‘iCade’ by ion audio, in collaboration with atari and thinkgeek

based on a concept originally posted as an april fool’s prank on thinkgeek.com, the iCade, developed by ion audio in collaboration with atari, brings a retro gaming experience to digital media.

the portable cabinet is designed to mimic the shape and appearance of old arcade machines. iPads and other tablets can be slid into the iCade cradle either vertically or horizontally, supported at optimal viewing angle. any compatible game application on the iPad can be launched on screen and controlled using the iCade full-size joystick and eight arcade buttons, which are linked to the tablet via bluetooth.

CES 2011: iPad arcade by ion the original thinkgeek concept image, to be replicated for sale in a limited production run.

iCade has partnered with atari to develop compatible versions of classic arcade titles, beginning with ‘asteroids’ upon the product’s release this spring. the device is expected to retail for 99 USD.

wired magazine editors experiment with the new device

ion’s gaming product manager fred galpern demos and discusses iCade

CES 2011: iPad arcade by ion

designboom and FUJITSU have teamed up for a design competition of network accessing computing technologies.