A Message to Palm Customers, Partners and Developers

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. It has a modern flexible UI, instant performance, and an incredibly simple and elegant development environment. We are working hard on this platform and on the first smartphone that will take advantage of it.

In the course of the past several months, it has become clear that the right path for Palm is to offer a single, consistent user experience around this new platform design and a single focus for our platform development efforts. To that end, and 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. We will, of course, continue to develop products in partnership with Microsoft on the Windows Mobile platform, but from our internal platform development perspective, we will focus on only one.

Because we were nearly at the point for shipping Foleo, this was a very tough decision. Yet I am convinced this is the right thing to do. Foleo is based on second platform and a separate development environment, and we need to focus our efforts on one platform. Our own evaluation and early market feedback were telling us that we still have a number of improvements to make Foleo a world-class product, and we can not afford to make those improvements on a platform that is not central to our core focus. That would not be right for our customers or for our developer community.

Jeff Hawkins and I still believe that the market category defined by Foleo has enormous potential. 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.

I would like to thank our customers for their interest in Foleo. I know there will be disappointed folks who were looking forward to carrying a Foleo for all their mobile computing needs. I am certainly one of them. I would also like to thank the developers who have supported our Foleo efforts. They have been loyal to Palm and have worked hard to deliver some compelling solutions on the Foleo platform. I know that they will understand that the right thing to do for the long run is to focus on one platform that will live for years, rather than invest energy in a one-off solution. We will make every effort to make sure we bring our developers forward to our next generation platform.

This decision will require us to take a limited charge of less than $10 million dollars to our earnings. This is a lot of money, but it is a small price relative to the costs that would be required to support two platforms going forward. This decision is in the best interest of our customers, our team, our products and our shareholders. I hope this renewed focus at Palm will allow us to deliver more compelling solutions to our core smartphone market, and it will allow us to position ourselves for the long run around one Palm experience.

-Ed Colligan, CEO

Comments

[David Beers]

I'm sad for the delay in the Foleo product, but as a developer very pleased that I and other Palm developers will be able to target applications to a single, unified platform shared by Palm's smartphones and smartphone companions. I was impressed when I first got to try a Foleo how far the Foleo team had gone in achieving Palm's "Zen," so I can only think that the new OS will be delivering on that as well.

Glad for the renewed focus from you guys. You've got some great hardware in the Foleo, and the opportunity to have the same apps run across both Foleo and Palm smartphones is very exciting.

[Paul]

Discretion is the better part of valor. Nice to know you're thinking about it and focusing. Thank you.

[A J]

All right! Now release an awesome product that I can be proud of that will work with the ePocrates medical database (like your current Palms) and can sign me up to buy one!

[Gregg G.]

"I hope this renewed focus at Palm will allow us to deliver more compelling solutions to our core smartphone market..."

Mr. Colligan-

Now that your developers will have a little more time on their hands, do you think you can renew your focus towards delivering fixes to your botched fixes of a model you said didn't need fixing (like the 700P). As a continuous Palm and Handspring owner since I purchased my PalmPilot 5000 on the very first day they were available in March '96, I am absolutely disgusted in by the support your company has failed to provide for this model since its inception.

Whether it be your new Smartphone platform, Foleo II or 2000, I (and many others) **really** need to see Palm support both its current models and present customers before considering any of your future products.

[RobAnd]

Ok, but please: do not forget developing a Treo with a Huge 480x320 screen + Wi-Fi!!!!
The screen must have the same size as the TX screen.

[Brandon]

Sad day indeed.

I guess I was one of the few who was really looking forward to this product as a replacement for having to lug a full laptop around for basics like email and calendaring and light web use. Hopefully once the new platform launches we will get to see the Foleo out in the real world.

On a lighter note - I'll be happy to take one of the pre-production models off your hands if you'd rather see it used and not tossed in a dumpster somewhere!

Good Luck Palm - ultimately I think this was the right decision!

[Andreas]

Very sad. I waited since the announcement for it as a perfect combination for the mobile business.

What will happen to the prototypes and the pilot series? I think scrapping them would be the wrong way.
(I would be proud to have one of these)

[Daren]

I was looking forward to buying a foleo for university classes, but at the same time I see the point of its cancellation, and would rather not have the product than get one only to find little to no support. I would just like to add one thing for any future versions of the foleo, give it a longer battery life. 6hrs is too short, and like cell phones, it should be able to go multiple days without needing to be charged.

[Tam Hanna]

Hi Ed,
great to hear that you focus back to smartphones - in the end, you could always make a bigger smartphone and call it Foleo 2, sort of like Nokia did with S60 and the E90.

However, the issue I see here is developers. What happens to all developers who created existing apps for Foleo - they will probably be very very happy now. IMHO, this is a bad sign for your new platform - developers will be even more cautious, leaving you without any apps to demo...sort of like with the original Tungsten T...

Best regards
Tam Hanna

[Jay Asafi]

Palm should come out with a voice interactive product, like the one described at www.UltimateMobileDevice.com

[rod / techfold.com]

Congratulations on making a tough decision. I think everyone will be looking forward to welcoming Palm back to the pantheon of innovative, market-leading firms. Sadly, for those emotionally invested in its development, I think the Foleo will be missed by few for now.

