Phantom Console Snapped At CES 2005

AT NVIDIA’S BOOTH we had a chance to see our friend Kyle’s favourite Phantom console. It’s one of the consoles that is supposed to arrive sometime in the middle of 2005 but with a different concept from existing Xbox and Playstation consoles. Actually the company calls this device a broadband receiver with integrated on demand game delivery service. It is digital receiver but you can play games on it.

It should cost between $199 and $299 and it’s equipped with not latest greatest Geforce FX 5700 core. It should be enough for some games. This console is very close to PC and it will use PC games. We haven’t asked about the CPU, yet, but we know it has 80GB of storage. This company wants to offer subscription service and to let users pick five to ten games for download and to play it for a month for a price of approximately $20. Final details about how mane games and the price of service are yet to be finalised. It will offer a life time subscription as well but we don’t know the price. Or how long we will live.

the Inquirer
Phantom console spotted in Snow City

Surprisingly, Phantom made a rather unexpected appearance at CES. Threatening to land squarely into the middle of the ‘vaporware’ catergory, these guys have been rumored to be partnering with Nvidia to release their superbly designed integrated platform PC. Fortunately, or unforunately, they are apparently teaming up with NVIDIA as these shots come directly from the NVIDIA booth. Coming in 2005?… we’ll see.

TheTechLounge
CES 2005 Day 1 - Walking the Show Floor - Phantom

The idea behind the Phantom Game Service seems plausible and the looks of the new Phantom is by far better than the original “console” version from years past. Everyone knows that looks only get you so far and the Phantom still has an uphill battle ahead of them. When Infinium Labs began development of a gaming subscription network the idea was red hot, since then companies like Microsoft have stepped up to the plate with Xbox Live, which was launched back on November 15, 2002. It is now 2005 and Infinium Labs still does not have a set launch date, pricing, or the final hardware specifications ironed out. The hurdle that faces the Phantom Game Service is to see if they can catch up in a market where timing is everything. Only time can tell if they can and I’m sure the judgment day is coming up.

Legit Reviews
The Phantom Game Service