Palm Foleo announced
By Donald Melanson 
posted May 30th 2007 1:28PM
posted May 30th 2007 1:28PM
As rumored, the big new device that's Palm's Jeff Hawkins has chosen to announce at the D conference today is the Palm Foleo, which the company is billing as a "mobile companion." Boasting a 10-inch widescreen display and a full-size keyboard, the device is intended to be used in conjunction with your smartphone, with any edits to documents made on one device automatically reflected on the other thanks to the device's Bluetooth connectivity. The device also promises to turn on "instantly," boasts built-in WiFi, and should last about 5 hours on a single charge. The pricing and release info leaked out earlier also look to have been spot on, with it now officially set to be released sometime this summer for $500 (after a $100 mail-in rebate). We'll have plenty more pics of it shortly, but for now you can check out one more after the break.
Sweet a $500 partially functional laptop....Oh wait never mind I can get a fully functional low end laptop with a 3G card for a about the same price.
The difference? This $500 partially functional laptop isn't used with shit ass components that will break on you within 1-2 years. I always find it amusing that people are toting these $500-$700 laptops and desktops as some great value. These are the same people who shop at Wally World and are amazed when their $80 TV stops working after a year of use.
Learn this: Cheap prices beget craptastic hardware.
How do I know all this. Dell service tech that does warranty work for Dell here...People always ask me why their cheap ass system is always failing. Being the good customer rep I smile and say "these things happen". The real reason is simple. You purchased a low end, bottom of the barrel system. Of course its going to fail.
As for this thing? Its using components that are found in a PDA so instead of it being a low end laptop its more a high end handheld PC. The problem is MS tried this 7 years back and it bombed because it sat in between PDA's and laptops. I'm not sure if this device is going to fare any better.
Yeah, sure. Costs the same that a cheap Laptop, and had half the funcionality; But, I assume It´ll have half the weight. So, I have a decent 14" Laptop, but is to heavy to carry all the time. If I have this machine with me all the time, I could make some work or read something in the free small time chunks during my day
I seriously must be missing something. I just don't get who this is targeted at. I have a small laptop that tethers just fine to my phone. When I go on business trips, am I supposed to bring my laptop AND my foleo? Or leave my laptop at home?? Where's the added functionality. I really think I must be missing something so please englighten me, fellow engadgeters. The only market I can see this being viable is for those who can't afford a laptop. But if you can't afford a laptop, you probably don't have a smartphone... sheesh.
Do we need another PC?
Hell NO.
"Boasting a 10-inch widescreen display and a full-size keyboard, [...]"
Make that "a 10-inch wide touchscreen" - or even 8-inch - and I'm sold. Otherwise, I have a 12" powerbook already. (Which BTW, I have picked on eBay for precisely $500).
Except your 12" G4 weighs twice as much and is 4 years old.
Dunno about the processor, but gotta be faster than the G4. If this thing ran the MacOS, I'd be ecstatic.
I'm I missing something? Cause I don't get it...
I see no market for this. I would say it's a safe bet that 95% of people who own smartphones also own laptops which they use as their primary computers. Why would they give that up to carry around a slightly smaller but much less capable device?
This is it? Really?
Oh dear, it's all gone really quite wrong for Palm.
"Except your 12" G4 weighs twice as much and is 4 years old. "
But it also has NO touchscreen.
I mean, Palm as innovator is in great position to finally deliver portable with NO keyboard.
Many many people do not buy smartphones, because screens are too small for them. Making a grown up not-a-smartphone sounds to me like good idea.
But with keyboard!? Uhm, I'm not interested.
Um this things processor couldn't out do a G4 even if it were on steroids, and it couldn't run mac os or any other os other then the crap linux based thing it's already running, his pb would do circles round this p.o.s.
Yeah - maybe you are right about the processor. Not sure they'll release that info.
And another thing... the processor isn't fast enough to play a damn video?? I mean okay so i'm trying to pretend I own this thing - one of the first things I'd want to do is play movies on an airplane trip - nope, no can do. I'm lost here...
Palm needed some serious rescuing to get them back to the top...
Today was not that day.
