OnLiveInformer.com gets addicted to couch gaming with the Phantom Lapboard:

“In Summary I would have to say that the I feel the Phantom Lapboard
is an essential purchase for anyone using OnLive with a Microconsole.
It offers unparalled control and convience without sacraficing gameplay.
If you wan’t to experience OnLive to it’s fullest you need to give the
Phantom Lapboard a serious look“

Glenn Giersdorf

OnLive Informer

“I definitely give my stamp of approval, and if you’re like me and do the majority of your OnLive gaming from your couch, the lapboard is a must have. Owning the lapboard is going to make even more sense when OnLive finally releases its web browser. It would be great if OnLive partnered with Phantom Entertainment to package the lapboard along with the MicroConsole and OnLive controller because it really completes the entire experience.” – OnLiveFans.com

I guess it truly is the End of Times when Duke Nukem can be played from your couch with a Phantom Lapboard.  Consumer Electronics media editors must have their panties in a bunch.  I can’t wait! GO DUKE!!!

The time has finally come!  Companies like OnLive & Valve now offer cloud gaming through the TV with a MicroConsole or workstation configuration.  Now a long term gaming session can be done in the comfort of the couch with the added large screen display of your HDTV.  The only problem: how do you couch compute with the full functionality of a keyboard and mouse?

The Phantom Lapboard’s unique patented design allows the end user the only solution in the world for couch gaming in any position even for both lefties and righties.  Cloud computing has entered the living room  so whether you are couch gaming, using Internet TV or an HTPC the Phantom Lapboard is your input device “where you want it and when you want it”.

Turn on UT3, sit back and use your Phantom Lapboard to blast the enemy to pieces!

Not a bad review at all from Neowin.net.  They will also be giving the Phantom lapboard away shortly so stay tuned.

“If you’re looking for a companion to your home theater setup, the Lapboard is a good choice.”

“Emphasising the company’s determination to lead the Connected TV market, Sir Howard Stringer, Chairman, CEO and President of Sony Corporation, said there will be more than 50 million television screens in the US by March this year that are Internet-enabled by Sony. That is divided between PlayStation 3 games consoles, Sony Internet TVs and Sony Wi-Fi Blu-ray disc players.”

Yesterday NewEgg decided to add the Phantom Lapboard to their PS3 listing.

Update of the OnLive MicroConsole & Phantom Lapboard

Well the first thing I found out was that FPS games are darn hard however I am digging URIII.  Secondly the more I use Onlive & my computer on the flat screen the more convinced I am in our Phantom Lapboard solution.  I like to sit on the couch and switch from TV, OnLive & my computer.  I’m also a cyclist so anytime I can get my feet up on the couch really helps during the heavy training. Thus hanging back on the sofa and being able to use all my media devices is very very cool!

The use of a mouse, for me at least, works much better than a touch pad or keyboard short cuts.  Now that I am doing some couch Gaming I also see how important a mouse is as well.  I like to find unique positions which I can relax my legs but still have the Lapboard fitted for responsive Gaming, here lies the real value in our multi-level/position input device.

Again expect Onlive to delve into streaming movies and hopefully bring a browser too.  The games play very well on the OnLive real-time network, the only problems I had were with my own IPS during the days running up to Christmas when bandwidth was super crowded.  I would like to blame my poor Gaming skills on something other than me but truth be told…I kinda suck right now.

The good news is I have a comfortable way to get better at couch Gaming with the Phantom Lapboard and the super cool and affordable OnLive MicroConsole!

I received my OnLive MicroConsole yesterday and thought I would document the set up / usage of their product and system.  We have a whopper of a flat screen and I have been wanting to set up some kind of IPTV/HTPC configuration for testing with Phantom Lapboard.  We use Verizon as our ISP & Cable service and also have a very cool stereo/digital receiver which has be vastly underused…plus my kids keep asking what do those funny looking keyboards we have everywhere really do.

So I unboxed the OnLive MicroConsole and was pleasantly surprised how small and basic the components were.  When I walked into Best Buy to look at the GTV Revue I was a little worried about the setting up of a second Set-Top Box for a average consumer.  We now have all invested in large flat screen that may not have the easy access to the HDMI inputs and worse now have the long HDMI cables running thru the walls back to the Cable Box.   For us techies or even enthusiasts we will figure out a way to hook up the new technology however the average (80%) consumer will not adopt this new IPTV service if they can’t set it up easily.  The point I am making; the OnLive MicroConsole is VERY easy to set up and the instructions are printed on a double sided flash card which is a diagram NOT 30 pages of text.

If your house is not rigged with a built in LAN as most of us have our wireless routed you will definitely need to run a wire from the router or have the ISP do it for you at a cost.  Using a Wireless Bridge would work for just fine for browsing but add Gaming / Movies might stress a standard wireless router during the evening internet rush hours.  I follow with what I set up; our receiver has 3 HMDI Inputs so I have Cable, OnLive & a computer linked with the single Outgoing HDMI headed to the flat screen which is already running thru the walls.

The Phantom Lapboard synced immediately as did the Onlive Gaming Controller.  Now as I have been saying for years, the consumer needs a fully functional KBM combo on the couch for IPTV.  Many of the Games (PC Games) on the OnLive system need a keyboard & mouse and using the coffee table just aint gonna cut it.  I was able to use the Phantom Lapboard in any position especially putting my feet up & sitting back.  Now, OnLive will evolve to an IPTV connector too which makes the Phantom Lapboard even more appealing.

My kids sat eagerly waiting for the Games to begin,  once we had everything set up they were off and running; a nice feature was the Free Trial period on each game.  So far I am truly enjoying the OnLive MicroConsole and super happy to finally get my flat screen to function as an IPTV with the Lapboard.