The written musings of a long-time Apple //e and Macintosh tech nerd. Opinions are my own.
The latest 1SRC Palm-Powered podcast has been uploaded. In the latest show, I cover:
The latest 1SRC Podcast has gone up for your listening pleasure. On this week’s show, I cover:
Last week was a rough week for the Palm Nation with the unfavorable economy battering stock prices, delays launching a new Windows Mobile Treo smartphone, and another round of layoffs here in the US and abroad. Long lines at Verizon retail locations for the new touch-screen enabled BlackBerry Storm aren’t helping things either. It is time for Palm to start talking Nova.
Palm OS II/Nova is Palm’s super secret project to develop the next generation Palm OS mobile operating system. There have been at least two false starts in the last five years; however many in the technology sector see this as Palm’s last chance to restore their tarnished reputation as a mobile technology innovator. From what little we know about Palm OS II/Nova, the core operating system is suppose to be done by the end of this calendar year (2008) and devices running the new operating system should be on sale by the middle of 2009.
The development cycle for Palm OS II/Nova, at least from the outside, appears to have run into some degree of trouble. Even if Palm completes the core feature set of the OS by the end of the year, they still must refine the new user interface and obtain certification from the FCC and their wireless carrier partners before the device can go on sale here in the United States. With the virtual shroud of secrecy surrounding the Palm headquarters, it has been next to impossible to glean any meaningful details about Palm OS II/Nova. In the face of all the bad news that continues come out of Palm, it is time to pull back the curtain around Palm OS II/Nova and give the world a glimpse into what Palm has in store of the Palm OS in 2009.
There are three key timeframes in which I expect to see information about Palm OS II/Nova starting to leak out. The first should be coming up any day now as Palm is suppose to be wrapping up development of the core feature set of the new OS. I would expect that any screen shots that pop-up on the Internet will be of an unfinished Nova that will give you a sense of the new direction Palm is trying to take Palm OS. At this stage, keep an eye out for a screen grab from the new Memos application. It won’t be impressive, but it will show off some of the window dressings of the new UI and application controls.
The second window will probably in the middle of the first quarter of 2009 in between the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) and the 3GSM World Congress. By this time, Palm had better be shopping new Palm OS II/Nova devices to the carriers and developers who have supported Palm for the last 10 years. This time around, I would expect to see some screen shots of the Phone and Launcher applications and maybe some shots of the new Prefs control panel.
The third, and last round of leaks, will likely come around the middle of the second quarter of 2009 when demo devices are in the hands of beta testers. When this happens all bets will be off and the proverbial cat will be out of the bag. Photos of the new device running Nova will be plastered all over the Internet. In the month leading up to the launch of the first Palm OS II/Nova powered device we will learn about the devices specifications and features. For Palm’s sake, the Excit-O-Meter needle had better be buried on the far right of the dial as it has been for the release of the Apple iPhone 3G, the T-Mobile Google G1, and the BlackBerry Storm.
So how about it Palm? Can you pull back the curtain on Nova ever so slightly as to give your loyal Palm OS customers a glimpse into the future while still maintaining the secrecy around the new software to keep a competitive advantage? It has almost been two years now since we’ve been waiting for Palm OS II/Nova and that means people will be looking to upgrade their phones. Give the customer base a reason to stick with Palm and not migrate to the headline grabbing iPhone 3G or BlackBerry Storm.
This week’s 1SRC.com editorial, What I Want in My Next Smartphone, has been posted.
Palm should be in the process of finalizing their next generation mobile hardware and software. Here is what I will be looking for in my next smartphone.
Hardware
While I like the current Treo form factor, it has become a tired design that needs to be refreshed. My next smartphone needs to have a nice clean design that provides easy access to hardware buttons while slimming down the body of the phone. For many shoppers, looks trump function and Palm’s devices need to look good and work well. The new Palm Treo Pro is an example of what new hardware from Palm needs to look like. To help with the miniaturization of the Treo, Palm has already embraced changes already implemented by other smartphone vendors. Palm has adopted microSDHC cards as the new storage card format. Palm has also begun to replace the large Multi-Connector found on the Centro with a miniUSB port that has been implemented on the Treo Pro and BlackBerry Curve. Making the display flush with the rest of the face of the phone is another tool for slimming down the device.
