Exciting times ahead for Palm?
The upcoming Treo Pro has had a somewhat mixed reaction from the gadget blogging world but there is some indication that bigger and better things are still to come from Palm.
Full reviews of the Treo Pro are on hold until next week, but CNet’s Adam Richardson calls it underwhelming mainly focusing on the lack of a larger screen. Meanwhile Matthew Miller at ZDNet seems to like the packaging, the size, and claims the 3G reception is good compared to the iPhone.
Many have complained that the $549 price tag just doesn’t cut it in the post-iPhone market and wmpoweruser.com even came up with a somewhat convoluted method of reducing that price tag.
Anyway, while waiting for the myriad of Treo Pro reviews that will no doubt appear this week I found an interesting article by Brian Chen at wired.com. Quoting Tero Kuittinen, a telecom analyst at Global Crown Capital, Chen muses that the Treo Pro will not be Palm’s saviour but is merely a device to tide them over until Palm unveils a new “revolutionary device” next year.
With Palm hiring Jon Rubinstein (instrumental in the development of the iPod and iMac) as head of research and development, Chen wonders if Rubinstein could lead Palm to introducing the next revolutionary device and finally change their fortune?
From the Chen article:
Looking ahead, Kuittinen said consumers should feel excited about Palm’s next offering, considering its new leader’s repertoire for revolutionizing hardware.
“It’s really exciting; it’s one of the biggest mysteries right now,” Kuittinen said. “What are they going to do?”
That has certainly got me intrigued.
What can we expect from this new device? Palm aren’t willing to disclose any details at the moment but it seems certain that it will be an entirely new platform and new hardware. With the Google Android reportedly falling behind its target release date and the leaked pictures of the first Android devices looking underwhelming at best there does appear to be at least a small window of opportunity here for Palm to launch a device that finally puts them back on the map.
It will be interesting to see which direction Palm take with their new device. Will they try to rival the iPhone with a consumer orientated device or will they stick to their roots and target the professional user? The iPhone has been a roaring success in the US but it isn’t a business orientated device and while it excels at web surfing it will never be an efficient email device due its lack of physical keyboard.
If Palm sticks to their professional-user roots then it’s hard to see how any new device could be truly revolutionary - what more does the business user need than what is already offered by the Treo Pro, a HTC TyTn II or a Blackberry?
Perhaps the new Palm device will be revolutionary in the sense that it will be all things to all men… a device that wows the gadget geeks, has true multimedia capabilities and works as an efficient and effective business device? In my eyes that would be a real winner, but no such device yet exists and it would be a big ask for Palm to pull that particular rabbit out of their hat.
Filed under: Editorials, Treo and Palm news
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While I have no clue as to the future of Palms devices. One must open the search more when looking for the next revolutionary device. I have use Palm Treo 700p and still think it is more flexible than anything on the market. The IPhone has a cool user interface and better connectivity to the internet. But that is all, there are devices coming out that will meet and beat the IPhone.Keep an eye on devices such as the MID with a linux OS. I hope Palm sticks to there core but keeps an eye to what is coming and not what is on the market.
they dont need a sparkling new OS. just add the following new features in palmOS:
- 3g and hsdpa
- wifi
- gps
- BETTER file management
with these im sold!
Yeah, yeah, yeah. We’re all excited about the (buzzword, buzzword, buzzword) of Palm. zzzzzzzzzzzzzzz…
You think after all these years of using that same shtick that Palm would get a new script to tapdance with.
We’re watching all the WinceMob devices come out, saying “next,” “next,” “next”…. Although the hardware levels are starting to catch up with 2004, the only thing that’s going to stop their final drop into oblivion will be a multitasking PalmOS that is stable, the bluetooth stays paired, has WiFi, GPS and a replaceable battery of reasonable capacity. This turn toward flashier fingerprint magnets could be a bad sign…
Palm likes to release new devices in groups, so I’m holding out hope for a new high-end Garnet OS device.
Thought: could the Centro already be the best Garnet OS can do?
Does Palm not listen to their “fan base”?? I for one do NOT want WM cause It’s garbage. Palm ought to come out with a treo pro and add:
-Palm OS
-3G/HSDPA/WiFi
-GPS
Or…
Palm OS 2
Is that too much to ask Palm???
In a word: Linux. The so-called ‘amazing’ capabilities of the iPhone are provided by the same unix-based OS X which powers the full size mac pc’s. Linux would provide the same dramatic capability and security while opening the amazingly strong Palm development community to a whole new world of cross platform capability. Google just released millions of $$ in investment for free into the open source community because it will destroy microsofts hold over business users with MS Windows OS. Time for palm to revolutionize their already amazing Palm OS with something revolutionary in the mobile market. BTW Linux has been used to great technical success in a PDA released years back, possibly by a company starting with a Z?
If I have to go with WM, there is every reason NOT to go with Palm. I would look for a more responsive and innovative company. With all the aggravation that Palm has caused me in the past, especially with the 700P on Sprint. I want something that I just don’t have to screw with. There is no way that Palm will survive because real companies don’t have to change their names.
Every second Palm is losing customers to WM devices, blackberry, and iphone. As a business user I cannot believe I have stuck with the palm OS this long….initially it was a simple UI but it has not adapted to the sophistication of the long term smartphone user. We need something new and exciting now not a retread of the same OS. Next year will be too late and Palm will continue to die a slow death.
With Palm hiring Jon Rubinstein, I have confident that Palm will have better ideas on the UI for its next Palm OS version.
