Hasta La Gadget!

Sure, it’s not quite as elegant as a little cube jutting out of one corner of the iPhone à la Square, but it looks like the Payware Mobile could certainly double as a pretty sturdy case should it drop. More importantly, the backing of VeriFone means this mobile payment peripheral has some pretty important backing and should be able to hit the ground running. That magical date should be January 15th of next year, free on a 2-year Payware Connect contract, and pre-orders are now live on the website for those who want to join in on the phone. Just one word of advice: when you hand the iPhone over for someone to sign as proof of purchase, make sure you’re able to outrun the chap. Just in case.

[Thanks, Jason]

VeriFone Payware Mobile iPhone peripheral looking ready to square off with, er, Square originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 10 Dec 2009 21:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  Verifone Payware Mobile  | Email this | Comments

Multi-purpose adapters aren’t anything new, but it’s often the simplest of the bunch that prove most useful. Take this bugger for instance, which is little more than a vanilla 3-port USB hub connected to an iPhone / iPod dock connector port. The purpose for its existence? To prevent you from having to haul Apple’s flimsily built charging cable and a USB hub with you each time you scurry out, and to just generally make your time on this planet entirely more enjoyable. Now if only it could recharge our prototype Volt that we’ve secretly got hiding in the Engadget Garage, we’d really be able to extol the $14.99 asking price.

Multifaceted adapter combines 3-port USB hub with iPod / iPhone connector originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 03 Dec 2009 17:49:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink   |  USB Fever  | Email this | Comments

After that false alarm about an October release date, the Tony Hawk Ride bandwagon was all set for departure on November 17 and that’s exactly what’s happened. Available for a cent under $120, the new game / peripheral combo will allow players to shimmy, gesture, and ollie their way to (simulated) skateboarding immortality on the PS3, Xbox 360, and Wii. The earliest European availability we can see is offered by Amazon UK, which indicates a December 4 launch for the Queen’s isles and a discounted £89 ($149) price. You can check out our own feets-on with that wireless controller right here or, if you so wish, peruse the full PR at the read link. What’s not optional, however, is missing the bonus “making of” video for that most radical of peripherals, which we’ve lovingly prepared for you just after the break.

Continue reading Tony Hawk Ride ready to rock indoor tricks in the US (video)

Filed under: Gaming, Peripherals

Tony Hawk Ride ready to rock indoor tricks in the US (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 18 Nov 2009 07:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Too broke to pay Tony Hawk’s royalties on a Wii skateboard / snowboard? Yeah, we feel you, and evidently Thrustmaster does too. Said peripheral outfit has just introduced its newest Wii accessory, the T-Freestyle NW. Designed with work with any skate or snowboard game that lands on Nintendo’s money-maker, the board is crafted from genuine maple and sports a totally stereotypical “skull” design on the top. There’s also a safety stopper to prevent any sort of toppling disaster, and best of all, this thing will be available at the end of the month for just $29.99. Gnarly, dude.

Continue reading Thrustmaster T-Freestyle NW is your next Wii skate / snowboard controller

Filed under: Gaming, Peripherals

Thrustmaster T-Freestyle NW is your next Wii skate / snowboard controller originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 05 Nov 2009 11:41:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

Texas Instruments is pretty chuffed with itself right about now, as it’s prepping to demonstrate a swell-sounding new system-on-chip that takes Bluetooth connectivity to the extreme reaches of low energy consumption. About to be shown off in Munich tomorrow, the new CC2540 takes up a measly 6mm-squared of real estate, and is said to be able to operate for more than a year on a single button cell battery. With the reduced physical size and embedded Flash memory, this should be easier to install and update as necessary too. Considering the battery-draining ways of current Bluetooth tech, such claims sound preposterously awesome, but we’ll keep our giddy enthusiasm in check until early next year when samples will begin rolling out. For now, you can check out the older video below ‘splaining the prospective benefits in more detail.

Read – Texas Instruments press release
Read – Bluetooth low energy webpage
Read – Video explanation of Bluetooth low energy

Filed under: Peripherals, Wireless

Texas Instruments CC2540 promises ultra-low energy Bluetooth originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 19 Oct 2009 07:18:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments