Gametel Review (Mobile)

If you’re a keen mobile gamer you will undoubtedly be one of the many who sneers at the thought of virtualised controller buttons when playing the likes of Minecraft or GTAIII on your device of choice. Unless of course you are already blessed with the Xperia Play and its slide out control pad.

The Gametel seeks to sooth your rage into a gentle calm by offering you bluetooth connected controls for your Android or iOS device. Sadly it isn’t all smiles and roses.

First impressions are everything right? The flimsy cardboard packaging displays the chunky looking control system itself, upon opening though it’s clear that it’s just as cheap as it looks.

After flicking through the instructions I noticed something. There is no charger cable included. While this may not be a problem for Android wielding users with their standard micro-USB cables, for an iPhone user like myself it left me with a problem. Thankfully I have a cable stored away for such emergencies but it seems like a huge oversight.

The Gametel itself is light and feels flimsy. The clasps that hold the phone in place feel like they could break at any moment and the d-pad is clumsy to use. While it masquerades as an 8-way D-pad it is merely a 4-way and a stiff, unresponsive one at that.

Setup-wise, it’s simple. Follow the instructions to set the Gametel to the right mode and then connect via Bluetooth (when using iOS). Word to the wise, download any iCade compatible titles you want to play BEFORE hooking the Gametel up to your device. I found out the hard way that it configures the Gametel as a Keyboard rather than control pad and as such removes the on-screen keyboard when connected.

The selection of games that are compatible with the Gametel’s iCade control system is limited to say the least. Other than a few titles such as Nyan Cat and Namco Bandai Arcade, there is nothing really worth playing. Perhaps it’s different on the Android market but for iOS users, even those few that are available lose their novelty all too quickly. If the system worked with core titles such as the above mentioned GTA and Minecraft releases I would be pleased. Even racers like NFS or Burnout would benefit from the Gametel but alas it is not compatible.

I really wish there was more I could say about the Gametel. The whole experience was clouded over from start to finish. Charger issues, lack of games and an almost tacky feel to the device itself mean that it would be better (although still not acceptable) if it was a bargain store purchase. At £49.99 RRP in the UK it’s so much more painful. Avoid this product at all costs.

Or if you’d rather try it for yourself, the Gametel is available from Amazon.