If you're running Gimp from the PND then that seems to be the norm. Only seems to support XCF.
If you're running Angstrom off of SD then you should have space to install Gimp from the repo, which has all the usual image formats available to it.
It looks like it's still a go here.
Like you I didn't have much interest in it for *DS* but if it fits the pandora nicely then it's well worth supporting.
Apps renders nicely for me now in Midori 0.2.9, but has problems with other sites.
Suck because I find Midori has the most touch-friendly interface of the browsers.
You can always reinstall pidgin from the angstrom repo, so long as you've got enough free space on NAND (no idea how much that would be though).
sudo opkg install pidgin