- Get the GP32 if you want a handheld system for emulation and development.
- Get the Zodiac if you want cooler-looking games, more potentional, and more utilities (thanks to Palm OS).
We all may sound like rabid GP32 fanboys/girls here, but the fact of the matter is purchasers of the Tapwave Zodiac are buying more into hype then even we display here about the GP32. It's not to say that the Zodiac may be a good system, but there just isn't enough solid evidence to back it yet.
I've also waited at least 2 to 4 months after a system was released to see how it would fair. Remember the defeated handhelds - Tiger.com, Lynx, Nomad, Game Gear, etc. Some lasted longer then others, but they didn't have a PDA features either.
Note that PDA features are generally not marketed towards the avid gamer - it doesn't like very professional to have a portable gaming system as a PDA. That skims down the market considerably, where we are left with people of younger generations and old timers who held onto the child inside of them, and the former doesn't exactly have bags of money to throw around. The GP32 is about $100 cheaper, which allows it to pick up parts of the market Zodiac can't reach.
Now for some personal preferences. Feel free to identify with them or not, but they're not part of any critical analysis except on myself.
I'm very interested in homebrew development (especially emulators), as I am a homebrew developer myself. I've found no need for PDAs once I got the GP32. It has a calender feature, and I've miraculously figured out, on my own, what is today's date every single day, and I have this thing called a "watch" that tells me the current time. Of course this means I would rather have a crappy PDA and an excellent handheld gaming system then a great PDA and a crappy handheld gaming system. Anyway, for the extra $100 I could be spending, I could buy a decent PDA to go along with my crappy PDA.
In conclusion - The GP32 isn't most cool because of its specs nor the homebrew community. The GP32 is most cool because it is here and now.