Slashdot Mirror
Domain: tapwave.com
Stories and comments across the archive that link to tapwave.com.
Stories · 8
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Tapwave Closes its Doors
ewhac writes "Tapwave, makers of the universally acclaimed Zodiac mobile gaming device/media player/PalmOS PDA formally announced on their Web site that, 'the Zodiac business was discontinued and service and support are no longer available as of July 25th 2005.' The Zodiac was a PalmOS 5.2 device with gaming and media features, including ATI graphics and Yamaha sound acceleration, proportional joystick, two SD slots, Bluetooth, 200MHz ARM CPU (Freescale i.MX1), and up to 128M of RAM. At the most recent Palm developer conference, Tapwave employees were showing Zodiacs running their own port of Linux 2.6.10, with ports of SDL, Python, PyGame, mpg123, and primitive power management. It is unknown what will become of this work." -
Tapwave Closes its Doors
ewhac writes "Tapwave, makers of the universally acclaimed Zodiac mobile gaming device/media player/PalmOS PDA formally announced on their Web site that, 'the Zodiac business was discontinued and service and support are no longer available as of July 25th 2005.' The Zodiac was a PalmOS 5.2 device with gaming and media features, including ATI graphics and Yamaha sound acceleration, proportional joystick, two SD slots, Bluetooth, 200MHz ARM CPU (Freescale i.MX1), and up to 128M of RAM. At the most recent Palm developer conference, Tapwave employees were showing Zodiacs running their own port of Linux 2.6.10, with ports of SDL, Python, PyGame, mpg123, and primitive power management. It is unknown what will become of this work." -
Tapwave Zodiac Owners Celebrate the Release of LJZ
wraggster writes " Tapwave Zodiac owners today enjoyed the Release of a major multiple system emulator called LittleJohn Z that includes such systems as Snes, Genesis, PC Engine, Nes, GBC, Wonderswan and NeoGeo Pocket. Sites such as Zodiac Gamer & Zodiac Emulation have more information on this release." -
Tapwave Zodiac Creators Update On Handheld
Thanks to Zodiac Gamer for reprinting a progress report on the reception to the Tapwave Zodiac handheld gaming system, as the creators of the Palm-compatible device mention accolades such as a CES 'Last Gadget Standing' award from PCMag, and also note they've "received a very small number of units back for joystick-related issues", mainly involving calibration problems. The post also comments on newly released games enhanced specifically for the device, singling out the Atari Retro pack, which ZodiacGamer had earlier previewed, and discussing upcoming titles: "Doom II is going through final single-player testing and sign-off and Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 4 is in our final phases of multiplayer testing." -
TapWave's Zodiac Handheld Analyzed
Thanks to GameSpot for their feature taking a look at TapWave's PDA-based handheld, the Zodiac. They argue: "After using the Zodiac for a bit, you get the impression that it's designed not as a handheld gaming system with some built-in PDA functionality but, rather, as a PDA that also happens to play games pretty well." While being impressed with fan support at sites like Zodiac Gamer, the reviewer suggests: "So far, TapWave has presented a fairly impressive package with the Zodiac, though its current lineup of top-tier games is a little too short to catch the average gamer's attention." The review concludes: "The system is also a little pricey for the gamer on a budget... [but] it's a fairly open platform due to its Palm OS support, so the amateur development community will likely keep the Zodiac stocked with amusement potential regardless of what the system's commercial developers turn out." -
Tapwave Gets Duke Nukem, Genesis Classics
Thanks to BusinessWire for hosting the press release announcing pre-order availability and new software for the Tapwave Zodiac handheld, following advance news of the Palm-compatible's specs a couple of weeks back. But newly announced as "...coming in January 2004 is 'Duke Nukem Mobile,' which will open a new chapter of Duke's Universe for the mobile-minded gamer", and Tapwave have also hooked up with Sega, so that "several classic Sega Genesis titles will also be available for the Zodiac console in the months ahead." Forbes has an enthusiastic preview of the Zodiac, noting "Bluetooth wireless connectivity" and "its gorgeous screen display" as positives, although quibbling with the "convoluted interface" for Palm software. -
Palm OS Based Gaming Device Nears Release
Sokie writes "During the past few weeks Tapwave, a startup founded by a couple former Palm employees, has been slowly unveiling the features of their upcoming Helix (Flash heavy link) handheld gaming device. So far, the specs include a 480x320 16-bit color display, dual Secure Digital (SD) slots, Bluetooth connectivity for wireless multiplayer (Wi-Fi available through SDIO), multiple analog controls including triggers, ATI Imageon graphics, and dual rechargable lithium ion batteries (no word yet on battery life). In addition to some cool sounding hardware, several prominent game companies are already signed on to develop games for the Helix, including Activision and Midway. It will also run traditional Palm apps like Calendar and Address Book. Tapwave will continue to unveil a new feature each week for the next few weeks, and the product is supposed to launch in September or October and retail for about $299. PC World has some additional info." -
Helix - Handheld Game Platform From Ex-Palm Staff
madopal writes "It seems Reuters is reporting that some ex-Palm officials have announced a new gaming platform called Helix. The company is called Tapwave, but there's nothing on their site yet." This article in the San Jose Mercury News has a few more details - apparently, the unit will even feature an analog joystick and trigger buttons, and with its Palm OS organizer functionality, is apparently aimed at an older, more crossover audience than the Gameboy Advance.