Pandora App Store takes shape

It’s been a long hard road but the Pandora handheld is finally getting into the hands of patient gamers the world over.

After experiencing some last-minute delays with the case design, the Pandora team have confirmed that a small batch of units have been shipped to developers.

As if to prove this fact, photos of these very same machines have started to appear online, causing fits of elation and jealously amongst the thousands of people who pre-ordered the device months ago.

With the boards finished and the cases about to go into mass-production, Craig Rothwell - one of the men behind the project - has revealed a screenshot of the proposed Pandora App Store.

Rothwell has admitted himself that the name may change before the final release (we imagine that Apple’s lawyers might have something to do with that) but the concept is interesting: while it’s by no means unique in the realm of handheld gaming, it’s a bold move when you consider that the Pandora will be used largely for playing emulations and homebrew titles.

Such connectivity will make it easier to get the machine up and running, as well as offering bedroom coders a potential means of making money out of their hard work.

Rothwell has also hinted that the Pandora will be supported by full-blown commercial releases, and such a storefront would make the format appealing to the hordes of publishers who currently ply their trade on mobile phones and the iPhone.

We’ve already made room in our busy schedule to give the Pandora a good going over, so you can expect an exhaustive review as soon as our unit arrives.