Posted by unlocker under News on Wednesday Apr 25, 2012
There is a rumor that Apple is currently working on a game controller for easier playing in iPhone.
The rumor started when AnandTech released its review of the latest iPad. In the review, they highlighted one of the advantages of Android tablets is their unique feature to support wired and wireless game controllers. This is quickly followed by the statement that Apple is currently working in making a controller for its iOS devices for easier game playing.
AnandTech reported and the author said, “I know of an internal Apple project to bring a physical controller to market, but whether or not it will ever see the light of day remains to be seen. As smartphones and tablets come close to equaling the performance of current game consoles, I feel like the controller problem must be addressed.”
Although most of the games work quite well using the touch screen, there are some games that work best with physical buttons that are available in game controllers.
There are third party controllers that works with iPhone, iPod, and iPad such as iControlPad, Ion Audio’s iCade game controllers, Think Geek’s iCade 8-bitty controller etc or accessories such as Fling. These game controllers connect to iOS devices via Bluetooth.
There is a need to dissect the iPad 3 invite. The tagline on the invite says “We have something you really have to see. And touch.” What does the “touch” mean?
The invitation shows an iOS Calendar icon with the date as March 7 indicating the date of the media event. The iPad screen on the background indicates that the new generation of iPad will be introduced in the event. Moreover, this also indicates that the new device may get an upgrade. The resolution of the Calendar icon in the invite seems to confirm that iPad 3 will indeed get a high-resolution Retina Display.
The new “Retina Display” of the device explained the “have to see” part in the invite’s tagline. However, there have been many speculations on the “And touch” part of the tagline. Some people speculate that other Apple devices such as the Apple TV and iPod Touch will also be launched in the media event along with the iPad 3. Another speculation is that iPad 3 will no longer be equipped with Home button and will have the capacitive bezel.
Another possible explanation for the statement is that the new device may have Senseg’s feel technology. According to the report of Pocket-lint,
“Senseg is a haptics technology company founded just five years ago, the start of Nokia’s decline. Unlike haptics until this point, Senseg is working on creating complex textures rather than simply buzzing your fingertips. The aim is to make a corrugated surface feel corrugated, a rough surface rough, a soft surface soft. The first products will ship by the end of this year and again Nokia is not Senseg’s first port of call. ‘We are currently working with a certain tablet maker based in Cupertino,’ reveals Senseg senior vice president Ville Mäkinen.”
The only Cupertino-based company manufacturing tablet is Apple.
According to Senseg’s website, “with Senseg, touch screens come alive with textures, contours and edges that users can feel. Using Senseg technology, makers of tablet computers, smart phones, and any touch interface device can deliver revolutionary user experiences with high fidelity tactile sensations. Your customers will Feel the Difference with Senseg.”
It goes on to add:
“Unlike effects created by mechanical vibration and piezo solutions, Senseg is silent. Moreover, with Senseg application developers have precise control of the location and type of effect users experience. What’s more, Senseg technology scales from touch pads, smart phones and tablets to the largest touch screens without increasing manufacturing complexity.”
Pocket-lint asked Senseg if it is involved with the launch, they responded with, “we won’t be making any statements until after Apple’s announcement.”