What I would like to see in future smartphones is more internal memory, standardization on 802.llg Wi-Fi, a digital camera with a flash, and the implementation of Sprint’s Wi-Max. Palm also needs to work on correcting motherboard-manufacturing defects that plague the headphone jack and microphone.
Software
Cool looking hardware is important. Software that works the first time, every time is essential. The software that will power Palm’s next generation hardware, Palm OS II/Nova, will either make or break the company. The direction that Palm is taking their Palm OS products is going to be for consumers and small business owners who don’t want the complexity of Windows Mobile. Palm will be required to step up their game to complete in this market space.
In their new OS, Palm needs to overhaul the software that customers will listen to music and watch video. These features have been around on Palm devices for a long time, however, it has been far too difficult for customers to get content into their phones. I would like to see Palm work with the developer community to enhance the multimedia software offering. Palm should be exploring partnerships with Amazon, Sling, TiVo, and Netflix to simplify the process or loading or steaming entertainment content to smartphones.
Palm’s Contacts, Calendar, Tasks, and Memos applications, collectively know as personal information management (PIM) applications, are well regarded by customers. Synchronizing that data to a Palm OS smartphone needs to be redesigned. A trip into any of the popular discussion forums, 1SRc.com, Brighthand.com, TreoCentroal.com, and event Palm’s own Community Help Forums, will reveal no end of trouble with the HotSync Manager.
The lack of a wired 64-bit Windows USB sync driver has plagued Windows Vista users for well over a year now. Setting up a Bluetooth serial connection is too complicated for novice users. The Palm Desktop software lacks some of the fields available on the device (Anniversary, Middle Name, Name Suffix), and OLERR data sync errors are too common and difficult to troubleshoot. Wireless data synchronization is one way to reduce the amount of difficulty customer’s experience. The cloud based solution that I have talked about previously in the editorial “Up In the Air” would by pass driver issues on Macintosh and Windows PCs, eliminate the configuration issues with Bluetooth serial ports, leverage the wireless capabilities of the smartphone, and provide data access from any Internet connected computer.
I would also like to see Palm enhance their third-party software delivery system. In “Palm Needs an App Store”, I talked about how Palm has not maximized their partnerships with Bluefish Wireless and PocketGear. The current process of finding, downloading, and installing software is not well understood by many customers. The model that Apple has put forward is the new standard of how the Zen of Palm should be applied to installing software. And did I mention new application delivery should be done over the air? Wires are so last century.
Lastly, any new mobile operating system needs to continue to promote the easy of use and flexibility that has become part of the Palm corporate DNA. People love the Palm OS because of its ease of use. Palm OS II/Nova should build on that user experience with a new customizable, modern look and feel. The user interface (UI) should also be modular. By using a modular UI, Palm could reuse the core operating system in other new products, such as a mobile Internet device (MID), and only have to spend time and money developing a new UI. Apple is doing something similar with Mac OS X on their system software on their Macs and the iPhone and iPod touch.
Conclusion
Palm has been a player in the mobile computing space for a long time. A number of bad business decisions in the late 1990’s have caused the company to lose their leadership position. The changes at Palm that have been made over the last 18 months as part of their People, Design, and Platform have been encouraging. The Centro has been a huge success with consumers and first-time smartphone owners.
Palm needs to continue to press their advances with a new operating system, devices (smartphones and mobile Internet devices), and new, innovating software that continues the tradition of the Zen of Palm.
[Via 1SRC.com…]
The 1SRC Editorial is back. This week I write about how Palm needs to build an App Store for Palm OS II/Nova powered smartphones.
Palm is in the midst of a corporate transformation, that, if successful, will put the company back on the map as a mobile computing innovator. Palm executives have outlined the three-step plan as being: People, Design, and Platform. This week we take another look at “Platform.”
