So, as a techie kinda guy, I have had PDAs throughout my life. My current one is a Blackberry, but back in the day the first one I really used was the 3Com Palm III. It was a marvel of engineering. It ran off two AAA batteries, kept my contacts and calendar as well as notes. I even had a 14.4 modem for it and could do some basic web surfing. All in all it was pretty cool... but times changed. The newer Palms really didn't add anything significant to the mix. Then came along Pocket PCs and the Palm looked weaker and weaker. The Blackberry went from e-mail tool to a real PDA and the Palm never really improved beyond adding color and some more speed. The last Palm I worked with was also a cell phone, but it was pale in comparison to what would come next on the scene.
Appearing almost out of left field was the Apple iPhone (who would have expected that after the Newton?). People were clamoring for one for year, they loved the iPod and wanted more. But how could Apple compete against Microsoft which had largely failed in the PDA market, Blackberry which was growing and Palm which maintained market share despite their outdated designs. Well, they did it with such an impressive launch that every PDA/Phone that has followed has copied at least some part of it. The iPhone was the game changer. Soon Blackberry came out with the Touch, and Microsoft pushed hard with Windows Mobile 7. But Palm sat back, and appeared to rest on their laurels. Occasionally releasing a model that would run Windows Mobile. They were trying to fit that tight market between the Blackberry and the Microsoft Device, and really weren't doing either well enough. Finally they got a clue and began development on a new innovation the WebOS.
On January of 2009 the world got to see the WebOS and everyone was impressed. Would this be the thing to save Palm since it was been failing. Would this restore faith in the company? Well, that was the hope. But it appears that it was too late. The iPhone 3Gs came out, Windows Mobile 7 is hitting the market, Google has jumped in with Android and the Palm, once the crown jewel of the PDA, was left in the dust. Today on April 4th 2010 word has come out that Palm is looking to sell itself. Current suitors are rumored to be HTC (which makes Google's phone) and Lenovo.
It hurts to see Palm go away, but this is Darwinian economics. The weaker products that do not adapt either vanish or get absorbed into a larger entity. The only hope then is that the larger entity doesn't collapse. (Take a look at Fiat and Chrysler in a few years and you may see that happen)
-Uncle Walter
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