9to5Toys Lunch Break: 9.7-inch iPad Pro $150 off, iTunes Disney/Pixar Movie Sale, PDF Expert 2 for Mac $25, more

Keep up with the best gear and deals on the web by signing up for the 9to5Toys Newsletter. Also, be sure to check us out on: TwitterRSS FeedFacebookGoogle+ and Safari push notifications.

TODAY’S CAN’T MISS DEALS:

Best Buy has Apple’s 9.7-inch iPad Pro Wi-Fi 32GB for $150 off, today only

iTunes and Amazon launch Disney/Pixar Movie sale: discounts on Cars, Toy Story, and more!

PDF Expert 2.2 for Mac Lets You Edit, Annotate and Sign Documents with Ease: $25 (Orig. $60)

Apple Watch Series 1/2 now $70 off – priced from $200 shipped

iPad mini 4 gets a $100 discount at Best Buy

AURA Camera Photo Editor for iOS now available for free (Reg. $4)

E3 2017:

Sony E3 2017: God of War, Shadow of the Colossus, Days Gone, Spider-Man, more [Video]

9to5Rewards: Apple iPhone 7 Smart Battery Case [Giveaway]

MORE NEW GEAR FROM TODAY:

Apple 13-inch MacBook Pro 512GB w/ Touch Bar (prev. gen.) $1,690 shipped

NEW PRODUCTS & MORE:

Seagate’s new Game Drive Hub for Xbox One has 8TB of storage, USB ports

Herman Miller looks to bring workspaces to life with iPhone-controlled smart furniture

Honda EV-Cub scooter sports eco-friendly functionality in a vintage design

MORE DEALS STILL LIVE:

Amazon Father’s Day Sale has Kindle E-readers up to 25% off, Echo discounts too!

Sony DualShock PS4 controllers $40: gold, silver, camo, red, white, more

more…

Sony’s new ‘PlayLink’ multiplayer games will use iPhones as second-screen controllers for PS4

As part of E3, Sony today announced it will launch a new collection of games branded “PlayLink” that will support cross-platform gameplay experiences between PS4 and mobile devices including iOS devices. The games will be built with a second screen experience and group play in mind, meaning they’ll take full advantage of opportunities for touchscreen controls, cameras on mobile devices, multiple devices and more.

The games will work together with iPhones (and possibly iPads) via a companion app that Sony confirmed will be available for both iOS and Android. For the most part, the games appear to use mobile devices as controllers, offering a second screen experience while playing games with others on a PS4 in the living room:

more…

Comment: The growing trend of retrospective HomeKit support shows the platform is gaining traction

Regular readers will know that my enthusiasm for smart home technology dates back to the days of clunky X10 devices. Though there were standalone systems available, it was obvious even then that it made sense to adopt a common standard, and in the 1980s, X10 was that standard.

Fast-forward to a few years ago and what we gained in app support, we lost in standardization. Most manufacturers did their own thing, using their own protocols. There were one or two exceptions, like the Philips Hue system that was really just a rebadged form of Zigbee, but most devices didn’t talk to each other. You ended up with a whole slew of separate apps on your iPhone to control everything.

Apple’s HomeKit platform was designed to unify everything, but that came with its own dilemma for early adopters …

more…