Tag Archives: gaming console

Gaming Box gives a whole new interpretation to portable gaming

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Inspired by the Nintendo Switch’s success, there has been a rise in devices with somewhat similar designs running different gaming platforms. There’s Valve’s Steam Deck for PCs, of course, but there are also gaming handhelds running Android instead. Even computer accessory maker Logitech is getting its game on with a cloud-centric collaboration with gaming giant Tencent. Despite varying designs and sizes, the basic format of these portable gaming devices is the same. There’s a large screen in the middle flanked by the two halves of a typical gaming controller. That, however, isn’t the only way to design a portable gaming device, and this concept design tries to think outside the box to put gaming back inside the box in a slightly different way.

Designer: Eli Lan

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There’s definitely a good reason why these portable gaming devices are designed this way. Gamepad controls are easier to use without the support of a desk or any surface, unlike keyboards and mice, and they offer better haptics and tactile feedback compared to just a touch screen. That’s not to say it’s the perfect design or that there are no other possible forms a portable gaming computer can take.

At its simplest, the Gaming Box design concept is pretty much a mini PC with a screen on top. Mini computers, which include the likes of the Apple Mac Mini, have become more ubiquitous these past years. They come in a variety of designs, and some are portable, not just in form but also in operation. The one thing they all have in common is that they need to be connected to a monitor, at the very least, to actually be usable.

This gaming twist on that design puts an end to that problem and puts a screen on the top, or rather the front, of the box. Unlike typical mini PCs that lie on their larger face, the Gaming Box is designed to stand on one of its thinner edges. It’s a more precarious position, admittedly, but it’s the only way you’ll be able to view the screen anyway.

There are also other and probably bigger issues with this design. The display seems large enough, at least when compared to other objects around it, but its square aspect ratio doesn’t really conform to any of the conventions used in gaming and even in videos. There are no controls to speak of, either, so it’s presumed to be using a touch screen. You can attach or connect controllers, of course, but that won’t make it convenient for playing on the go, which isn’t its primary use case anyway.

In truth, the Gaming Box is probably better as a Media Box, allowing owners to enjoy videos or maybe even social media anywhere inside the house. It is more like a home console or gaming PC that you can move around inside the same space rather than something you’d use outside, so it complements rather than replaces designs like the Steam Deck.

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Massive 2,200+ Video Game Console Collection on eBay for Almost $1 Million

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A French eBayer is selling his personal collection of over 2,200 video game consoles for the almost too-good-to-be-true price of €984,000 (basically the same in US dollars with current conversion rates). That comes out to about $450 per console. Some of them probably aren’t worth that. And others are probably worth much more than that. That’s just the way averages work.

You can check out the eBay listing for a full list of all the consoles included, including color variations and special editions of various gaming systems. Wow, could you imagine owning all those consoles? I’d never leave the house! I mean, I already don’t ever leave the house, but then I definitely wouldn’t.

Unfortunately, the listing doesn’t include any games unless they were packaged with the consoles, so expect to spend another cool million on actually being able to play these consoles instead of just admiring them on the shelf. Thank God we’re rich, right? Or about to be rich anyways. Now, put these pantyhose over your head and let me do the talking.

[via TechEBlog]

LEGO recreates life-sized Atari 2600 gaming console to revive nostalgic memories

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The LEGO Atari 2600 set has been in the rumor mill since April this year, and now finally it has gone official. Pretty obviously, the set is based on the classic game console that triggered the era of gaming in the 80s. Marking the 50 years of the brand’s legacy, the LEGO treatment for the most popular console in their history.

All you gaming nerds might remember the four-switch version of the Atari 2600 that arrived in 1980, This particular LEGO recreation is based on that model with a total of 2,532 pieces and a moveable joystick to bring back old memories. I wonder why they didn’t make it a 2,600 pieces version though!

Designer: LEGO Studios

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This LEGO set is a follow-up to the Nintendo Entertainment System comprising 2,646 pieces – but one can’t deny the Atari 2600 set’s significantly higher perceived value. To keep things interesting for gamers who love anything classic from the 70s or 80s, there are the three cartridges of the classic games – Asteroids, Adventure and Centipede – slidable into the main body of the brick console. Each of the games also gets a matchable mini figurine to complete the look. The LEGO console opens up to reveal the diorama of a 1980s living room which I absolutely adore.

