Phantom Lapboard reviewed by Maximum PC
The less said about Phantom Entertainment née Infinium Labs the better: a huckster company so unrepentant in their attempts to bilk investors of their money in the pursuit of a console so illusory and ill-defined that it's very name evoked the ephemeral, imaginary and ectoplasmic. The whole debacle is better summed up snorting all the phlegm out of your throat then contemptuously expectorating it in a men's room toilet than it is with words.
Needless to say, after six years, Phantom Entertainment hasn't released anything: not its Phantom Console, which has been canceled, nor the Phantom Lapboard, which was due out in late 2006. But perhaps the Lapboard — a keyboard/mouse combination designed to be used playing FPS games for the PC while lounging on the couch — isn't entirely a pipe dream. Maximum PC just managed to get their hands on one, and while Phantom's history indicates this doesn't make the Lapboard any closer to production, it does at least mean it's within the realm of possibility.
So what did Maximum PC think of the Lapboard? They really liked the keyboard aspect of the Lapboard, which they thought worked really well for supine Team Fortress 2 matches. But the mouse? Utter garbage.
Unfortunately, the mouse that Phantom ships with the Lapboard leaves much to be desired. While a bit smaller than we prefer, it isn't uncomfortable. The problem is worse than a lack of comfort; we experienced signal dropouts at a distance of about 24 inches from the sensor, not acceptable. The mouse and keyboard would both be working fine, then the mouse would drop out while the keyboard continued to operate. We tested several other wireless mice with the same configuration, and had no problems with them. A wireless mouse that drops connections is an unforgivable sin, in our eyes.
Phantom's claiming the Lapboard will be available in June in limited quantities for $130. Considering the fact that publications have been previewing this thing for years, don't bother putting in a pre-order.
First Look: The Phantom Lapboard [Maximum PC]
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John -- I registered just to let you know the first paragraph of this story is some of the best writing I've seen in a long time.
Seriously, you're a great addition to BBG. Love reading your stuff.
It's actually kind of weird to see these guys maybe-possibly release a real, physical product. They've always seemed like Gizmondo without the sexy/criminal/Ferrari-crashing aspects.
Phantom Entertainment is coming back for those of you that are curious and skeptical. It's been dormant for the last few years, it been battered down by short-sellers and yes some unfortunate events transpired that are more complicated then clear cut as the media has That's over! We have been branching out to distributors here and
abroad, and moving forward on securing our previous goals in the gaming community. If you have questions I'll be happy to forward them on the new CEO - John Landino. - Check out our website http://www.phantom.net for more details and we have created a blog http://pheiblog.wordpress.com to keep those still passionate about Phantom to visit. Thanks J.D.