Palm Announces Go-between Product
Palm has introduced the Palm Foleo, the first mobile device companion. Smaller than a laptop and larger than a Treo, the mobile companion comes with Wi-Fi and Bluetooth built-in. This lets the Foleo connect to Treos and other compatible smartphones and handheld devices and available Wi-Fi connections.
The Foleo also marks Palm’s first product that uses the Linux-based operating system. How will a product like this do? I used to carry a portable keyboard with my PalmOS device, but a keyboard is smaller than the Foleo. Do business professionals want to carry a Foleo along with their smartphones? While traveling, they most likely won’t want to leave their laptops behind. Carrying a laptop AND a Foleo looks like gadget overkill.
Hey, aren’t tablets similar to the Foleo? Granted they weren’t made to be companions to smartphones and didn’t typically come with a keyboard. Tablets work well in doctor’s offices and for service providers, so they can update records and report services rendered. But they don’t serve the mobile professional well.
What if the Foleo worked like a Treo without the need for a Treo? Don’t think that would work either. People love to have the small phones they can stick in their pockets and purses. The Foleo doesn’t have the portability people want or need. Most of the time, business professionals carry briefcases, which gives them a place for the Foleo. But the Foleo’s role looks limiting after analyzing this from various perspectives.
The new device weighs 2.5 pounds and contains a five-hour battery life. The Foleo comes out later this summer at a special price of $499 with the $100 debate included. Like its handheld counterpart, the Foleo comes with instant off and instant on. No waiting for anything to load.
Personally, I’d rather see Palm spend its energy on taking the PalmOS interface to another level even with Linux as its backbone. PalmOS works better than Windows Mobile. Think of PalmOS like the Apple of handheld devices — simple and fulfills its purpose. Palm created its operating system with mobility in mind rather than trying to copy the desktop experience like Microsoft did with operating system on Pocket PCs and Windows Mobile devices.
Hey, aren’t tablets similar to the Foleo? Granted they weren’t made to be companions to smartphones and didn’t typically come with a keyboard. Tablets work well in doctor’s offices and for service providers, so they can update records and report services rendered. But they don’t serve the mobile professional well.
What if the Foleo worked like a Treo without the need for a Treo? Don’t think that would work either. People love to have the small phones they can stick in their pockets and purses. The Foleo doesn’t have the portability people want or need. Most of the time, business professionals carry briefcases, which gives them a place for the Foleo. But the Foleo’s role looks limiting after analyzing this from various perspectives.
The new device weighs 2.5 pounds and contains a five-hour battery life. The Foleo comes out later this summer at a special price of $499 with the $100 debate included. Like its handheld counterpart, the Foleo comes with instant off and instant on. No waiting for anything to load.
Personally, I’d rather see Palm spend its energy on taking the PalmOS interface to another level even with Linux as its backbone. PalmOS works better than Windows Mobile. Think of PalmOS like the Apple of handheld devices — simple and fulfills its purpose. Palm created its operating system with mobility in mind rather than trying to copy the desktop experience like Microsoft did with operating system on Pocket PCs and Windows Mobile devices.
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