The life-sized set is designed by Chris McVeigh who said that it has been “an incredible experience to bring two icons together – Atari and Lego.” Bringing back those cherished memories of the days when a handful of pixels meant the world to all of us, is what makes this LEGO creation special. To top it off the set recreates details such as the vented top plate and the wooden accents on the front. The only thing I miss here is the LEGO adaptation of the RF adapter for this set.

LEGO Atari 2600 will be available on August 1, 2022, which coincidently is Atari’s 50th-anniversary date. The price tag of $239.99 will have many collectors all over this set I’m sure, and don’t be surprised if it goes out of stock in a jiffy.

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This fully functional Xbox Series X console stands at over six feet tall

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Microsoft knows its craft when it comes to marketing its gaming consoles. And it’s clear, they’ve got a real affection for the current generation Xbox Series X and Series S. The Redmond-based tech giant ignited interest with their one-off Xbox Series X fridge revealed at the E3 2021 event, and then they joined forces with premium luggage maker July to create limited-edition Xbox Series S suitcase for hardcore nerds.

No, this one is not the official Microsoft build, but a DIY project by engineer and Youtuber Michael Pick who’s lately obsessed with crafting the world’s biggest gadgets. He teamed up with ZHC to build the world’s largest Xbox Series X gaming console for a good cause. The size of a big refrigerator you’d come across, the DIY project stands towering at 6.82 feet and 3.41 feet wide. If you ever thought the retail version was a bit on the bulkier, this one should bury all your apprehensions for good.

Designer: Michael Pick

Behind the perfect look, there is a real Xbox Series X fitted inside the wooden rig. All the fancy inputs right from the Microsoft logo and the connection ports at the rear are actuated by the Arduino microcontrollers. For instance, pressing the button on the bigger console triggers an input on the hidden console inside courtesy of a motor. Pick invested a lot of time and energy into crafting the curved top using 3D printing technique, and it took him almost two weeks to finish the piece. Even though the top isn’t visible due to the height, according to Pick it brings the build to life. Once the basic crafting of the console got completed, it was passed over to ZHC in Texas where it got a cool custom paint job in a cartoonish sci-fi theme.

Compared to the mini Xbox X fridge which cools down beers, this one is fully functional as a gaming console, its primary intended purpose. By the way, this huge console is well over 600 percent bigger than the real one, and unsurprisingly has a Guinness World Record to its name too. Behind its highly detailed emulated look, the DIY project was ultimately gifted to the Youth and Teen Development Center in Atlanta, GA. The kids were elated to see this cool creation and then, later on, try out the games loaded onto the console. Truly a build worthwhile all the effort!

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Apple game console concept poised to inch Nintendo Switch out of contention

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For everyone who wants to move past the Nintendo Switch and Android-based gaming smartphones, the Apple gaming console could bring a fresh breath of air and likeability.

Handheld gaming consoles like the Nintendo Switch offer gamers entry into high-end graphics-intensive games as well as addictive arcade titles at the convenience of their pocket. In a way, gaming phones and even normal flagships give smartphone users another reason to enjoy high-end games on their smart devices. Apple is also in the mix of things with its industry-leading A15 Bionic chip that makes the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 and MediaTek 9000 processor sweat in one-on-one performance.

Designer: Konstantin Milenin

This makes for a compelling case to have an Apple handheld console with the backing of Apple’s microprocessor technology powering the high-end graphics, highest frame rates, and multiplayer capabilities. Built for peak gaming performance along with tactically placed joystick, buttons, and shoulder triggers; the handheld comes with complimentary photography and video shooting capabilities. It’s loaded with a rear camera sensor and a front camera as well. The latter will come in handy for live game streaming on the fly. The front-facing speakers are positioned on the top left and right corners for surround sound effects while identifying the muffled enemy’s footsteps.

