Gametel Morphs Your Android Phone Into A Gaming System

The Gametel attachment by Fructel will turn any Android device into a true gaming unit. One of the main reasons I do not play many of the games on my Android phone is because with the touchscreen they are just not as enjoyable and lack needed finite control, never mind my finger covers up the action! I believe one of the reasons Angry Birds is so successful is that it is perfectly designed for touchscreen play but what about everything else? The Gametel unit will bring familiar D-pad controls to racing, RPG, and arcade games built for the Android ecosystem.

Gametel wirelessly connects to your android phone or tablet using Bluetooth after installing the Gametel driver from the Android Market; directions. The rubber clamps let you combine the controller and a phone into one cohesive device for a true handheld experience. Or, you can keep it separate when playing games on a tablet or TV (via HDMI from your device). According to the specifications you can get up to nine hours of play time.

The new gaming controller will be compatible with Android 2.1 and later and is set to be available in December. There is already a list of games that can be controlled with it, with many more coming. Sign-up here to be notified when it is officially launched; pricing looks to be around $75.00 and could be a hot item this season.

Games Come To The Google+ Project

Google+ games were pretty much confirmed a couple weeks ago, but today brought the official announcement that games are being rolled out starting today. One of the biggest fears is that the pristine environment on G+ will be taken over like Facebook was with FarmVille and the like.

As they say, games are fun and we all like them on some level. Some people may be addicted to a certain game and the metrics of online gaming in a social world can force that person to make requests openly to further advance in the game no matter what other people think. I would probably have done anything to advance in Metroid or Kid Icarus at the time! Others are more casual and may play solo games once in a while. How do you appease everyone?

Google has answered this by separating games completely.

When you're ready to play, the Games page is waiting - click the games button at the top of your stream. You can see the latest game updates from your circles, browse the invites you've received and check out games that people you know have played recently. The Games page is also where your game accomplishments will appear. So you can comfortably share your latest high score - your circles will only see the updates when they're interested in playing games too.

If you're not interested in games, it's easy to ignore them. Your stream will remain focused on conversations with the people you care about.

Games have their own tab marked with this icon:

They are slowly rolling out the games feature. Keep an eye out for the new icon and give them a try once you have access. You can learn even more in the new Google+ Games help section. Game on! Check out this post if you are a developer and want to build games for the Google+ platform.

Play Angry Birds on Facebook

That's right the ever addicting birds from Android and iPhone are coming to Facebook next month. The Angry Birds port to over 600 million Facebook users will have “completely new aspects to it that just haven’t been experienced in any other platform” says Rovio CEO Mikael Hed.

To me this means it could have sharing and strategy features like Farmville that will immerse you and your friends in the game. If not, it will still be a popular game and would certainly be at the top of the rankings. If you head over to the Angry Birds page on Facebook you can "Like" it to keep updated on the progress.

Rovio has hit gold with the Angry Birds franchise and bringing it to every platform spells success. If they can tie in everyone's game play across all the platforms by linking your Facebook game to your Android one, or any platform combination, they will succeed beyond their dreams. Actually they already have with cartoons, plush toys, movies, and so much more.

The pigs will be coming in force to Facebook! Hed says "the pigs will have a more prominent role".

Did you see Conan play life size Angry Birds yet? If not, check it out below.