Hasta La Gadget!

You know those goofy tennis racket peripherals that allow for Wiimote insertion? Or, perhaps more sensibly, those Guitar Hero axes that wouldn’t function without a Wiimote planted at the heart? Looks as if Nintendo’s going to do us all one better. Based on a rambling new patent granted to the Big N this week, the company now holds the power to concoct a “remotely controlled mobile device control system.” Distilled down, the verbiage describes a Wiimote-type controller being embedded within a “remote controlled toy,” which would then be (unsurprisingly) used in conjunction with a game console. Essentially, this opens the door for Honda to develop a new variant of ASIMO that takes commands via an embedded Wii controller… or, for a Wii-infused robot to turn on its owner and commit unspeakable crimes against humanity. But hey, it’ll probably be pretty cute.

Filed under: Gaming, Peripherals, Nintendo

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Source: USPTO

While many of us love playing games on the iPad, we often lament the lack of physical controls inherent to the platform. Audojo is hoping to change this with an iPad gaming case which is launching today on Kickstarter. The accessory works with any iPad 2 or newer, and features a pair of analog joysticks, two shoulder buttons and stereo speakers. Unlike other mobile game controllers like iFrogz’s Caliber Advantage or PowerA’s Moga / Moga Pro, Audojo skips Bluetooth for a low-latency microphone-based interface.

The case slides open just enough to accommodate an iPad and, once closed, wraps around both ends of the tablet without interfering with any of the cameras, buttons, or the 30-pin / Lightning port. Audojo automatically connects to the iPad via the standard 3.5mm audio jack, which is replicated at the bottom of the case next to a power switch, LED and mini-USB connector (for charging). It’s important to note that the accessory is not designed to charge the iPad, something that would require a larger battery and increase complexity / cost. We spent some time with a prototype iPad gaming case and came away pretty satisfied — head past the break for our impressions.

At first sight, Audojo’s prototype looks a little clunky since it adds quite a bit of bulk to the iPad’s figure. Once you pick it up, however, that’s all quickly forgotten — it’s light and well balanced and feels comfortable in hand. The analog joysticks and shoulder buttons are in just the right place — if you’re used to playing console games, you’ll be right at home. If there’s any room for improvement, it’s with the pods that house the shoulder buttons, electronics and batteries at the back of the case. These are currently too wide but Audojo plans to remedy this before production thanks to an improved circuit board layout. We were impressed with the prototype’s build quality (it’s CNC machined), especially the design of the sliding mechanism used to capture the iPad. Production units are slated to be thinner, with flush PSP-like analog joysticks and two headphone jacks (instead of one). Battery life presently beats the iPad when blasting the built-in speakers, and stretches to several weeks (!) when listening with headphones.

Audojo currently integrates with Unity (with a package available in the Unity Asset Store) and provides a native Objective C SDK. The company is very interested in connecting with developers and is offering special packages ($600 and up) that include prototypes as part of its Kickstarter campaign. A few games already support the iPad gaming case, including 1948: Dawn of Future and Cowboy Guns (both available in the App Store) plus the Unity demo Angry Bots and the unofficial iOS port of Quake III — it’s even been used to control Parrot’s AR Drone and Sphero. The accessory is expected to ship in July 2013 and retail for $99, but Audojo is making it available today on Kickstarter for $55 (first 200 backers) and up. Take a look at our gallery and hands-on video above, then follow the source link below to check out the campaign.

Filed under: Gaming, Tablets, Apple

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Source: Audojo (Kickstarter)

I know it’s a total luxury item that I have no business spending my hard-earned money on, but I’ve always wanted an arcade cabinet that I could load up with MAME and all of my favorite arcade games. But up until now, most of the cabinets out there were a little too tacky for me to actually have in my home. Now that I’ve seen these Retro Space arcade cabinets, I’ve got no excuse – except the money, of course.

These awesome retro-modern arcade cabinets come from designer Martijn Koch in The Netherlands. They each have a gorgeous 27-inch 1920×1200 LCD screen in the middle, as well as two arcade-grade Sanwa 8-way joysticks, real arcade buttons for each player, as well as a 6cm Sanwa arcade trackball and a single analog joystick for those games that support one.

Or if you’re a fan of games Arkanoid and Tempest like me, you’ll opt for the version with the Ultimarc SpinTrac spinner instead of the analog stick. Yes, please.

The cabinet has also got a pair of Canton speakers and a stereo T-amp. Keep in mind that this cabinet doesn’t include a computer – though they’ll be happy to custom fit it with a Mac Mini or Raspberry Pi for an added cost.

Prices range from €2,099 (~$2822 USD) for a slightly distressed yellow unit shown here to €2,499 (~$3360 USD) for the lovely anthracite grey model, so this definitely isn’t a cheap system. Never mind the fact that it may be cost-prohibitive to ship one of these outside of Europe.

I know Christmas is 11-1/2 months away, but I’m putting this on my list now.

The first time we talked about the 8-bitty controller for your mobile gaming device was back in February. Yeah, we never thought it would ship either. If you’ve been waiting for that little old school Nintendo-style controller to finally ship, today is the day. As of right now you can hop over to ThinkGeek and pick one up for yourself for about 30 bucks.

The 8-bitty is a small handheld controller powered by a pair of AAA batteries. It uses Bluetooth to connect to a number of different portable devices on the market today including iOS as well as Android tablets and smartphones. The controller has eight buttons total including four buttons on the face, a select button, start button, and a pair shoulder buttons.

It also has a D-pad for controlling movement. The controller was developed using an open platform with no licensing fees or permissions needed to create apps that support it. ThinkGeek says that it is fully compatible with the Atari Greatest Hits iPad app, and any of the over 150 other games with iCADE support.

Tired of the same-old DJ equipment or chiptune gear? Then may want to consider this new and unique piece of kit from Toronto-based Portmanteau Devices. Dubbed the Pianocade, it’s a synthesizer and MIDI controller that, as you can see, is disguised as an arcade authentic joystick (albeit one with quite a few extra buttons). Naturally, it’s also designed to be fully hackable and customizable (both the hardware and software are open source), and it even includes some strap mounts so you can wear it like a keytar. Sadly, the one thing it can’t be used for at the moment is an actual USB joystick, although Portmanteau hopes to add that feature before it ships, or roll out a firmware upgrade later failing that. Those interested can get their pre-orders in now for $250 or $325 Canadian for the one and two octave models, respectively, with shipments are expected to go out 8-12 weeks after the end of the pre-order period on September 14th. An electronics only package is also available for $100 if you’d prefer to build your own. Head on past the break to check it out in action.

Continue reading Pianocade synthesizer lets DJs practice their shoryuken skills

Filed under: Misc. Gadgets

Pianocade synthesizer lets DJs practice their shoryuken skills originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 21 Aug 2012 23:22:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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