Those with long memories and an eye for the absurd may remember the abortive launch of the Gizmondo handheld device in 2005. With a launch party featuring Kylie Minogue and laughable claims about taking on Nintendo at their own game, the company eventually descended into farce, peaking when one of its execs crashed a speeding Ferrari in LA that turned out to have been paid for with funds really meant to help build and sell games consoles. The result was a swift exit from the market, the shutting of their eerily empty Regent Street flagship shop and the disappointment of the handful of starry-eyed optimists who'd actually parted with cash in return for the doomed device. News of a Christmas 2008 relaunch was therefore greeted with some amusement, and fresher news of its non-appearance with manufacturing problems and the credit crisis cited, isn't so much a surprise as business as usual.