GameStick delayed until August while waiting for user UI feedback

GameStick first appeared around the the first of this year, promising its Kickstarter supporters an Android gaming console that looks more Roku Streaming Stick than OUYA. Since then, GameStick has gathered its cash and started shipping out dev units, but its commercial release has already been delayed once, and today the project got pushed back another month. That means that GameSticks won't start shipping until early August.

The reason for the delay is that the device's UI remains a work in progress and the team hasn't yet given backers who pledged $300 or more the chance to provide feedback. It's not all bad news, however, as the folks behind GameStick have confirmed that manufacturing tooling is complete, and the first Kickstarter controller has rolled off the line. Not only that, but you can see shots of the final versions of the GameSick itself and its controller's charging dock at the source link below.

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Next3D's plan to bring recorded video to the Oculus Rift

The dream of wearing a lightweight headset, like the Oculus Rift, in order to simulate physical presence isn't limited to the imaginary worlds of video games. One man's vision is that of immersive TV shows, movies and live sports. In fact, David Cole, co-founder of Next3D and an industry veteran who helps content creators and providers produce and deliver 3D, has been using his Rift dev kit to bring TV and film to life since the kits started shipping in March. The company is combining its video processing and compression technology with its experience in content production and stereoscopic delivery to offer what it's called Full-Court.

Next3D hopes to leverage its existing relationships with creators and providers to assist them in jumping into the world of live-action VR content. This includes both pre-recorded and live broadcasts. We wanted to see this firsthand, so we jumped at the opportunity to witness the creation of content and experience the results. This trial run of Next3D's stereoscopic, 180-degree field-of-view camera rig, and the post-processing to adapt it to VR, was part of the production of the paranormal investigation show, Anomaly, at Castle Warden in St. Augustine, Fla. Being nearby, we braved the perils of the haunted surroundings to tell you about what we hope is only the beginning of virtual reality content.

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Engadget Giveaway win one of two ChromeBook Pixels, courtesy of Gogo Inflight!

The ChromeBook Pixel is a stunningly beautiful piece of machinery. With costs ranging from $1,300 to $1,500, however, it means you're shelling out even more than most standard ultrabooks and laptops. It also comes with 12 free Gogo passes and a full terabyte of Google Drive storage to sweeten the deal, fortunately, but who wants to buy a computer of any kind when you can win one instead? Gogo's hooking two lucky readers up with a 64GB LTE Chromebook Pixel (this particular model is valued at $1,500), so this is one giveaway you'll definitely want to sign up for. You can grab up to three entries: you get two just for showing up, and the third is yours if you Like Gogo on Facebook. Head to the widget below and take a chance!

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World War Z 'Mega Ticket' trial brings early screenings, bonuses for $50 tomorrow

Now that viewers can get excellent movie theater experiences at homes, studios and theaters are trying different strategies to keep bringing them in. Tomorrow night, Paramount will try a new tactic: offering buyers of its $50 "Mega Ticket" an early viewing of World War Z in 3D, plus a pair of collectible 3D glasses, a movie poster, an HD digital copy of the movie when it's available on Blu-ray, and a small (seriously?) popcorn. We're not sure if making it more expensive to go to the movies is the right way to go, but maybe it's worth it for those who are really hyped about the film. The viewing is only available at a few Regal Theaters, listed after the break if if you're interested in what's listed as $75 worth of value.

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The Raspberry Pi-focused XBMC port Raspbmc's June changelog is a lengthy one. Among the changes are new settings, new skins, support for the Stealth Nighthawk F117A device and changes to make booting up faster, among many other things. Getting this month's update should only require rebooting one's Raspberry Pi, and a few new mirrors that have joined the network should make downloading the updated software even faster. That's not all however, because the July update is promising Linux kernel updates, Raspbmc "Cloud" features with automatic settings backup / restore across multiple devices and an unspecified "special announcement."

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Yes, Game of Thrones is over, but there are still a few other interesting shows on TV. While Futurama begins its farewell tour, Wilfred and Copper return for the summer and Discovery kicks off a new reality show that drops contestants off in the jungle with nothing -- and by nothing we mean no clothes. Look below for the highlights this week, followed after the break by our weekly listing of what to look out for in TV, Blu-ray and videogames.

Futurama
Yes, sadly, Futurama has been canceled again. The 13-episode final final season starts Wednesday on Comedy Central and will feature the show's entire original voice cast. Special guests this season include Larry Bird, Emilia Clark, George Takei and more, check out a clip from the new season embedded after the break.
(June 19th, Comedy Central, 10PM)

Whodunnit?
It's a reality show -- wait, wait, this one might be different! This time ABC is taking on the murder mystery genre, as 13 players compete to solve a different mystery each week. Solve it and survive to proceed to the next episode or else face elimination.
(June 23rd, ABC, 9PM)

NBA / NHL Finals
And then there were two. The NBA finals are almost over as the Spurs have pushed the Heat to the brink of elimination, while on the NHL side the Blackhawks and Bruins are tied 1-1 after two overtime contests, with Game 3 tonight. Enjoy your sport of choice while you still can, before the long offseason begins.

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We knew season three of Downton Abbey was coming to Amazon Prime Instant Video as an exclusive, but it looks like those episodes have arrived on the subscription streaming service one day ahead of schedule. Starting today, Prime members can watch all three seasons of the Masterpiece Classic drama at no additional charge. Not signed up? Hold your binge-viewing parties now, because Prime Instant Video will soon be the only subscription streaming site to offer the show, period.

