I live out of the country and have used Palm phones for many years, liking the versatility and stylus. When my unlocked 950 died a few months ago I tried to get Palm to tell me what I should buy to replace it and could get no response on the web site. Nor could I buy an unlocked phone on the web site, although I had done so previously. Their web site wasn't clear as to wether I could convert my Palm OS data to their newer OS's and I finally just gave up.
I was able to buy a Blackberry Curve at less than half the price of my last Palm 950 and have adjusted, sort of, to not having a stylus (games suck using a trackball). Palm should pull their heads out of the sand and go back to servicing their traditional customers, but it is probably too late as I have found a way to convert my Palm contacts and won't buy another one of their products.
Although Palm did quite a bit of lifting off of Apple (it even borrowed Apple's pebble desktop picture), it was a decent product. It, however, had and has three big problems: 1) Apple's 100, 000 plus application store, 2) Android, and 3) RIM.
There just isn't a niche where Palm fits where it can differentiate itself. RIM and Apple offer all in one solutions. RIM has an entrenched business cliental. The only reason you'd go with Palm over Apple is if you can't or don't want to go with AT&T. Most of the benefits Palm's OS held over Apple vanished when Apple updated the OS and Phone. So, Palm just can't compete with Apple's 100, 000 application store considering any benefits the Palm OS have are marginal at best. Further, the iPhone seems like a more sturdy product.
Apple would never buy Palm unless it wanted take back all the traitor engineers who Palm enticed to jump ship from Apple to Palm. Maybe Palm owns some patents Apple would be interested in. Perhaps some it can use against Nokia. Palm should consider opening up it's OS like Google did. The OS seems better then Android. Maybe Microsoft should consider purchasing it.
I think the syncing with iTunes was a good strategy because the people buying the Pre likely weren't buying the iPhone anyway, but it did give Palm a lot of free press. I knew BB users that had no idea RiM made an app that will sync with your iTunes library, but everyone know that the big bad giant wasn't letting the little guy have a chance by illegally (haha) pushing Palm out of the ubiquitous iTunes.
I disagree. I believe the iTunes project was the beginning of the end for the Pre. While fist pumping, counter-culturalists were egging Palm on to stick it to the man, the rest of the world saw Palm for what they were: a marginal, desperate, shady bunch of hacks who were only marginally higher up the food chain than Psystar. They traded credibility and general good will for a few weeks of bootleg iTunes syncing. It was a bad trade.
Palm didn't stand a chance, not for thier product or their competitors, but because of their cost structure. They didn't need an innovative product nearly as much as they needed desperately to re-invent their business itself. They needed massive layoffs or some form of restructuring years ago so they would have time for their products to mature.
The fact that they lacked a strategic vision as well (at least pre-Rubenstien) just made matters worse.
One question - where are all the Palm fans? Last year a lot of people were on here telling how Apple's days were numbered and the Pre was going to revolutionize the smart phone market, saying the PalmOS was superior to the iPhone... ::chirp chirp:: think I hear crickets.
The Palm UI may be GREAT, but what good does it do if the common user doesn't buy the phone? I'm no mobile tech know it all, but Palm messed up in these ways:
1) horrible marketing - those commercials made no sense and the common buyer didn't understand anything, plus that pasty lady was creepy.
2) the Pre is too small (heard many say this at my job and elsewhere) the keyboard is tiny and the device feels like cheap plastic ('cuz it is)
3) not making the OS open source to attract more developers and give it away to carriers like with Android. They tried to do too much by keeping it all in house.
4) the market is over crowded, most only have one phone and to pick Palm over iPhone, Android, or Blackberry is asking to much. Especially when you can get Android or BB on many different carriers. Which leads me to...
5) only being on Sprint was just dumb, doesn't Sprint have the smallest market share? So with that you are already limited and by time they got on VZ it is too late. Those who may have bought it on VZ last year already went out and bought a Droid, iPhone or other.
<quote> Palm said it expects its sales to be between $285 million and $310 million, well below its previous forecast of $1.6 billion to $1.8 billion. </quote>
I think this confuses quarterly and annual numbers. According to the N.Y. Times, "Palm forecast revenue of $300 million to $320 million, including deferred revenue, for its fiscal third quarter, which ends this month. That was well below the average analyst estimate of $424.7 million, according to Thomson Reuters.
It also said full-year revenue would be ?well below? its previous target of $1.6 billion to $1.8 billion. Wall Street was expecting $1.6 billion."
