tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17898384.post113817816951980071..comments2024-03-25T21:41:06.801-07:00Comments on Mobile Opportunity: LifeDrive: Palm's own eierlegende WollmilchsauMichael Macehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17966107280587843091noreply@blogger.comBlogger41125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17898384.post-1140822231738301022006-02-24T15:03:00.000-08:002006-02-24T15:03:00.000-08:00Revfriend wrote:>>Sorry that you didn't find the l...Revfriend wrote:<BR/><BR/>>>Sorry that you didn't find the lifedrive a good ROI but I sure do!<BR/><BR/>Thanks for the comment, and I'm glad you like your device. Don't get me wrong, I personally like the LifeDrive, but I just don't think it fits the needs of enough people. I liked most of the high-end Clies as well, and we saw what happened to them...Michael Macehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17966107280587843091noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17898384.post-1138915051749140582006-02-02T13:17:00.000-08:002006-02-02T13:17:00.000-08:00Sad to say, but my husband and I have both given u...Sad to say, but my husband and I have both given up on the Palm OS platform. He's just ordered a Pocket PC PDA and I'm back to good old paper for my PIM.Rachel Luxemburghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12521247639838493705noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17898384.post-1138846364313929452006-02-01T18:12:00.000-08:002006-02-01T18:12:00.000-08:00Hi, ATH.Thanks very much for the comments. Good s...Hi, ATH.<BR/><BR/>Thanks very much for the comments. Good stuff.<BR/><BR/>A couple of thoughts...<BR/><BR/><BR/>>>My gut instinct on this one is that while the aspects you have addressed - the marketing pitch and product identity - are important factors, its the hardware that really lets the current LD down<BR/><BR/>I don't think your view necessarily conflicts with mine at all. You're talking about he reasons why loyal Palm OS users were disappointed in the device; I was focusing on whether the LifeDrive could establish a completely new category of mobile devices, separate from both PDAs and smartphones.<BR/><BR/><BR/>>>everyone else in Palm-world knows what it should have, so can someone from Palm read the hundreds of posts and just get the next one right?<BR/><BR/>I can't speak for the current Palm at all, but maybe it'd be useful if I talked about how Palm parsed user feedback when I was working there.<BR/><BR/>The first thing to realize is that Palm has a very small number of employees considering how well known its brand is, and how many people use its products. The flow of suggestions and ideas is from outside is overwhelming. When I was there, people were trying to listen and respond when they could, but it was like drinking from the proverbial firehose.<BR/><BR/>When there's a significant hardware or software bug in a product, the company is usually acutely aware of it because they get reports from the tech support team. So, for example, I guarantee that the app compatibility problems that folks talked about here have a lot of visibility. Other issues, like performance or general disappointment, might or might not get a lot of attention. They're less likely to generate feedback through tech support.<BR/><BR/>If a product fails to hit its sales targets, that gets a <I>lot</I> of attention and diagnostic work. Since Ed said that the LD didn't hit its targets one quarter, I have to assume they've talked about it internally.<BR/><BR/>Do they read what's said on the bulletin boards? Some people do, some don't (for example, I know a few people at Palm read this blog, although I don't know if they scan the comments). When I was at PalmSource, most people had tuned out the most prominent Palm OS bulletin board because the discussions there are dominated by a small number of extremely abusive people who intimidate everyone else through personal attacks. <BR/><BR/>That stuff gets old very fast. If you had a lot of other work to do, would you choose to spend half an hour wading in a sewer?<BR/><BR/>The other thing to keep in mind is that you and I and the other folks who post actively online are not very representative of the average mobile device buyer, and Palm knows it. The devices most fervently embraced by the online community are often the ones that sell worst. For example, I have to laugh when I read comments saying that Sony's last high-end Clies were close to perfection. I liked them, and I still have one, but let's face it -- they sold <I>terribly.