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Street Fighter X Sanrio line from Mad Catz includes arcade stick, iPhone/iPad cases
We're not entirely sure why Street Fighter's 25th anniversary equates to a cross-promotional merchandising deal with Sanrio, but man are we glad that it does. Not only do we get adorable figures and plushies out of the partnership, but now Mad Catz has introduced a line of Street Fighter X Sanrio products that are both the cutest and have practical applications beyond said cuteness.Obviously, the Street Fighter X Sanrio Fighstick Pro (above) tugs at a very, very specific part of our heart, even if it does cost $160. While not stated specifically in any of its promotional materials, we feel it's safe to assume the arcade stick uses the same Sanwa Denshi parts as the Street Fighter X Tekken Fightstick Pro models it's based on. Just, you know, very pink.The line also includes iPhone 5 and iPad 2/3 cases in your choice of Hello Kitty Chun-Li or Hello Kitty Ryu flavors, which run for $35 and $45 respectively and can be seen in the gallery below.%Gallery-173109%
LaunchPort releasing AP.3 sleeve for juicing your new iPad the inductive way
LaunchPort is finally releasing a sleeve for the new iPad, which makes it compatible with the company's inductive charging gear. It goes on sale in September for a hefty $149, and of course, you'll also need at least one $199 tabletop or wall mount to connect it to. The sleeve also works with the iPad 2, and if you're thinking about getting one, be quick -- it's only a matter of time before resonance charging renders inductive juicing a little passé.
iPad Smart Case hands-on
Surreptitiously introduced to Apple Stores in the midst of new MacBook introductions and hardware refreshes, the Smart Case is Apple's latest official option for iPad protection. It's teamed together the foldable Smart Cover of last year with a soft-touch rubbery shell to defend the other half of Apple's premier tablet. The case fits both the Retina display-decked new iPad and the iPad 2, so we decided to grab one to protect our iOS slab. Does it do the job? Well, it certainly protects the tablet from keys, spare change and other pointy objects, however, because it's made for two slightly different sized devices, it didn't fit as snugly as we'd hoped, with an especially wide rim around the front also reducing the premium feel of the Smart Cover-esque front flap. So, is it still worth the $50 price tag? That's a little trickier to say, so check out some more impressions and our verdict after the break.%Gallery-158414%
iPad 2 launch day: everything you need to know
You know what tomorrow is right? Yep, Friday, but it's also iPad 2 launch day! After months of rumors and a pretty impressive launch event, Apple's releasing the second iteration of its popular tablet. Yes, it's true, in a lot of ways the iPad 2 is a lot like the first iPad, so many of you should be old pros at this, but if you happen to be a first timer or you simply just need a refresher, we've broken down everything you need to know about getting your own "magical" tablet. We've also put together a short list of things to do with it as soon as you've gotten it out of the box. Hit the break for a full breakdown of everything you need to know and don't forget to read our full review.
What will iPad magazine covers look like?
Jesse Rosten, a director in Northern California, asked himself what a magazine cover on the iPad should look like. He came up with the incredibly sweet Sunset Magazine mock up above. Jesse notes that until now, books and magazines have been traditionally portrait in orientation and film and TV has been landscape in orientation. He says with the iPad there's no longer a strict landscape limitation for video. "Maybe you want your vid to appear full screen in portrait mode? Maybe you need a long, tall video banner-ad on the side of a digital magazine page? I think we're going to start seeing a lot more vertically shot video soon," Jesse wrote on his website. Click on over to his site to see some more incredible vertical footage and to read about the setup he used to capture his images.
