Pros & Cons of Device OS Platforms - A Wireless Gaming Perspective 

A Viewpoint from Chris Connor of Wireless-gamer.Com Website - We acknowledge the source for professional debate and discussion.

The question is simple: Which major PDA operating system is best suited for playing games on,
a Pocket PC or a Palm OS device? The answer, however, is not so simple. Both operating
systems have their pros and cons along with a large number of quality games. With that in mind,
lets break down each major battle of this PDA game war.

Performance: Pocket PC Wins Hands Down
Palm OS devices simply can not compete with Pocket PCs in terms of sound, graphics,
processor speeds, or storage capacity. This fact should not come as a surprise considering that
PC giants like Compaq, HP, and Microsoft lead the Pocket PC camp while upstarts like Palm
and Handspring head the Palm OS camp. With the likes of Microsoft and other PC industry
giants behind it, the Pocket PC can already outperform (in terms of processor speed) some older
versions (5 years old or older) of its big brother, the PC. In contrast, a typical Palm device's
performance is not even in the ball park of a PC 5 years ago. A Pocket PC can also outperform a
Palm OS device in terms of storage by 8 times or more. For example, lets compare two of the
best PDAs for playing games on: a Compaq iPAQ and a Handspring Visor Prism. The Prism can
only store 8 MBs of data while the Compaq iPAQ 3765 can store up to 64 MBs. Quite a
difference in storage capacity for a price difference of only a $100 or so. That said, the Pocket
PC boasts the best system for larger more graphically attractive games. 

Ease of Use: Palm OS Will Always Be More User-Friendly than Pocket PCs
While the Pocket PC dominates all the major performance criteria, the Palm OS possesses the
more user-friendly interface. Sure, users who are familiar with Windows will have no problem
operating a Pocket PC. Nevertheless, people who have no computer experience will likely be
better able to navigate through a Palm device without any problems due to the Palm OS's simpler
design. All the programs icons on a Palm are grouped on the first (home) screen rather than in
different folders like a Pocket PC. Deleting a game is also easier on a Palm because the option
for it is easily accessible on the bottom of the screen. To delete a game on the Pocket PC, a
user must find the file manager in the program folder or select the remove program option in
system settings. Even after finding the delete option in a Pocket PC, however, the game may not
be removed completely because some files do not clean up well. The only advantage that the
Pocket PC enjoys over the Palm OS in terms of ease of use is installing games. While Palm
users have to install the right file into the device's add-on list for the next synchronizing between
the PDA and a PC, a Pocket PC will automatically install most games. Speaking of the
games..... 

Games: Currently Equal But Pocket PC Will Eventually Prevail
Although the gaming enjoyment for the Palm OS and Pocket PC are about equal right now, the
games themselves are far from being equal. For instance, some games like Hyperspace Delivery
Boy, Snails, and Rocket Elite on the Pocket PC are so innovative that they defy traditional genre
classification. On the other hand, the Palm has more quality games in each major genre like
RPG (Kyle's Quest and Aldon's Crossing), simulations (Solar Wars and Dope Wars),
arcade-style action (Zap!2000 and Agent Z), and racing (Race Fever and Car). As the quantity
gap of quality games narrows between these two PDA mega powers, look for the Pocket PC to
take a commanding lead in terms of gaming enjoyment and never look back. 

MobileInfo Advisory Comments; Developers of wireless games should not worry about pros and cons of device operating system platforms because they have no control on those decisions. Also, we do not see any of the three major operating systems (Pocket PC, Symbian, and Palm OS) disappearing in the next three years. The developers should really develop games for all platforms, using an open platform. Purely from numbers game, you will see millions of units in each of the three major platforms. There may be more MMS-enabled smart phones than Pocket PCs and Palm Os PDAs combined at the end of 2003. 

The issue is not as simple as that. Nonetheless, if the intended game is complex and power hungry, they should worry about the device OS and processing power. Also if the game requires sophisticated graphics support or control, the developers should take that factor into account while building their first incarnation of the game. Developers' prior development experience might determine on which platform they develop a particular game for the first time but that will also limit the market for their game. Also, it is not just between Palm OS and Pocket PC. That is a parochial North American viewpoint. We must not ignore Symbian platform that is very popular in Europe. Several smart phones have been recently introduced on Symbian platform with MMS support. We recommend a more thorough analysis before you select the development platform.