New Palm Chief: New Products Will Take 18 Months

Posted By: Ryan Kairer Thursday, October 25, 2007 9:36:18 AM

Palm's new executive chairman Jon Rubinstein told Dow Jones Newswires in an interview yesterday that it will take 18 months before new products come out utilizing Palm's next generation operating system. These comments would seem to contradict guidance from CEO Ed Colligan given earlier this month where he stated he expected products to be available be the end of next calendar year (2008).

Rubinstein's new remarks would push that back until mid-2009 at the earliest. He is quoted as saying "It's a probably good target," [...] "These things take time."

Some quotes from the interview article:

The executive declined to comment on any specific plans, but noted that he's been at Palm for a few months working with the team. "We've already done significant analysis on the roadmap. We're really setting up our plans for the future."

Rubenstein said Palm's brand, its loyal customer base, and strong distribution capabilities were why he decided to join the team, and that he expects to be at Palm for a while. He believes he can utilize the company's "strong DNA" in innovation to create new products. He declined to comment, however, on whether he would bringing in his own talent.

Rubenstein said he expects a smooth transition. He added the he "loved" working with President and Chief Executive Ed Colligan. "We complement each other," he said.

Thanks SeldomVisitor.

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White flag?

critic @ 10/25/2007 1:12:07 PM # Q
So, unless I read this wrong, Palm is content to lean on a 7 year old operating system and, essentially, hand the smartphone market over to Apple and HTC/Microsoft? Brilliant.

----
What do you think, sirs?
RE: White flag?
Phylar @ 10/25/2007 2:12:15 PM # Q
Seriously, they should just pack it up. They (PalmSource/Palm collectively) have been trying to get a replacement for Garnet since OS 6 was announced in 2003.... which no one bought. Then all the Access fiasco stuff. With the iPhone SDK coming out in Feb, and this being forever off, this is the final nails in the coffin. Yet another still born OS. I'm sure I'm with may others that saw their death coming years ago, but it should be obvious now to everyone Palm will just become yet another winmo licensee and fade off into obscurity.

RE: White flag?
InsGuy @ 10/25/2007 3:33:27 PM # Q
Couldn't agree more. I think what gets so many people is the fact that for so long, Palm was THE company in the handheld market, and they remember all the potential that seems to have been absolutely WASTED. I remember a quote or something I read a while back about 'those who stood on the edge of victor/success, and there, sat down to rest, and died'. That is rather paraphrased, but seems to describe Palm rather accurately,

Oh well...what can we do?

All good things...

RE: Dido song?
vorlon @ 10/28/2007 8:40:41 PM # Q
What's with the obsession about the age of the OS? Grumpy old Palm OS is still faster, has more & better software and is more intuitive than the competitors. While multitasking is nice on a PC (like the Amiga demonstrated in 1985), on a small phone screen there's only one application at a time (even on the iPhone), so it's less crucial. If you use a phone without a HF, multitasking is irrelevant.

RE: Non sequitur?
AdamaDBrown @ 10/29/2007 10:20:31 AM # Q
Multitasking also means support for newer standards like UMTS, HSDPA, and EVDO Revision A, as well as being able to load a web page in the background, or take a note then return to what you were doing. Modern networking code means being able to have WiFi and cellular in the same device. Modern driver infrastructure means easier implementation of things like 802.11g, GPS, etcetera. A new OS would also allow improved battery performance, processor speed scaling, wireless authentication, a new GUI, and other much needed improvements.

The equivalent would be if a car company hadn't altered their engine or supported new on-board features since 1987.

As for software, that's been extremely winnowed by the repeated small changes in the OS, and the implementation of NVFS.

Reply to this comment

How long does it take?

Doo @ 10/25/2007 1:17:16 PM # Q
I like PoS-5. It just works. But it was built before Wi-Fi and Blue Tooth where as important as they are now. That being said, PoS-6 was promised back when I bought my Zodiac. That was soooo long ago. What did Palm do in all that time? Not a darn thing.



RE: How long does it take?
DrewT3 @ 10/25/2007 3:55:43 PM # Q
Palm has done a lot in the last 4 years. They have changed thier name a few times, spun off and then reaquired some IP, and changed thier sync connector and memory card formats a few times. They also removed the antenna from the Handspring Treo 600.
Sheesh, what do you people want?

RE: How long does it take?
joad @ 10/25/2007 4:23:59 PM # Q
HEY - you forgot the Fooleo!!!

Yup, they've only been working on their next operating system for the past 5-7 years, these things can't be rushed, don'tcha know... It's not like Palm relies too heavily on selling smartphones and PDAs for their income stream.

