Palm Foleo gallery

That's right, we've got a gallery full of shots of the freshly-announced Palm Foleo for ya, plus a bonus hands-on gallery live from D.

Gallery: Palm Foleo

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Gallery: Palm Foleo hands-on

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[natef @ May 30th 2007 2:24PM]

They think people will buy this?

[J Ozer @ May 30th 2007 2:31PM]

So its the size of a laptop, with the design and form factor of a laptop, at the price of a laptop, with the capabilities of a PDA? No thanks....

[kiz @ May 30th 2007 2:29PM]

R.I.P Palm, you will be missed.

[Sprint Guy @ May 30th 2007 2:28PM]

Sweet Jebus what a stupid product not gonna sell a single one to teens or 20 somethings. Demographic for this product is non-existent.

So glad I sold all my PALM stock a long time ago

Begins Palm death watch.

[Tom @ May 30th 2007 2:30PM]

i think i see where they were going with this, but i feel like it's somewhat half-assed. its essentially just a really large foldable treo... sans the phone

[Sprint Guy @ May 30th 2007 2:32PM]

Palm FOLEO

Fat
Obsolete
Lacking
Expensive
Ordinary

FOLEO

If you buy one of these its like carrying a big I'm an idiot sign

I'd rather buy a new Apple iBook LED backlighting or a Core 2 Duo slim Vista Laptop any day

[Andrew @ May 30th 2007 2:32PM]

countdown till someone runs Doom on it

[daveD @ May 30th 2007 2:34PM]

At least it's not brown.

[Ray-- @ May 30th 2007 2:33PM]

Palm FAILEO
Palm FOLDEO

[Anonymous @ May 30th 2007 2:35PM]

huh?

[CL @ May 30th 2007 2:39PM]

This would've been cool.........if it's 1998
remember those WinCE laptops HP came out with back then? and we all know how well those sell...

[Sprint Guy @ May 30th 2007 2:42PM]

did'nt Palm ever watch the Microsoft commercial where the Black guy has his Windows Mobile PDA phone. He travels makes calls gets to the meeting connects it to the projector and it begins his Powerpoint then the womens goes wow does it make calls too.

Busisness people either have a Laptop or Smartphone theres no in between market.

its either a Smartphone or a Laptop PDA's are dead sans 2003

you either get a

iPhone
Motorola Q Windows Mobile 6
Blackberry
or PPC 6700 or 6800

[Ray-- @ May 30th 2007 2:41PM]

ok after checking out the gallery i see now that this is clearly being targeted at middle-aged gay men... that would explain the choice of models showing us this new product....
http://www.engadget.com/photos/palm-foleo/258047/

dont these people learn anything from the Korean and Japanese? Sexy models == good electronics!

[Big E Small e @ May 30th 2007 3:04PM]

Dan @ May 30th 2007 2:28PM

"Anyone else notice the Apple-esque photos? The perfectly centered and lined up with white and black backgrounds."

How else should they shoot a laptop? Crooked and off center, with a purle/gree polkadot background?

[michael.s.underwood @ May 30th 2007 2:44PM]

This is a joke right? Like Googles April fools product. What a waste of resources, money, and new technology. I could design something 100 times better than this "my first umpc with no connectivity crap".

[Jon @ May 30th 2007 2:43PM]

Disappointing. But at least it has a proper keyboard and trackpoint. If it came out at $299 I may be tempted to buy this as a living room internet only notebook, but even then this is hardly revolutionary.

[Jason @ May 30th 2007 2:45PM]

They should rebrand it as a Casio Organizer, put Windows CE on it, and sell it at Radio Shack 15 years ago, and then they could be onto something special.

[Eric @ May 30th 2007 2:49PM]

Actaully this looks like a good idea to me:

1. $500 price, not $1000-$1500 for practically the same thing as a UMPC.
2. 5 hour battery life, decent, should be better
3. Larger keyboard than a SmartPhone, so you could actaully be comfortable typing a report or length email if your on the go.
4. Wifi, could use hspda or something, but if it syncs to the palm, that's a 50/50
5. Instant boot on/off
6. Small enough to carry in a bag and not be a pain to get out or put back in.