Am I to understand that all it does is e-mail and the web? I would love a little machine with a full sized keyboard for notetaking and letter writing, and a few other things. It would have to run VNC though. The price feels a little high even with that capability.
They spent money on this? How about throwing money on an up-to-date OS for the TREO (which last I checked was still supporting the company). How about a slick, slim and sexy phone that was designed in the last five years - I mean the TREO was (and still is) great, but let's face it - every Blackberry/Pearl/BlackJack/Q is kickin' your chunky TREO butt.
There's about 6 months left on your lifespan Palm.... make the best of it.
Has got to be THE dumbest device yet from Palm!
1) I'll sell you a mini-notebook that doesn't have half the features of a real notebook for more than a real notebook!
(eg. $499 for the Palm, $399 for the Acer 14" this month at Microcenter - although during Black Friday, they had a $199 Toshiba last year....)
2) It's not small enough nor large enough.
Not small enough to fit in a pocket, not large enough to surf nicely without squinting.
3) They've got SMALLER all-in-one portable notebooks that'll do it all - eg. OQO, Sony UX series, FlipStart, etc. Why charge two devices - phone + Palm - just to surf the internet over bluetooth modem docking when you can simply charge and carry one portable mini-notebook? Simply put a wireless cellular internet card into these mini-notebooks and that's all you need!
Doesn't make much sense, esp. when larger windows PDA/phones are out -- like that big one from Taiwan with 7" screen just out this year.
4) Storage space? Hope they stick at least a 80GB HD + USB/PCMCIA/slots into this thing - otherwise, where are you going to store those large multimegabyte presentations and downloads?!?
5) No XP/Vista compatibility. Thus, it may not be able to do all of the things we want wirelessly -- youtube, torrents, Dls, etc.
Can it even handle encrypted, signed, Adobe Acrobat forms?!?
6) Powerful cell phones coming.
iPhone, Nokia n95, etc. All with larger screens, powerful processors, document viewing/editing capabilities, GPS, and more in one device.
Boring device, death of Palm......
1st nail in the coffen
I see it uses bluetooth. However, didn't Verizon disable the bluetooth Obex capability on their Treo 700P? If so, than all Verizon owner are out of luck.
Better idea: make the phone smart enough to support an X terminal, then sell one this size. It'd be simpler and cheaper; and, when you don't have your terminal with you, you've still got all the same apps and data, because they live on your cellphone.
This might have been a hit, oh, five years ago...
The drab gray color scheme doesn't add much to it's curb appeal. Honestly, I have too many devices to carry already, and this one doesn't seem to do all that much to help reduce my load. Sure it's only 2 lbs or so, but it's still another gadget to ponder whether its worth bringing along or not.
RIP Palm 19??-2007
Maybe if they sexed it up a bit, it would work... but, it already looks 10 years old or one of those toy computers from Fisher Price.
Yet another tangent on the Palm road map that's inevitably going to lead to a dead end.
Tungsten TX with a slider keyboard . . .that is all we needed.
It took them 5 years to come up with this? Im seriously lost as to why i need one...
Lets see, its supposed to make emailing and editing documents eaiser....correct me if im wrong but i carry my phone with me to receieve those important emails and documents on the go..keyword here, on the GO, thats why the treo line is so great, you get everything you need in a small package and can enable you do some minor editing if needed....
at this point in the game, if im traveling and have a bag with me, it will contain a fully funtional laptop, not a 10inch screen and keyboard with extremely limited capabilites compared to todays laptop....i cant justify spending $500 for a device that cant be used on its own
It's the VAIO TX ;)
lol
So this exists because "sometimes you need to be able to look at that big spreadsheet" - emphasis on "sometimes" - but you gotta haul the thing around ALL of the time in order to actually use it SOME of the time ?? Stupid. Really stupid idea.
hahahaha, the year 2000 called and wants it's Psion Netbook back.
(Ran EPOC, the UI that became the Nokia and High end Sony Ericsson phone OS , later models of psion Netbook ran WidnwosCE)
8 years ago I used a Psion Revo (the size of a PocketPC, but with decent keyboard) synced to my phone of IRDA to browse the web, send emials and SMS contacts. That would run a couple of days of a single charge.
