down to an over-head kick really wasn’t how Pompey had planned the game to go but the last half hour was all Pompey and in the end, their equaliser was more than deserved. However, it was very clear to those watching in the stands that goals were lacking with only 2 in their last 3, Pompey were really struggling to look dangerous going forward: a sign of a team who would be in a relegation battle. What worried Pompey fans more, was the next game: a trip to Morecambe was not what Pompey needed as Morecambe were play-off contenders and with 2 good away performances against other play-off contenders such as Southend and Oxford, Pompey fans wondered how long it could last.

You were have been excused for thinking that the game at Morecambe was actually beach football. The pitch was in terrible condition with sand darted all around to make the pitch playabale. Although credit must be given to the ground staff at Morecambe, it may have been best for the game to be re-arranged. However, Pompey fought on and shocked the Morecambe faithful by coming away with a point. The returning Jake Jervis scored twice on his first start back at the club to lead Pompey to what looked like 3 points. That was until Trevor Carson, who had saved a penalty earlier in the game, was cought out by a shot the eventually rolled under the Northern Irish goalkeeper and into the net which despairing Pompey

All the latest news and gossip on Portsmouth Football Club’s January


Blues Newsto what looked like 3 points. That was until Trevor Carson, who had saved a penalty earlier in the game, was cought out by a shot the eventually rolled under the Northern Irish goalkeeper and into the net which despairing Pompey fans were stationed behind. Although disappointed, Pompey fans could see the positives from the game. Pompey actually looked dangerous for one. All that was left of January now was another away trip to fellow strugglers Wycombe Wanderers.

How Pompey won this one, no one will ever know! A goalkeeping masterclass from Trevor Carson and a cooly taken penalty earned Pompey a very difficult 1-0 win away at Wycombe Wanderers. Nearly 1,000 fans made the journey on a cold tuesday night and it proved to be worth it. Although they rarely saw any action from Pompey, they did see a resilient and very promising defensive performance that would ultimately earn Pompey their first away win since Burton Albion all the way back in September. 3 points and a 4 game unbeaten run was a more than welcome way for Pompey to end the month.

Pompey’s involvement in the transfer window was more than expected with most deals being wrapped up fairly early on. Shaun Cooper left Pompey for fellow strugglers Torquay United but many new faces came through the gates of Fratton Park. Daniel Alfei joined on loan from Swansea City, Ryan Taylor and Nicky Shorey both came in from Bristol City and the long awaited signing of Jake Jervis was finally given the green light. With business looking like it was complete, Barker continued by signing former


Blues NewsStevenage centre back Ben Chorley and surprisingly for most Pompey fans, allowed veteran striker David Connolly to join promotion chasing Oxford United for the rest of the season on loan. However, not losing Jed Wallace felt like a signing of its own as the valuable startlet will now be with the blues until summer at the very least. With rumours of a contract circulating, we could be seeing his face at Fratton Park for forseeable future. One face that we will be able to see for the rest of the season is Marcos Painter who has signed a contract extention to the end of the season.

Pompey will start February with a home game against Torquay United. Can Pompey continue their unbeaten run? Can Pompey continue to push further away from the dreaded relegation zone? Keep up to date with Blues News who give daily coverage on Facebook and Twitter of all the goings on at Fratton Park and beyond. | Tom Emmans

Pictures taken at Fratton Park on February 1st 2014. Portsmouth FC vs. Torguay United. Final Score 0-1.

Get in touch with our inSYNC Portsmouth Sports Editor Tom Emmns through Twitter @EmmansizX or email him at [email protected]

For more up-to-date news on Portsmouth Football Club go to www.insynctm.com or Like Blues News on Facebook.


film

THE WOLF OF WALL STREET

Our Review

The Wolf of Wall Street; Director - Martin Scorsese | Starring - Leonardo DiCaprio, Jonah Hill, Matthew McConaughey, Jean Dujardin, Margot Robbie, Cristin Milioti, Rob Reiner, Jon Favreau | Certificate - 18 | Running Time - 179mins

This is one of the best Scorsese pictures of all time, and the performance from Leo DiCaprio is one of his best; he is deserved of an Oscar for the movie. This is Martin Scorsese’s 23rd film in almost 50 years of directing, and it is based on former stockbroker Jordan Belfort’s life story. In the late 80s Belfort founded a company called Stratton Oakmont out of a garage in Long Island, New York. Belfort, played by Leonardo DiCaprio spent most of the 90s, with his right hand man Donny Azoff, played by Jonah Hill, swindling his way to a multimillion dollar fortune.