</I> And it's not just because of price; they didn't resonate with anyone other than technophiles, and there aren't enough of us to sustain a handheld business.Michael Macehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17966107280587843091noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17898384.post-1138804929068417162006-02-01T06:42:00.000-08:002006-02-01T06:42:00.000-08:00I'm posting this separately so those who want to c...I'm posting this separately so those who want to can skip it.<BR/><BR/>My penny's worth on the next Lifedrive goes like this:<BR/><BR/>OS: It has to be the next-generation, no more hacked Garnet. Like someone said above, it doesn't matter what exactly the OS is, if it is based on Linux, or is the still-born Cobalt, it just has to work, and reliably.<BR/><BR/>Processor: Like Palm usually does, just pick a processor that is appropriate in speed to the OS - it doesn't need to be a 624MHz Intel PXA270 if it isn't required - this sort of clockspeed one-up-man-ship isn't productive.<BR/><BR/>Flash: It has to have the programs residing in flash memory a la the conventional Palm design - the 64Mb partition on the hard drive of the current LD is a horrible fudge.<BR/><BR/>Hard-drive: Everyone is calling for "Nano"-sized flash, but bear in mind how hard Apple arm twisted Samsung to provide flash memory cheap enough to make the Nano cost-marketable - it could only do this by economy of scale and Palm certainly doesn't have this. Why not just go for a 6Gb hard-drive like appeared in the Ipod Mini a year or two ago - if it can take the abuse that Ipods get, it should certainly stand up to PDA use at least as well.<BR/><BR/>BT2.0 and Wifi: pre-requisites.<BR/><BR/>Screen: Not much wrong with the 480x320 resolution. High end Pocket PCs have gone to 640x480 but Microsoft has been too scared to scale the Pocket PC OS to this true VGA resolution, so I see no reason as to why 480x320 isn't a perfect compromise?<BR/><BR/>Camera: Tricky and I think that the discussion previously on marketing angle should determine this. However the inclusion of USB-host capability to act as a "picture-dump" for a digital camera is surely a realistic new feature (Fujitsu-Siemens Pocket Loox have been sporting them for over a year now) and would add to the "media" angle.<BR/><BR/>Connectivity: The fiasco that has been Palm's PDA-to-PC wired connection has to be a real sign of the fuzziness at Palm central. The "Palm universal connector" at least was a standardisation attempt, except it isn't so universal when a few models used mini USB ports (Zire 72 springs to mind). No one has realised that using a standard mini-USB port can free you from having to carry the proprietary Palm-to-USB cable around with you, just in case you ever want to use drive mode? Its infinitely more likely that there is a standard mini-USB-to-USB cable nearby than a specfic Palm one!<BR/><BR/>Software: why not sell the basic drive and run an "IPAQ voucher" scheme, which entitles you to a couple of bits of fairly hefty software. The software bundle you choose defines what you use the device for: "Photo bundle" has photo organisation software, the "picture-dump" capability and sync options to PC. "Office bundle" includes Docs-to-go and sync software that lets you really control what gets sync-ed to the drive. "Media" bundle could include a proper video player and music Wi-fi streaming capability. At least an idea like this would let users determine what it was they required rather than the "one-size fits all" policy we have now. The sticky bit about this is that it smacks a bit of penny-pinching, rather than attempting to focus the same device for different demographics.<BR/><BR/>Little things: Palm needs to wake up to the little things that people are crying out for - these things matter disproportionately when it comes to the fickle matter of customer loyalty. Starters-for-ten include: voice recorder on every device (I've never used mine, but the anguish expressed in internet forums about the lack of this feature on some Palm models is astonishing), vibrating alarm (its useful on a phone, so it'd be useful on a PDA, and Palm has included it on previous devices!), power button that people can actually press (rather than something that you have to press with your thumb nail because it is so small and recessed).