Just like other handheld gaming consoles, Apple’s gadget will also have the ability to connect to Apple TV, Apple Music, iCloud on the go when you’ve had enough of the gaming adrenaline rush. Going with Apple’s minimal design philosophy highlighted by the use of premium body materials, this gaming console is for serious gamers to say the least. The Prussian blue colorway of the gaming machine goes perfectly with the aesthetics reflected in the buttons. Though, the selfie camera could be a distraction in first-person shooter games if you’ve to spot the enemy in that particular area.

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The Apple Arcade Pro is an iPhone-inspired handheld gaming device with two notches and controls

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The Apple Arcade app/service may seem like a half-baked effort on Apple’s part to enter the gaming industry. One could argue that Apple doesn’t even care about gamers or gaming beyond the odd Monument Valley or AR-based game that they’ve showcased at their keynotes. However, the Apple Arcade Pro changes ALL of that. Designed as a hardware concept that rivals the Nintendo Switch, Steam Deck, or any of the Android-based gaming phones, the Apple Arcade Pro is a handheld console modeled on the iPhone, however with not one but TWO notches that allow the console to have its own button layouts.

The Apple Arcade Pro is exactly what the company needs to blitz right into the gaming industry. Google Stadia is on life-support, Microsoft Xbox Game Pass hasn’t quite picked up yet, the Steam Deck hasn’t rolled out to many people yet, and literally the only handheld gaming device that’s really got a stranglehold on the market is the Nintendo Switch… the Arcade Pro has the ability to massively tilt the scales by doing a couple of things – A. Championing mobile-based AAA gaming, B. Putting Apple’s A15 Bionic chip to even better use, and C. Allowing Apple’s Arcade service to expand rapidly in a way that would probably even threaten Microsoft’s Xbox Game Pass. Sadly though, there’s no way Fortnite is coming back to the Apple gaming ecosystem anytime soon…

The Apple Arcade Pro models itself on the successful iPhone format. It comes with a Stainless Steel body in four different finishes, and sports the same flat-edge design as the iPhone. On the front, however, things are a bit different. There’s no front-facing camera, but the notch is still there. In fact, there are two notches on either side of the device, allowing for the Arcade Pro to have its controls – an ambidextrous set of D-pads that change function depending on what game you’re playing. On the rim, the volume buttons are replaced by left and right shoulder buttons, and the speaker modules now go all the way from one corner to the other, immersing you in audio as you game.

Move over to the back and there’s a bit of a throwback in terms of the camera layout. Instead of equipping the Arcade Pro with the best-quality camera as you’d find in the iPhone, the Arcade Pro instead has an iPhone X-inspired dual-lens system that sits further to the corner, so it doesn’t get obstructed by your hands as you game. In between the two cameras, however, sits a LiDAR sensor that turns the Arcade Pro into the world’s first AR-based dedicated handheld gaming console.

Other noteworthy features of the Arcade Pro are its upgraded Taptic Engine that allows for better haptic gaming, the Magic Joy buttons that mimic the ones seen on the Apple TV remote, 95W MagSafe charging on the back, and a new Game OS, designed specifically to highlight the new gaming experience. The Arcade Pro doesn’t just tap into the Apple Arcade service, it redefines it completely and spins the arcade service into its own standalone service, giving it a dedicated operating system that prioritizes games first, while also offering other features/apps like Netflix, YouTube, Apple TV, Safari, etc. Want to take a break from gaming and just use the Arcade Pro to watch content? There’s a Pro Stand-inspired Gravity Stand that lets you prop your device on it and easily enjoy watching stuff online. The concept doesn’t detail whether the Arcade Pro has cellular services (there isn’t a SIM tray anywhere to be seen), although we could go on a limb and say that it’ll still have Messages, although, with a front-facing camera, Memoji and FaceTime seem out of the picture.

Obviously, this is a concept and it’s practically guaranteed that Apple won’t release a gaming console any time soon (although it definitely should, considering how incredibly lucrative the industry is), but for the people who think having an iPhone-inspired gaming device is an illogical idea, let’s not forget that for the longest time Apple did have its own iPhone-shaped device that catered to a specific category – music. The iPod Touch, for years, was an iPhone-lite that did a limited set of tasks focused primarily on music and browsing the internet… so it’s fairly within the bounds of an alternate reality to envision the Arcade Pro as a gaming-specific iPhone.

