WirelessDoc

Comment, questions and criticisms about the new Treo line

While I didn't get a chance to watch the web cast of the press conference with Gates, Colligan and Strigl, I read the thread on TreoCentral which had people commenting while it was occurring. And, it was pretty funny.

First, nothing much new was said. The most striking revelation was that Verizon Wireless would be the exclusive carrier, but the Windows Treo based on other wireless technologies would be available in the second half of 2006. It's uncertain whether this applies to Sprint since it also is using EV-DO. This device will support EV-DO with no mention of the monthly service charge or whether DUN would be enabled via Bluetooth (probably not). Wi-fi is possible with an optional SD card, but considering that most serious users have either 1 or 2 GB SD memory cards to manage most of their applications, it would seem bothersome to have to keep switching cards just to use a personal WLAN. It was confirmed that the screen resolution would be 240x240 pixels, nearly half the resolution of the Treo 650's 320x320 screen.

The funny part was when the phone number on the screen of Bill Gates' demo Treo was clearly visible to the audience. People commenting in the TreoCentral forum stated sending text messages to Bill, and then they noticed that he was becoming absorbed in the Treo he was holding. Were they getting through? Sure enough, Gates said that he was receiving all these text messages.

(Darker days ahead for the Palm OS? More to follow...)

The financial side of the new Treo

Last Friday, the WSJ gave its take on the announcement of the new Treo and the outlook for the Palm OS:

Palm spun off its software division as an independent company, PalmSource Inc., in 2003. PalmSource has since struggled, especially when Sony all but stopped making hand-held computers. PalmSource has since tried to broaden its software and to license its products to mobile-phone makers but hasn't signed up many large phone makers. Its biggest licensee today remains Palm. PalmSource's chief executive, David Nagel, resigned this year; no permanent successor was named. Earlier this month, PalmSource announced it was being acquired by Japanese company Access Co. for slightly more than $320 million.

Meanwhile, Microsoft has continued honing its mobile software and has succeeded in signing up a variety of mobile-phone makers to license the software. During the third quarter last year, more hand-held devices using Microsoft's Windows were shipped than those using PalmSource software, according to research firm Gartner Inc.

The collaboration with Microsoft may not mean that Palm will stop using software from PalmSource. In a statement earlier this month when PalmSource announced its sale to Access, Palm CEO Ed Colligan said the company "looks forward to continuing our strong working relationship to advance the Palm operating system platform."

Palm on Thursday reported its fiscal first-quarter earnings fell 7% to $18.2 million, or 35 cents a share, from $19.6 million, or 38 cents a share, in the year-earlier period. The company also forecast revenue of $435 million to $440 million for the current quarter, below analyst expectations.

Treo does Windows and EV-DO

Today will see the fateful announcement of the new Treo 700w by Palm, Microsoft and Verizon Wireless, and it will probably reveal the future of all connected handhelds.

Engadget has been posting photos of the new device. They're reporting:

A few confirmed specs: Windows Mobile 5.0, one megapixel camera, EV-DO, Bluetooth, 64MB of memory, still trying to conclusively determine the resolution of the display, but it looks to our eyes like it’s 240 x 240 pixels, not 320 x 320. But we’re not 100% on that, ok?

One photo shows that you'll be able to switch to landscape mode, which I guess is good for browsing some web sites, but it sure rules out thumb typing.

There is the question of what Verizon will be charging for the EV-DO, and if this Treo can be used as a wireless modem for your notebook computer. If it's in the $60/month range, it would be hard to justify this service for such a small screen unless you could it as a modem. Streaming video would be a novelty, and would certainly be available as a premium service.

Microsoft was extremely wise in buying into this particular converged device which seem to approach the ultimate tradeoff in size and usability. HP had tried to provide three wireless services (WAN, WLAN & Bluetooth) in a handheld but not too successfully. BTW, the wi-fi doesn't interest me much, especially with that SD card that precariously protrudes from the top. I think you can generally rule out VoIP capabilities.

As for the camera, increasing the pixel count by 3x doesn't impress me unless they've found a way to improve the lens and/or the software for image adjustment in camera.

Right now this device is fulfilling the needs of a very small niche: those who are willing to pay extra for the best and the fastest smartphone. I would think that they would also come out with a model that doesn't have EV-DO in order to attract a wider user base who don't need all this bandwidth but are just interested in e-mail services and some light browsing. And, with SD card capacity increasing, could a subscription music service be far behind?

Finally, there's the question of what this will mean for the Palm OS. If Google had purchased Palm Source and had some grand scheme of adapting it for the ultimate smartphone browsing experience, you could be hopeful. Otherwise, depending on how this device performs, the user base for the Palm OS will migrate to wherever the innovation in occurring.

Verizon Pushes Wireless PCs [notebooks]

Red Herring is reporting about yesterday's announcement:

Verizon Wireless, the second-largest cellular carrier in the

United States

, said Monday it was partnering with Dell, Lenovo and Hewlett-Packard, the world’s three largest PC makers, to push a new form of wireless broadband technology that competes with Wi-Fi.

 

Also, Sony announced it will market a line of notebooks with integrated adaptors for Cingular’s EDGE cellular broadband network.

Verizon's EV-DO wins over EDGE based on bandwidth.

My ideal device would be one with a form factor of the SONY PSP (and its screen quality), with a thumbboard (thumb keyboard), built-in Wifi (which the PSP has), EV-DO connectibility, and Palm Garnet as the OS. The choice right now is paying $2300 for the latest microlight VAIO notebook which you still can't carry in your pocket.

3Com Wireless Solution Provides Underwood-Memorial Hospital with wireless services

"Underwood-Memorial Hospital of Woodbury, N.J, a 305-bed community non-profit medical facility, upgraded its patient care using a hospital-wide, secure high-speed wireless network from 3Com Corporation. The 3Com® Wireless LAN Mobility System extends high-speed network availability throughout the hospital, particularly to points of care, where doctors and nurses check and update patient records with maximum accuracy, efficiency, and security."

"The 3Com Wireless LAN Managed Access Points (MAPs) provide 802.11a and 802.11 b/g wireless connectivity of 54 Mbps throughout the seven-story facility. Instead of waiting for the handful of wired terminals at nursing stations, medical staff visit patient rooms and work in the ER with laptops on rolling carts, equipped with 3Com OfficeConnect Wireless 11g USB Adapters."

Verizon donates COWs to Katrina

COWs (Cell on Wheels) is the acronym for the temporary wireless network support donated by Verizon Wireless along with wireless phones and service.

Wishing the best for Halley

Seems that uber-blogger Halley Suitt had a bout of chest pain that prompted her to seek medical attention.

She relates her experience with the high-tech gadgets available during her admission, including a wireless heart monitor.

As it's looking now, the pain was not cardiac related, but she does link to an important quiz from  the Woman's Heart Foundation that helps women become aware of the atypical symptoms.