According to Dan Frommer the failure of Palm means Apple will soon follow down the drain. But his logic makes zero sense, leaves out many factors, and is about the worst thing I've ever read by him.
I kind of expect Frommer to be the Gruber Jackass of the Week.
Quote:
Palm is basically Apple, Jr. And if a bunch of Apple geniuses can't kick butt on their own at Palm, how are they going to kick butt without Steve at Apple?
but, but it has MULTITASKING and will soon have FLASH, how can this possibly be!!!
I'm so with you. I know it's petty, but Palm blatantly ripped off so much and behaved so badly when it came to Apple that I when from a person who had sympathies for them, to a person who watches with glee as they circle the drain. I can't wait to see their stock price when iPhone 4.0 hits
but, but it has MULTITASKING and will soon have FLASH, how can this possibly be!!!
The folks screaming of Apple's death due to the Palm Pre seem strangely quiet today. Hmm?? Perhaps they are all at the local restaurant eating huge portions of humble pie? \
I'm so with you. I know it's petty, but Palm blatantly ripped off so much and behaved so badly when it came to Apple that I when from a person who had sympathies for them, to a person who watches with glee as they circle the drain. I can't wait to see their stock price when iPhone 4.0 hits
They seem like they did a lot of that all at once, but I have no problem with that, even as a shareholder of Apple. This is how companies play ball. Apple isn't absolved from being underhanded when it suited their best interests. If Palm was successful then we may have seen a crap load of lawsuits from Apple crop up because their pockets would have been deeper and the offense more pronounced. Capitalism FTW!
How a video store sits in these ranks one can only assume it's for fun next to Circuit City.
Yep, I knew about the mergers...Not sure about Cingular but Nextel pretty sure was in trouble around the time of the merger.
I meant the first group were out of business and the 'next' were the next group that will be out of business soon. I didn't mean NeXT of Stevo's fame!
Sorry for the confusion...Circuit City, CompUSA poorly run...Blockbuster the clock is ticking because they have a 1990's business model-renting movies!
According to Dan Frommer the failure of Palm means Apple will soon follow down the drain. But his logic makes zero sense, leaves out many factors, and is about the worst thing I've ever read by him.
I kind of expect Frommer to be the Gruber Jackass of the Week.
Palm needs to offer a device more comparable with the iPhone and Android handsets with a full touch screen and software keyboard. They could do a slide keyboard like the Droid but only offering the Pixi and Pre is a big mistake. Lots of people don't want a physical keyboard these days now that multi-touch software keyboards with good auto-correction are just as good or better for lots of people.
Comments
I was able to buy a Blackberry Curve at less than half the price of my last Palm 950 and have adjusted, sort of, to not having a stylus (games suck using a trackball). Palm should pull their heads out of the sand and go back to servicing their traditional customers, but it is probably too late as I have found a way to convert my Palm contacts and won't buy another one of their products.
There just isn't a niche where Palm fits where it can differentiate itself. RIM and Apple offer all in one solutions. RIM has an entrenched business cliental. The only reason you'd go with Palm over Apple is if you can't or don't want to go with AT&T. Most of the benefits Palm's OS held over Apple vanished when Apple updated the OS and Phone. So, Palm just can't compete with Apple's 100, 000 application store considering any benefits the Palm OS have are marginal at best. Further, the iPhone seems like a more sturdy product.
Apple would never buy Palm unless it wanted take back all the traitor engineers who Palm enticed to jump ship from Apple to Palm. Maybe Palm owns some patents Apple would be interested in. Perhaps some it can use against Nokia. Palm should consider opening up it's OS like Google did. The OS seems better then Android. Maybe Microsoft should consider purchasing it.
I think the syncing with iTunes was a good strategy because the people buying the Pre likely weren't buying the iPhone anyway, but it did give Palm a lot of free press. I knew BB users that had no idea RiM made an app that will sync with your iTunes library, but everyone know that the big bad giant wasn't letting the little guy have a chance by illegally (haha) pushing Palm out of the ubiquitous iTunes.
I disagree. I believe the iTunes project was the beginning of the end for the Pre. While fist pumping, counter-culturalists were egging Palm on to stick it to the man, the rest of the world saw Palm for what they were: a marginal, desperate, shady bunch of hacks who were only marginally higher up the food chain than Psystar. They traded credibility and general good will for a few weeks of bootleg iTunes syncing. It was a bad trade.
The fact that they lacked a strategic vision as well (at least pre-Rubenstien) just made matters worse.