Is the Arcade Pro a great idea? On paper, it definitely is, given how the gaming industry is bigger than Hollywood, the music industry, the NBA, NFL, and MLB all combined. Apple’s had a long history of sidestepping gaming, but just purely from a revenue standpoint, it makes a world of sense considering Apple can’t even claim it’s a monopoly business here. Moneytalk aside, the Arcade Pro sounds like the PERFECT device for kids… an iPhone Lite, if you will. Apple will have to develop the OS in a way that enables incredibly rigid parental controls for youngsters, but the Arcade Pro has the potential of not just being a gaming device – it also becomes the communication device parents feel comfortable giving their kids and allowing them to keep in touch… without splurging the big bucks on buying a kid an iPhone.

Designers: Junwoo Kim & Joonho Sung

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SEGA Genesis Plush Console: Genesis Does What Nintendon’t!

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Made and sold by Kidrobot (which has been responsible for taking hundreds if not thousands of my dollars over the years), this $30 SEGA Genesis Gaming Console 12″ Interactive Plush features a soft likeness of the 1988 gaming system, complete with a detachable controller and removable Sonic the Hedgehog game cartridge. How about that! Now all I need is a plush television to complete my make-believe gaming session.

Can you use it as a pillow? Sure! Can you use it as a kid’s booster seat in the car? No. Now I’m not sure who needs to hear this, but you also shouldn’t use it as a hot plate because my soup is still cold. Maybe if I take out the cartridge and try blowing on it first…

I have fond memories of playing SEGA Genesis growing up. I also have unfond memories of accidentally plugging the SEGA CD’s power supply into the wrong port and killing it. Of course, I never told my parents that; I just pretended it stopped working, and they eventually bought a new one. Whew — thanks for letting me finally get that off my chest; it’s really been weighing on me the past 30 years.

SEGA Genesis plushie lets you throw your controller without feeling guilty

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Gamer tantrums are well-known, especially when they get destructive, but this plush toy recreation of a popular console offers a safer outlet when lashing out.

Microsoft, Sony, and Nintendo might be the last remaining contenders in the console wars, but there was a time when they weren’t the only ones in that arena. Before Sega was reduced to being a game publisher, it was also making consoles that eventually became icons in gaming history. The SEGA Genesis is one of those historical gaming machines, and one shop is creating a lovable and huggable version that recreates more than just the console’s form.

Designer: kidrobot

You probably wouldn’t be hugging this console-shaped plush toy in bed or on the couch. Or probably you would if you were feeling a bit melancholic and pining for the good old days of gaming. Or you might want this soft and cushy SEGA Genesis beside you when you’re mashing buttons on your Xbox, PlayStation, or Switch. That way, when you get the urge to throw the controller in frustration, you can simply grab this plush and throw that instead. It’s therapeutic and safe to boot!

This SEGA Genesis Interactive Plush tries to recreate the iconic console faithfully in both shape and size, though it’s admittedly a bit larger than the actual machine. That does mean it’s not exactly fit for comfy hugging, but it won’t take up too much space on your couch or bed either. The plushie also tries to be as faithful to the small design details, from the buttons and indicators to the warning labels at the bottom.

The “interactive” part comes from the pieces that you can remove or “plug” into the console. Rather than just a single plushie, this SEGA Genesis comfort toy is actually made up of three parts. There’s a game cartridge that has Sonic the Hedgehog’s face emblazoned on it. There’s also a controller that can connect and disconnect at will. That could come in handy when you want to throw the controller without the console flying along with it.

This 12-inch SEGA Genesis Interactive Plush is a cute and fun nod to an age long gone. Of course, even those who never even held a SEGA Genesis might still appreciate having something of a reminder of that past, especially one that you only have to wash to keep it clean and usable.

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PS5 concept in white is a minimalist lover’s dream

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The PlayStation 5 design has probably been one of the console’s most polarizing designs, so it’s no surprise that designers and gamers alike have come up with alternatives that show how Sony could have done better.

