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The iCade Arcade Cabinet began as an April Fool's joke in 2010, but this golden unicorn of iPad accessories has actually made it to production, showing up at our door last week. iCade creatorThinkGeek partnered with Ion to make this former imaginary gadget a reality, and so far it appears to be a hit, backordered for weeks soon after hitting the online store in April. The $100 cabinet pairs with your iPad or iPad 2 over bluetooth, bringing familiar hardware arcade controls to the Atari's Greatest Hits app, which includes classics like  Missile Command  (free), and  Pong , which you can download from within the free Atari app for $1. The iCade is an awesome addition to your gaming collection, but it won't replace the hours of coin-dropping at your local arcade. Read on to find out why this accessory may become a permanent fixture on our desk. Ion iCade Design and Assembly With a footprint roughly as high and wide as two iPads stacked horizont...

This is the second time this week we've covered a modder getting an old-school game to run with the help of some unexpected hardware. And arguably, it's the simpler of the two tales. A fellow named John Graham-Cumming fashioned a game console out of little more than a pair of metal canisters, an Arduino Pro board, and a potentiometer -- all so he could play Pong on his TV. The rig (cutely dubbed the Cansole) actually consists of two controllers, with the secondary one housing just a potentiometer. The first has one, too, but also houses the Arduino Pro, along with a battery, A/V controls, and a button for selecting and firing in the game.  Et voilà ! 1970s arcade-style tennis for two. For a 90-second nostalgia break, head on past the break to see these vintage-looking paddles in action. CrunchGear John Graham-Cumming

This, friends, is a work of art. Above is a stunning, fully-functional recreation of the original  Donkey Kong  arcade cabinet -- and it's only 8.25 inches tall. The accomplished modder Bender posted his handiwork on the  Build Your Own Arcade Controls Forum  and it's sure to wow even the most cynical of folks. At the heart of this build is a hacked up GamePark GP2X Wiz running MAME, but it's the attention to detail, including the printed vinyl decals and light-up marquee, that really pull this (supposedly world's smallest) 1/8 scale project together. Check out the gallery below and the pair of lengthy demo videos after the break. En garde Mr. Heck! World's Smallest Donkey Kong Cabinet Build Your Own Arcade Controls

The Ion iCade, our favorite April Fools' joke turned actual product, has just passed through the FCC and moved one step closer to retail reality. The arcade cabinet for your iPad had all its Bluetoothy bits laid bare and even brought along its user manual, in case you're the type who bothers to read those sordid things. There aren't too many surprises here except, perhaps, the inclusion of an Ikea-esque hex key -- some assembly required. With the green light from the feds, though, that means the iCade is right on schedule for its May 31st release. If you want to ensure you nab one of the first batch, you can pre-order it now for $99 from either GameStop or ThinkGeek. And, while you wait for the blissful marriage of  Atari's Greatest Hits  and Bluetooth joystick, you can peep the pics in the gallery after the break. Ion iCade Hits FCC Wireless Goodness FCC

You still can't play them with an iCade cabinet just yet -- though that's coming, in June -- but Atari has now delivered quite a present to iPhone, iPad and iPod touch owners. The company has just released its Greatest Hits collection for iOS devices, which includes 18 classic arcade games and 82 Atari 2600 games -- those available either in 25 separate packs for $0.99 apiece, or in one massive time sink bundle for $14.99 (Pong comes free with the app itself). As you can see, you'll also get things like the original box art and arcade cabinets for each game, and some of the titles will even let you play head-to-head with a friend over Bluetooth. Ready to get started? You know where to find it. Ars Technica iTunes