Ouya may not be bringing the white version of its Android-based gaming console to other parts of the world, so the company instead has pushed out an update to other units worldwide just in time for the holidays. The update which is dubbed as the Abominable Snowman gives Ouya users with a revamped user interface plus a few features and bug fixes.

According to Ouya, the user interface features a more intuitive and more visually appealing UI that enables developers to more effectively feature their games. The update also brings the much-requested functionality of expanded storage. Users will now be able to use external storage options such as USB flash drives and external hard drives.

There are also a number of improvements on the usability of the console that were based on customer requests. For starters, double tapping on the Ouya button will now bring up a system menu instead of automatically exiting a game or app. Also, games can now be setup to allow purchases from Ouya menus.

The update will also bring faster system updates through a feature called Incremental Updates. Developers will also be able to create links that allow users to download their game to the console from the web.

As for bug fixes, the Snowman update will fix the issue where users could not access the internet because the system clock had reset, causing certificate problems, as well as the issue where the download button doesn’t always display the proper text and auto-scroll issues with the analog stick.

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Ouya, the highly successful crowd-funded Android-based gaming console manufacturer announced today that they will be offering a limited edition White Ouya just in time for the holidays.

Aside from the pearly white paint job, only two things separate this limited edition Ouya from the original. For starters, the storage capacity is now doubled with 16GB from the usual 8GB on the original device. The second is prize, in which the white Ouya is around $30 more expensive than the basic device.

Other than the price and the capacity, the White console is still powered by an nVidia Tegra 3 – T33 quad-core processor, 1GB of RAM, one USB 2.0 port, one microUSB port, an HDMI out, and Bluetooth connectivity.

The Limited Edition White Ouya Android console is now available for pre-order for $129.99. Ouya promised that those who ordered the device before December 8 will get the product by December 25. Sadly this console will only be available in North America.

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Ouya, the highly successful Kickstarter campaign and Android-based gaming console hits retail shelves today with majority of retailers already running out of stocks.

Starting today, Ouya will be available in retail stores in U.K.and North America including Amazon, Best Buy, GAME, GameStop and Target in the United States. The console will be offered at $99 with up to 170 games available for download (mostly with free trial versions) from the company’s more than 17,000 registered developers. The console will ship with one controller but consumers can add $49.95 to get an additional controller.

However, some Ouya backers have complained that they haven’t received their consoles yet even though the device is already available online. The company is supposed to deliver the first batch of consoles which are manufactured in China to its backers before the device becomes commercially available.

According to a Facebook post by CEO Julie Uhrman and Head of Operations Ken Stephens, the problem with regards to the delivery of the device to early backers stems from the hold-up at its Hong Kong distribution partner – DHL. Furthermore, the company says the issue mostly affects international backers and that they are doing their best to resolve the problem.
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The Android operating system has revolutionized the entire consumer electronics industry. The open source mobile operating system has extended its reach beyond mobile phones and tablets and can now be seen in other household devices such as music players and cameras.

It has even ventured into a territory which was formerly exclusive to a number of companies such as Sony, Nintendo and Microsoft – the field of gaming consoles. This is all thanks to the platform’s openness and flexibility which has paved the way for few startup companies to innovate and create new devices at much cheaper prices.

Recently with the rise in popularity of crowd funding programs, two startup companies have emerged successful in getting the support of the people to create two budget Android-powered gaming consoles – the Ouya and the GameStick.

However, it seems, both companies have run into some trouble during development and manufacturing. For starters, the $79 GameStick shipments have been delayed for at least two more months according to the company. The company is reportedly having problems manufacturing the gaming console due to unexpected high volume of demand.

According to representatives of the company, the delay was expecting to manufacture 1,000 units of the console but received 5,000 orders which forced the company to outsource the manufacture of the stick to China and Germany. Moreover, the company was also unprepared to ship such large volume of orders. The original plan was to air-freight the consoles to respective owners but due to large volumes of demand, the company has instead opted to ship the consoles over on a boat.

Ouya on the other hand was much more successful in terms of building and shipping their product. The company has shipped a number of pre-release Ouya gaming consoles to its 60,000 backers just last month. However, the company has now reaped a lot of negative reviews about the product from poor build quality, the lack of an intuitive user interface to difficult installation process for games.

The startup company has just released a statement today asking people to go easy on Ouya as the software is not yet finished. Furthermore, the company explained that the review consoles sent out to backers are still part of a preview period in which their team is still working out the kinks in the system to improve the machine.

On a blog post on Ouya’s official website, CEO Julie Uhrman stated that their team is aware of the issues and are already working on the problem. She also added that their team is also working on other improvements to the console including support for external storage of games, improved metrics for developers, a simple game install process and controller support for video players. 

At present, it is quite obvious that the manufacturers of these machines hasn't delivered anything that meets today's standards on console gaming but its pays to note that Ouya and GameStick are both startup companies who have very little experience with producing such products. The good news is that by the looks of it, taking into consideration the relative infancy of their development, I think these Android-based gaming consoles are on the right track.