Palm is so behind the times.
what a lame product!
why not edit on the Palm (phone)
yawn.....
Palm is done. Stick a fork in it.
I have a Treo 700P and would have rather heard about the ROM update.
Guess my next phone will be a WM one.
Bye Palm
This blows. I'm all in favor of having an external keyboard and display for a powerful handheld, but let it be just that: a keyboard and display. The fact that the device needs its own processing and storage points to the fact that smartphones are simply not powerful enough yet, which means that this is nothing but a terrible laptop.
I really don't see the point to this at $500.
...maybe they're going after the OLPC market?
I paid several hundred for a palm (original) and a flip-open keyboard, back in the day. This is more effective, and has wifi. I figure my morning surf can be taken care of with this, and for business trips all I do is email, but the smart phone isn't enough. I'll probably buy one of these, at the price. We have a fujitsu 10.6 inch laptop, but it was 2000 dollars. I'll take a 75 percent reduction in price.
Yeah, didn't I own this product when it was called the IBM Workpad z50? Cost a lot less too...
Funny, my Fujitsu P1610 weighs the same, is smaller, has a touchscreen display with higher resolution that is viewable outdoors, is faster, and has better battery life. Not to mention running Windows XP. Also uses my Motorola Q as a bluetooth modem.
Like subnotebooks are a new product?
Oh and yeah. My P1610 doesn't fit in my pocket either. Sure, it's ultraportable, but you still have to carry it by hand or put it in a bag. So it doesn't go with me "everywhere" like my smartphone does.
I don't see the Foleo getting anywhere. Most people think the P1610 is "too small". I don't think they really *want* a laptop that small. Look at the lack of success of the Toshiba Libretto in the US, which the later models (U100(?)) were more capable and much smaller than the Foleo.
Fact is, there's a partial solution to this problem already: folding keyboards. What was missing was a folding display-- not another stripped down subnotebook.
This product class failed miserably before (IBM z50 et al) and will fail again. There's a small niche for real Windows XP subnotebooks, but that's a small market at best.
Your P1610 is more than twice the price of this. This also won't sell for $500 once it hits Amazon, etc.
And another thing. Part of the screen problem is Palm's own fault. They put 240x240 displays in their Treo 700s with WM, and meanwhile even the old Dell Axim X50s had 640x480 displays.
All Palm had to do was change the formfactor, to either clamshell (ie LG enV) or slider (HTC wizard).
Their smartphones are fat, and have small, low resolution displays. That's not a problem with smartphones, that's a problem with their design.
Alternatively, they could simply make a case for existing Treos with a thin screen that plugs into the Treo, and with a special driver, gets power and the display info from the Treo's connector. Fold the Treo open with the case, and bust out your folding keyboard. Problem solved.
The keyboard on your P1610 is not fullsized. Also, the P1610 has a hard disk.
They're two different approaches to the problem of portability. The Fujitsu answer is to shrink everything, including the keyboard. The Palm answer, it seems, is to avoid carrying around stuff that can be left at home, and are probably better off there, such as hard disks. I prefer the latter.
I think that Palm actually designed a slider smart phone as thin as the RAZR2 with LED back-lighting and a 12 hour battery but Apple paid them big $$ to delay it until after the iPhone launch.
They just dug this laptop out of the failed CE project closet from '98 and released it throw everyone off.
Now you'll have to excuse me while I go and sell ten shares in Palm so I can buy a single share of Apple stock...
Doh!
That's it? That's Palm's big plan? To quote Porky Pig: "They're skwood!"
Said it before and I'll say it again. Palm should:
1. Blatently copy the Sharp Zaurus hardware (keyboard hidden out of the way unless you need it, just a big screen and thumb navigation in other cases)
2. Add phone capability and WiFi
3. Patch existing Linux-based PDA OS for Palm compatibility and interface
4. Quit screwing around and ship it to the users who have been waiting YEARS for a new Treo, and do it before Palm Inc. is forced to fold as a company.
Somebody really needs to smack every single person on Palm's board of directors.
Wow, well this is a crappy idea from Palm.
