Immersion in media is something consumers want more of, from VR headsets to high-definition visuals. The Vibro Vest is a wearable subwoofer that can be worn while watching movies, playing video games, or listening to music to create a more immersive experience. Devices like this have been sold in the past, and Vibro Vest offers an almost identical experience aside from using eight different motors to power its vibrations. In the video the creator of the Vibro Vest, Alex Varfolomeyev, explains in detail how wearing such a vest can make entertainment more exciting. The Vibro Vest will launch in August 2014 and can be purchased for $50 plus shipping.
Tag: gaming
The Premise. All the buzz of the Oculus Rift has made a giant wave in the gaming community. The games themselves may be growing more and more lifelike and advanced, but the controller interface remains largely the same. With VR headsets and omnidirectional headsets comes the need for a controller that is as immersive for action as those peripherals are for vision and movement.
The Product. Echo is a PC and Linux-compatible wireless controller designed for first-person shooters that offers unparalleled immersion. The housing for the control is a modified real firearm, not unlike high-quality airsoft rifles. With extra buttons and an added joystick, players can use the Echo as a stand-alone device for movement, in addition to realistic aiming, firing, and reloading. Fire modes can be changed from single shot to automatic, and reloading is accomplished by ejecting and reattaching the gun’s magazine.
The Pitch. The video pitch for the Echo is all about high drama, with an intense musical background and plenty of action in some of today’s hottest first-person shooter titles. The rest of the campaign’s coverage can be a little technically dense in terms of explaining the functionality of the device, but the passion and excitement of the Echo Solutions team in the attached videos is easy to understand upon seeing the controller in action. They company’s funding goal is $100,000 to bring the controller into production, but multiple stretch goals are available, opening the door for MacOS support, force feedback and peripheral add-ons, and eventually console support at $150,000.
The Perks. A product designed for elite gamers, the Echo controller is available starting at $400 pledges. Functionally, there are no upgrades available, but in terms of style points, backers can get a custom camouflage on their Echo for $700, and a personal engraving with weapon case for $1,000. The Echo supply drop will reach the battlefield in November.
The Potential. Shooter fanatics have to be salivating at the look of this controller, especially with the suggestion that if this peripheral can reach production, gamers will have a choice of their favorite gun models to choose from. Devices like these are almost always a case of novelty more than competitive control, but it would make watching e-sports that much more exciting to see a team of players running on treadmill controls and using the steadiness of their own arms to pull off their professional-grade shots.
The Premise. Getting kids to brush their teeth might as well be pulling teeth. Whether it’s because they just don’t want to or because of the association with an approaching bedtime, enforcing good dental hygiene often becomes an intense battle of wits and perseverance.
The Product. Parents can now rejoice with the arrival of the gaming toothbrush, or Grush. This children’s toothbrush is chock full of motion sensors and accelerometers, designed to work in tandem with any Android and iOS devices to turn brushing teeth into a fun game. With multiple games to choose from, young brushers can chase monsters out of their teeth, conduct an orchestra, or groom cute animals while really fighting the true enemy: plaque. The brush has replaceable heads so that money can be saved when it’s time to change out the toothbrush, and the Grush also records data on how children are brushing their teeth. That data can be used by parents to know how children are taking care of their chompers and to show to the family dentist so he or she has a clear picture of the child’s brushing habits as well.
The Pitch. Grush co-Founders Ethan Daniel Schur and Dr. Yong-Jing Wang give a quick demonstration of the Grush and what it can do for everyone in the family, including the dentist. Outside the video, Grush gives a solid breakdown of what to expect from the games and how the device works. Grush wants to raise $50,000 to develop both the platform’s software and hardware.
The Perks. Parents can get a Grush Brush with 2 replacement heads, access to all of the games and the cloud storage for brushing data for at the early discount of just $30. Parents with multiple children can get a double pack for $115, while developers who want to create new features for Grush can get a developer kit for $360. The Grush system is expected to launch in March 2015.