The Palm UI may be GREAT, but what good does it do if the common user doesn't buy the phone? I'm no mobile tech know it all, but Palm messed up in these ways:
1) horrible marketing - those commercials made no sense and the common buyer didn't understand anything, plus that pasty lady was creepy.
2) the Pre is too small (heard many say this at my job and elsewhere) the keyboard is tiny and the device feels like cheap plastic ('cuz it is)
3) not making the OS open source to attract more developers and give it away to carriers like with Android. They tried to do too much by keeping it all in house.
4) the market is over crowded, most only have one phone and to pick Palm over iPhone, Android, or Blackberry is asking to much. Especially when you can get Android or BB on many different carriers. Which leads me to...
5) only being on Sprint was just dumb, doesn't Sprint have the smallest market share? So with that you are already limited and by time they got on VZ it is too late. Those who may have bought it on VZ last year already went out and bought a Droid, iPhone or other.
6) simply bad management
:later.
I think this confuses quarterly and annual numbers. According to the N.Y. Times, "Palm forecast revenue of $300 million to $320 million, including deferred revenue, for its fiscal third quarter, which ends this month. That was well below the average analyst estimate of $424.7 million, according to Thomson Reuters.
It also said full-year revenue would be ?well below? its previous target of $1.6 billion to $1.8 billion. Wall Street was expecting $1.6 billion."
I kind of expect Frommer to be the Gruber Jackass of the Week.
Palm is basically Apple, Jr. And if a bunch of Apple geniuses can't kick butt on their own at Palm, how are they going to kick butt without Steve at Apple?
http://www.businessinsider.com/palm-...ve-jobs-2010-2
but, but it has MULTITASKING and will soon have FLASH, how can this possibly be!!!
And video recording!
but, but it has MULTITASKING and will soon have FLASH, how can this possibly be!!!
I'm so with you. I know it's petty, but Palm blatantly ripped off so much and behaved so badly when it came to Apple that I when from a person who had sympathies for them, to a person who watches with glee as they circle the drain. I can't wait to see their stock price when iPhone 4.0 hits
1) horrible marketing - those commercials made no sense and the common buyer didn't understand anything, plus that pasty lady was creepy.
Not sure if she is pasty, but I've seen other pics of her, and IMO, she's hot.
Palm paid millions for the rights to the Palm OS back from Access. Access laughed all the way to the bank.
but, but it has MULTITASKING and will soon have FLASH, how can this possibly be!!!
The folks screaming of Apple's death due to the Palm Pre seem strangely quiet today. Hmm?? Perhaps they are all at the local restaurant eating huge portions of humble pie?
I'm so with you. I know it's petty, but Palm blatantly ripped off so much and behaved so badly when it came to Apple that I when from a person who had sympathies for them, to a person who watches with glee as they circle the drain. I can't wait to see their stock price when iPhone 4.0 hits
They seem like they did a lot of that all at once, but I have no problem with that, even as a shareholder of Apple. This is how companies play ball. Apple isn't absolved from being underhanded when it suited their best interests. If Palm was successful then we may have seen a crap load of lawsuits from Apple crop up because their pockets would have been deeper and the offense more pronounced. Capitalism FTW!
Yeah, this babe.
Well, it does look as though she might have all her teeth.
So I guess those folks in Alaska might consider her "hot".
First...
Gateway
Circuit City
Nextel --> US Sprint merger
Cingular--> AT&T merger
Alltel
**********
Next.... -->Apple merger
Palm
Sprint
Blockbuster (for sure)
Motorola (mobile cell phone division/offshoot)?
I'm sure I'm forgetting a lot!
How a video store sits in these ranks one can only assume it's for fun next to Circuit City.
Yeah, this babe.
Amazing what photoshop does to skin tone and texture.
How a video store sits in these ranks one can only assume it's for fun next to Circuit City.
Yep, I knew about the mergers...Not sure about Cingular but Nextel pretty sure was in trouble around the time of the merger.
I meant the first group were out of business and the 'next' were the next group that will be out of business soon. I didn't mean NeXT of Stevo's fame!
Sorry for the confusion...Circuit City, CompUSA poorly run...Blockbuster the clock is ticking because they have a 1990's business model-renting movies!
According to Dan Frommer the failure of Palm means Apple will soon follow down the drain. But his logic makes zero sense, leaves out many factors, and is about the worst thing I've ever read by him.
I kind of expect Frommer to be the Gruber Jackass of the Week.
http://www.businessinsider.com/palm-...ve-jobs-2010-2
Please tell me Frommer was only joking.
Even after all these years and all these products, a lot of poor souls still have no understanding of how Apple works.