<BR/><BR/>I hope you can conclude from this that this specification isn't much further on than the current device, hence the build-cost wouldn't be increased, however the development work that these ideas from here to a working device would be significant, but worth it to creat a truly useful device. If a device with this specification arrived on your desk with "Life-drive 2" stamped on it, how would you feel? My guess is that it might, just might, restore peoples wounded faith in the Lifedrive concept. <BR/>ATHAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17898384.post-1138802642515506272006-02-01T06:04:00.000-08:002006-02-01T06:04:00.000-08:00The truly strange thing about the lifedrive debacl...The truly strange thing about the lifedrive debacle is the woolly thinking that comes straight from Palm about it. There is a large Palm community out there who really wanted the LD to succeed (and were disappointed when it didn't), and really would like to see the next one succeed. A general trawl through the forums discussing Lifedrive pros and cons usually yields a pretty obvious realistic wish-list for the LD2. My gut instinct on this one is that while the aspects you have addressed - the marketing pitch and product identity - are important factors, its the hardware that really lets the current LD down - far too many people complain about hard-drives dying/crashes and PalmOS instability, and it ruins the Palm experience for them, forever. Only if the LD2 is a reliable product can any of the marketing possibilities truly be addressed. And for this to happen, Palm has to focus the development and get it right - everyone else in Palm-world knows what it should have, so can someone from Palm read the hundreds of posts and just get the next one right? Please?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17898384.post-1138756753033030712006-01-31T17:19:00.000-08:002006-01-31T17:19:00.000-08:00I started using a Palm Pilot back in 1996 and have...I started using a Palm Pilot back in 1996 and have not been without one until recently when I was forced to switch to a pocket PC. <BR/><BR/>In the past two years I have returned four TT3's and two LifeDrives due to numerous malfunctions that caused me lose data, clients and eventually professional reputation. <BR/><BR/>I miss my TT3 and my LifeDrive and don't really like Pocket PC but can't sacrifice business reliabilty. <BR/><BR/>By contrast my old and much missed Palm Vx was bug free and virtually indestructible for 6 wonderful years(it survived dozens of drops to concrete and a highway auto writeoff where police found it for me hundreds of feet away up the highway still working! In fact, I used it to look up my insurance info for the paramedics!!!). <BR/><BR/>Sadly, Palm has been plagued with quality control issues ever since it became PalmOne. After sacrificing time, alot of money and some reputation points, I finally had to give up my Palm OS loyalty. <BR/><BR/>I sincerely hope Palm's upcoming devices have overcome this plague of buggy problems and give us a superior and reliable PDA experience once again. <BR/><BR/>For those of you who disagree, try loading a few older programs on your lifedrive (say AOL or zLauncher) and then enjoy the unbreakable reset loop!<BR/><BR/>Cheers and Good Luck,<BR/>RobbymAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17898384.post-1138673504501633432006-01-30T18:11:00.000-08:002006-01-30T18:11:00.000-08:00Christoph wrote:>>the meanig of the phrase:"egg-la...Christoph wrote:<BR/><BR/>>>the meanig of the phrase:"egg-laying..." is positive.<BR/><BR/>Oh, man. My friends in Germany told me it was a negative. Thanks for correcting me, and I apologize to everybody in Germany for misusing your language.<BR/><BR/><BR/>Anonymous wrote (from Argentina):<BR/><BR/>>>Sorry for my basic english.<BR/><BR/>Your english is a lot better than my spanish, so no need to apologize and thanks for the post.<BR/><BR/><BR/>"TVOR" wrote (and wrote, and wrote):<BR/><BR/>>>I expect you'll probably delete this comment<BR/><BR/>I don't delete rants unless they're personally insulting toward someone, or are undisguised advertisements.<BR/><BR/>If you really believe in your ideas, you ought to have the courage to put your own name to them. Until then, I don't think anyone's going to listen.Michael Macehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17966107280587843091noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17898384.post-1138653078511894002006-01-30T12:31:00.000-08:002006-01-30T12:31:00.000-08:00Wow, Michael. That's quite a story. Too bad it has...