Details are a bit sparse but this looks like exactly what I've been looking for: a device with a full-size keyboard and a reasonably sized screen, without a heavy, noisy, power-hungry and vulnerable hard disk, light enough to carry without thinking about it. I take it that there's a web browser built in and that a text editor could be installed. At the moment, I'm using a Nokia N800 combined with a fold-up Bluetooth keyboard to perform these functions, but this has the apparent advantages of a much bigger screen and a keyboard that doesn't fold.
However, I'm almost in agreement with the poster who says it should have come out five years ago. Seven or eight would have been better, though I suppose it would have been difficult to manage without the hard disk then.
I think a lot of the critics of the Folio have missed the major point - Weight.
Maybe it could be lighter of course, but as a photo-journalist I have given up lugging my 5 pound iBook around with me on trips, when I have two camera bags as well to lug on and off trains and buses! I'm making do with lots of big CF cards for the photos, and just wait till I get home to write my copy and sort the shots in Photo Mechanic on my IMac.
A light mini laptop would be VERY useful for writers, but I think something around a pound would be more practical and possible, without having to spend 2000 quid or more on a Sony. Not everyone needs videos or optical drives.
Alex Mac
Checked out the presentation on the palm site, saw a menu of apps on one of the screens:
Documents to Go - Word, Sheet, Slide
Email
File Manager
PDF Viewer
Photo Viewer
Terminal
Web Browser
I wonder if it will be at all hackable/expandable. I'd say if you can live with the feature set (or hack it to include your favorite feature) it might be nice. it would probably have better battery life and be lighter weight than a laptop. I'm skeptical that the device is worth $500 (especially without wifi) but I am craving something slightly more durable / lower power / lighter-weight than most notebook pc's.
I love Palm products and have been using every single one of them since they were called "Palm Pilot". However, WTF is wrong with Foleo? $500 for a partial laptop that needs to be used in conjunction with a smart phone? So the total will be $1,000? Die Palm, just go die!
I love the "they use cheap components argument". Do you work as an Electrical Engineer? I do and let me tell you allmost all parts you buy fall under the same tolerance levels, unless you are getting military parts that no commercial company EVER would do. Now on a Tube TV things are different beacuse you can buy different guns etc., but on a basically completly digital device the only really cheap component might be the LCD. The power supply might also not be as robust. But guess what the processors, the same. Memory the same. All the resistors, caps, diodes, inductors, etc. the same. Oh and the "cheap" motheboard. Well guess what it is just layers of Copper (well a lot more complicated but you get the point). Most of the board companies follow the same ISO standards. So go ahead buy your high end PDA, I will be happy with the "cheap" laptop that needs a new external power supply, or new battery in 3-4 years when I am looking to upgrade anyhow.
So what exactly is differnt in terms of components for a high end PDA compared to a low end laptop?
@ John Doe
Thank you!
You put together good, quality parts at a realistic price and people whine and bitch about cost. You throw together ghetto-tastic components and sell it for $100 and the whole world buys it -- and then complains the piece of shit don't work.
Well god damn guys. Don't buy it. But some of us don't need a full-featured laptop to check our email and browse the web. I have effin 3 PCs and 2 laptops in my house and 2 PCs (and several other devices at my disposal) at my office. I don't always want to bring my laptop with me but wouldn't mind browsing the web or reading my email on more than a 240x240 screen while on the train.
So I'll wait til Amazon is selling these for $400 and pick one up. Is that okay fellas? Am I still cool like you?
Wow John you are lame. This thing is a piece a crap. If I owned Dell I would Fire you right now for opening your fat ass mouth.
Your lucky you have a job with that attitude. This Isn't expensive because it's quality. It's expensive cuz they wann rip of suckas like u.
Have fun with that!
http://www.palm.com/us/products/mobilecompanion/foleo/experience/index.html
wow the first words read "thoughtfully designed".....hhahahaha my ass......
i dont think palm can hold on much longer.
I wouldn't even buy this for my Grandma. What a shame Palm so sad and so late.
Actually, it would have been a decent idea if it were cheaper, thinner, and a bit lighter--say $200-250, and less than 1.5 lbs. Small keyboards and display screens are the main limitations of smartphones and why it's difficult to go without a laptop. Weaknesses of laptops include battery life, weight, and lack of instant-on feature. While many people note that you can get a laptop for $500, you can't get a 2 lb ultraportable with all-day battery life for much less than $2,000, and then you also have to buy MS Office and other apps.
