2010s - NOTES
 DW FACTSby Dark Watcher |
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We wonder where the inspiration for this device came from? Sarcasm aside, Envizions Computer Entertainment had produced a Media Center
PC that could be taken as a "PC in a videogame console" shell.
The EVO: Phase One was the conceptual brainstorm of founder Derrick Samuels approximately three years ago per their website (circa 2003). One could say "Hey..thats around the time the Phantom console was announced...Hmm." We suppose that's a pretty good assumption. Although it looks like a console, the EVO: Phase One is still a multimedia PC. It claimed to have featured many bells and whistles like streaming / downloadable content, DVR capability and the ability to run PC applications and games. It also featured an integrated biometric scanner, HDMI output and a wireless controller that resembles the PlayStation 2 Dualshock. The EVO would also be upgradable like a regular PC. The creators said that the EVO would come in other phases. Phase Two for example would make the device function like a console whereas Envizions will develop its own customized console games. |
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| The first time the system was seen was May 10, 2006 at the Electronic Entertainment Expo, with a proposed ship date of October 20, 2006 and initially priced at $679.95. | |
 CONSOLE UPDATEby Marriott_Guy |
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The EVO: Phase One was eventually renamed the EVO Smart Console. The console was redesigned to more closely resemble standard AV
devices rather than a video game console as initially displayed during its development. I prefer this sleek look - the clean,
uncluttered interface is rather appealing to this gamer.
The EVO Smart Console endured continual delays, but in the end the system was made available on a preorder basis through the company's website on November 20. 2008. According to CEO Derrick Samuels, the bulk of the orders were for the Linux version of the console. Though the demand was extremely high, the production run was limited to fulfilling these existing preorders. Various internet sources estimate that approximately 3,000 units were manufactured, but its founder Derrick Samuels confirmed that the actual number of units released were in the 'low hundreds'. To the best of my knowledge, there was not a retail release of EVO Smart Console within the USA. I recently learned that this was not the case abroad. I received an interesting email from Marco, the owner of BrainFusion Video Games, a video game store based in Forli, Italy. Marco let me know that he was the authorized Italian distributor of the EVO Smart Console. He received 10 of the units and actually had a launch day event to showcase the system. This was rather fascinating news for me since I had not read anywhere that any type of retail release had occurred (regardless of region). He has been gracious enough share photographs of his remaining systems along with his launch day event (see the Other Media tab). Though the positive public reaction to the EVO Smart Console would lead one to continue further production, the Envizions team instead focused on improving their console. This new entry, named the EVO 2, is an Android based system and considerably less expensive than its predecessor ($249 vs. $399-$679). The EVO 2 is currently available for preorder sale at the Envizions website. |
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