In previous 1SRC editorials and podcasts, I have talked about Palm’s transformation and the possible products and services that might coincide with it. We’ve already seen the ramifications of “People.” Palm has been steadily recruiting top technology talent to help drive innovation across the organization. That recruitment process continues today. We have also seen the results of “Design.” The new Treo Pro is a radical departure from the smartphones that have their roots in the Treo 600 design. The last leg of the plan, “Platform,” refers to Palm’s efforts to develop a mobile operating system that will be the successor to Palm OS 5.
We know that work on Palm OS II/Nova is still on going and that devices running the new mobile operating system my not appear in the market place until as late as June 2009. Palm OS II/Nova, I think, is as much a means as it is an end. Yes, when Palm OS II/Nova finally does ship on a Palm smartphone, many people will breath a sigh of relief. Many people question Palm’s ability to deliver a new mobile operating system at all. Having already created five mobile operating systems, I think Palm can handle the creation of a sixth. What is of more long term strategic importance to Palm is the value added services that will be launched alongside of Palm OS II/Nova powered devices.
I have already talked about the possibility of Palm moving to a cloud computing solution to replace the current versions of Palm Desktop and the HotSync Manager for Windows and Mac OS X. A “Mobile Me Too” solution that Palm develops will be a boon for small business users and consumers. Even after the MyPalm.com portal shutdown, I still think that a cloud solution is in the works. Device backups will be another popular cloud service that Palm may provide. The Palm Backup beta, also closed, showed how easy device backups can and should be for people who do not fancy themselves as geeks.
The last piece of the puzzle has to be an application marketplace and application delivery system. This concept is not new to Palm. Palm’s partnership with Bluefish Wireless to provide AddIt on Palm OS devices has been around since 2003. AddIt masquerades as My Centro and My Treo on many of Palm’s recent smartphones and offers customers a means to demo and purchase software from their phones without the need for a desktop computer. Apple’s App Store has no doubt popularized this feature. As Palm prepares to wrap up development of Palm OS II/Nova, they will need to have a new mobile application store ready to go live at the same time.
When Palm OS II/Nova enters the market place, Palm’s competitors will be implementing similar solutions. Apple’s App Store is already online. Microsoft, RIM, and Google have all pledged to deliver similar on device shopping experiences. If Palm wants to be taken seriously as a mobile technology innovator, then Palm OS II/Nova will need an App Store of it’s own.
The frustrating thing for many customers is that Palm already has an under utilized solution with AddIt. We know that the web will play a major role in Palm OS II/Nova, and it stands to reason that a cloud solution makes sense. The trick for Palm, and their developer partners, who will populate the new digital storefront with software for us to buy, is to rework what they have. Palm will no doubt leverage their existing relationship with Bluefish to develop a new front-end client to the backend solution that would be delivered by the new PocketGear. (For those not in the know, PocketGear, formerly associated with Motricity, is the outsource partner that runs Palm’s online software store, Software Connection.) I’m a big fan of leveraging what has already been developed, and it would seem that Palm already has a relationship with business partners who can help create a new solution in short order without having to throw everything away.
In conclusion, I believe that Palm OS II/Nova represents more than a new mobile operating system that will be installed on smartphones from Palm. As I have attempted to demonstrate before, I believe that Palm OS II/Nova will be foundation for new products and services that are likely under development in Palm’s software labs.
The proof will be in the pudding as the saying goes. To that end, Palm should be taking advantage of CES in January and the Mobile World Congress in February to generate excitement with their carrier partners and in the developer community about a new on device software purchasing and delivery solution. Having a strong third-party software ecosystem will be essential to driving the success of Palm and Palm OS II/Nova just like it was when Palm introduced the Palm Pilot some ten years ago.
I was recently reminded how important third-party application developers are to the mobile computing user community.
