Hasta La Gadget!

Sony just wrapped its Gamescom 2011 keynote with this juicy nugget: base PlayStation 3 models will run you just $250 in the US, €250 in Europe, and ¥24,980 in Japan. Announced at the same show two years ago with a $300 price tag, the base PS3 Slim model includes a 160GB hard drive. A lower price will provide a nice cushion for that $299 Call of Duty: Black Ops bundle, which just hit stores earlier this summer. Meanwhile, the 320GB model will see a $50 drop as well, with new pricing for both models kicking in immediately in the US and Europe, and August 18th in Japan. Sony also lifted the curtain on a €99 (about $140) budget PSP model, which adds a slick new design while dropping WiFi functionality. Because, really, who needs their handheld console to connect to the web? All that internet gaming stuff was so 2011.

Continue reading Sony drops PS3 price to $250 in US, €250 in Europe

Sony drops PS3 price to $250 in US, €250 in Europe originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 16 Aug 2011 14:29:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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It may not have been the best kept secret around, but Google’s now made what’s surely the biggest addition to Google+ in its short lifespan: games. Unlike a certain other social network, Google says games in Google+ are “there when you want them and gone when you don’t,” meaning that they won’t flood your main stream if you never play them — you have to click the games icon at the top of the page to play and see updates from your circles. According to Google, the service is rolling out “gradually” starting today, but should be available to all Google+ users “soon.”

Google brings games to Google+ originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 11 Aug 2011 16:44:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Looking to spruce up that nondescript living room table? So are a smattering of folks from the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology. At this week’s SIGGRAPH E-tech event, a team from the entity dropped by to showcase the deadly cute MoleBot table. At its simplest, it’s a clever tabletop game designed to entertain folks aged 3 to 103; at the other extreme, it’s a radically new way of using Microsoft’s Kinect to interact with something that could double as a place to set your supper. Improving on similar projects in the past, this shape-display method uses a two-dimensional translating cam (mole cam), 15,000 closely packed hexagonal pins equivalent to cam followers, and a layer of spandex between the mole cam and the pins to reduce friction.

When we dropped by, the Kinect mode was disabled in favor of using an actual joystick to move the ground below. In theory, one could hover above the table and use hand gestures to move the “mole,” shifting to and fro in order to pick up magnetic balls and eventually affix the “tail” onto the kitty. The folks we spoke with seemed to think that there’s consumer promise here, as well as potential for daycares, arcades and other locales where entertaining young ones is a priority. Have a peek at a brief demonstration vid just after the break, and yes, you can bet we’ll keep you abreast of the whole “on sale” situation.

Continue reading MoleBot interactive gaming table hooks up with Kinect, puts Milton Bradley on watch (video)

MoleBot interactive gaming table hooks up with Kinect, puts Milton Bradley on watch (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 11 Aug 2011 08:55:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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There are certain things worth paying to upgrade: earbuds, perhaps, and maybe even Spotify. But when it comes to buying fancy 3D glasses for the sole purpose of looking cool in a pitch-black theater — well, aren’t we already spending enough on popcorn and Funyuns? EX3D doesn’t seem to think so. Starting August 13th, moviegoers in San Diego will be able to trade in those freebies for fashion at a 3D glasses vending machine. At $22 – $30 a pop, these “affordable” and “stylish” glasses may be a boon for those who wouldn’t be caught dead wearing the same specs as their friends. Of course, you can also use these babies out of the theater on a passive 3D TV. As for us? We’ll stick with the freebies, thank you very much. Jump past the break for the full PR.

Continue reading 3D glasses vending machine lets you be fashionable in the dark

3D glasses vending machine lets you be fashionable in the dark originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 11 Aug 2011 04:37:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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That crafty Ben Heck is always up to something, like whipping up an Xbox 360 disk changer for the laziest of gamers. But, on the latest episode of his hacking and modding show, Mr. Heck is back to helping those in need and crafting accessible controllers for the disabled. During the 15-minute hackathon, the modder extraordinaire creates two different Xbox 360 remotes — a split model for those with limited arm motion, and a one-handed version for people with use of only one set of digits. If you’ve got a smidgen of soldering experience (and ideally access to a CNC) these projects are probably even simple enough to tackle yourself. Check out the entire episode and full PR after the break.

Continue reading Ben Heck splits and condenses a pair of Xbox 360 controllers for the disabled

Ben Heck splits and condenses a pair of Xbox 360 controllers for the disabled originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 09 Aug 2011 04:04:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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