According to the Palm website, the device has Wi-fi, so I could see how a FOLEO type device might enable you to leave the laptop at home for a short trip, especially with the proliferation of Web-based apps such as Google Docs, etc. If the device had truly all-day battery life (say 8-10 hour real use), and you could leave the charging brick at home, it would be a decent commuting device. As an aside, I wonder if the device requires a charging brick or whether you just plug a cord into it. That would make it pack even lighter. BUT $499 (after rebate!) is a crazy price. Don't think they will get many takers.
An answer to a question no one asked.
Does anyone have a link to the spec sheet with dimensions/weight/resolution etc?
And please, guys, keep the knee jerk reactions to yourself. This product is *not targetted at replacing your notebook computer*. It is NOT a macbook or a thinkpad or tablet PC or nor is it trying to be. Get over yourselves.
I'm looking forward to seeing how they've overcome the traditional constraints of subnotebooks - all of which seem to be expensive, run hot and need extended batteries for any kind of decent stamina. If they've knocked out 5hrs from this thing using a traditional phone style 1500mAh or 3-cell battery whilst keeping the weight under 2lbs that'd be a first, for sure.
"I'm looking forward to seeing how they've overcome the traditional constraints of subnotebooks"
Simple - there's no hard drive, no expansion slots, and - oh yeah - no real computer. It's a screen, keyboard and some basic office apps in firmware. That's it.
"this product is *not targetted at replacing your notebook computer*"
They are saying "do more with less". In other words, when you're on the road, take this instead of your laptop. Sure, they don't say to throw out your laptop, but they're suggesting that a lot of people don't really need their laptop a lot of the time. Well, I've never met any road warrior who will leave their laptop behind on ANY business trip.
This is madness. The market for this thing is going to be tiny. It will fail.
This concept - embedded OS, large screen, normal keyboard - has already been tried with miserable results by Microsoft.
Anyone remember the Jupiter Handheld PCs?
http://www.pocketpcfaq.com/wce/21/HPCPropics.htm
PDAs killed them at one end, while subnotebooks killed them at the other. There is a niche for these devices, but it is a very small one.
wtf?
I am so disappointed in this useless device. I think more people bought that palm for fridge device a few years ago then will buy this.
Hey Palm, how about making a bigger screen Treo? Like the size of PPC 6600 or old TH55 and make it thin.
RIP!
@Frangible ... you're right, this is much like the IBM WorkPad z50. I still have mine, and I get wi-fi on it with a D-Link DWL-650. If the z50 had Opera, I'd have equivalent functionality.
I'm as much of a Palm fanboy as anyone, but this is Palm rehashing the Microsoft HPC/Pro ... http://www.microsoft.com/presspass/press/1998/oct98/jupitrpr.mspx ... MS called it a "PC Companion" back then, and now this is a "Smartphone Companion". Sigh ...
Although I'm a longtime supporter of Palm...this one's dead on arrival.
People will either choose a UMPC or a laptop before they choose this gadget.
Hawkins...what a FOOLIO.
And get on the ball and release WM6 for the 750 already.
Stephen,
Unless you work for Dell you know exactly shit about the subject at hand. what is different between these components and the components that are in higher end laptops. usually nothing. Unless you get a bid from say Foxconn who in turn uses cheap ass capacitors for their system board (Coughs*GX270's**coughs*) or has shittastic joints on their boards that fail after x amount of time. I've been around for a while in the service repair industry. I've seen this shit first hand. Almost ALWAYS the cheap ass systems are the ones being repaired more often then the higher end systems. Explain why that is?
Oh and if I have to explain why a PDA's components are cheaper then a laptops, you sir need to go back to school. I mean really. Why is an iPod cheaper then a laptop? Why is a cell phone cheaper then a laptop? etc, etc, etc. Good god man crack open a Pocket PC sometime and compare it to a laptop. Hell the CPU alone..Whatever. Its like talking to lint.