Back on September 7, Pimlico Software, the company behind the popular DateBK application and the indispensable DBFitIt utility released a small, freeware application referred to only as “PalmHotSyncSetup” that allows older Palm OS smartphones and handhelds to sync with Palm Desktop 6.2 by ACCESS for Windows.
When Palm released the ACCESS edition of Palm Desktop 6.2, it only provided support for the recent crop of Palm devices running Palm OS 5.4.9. This includes the Palm z22, E2, TX, Treo 680, 700p, 755p, and the Palm Centro. If your Palm OS device didn’t come with Palm’s enhanced PIM applications (Contacts, Calendar, Memos, and Tasks) it was not officially supported. Testing older devices from my personal collection revealed that some older “legacy” devices could be synchronized with the new edition of Palm Desktop. My testing lead me to give the Tungsten E and Tungsten T3 the Foleo Fanatics seal of approval for Palm Desktop 6.2.
My testing also verified that Palm OS devices, including the Palm Vx, Tungsten T, and the Sony Clie NZ-90 could not be synchronized to Palm Desktop 6.2. These devices could be synchronized with Microsoft Outlook however; an option that will cost customers an additional $110 or more if they don’t already have a copy installed on their PC.
Taking this information into consideration, my final recommendation on the situation was to use Palm Desktop 6.2 on Vista if you had one of the officially or unofficially supported devices. If you had an older device, I recommended that customers just stick with Palm Desktop 4.1 or 4.2.
Pimlico Software to the Rescue
Pimlico Software, a long time player in third-party application development for the Palm OS platform, earlier this month has released a free desktop utility that adds support for older Palm OS devices to Palm Desktop 6.2. By flipping some switches in the complex Windows Registry, a database of sorts where Microsoft keeps lots of settings for your PC, Pimlico turns on synchronization support for the older PIM applications: Address Book, Date Books, Memo Pad, and To-Do List.
This is fantastic news for Palm customers who have gotten amazing longevity out of their Palm handhelds running Palm OS 3.5 and later. With Windows XP no longer available to consumers who purchase a new PC from big box retailers like Best Buy and Circuit City, Pimlico’s software gives these customers a way to continue using their favorite Palm with Windows Vista. (There are issues with Palm Desktop 4.x and 6.x on Vista. Read about your options here and then pick your poison.)
Pimlico’s easy to use solution takes the risk and pain out of turning on, or off, the ability to sync with older devices. The contributions by Pimlico and others, offer customers the much-needed tools, tweaks, and fixes that manufactures are unable or unwilling to provide users with.
This is why I believe that third-party application developers are so critical to any computing environment.
For this week’s 1SRC Editorial, I continue my search for mobile computing bliss for a smartphone/keyboard solution that will afford me a more flexible solution while I wait for Palm to release a Foleo.
From this week’s editorial:
I love the idea of having information at my fingertips. Whether it is my PIM information, the mobile web, or my documents. In the last few years, I’ve only been able to achieve half of my mobile Nirvana. Once again I am going to try for mobile bliss.
The Story So Far
Back in the 1990’s I had the dynamic duo of PDAs: a Palm handheld and a folding hardware connected full sized keyboard. It was a winning combination that kept me productive on the go. Type in web addresses was a snap, composing email messages was a breeze, and taking notes in meetings couldn’t be easier. That last point also ensured I was able to read my notes after the meeting.
When I made the jump to a Treo, things started to fall apart. Wireless keyboards, connecting over Infrared or Bluetooth were plagued with connection and compatibility problems. In the end, I became frustrated with the whole solution of wireless keyboards and I gave up on the idea and went back to using pen and paper. Not exactly the technological wonder I was looking for.
Mobile Bliss Take 3
“They” say that the third time is a charm. I’m hoping that the saying rings true.
I have a small collection of wireless keyboards in the bottom drawer of my desk. The latest addition to my collection is the iGo/ThinkOutsde Bluetooth Sierra wireless keyboard. I originally purchased it to pair up with my Treo 700p. Any one who has used a Treo 700p in the past knows that the Bluetooth stack had, to put it politely, issues.