If I ran a company that derived nearly all my income from selling something that HAD to have an operating system, I'd be damn sure I had solid control over that OS *AND* put considerable resources into continually improving it for stability and keeping ahead of the curve.

PalmOS 5 is mostly functional "enough," but it's basically a kludge based on a design from the mid '90's with all the hardware limitations they had to work with: expensive RAM and flash, nearly non-existent wireless protocols, non-multitasking, no security, etc. It's an organizer with a bunch of bolt-ons grafted in over the past 11 years. Making all the logo and name changes while not prioritizing OS development seems like rearranging deck chairs on the Titanic.

Palm has a LOT of work to do to even stay afloat, and debating the "right" color of the Fooleo II casing ought to be very low on their priority list (if they even have one).

|
**Another vote for a >100MB RAM Treo**

RE: How long does it take?
retrospooty @ 10/26/2007 10:58:10 AM # Q
"Palm has done a lot in the last 4 years. They have changed thier name a few times, spun off and then reaquired some IP, and changed thier sync connector and memory card formats a few times. They also removed the antenna from the Handspring Treo 600.
Sheesh, what do you people want?"

Hey now, they increased the screen res from the Treo 600, and added an external battery as well. And that was all the forst year. In the past 3 years, they ... Oh yeah, added 3g data and removed the antenna, and while the rest of the industry got 1cm thinner, Palm got 1 mm thinner.

Reply to this comment

Corp Speak

Magrell @ 10/25/2007 1:18:42 PM # Q
So he "loves" Ed... Isn't that corporate double-speak for "Shit, Ed is a dick-wad and now I have to clean up his mess!"

That aside, 2009!!?? I don't know why I even bother to follow Palm anymore.


Reply to this comment

Can we just hear from an actual developer?

bsquare @ 10/25/2007 1:32:20 PM # Q

Seriously, can't we just get word from one of the 4 or 5 developers that are left at PALM to hear when they think they'll get this OS done.


RE: Can we just hear from an actual developer?
joad @ 10/25/2007 4:32:55 PM # Q
They're probably being kept too busy deciding the next rearrangement of the Treo keyboard key layout to have time to respond.

Seriously, Palm has spent a LOT of years fiddling around with minor stuff - even before the brilliant move of acquiring Handspring, which probably saved them from earlier bankruptcy. Someone there needs to harness any talented programmers they have left (and can acquire) and crack the whip on this.

At shows, Access is already demo'ing what seems to be a pretty good Linux "Palm" OS emulator. Maybe Palm should just purchase or license some of the stuff from them to move ahead on this.

|
**Another vote for a >100MB RAM Treo**

Reply to this comment

Ouch!

adamsmark @ 10/25/2007 1:42:21 PM # Q
In 18 months, how many versions of the iPhone will have Apple produced? And Microsoft? Will their product simply become the standard? As my contract with Verizon expires in the next year, I'll be looking for a new phone... or iPhone as the case might be.

"I believe in the atomic bomb."

Blogging at http://agabus.com">Agabus.com.

Palm V > Vx > Clie Peg T615C > T3 > Clie TH55 > T3 > Treo 650 > Treo 700p & T3!

RE: Ouch!
pascanu @ 10/26/2007 1:24:11 AM # Q
What about the Google Phone? If it ever comes out that one would surely qualify as a smartphone!

Handspring Visor -> m505 -> Zire71 -> Zire72 -> Treo650
Reply to this comment

18 months

NikitaChrush @ 10/25/2007 1:50:36 PM # Q
ok its a long time - but finally somebody to tell the truth. So go on and make something great. IŽll stick to my TX until then :-)

Reply to this comment

wow

nybble @ 10/25/2007 2:08:34 PM # Q
Well, given a choice of believing Colligan or anyone who isn't Colligan, I'll believe not-Colligan. But, serioualy, not launching anything till 2009 sounds like a tough proposition. Who is going to be left on the platform?

18 months is Q2 2009, so product announcments even won't happen till the beginning of 2009. Who in their right mind is sticking around for that? I hope for Palm's sake that they can put it in gear and hit 2008 with something new.

<http://comments.deasil.com/> that is my tech blog. There are many like it, but that one is mine.

RE: wow
DrewT3 @ 10/25/2007 3:58:39 PM # Q
Imagine how hard it will be to get developers excited about developing for a new Palm OS in 2009. They would be better off starting a new brand from scratch - at least it won't have the smell of failure all over it.

RE: wow
SeldomVisitor @ 10/25/2007 4:10:41 PM # Q
Those developers are probably off developing for ALP.

RE: wow
cstamper @ 10/26/2007 12:52:59 PM # Q
Wrong. We're still here, waiting & wondering. And I am considering iPhone development. So when Palm dies, I'll have something to do!