Best of luck and best regards,
-Rod

[David]

As someone who has been writing for the PalmOS platform for almost seven years now, I applaud your decision. I think this (obviously difficult) decision will help solidify the Palm brand as a quality product.

[Oliver]

I hope you don't trash the already produced Foleos. As a Palm-Collector I would give my right arm for one :-(

[Rob P]

I can't say i'm sorry to hear this. Palm has had some amazing products in the past. I still fondly remember my Palm IIIx, with it's hard flip cover that reminded me of an original Star Trek communicator. It did everything it was designed to do very well, and very quickly.

To be honest, my Tx doesn't hold a candle to it. The batteries in my IIIx would last two months. I have to recharge my Tx every two days. The IIIx was fast, I never had to wait for it. The Tx lacks the "snappy" performance. Still, it's better than any of the WinCE offerings, and it still runs the programs (the *same* programs, no less) that I found useful on my IIIx.

Yes, the WiFi is a great improvement, as is the colour screen, and the higher resolution, and the increased memory, etc., etc. But the tradeoff was losing the speed and the battery life, and sometimes i'm not always sure it's been worth it.

Build a Tx with the ergonomics of an iPhone. Oh, and stop playing into the hands of the wireless companies... Taking the microphone out of the Tx, and not putting WiFi into your Treo's, because it would allow people to use VOIP when near a wireless point.

Make the handhelds durable again. My IIIx was dropped numerous times and never had a problem beyond a scratch on the case. I'm afraid to drop my Tx, it feels fragile. Bring back the flip cover. It opened with a thumb flip on the IIIx, and did a much better job of protecting the unit than the flimsy, always crooked, cover that came with my Tx.

I know you can do it. Please make it so!

[Brad Green]

I believe this is the right step for Palm. Although the Foleo is a nice device, and there is a niche for it, the feedback I have seen shows that the presentation of the Foleo is not exactly what people were looking for. Furthermore, Palm does not want to get into the habit of copying Apple, who significantly delayed their latest OS release to have their developers work on the iPhone. Dont sacrifice the core of your business just to try something new. And please, get something out that can take on the iPhone, and have Steve design it if you need to, so it at least looks good.

[Chad Garrett]

I am very, very disappointed. I was so excited for the Foleo... one of the few I guess. I could see its future, and I was honored to be a part of it. I am truly bummed.

[Leo]

Bye, Bye, Foleo, so far.....

[Bing]

Since there will be no more Foleo for sale, do you have any Foleo device to give out? I promise that I won't resell it on ebay.

[tk421]

Wow! This is such a gutsy yet smart decision from Palm. I am really starting to have higher hopes from Palm these days. First, the rumors of a new PDA, others of a large screen Treo, the cute Centro, and now this! I think that the Engadget article hit Palm straight in the heart. Palm is finally listening, and that is a wonderful feeling for long time supporters of the platform.

A Foleo 2 with a touch screen and Palm OS 2 might actually be very tempting. No need for a TabletPC with such a device. Without a touch screen, it's not so useful for me.

Now, I can't wait to see the first screens of Palm OS 2, and I can't wait to have a TX with cell radio running it. If Palm is truly listening, such a device really can't be too far away.

Good luck to all the guys at Palm!

[Savygeek]

I agree... good move Palm!!! Applause are in order.

[Iban]

Good movement, Ed!

We *need* a new smartphone in the market, we need a evolution or new PalmOS platform.

I hope that the Foleo is not in the right way, but it is still very cool, may be in the future, not now.

Thank you for the sincerity and the corage to do this.

Best regards

[Doctor Memory]

Learning when it's time to walk away from a bad investment is one of the hardest lessons in business. Many people go their entire lives without ever getting it right. Congratulations.

Apple's comeback started when Ellen Hancock summoned the guts necessary to pull the plug on Project Copland and admitted that it was time to try something different. Here's hoping that this marks a similar turning point for Palm.

[Tübe Matow]

Thank you for doing the difficult - and very smart - thing. It's rare to see a company take a hard look at itself and make tough decisions. But it's fair to say that everyone was thinking the very same thing, and we're glad you saw the light.

What will save Palm is a return to quality-control (witness the 700p debacles), easy to use products, and superb carrier-friendly features to ensure the widest distribution. The company was obviously suffering from a lack of focus in recent quarters and must work quickly to avoid losing its customers' loyalty and enthusiasm.

Thank you Mr. Colligan for doing the right thing! Now lets just hope it's not too late to set things right again.

[ADM]

a brave decision, but the right one. your response to engadget's open letter showed that you were thinking about things in the right way, and ready to make some difficult moved. keep it up.

as a software developer, i can only imagine the disappointment felt by the engineers who created this device, and i sympathize with them. but, with the foleo gone, they'll be able to focus on palm's core devices now. best of luck.

[Alan G]

Ed,

Thank you for sharing this information with the Palm user community. As a long time supporter of Palm, I was enthusiastically looking forward to carrying a Foleo. I understand the business realities behind the Palm Team's decision.

Here is to looking forward to the Foleo II.

Alan G