Years later, I have come to own a Palm Treo 750 powered by Windows Mobile Professional 6.0. While doing some “fall cleaning” in m home office, I came across my Sierra keyboard. Could this Windows Mobile device and this Bluetooth keyboard offer the solution that I have been longing for?
Read the full editorial over at 1SRC.com…
I’ll provide you with an update to see how I’m doing with my Treo 750 and iGo/ThinkOutside Bluetooth Sierra wireless keyboard during this week’s 1SRC podcast, show 197, and 1SRC Chat on 9/6/08.
I have posted this week’s 1SRC.com Editorial, Coming Soon: The Palm Treo Pro.
The Palm Treo Pro: Coming Soon
Two months ago, Palm President and CEO Ed Colligan told us that Palm would be delivering new smartphones offering “major advancements” built on the Windows Mobile platform. The new Treo 800w on the Sprint network and recently leaked images and details for unannounced Treo Pro/850/Drucker show that Palm is serious about delivering on the promises made back in June.
Making Good on Promises
Palm has been talking about returning to a leadership position in the mobile computing arena by focusing on people, design, and platform. With Elevation Partners help, Palm has addressed “People.” We know that Palm is addressing “Platform” with the continuing development of the Palm OS II/Nova operating system. That leaves “Design” and if the recent Treo 800w and leaked images of the Treo Pro/850 are any indication, Palm has figured out how to make devices that work well, and look great while they are doing it.
WMExperts, PalmInfoCenter (here, here, and here), and Brighthand have posted several good articles that provide product details and clear pictures of the unannounced addition to the Treo product family. What I find encouraging about the Treo Pro rumors is that Palm is poised to provide an elegant looking phone with a robust operating system that enables them to deliver value added features such as Wi-Fi, GPS, and the usual Palm refinements that making using their hardware a delight.
Corporate customers and Windows Mobile power user will have plenty to be happy about with the Treo Pro. Included in this device are a number of nice features including a flush with the body, 320×320 touch screen display and integrated Wi-Fi and GPS radios. According to the rumors, the Treo Pro will also have lots of memory (about 100MB each for application and storage space), a peppy 400MHz processor, a 1500mAh removable battery, and a 3.5mm headphone/headset jack. BlackBerry who?
The recent digital flood of “leaked” Palm Treo Pro information can only be seen as a back door product announcement and leads me to believe that the official release of the new smartphone is imminent. I would be surprised if the Treo Pro doesn’t go on sale in Europe on Vodafone in the next four weeks. The photos and videos that have surfaced on the Internet clearly show a production-grade device. If that prediction turns out to be true, customers in the United States should expect the Treo Pro/850 to arrive on AT&T before February 2009.
What’s In a Name?
Another thing to consider about the new Windows Mobile Treo is the name; the Palm Treo Pro. The Centro is clearly the entry level, consumer-oriented smartphone. The Treo Pro, as the name suggests, stands poised to take over as the corporate flagship smartphone from Palm. But I have to wonder what else Palm has planned for their smartphone line up.
Palm has segregated their smartphones into two clear lines: Palm OS for non-business customers and Windows Mobile for corporate customers. Will Palm further segment their Windows Mobile phone business? The Treo Pro will become the new corporate smartphone. Is Palm’s intent to make the Palm Treo 500v, or similarly styled device, an entry-level device, and what would Palm position as a mid-range candidate for the Windows Mobile platform? Should we expect two see five smartphones in Palm’s 2009 line up? The Centro and a Palm OS II/Nova would hold down the entry-level and consumer mid-range device market. On the Windows side, the Treo 500v would be the value smartphone, a less expensive and feature-laden edition of the Treo 800w/Pro for the mid-market, and the Treo Pro for the high-end enterprise customer.
In Conclusion
Fans and enterprise customers should be very happy with Palm’s new high-end feature phones. The yet to officially be announced Treo Pro is a great looking device that incorporates features that have long been absent from Palm’s smartphone line up. The recent appearance of high-quality photos and video of the Pro indicate that that the device will likely be announced and go on sale in the not too distant future on Vodafone’s wireless network.
