Hasta La Gadget!

We told you that OnLive was coming to tablets, TVs, and other devices a while back, but perhaps you were vexed by the thought of controlling Duke Nukem via touchscreen or IR remote. Well, worry no more, as OnLive’s made a Universal Wireless Controller to give you console controls on any OnLive-compatible device. The company’s secret sauce lets it connect directly to your slate or smartphone, and there’s also a USB dongle for use with PCs and non-Vizio TVs. We asked company CEO Steve Perlman what was in his wireless witches’ brew, but all he would tell us is that the black magic isn’t Bluetooth. We got to see the new controller in person, and there’s no discernible difference between it and the one that comes with the MicroConsole — they look the same and they play the same, plus the new gamepad has an 802.15.4 radio for backwards-compatiblity with the MicroConsole, too. Unfortunately, that dongle’s not yet ready for prime time, but we’re that it’ll be a “little bit bigger” than Logitech’s tiny Unifying Receiver.

When we went hands-on with the new controller, it was paired with the HTC Flyer. We’d been waiting to see OnLive’s service on HTC’s new tablet, and the experience didn’t disappoint — in our brief time with the device, gaming was as good on the Flyer as it is on a PC, with little lag and the same quality graphics. In addition to the Flyer and Vizio’s VIA hardware, many more devices are set to join the OnLive family this year, though Steve wouldn’t tell us who’s manufacturing them. He did say that no matter what brand-name is on the front of the box, the company hopes to have 50 million Blu-ray players and 25 million internet TVs shipped with the service on board by the end of the year. To hit that goal, the company has partnered with Intel to bring streaming gameplay to devices with Atom CE4100 silicon starting this fall.

Hot hardware not getting your gaming juices flowing? Well, how about some seamless integration with The Social Network? That’s right, OnLive’s been playing footsie with Facebook and will let users launch games directly from their profile pages. There’s also automatic “Brag Clip” video uploads (to share your greatest gaming hits) and wall posts to let folks know when you start playing — with accompanying links so they can watch or join in. All these new goodies will be on display at E3 next week, but if you’re starving for more details right now, video and PR are after the break.

Update: By the by, OnLive also revealed that it’s launching in the UK this fall, and in about four days, you can get a signup code.

Continue reading OnLive outs universal wireless controller, seamless Facebook integration and more — we test the tablet experience on an HTC Flyer (video)

OnLive outs universal wireless controller, seamless Facebook integration and more — we test the tablet experience on an HTC Flyer (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 02 Jun 2011 19:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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PlayStation announces official wireless cans for PS3, stereo frags coming September originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 28 May 2011 05:04:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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If you want to be the first in your hood to take Minecraft with you wherever you go, you’ll have to pick up an Xperia Play. The block-building game where cubed avatars hide from creepers and create virtual CPUs will land on the so-called PlayStation Phone before coming to other Android devices and iOS later this year. The Play version will have customized controls that take advantage of the gamepad and button layout found on the Sony Ericsson handheld, though when exactly it will launch or how much it will cost is still unknown. It’s also unclear how long the title will be exclusive to the gamer-centric smartphone, but developer Mojang will be holding an event at E3 where, presumably, we’ll be getting more details. Now is the time to wrap up any loose ends in your life before what little free time you have left gets buried beneath a pile of bricks and mobs — even when your PC isn’t handy.

Xperia Play first in line for mobile Minecraft port originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 25 May 2011 10:25:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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