<B>Wow, Michael. That's quite a story. Too bad it has nothing to do with reality. You may be a Master of Marketing, but sorry - we're not buying what you're selling.</B><BR/><BR/><BR/>First of all, the LifeDrive is NOT failing because "it tries to be everything to everyone". It's failing because it simply doesn't do <I>anything</I> well. It isn't even a good pig, much less an egg-laying, woolly, milk pig.<BR/><BR/><B>The LifeDrive fails because</B>:<BR/><BR/>- At an original list price of $500, it was FAR too expensive for what it offered. The market for $500 PDAs isn't exactly huge these days. You can almost get a decent laptop for that much money. Also, as the prices of CompactFlash and SD cards continue to plummet, it becomes obvious that a 4 MB Microdrive is a stupid choice, since it isn't any bigger than the sizes offered by rugged, swappable, flexible flash media, yet it comes with all the downsides of a hard drive (slow, battery-hungry, fragile, hot, non-expandable).<BR/><BR/>- It does not have enough memory to function as a data management device if you're going to rationalize its (huge) size. To work as a data transport device, the LifeDrive currently needs to be connected to the host computer with an extra cable since (as usual) Palm was too clueless to come up with an integrated software or hardware solution to facilitate loading data into the device. Sure it can hold a lot of TEXT emails. Unfortunately, this is 2006 and the attachments and non-text files are often more important than the text, so the LifeDrive's paltry 4 GB suddenly doesn't seem all that big. For transporting data, a tiny, rugged USB flash drive simply makes more sense than a LifeDrive.<BR/><BR/>- It was undermined by Palm's typical asinine, suicidal, penny-pinching parts selection. Palm tried to get too clever and used part of the Microdrive as "RAM", instead of spending $5 and specifying 64 - 128 MB of RealRAM™. The result was horrible performance by the LifeDrive. Does anyone at Palm actually bother to TEST these devices BEFORE they're released?<BR/><BR/>- It lacks any decent software to optimize the out of box experience. Can you easily upload, organize, view and edit photos from a digital camera? Can you use Bluetooth to easily connect to a desktop computer and browse/transfer/sync files? Is there a built-in video player that can handle most of the popular video formats? Is there an included desktop application for converting DVDs to files playable on the LifeDrive? Is there built-in software for printing to a Bluetooth printer? Is there built-in software for remote access of a desktop computer? Is there a simple, intuitive, high quality MP3 player, with an associated slick desktop app for managing MP3 (and video) files? Are there audio/video-out connections? Is there a line-in connection for recording, with software to record directly to MP3 format? Is there a decent PDF viewer? Is there a STABLE email program? Is there a full-featured web browser? The fact that TCPMP, Picsel, SnapperMail, Resco Photo Viewer, etc exist does not excuse Palm's laziness. To expect users to pay $500 for a LifeDrive and then have to hunt for (and probably spend another $200 on) apps that will fill in the afforementioned HUGE software gaps is ridiculous. I'm amazed that Palm continues to have the arrogance to shortchange its remaining supporters.<BR/><BR/>- PalmOS 5 ("FrankenPalmOS") is so hacked up and unstable that it cannot be expected to reliably power a device intended to do the things the LifeDrive is billed as being able to do.<BR/><BR/><BR/>You say, "Wow, you have only a few precious moments of free time, but we'll make them more interesting and more productive. Unfortunately, most people want one or the other." Nonsense. People want value, sytle, novelty, functionality, ease of use and features in the things they purchase. Products usually succeed because they offer several (or ideally all) of these qualities. Unless a product has no competition, it will fail if it lacks several of these features (assuminig the marketers are not in Apple's elite league). The original Pilot 1000 offered novelty, functionality and ease of use; the Palm V offered functionality, ease of use and style; the iPods offer functionality, ease of use and style; the LifeDrive offers NOTHING. With proper specs and better software, the LifeDrive could have offered functionality, ease of use and features.