Come on folks, more cheers for the Palm’s future. Palm OS still wins many people hearts for its ease of use and 3rd parties apps. Palm came out with the idea of threaded sms, and that’s what Apple iPhone is following now.
I think it is never too late to invent but only too many excuse. Palm, you can do it.
Bright future ;)
I for one havé done some amazing things with my palm, anyone can speculate! let’s just see what happens…
WAKE UP PALM!!!!!!!!
I had the treo 650.
I had the treo 700p.
I had the treo 755p.
I never bought WM because I always read users comments about how Palm OS is the most simple and straight forward UI out there for business people that need more than the crappy Apple-like OS’s, but also want more adaptability and quality than blackberries.
It seems that Palm forgot the reason that they once bloomed out of mediocrity because of the forward thinking and technical insights of not only their hardware, but also their software. IR, Bluetooth, and touch screen were great, but some may argue that Palm was merely keeping up with most other mobile companies. Although, Palm OS’s resolution, processing speed, and loyalty to the basic OS’s open source programming may have made up for these shortcomings.
The first failure in my mind was the lack of wi-fi in Palm OS devices.
“Oh well,” I thought, “as long as I have EV-DO, I won’t need it.” Even though I didn’t need it, I always wondered why they couldn’t have done it in Palm OS. This should have been a red flag for what was to come (or not to come).
Then came GPS in other devices. I have to say, this feature is one of the best tools to have for someone that is always in an unknown city. I know that this technology (at least the hardware) has been in palm OS devices for a while. I have not been able to find a reason for this feature not being available in these devices.
Then came other features like A2DP (the ability to connect bluetooth headphones to the device). I don’t even think anyone at palm knows what this is. I also have no idea why you can’t stream music from the internet. I particularly like listening to sirius on my computer through my BT headphones (I know for a fact that you can listen to sirius on WM). Another shortcoming is the inability to have a truly hands-free dialing ability. COME ON, even crappy disposable phones do this (and no, it’s not my headset).
So the 800w came out.
The more I read about it, the more I fell in love with it. It DID everything that I wanted it to do (when it worked). The only problem was what it WAS.
It was:
1. Windows Mobile (it only took me a couple of weeks to figure out why techies HATE WM)
2. Released with WAY too many bugs. (They probably are realizing this now because of the fact that half of the 800w’s have already been returned or exchanges)
3. Only good for a couple of hours without having to recharge the tiny battery. (What the heck good is a phone that is dead? Seriously, I would rather have a larger phone [same size as the 755p] with more juice than something slightly smaller that can barely stay powered up long enough for me to complain to palm’s support. I have already accepted the fact that since I want a PDA, I am going to have to accept something larger than a razor. Stop trying to make therse decisions for me!)
On top of the flaws that exist with a perfectly working 800w, I experienced the wonderful world of Microsoft’s programming bugs.
The first 800w I got had a flaw that made the person on the other end of the call sound like they were standing on the other side of the room from the phone. This is apparently an unfixed and common error.
So I exchanged it.
The second 800w I got would basically not let me answer some of my calls. I cannot have this with my job.
So I exchanged it.
My third 800w would not connect to my computer to sync all of my contacts with outlook. I know that I was doing it right because the two previous 800w’s did this just fine. It also did not fully connect with my BT devices. I’m not paying over $500 for this or any other phone if it doesn’t work!
So I RETURNED it, and re-activated my 755p.
Palm, you have about three months to come out with a Palm OS phone that has all of these features. If you don’t, you might want to start making children’s toys or something (although you’ll probably find a way to screw that up too). You are going to lose your customers. Period. This is the reason why your stock is going down.
The clock is ticking.
I will buy a new PDA in about three months. I hope you have these things fixed. If not, you will not get my business because you will have proven that you are truly failing. By that time, even if I have to go with WM, I will go with another manufacturer because of principal.
If you will excuse me now, I’m going over to cNet to research for my next PDA.
No news on MTDN for almost a month? Truly exciting times, indeed.
Not.
I have used Palm for about 7 years.
I used an Iphone the other day, it felt so absolutely far removed from my Treo.
Palm is dead in the water
Palm.. What’s taking you so long?? I’m a devoted Palm owner from Indonesia, but I’m very dissappointed with the fact that it’s taking those Palm guys FOREVER to come up with a new Palm OS device that ahead of the game!
Why cant these Palm people read their Fans’ comments? Don’t they know anything about Marketing 101? Duuh.. I agree with Asilva21.. Those basically sum up what Palm needs to offer.. No wonder it’s dyeing a slow death.. Wake up guys! You can do it!!!
I started with a 650 then went to a 680. I have limited selection because I am a T-Mobile user. I bought a blackberry about two months ago and NONE of my medical software works on it (I am a physician and I use drug, diagnostic, lab software dozens of times a day.) It seems to work better than my previous treo as far as connectivity is concerned, but it is far from perfect with regards to getting on the internet. GPS is cool. Overall, I am not satisfied and am sick of being limited to the stupid little ball for maneuvering around the screen. I want my touch screen back. I was satisfied in the past when my treo worked. I am going to buy a treo pro. I am a little nervous about the WM because I have always gone with the palm os in the past. I am a PC user so I like windows, but dealing with the frustrating windows errors and crashes will be miserable if they happen on the treo pro. Oh well - here goes…
I am also surprised at the lack of info on MTDN!!!!! Where is all the info as to whether or not this new device is worth getting!??? Help, you technogeeks… TELL us the dirt!!!!!