"Home" is where the start is.

Over the years, there have been many button configurations for video game systems.
There was the classic up, down, left, right, 'A' and 'B' that later developed an 'L' and an 'R'.
There was also an 'X', 'Y', 'C' (in four directions and as a stick), and the additional 'L2', 'L3', 'R2' and 'R3'. Some consoles even have buttons without letter associations, simply of a certain color, black or white. In almost every case there are certain buttons we're accustomed to seeing "Start" and "Select".

What these buttons do, however, is generally not what they are called. Not often are "Start" buttons used to actually start a game, nor "Select" used to choose something –although there are still exceptions. A new button has been introduced recently, though. In a way befitting an internet browser, Nintendo has added a "home" button to their latest console's controller and to their next planned hand-held system.

What's the deal with backlighting?

One often unappreciated aspect of technology that benefits users greatly has been the innovation that comes with the usage of back-lit screens.

Playstation Portables feature back-lit screens (image by cthulhu32)

Before the invention of the back-lit screens for handheld or portable devices, people could only play games with ease while travelling if the lighting around them was optimal. Although it was still possible to play games on the go, the difficulty of seeing what was on the screen increased as it got dark, meaning people had to resort to the usage of lights external from the system to make up for the otherwise poor lighting condition.

Processing power: preparing products possessing pervasive prerequisites

How the need for faster processing power has changed, and how it's measured

There has been a recent trend (some three or so years, now) to advance the technological intricacies of computation. Specifically, I am referring to the increase in the processing power of devices. In this 'generation' of game console systems (a term that refers to everything in a game console's production period), there has been a major focus on increasing the raw processing of data. When systems (from computers to game consoles) are capable of processing more data simultaneously, those who make products for these systems are free to make more process-intensive programs.