<BR/><BR/>I expect you'll probably delete this comment because it tells it like it is, but it's time Palm cuts the crap and starts selling devices that offer at least THREE of the SIX qualities listed above. It would be nice to see Palm proove you wrong by designing a <B>desirable</B> "eierlegende wollmilchsau". Sony - despite being crippled by a hacked-up, hoary OS - was starting to get close before they pulled the plug on the CLIE lineup. The CLIE VZ90 makes the LifeDrive look like a primitive joke. Palm must follow Sony's lead and focus on how well its devices <I>perform</I> commonly used functions. If it fails, the competition will turn Palm into the next Amiga.<BR/><BR/>You also (conveniently) seem to be ignoring the fact that as PDAs become a mature product, they need to begin to offer the value and standardization seen in desktops. Just because not every user might not need features like extra memory is no excuse for omitting those feature when they are so inexpensive to include. Does Dell sell 300 MHz Pentium 2 computers today? Of course not. But if you look at how a lot of people actually USE their desktops (Internet browsing, email, word processing, personal finances, etc) a 300 MHz CPU would be quite adequate. Except when something comes along that either requires or works a lot better with a computer with better specs. Therse's simply no excuse for Palm to continue crippling its devices with tiny amounts of RAM and limited wireless abilities, etc. Palm's rationale for it's pathetic <B>glacial, incremental upgrade strategy</B> has been based on squeezing the last penny out of profits and minimizing development/support costs by extending design life cycles to the brink. This has been Palm's strategy from Day 1, and initially they used the "Zen of Palm" mantra to try to fool people into thinking "less is more". Look at the changes from the Pilot 1000 to the IIIxe; the V to the Vx; the TE to the TX; etc, etc. The Treo 650 is actually a worse spec job than we should originally have seen with the Treo 600! Suckering customers into upgrading every 12 - 24 months just to get a feature that Palm could (and should) have originally given to them in the first place is a brilliant economic strategy, but ony if it's enacted with subtlety or with the skilful marketing of a company like Apple. Svengali Steve Jobs could sell ice to an Eskimo, fcuk them up the a$$ and they would <I>still</I> thank him in the morning. Palm lacks that ability and its ungainly, buggy incremental upgrades have only served to pi$$ off and alienate its (former) longtime customers. Not a good thing to do, especially when they NEED those old customers because - unlike with the iPod - Palm's product line (especially the non-Treo devices) isn't bringing in brand new customers into the fold.<BR/><BR/>I believe Palm STILL has a chance to turn things around because the PDA market is not yet like the (now-commoditized) desktop market. User Interface, size and integration are a lot more important on PDAs than they are on desktops. If Palm can build on these cornerstones the way that Handspring did with the brilliant Treo 600, they may have a future. Unfortunately, once the competition figures out the ideal form factor(s) and mix of features, there will be little reason for NEW users to choose Palm/PalmOS. In the Real World, people don't care what OS their devices run if the devices simply do what they need them to do. <BR/><BR/>- The Voice of Reason<BR/><BR/><BR/>P.S. I apologize for ripping into you and Palm/PalmSource for the past several years, but someone had to keep you honest! In retrospect, most of the things I've pointed in the past ended up coming back to haunt Palm/PalmSource. It's a shame that expectations seemed to be so low within the Palm companies. Instead of trying to cut corners or build to the lowest common denominator, Palm/PalmSource should have been trying to push the envelope while at the same time rounding out their products with a mature, stable set of added features/apps. Any company - not named Apple - that consistently waits until long after a new feature has been added by its competition to include the same feature on its own devices is just ASKING to go the way of the dodo. The "Zen of Palm" excuse for selling cheap hardware and a stagnant OS at premium prices isn't fooling anyone anymore. (Steve Jobs' brilliant "spin" of the pathetic iPod shuffle shows how gullible consumers are, but eventually, even iPod buyers will also figure out that the emperor has no clothes.) 2006 wiil probably be Palm's last chance to get back on track and prove they weren't a one trick pony. The fact that Palm has done basically NOTHING with the amazing Treo design that Handspring had handed them on a silver platter is not exactly reassuring...Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17898384.post-1138633146930203792006-01-30T06:59:00.000-08:002006-01-30T06:59:00.000-08:00Hello to everyone. Great article. I´ve been the pr...Hello to everyone. Great article. I´ve been the proud owner of a palm pda since the IIIe. <BR/>I´ve had 7 models in-between. Now I have a LD. I use it for my IT job at a company. Basically I loaded tons of device drivers in the hdd, and access them everyday via Wi-Fi.<BR/>It took me two months, and hundreds for hard resets, to make my LD stable. Had to discard a lot of software that had conflicts with nvfs or upgrade to newer versions. <BR/>My LD became much more reliable and stable after the 2.0 update.<BR/>IMHO, have to tell that LD is not right for newbies, since you have to face much technical problems (for example internal applications like Files stop working if you install another third party application). etc etc.<BR/><BR/>Here in my country LD costs U$S 600. To compare a basic salary is U$S 250. It´s a lot of money.<BR/><BR/>I continue to support palm os pda, because IMHO PocketPC is far away from the simplicity that palm os has.<BR/><BR/>Maybe palm will release a "polished" version of the LD this year. With better software for that hardware. . .<BR/><BR/>Sorry for my basic english.<BR/><BR/>Cheers and greetings from Argentina.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17898384.post-1138632228921879232006-01-30T06:43:00.000-08:002006-01-30T06:43:00.000-08:00Scott: As I said, the T|X can serve for most tasks...Scott: As I said, the T|X can serve for most tasks that the LifeDrive does, but your initial point was that it was more elegant like the Palm V. Though I think they tried with the E, the T5 and T|X are one step removed from even that attempt, and fall short. I'm just talking about the intdustrial design and feel of quality. It's good, but not unique. I'm glad you find it useful, though, which is always the most important truth. I think the T|X is the direction Palm needs to be going, but with more RAM instead of less. I agree that the processor speed is not a big deal, especially if it gives you longer battery life.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17898384.post-1138628694622049362006-01-30T05:44:00.000-08:002006-01-30T05:44:00.000-08:00Hi Michael,the meanig of the phrase:"egg-laying......Hi Michael,<BR/><BR/>the meanig of the phrase:"egg-laying..." is positive. We used this in Germany for good products which workes well and have a wide range of usebility. So the lifedrive want to be a "egg-laying..." but it isn´t.<BR/><BR/>See you Christoph from BerlinAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17898384.post-1138616733436438722006-01-30T02:25:00.000-08:002006-01-30T02:25:00.000-08:00First off, let me say that I bought my Palm TX to ...First off, let me say that I bought my Palm TX to be an Eierlegende Wollmilchsau. My sole intention was to use it as a laptop replacement when I travelled. The more things it allows me to do that I normally used my laptop for, the better.<BR/><BR/>Before I bought it, I compared it to the LifeDrive. Right now, one can go to the Palm web site and see a feature comparison between the TX and the LifeDrive. There are 4 primary differences. For three of those, the LifeDrive "appears" to come out ahead, but...<BR/><BR/>Storage - the LifeDrive has a 4 GB hard drive, the TX does not. But (I would argue), all you need are large SD cards and you can have all the memory you want on the TX. (As an aside, it's interesting to note that others have chosen to use SD cards on LifeDrives in order to overcome problems with the hard drive). Thus, no real difference in storage capacity.<BR/><BR/>Microphone - Yes, LifeDrive; no, TX. Maybe a deal-breaker for some, irrelevant for me. <BR/><BR/>CPU - LifeDrive runs at 416 Mhz, the Tx runs at 312 Mhz. In day-to-day use, the "stock" speed difference is not really noticeable (in fact, the TX probably has the edge because it does *not* have a hard drive). A $10 piece of software will allow both CPUs to run at over 500 Mhz. Thus, no real difference in CPU speed.<BR/><BR/>Price - LifeDrive is $400 (new retail price), the TX is $299 (retail). Both can be found for much less than their listed prices, but the initial differential remains. The TX wins here hands down.