[Mo @ May 30th 2007 2:53PM]

Did I mention that a TX with a slide-out keyboard and cell functionality would have made my day??

[jsanders4484 @ May 30th 2007 3:15PM]

Seriously, why are the folks at engadget psyched about this? I agree with everyone, this is basically useless. Just spend a few bucks more and pick up a 12in laptop that has twice the functionality.

[Jack @ May 30th 2007 2:57PM]

just because a photo is centered and has a solid color background does not make it "apple-esque". Oh my god, that thing has a screen the macbook has a screen, those apple copying bastards!

[Sprint Guy @ May 30th 2007 2:58PM]

Eric

#1. Anyone with a brain would take that $500 and get a Vista Laptop
#2. I doubt it will get 5 hours in real world use
#3. Again buy a Laptop
#4. Redundant not a selling point
#5. So what you can't wait 30 seconds for a phone to boot
#6. Carry it in your pocket is better

Anyone with a brain will either buy for $500 an iPhone or a Vista Laptop

if Palm sells more than a few hundred of these its a product that screams 1998 No style no features no product brand identity.

[John @ May 31st 2007 12:21PM]

Recommending MS over a linux derivative? Eww.

[dudeInAmerica @ May 30th 2007 3:02PM]

Well, I guess thats it for them. Thanks for letting us play dopewars!

[JeffNLA @ May 30th 2007 3:12PM]

Sony has a micro-notebook in the product line for years. This will flop hard.

[Marcus @ May 30th 2007 3:13PM]

This looks a eerily similar to the Psion Series 7 that came out in... 2000.

http://www.geek.com/hwswrev/pda/series7/series7.htm

[Roger @ May 30th 2007 3:18PM]

Hmm..harks back to the IBM Workpad z50 from years ago...

[..ak @ May 30th 2007 3:14PM]

With the built in Wi-Fi this could be a great email - simple web terminal for home use. No need to boot up a laptop to check a couple websites.

Without a built in media slot, I presume all software updates and installable applications are going to have to be through the phone interface.

[lanejasper69 @ May 30th 2007 3:20PM]

sorry if this posted many times....forgot password. heehee


What a bummer!!!! BIG DEAL PALM, a bigger screen and keyboard, well and wi-fi...all for 599.00!!! -100.0 mail-in rebate, so 499.00...NO THANKS!!! i don't need a keyboard and a 10" screen for my already equipped Treo!!! not for 500.00!!!! so what if it has wi-fi and bluetooth (supposedly, it does) still not enough for my 500.00, what a shame!! though it was going to be a major announcement, with internal storage, sd or similar capabilities etc, and no support for 3rd party apps?????? c'mon....you can do better, this just didn't make sense at all....if you have a laptop and a treo, you'd never buy this, and since you can get a laptop with wi-fi and bluetoothand support for all apps that run under win for 499.00 these days, why would anyone buy this??? certainly not because it's slight ly smaller than a feature packed laptop for the same price....man I'm bummed!!!! I was hoping for something really cool and a major "new" type of palm device, like a lifedrive type of device, but with all the bugs the life drive had...but fixed..no thanks palm!!! just release the damn 700p updates we were promised this week....maybe time to look at another platform, there are alot of cool things out there for 499.00!!!!

Faslane

[Ed @ May 30th 2007 3:45PM]

I think there is a kernel of a good idea here. Keyboard and display size are the two key weaknesses of smartphones. If they came up with a lighter, thinner, and cheaper gadget, say weighing less than 1.5 lbs for about $200-250, I could see a case for buying one. Especially if it had all-day battery life. The Palm website indicates it has WiFi. With the proliferation of web-based apps, i could see using the FOLEO for short trips. You could sign onto a WiFi network and use Google Docs and other services as well as the built-in apps. I find that sometimes even a 3.5 lbs ultraportable can feel heavy when added to a full bag along with charger, books, etc. But $499 after rebate is insane.