>Do you work as an Electrical Engineer? I do and let me tell you allmost all parts you buy fall under the same tolerance levels,
Assuming that's true, Dell isn't soldering capacitors and resistors onto PCBs. Even when using the exact same components, factors such as assembly and QA can have drastic effects on the final product "quality" and its MTBF.
i picked up a fujitsu p1120 in early 2004 for $1100.
- 8.9 inch widescreen touchscreen.
- can eclipse 6 hours on single charge listening to music (but i'm a real miser with linux)
- built like a tank, has handled being hurled across the room quite a couple times.
- best laptop keyboard i have ever seen. somewhat odd at first but permits very fast coding on a very small computer.
- 2.2lbs
i very much like your characterization of the difference between the fujitsu p1000's and the foleo, that fujitsu builds small computers and palm simply rips out everything that can be left at home. i personally much prefer devices which dont rely on connectivity. i have very little faith or trust in my networks, and am quite adept at manipulating and shuffling my own data, thank you very much. i spend a lot of time in the woods and on the road, relying on connectivity would be foolish.
Actually, that was all bullshit. This thing sucks. I'ma wait for the new MacBook with solid state hard drive, 1GB RAM, Core2Duo and LED backlit screen. Same size & weight (but goddamn thrice the price), likely 802.11n, bluetooth, Vista capable and sexy.
Then my wife will take it. And I can get one with 2GB RAM...
Wont someone just buy palm already and get rid of it, this has to be the most stupid tech product this year or last
Web Browser, Email, Text Editor for $500 hell no, i can find several practically ways to spend that money.
Would Nokia, Motorola, or Sony just buy Palm already and trash it
I'm writing about this exact thing over at my S60 (Symbian blog)
www.s60tv.com
I personally dont want another portFoleo :-)
Very funny Palm. Now how about a Treo with built-in WiFi?
Has anyone created a thin panel, say 10" or so that can connect directly to the phone. It's not a computer, just a display. That way, your 1.5 inch phone can display on a much larger screen.
How disappointing.
A faithful Palm user for close to 10 years, i've always loved Palm's hardware but hated how it lagged the market. Great functionality, but low-end displays. Better displays, but slow processor. Faster processor, but no Wi-Fi. I've always been one feature short when using a Palm device. My Tx is about as close to perfect as I can get, except for the performance lag, and except for the fact that I have to carry it *and* a phone.
Make me a 755p with a widescreen display and built-in WiFi. Oh, wait, I see Apple has already done it. Sorry Palm, i'm off to the product that reduces the number of things I have to carry, not increases it.
Am I the only person who actually likes this? I could use it for writiing (my living) and browse the web (wi-fi), its small and therefore easy to take with me.
When I want to carry more I have my 15inch macbook pro, when at home my imac, this way I could carry it more often and don't have to use Windows.
Already signed up for updates on the Palm site.
really cool 16 years ago I had one of those from Psion, that was 1990/91 - yeah I'm getting old - so does Palm. Get real guys. 5 hours on a battery charge? The first iBook did better than that. Nowadays with flashdisk you should get it to run more than a day. And while we are at it have a look at the XO of OLPC, it'll cost less and seems a lot more powerful ... btw it runs linux too ... I could get on and on. I bought the first Palm back in 1996 and dropped my last the Treo last year because you just don't get it anymore.
Palm has just gone off the deep end...
This will be a huge bust and is a sad attempt to ‘think different’. Pun intended. Gadgets are getting smaller, not bigger. Gadgets are consolidating into multifunction devices they aren’t multiplying like this Foleo (pronounced, Folly). I took one look at this and thought, “1998”. Palm needs to focus on either getting bought out or merging with RIM.
For all you guys complaining about power and price and lack of a market: You realize that alphasmart sells the Dana, its monochrome laptop/PDA hybrid (http://alphasmart.com/danastore/dana-w_features.html), for $429? And that they have been doing so for years? Face it, not everyone wants to drag around a 6 pound, 2 hour, 1500 dollar notebook.
I for one can't wait for the Foleo.
