On the Treo-maker's blog, CEO Ed Colligan noted: "As many of you are aware, we are in the process of building our next-generation software platform. We are very excited about how this is coming together." Later, Colligan added: "After careful deliberation, I have decided to cancel the Foleo mobile companion product in its current configuration and focus all of our energies on delivering our next-generation platform and the first smartphones that will bring this platform to market."
To some experts, it was no surprise that the Foleo was given a mercy killing by Palm execs. The Foleo, which was on the verge of shipping, was a laptop-style clamshell device that connected to a Treo via Bluetooth for one-button email syncing, offering email junkies a bigger form factor to view messages and edit documents. It featured a 10.2-inch screen, full keyboard, instant turn-on and about five hours of battery life. Basically, the Foleo was a laptop for a smartphone.
"Because we were nearly at the point [of] shipping Foleo, this was a very tough decision," Colligan blogged. "Yet I am convinced it is the right thing to do. Foleo is based on a second platform and a separate development environment, and we need to focus our efforts on one platform."
When
Requires Free Membership to View
SearchMobileComputing.com members gain immediate and unlimited access to expert guides for mobile deployment, management and security, industry trends, and more-- all at no cost. Join me on SearchMobileComputing.com today!
Kate Gerwig, Editorial Director
Palm announced the Foleo in late May, experts were quick to dismiss it, questioning why a smartphone user would also want to lug around a laptop-sized companion, essentially defeating the purpose of carrying a smartphone in the first place.
Jack Gold, principal and founder of Northborough, Mass.-based mobile research and analyst firm J.Gold Associates, called Foleo a flop from the outset.
"Many users got a Treo or a BlackBerry in the first place to not have to carry around something that big," Gold said upon Foleo's release. "Will users be willing to carry around a peripheral that is four to five times the size and weight of their smartphone device?"
Apparently not, Gold says now.
"It was an ill-thought-out product that shouldn't have come to market," he said, adding that it was a really wise choice on Palm's part to let Foleo rest in peace.
But Foleo sent the already ailing Treo-maker into a $10 million hole, which will take the company a long time to climb out of, especially with the breakneck pace at which other device makers hit the market with their wares.
"This is a case of Palm needing to focus," Gold said. "They are way behind on getting a new and updated OS and devices on the market to compete with RIM, Nokia and others, including Microsoft. They do not have unlimited resources and need to apply their resources where they will do the most good – upgrading and keeping their existing base of users happy and not trying to build out a whole new market segment, which would have been difficult and costly. This was Colligan saying they will put all of their forces into getting out the new OS and devices. This is what they need to do -- and soon."
Gold noted that it could also have been investor pressure that caused the Foleo's untimely, but ultimately necessary, demise.
"Hopefully, they are coming in and cracking the whip and making them do the right thing," he said. "And the right thing is not trying to build a new market segment."
Gold added that rumors still swirl that Palm could soon be acquired. He said Motorola, Dell or Nokia could scoop up the Treo-maker to bulk up their smartphone business, but none would want the hassles of taking the Foleo on board.
"If they are really up for sale – as is rumored – why would an acquiring company want an unproven product with an unproven market and the need to invest heavily in marketing the product?" Gold asked.
 |
||||
|
|
|||
|
||||
"The Treo was a leader when it first came out," Gold said. "Now it's not. Palm has to do something to hold off the competitors. Palm has got to do something, and not just rest on [its] laurels for the next two to three years. Palm has got to decide where it wants to go and what it wants to do."
Gold also said that the Foleo, though it may have looked good on paper, might have carried a price tag that was just too aggressive. With a price of roughly $600, the Foleo wasn't cheap, especially when a general-purpose laptop or notebook could be bought for a similar chunk of change.
On Palm's blog, Colligan hinted that the Foleo may return as the Foleo II, but he provided few details.
"[Palm founder] Jeff Hawkins and I still believe the market category defined by Foleo has enormous potential," Colligan wrote. "When we do Foleo II, it will be based on our new platform, and we think it will deliver on the promise of this new category. We're not going to speculate now on timing for a next Foleo; we just know we need to get our core platform and smartphones done first."
Gold said that Palm should shelve a new Foleo for now and put its money back into what were once its core strengths: the platform and the Treo devices. Lack of focus going ahead would allow other device makers like RIM (BlackBerry) and now Apple to continue eating into Palm's market share.
Gold concluded: "Palm is going to sink or swim on the decisions it makes going forward."