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Paper alloy takes shape for biodegradable consumer electronics (write your own origami joke)
So you're anxiously awaiting your biodegradable car and your biodegradable 3D glasses, waiting for the day when everything you own can return to the loam from which it sprang. But, what about the computer you're using this very moment? It's probably made of non-green materials like injection-molded plastic, and slapping some bamboo on it isn't fooling anyone. Design and engineering firm PEGA comes to your rescue with a new composite material made of recycled paper and polypropylene alloy. Lightweight, durable, and inexpensive to produce, it acts just like typical ABS plastic -- and it even comes in the classic soul-killing beige. Maybe this is what Apple's been waiting for.
PEGA Look@Me emoticon keyboard and other ASUS-funded product concepts
Asus' R&D design studio, PEGA, looks to be coming up with some surprising product concepts as part of its Between On & Off exhibition. We're betting that none of these will ever see the light of day, but we're intrigued -- and prematurely annoyed -- by the Look@Me emoticon keyboard. Stocked with 40 emoticon bits (eyes, mouths, noses), the keyboard allows users to express their emotions on a more regular basis, if that's possible. Other concepts include Embrace, a night light that emits as much light as you have opened the book; JustDrawIt!, a power management device that visualizes on / off settings for appliances with a pen; and the On&On bench that doubles as a solar charger. Sadly, the exhibition is over, but check the gallery below for some of PEGA's other concepts.%Gallery-23787%[Via OhGizmo]
Trauma Center Kit: an actual product that somebody is selling
We could try to riff off of this Trauma Center-related Wiimote accessory kit, but it would be a waste of time. The truth is that there is nothing we could say that is funnier than the actual facts about this device. For example, it comes with a dedicated attachment that is designed to realistically mimic the feeling of having an opaque crosshair on the end of a short stick. The other attachment is sort of a Swiss Army surgery kit, with a syringe, a scalpel, a drain, and some other plastic items meant to represent Trauma Center surgical tools. On the end of your game controller. If you're having a hard time conceptualizing the link between your Wiimote movements and the onscreen events in Trauma Center, this Trauma Center Kit is available for $16.62 at DealExtreme. Please get this instead of something that is actually sharp.[Via GayGamer]
Light gun for wannabe regulators (geeks off the street need not apply)
To be a regulator, you gotta be handy with the steel, if you know what I mean, earn your keep. Regulators! Mount up! Hoping to win back the street cred it lost after selling a zapper shaped like a damn shark, Pega has improved upon the 2-in-1 Machine Gun and Pistol shell design, adding a metallic paint job and black grips for an extra touch of realism. The peripheral still looks like a cheap toy, but it should be adequate for whenever you need to lay some busters down.DealExtreme, a haven for nearly every crummy Wii accessory you can think of, carries the Pega piece for $16.54. Hook a left on 21 and Lewis, and take a look at a couple more product shots. We also have some wacky packaging that you don't want to miss!
Wii Warm Up: Standard issue
The Zapper is nothing more than a big handle for your Wiimote and Nunchuk. It's about as inert as a game accessory can get. There's no circuitry, no wiring, and no real technology of any kind. It's just a thing that you hold, that itself holds things.Which means that, unlike more sensitive items like GameCube controllers or memory cards, there's no real harm in eschewing the Nintendo-branded shell for a different option. Would you even consider a third-party gun shell? Or is Nintendo loyalty and fear of product failure locking you into a first-party purchase? For the purpose of discussion, let's pretend that Link's Crossbow Training isn't a factor. We're actually considering a nonstandard Zapper ourselves, because we're nonplussed by Nintendo's design, and we think we'd enjoy the lulz provided by one of the more out-there gun shells. Not to mention the fact that some of them have features the Zapper lacks, like extra vibration (nice!), or ... a laser sight.
A suitable substitute for a dolphin-shaped Zapper
We have lamented the lack of a hilarious themed Zapper to enhance our enjoyment of the ridiculous bonus mode in Ghost Squad, but now it seems that our troubles have come to an end thanks to Pega, whose silly gun shells we've enjoyed in the past. They're still playing easily, and playing happily!Sure, the gun actually represents a shark shape, but it's close enough to a Wii-white version of the Ghost Squad dolphin squirt gun for our purposes. Isn't it amazing that Pega and other third-rate peripheral companies have graduated to outlandish gun shell designs while Nintendo has yet to release their own Zapper worldwide?
The Wii goes portable with Pega
A 7-inch (or 8.5-inch) screen display for the Wii isn't that impressive when compared to some of the other shrunken setups we've seen, but its portability might interest on-the-go gamers. As we've come to expect from accessories manufacturer Pega, the attachable screen provides just enough functionality to be usable, allowing for volume/color control, four-direction visual angle adjustment, and little else. There's something to be said though about being able to play a game of Wii Sports: Golf with the display whenever the mood strikes -- mainly, "Wow, this sure would be a lot more fun if we had a bigger TV. Or if we were playing Mystical Ninja instead."[Via MaxConsole]
Playing easily, shooting happily
Unlike other "zapper" products like Joytech's Blaster, the Pega pistol doesn't have a cavity for you to dock the Wii's nunchuck. Instead, you connect the nunchuck's cord under the butt of the $15 gun while the remote slides and locks into its top half. We're not sure yet if this is a more cumbersome or convenient implementation, but given our experiences with cheap, third-party accessories from Chinese manufacturers, you can easily guess which side we're leaning towards. If you're wondering why we're even bothering to bring up this lackluster peripheral, it's because we love to scrutinize the packaging of these products! What's up with Splinter Cell graphics? And why is it branded with that same inapplicable Wii Sports logo we saw on Fire Bird's rechargeable controller grip? Does Pega actually expect people to play tennis with this clunky plastic attached?[Via DCEmu]
New Wiimote charger has underbody neon
The most obvious feature of PEGA's Blue Light Stand is the blue light, which is for the Wii owner who, maybe, hasn't gotten enough attention for the fact that they own a Wii. Or, alternately, for people who frequently trip over their systems in the dark.However, the classy, functional blue light is not the only feature of this stand! It stores your Wiimote and recharges batteries through the Wii's USB connection. It also has a cooling fan built in! We haven't heard if anyone's having heat issues, but it happens to all the other consoles, so it's entirely possible.Looking at it kind of makes us want to install a subwoofer or a rear spoiler on our system. Unfortunately, we haven't heard of any Wii-size spoilers, and we also don't have any retail information for this stand yet, so we can't tell you where to buy one.
Craptacular attachments for Wiimote
We mused about the subject a few months back, and now PEGA's delivering with a set of cheap plastic Wiimote attachments. For ¥2,780 (about $23), suckers can preorder the set, which includes a mock golf club, baseball bat, and tennis racket (all measuring approximately 16 inches in length). At that length (and without much weight), the attachments won't add much to the sense of realism; though they will increase the risk of actually striking someone or something while playing Wii Sports. No thanks.See also: Wii-eel attachment looks rather un-wii-ldy