[Jay @ May 30th 2007 3:28PM]

"Anyone else notice the Apple-esque photos? The perfectly centered and lined up with white and black backgrounds."

It has a keyboard too!! Just like a Mac!!!!

You moron....

[Simon @ May 30th 2007 3:31PM]

At 2.4lb it's not going to fly. ASUS R2H is selling around $900 or less for 1.5lb I think. Sony's UX280P with 1.2lb can easily be bought around $1100.

Most of the laptop/UMPC waked up from hibernation takes around 30 seconds or less.

[Mr. B @ May 30th 2007 3:46PM]

...reminds me of my Vaio SRX 10 inch laptop, ca. 2002... only not as good.

[dave @ May 30th 2007 3:54PM]

what a gimp.

[billy goat gates @ May 30th 2007 3:55PM]

Surprisingly bad idea from the Treo innovators. So if I have this right, I spend $300-400 on a Treo, another $500-600 on 'the thing' and I'm good to go? Or I could spend $100 and get a samsung blackjack and have $900 left over to buy a small laptop with bluetooth or a 3G wireless card.

But wait, most smartphone users are business people who would rather spend an extra few hundred on the laptop and get a sony vaio or other similar ultralight. So yes, it's a few hundred more but it meets the needs much better.

Sorry Palm, someone (probably many people) should get fired over this fiasco. How could you be so very wrong?

This is a product in search of a (non-existent) customer need. Palm note to self: never build exactly what a customer tells you - that is always a fool's errand. Instead observe, learn and then diagnose and understand their unarticulated needs. The only thing that keeps running through my head is wow...wow...that's a train wreck in living color.

[CK @ May 30th 2007 4:28PM]

What the.. another genre of device? Please. Very disappointed.

[surly @ May 30th 2007 8:46PM]

my Treo wont flush down the toilet... its too big! hahahahaha

[Mike D @ May 31st 2007 12:35AM]

Wow, well hopefully there will be some good hacks for these when they go on clearance this Fall. Might be worth 100 bucks or so.

[taylor @ May 31st 2007 1:19AM]

Wow all the weight and bulk of a laptop, all the functionality of a phone. Were they high?

Don't get me wrong, i loved my treo 650 (befor i got my TyTN) and i loved my tungsten e, zire 71, 72, palm V, and I have a special place in my heart for my clie UX-50, but this announcement just makes me so angry at palm, like I said I already had a clie ux-50 3 years ago, hello!

Sorry palm, give me a free upgrade to ALP and then crawl into a corner and R.I.P.

[trigatch4 @ May 31st 2007 1:24AM]

I think this will be better recieved than you think. I mean think about these four segments:

1)business consultants
2)students
3)journalists
4)soccer moms

The articles at palmfoleo.info really do hit the nail on the head about the positive aspects. I agree that the product isn't perfect and much could be improved but the concept itself is a good one. Personally, I HATE thumb typing long messages with my smartphone.

[nirad @ May 31st 2007 11:56AM]

what palm should have made is a real laptop with a built-in smartphone that slides in and out of it, windows sideshow-style. that would have been cool.

[Daniel @ May 31st 2007 11:53AM]

I'm still confused.. what does it do besides browes the web?

[aliles @ May 31st 2007 12:25PM]

why do you have to hit the email button to have it sync? i mean, why else would you be turning it on?

[JBear @ May 31st 2007 1:19PM]

Like many here, I was VERY disappointed when I saw this heap of junk. How this qualifies as a major announcement is beyond me. This thing will only appeal to small audience, mainly those that have limited technical capability and those that buy every new gadget regardless of what it is.

This should have been a software only product that could run on a bluetooth capable laptop or something along those lines.