The Wolf of Wall Street is just excellent, and I would put money on it being the best thing you see in the cinema this year. When Jordan was in his late 20s his social life was an expensive run of drugs, greed, drink, sex, and prostitutes. Although, this kind of lifestyle is bad, the way DiCaprio and Hill play their parts is fantastic, and it creates some off-colour humour which we can all enjoy. Belfort’s memoires are, I’m sure, a serious affair, but the way Scorsese has portrayed it, adds some much-needed comedy to the movie. What makes this film even better is that despite Jordan Belfort being the man breaking the law, you feel empathy towards him when he is prosecuted by the FBI. 1998 saw Belfort indicted by the FBI for securities fraud and money-laundering. Looking past this Jordan Belfort was a pioneer and amazing person in the stock market, managing to convince wealthly people to invest in his company. Second to this, making himself a millionaire in the process.


film

This left just some Quaaludes left on the black market, but with only the rich being able to afford them. Que the likes of Jordan Belfort. At the turn of the millenium the supposed price of the pill had gone from around £3 per pill, upto a staggering £800 per pill. This means the ‘ludes taken by Belfort in The Wolf of Wall Street would have been around £16,000 for a bottle of 20!

Scorsese did something very clever in the film; inclduing a scene that echoes that moment in The Public Enemy where Cagney pushes half a grapefruit into the face of his lover. In The Wolf of Wall Street, Jordan’s wife Naomi throws 3 glasses of water into his face, whilst he goes into a rage.

In the opinion of most, the Oscar and Bafta-nominated Leo DiCaprio has shown his best ever work, and if he doesn’t receive an Oscar for his role


film

as Jordan Belfort, he probably won’t ever win one. The film is a dark comedy, but this is not unusual for Scorsese. But with a story like this one, it could only be that way. One of the best scenes of the film is when DiCaprio and Hill are dosed up to the max on Quaaludes, and they are having a ruck in Belfort’s kitchen. Not to mention the previous scene, in which Belfort has to get home, by crawling across a drive, and trying to get into his Ferrari without being able to stand, let alond drive normally. This is a classic piece of slapstick.

The energy of this film is just quality, and the larger-than-life acting will be hard to follow. Not only does it keep you unbelievably entertained, but at the same time you know what your seeing actually happened in real life! This film will be hard to follow, and Scorsese really has a job with his next big picture. Same goes for DiCaprio, who will have to follow up his act with something just as good. | Tobi Stidolph

Martin Scorsese really gets across Jordan Belfort’s quick route to the top of his Wall Street game, along with the endless drugs, alcohol and women that Jordan finds there. At Jordan’s company, Stratton Oakmont, they did things a bit differently to the other companies on Wall Street. Dwarf-tossing, strippers, shaving heads and naked marching bands were all part of the week-end office party. Belfort states that he even had to declare the office a ‘f**k-free’ zone between 9 and 5. Because of this, the film has been critised for up-selling and glamourising Jordan’s crimes and ignoring his victims.

The film, though, is roaringly funny, yet proably did cause some people to get frustrated with Belfort’s antics. But at the same time, people who did get frustrated, probably got drawn into what it was like to lead the ultimate, millionaires lifestyle. This is probably the exact, yet complex, audience reaction that Scorsese and DiCaprio was going for.

Would you count The Wolf of Wall Street as a crime-thriller? Yes, I guess, but despite this its actually pretty funny. ‘The bigger they are, the harder they fall’. Something very true in this film, that when Belfort build his company, and earnt a fortune, the FBI was tailing him; eventually ending up with him going to jail. And, although this movie sells us sleaze, it does it such a way that it puts positive thoughts to the front of your brain. And, even though Jordan ends up going to prison, what you have already seen makes you want to have a go at the lifestyle Jordan Belfort created for himself.

Amongst the drugs that The Wolf of Wall Street gives us is the infamous Quaalude. The Quaalude used to be legal in the 50s, discovered by two Indian scientists who were researching anti-manarial drugs. In the 60s, in the UK, the drug was used as a sleeping pill, but someone quickly realised that if you could resist the urge to sleep for 15 minutes, then the drug gave you a pretty great high. In the 70s and 80s the Quaalude was abused, and available on the street for around £1-£4 per pill. But in 1984 the US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) banned production of the drug.


