News

UPDATE:

I have talked with contacts at PalmSource and all deny that Nintendo is a licensee of the Palm Operating System. It's not clear if the report from GamerCentric is a complete fabrication or Nintendo is in the process of becoming a licensee but not there yet. In any case, they're not a licensee and won't be announcing anything regarding Palm OS on their popular DS gaming system any time soon.
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A rumor has started circulating that Nintendo has licensed the Palm Operating System from PalmSource. The speculation includes plans to add the Palm OS to Nintendo's DS gaming platform. Nintendo is supposed to show off their organizer tools for the DS at the E3 Expo in May.

GamerCentric has the following blurb on the topic:

Nintendo had recently licensed Palm OS based PDA software without any details on why they had done it. Now Nintendo sources have revealed that V-Pocket trademark concerns this licensing. E3 will be the first witness of Nintendo's complete line of personal organizer tools for its Nintendo DS. Nintendo believes PDA software with the DS's functionality will put it above its high profiled rival: Sony's Playstation Portable.
http://www.gamercentric.com/index.php?page=viewnews&id=3225

While this is certainly an interesting development and surely a huge boost to PalmSource, who could certainly use one, it's still rumor at this point. PalmSource has not announced Nintendo as a licensee, nor are they listed on the PalmSource licensee web page. With this news Tapwave certainly has to be nervous. Their main edge comes with the gaming capability of their PDAs. With no new units scheduled for some time, a move like this is troubling for them.

For more information on the DS, check out our review. Nintendo DS Review