Sorta OT, but I think we @ PIC should all get this free Touch: http://www.flashipods4free.com/index.php?ref=34934%20
Then somebody write an educated article, "Touch vs TX, 10 rounds". Then we can all write educated comments!

What do you think, sirs?

I think the TouchPig will soon be full of 'last' nails!!??

Reply to this comment

These may end up beign a couple key comments

SeldomVisitor @ 10/25/2007 2:08:37 PM # Q
== "...We're really setting up our plans for the future..."

When I read that I sorta said "They're setting up PLANS for the future?" as opposed to actually implementing already-set plans - that all by itself suggests a timeline that THIS comment:

== "...It's a probably good target..."

could be taken as even further delay than 18 months can be expected.

RE: These may end up beign a couple key comments
twizza @ 10/25/2007 2:21:02 PM # Q
I will agree, those are interesting comments. My guess is that upon looking at the plans, things were scrapped and the company will get a major refacing not just in devices, but personnel.

Says a lot about the plans that were in place. A whole lot.

mobileministrymagazine.com
antoinerjwright.com

RE: These may end up beign a couple key comments
DCeight @ 10/25/2007 2:43:25 PM # Q
Good point. Essentially product leaks and rumors will start in 18 months followed by any actual product launchs many, many months later.
RE: These may end up beign a couple key comments
pmjoe @ 10/25/2007 5:38:15 PM # Q
I take these "setting up" comments as that the new leadership and investors realize what a mess there is and that they intend to try to right the sinking ship. But honestly, I would be looking to get something into developers' hands much, much sooner. Possibly do something like the OpenMoko ... get a developer's device out there and an early release of the OS (with some design documentation) within the next six months. As I and others have said, in 18 months, there will be nothing left.

Drives me nuts that I could likely manage this better than the overpaid idiots at the helm.

RE: These may end up beign a couple key comments
SeldomVisitor @ 10/25/2007 6:10:18 PM # Q
> ...Drives me nuts that I could likely manage this better
> than the overpaid idiots at the helm

Yeah, but then YOU would be an overpaid idiot to someone else.

Reply to this comment

Eighteen Months?!!?

mikecane @ 10/25/2007 2:08:50 PM # Q
As McCoy once famously said, "Are you out of your Vulcan mind?!!?"

So all you Treo weenies, are you REALLY going to stick with that brick and get laughed at for the next EIGHTEEN MONTHS?!!?

RE: Eighteen Months?!!?
joad @ 10/25/2007 4:37:37 PM # Q
...what are the alternatives, if I want essentially the same databases and functionality I've had and built up for the past 10 years with the Palm OS?

Seriously, I'd have been long gone from Palm years ago if there were anything as "Zen," but I have yet to see any other system that works as well for me. I've given them years of rope, and it seems the only action that they can take is to keep tying it in a loop and placing it over their heads.

|
**Another vote for a >100MB RAM Treo**

RE: Eighteen Months?!!?
freakout @ 10/25/2007 6:53:51 PM # Q
Laughed at?

K, show me the nearest pocketable phone with touchscreen, removable battery, a massive selection of third-party apps and a real, exposed QWERTY (not some tap-and-pray smudgy piece of crap) and I'll think about it.

Oh wait...

RE: Eighteen Months?!!?
m130fullbutcontent @ 10/25/2007 7:30:40 PM # Q
>"So all you Treo weenies, are you REALLY going to stick with that brick and get laughed at for the next EIGHTEEN MONTHS?!!?"

... Yeap, I sure am :-).

Besides the only laughs come from such persons as do laugh & mock on forums like this so that's pretty painless. I've only met happy Treo owners locally. My Treo 680 is only 2 months old & is growing on me. As long as it's reasonably durable (no certainty there mind) I will be happy for some time with it. This forum is after all one where some want the absolute cutting edge & beyond - and they want it now...

There are of course many other PIC readers & posters here who are a bit more realistic than that.

iPhone ? No real buttons - locked to network & no third party software yet ; Much more expensive ; No thanks.
PPC/Windows on my pda/phone - not on your nellie ! (it even costs more.. than having POS)

Nokia have been for many king of mobile phones & my last one - no bad phone either - is starting to get left gathering dust at times, even with it's better battery life.

End of sermon !


IIIe>IIIxe>m125>m130>T3>TE>T3>TX / Treo680

Jesus said : 'I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.'
John's Gospel ch. 14 vs 6, NIV

RE: Eighteen Months?!!?
jca666us @ 10/25/2007 8:30:05 PM # Q
>Laughed at?

>Show me the nearest pocketable phone with touchscreen, removable battery, a massive selection of third-
>party apps and a real, exposed QWERTY (not some tap-and-pray smudgy piece of crap) and I'll think about it.

>Oh wait...