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film

Meet Jordan Belfort: The Real Wolf of Wall Street

Jordan Belfort: played by Leonadro Di-Caprio is the story of his life. The latest Martin Scorsese film The Wolf of Wall Street. Jordan stat-ed in an interview with Piers Morgan that 95% of what his business was doing was legal, but it was the other 5% that was the destructive force.

He also admitted that he lost his soul ‘as much as a person can and still be walking around’. All during the 90s when he was leading an outrageous lifestyle. The Oscar-nominated film, has been a hit and Bel-fort said he learned he was selling a scam, cheating innocent people out of millions of dollars of savings.‘It was about a month in when I realized. That was the first moment where I allowed greed to get the better of me,’ he told Piers Morgan Live.

Jordan Belfort is now a motivational speaker, said he really enjoyed being a part of and watching the movie, and stated that he had spent more than 100 hours with Leo DiCaprio before the fiml, preparing him for the role in the life story. He said that the Oscar-nominee actor had played the part to tell a ‘cautionary tale’ and not a glorification of the excessive behaviour, like a lot of critics have said.

‘Originally when Leo saw this project, he wanted to get it on screen – and he said this publicly – because it represented the mis-takes that I made, and the attitude I had at the time, represents a lot of what went really wrong ultimately, many years later with Wall Street,’ Bel-fort told Piers. ‘It was important to him, and I think that - what impressed Leo, I think about my new life so much, is he saw me make this really radical turn, and I think that moved him. And I was really proud and shocked that he did that.’ According to Belfort, he and his associates at the time didn’t lose their souls all at once - the decline happened slowly. ‘What happens when you get to this section of Wall Street is it’s very easy to rationalize everything you do one action at a time and then it goes further and further,’ he said.

Belfort served just 22 months in prison, after being handed a 36 month sentence. He was prosecuted by the FBI for securi-ties fraud and money laundering and insist-ed to Piers that 95 per cent of what he did was legal but he added ‘the 5 per cent was incredibly destructive and it poisoned everything.’

Jordan said that those moments in the film were hard to watch in the three hour long Oscar-nomination. ‘It was shocking ... I saw the movie with my fiancee the first time, and we were speechless afterwards,’ he said. ‘I had come to terms with my old life. I wrote this book, and that was like a cathartic experience for me. But to see it on film like that, with someone that did such a good job, I literally, I felt myself sweating at certain points, when some of the cocaine was being snorted. I got almost sympathetic reactions to it.’Belfort then saw the movie again with his 18-year-old son and his ex-wife, who he is shown punching in the stomach in the movie - something he claims didn’t happen in real life. Stuff that happened at Stratton Oakmont was all incredibly to watch; like a dwarf being throw at a target, and Belfort’s right-hand man did really eat a live goldfish. And yes, the office was a ‘sex-free’ zone. ‘It all started with the elevator, someone christened the elevator early on,’ he explained. ‘There were all these young guys and girls, 18-23, and everyone’s making a lot of money. These things do happen.’ The most outrageous thing he ever witnessed happened at his bachelor party, Belfort told Piers, but didn’t elaborate. ‘I can’t say it on TV. It was an act of sexual depravity that made even me speechless,’ he said. ‘It happened in front of a crowd of 100 people, there were 50 prostitutes there and they said it was the most depraved thing they ever saw. It was absolutely disgusting.’Belfort told Piers his lowest moment though was when his family fell apart. ‘My marriage unwound and the thought of losing my children was the bottom,’ he said.Thankfully, his kids were young enough when he quit his addictions that they only

know him as the man he is today, he said.‘I was an amazing father and I was proud of that. I got sober when my daughter was 3 and my son was 1,’ he said. He added that his parents never judged him and always showed him unconditional support despite his criminal behavior.When Piers noted that if Belfort had stayed legitimate, the hardworking salesman would have been worth a fortune today, he responded: ‘That’s the shame of it all. The biggest mistake I made was not delaying my gratification, I would have been worth $10-20 billion now.’Belfort reportedly owed some $110 million to the victims of his scam. But he said he’s paid back around $12 million of his debt and is giv-ing 100 per cent of cash made from the book sales and the movie to the compensation fund.‘I think it’ll be many, many millions of dollars and I’m really happy about that,’ he told Piers.


television

is the 3D Fad Dying Out?

