Although they were initially envisioned as PMPs and/or communication devices, the iPods and iPhone might actually become some pretty serious contenders on the portable gaming consoles' market at some point in the near future. And in order to be prepared when that moment arrives, Hama, one of Europe's and world's most important distributors of various branded audio/video accessories, has introduced a couple of very interesting gaming accessories, which will turn the latest iPhone and iPod models into portable gaming devices.

All of these fresh gadgets offer full support for the motion sensor technology integrated in racing games and are quite easy to “combine” with the iPhone/iPod, since all the users have to do is simply clamp their device into the preformed holder, with cut-outs providing easy access to the device’s headphone jack and charging connection.

Now, let's take a closer look at what exactly the new range of gaming accessories presented by Hama consists of. First of all, there's the “Pure Race” game steering wheel for iPod touch 2G, which, as you've guessed, is shaped like a steering wheel used in racing games, and features a special holding compartment for the iPod right in the middle.

Next in line come the “speed-X” game steering wheels for iPhone 3G and iPod Touch 2G, which are somewhat similar to the “Pure Race,” apart from the fact that they're slightly larger and probably configured for a wider variety of gaming titles.

Finally, Hama is also offering a couple of gaming pads, namely the “Andromeda,” which is available in two versions (compatible with either the iPhone 3G or the iPod touch 2G), and the “Boomerang,” which is the only accessory in this new lineup to have been specifically designed for compatibility with the iPod nano 4G.

The pricing of these gaming accessories for iPods and the iPhone from Hama vary depending on the specific model, but they're actually pretty affordable, since we're only talking about 15 Euro on the average (roughly 20 US dollars).


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