I LOVE the concept of the (instant-on!!) mini laptop with a full sized keyboard. I use an old-as-heck NEC Mobilepro 900C running win CE for all my note-taking and writing/reading documents on the go, and it has pretty much the same core feature set as this thing when you factor in a pcmcia wifi card. The Palm Foleo is JUST what i need, but at $500 vs the $200 max you'll spend on an old HPC, the price is a bummer. I'd buy it for 300
Say it ain't so Jeff...Say it ain't so.
I like it. My wife has a blackberry, I have a Palm. We don't want to lug our company laptops on a trip, now we can each take our phones and both use the Foleo. My wife can also use the Foleo at home with her bb instead of taking her laptop back and forth to work. Count me in.
I have been looking for something small to replace my Sony C1XS sub notebook. This is not a bad idea. If you can run Linux and use open office or other apps then this would be great. There are other small subnote books but all cost over $1,000 and take forever to start up. I like the fact that I can sit at a coffee shop turn it on do what I have to do before my coffee gets cold. There was also mention that Apple might have a subnote book out soon that also has instant on. If this had a camera or the usb port can be used then there is so much that can be done. Let's see what the hackers out there can do with this and then decide if you should buy one.
I can understand some frustration here, but again if you look at the goal of the device itself is not trying to replace PC. I like the idea of instant on and off. Coming back from hybernate in PC takes longer than it should.
Again, I think the idea is good but the thing that irritates me most is the price. It doesn't make sense at all. If they kept it down to about $199, then I believe people would not start comparing it to PC.
Just my 2 cents.
I think it is April Fool's Day again...or is it?
Does it even have USB for a mouse? Not that I'd want to carry a THIRD device with me!!
Palm, I'm out, MANY newer devices out there with way more features, smaller footprint etc than my Treo700p, Which I LOVE, but in 6months I'm done with you Palm, I've already considered replacing my Treo, and I know in 6 mos there will be something cooler, snazzier, cheaper etc. and no, it's not an iPhone, I'll take my Treo over iPhone anyday, partially because I'm with Sprint, but there are MANY new devices coming that I'll certainly wait for THEN pay 500.00 and get some bang for my buck, sorry to see you leaving Palm, but I have a feeling this (and the fact the promised MF update for the Treo you keep promising STILL isn't out).... just killed you, at least in my book R.I.P. it was fun....well, sort of.
Faslane
This seems like one more nail in the Palm coffin. Amazingly dumb. Who over there is doing any market research - or even sane, normal thinking?
Palm - if this is what you've got up your sleeves, it's time to pack it in. What a joke.
Wow, this is sad.
So let me get this straight - you want me to carry yet another, bigger device around?
This is honestly funny. I'd believe it if it were April 1.
If there's a USB interface in the right side, then all that is missing is Wireless - then you got an awsome lightweight notebook - I could be tempted.
But it looks like theres no Wireless - why are there always missing one key-feature from a Palm product ?
Hrmm - it really has got build-in WIFI - now I'm a bit impressed.
Even though everybody there seem to hate this new category from palm, I am pretty happy with this device. The instant on capability, no moving part construction, connection to output display (LCD project) will make it the most suitable device for doing presentation. I don't know other, but in my case, with this device, wheneve i need to go for presentation, I really like my notebook to be able to instant on and no need to wait for boot up. The winxp standy mode is not reliable, sometime system will just crash, and still need time to boot. Foleo will really meet my expectation. I just wanna get my work done fast, multimedia is just an add-on benefit, but not essential. Countless time i had been wondering why nobody design a subnotebook type of device with instant on for doing presentation. The time used to connect to boot is really a waste of time for me. Only bad thing is this device is too expensive. If it is below 400USD, it will be perfect for me. Just hope the charge will be like Treo charger, not a brick.
Gee, so much hate. This is an N800 with a keyboard and a larger screen (hopefully higher resolution as well). All for a $100 more. Seems like a pretty decent deal to me. I've stopped taking my laptop with me on trips since my Nokia 9300 does most of what I need done, but something this cheap, small and light might be able to convince me otherwise. I was thinking about the N800, but the touchscreen interface and lack of a keyboard are deal breakers for me. The idea of a device that does 90% of what I need to do and don't have to mess with seems ideal for traveling.
I don't think its a bad idea.
