Helping Sega pioneer disc-based gaming, the original PlayStation went on to sell over 100 million consoles until it was discontinued in 2006. Check out the official birthday site for PlayStation here for a trip down memory lane—when PlayStations were much smaller and lighter than they are today, and didn't need to install patches every 20 minutes. [PlayStation via Kotaku]

In theory, a standby PS3 uses about $250 a year when in the off standby position. An Xbox 360 uses a little bit less than that. Both those consoles use a little bit of power to maintain the wireless receiver (and USB charger, if you're charging a controller) while the main power is off. If the Tricklesaver shuts this off when the TV is off, you theoretically won't be able to charge your controllers or turn on your console wirelessly.

The solution is to just turn on your TV before you activate your console. But there's not much you can do about that controller charging. It's also $35, which is kind of steep for something that only has space for one TV and one console. [PR Web via Go nintendo via Oh Gizmo]

Update: Reader Jonathan notes that the PS3 uses only 2 watts in standby, and if you're to calculate that out, that's only about $5 a year. Not quite $250.

The box will accept video input from your Wii, PS3, or pretty much anything else that uses a common video cable, and properly scale it to an LCD-friendly resolution, preventing your console from reverting to a low-quality video mode just because your 1280x1024 monitor doesn't support the specific 1080i or 720p video setting it expects. (Full compatibility list here). It'll also accept audio inputs from a few proprietary console connectors and send them out through a 3.5mm jack.

Price and availability haven't yet been announced, but the lack of an English language press release doesn't inspire much hope. That's your cue, importers. [Akihabara]

The 2.8-inch QVGA screen may be quite tiny to read the entirety of Final Fantasy IV on, but they're going to be doing it in the back of a moving car. That helps, right?

SD card, mini USB, NTSC/PAL TV out, FM radio, voice recorder and stereo speakers round out the rest of this fantastic package. If I don't have kids in the next few years I'll just get this for myself at $88 each. [Chinavasion via Oh Gizmo via Uber Gizmo via Retro Thing]

A Consumerist reader complained that after his Xbox red-ringed – again – he called Microsoft to get a shipping box to mail his console in for repairs. But the customer service rep told him he'd need to find his own box. As he pointed out, this gives them a possible out. Who's to stop them from claiming the box was damaged in the mail?

My Xbox red-ringed for the second time this weekend. Which is almost a relief after hearing how bad my disc drive was sounding, but not so much after hearing the new policy. I was told that Xbox no longer ships out a box to you and you must find a box to ship it out in. Yeah I guess its not a big deal, but I think it gives them another thing to hold over your head; "We are sorry, Sir, but you didn't back it well enough and it appears the damage was due to shipping, we cannot help you."

Bummer move, Microsoft, especially over something that's very much your own fault.

Update: Microsoft is saying that they do in fact still ship boxes to customers with broken Xboxes (if the customers ask for one), according to Kotaku. Which would mean this whole debacle is just one case of one employee being terrible, rather than the entire company. Unless you count how people wouldn't need to ship their Xboxes in anyway if the company had bothered making them right in the first place.

[The Consumerist]

In about six weeks, you'll get the ability to create your Xbox mini-you, as well as get access to themes and a new games channel that lets you browse visually and includes new games details pages. Also up, a Spotlight channel that'll focus on popular and new content—games, movies, demos etc. [Kotaku]

The sources said the transition will be similar to “the shift from Game Boy to Game Boy Advance,” meaning key elements (such as Wiimote-game interaction) will stay the same while the core hardware gets taken to a new level. Nintendo's not commenting, but What They Play pointed out that R&D spending at the company has more than tripled—from $103 million to $370 million—since the Wii was released two years ago. Be still my fluttering heart. [What They Play]

But since it's a modern build, Martijn popped in media-player functionality for audio and video, a 2 x 90W audiophile-quality amp/speaker system and a 24-inch 1080p flat-screen monitor. Lovely, in a retro-futuretastic way... but why oh why did he choose yellow? Good enough for bananas and custard, but arcade machines need to be more sober. You should be able to buy one sometime, price on application. [Retrothing]

