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How to use your iPad as a game console display [Video]

Ever since I was little and we would fly somewhere or go on road trips for vacation, I have always wanted to be able to bring a portable Playstation or video game console setup with me. It was the dream. Some companies ended up making these briefcase monitor-type accessories, but they were bulky, finicky, and always expensive. But thanks to an update to iPadOS 17, it looks like your iPad can now solve that problem. Here is how to get it done.

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Sony’s Remote Play feature for playing PS4 games on Mac is launching tomorrow

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If you’ve been holding out since last November when we first learned that Sony had plans to let gamers play PS4 titles on Mac, your time has finally (almost) arrived. Sony has already tested the 3.50 update with PS4 owners trying the beta although the pre-release version lacked Remote Play for Mac, but tomorrow that feature will be included in the public release for all PlayStation 4 owners.


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Disney says it won’t make any future updates to its Disney Infinity 3.0 game for Apple TV

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Shortly after Apple released the fourth-gen Apple TV last year, Disney announced a $100 Disney Infinity 3.0 bundle based on Star Wars that included a controller and a Disney Infinity figurine stand. The package was designed to encourage people to download and play Disney Infinity 3.0 on their Apple TV, but now it looks like the company has no future plans to update the game (via TouchArcade).


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Sony forms ForwardWorks corporation to bring its PlayStation games to iPhone

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It’s 2016, billions of smartphones are in use across the globe, and traditional video game companies are only just coming around to the idea that there’s some money to be made from smartphone gaming. Nintendo only recently launched its first mobile app, and plans to release a more familiar character-based game soon. Sony, likewise is about to make another foray in to the world of smartphone-based gaming with its newly-formed corporation, ForwardWorks.


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Nintendo: Our second iPhone game will feature a ‘very familiar’ character

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When Nintendo first announced that it would finally be launching an iPhone game, it’s safe to say, many of we children of the 90’s got a little excited. Sadly, excitement turned to bemusement once the company revealed it would be launching a weird game called Miitomo, which wasn’t exactly a game, but rather a social network.

Following its disappointing Q4 results, Nintendo has confirmed that its second title would include a “very familiar character”, and won’t be another social network attempt. It did, however, stop short of confirming exactly which character we’re going to see.


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Sony plans to enable you to play PS4 games on your Mac (but you’ll still need the PS4)

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If you own a PS4 but end up fighting for access to the big TV when other family members want to use it for watching TV shows or movies, Sony is working on an app for that. Sony’s president of worldwide studios Shuhei Yoshida tweeted that the company is working on an app to stream games to both PCs and Mac.

The games console already has Remote Play functionality built in, but it’s of very limited use as yet … 
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Nintendo set to reveal first smartphone game a day before Apple TV gaming hits the living room

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Japanese gaming giant Nintendo is expected to show off its very first mobile games for smartphones tomorrow, The Wall Street Journal reports. The news comes after first announcing plans to bring new games with classic Nintendo characters like Mario to iPhones earlier this year. Nintendo famously resisted making games for mobile platforms like iOS and Android for years, focusing solely on its own Nintendo hardware gaming consoles to push its titles.

Now as Apple is set to make its first serious move into gaming in the living room with the new Apple TV launching Friday, Nintendo appears ready to give fans what they’ve been waiting for.
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Hands-on: SteelSeries’ Nimbus is the first Made For Apple TV game controller, but should you care?

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For the moment, the new Apple TV’s accessory compatibility can fairly be described as “confusing.” It’s confirmed that Bluetooth speakers and headphones — previously unsupported by older Apple TVs — work with the new model. On the other hand, Bluetooth keyboards, which previously worked with Apple TVs, do not. And Bluetooth game controllers… well, if they were Made For iPhone (or iPad), they work with the new Apple TV. But contrary to some erroneous early reports, if they were made for other devices (say, the PlayStation 4), they don’t.

