| Windows CE-powered Gizmondo hits the US |
Oct. 25, 2005
 Tiger Telematics reports that the Oct. 22nd North American rollout of the Windows CE-powered Gizmondo handheld multifunction entertainment console -- along with its games and satellite navigation packages -- went according to plan, with the device receiving an "enthusiastic reception" from US consumers.
The Gizmondo went on sale Saturday at selected retail locations in the US, and on its official website. The company's US shopping center kiosk launch initiative was well received by shoppers, according to Tiger, thanks to a combination of "high profile positioning and trained staff" who treated shoppers to one-on-one demos of the new multi-entertainment handheld's six core functions -- games, music, movies, messaging, a digital camera, and GPS.
Tiger says that the initial retail locations in Atlanta, Boston, Dallas, Miami, Fort Lauderdale, Las Vegas, Chicago, Seattle and four prime locations in Los Angeles will be quickly followed by a further 38 kiosks in similarly high-profile North American locations.
The Gizmondo boasts a 2.8-inch TFT color screen and is powered by a 400MHz ARM9 applications processor along with an Nvidia 128-bit GoForce 3D 4500 graphics accelerator. The interactive, pager-sized gadget provides "cutting-edge gaming", multimedia messaging, an MP3 music player, MPEG 4 movie playing capability, a digital camera, GPS, and a GPRS network link to allow wide-area network gaming, according to the company. Much of the device's software was developed by Intrinsyc Software based on its wireless telephony suite, according to Intrinsyc.
The Gizmondo has been creating considerable buzz ever since it was first announced about two years ago. It first shipped in the U.K. about a year ago shortly after winning an electronics design award. Tiger had a major presence at the Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) last spring where the company announced an initial US "street date" of Aug. 11. That date was subsequently pushed out until the fourth quarter, due to delays in the satellite navigation package and an unannounced game title.
Mike Carrender, CEO, Tiger Telematics, commented: "We're delighted with the response to the kiosk initiative, increased web traffic, and initial sales from the website. The launch here in North America is a particularly important milestone for the company. From here we intend to escalate our launch activities and look forward to making further announcements as we roll out through retail."
Tiger valued the Gizmondo marketing campaign leading up to the year-end holidays at $30 million (USD).
The Associated Press (AP) has published a short review of the Gizmondo, which notes that the device lacks a large base of available games, but praises it as "solidly built and comfortable to hold with a 2.8-inch, 65,000-color screen that's crisp and bright." The reviewer also notes that Tiger's announced plans to bring out a WiFi-enabled model with a larger (4-inch) screen may slow down sales for the current model.
For more details on the Gizmondo, read our earlier coverage.
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