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Tapwave has come out of stealth mode, revealing some details of its forthcoming mobile gaming handheld device that will be released for sale in the United States by the end of the year.

The company, founded in 2001 and made up of former Palm executives, is developing a handheld device designed primarily for gaming, but with additional features. The Tapwave device will feature personal information management tools, audio and video players, and even a word processor. It is known only by its code name, Helix, and features a backlit 3.8-inch screen in a package that weighs less than 6 ounces.

Built-in Wireless

Tapwave will use the i.MX family of processors from Motorola in the Helix device. The graphics processors will be provided by one of ATI Technologies' Imageon products for handheld devices. Dual rechargeable lithium batteries will be installed in the Helix, but the company is not yet releasing estimates on the length of battery life.

Bluetooth will be included with the product to enable up to eight players to engage in multiplayer games wirelessly. They'll have to be in the same room, however, as Bluetooth's range is generally confined to about 30 feet. Users will be able to plug in Wi-Fi cards, digital cameras, or memory cards through Secure Digital (SD) slots.

Tapwave licensed the latest version of the Palm OS 5 operating system--Palm OS 5.2--from Palm subsidiary PalmSource in a deal announced this week at the PalmSource Developer Seminar. Users can keep their calendar and address book information on the device up to date when not playing games with the Hot Sync feature of Palm OS. Tapwave is also working with a wide range of developers for Palm OS to bring applications to Helix when it is released.

Grown-up Gamers

Several prominent game companies are expected to license their titles for Helix, including Activision, makers of the Tony Hawk Pro Skater series, and Midway Games, developers of the Mortal Kombat series.

Helix will be marketed to "the handheld game user who has graduated beyond the Nintendo Game Boy experience," the company says in a briefing document.

The business world is getting serious about gaming, as more traditional forms of technology stagnate with corporations reluctant to spend money on new products. Several cell phone makers and carriers are stepping up efforts to allow users to download games to their handsets, and Sony and Microsoft are battling for the future of the console gaming market.

To succeed in the mobile gaming world, developers must create multifunction devices that can not only handle sophisticated games, but also make phone calls, store important information, and play different types of media, said panelists at the recent Games and Mobile Forum in New York.

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