So even though SteelSeries’ Nimbus ($50) has been pitched as the first “gamepad controller for Apple TV,” it’s kinda not. The company’s earlier Stratus (now only $40 refurbished) works with the Apple TV, as do Mad Catz’ nicer C.T.R.L.i and Micro C.T.R.L.i controllers. However, Nimbus is launching with newer technology at a not-insane price point. It has a Lightning connector built in for recharging an integrated 40-hour battery, a Bluetooth 4.1 wireless chip, and a design that was apparently — despite obvious similarities to many other controllers — co-developed by Apple itself. It also is the first accessory to ship with Apple’s new “Made for Apple TV” logo on the box. Here are some early thoughts on the Nimbus based on my hands-on experiences…


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Valve delays Steam Controller and Steam Link support on Mac, hands out free games to buyers

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Valve has announced in an email to customers that its new hardware accessories, the Steam Controller and the Steam Link are not yet fully compatible with OS X. The hardware, which was marketed as cross-platform ready, started arriving in customers’ hands this week.

The company says software issues are at the heart of the delay, and it will be pushing out firmware updates to enable support very soon. In the case of the Steam Controller, users can already start using the gamepad on their Macs by switching to the beta version of the Steam client in the app’s preferences.

In order to make up for this problem, Valve has gifted every single affected pre-order customer with the Valve Complete Pack, which includes every game the company has ever made, or will make in the future. Buyers who still want to get a refund on their hardware are able to do so.

9to5Toys Last Call: 256GB Retina MacBook Pro $1,280, Bose around-ear headphones $100, AirPrint Printer $35, more

Keep up with the best gear and deals on the web by signing up for the 9to5Toys Newsletter. Also, be sure to check us out on: TwitterRSS FeedFacebookGoogle+ and Safari push notifications.

Today’s can’t miss deals:

Last Call Updates:

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Aukey USB Power Roundup: 6-Port 50W: $15, 5-port 40W: $10, 4-port 30W: $8 Prime shipped

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13″ Retina MacBook Pro (newest) 2.7GHz/8GB/256GB: $1,280 shipped (Reg. $1,499)

13″ Retina MacBook Pro (newest) 2.7GHz/8GB/128GB: $1,080 shipped (Reg. $1,299)

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Over-Ear Headphones: Bose SoundTrue $100 (Reg. $120), Sennheiser HD202 $15 (Reg. $25), more

JayBird BlueBuds X Sport Bluetooth Sweat Proof Headphones $90 shipped (Reg. $130), more

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HP AirPrint Wireless All-in-One Printers: InkJet $35 (Reg. $60), LaserJet $304 (Reg. $400+)

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Amazon Student Days: Fire TV (4K model) $60, free $5 credit w/ Gift Card purchase, SanDisk 64GB Wi-Fi Flash Drive $45more

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Giveaway: Trinity Delta aluminum earbuds feature a unique design and top-notch sound ($135 value), 20% discount

More new gear from today:

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Amazon Gold Box – 50% or more off Halloween Costumes: Darth Vader $17, Thor $30, Supergirl $12more

[tweet https://twitter.com/9to5toys/status/651729413374087168 align=’center’]

More deals still alive:

USB Power Deals: KMASHI 15,000mAh USB $14 (Reg. $20), Aukey 2A Wall Charger $8 (Reg. $16), more

[tweet https://twitter.com/9to5toys/status/651126504156368896 align=’center’]

New products & more:

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Logitech’s new Harmony Home Hub Extender lets the pizza man in with your remote

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Roku’s new streaming media player supports 4K and finds your remote control for you

AirServer adds live streaming from iOS apps to YouTube, higher quality mirroring w/ iOS 9’s rewritten AirPlay

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With the launch of YouTube Gaming earlier this year, Google’s Twitch competitor that lets users live stream and watch gameplay videos on YouTube, users can now live stream and browse gameplay videos on YouTube from dedicated apps. Google first enabled live streaming the desktop, and today announced plans for Android, but an update to the popular AirServer app is taking advantage of the lack of iOS streaming support by enabling users to live stream directly to YouTube from their iOS devices.