I just don't see why anyone would want to drag this thing around is crazy, I would guess they would have a Treo for Dummies book in the other hand.

Palm is losing BIG MONEY on this thing, I checked the calendar twice to make sure it wasn't April Fools day.

[kool1200 @ May 31st 2007 4:21PM]

OMFG, this has got to be the absolute LAMEST thing EVER.
Didn't a few companies already try this format & it always FLOPPED miserably?
If you want a small laptop like device - GET A SMALL LAPTOP !
Jeez there are a myriad of UMPC or subnotebooks that will pummel this thing.

Here is one: NOKIA N800

[mlambert890 @ Jun 4th 2007 2:41PM]

Im just glad that people like "Sprint Guy" and all of the other highly opinionated geniuses on this thread are able to take time out of their busy day to tell us what exactly to buy (down to the specific device!) and dictate EXACTLY what "the market" will and will not have interest in.

I for one am glad to see different manufacturers experimenting with different solutions on the 'super mobile' space. Not every idea will stick - indeed most wont - but as long as there is experimentation there is movement towards an ideal device.

As for the rest of you naysayers, go wait in line for your "iphones" or keep using your existing laptops and move along. There is nothing for you to see here since you already have all you need and/or could want, apparently, and by the posts here CLEARLY have nothing intelligent or creative to add to the debate on evolving ultra mobile technology implementations.

[paulbod @ Jun 5th 2007 5:15AM]

Not a bad idea.

A laptop same weight/size sells at arnd usd 1000, twice the Foleo.

This one has no hard disk, so more robust on the way, no dvd reader.
Onboard memory is enough for web, mail, word, excel, some games etc.
USB allows adding any memory/hd or/and dvd if and when needed.
USB speakers if needed.
At home can dock it anywhere, take it to bed.
In an hotel room is all what is needed, a pda is too small for serious work.

In one or two generations might have good video performance.
Hope it can be interfaced soon with iTunes, iPhoto etc.

[eric @ Jun 11th 2007 8:43AM]

All you folks calling this useless either have no imagination, can't read specs, or both.

This is a thin client. That's what it is. It's not a "laptop", it's not a "subnotebook". It's not quite useless without an internet connection, but it would work better if it had one, because what this machine is designed for is RUNNING OFFLINE GOOGLE APPLICATIONS.

I'll repeat and reword that to make sure you all heard it: THE FOLEO IS A THIN CLIENT FOR ONLINE/OFFLINE WEB APPLICATIONS.

Use your damn imaginations, people.

That said, the product manager who greelighted a campaign based around using the Foleo as a "smart phone companion" should be shot. It's got no dependency on smartphones; it's not enhanced by them -- rather, THEY'RE enhanced by IT.

And THAT said, I think there's a good chance it will indeed flop, for the simple reason that the people marketing it are clearly idiots.

[callemclay @ Jun 17th 2007 1:28AM]

I have a Treo and absolutely love it. Actually it is my third and I generally adore Palm products but this is ridiculous. I really like gadgets and I can usually find a reason to buy just about any new technology but this thing is absurd. As many have said just buy an inexpensive laptop that can do way more than this thing can. I mean chances are if you've got a smartphone you've probably got a laptop already. I don't know many smartphone users who still work on desktop. I mean really who is going to buy this. This is technological equivalent of New Coke. Palm will take a bath on this one.

[argentium @ Jun 28th 2007 11:07AM]

This is exactly the device I've been waiting for- a tool that specifically suits my regular activities of writing and web browsing. I don't have to deal with the bulky weight, dimensions, and low battery life of similarly priced "laptops", nor am I paying for a gaming-caliber system just so I can write a few chapters. Thumb-typing doesn't cut it for a novelist, laptops are a pain to take traveling, and Vaios are too expensive. Palm would probably do better if they targeted another crowd. It just appears that the demographic who would post on tech news blog doesn't have the needs that the Folio seeks to fulfill.