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Currently Tapwave's excellent gaming handheld based on the Palm platform can only be bought though its website, limiting the exposure of the award winning device. This is about to change, as Tapwave announced today that Zodiac products and games would be available for purchase from CompUSA store's nationwide this June.

In addition to the retail launch, Tapwave said it will release up to 10 new premier titles by the end of the year, along with 60 to 75 Tapwave Certified or Tuned titles, such as MicroQuad (arcade/racing game), Hellfire: Apache vs. Hind (helicopter combat game), Orbz (action arcade) and Acedior (RPG).

Some of the Zodiac premiere title3s will include Activision's Moto MTX: Mototrax and Street Hoops, Eidos' Tomb Raider and Atari's Neverwinter Nights. Activision's Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 4 just released in March, and DOOM II and Duke Nukem: Mobile Mayhem will be launching in the next few weeks.

In addition, Mac users can now use Zodiac with their desktop by downloading Mark/Space's Missing Sync software. The company has also recently completed the Zodiac software 1.1 update, which includes the ability to play music in the background while performing other functions, adds a system-wide quick launch feature, and lets users choose to automatically return to the last category viewed instead of the top-level of the home screen.

Zodiac

Zodiac comes in two models, Zodiac 1 for $299 (32MB of internal RAM) and the Zodiac 2 for $399 (128MB of internal RAM). The handheld is designed for high-performance mobile entertainment centered on games, music, pictures and video. It runs a Tapwave enhanced version of the Palm Operating System (5.2T) and is compatible to the more than 19,000 existing applications in the Palm marketplace. There won't be a Cobalt upgrade for the device.

In terms of controls, the 6.3 ounce, anodized-aluminum Zodiac features a full analog controller (or joystick) with 360 degrees of motion, built-in triggers and action button array for a console-quality gaming experience. For sound, it has built-in stereo speakers and a headphone jack let users listen to MP3s and gaming soundtracks.

Other features include dual expansion slots to add additional memory with Secure Digital flash cards. Zodiac also supports multimedia game cards and SDIO peripherals such as the Veo Digital Camera. It supports two forms of local wireless connectivity, IrDA for short-range beaming and Bluetooth for multiplayer wireless gaming within a 30-foot range.

The Zodiac has a high-resolution (480 x 320), backlit color display. This Half VGA display is twice the resolution of most today's Pocket PCs and four times the resolution of Nokia N-Gage and GameBoy Advance. Zodiac uses two processors, a Motorola i.MX ARM9 processor and the ATI Imageon W4200 graphics accelerator with 8MB of dedicated memory.

It also has a radial navigation system that enables users to launch up to 64 titles or applications with two simple movements of the analog controller. Users can also use the touch-screen to drag and drop applications and customize their view. It comes bundled with two games, Stuntcar Extreme by Vasara Games and AcidSolitaire by Red Mercury.

The handheld also has an MP3 player and includes Kinoma Producer, which allows users to convert and load videos to your Zodiac (MPEG1, MPEG4, QuickTime, AVI and DIVX videos). With the Kinoma Player you can watch full motion videos on a Zodiac. As for photos, users can share photos, create slide shows. JPEG images can be transferred from your PC (using the Palm Desktop Software) and can also be loaded via SD cards.