Our smartphones have allowed us to take gaming outside our homes, but touch screens do not go without some limitations. It's not the hardware at fault, but rather our human anatomy. No matter how big phablet phones become, our fingers always seem to hide the screen while playing our favorite mobile games.
But now London-based startup Supenta has a solution to this problem — it's called Flitchio, the first smartphone gaming case with controls.
Flitchio is a standard black smartphone case that utilizes the free space on the back of a phone for gamers by adding in two tangible controls.
(Photo : SUPENTA)
"[On smartphones] The controls are not accurate because there is no tactile feedback, no sense that you have [of] pushing a button or moving a joystick," Flitchio co-founder Amir Shadmand, Ph.D., says. "The controllers needs to be part of the phone for a game revolution to really take place."
And it looks like this case may be on its way to revolutionizing smartphone accessories. The startup recently opened a Kickstarter campaign to further fund its project, running until July 17. In it's Kickstarter video, the company explains how the case controller works.
Using the Flitchio instantly transforms your phone into a controller, so that you can play games like first-person shooter, racing, action or arcade titles in a way that mirrors action on the console version.
Your thumbs are no longer blocking you from seeing the action, while giving you that tangible control as you play. The controls are pressure sensitive, so the harder you press, the faster you will punch, fire or run.
Once you attach the the case, it instantly is connected and will stay activated with an unlocked screen. Simply lock your phone to turn Flitchio off. There is also a switch on the left side between the two joysticks that will place Flitcho into invisible mode. Download its accompanying app for a tour of its features upon first use.
Filtchio is battery-free, so there is no need to ever charge it, thanks to Energy Harvesting technology and its power-efficient components. It continues to work by wirelessly using power from your phone. But don't worry if you think the controller case will kill your battery life, as it only uses idle power on your phone.
With Flitchio, you can also pilot drones with better precision, browse and zoom more efficiently when online, or use it as a remote for your smartTV, according to the company.
Samsung Galaxy S6 and S6 Edge users will be the first to use Flitcho, but the startup had plans to expand to other smartphones in the future.
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