3D is not new. Back in the 80s, films like Captain EO, starring Michael Jackson, we the pioneers of 3D technology. When 3D movies, and then 3D TVs hit our homes in the early middle of last decade, I was not convinced by them. Everyone seemed to jump on the 3D bandwagon, and invest in a rather expensive 3D-enabled television.

Recently we have learnt that the 3D movie boom is beginning to flat-line. And, that means ever-rising cinema tickets will probably stay static. A report by financial firm Morgan Stanley has now shown that 3D films may not be around too much longer.

“3D attendance has been declining on a per-film basis since the release of ‘Avatar,’ and we expect the growth in 3D film releases to flatten out,” the study’s authors write. Part of the problem with the decline of 3D is that movie studios are not releasing anywhere as many films in 3D as the once did. And a lot of cinemas in the States and in Britain and not doing much to increase their 3D facilities.

“Recent 3D releases have underperformed, screen build-out has slowed and ticket premiums are unlikely to increase,” the study’s authors write. In 2013 there were 25 solely 3D films. That’s about equal to the number of 3D films released this year (31) and in 2010 (23). “We believe the pricing benefit from more 3D films is largely over,” the study’s authors write. Likewise, Morgan Stanley estimates that 45% of screens in the USA are 3D capable, and does not expect that percentage to rise significantly in the next few years. After two consecutive years of the 3D film business declining around the Christmas period, an increase in 3D viewing may be accepted in 2014, as some great pictures are expected.

There are many studios gearing up sequels in 2014, and this may cause the 3D box office to stabilise over the next year or

two. However, it acknowledges that ticket buyers have more options than ever when it comes to personal entertainment.

The study’s authors write, ‘Fragmentation in consumer media viewing habits will likely continue to erode theatre attendance’.

“We believe that consumer view-ing will continue to experience fragmentation over time driven by the increasing availability of video-on-demand (VOD) and video subscription services, such as Netflix and Amazon Prime,” they add .


technology

Technology in British SportFor years now, we have had technology in a number of different British sports that shape outcomes and results of matches. There is an endless debate over the use of technology in certain sports, and if we should use it and how we can use it to the advantage of the game. Sports such as tennis and cricket have seen an insurgence of technology that players can call upon to help clarify a shady decision, and put an end to furious after-match debates over ‘was it or wasn’t it?’ The infusion of technology and sport has always been a contentious issue, but with the surge of interactive and technological support for teams and players, we have seen a decline in sporting decisions that are contentious. Theintroduction of Hawk-eye in tennis and cricket, as well as hotspot and snick-o-meter in cricket, which can detect if a player nicked the ball off the side of the bat, or hear an impact with the ball. This has dramatically affected the outcome of games, as we have seen in recent Ashes series, and can be used to help the match officials make the correct decision, instead of the shockers we see at the World Cup in football, cough cough, England vs. Germany.

How Goal-Line Technology Works...

There has been outrage in certain sporting societies that has affected the outcome of how a sport uses certain technology. For example, the Indian Cricket Authority has refused to partake in the use of DRS (Decision Review System) to try and keep the history in cricket, but is this really the way forward in today’s modern sporting society? Well, I think not. You want the game to be successful, you want people to pick up a bat and ball and play. So make it fairer. This means that players in the top level or form of the game won’t get frustrated by silly mistakes made by the officials. This is what I would pitch to FIFA, who have so far refused to introduce any form of technology into the modern top-flights of football. I would say it makes for a fairer game; one where players aren’t victimised for a mistake that wasn’t a mistake, and one where players who are breaking the rules of the game are getting away with it. This is mainly in goal-line technology, where we see a ball clearly cross the line and it not given as a goal.

