Lenovo's eeDoo iSec Games Console, at 3,000 RMB, Slated for December Launch

Lenovo (HKG:0992) has finally put a price, a release date, and a set of snazzy colours on its upcoming eeDoo iSec games console. Slated for a limited, experimental release this December, the console will sell for about 3,000 RMB (US$470) and come in red, white, and black (pictured right).

More important issues, such as how many game titles will be available to consumers and how they’ll hit the High Street, have not been clarified by the Chinese hardware maker.

It has been a long and difficult road to launch for Lenovo’s eeDoo iSec; partly because they’ve never made a gaming console before, and also due to them hitting a huge regulatory barrier: China.

Games consoles are not technically legal in mainland China, and the eeDoo iSec has not yet gained approval from China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT). Lenovo is calling its new device a “home entertainment system” in order to leap this legal hurdle. It remains to be seen if Lenovo can succeed in this, or perhaps even force a change in the law that’d make Microsoft’s (NASDAQ:MSFT) XBox and Sony’s (NYSE:SNE) PlayStation legally saleable in China as well. It’s conceivable that the local hardware maker will get the nod, whilst the foreign firms will remain locked out – a recurring issue in the country.

The eeDoo iSec started out with the rather shanzhai name “eBox” back in 2009, before Lenovo rebadged it earlier this year. Chinese tech media report that Lenovo now has a dedicated eeDoo iSec team of 130 employees. There are also reports, which we can’t confirm, that Lenovo has promised game developers 100 percent revenue share – in contrast to the 70 percent cut on Apple’s App Store – if sales of the console fail to ultimately exceed 50 million units.

We’ve followed the iSec pretty closely, from discussing its legality in detail, to cataloging its ongoing delays. And although we now have a price tag, Chinese gamers who’ve been following this saga will be wary of getting too excited just yet.

On a related note, a Microsoft XBox demo booth made an unexpected appearance earlier this week at a Chinese trade fair…

[Source: CNbeta – article in Chinese]