OK, so it was only of fringe interest to S60 and UIQ users, but in the latest U-turn in a long series of stumbles and blind alleys, it seems Palm has canned its 'smartphone companion' completely, citing a desire to keep everything focussed within a single software platform. Er... which platform would that be, exactly?
Read on in the full article.
I need to get my hands on a proto before they destroy them!
Dear God, what are they smoking over there? Foleo was never going to be of any use. For a start it was too large to genuinely be a briefcase-friendly alternative to the likes of the Vaio. Secondly, it's functionality was not really any better than you can get on an E90. Thirdly it's OS was... questionable.
I'd go back to palm like a shot if they could ever get an update of their OS out that handled 3G and HSDPA and they'd stop feckin' around and put wifi on their phones.
Otherwise, they remain a respected producer of Windows Mobile phones (not interested, personally) and the curator of an odd, wholly outdated, OS whose continued existence is a mystery to us all.
Too bad... Clearly, the Foleo was over-engineered and the price was just plain wrong.
But I still think that this was a wonderful concept and I hope that somebody will come up with a cheap enough, though, small and light keyboard/screen combo that could be used to turn a smartphone into a fully usable laptop connecting to the smartphone wirelessly. I think that this keyboard/screen combo shouldn't have its own OS but simply acts as a full size keyboard and screen showing what's on your smatphone's screen but with a larger resolution. With the latest versions of the mobile OS being resolution independent, this certainly is something that could be done.
Want to bet that this foleo disaster is going to be in the next edition of "In search of stupidity, over 20 years of high-tech marketing disasters"? (if you haven't yet read this book, then rush to amazon http://www.amazon.co.uk/Search-Stupidity-Twenty-Marketing-Disasters/dp/1590597214/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1/026-7230900-1542015?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1188991793&sr=8-1 and get it now; it's a fantastic read).
Yup... I guess whatever they were smoking has finally worn off. The Foleo was a joke! Just get a lightwight laptop and you have windows<insert version here> that runs most of the software for computers on the planet *and* can connect to any smartphone... not just PalmOS/Winmob! Why on earth would anyone want a Foleo (except they were indeed smoking the same stuff that Ed has been smoking for a while).
Advice to palm: Get your finger out and *do something* anything even... and put Wi-FI and 3G in your damn phones!!!! . Have focus groups before you design a product... or just read internet postings on what customers. Jeez!
Oh... Abit off topic here.... but Richard after our "discussion" in the other post... I got the P1i again and Im beginning to like UIQ 😉 It aint as bad I initially suggested/thought.... Its actually quite good! 😉 Just put my N95 on ebay... because I prefer smartphones with keyboards (and batteries that last longer than a day😉)
Cheers...
An interesting device that's on it's way is the ASUS EEE 701. 7 inch screen, solid state hard drive and it should be possible to connect it to your phone. It's reckoned to only cost $200 - $250 on release too. Although we'll probably get ripped off in the UK/Europe as usual. Last I heard the UK price will be around �200.
"Too bad... Clearly, the Foleo was over-engineered and the price was just plain wrong. "
Yeah, I think it was the price above all else that was the main problem, even if one accepted the merits of the concept. The Foleo was priced pretty near to a cheap laptop, it was of a similar size too, yet it offered far less functionality. There was just no reason to buy one.
"I think that this keyboard/screen combo shouldn't have its own OS but simply acts as a full size keyboard and screen showing what's on your smatphone's screen but with a larger resolution."
Exactly, this is the only way it could have possibly been a viable concept, to make it as cheap and light as possible. It should have worked just like a bluetooth keyboard but with a screen too.
In fact if they'd included a docking port with composite inputs, and made the keyboard work via Bluetooth, it could have worked with any existing device that uses TV Out such as the N95.
As a Canadian living in the shadow of the US mobile industry may I say how refreshing it is to frequent a site that hasn't drank the BlackBerry/Treo Kool-Aid yet!
"As a Canadian living in the shadow of the US mobile industry may I say how refreshing it is to frequent a site that hasn't drank the BlackBerry/Treo Kool-Aid yet!"
Blackberries and Treos aren't that popular outside America, they never have been. People in Europe and Asia tend to prefer more phone-like smart devices, perhaps because the phone networks are far better in Europe and Asia than in the US.
The problem is that Blackberries and Treos ARE popular with people who work in the media, so the media often misrepresents the popularity of these brands.
It's the same with public wifi hotspots, hardly anyone actually uses them in the real world and many schemes to blanket city centres are now being closed down due to lack of use. Media types love them though, and talk about public hotspots as if they're the greatest invention since fire, and it's the hype that makes many local councils decide to install these things rather than any actual public need.
Hey Smythe - Like I said, UIQ is in no way perfect but it's not the stinker many claim, it just got crucified by the P990's lack of RAM.
So, have fun with it! It is quite entertaining - the multiple input options are great about twice as often as they are irritating and the little cartoons are groovy (although I'm old and have never been cool, so take that last bit at your own risk!).