Stores in the UK like Game and ShopTo are taking small deposits to reserve a console for Christmas.

FORBES: Move up http://i.forbesimg.com t Move down

In case it wasn't already clear how small the Android-powered console is, the folks at Ouya included the picture you see above to further illustrate that point -- the thing is really small.

ENGADGET: Ouya dev consoles shipping to backers on December 28th, SDK available same day

In effect, the client passes the very small amount of data from keypresses or console clicks to a data centre, and streams the video and audio resulting from those clicks back down the pipe to the screen.

FORBES: OnLive Has Launched in the UK - Testing and Response

Nintendo's Wii U tablet controller thankfully streamlines that process in a small, but tremendously meaningful way: during initial console setup, you're prompted to sync your television and the tablet controller, allowing the tablet itself to control the TV's power, volume, channels, and input directly.

ENGADGET: Nintendo's Wii U tablet controller and the death of your TV's remote control

Unfortunately for lovers of dust and beautifully over-engineered gear, the room-sized recording console is dying out fast, replaced by software and small, neat, racks of pre-amps and analog summing mixers.

ENGADGET: Music Thing: Frontier Alphatrack

Secondly, the closure of big console-based studios has been followed by an explosion of small start-up companies.

BBC: Games industry employment increases in UK

But with the government wading in on behalf of small video game studios, the question is whether the joystick and the console will enjoy the protection of the "cultural exception francaise".

BBC: Screenshot of Eden's Kya

That is a small example of how technological advancement can create new gaming experiences and that is the challenge for the three console manufacturers.

BBC: NEWS | Technology | Playing the future: David Gosen