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Netflix works with Dreamworks on new original TV series', promises over 300 hours of programming

In what Netflix says is its largest-ever deal for original content, it's announced that Dreamworks Animation will provide "over 300 hours of new programming" based on both existing and incoming movies and franchises. Spanning all the territories where Netflix operates, the first series airs next year, following the previously announced spin-off series for Dreamworks' incoming Turbo movie which debuts in December. Following the movie studio's purchase of Classic Media earlier this year, Netflix also promises new content from a stable of characters that includes Where's Waldo, Caspar and Fat Albert, although it hasn't specified any new series for these just yet. Netflix will also show several Dreamworks Animation features in the coming years as part of their premium pay TV window deal, with The Croods, Turbo, and Mr. Peabody and Sherman all signed-up to appear on the streaming service in the future.

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Disney on Demand launches on Amazon's Lovefilm today

As promised a while ago, Amazon's Lovefilm service is now streaming even more Disney titles through the film studio's own Movies on Demand section. Additions include Wall-E, Lady and the Tramp and live-action flicks like the Chronicles of Narnia. And yep, even Bedknobs and Broomsticks has finally made the digital transition. The streamable back-catalogue now includes the likes of Dumbo and Ratatouille -- check the full press release after the break for more.

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Major Nelson takes Xbox One questions, says banned users will 'absolutely not' lose games

E3 is over, but Microsoft still has a long way to go to answer questions from gamers about its new Xbox One console, particularly when it comes to the effects of DRM. Director of Programming of Xbox Live Larry Hryb aka Major Nelson takes on the most upvoted ones from posters in Reddit's games section in this video interview with Chloe Dykstra. One question that seems to have a clear answer is whether banned users will lose access to any games they've activated, as he stated "Absolutely not, you will always have access to the games you purchased." That goes against a previous response from the Xbox Support twitter account, although that may have been the result of confusion between the Xbox One and Xbox 360 policies. A question with no satisfying response yet however, is what gamers can expect years down the road if Xbox One's authentication servers are shut down. Major Nelson followed up with a response in the comment thread that "I'll get the real answer, I just don't know it yet."

Interestingly, the question he wished more people would have asked is about the "family package" and, we assume game sharing with a single account, after previously bringing up its cloud library as one upside to the new DRM setup. Tracking back to the original debut's focus on the console's HDMI input and TV overlays he mentioned using snap mode to watch TV while gaming, or getting Xbox Live notifications and jumping "instantly" to a game while watching TV. A similar crowdsourced interview was planned with the PlayStation team, but cancelled. Major Nelson says he will address more questions leading up to launch and is planning an ask me anything session later, so keep your (many) inquiries at the ready.

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Leaked packaging suggests Xiaomi working on a 47inch TV

China's Xiaomi has certainly made a name for itself in the smartphone market, but let's not forget that it has other plans as well. For one, there's the Xiaomi Box, which is the company's first foray into the video content world. And according to the above leak, the next step from there appears to be a 47-inch 1080p TV, which is simply branded as "Xiaomi TV" in Chinese (model number L47M1-AA). Like the Xiaomi Box, this TV will apparently feature built-in WiFi and "MiLink" (Airplay, DLNA plus Miracast), as well as audio certification from Dolby and DTS. More after the break.

Update: Well well well, this guy sure has some good contacts. He's now posted a couple of alleged photos of the TV chassis, which has a massive Xiaomi logo bang in the middle. We've got one of the shots after the break.

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It was a wild few days at this year's Electronics Entertainment Expo. Just think -- nearly a decade after the last generation of consoles was unveiled by Microsoft and Sony, we've gotten our first close-up look at the next generation. Unlike 2012's lackluster showing, the convention floor felt invigorating for gamers waiting on the next reveals for Xbox One and PS4. While Nintendo tried keep steam going for its Wii U, the teams at Oculus Rift and Ouya brought light to the recent rise of indies and startups.

As Engadget staffers board planes for our respective trips back to HQ, we're leaving you, dear readers, with a carefully collated collection of the big show's highlights -- and of course, a number of feature stories and interviews. We've also put together a recap video with Joystiq Reviews Editor Richard Mitchell wherein we recount the show with our best attempts at witty banter. Join us past the break and relive all the virtual magic.

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ESPN adds extra coverage to US open via second screens

ESPN is further boosting its major sports coverage by producing a raft of extra material for golf enthusiasts at the US Open. And the outlet will be doing the same during the British Open, along with Wimbledon, the US Open and Australian Open for tennis. The network is employing a special team during the tournament (including some not normally involved in golf coverage) to supplement the main ESPN broadcasts with featured group and hole coverage, hole flyovers, shot tracking and more. Some of the extra goodies will appear on ESPN3, DIRECTV, and USOpen.com. All that means you might need to drag that extra TV out of the spare room, and possibly your Xbox, laptop or tablet. Who says watching sports reduces your attention span?

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Distro Issue 95 The past, present and future of gaming converges at E3

Over the course of this past week, gaming-minded geeks descended upon Los Angeles for the industry's annual summer shindig. In the latest issue of our slate magazine, we hit the show floor at E3 2013 to offer up impressions of the latest gaming gadgetry. We also chat Wii U with Zelda producer Eiji Aonuma, examine the uphill climb for said console and look back at the history of the entire event. There's loads more of game-centric goodness packed into this edition, so we'll let you get to it via the usual download sources.

Distro Issue 95 PDF
Distro in the iTunes App Store
Distro in the Google Play Store

Distro in the Windows Store
Distro APK (for sideloading)
Like Distro on Facebook
Follow Distro on Twitter

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