LOS ANGELES--Nintendo's Wii has always stood apart from the other major consoles of this generation of game machines. It was pitched as, and found great success by, being the game console for nongamers.

The controls were deceptively simple. A magic wand to wave in the air, with a couple of buttons that many games ignored. There was an add-on with extra inputs for games that required it, but many of the best Wii experiences concentrated on that kinetic action of hand-on-wand.

That simplicity was the secret to how Nintendo sold so many Wiis. And while motion and gesture control … Read more

"Predicting is hard, especially about the future," quips Vint Cerf -- and he should know.

That's because about 30 years ago, when the now-famous engineer was helping to design the technology that powers the Internet, Cerf decided just how many devices could connect to the network. His answer -- 2 to the 32nd power, or 4.3 billion -- looked awfully big at the time. A few decades later, we now know it's far short.

Accordingly, Google's chief Internet evangelist and one of the few people at the company who looks natural in a suit … Read more

We expect Nintendo to put its new Wii U console/handheld hybrid device front and center at E3 this year. Super Mario Brothers, Pikmin, and other games are sure to come along. Will Nintendo expand the library of third-party games it showcased last year? What about a 3DS Slim?

For those answers and more, check in with our live blog coverage here, beginning at 8:45 a.m. PT/11:45 a.m. ET today.

Between now and then, our ongoing E3 coverage will keep you up to date on the latest from the show. Check it out here.

Editors' … Read more

LOS ANGELES--If E3 2012 is The Year of the Second Screen, then what does that make Sony, a company that seems to have one too many solutions to a single problem? The PlayStation Vita and the PlayStation 3 form a perfect hardware tandem, theoretically: with as many inputs as a Wii U tablet and a screen just an inch smaller, the Vita could the PS3's best friend. … Read more

Consumer gadgets can be very addictive. Almost as addictive as french fries, onion rings, and anything else you can cook in hot oil. Even the gadgets themselves.

Photographer Henry Hargreaves has captured our insatiable hunger for new technology with a series of startling images of deep-fried electronics. We already knew we were digital junkies, but these images don't go down so easily. … Read more

LOS ANGELES--Aside from Halo 4, the most interesting thing at Microsoft's E3 press conference was SmartGlass, the multidevice sharing app for games, videos, and Web surfing. But SmartGlass was only sketched out in the broadest of terms (and probably very carefully chosen ones at that), so we're left with several burning questions, especially about how it will work with Windows 8.

What devices will it actually work on? Microsoft says "all your devices." Does that mean all your Windows devices, or are Android and iOS included? (Update: We're hearing now that iOS and Android are included.)

Is it a downloaded app or Web-based? Will SmartGlass be a standalone app or an HTML 5-based Web service? Or some combination of the two depending on what platform you're on? Windows 8 tablets seem to be included, but are Windows RT tablets?… Read more

TAIPEI, Taiwan--Windows 8, we've been told, is going to move Microsoft into the post-PC era. And a bevy of new PC designs that Asus debuted here at the Computex trade show is bringing that vision to reality.

The Taiwanese PC manufacturer has take the wraps off three new product lines -- a dual-screen ultrabook, a semiportable all-in-one desktop, and a convertible laptop with a removable keyboard -- that build on the lessons of the company's Transformer line of Android tablets.

Taichi: Tablet, ultrabook, or both? First up from Asus was the Taichi hybrid notebook/tablet, which was … Read more

TAIPEI, Taiwan--While all-in-one touch screens have never lived up to the promise, the launch of Windows 8 later this year will mean a rash of new devices hitting the market. Will compelling touch-screen Windows apps for the desktop finally happen?

The bigger 7600U comes in at 27 inches and has a full HD resolution. Here, you can spot a slot-loading optical drive.

The touch screen allows up to 64 simultaneous inputs, which could have fascinating implications for multiuser programs. It can also be tilted flat like a table, and rotated for easy access.

Screen quality was excellent at first glance, and the Metro aesthetic translates really well to the large screen. We're looking forward to seeing if usability is up there as well. The product manager joked that vertically oriented, it's the world's biggest e-reader. From the sharp text we saw, he may not be far off the mark.… Read more

With four months to go before the final version of Windows 8 is expected to land, the parade of devices putting its faith behind Microsoft's next operating system has officially begun.

Acer got the ball rolling Monday at the Computex 2012 trade conference in Taipei, unveiling a bevy of Window 8-enabled devices. The company unveiled a pair of ultrabooks running Windows 8 -- considered a key combination to sparking growth in the PC market.

The Aspire S7 series includes two touch screen models: a 13-incher as well as the company's first 11.6-inch Ultrabook. The company was light … Read more