Information on the homebrew app is sketchy at the moment, but we do know that it features classic controller support and comes bundled with a whole swathe of other emulators for the Wii including: Genesis / Sega CD Emu, Master System / Game Gear Emu, PC Engine Emu, Rin Gameboy Channel, Emu Loader and Wii Paint. [DCEmu via Ubergizmo]

That was a major misunderstanding as JT was wrongly interpreted. Acer is not going to release any game console but the idea is to develop a high-end PC targeted at the serious gamer.

Since Nathan's Xbox was returned stark naked, his girlfriend left him, his pet dog didn't even recognize him and people on the street looked at him in disgust. (Probably.) Such was the change in Nathan's life, he could hardly bare waking up in the mornings. However, Microsoft saw this atrocity going on, and they sure fixed it:

Despite Bungie jumping (ha!) in and giving our man all of the following:

• Legendary Edition Helmet signed by most-if not all-of the studio staff
• Halo 3 Soundtrack (two disc) signed by Marty O'Donnell (with "DO NOT ERASE!" written under his name)
• Bungie Jacket
• Bungie T-Shirt
• Halo 3 Messenger Bag
• Two Halo 3 Limited Edition Wireless Controllers (one covenant, one human)
• Signed Halo 3 Faceplate and Skins for Xbox 360
• Four McFarlane Action Figures (MC, EVA Spartan, Brute Chieftan, Jackal Sniper)
• Halo Actionclix Preview pack (Target exclusive sticker on the front)
• Halo Actionclix Game Pack 4
• Halo 3 Wall Graffix
• Halo 3: Ghosts of Onyx Novel
• Halo Graphic Novel
• Halo 3 Wristband
• Halo 3 Hackeysack

M Nathan is, we presume, now back with his girlfriend, his dog loves him and people in the street can't wait to stop and chat with him. He's so cool, we want to be his friend. [Kotaku: 1, 2 and 3]

Well, according to our German pals at GameStar, James Wong was said to take issue with the fact that the current state of the console market relies solely upon closed and proprietary systems. He sees this as an opportunity for Acer to get in on some gaming fun, and they plan to do this by creating a console utilizing PC technology, which will be, wait for it, a completely open platform. Such a preposterous claim must be taken with a large, Everest sized mountain of salt, but it is interesting nonetheless. For now, we know nothing more, but watch this space for more information. [GameStar]

That means users can engage in 4 player co-op splitscreen games with each headset displaying only their specific in-game view. So, peeking in on what your opponent is doing while playing a co-op FPS would be a thing of the past. If that sounds cool, you won't have to wait long to get your hands on one. The device is expected to be released later this month for a price that has yet to be determined. [Vuzix via IGN]

According to the police, the teenager was playing intensely with a game at the time of the event. The father, who warned him several times to stop playing, went into the room to demand that he turn off the videoconsole. The son ignored the father's orders and kept playing, trying to finish his game. As a response, the angry paterfamilias unplugged the power cable, making the son lose his progress in the game.

At that point, the son furiously jumped off the sofa and, angered by the fact that he lost all his game progress tried to strangle his father with the cable of the gamepad, almost achieving it. Fortunately, the wife heard the struggle and helped her husband break from his agressor. After that, the police and emergency medical teams arrived to the scene, taking the father to the hospital. A few minutes after this, the police arrested the son in a nearby street in Bilbao, the Spanish city where the events occurred earlier this week.

The son is now under custody and is going to be judged for a domestic violence crime. Now, while I don't approve of his reaction, I have to confess that sometimes I have felt an intense desire to smack someone because of similar reasons, being losing my progress in a long game or a document. I don't care if it happens because someone steps over the power cable or a general electric failure, but I have to say that I have crashed more than one gamepad and mouse against the wall. What about you?

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[Gizmodo Spain]