Modern-day Football, especially, needs to change. This current season, some Premier League teams have had Hawk-eye introduced to their stadiums, and whilst we haven’t seen a major use of it yet, it could be a big player in the coming seasons. We definitely need this technology! The reverse argument to this, however, is that it takes away that element of debating whether it ‘was or wasn’t’ because that’s what sport is all about. After-match debates are a huge thing. It’s a way of empowering sup-porters, managers, players, commentators, and more. But how can it empower everyone when the basic flaws aren’t seen and dealt with appropriately? We will have to wait to see if FIFA start using more technology, especially goal line technology, in other Leagues and other Championships, either at Club or International Level. But my overpowered thought is that we need it! Now! Before we have a repeat of the disastrous decision against Germany in the last World Cup. | Jack Whiteaway


music

UK Festival Lineups So Far...inSYNC has been keeping a close a on the many festival annoucements emerging in the last month. Below are the current lineups for three of the UKs hottest festivals; Reading & Leeds, Lat-itude and Bestival. More acts are yet to be announced but so far these have some pretty great line ups for the 2014 upcoming Festival season. Keep up-to-date with more festival news at www.insynctm.com. more festival news in insync issue 5, march 2014.


what’s on: Portsmouth

Find Out What’s Happening In Portsmouth (10th Feb - 10th Mar 2014)

- Secret Egypt: Unravelling Truth From MythPortsmouth City Museum 17th Jan - 23rd Feb

- Sochi 2014 Winter Olympic Games - Coverge on the Big ScreenPortsmouth Guildhall07th Feb - 23rd Feb

- REMEDYSOUNDSGig at The Wedgewood Rooms10th Feb

- Grease Kings Theatre 11th Feb - 15th Feb

- Frank TurnerPortsmouth Guildhall 13th Feb - Valentines Night at Portsmouth MuseumPortsmouth City Museum13th Feb

- Winter Wedding FayrePortsmouth Guildhall16th Feb

- Little CometsGig at The Wedgewood Rooms17th Feb

- The Wolf Cub ClubGig at The Wedgewood Rooms21st Feb

- Bournemouth Symphony OrchestraPortsmouth Guildhall21st Feb

- Ed Byrne: Roaring FortiesKings Theatre23rd Feb

- Russell KanePortsmouth Guildhall26th Feb

- Sonic Boom SixGig at The Wedgewood Rooms27th Feb

- Russell Brand - Messiah ComplexPortsmouth Guildhall28th Feb

- Newton FaulknerPortsmouth Guildhall 02nd Mar

- CastlesGig in Southsea07th Mar

- Commonwealth Day Flag Raising CeremonyGuildhall Square10th Mar

- Bombay Bicycle ClubGig at Portsmouth Guildhall10th Mar


technology

It is a very simplistic package, but one that allows Sony to show off the Walkman clearly, and to show the consumer the ultimate feature of the product.

This has transformed the vending machine into a great piece of marketing equipment, not to mention a first in com-bining an ease of purchase with technology. Something you don’t always receive in complicated technology retail stores. The vending machine has also helped Sony take advantage of an existing distribution channel, and a place that breaks down the barriers of purchase, meaning swimmers can purchase the awesome gadget as easily as buying an isotonic drink or chocolate bar.

DraftFCB have taken Sony’s product, which is usually sold at a reatiler, and put it in the direct face of their target mar-ket. It has gained the attention of many sportpeople and smwimmers, as well as it being featured in the New Zealand media for being the first of its kind | Tobi Stidolph

S o, what does one do when they want to prove that something works? Well they show some physical evidence.

The new Sony Walkman is waterproof so you can use it anywhere; in the rain, in the bath, in the swimming pool. So to show how great Sony’s new Walkman is around the water, the now sell their product immersed in a water bottle.

Although Sony’s waterproof Walkman was released a while back, the Japanese tech-giant asked New Zealand-based advertising agency DraftFCB to get involved and to help market the product out on the island nation. This is what they came up with; the Bottled Walkman. This is sold in public vending machine around the Aukland area, especially in places of health and finess, like sports centres and gyms.

Music helps you when your workout, and has been proven to enhance your performance. It has also been know to distract you from fatique. People use iPods and MP3 players all over the world when doing lots of different sports.

The Bottled Walkman

Sony have tackled a problem head-on; the inability to listen to music whilst you swim. With their waterproof Walkman you know can.

DraftFCB have created a world-first and have done something incredibly clever; a piece of marketing geni-us. They created the Bottle Walkman. A bottle of water is something that everyone can purchase very easily right out of a vending machine.

inSYNC - Issue 4, February 2014

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Transcript of inSYNC - Issue 4, February 2014