I have published this week’s 1SRC Editorial; “Up In the Air.”
Back in June I talked about how Palm might be transforming the MyPalm.com portal into a cloud computing solution for the company’s products. With the recent announcement of the MyPalm.com shutdown, I have become more convinced than ever that a new Palm cloud solution is coming.
Recent evidence suggests that even though Palm is closing down their MyPalm.com beta service, work at the company is preceding full steam ahead on a new Internet-based solution.
I suspect that Palm will re-launch their software portal, Software Connection. As you may recall, Motricity has sold all of their direct to consumer businesses, included the eReader and PocketGear properties. Fictionwise acquired the eReader assets and is moving forward with their new assets. I’m glad to see the eReader business in good hands. I really do plan on reading more ebooks before the end of the year. The future of Palm’s Software Connection is a little bit less clear. There is a new management team in place at PocketGear, and their relationship with Palm is still an unknown. The question in my mind is whether or not the new management team is interested in running other company’s software stores in the same manner that Motrcity did for Palm.
One of the key features of the MyPalm.com portal was the ability to deliver new applications to your smartphone over the air (OTA). This was a very nice feature. Simply provide your mobile number and a SMS message is sent that includes the download link for the software. Tap the link and the software is downloaded and installed on your phone. There is no need to sync with a desktop computer. This is the kind of easy of use and simplicity that Palm is so good at. Come September, I expect that Palm will have an enhanced software portal that will allow you to download and purchase software for Palm OS and Windows Mobile devices OTA. If you are a MyPalm member and haven’t tried OTA software installs, go test it out. You will become a convert.
An OTA software store is only a part of the total picture. It is very likely that Palm is moving forward with a new cloud-based service. The Palm Backup beta application alone should be proof of that. If you do need more proof, Palm writes in a recent 10-K SEC filing report that they, “substantially [acquired] all of the assets of a corporation focused on developing solutions to enhance the performance of web applications.” This information taken in consideration with other information that is available strongly suggests that a new cloud application is coming.
Look at it this way; the MyPalm portal beta will have been running for over a year by the time it is closed down. That is plenty of time to learn how people would use a new cloud service and to perfect OTA content delivery. Integrated cloud applications like Google Docs, Mail, and Calendar have been come popular because your information “parked” on servers accessed from the Internet on a wide range of devices. (Yes, I agree that not everyone will want to put all of their data out on servers they don’t control. Lets agree that criminals will get your data one-way or another if they really want to, regardless of where you store your data.) Apple’s Mobile Me service launch was, and still is, a complete mess with tens of thousands of users unable to fully access their account. As flawed as Apple’s implementation of Mobile Me was, rest assured, the underlying concept is sound. I believe that Palm could be working on a “Mobile Me Too” service that will allow their customers to store data on a Palm server and have that data available to smartphones, other Palm products, and all of your computers. Corporate organizations already have these features with Microsoft’s Exchange Server product. Palm has an opportunity to deliver an enterprise class messaging solution targeted specifically at new Centro owners, “prosumers” and small business owners. There is an enormous potential for success here.
All of these new features won’t come with out a price. I fully expect that if Palm does offer a “Mobile Me Too” solution, like Apple, they will charge customers an annual maintenance fee. At $99 a year, Apple’s Mobile Me service is a good value. If Palm where to charge something on the order of $60-79 annually for the kind of service I am talking about, they could potentially steal customers away from Apple.
In conclusion, while I don’t have any first hand information about what is going on at Palm, there is plenty of evidence available that Palm is working on a server based product offering leveraging web technologies. I expect that Palm is working on more than just a new software store and I am looking forward to seeing a cloud-based synchronization solution from Palm.
If the early success of the Treo 800w is any indication of the new management atmosphere introduced by Elevation Partners, Palm can deliver a new data synchronization and OTA content delivery system if they want to.
Jeff Kirvin is my special co-host for this week’s show as we run down this week’s topics: