Throwable Game Controllers!

Now this is an invention on par with sliced bread. I'm forever getting frustrated while playing a game and stopping myself just short of letting the controller fly out of my hands and right towards a wall, window, or -- the horror -- my HDTV! Finally, a controller that is meant to be thrown.

If only it were designed for stress release... *sigh*

Just what the doctor ordered? A new breed of throwable games controllers could turn computer gaming into a healthy pastime, reckons one Californian inventor. His "tossable peripherals" aim to get lazy console gamers up off the couch and out into the fresh air.

Each controller resembles a normal throwable object, like a beach ball, a football or a Frisbee. But they also connect via WiFi to a games console, like the PlayStation Portable. And each also contains an accelerometer capable of detecting speed and impact, an altimeter, a timer and a GPS receiver.

The connected console can then orchestrate a game of catch, awarding points for a good catch or deducting them if the peripheral is dropped hard on the ground. Or perhaps the challenge could be to can throw the object furthest, highest or fastest, with the connected computer keeping track of different competitors' scores.

Hardcore gamers, who cannot bear to be separated from a computer screen, could wear a head-mounted display that shows scores and other information. The peripheral can also emit a bleeps when it has been still for too long, to help the owner locate it in the long grass.

Not quite what I was hoping for, but I'm a geek for data and this sounds pretty cool. Thanks to NewScientistTech.com for posting this. You can read the patent application here.