Freak, show me a Palm OS device with a slim design, exciting new form factor, good web browser, high resolution screen, advanced multimedia support, multitasking OS with support for Wifi.

Oh wait...we'll stop back in two years. If Palm's not dead by then, they may actually have something.

BTW, based on your criteria, I'd go with a Windows Mobile device.



RE: Eighteen Months?!!?
freakout @ 10/25/2007 11:09:53 PM # Q
^^ You and I are looking for different things, troll boy. I'm just pointing out to Cane that the Treo still has a combination of features that very few other devices can match, and that alone will ensure a reasonable amount of success while we wait for a new breed. Not iPhone success, sure, but the only people who care are fanboy losers on the Internet.

By the by, the only WinMob device I know of that ticks all the above boxes is, doncha know it, a Treo!

Tim
I apologise for any and all emoticons that appear in my posts. You may shoot them on sight.
Treo 270 ---> Treo 650 ---> Crimson Treo 680

RE: Eighteen Months?!!?
jca666us @ 10/26/2007 1:56:30 AM # Q
Hey clown, check out an htc device..

RE: Eighteen Months?!!?
ChiA @ 10/29/2007 8:58:39 AM # Q
freakout said
show me the nearest pocketable phone with touchscreen, removable battery, a massive selection of third-party apps and a real, exposed QWERTY (not some tap-and-pray smudgy piece of crap) and I'll think about it.

http://www.htc.com/product/03-product_tytn_II.htm

and you get GPS, HSDPA and a megapixel autofocussing camera thrown in as a bonus too!

RE: Eighteen Months?!!?
vorlon @ 10/29/2007 1:55:38 PM # Q
HTC TyTN II - for those who think a Treo is too light and has too big resolution, and don't need one handed operation. Well the build quality is better than those Palms that were built by the crappy HTC... Oh, nevermind.

RE: Eighteen Months?!!?
ChiA @ 10/29/2007 3:27:46 PM # Q
HTC TyTN II - for those who think a Treo is too light and has too big resolution, and don't need one handed operation.

Comparing like with like:

Screen resolution:
240 x 240 - Treo 750
240 x 320 - Tytn II

Size:
113 x 59 x 21 mm Treo 750
112 x 59 x 19 mm Tytn II

Yes, the Tytn II is heavier but it has all the Treo has to offer plus bigger screen, wifi, GPS and a better camera in a device physically smaller than the Treo.

RE: Eighteen Months?!!?
vorlon @ 10/29/2007 5:31:12 PM # Q
750 has for a significantly lower price (500 vs. 820 bucks unlocked on Amazon) one handed operation, ringer switch, Palm enhancements http://euro.palm.com/uk/en/products/treo750v/innovations.htm


RE: Eighteen Months?!!?
ChiA @ 11/4/2007 3:32:43 AM # Q
The above link leads to:

Sorry, the page you requested was not found.
You may have selected an outdated link or may have typed the page address (URL) incorrectly.

If you're having trouble locating a destination on Palm.com, try visiting the European Palm.com home page....

Proof that innovation can't be found at Palm.

RE: Eighteen Months?!!?
ChiA @ 11/4/2007 3:50:28 AM # Q
750 has for a significantly lower price (500 vs. 820 bucks unlocked on Amazon) one handed operation, ringer switch, Palm enhancements

The Tytn II can be used with one hand. The UBIQUIO 503G sells at the same price point as a Treo 750 with a similar set of features, yet offers a larger screen, 2 megapixel camera & a video call camera.

We have mobile devices with wi-fi, VOIP, 3G, megapixel cameras and even fingerprint scanners, but the mobile industry seem to have "overlooked" the "tremendous" impact Palm's "revolutionary" ringer switch can have on smartphone use and sales!

RE: Eighteen Months?!!?
vorlon @ 11/4/2007 4:36:40 PM # Q
> the mobile industry seem to have "overlooked" the "tremendous" impact Palm's "revolutionary" ringer switch can have on smartphone use and sales!

Not Apple...
By the way, how many hundreds of times have you seen that some schmuck in a meeting or somewhere had forgotten to put his mobile on vibrate and annoyed the hell out of everyone when it rang, just because it's so damn hard.

In my country, TyTN II in the largest web (and also brick & mortar) store - 819.90 Euros, 750 - 576.90, iPhone - nope, Blackberry - nada.

> The Tytn II can be used with one hand.

Qwerty also?

Reply to this comment

18 months - how low will the stock be by then?

jca666us @ 10/25/2007 2:29:57 PM # Q
It's dropped almost 18% in one day.

RE: 18 months - how low will the stock be by then?
TooMuch @ 10/26/2007 12:00:56 PM # Q
I'm buying NOW.

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