Google does have a YouTube Gaming app or iOS, but it currently only acts as a community-style app for letting users access live streams and recorded gameplay videos from their iPhone or iPad. AirServer, however, tells us it collaborated with YouTube to enable streaming from iOS apps using its mirroring technology:
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Apple TV 4 hardware revealed: A8 chip, black remote, 8/16GB storage, same ports, no 4K

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The fourth-generation Apple TV, set to be unveiled at an event on September 9th and released in October, will feature a mix of new and familiar hardware, according to reliable sources. While the new device will sport a much faster processor than the current Apple TV, a color-matched remote control, and a somewhat larger body, it will lack support for 4K video streaming and have the same basic ports as the third-generation model…


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Apple TV 4: Gaming and Siri will be major focuses, expect Bluetooth game controllers + enhanced wireless

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New Apple TV will look similar, but thicker (image via Michael Steeber)

Although iOS devices and the App Store have transformed the handheld gaming market, the first three Apple TV generations did not attempt to challenge Microsoft’s XboxNintendo’s Wii, or Sony’s PlayStation game consoles for complete control of living room TVs. According to sources with knowledge of the product, the fourth-generation Apple TV will actively compete for TV gamers with updated hardware, software, and peripherals that will debut at Apple’s September 9 event in San Francisco.

One of the next Apple TV’s tentpole features will be near-universal Siri control, a feature hinted at in Apple’s invitation to the event. But the other will be deep support for gaming, representing Apple’s largest-ever effort to lure players from traditional consoles. In addition to the convenience of downloading games directly from the Apple TV’s built-in App Store, and controlling many of them via a new bundled remote control, Apple will also support more complex, console-style Bluetooth game controllers with the pressure-sensitive buttons and joysticks previously introduced for iPhones, iPads, and iPod touches…


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What will September’s new iOS 9-based Apple TV bring to the living room?

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Apple plans to hold one of its annual fall media events on Wednesday, September 9th to introduce the new iPhone 6S and iPhone 6S Plus with Force Touch, and after many fits and starts, it appears that the long-awaited next-generation Apple TV will also be unveiled. We’ve been reporting on this upcoming model since 2014, as Apple has been planning to update its set-top-box with support for an App Store for quite some time.

Earlier this year, Apple had locked in a June WWDC debut for both the new Apple TV hardware and software upgrades, but the company ultimately decided to delay the introduction until the fall. While some had speculated that the announcement was pushed back due to a lack of content deals, we are told that the delay was internally attributed to a concern over compromising iOS 9 engineering resources, as the latest OS release is focused at least as much on polish as on new features.

Why would the new Apple TV potentially take away resources from iOS 9? According to sources, this new Apple TV model, codenamed J34, will be the first model to run a full-blown iOS core. Specifically, the new Apple TV operating system will be a TV-optimized version of iOS 9. In addition to the new hardware inside, running iOS 9 will give the new Apple TV a series of benefits over the current model. Below, we explore what users can expect from Apple’s next-generation living room product.


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Autodesk announces new Stingray gaming engine with simplified mobile development testing

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Autodesk, the company behind a variety of popular design tools, today has announced a new game engine that it says makes the process of building games considerably more seamless. The program, called Stingray, is based on the Bitsquid engine that it acquired last year, but is entirely revamped with a new, more intuitive interface.


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Angry Birds 2 released for iOS, free to download on the App Store

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Rovio has finally released the long-awaited sequel to the original Angry Birds hit mobile game. Since the first title saw phenomenal success on the iOS App Store, the game has gone on to amazing heights with tons of spinoffs. With several official movie tie-ins, including the popular Star Wars titles, Angry Birds is the ultimate success story of the mobile app world. And now, Angry Birds 2 is available to download.

The game retains the key features, in that you fling birds with a catapult in an attempt to destroy blocks and kill green pigs. However, it does have some new features. Some levels now have multiple stages to complete, and you have to choose which bird to launch next. You can challenge other players and there are even more magic spells too, to help you complete difficult levels. As always, there are plenty of pig bosses to wipe out.

It’s free to download and has the expected in-app purchases. Download the app from the App Store.

You can watch the official gameplay trailer below
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Gameplay recording platform Kamcord brings live game streams to mobile apps

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Kamcord, a popular platform that lets game developers add gameplay recording features to their mobile apps, is today taking its first step into live streaming. The move is a notable one as competitors such as live game streaming service Twitch, now owned by Amazon, move into the mobile space and live streaming apps like Periscope and Meerkat begin to gain traction among users.
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