The Potential. The Grush isn’t about to make children stop asking for an Xbox One or a PlayStation 4, but really kids just want to interact with the world and have fun. These two principles are what the Grush is about from the user perspective, so kids won’t mind that they’re brushing their teeth at the same time. However, as with any new toothbrush, one concern is the availability of replacement brush heads. Pediatric dentists will probably keep a handful of these at the ready to deal with their most stubborn customers, while parents will gladly pay up just to not have to argue with kids on a nightly basis. However, as with any new toothbrush, one concern is the availability of replacement brush heads.
The Premise. The decades-old debate of “keyboard vs. gamepad” rages on as strongly as ever, with things like Steam Big Picture adding native gamepad support to bring the console experience to PC gaming. It still causes sacrifices to be made, and a better solution surely still exists.
The Product. The Aimpad is a device for gamers that offers PC keyboard-like control using analog keys for a better variation of movement. Whether sneaking around a corner or making that perfect race-track turn, Aimpad’s infrared sensor keys let gamers push their movement down with all the precision of an analog stick on a familiar keyboard style controller. When paired with a mouse, this allows for full analog control in any game that supports it. The device is fully programmable to allow macros and key remapping thanks to an included license of Pinnacle Game Profiler.
The Pitch. Aimpad is clearly serious about its gaming, showing off admitted limitations of playing highly popular, AAA games using a standard keyboard. The same games are then played using the analog keys of the Aimpad, and the difference is immediately noticeable in terms of control and performance. This kind of technology is surprisingly largely absent from the hardcore gaming market, and so Aimpad wants to change that with its dedicated keyboard controller. Aimpad wants to raise the oddly specific total of $159,999 to refine the design and enter the manufacturing phase.
The Perks. The Aimpad is available at the $119 pledge level, ready to go in February 2015. For the gamers that simply can not wait, an early prototype beta model is available in July 2014 for $799, and an earlier prototype will ship in May for backers of $1,999 or more.
The Potential. There is a lot of potential here for gamers who prefer PC, specifically for keyboard and mouse control. While it does allow for a greater variety of control schemes, the lack of analog control has been missing for far too long. The developers admit that the current design is a little lacking, so it remains to be seen what they do with the finished model, but for now, the mere promise of analog keys is enough for some people to put their money up. The simple integration of just this single feature means not having to learn a whole new control scheme (such as with the King’s Assembly). A device like this will be a great companion for the Steam Machine as well.
The Premise. While any PC gamer worth their kill/death ratio will say that keyboard and mouse is the only way to play, many games have had to optimize their control scheme to operate with a hand on each. More complicated games or any game with text chat requires players to take a hand off the mouse and slow their game down to communicate.
The Product. The King’s Assembly from Solid Art Labs is an intimidating but smart solution to this problem that combines keyboard, mouse, and joystick into a one- or two-handed system that looks like the love child of a typewriter and an air hockey paddle. By using a rest for the palm and a downward sweeping curved keyboard, gamers have access to more keys than ever without having to move their hands around. And by using an optical laser on the bottom, the device can be moved around like a mouse without having to change hand position.
The Pitch. Engineer, gamer, and founder of Solid Art Labs Eric Charlton explains how he designed the King’s Assembly to satisfy his personal gaming needs and demos the product. Campaign graphics show off the console-inspired thumb joystick, ergonomic palm rest, and a look at the unique curved keyboard. The project is looking to raise $20,000 to create molds, develop packaging and complete testing. Multiple stretch goals are announced, starting with upgrading the parts and making the device work with as many hand shapes and sizes as possible at $50,000. $100,000 will have the King’s Assembly bundled with presets designed by pro gamers for specific games and onboard macros. At $150,000 the company will add more colors, programmable backlighting and other style options, and at $250,000 the device will become fully wireless, both in connection to the PC and to each hand of the device.
The Perks. To get one hand of choice of the King’s Assembly by September takes a $110 pledge. Both hands are available for $185. If that’s too long to wait, a $350 pledge is all it takes to get a signed pre-production set by July.
The Potential. The unique approach of the King’s Assembly means it will have a hard time competing with established or traditional gaming peripheral manufacturers like Razer and Roccat, but all it will really take is for one pro to adopt and endorse this device for it to catch on with curious gamers.