Gaming consoles are no longer just pieces of equipment taking up space in the living room. Just like TVs and entertainment systems, they have become a sort of symbol of a specific lifestyle. For some gamers, they have even become sources of pride, displaying their affinity for a particular gaming system or title. For some, the PS5 has become a source of embarrassment, however, which is ironic given how it was designed to look like a trophy. There have been a few “redesign” suggestions floated around the Internet, but this one, in particular, keeps one foot in the past and the other foot proudly in the future.

Designer: Alexandre Touget

The PlayStation 4’s boxy design admittedly feels dated by now. Its boxy form and sharp edges feel almost clinical and mechanical. It almost plays to the stereotype of gamers setting themselves apart from the rest of humanity, an image that the PS5 “trophy” tried to improve but in an almost ineffective way.

The PlayStation 5 looks futuristic and almost trendy, something that seems to have been given more design thought than other consoles. For some, however, it went to the opposite extreme and called too much attention to itself. Plus, its gigantic size didn’t really sit well beside other objects in the room.

Alexandre Touguet reimagined the PS5 as something that blended those two worlds together in harmony. It retained a more muted shape, a flat box that tapers down on two edges. It isn’t all sharp lines, though, with some curves that also give it a gentler look without going overboard.

This white variant is similar to the black console the designer created when the PS5 first came out. White is admittedly a controversial color for objects that sit around exposed to dust and dirt all day, but it’s hard to argue that it has an unmistakable minimalist vibe to it as well. More importantly, it helps this PS5 design blend in better with other objects in a room, suggesting that gaming is more an integrated part of the owner’s life rather than something that just awkwardly crash-landed like an alien spaceship.

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Steam Deck is giving PC Gaming a makeover

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Valve wants to encourage anywhere you want to, but is it encouraging the right lifestyle?

Portable gaming devices are nothing new, with the likes of the Game Boy and the PSP or PlayStation Portable becoming household names in that area. Smartphones have also given birth to a multi-billion dollar mobile gaming industry that promotes gaming anywhere, any time. Throughout all these changes, however, PC gaming has still been limited to mostly stationary devices like laptops and desktops. Valve, best known for the Steam games marketplace, wants to change that status quo, and it’s taking a small chapter out of Nintendo’s book to make it happen.

Designer: Valve

The Nintendo Switch can be credited for reinvigorating the portable gaming market. Its unique combination of features, including the ability to be used with a larger screen, made it look like the only gaming console you’ll need, whether you’re out and about or just at home. In contrast, PC gamers still have the stereotype of being locked down to their desks or any other table unless they want to fry their thighs while using their heavy gaming laptops on their, well, laps. The Steam Deck, which is finally launching later this February, aims to bring that spirit of adventure to PC gamers by letting them take their favorite hobby along with them anyway.

Nintendo Switch it is not, though, with the Steam Deck easily dwarfing Nintendo’s current darling in size. Of course, that’s because the Steam Deck needs to pack in more hardware to support games that would make the Switch cry in pain. That, however, also means that it might be more uncomfortable to hold this device up for longer periods of time. And unlike the Switch, you can’t exactly detach the controllers to lighten up the load.

You can, however, put it down on any surface and use a Bluetooth controller, similar to the Switch. It’s still a lot more convenient than needing a lot of space for a laptop, not to mention extra space for a mouse. What the Steam Deck can do that the Nintendo Switch can’t is to be used as a regular PC, at least a Linux-based one. That last technical detail might worry some about compatibility with some Steam games that run only on Windows, but that situation is a lot better these days. Plus, installing Windows on the device is also technically possible.

This sounds great for PC users, especially Linux users, but there are naturally some limits to this proposition. More like a laptop and less like a desktop, the Steam Deck isn’t upgradable, and you’re stuck with the hardware you paid for. You can’t even expand the storage with an SSD and will have to make do with super slow SD cards. Unsurprisingly, there isn’t any commitment from Valve regarding repairability or sustainability, though as a first-gen device, that might happen in succeeding models, presuming it has succeeding models.

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