The quality of gaming on the PSP is amazing. Gran Turismo looked every bit as good as GT 3 did on the PS2. The sound quality, the ability to play movies, this is a portable home entertainment center. But recently a new love has entered my life. The Tapwave Zodiac.
Now, don't get me wrong, it's not like I'm being unfaithful. I am saving myself, and a special place on my credit card, for the PSP. Yet, the good folks at Tapwave loaned me a Zodiac to review, and it would be unfair of me not to at least show it around.
For clarity's sake, the Zodiac is the gaming Palm Pilot. It is a full function, Blue-Tooth enabled PDA. The kicker is that you can hold it upright, like a regular old Palm Pilot, or you can hold it sideways, like the old school Game Boy Advance. When held sideways, an analog controller, shoulder buttons, and four action buttons are readily available. Unlike the oft-maligned N-Gage, the Zodiac actually feels like a handheld console.
Now, the Palm Pilot aspect of the Zodiac was fine. It had the calendar, email functions, and all the other PDA functions. It also played MP3s and video, but it would be tough and expensive to fit a full movie onto a smart-media card. When it came to gaming, though, its potential was high, but its execution was low. Tony Hawk 4 was alright, and Spy Hunter was mediocre. The puzzle games, and scrolling shooters were fine, and the SEGA classics pack it came with (featuring Genesis games like Altered Beasts) was a blast. At the end of the day, the gaming was not quite on the same level as the Game Boy Advance, and certainly nowhere near what the PSP has shown itself to be.
Yet, I want one. And I want one bad. Now I know the PSP is going to make this look like five day old donuts, but at the same time, I need it. I, like many I know, need and use a PDA. Whether for organizing, taking notes, or jotting down phone numbers, it is practically indispensable. Now, having a GBA and a PDA rattling around in my book-bag is annoying, so as much as I love playing Wario Ware on the bus, the GBA often gets left at home. Despite the fact that the PSP will be better than finding a briefcase full of twenties, it too may lose out to the PDA, as I need the PDA, even though I want the PSP.
So, despite its sub-par gaming, (again, it's not bad, but certainly not PSP material) the Zodiac is a tempting option. Of course what I really want to know is, why doesn't Tapwave and Sony get together and create a PDA PSP? Obviously Tapwave simply doesn't have the support nor experience to really pull off a gaming platform, and let's be honest, if the PSP had PDA functionality even my father-in-law would buy one, it would be the must have gadget. So there it is.
PSP I love thee, but I only have so many pockets in my cargo pants. I love your games, I love your movies, I love the fact that you make the ladies swoon. But I need you to remember their phone numbers for me. So how about it Sony? You've got some time. Why not get the Tapwave folks on-board and create a PSP PDA. Heck I won't even charge you for the idea, just call it the RogStation Portable, or RSP... OK, even I don't really like that idea... how about you keep the PSP name and send me a free one? What do you say? Let's set the PSP and the Zodiac up on a blind date and see if they can't make magic together.
