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YC will back anything these days. Paul Graham talks about "Frighteningly Ambitious Startup Ideas" and tackling the real hard problems, and then we get a little

YC will back anything these days. Paul Graham talks about "Frighteningly Ambitious Startup Ideas" and tackling the real hard problems, and then we get a little controller for an iPhone. Yawn.

brandnewlow 14y ago
http://www.paulgraham.com/organic.html http://www.paulgraham.com/organic.html "Don't be discouraged if what you produce initially is something other people dismiss as a toy. In fact, that's a good sign. That's probably why everyone else has been overlooking the idea. The first microcomputers were dismissed as toys. And the first planes, and the first cars. At this point, when someone comes to us with something that users like but that we could envision forum trolls dismissing as a toy, it makes us especially likely to invest."
- shawndumas 14y ago
  but this is a toy...
  - bitwize 14y ago
    So was the JoyBoard. Do you know what the JoyBoard's designers went on to create, what they were trying to build all along? The freaking Amiga. Actually, that was a toy too. But it was a phenomenally cool toy that was vastly more powerful than a lot of people's work computers.
    - ThePherocity 14y ago
      And look how that turned out... Just sayin
      - sp332 14y ago
        I'm looking... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amiga#Amiga_community http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amiga#Amiga_community Looks awesome.
- deleted 14y ago
  [deleted]
slap_shot 14y ago
I wonder if you would really be able to identify a startup that was really tackling a "Frighteningly Ambitious Startup Idea." At the point that they are coming out of YC they would probably be tackling one small, seemingly non-consequential part of a larger problem. Maybe they would explicitly state 'we are going to eventually revolutionize X' - but my bet would be they would fly under the radar for a while.
dj2stein9 14y ago
There are already about 4 other products exactly like this already on the market. I kind of question how large the third-party iPhone snap-on-controller market size is to necessitate both YC and Kickstarter.
- JVIDEL 14y ago
  Agreed, in fact I have never seen anyone using one of these smartphone gamepads and quite frankly I can see why: it's another thing you have to carry with you and besides not all games are/will be compatible.
- Andrenid 14y ago
  That's the bit that surprised me most about this article. Controllers for phones are NOT new. iCade Mobile, iControlPad, and the umpteen bluetooth ones that don't clip on, but connect wirelessly and give you a PROPER gamepad for your iPhone/iPad. As for Android, you can connect PS3 controllers and any number of aftermarket ones like above. I get that the above linked one works for both iOS and Android, but very few people own (and regularly game on) both types of phone at once, so needing a multi-platform controller seems like a pretty niche market.
  - joshschreuder 14y ago
    Not to mention the new version of Blutrol (jailbreak tweak, see http://www.ringwald.ch/cydia/blutrol/ http://www.ringwald.ch/cydia/blutrol/) which lets you connect up and use with any game (not just dev-supported) an iCade, iControlPad, standard bluetooth keyboard, PhoneJoy, Wiimote, or Zeemote JS1.
  - activepeanut 14y ago
    Here's one more for your list: http://tenonedesign.com/flingmini.php http://tenonedesign.com/flingmini.php
jessriedel 14y ago
You can back both world-changers and toys. It's not either-or.

YC will back anything these days. Paul Graham talks about "Frighteningly Ambitious Startup Ideas" and tackling the real hard problems, and then we get a little controller for an iPhone. Yawn.

brandnewlow 14y ago

http://www.paulgraham.com/organic.html http://www.paulgraham.com/organic.html "Don't be discouraged if what you produce initially is something other people dismiss as a toy. In fact, that's a good sign. That's probably why everyone else has been overlooking the idea. The first microcomputers were dismissed as toys. And the first planes, and the first cars. At this point, when someone comes to us with something that users like but that we could envision forum trolls dismissing as a toy, it makes us especially likely to invest."

shawndumas 14y ago
but this is a toy...
- bitwize 14y ago
  So was the JoyBoard. Do you know what the JoyBoard's designers went on to create, what they were trying to build all along? The freaking Amiga. Actually, that was a toy too. But it was a phenomenally cool toy that was vastly more powerful than a lot of people's work computers.
  - ThePherocity 14y ago
    And look how that turned out... Just sayin
    - sp332 14y ago
      I'm looking... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amiga#Amiga_community http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amiga#Amiga_community Looks awesome.
deleted 14y ago
[deleted]

slap_shot 14y ago

I wonder if you would really be able to identify a startup that was really tackling a "Frighteningly Ambitious Startup Idea." At the point that they are coming out of YC they would probably be tackling one small, seemingly non-consequential part of a larger problem. Maybe they would explicitly state 'we are going to eventually revolutionize X' - but my bet would be they would fly under the radar for a while.

dj2stein9 14y ago

There are already about 4 other products exactly like this already on the market. I kind of question how large the third-party iPhone snap-on-controller market size is to necessitate both YC and Kickstarter.

JVIDEL 14y ago
Agreed, in fact I have never seen anyone using one of these smartphone gamepads and quite frankly I can see why: it's another thing you have to carry with you and besides not all games are/will be compatible.
Andrenid 14y ago
That's the bit that surprised me most about this article. Controllers for phones are NOT new. iCade Mobile, iControlPad, and the umpteen bluetooth ones that don't clip on, but connect wirelessly and give you a PROPER gamepad for your iPhone/iPad. As for Android, you can connect PS3 controllers and any number of aftermarket ones like above. I get that the above linked one works for both iOS and Android, but very few people own (and regularly game on) both types of phone at once, so needing a multi-platform controller seems like a pretty niche market.
- joshschreuder 14y ago
  Not to mention the new version of Blutrol (jailbreak tweak, see http://www.ringwald.ch/cydia/blutrol/ http://www.ringwald.ch/cydia/blutrol/) which lets you connect up and use with any game (not just dev-supported) an iCade, iControlPad, standard bluetooth keyboard, PhoneJoy, Wiimote, or Zeemote JS1.
- activepeanut 14y ago
  Here's one more for your list: http://tenonedesign.com/flingmini.php http://tenonedesign.com/flingmini.php

jessriedel 14y ago

You can back both world-changers and toys. It's not either-or.