Public unveiling date set for Phantom

The Ultimate Gamers Expo in Los Angeles next month is to play host to the first public viewing of Infinium Labs' Phantom console, which has been something of a wild card in the games industry since it was first announced several months ago.

The console, which is effectively a Windows XP PC in a custom case without any CD or floppy drives, relies entirely on broadband networks for the delivery of its content, and its catalogue of software will be made up of PC titles - although Infinium hopes to persuade console developers to create Phantom versions of their titles as well.

However, until now, the Phantom has existed only in prototype form behind closed doors - so the public unveiling will be the company's first chance at gauging public reaction to the device.

The Ultimate Gamers Expo is a public expo taking place in the Los Angeles Convention Centre (the same venue occupied by E3 back in May) on August 15 to 17. The event hopes to attract some 100,000 gamers and industry professionals over the three days, and will feature a variety of exhibitors, live entertainment and gaming tournaments.