My wife has a Treo. She has to spend the night weekly with people that don't have internet access. Dial-up would tie up their phone line. Tethering her laptop to her Treo costs too much money - Cingular BroadbandConnect for Laptop plan. She has unlimited internet on her Treo though...
If this device uses her EXISTING unlimited MediaNet plan and doesn't require a particular tethering plan - then she's in. She wants to surf on a full sized screen. And the added wifi rocks too - she can use it in the student union at Emory (without the phone and without carrying a 6-8 pound laptop with her (she's slight)
I think I'm sold as long as it doesn't require a tethering plan. If it does - no sale.
Very disappointed & confused as to why Palm's new product was not a leap in new technology (miniaturisation) but a growth in size, literally. By now, I've lost all hope of holding onto my PalmOS apps that runs on my trusty Palm devices T5. I have been a Palm user for many years since Palm V and now have decided to move all my data from Palm apps to either SymbianOS (N9500 then E90 when release) or a WM5 or 6 which is the last thing I like do. (Hate seeing another Windows on my palm when I'm already facing one day in day out on my Vaio)
Sigh! Palm, you are a disappointment indeed!
I had a Psion 7 back in the days when Psion were still making real-world handhelds. Instant-on was a fantastic feature, and it did exactly what I needed. I've now given it to a friend who's writing a novel on it - again, the instant-on feature means he can just pick up writing form where he left off, with no boot-up time.
This looks like the same thing, only probably better. Definitely interested.
I think this looks potentially very useful. I just hope it has two features that haven't yet been mentioned:
1 - the ability for the phone (Treo 750) to use its WiFi connection, enabling me to download AvantGo and mp3s faster to the phone without incurring data charges. I currently use my laptop for this, but it takes a while to start.
2 - synchronising stored documents not just emails with attachments, enabling me to update spreadsheets and word documents while also keeping them on the phone. The ability to amend powerpoint presentation would be nice too.
I wish it had a touchscreen like my Psion 7 and toughbook, but I can live without it.
Hahahahaha! Oh, god, I can't stop laughing!
Doesn't anyone remember the last boondoggle like this?
The Ergo Audrey.
The metaphor was the same. A large screen device that was
supposed to complement your palm and sync to it.
Except at that time their was no wireless networks to take advantage
of so everything was via IrDa and cables.
Ugh then. And Ugh now.
Good night Palm, may flights of angels sing thee to thy rest.
What I don;t get is how is this thing going to help me?I still have to unfold it,boot it up,and then connect it up to my phone/PDA.I could send out a whole bunch of mails by that time by just using a QWERTY thumb board.
What if . . .
Build in the GPRS (or whatever).
Have it mount server space (subscription from Google?)
And with something like Google Docs.
Lower the price.
. . . and maybe.
If this is truly meant as a companion for a Palm PDA, then why doesn't this thing have a spot for you to attach the PDA to it? If someone's traveling and they have a PDA and then they take this thing out, that's two things they have to juggle on their laps.
Cool, it's almost as small as the Atari Portfolio I had in 1990.
Actually I don't see the attraction. Will not fit my pocket, not as big as my laptop.
And this is going to save Palm...
I'm shocked at all the negative comments on this device. I guess I must be the only one out of millions of Palm users that jumped out of his seat and said "yes!". This is exactly the kind of device that I have been dreaming of for years. I can't stand the cumbersomeness of my laptop. I try to find every imagenable reason not to take it with me and plan my trips in such a way so that I can leave it behind. I also find it hard to work exclusively with my Treo while out of town. This device is the best of both worlds. A really major thing that is really cool is that it runs linux. If it gains popularity, there will be just as many new software titles for this unit as there is for the existing palm platform.
For the few days that I go out of town on business, I can do just fine without the laptop. Being able to send countless emails with a large screen and keyboard with "instant-on" functionality is beyond cool.
I'm not sure how everybody uses their laptop while out of town, but speaking for myself and the many others I meet who are also out of town, very few people seem to do any heavy duty computing work while away from their main work zones. I only seem to see people replying to text emails when using their laptops in Airports and in their hotel rooms.
This device is exactly what I need and I hope it does not fail. Oh well, we'll see what happens.