Thread: CNet's five reasons for Palm's slide
View Single Post
Old 10-04-2005, 01:54 PM   #5
derekweb
Groupie
derekweb could sell banana peel slippers to a Deveel.derekweb could sell banana peel slippers to a Deveel.derekweb could sell banana peel slippers to a Deveel.derekweb could sell banana peel slippers to a Deveel.derekweb could sell banana peel slippers to a Deveel.derekweb could sell banana peel slippers to a Deveel.derekweb could sell banana peel slippers to a Deveel.derekweb could sell banana peel slippers to a Deveel.derekweb could sell banana peel slippers to a Deveel.derekweb could sell banana peel slippers to a Deveel.derekweb could sell banana peel slippers to a Deveel.
 
derekweb's Avatar
 
Posts: 160
Karma: 3134
Join Date: Jun 2004
Location: United States
Device: Palm Treo 700p & iPaq hx2755
Quote:
Originally Posted by Colin Dunstan
CNET News is pointing out five reasons why Palm has fallen from grace as the market leader for handhelds:
  • Palm executives were slow to see the convergence of cellular phones and personal digital assistants.
  • Palm has had a hard time making its corporate customers happy.
  • The separation of Palm's hardware and software units failed to boost Palm's prospects.
  • Jeff Hawkins and Donna Dubinsky took their knack for innovation with them when they left in 1998 to start Handspring.
  • Palm had a costly product-planning snafu that stalled its fast-growing sales.

Related: How Microsoft and Palm Got Together Over Software (NYT) (thanks to PalmAddict for the link)
If Palm Executives were slow to see the convergence of the Mobile Phone and PDA, (Handspring got it moving with the initial Treo), they were quicker on the uptake in purchasing Handspring to fill out their product line. They were STILL ahead of *any* Windows Mobile OS on handsets. Further, the OS on the Treo is the same OS on the Palm T3 in general, so it *runs* the same applications without needing yet another recompile by developers. Can't say the same for the Windows Mobile camp.

Can't make a customer happy when they're clueless to technology and don't know what they want. Most IT departments didn't want the headache of supporting a handheld device and tried to "outlaw" them from attaching to work computers.

Jeff and Donna were great innovators. 'Nuff said.

Product snafu's hit everyone. What hurt Palm more was the split. I thought it was a silly idea then, and it's borne out worse fruit than I thought it would. It's depressing.

To think that I'll soon be stuck in a world of ONLY Microsoft powered PDAs is sickening. That Palm has pooched up their great ideas with the T5 and LifeDrive leaves me in despair. Their next product can save them, or doom them. It's up to them (Palm), however.

Almost time to ante up. I hope Palm can stick it out.
derekweb is offline