<BR/><BR/>So, with no real advantage due to differences in features or functionality, it will be interesting to see how the TX sells relative to the LifeDrive (up to the point the LifeDrive I is discontinued -- which, if you believe the rumors, is imminent).An Investorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11604419071163977407noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17898384.post-1138603078963735432006-01-29T22:37:00.000-08:002006-01-29T22:37:00.000-08:00Hi, LDD! You're the sort of user I had in mind fo...Hi, LDD! You're the sort of user I had in mind for an archive device. I agree with you that solid state storage would be better than a hard drive, assuming the price is equivalent.<BR/><BR/><BR/>Anonymous wrote:<BR/><BR/>>>I don't know how I could justify $450 for the Lifedrive.<BR/><BR/>To me that's exactly the crux of the problem. At that price, if you want to sell to anyone other than enthusiasts like me, you have to thoroughly solve a major problem in someone's life.<BR/><BR/><BR/>Shawn wrote:<BR/><BR/>>>you, Michael, are better positioned to tell us all whether they had already planned to merge with Palm at that fateful announcement<BR/><BR/>I don't have a clue. Neither palmOne nor Handspring shared their innermost thoughts with PalmSource, at least not at my level in the company.<BR/><BR/>I've never been all that impressed by the suggestions that there were elaborate long-term conspiracies between palmOne and Handspring. If the companies were that clever, they woldn't have gotten in financial trouble in the first place.<BR/><BR/><BR/>>>I am curious why you are against more storage in the Treo.<BR/><BR/>I'm not. I just think that some other features (such as adding WiFi and VOIP) are even more important. All other things being equal, I'd happily put 100 gigs in the thing.<BR/><BR/><BR/>>>The only thing that has ever come close to capturing that Palm V design elegance is the equally fine iPaq 1900-series.<BR/><BR/>I really admired the 1900 series, too. Wish we could have talked HP into making one with Palm OS on it.<BR/><BR/>The 1900 series never sold all that well, unfortunately. I've never been sure why.Michael Macehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17966107280587843091noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17898384.post-1138594140023572272006-01-29T20:09:00.000-08:002006-01-29T20:09:00.000-08:00>>It's just a guess, but I suspect Palm is trying ...>>It's just a guess, but I suspect Palm is trying to get the LifeDrive to compete with other companies' products... ;-)<BR/><BR/>I wrote that line knowing that, of course, but the more interesting and important competition is internal. Even the current Treo 600-series was designed by Handspring, not Palm. The lines are still distinct. Handspring killed their PDA in favor of Treo. They were done with the PDA (though you, Michael, are better positioned to tell us all whether they had already planned to merge with Palm at that fateful announcement). <BR/><BR/>Amazing the parallels, but it's the Lisa vs Apple II team all over again. I'm not saying the same rivalry exists, but there's a very different focus, as you pointed out. <BR/><BR/>I am curious why you are against more storage in the Treo. I understand the screen argument, but it doesn't negate that more storage is necessary in our world, especially given that photos and other large files are constantly forcing themselves into business presentations; and higher bandwidth connections are allowing far more data to travel between computers. When you're out on business, you often need to have, send, and receive large quantities of data. While you could use your notebook, it's great to have alternatives. I frequently use my LD and V3 in just that way. <BR/><BR/>As for the screen, I'm not sure how it will play out but apparently a large set of people are pretty happy watching videos on their cell phones and iPods, not to mention in little windows on their computers. <BR/><BR/>Scott said: Hmmm, sounds to me like you are describing the Palm TX.<BR/><BR/>Though I like it, the T|X has many of the same problems as the LifeDrive. The Palm V was elegant; the T|X pales despite its blue paint. The E-series body that houses the T|X was an unsuccessful attempt to recapture the magic of the V. It's too wide and still feels cheap. An old T3 bests a T|X for appearance, elegance, and speed. Palm needs to toss that E mold tool and buy another, even if just to refresh the look. <BR/><BR/>The only thing that has ever come close to capturing that Palm V design elegance is the equally fine iPaq 1900-series. Beautiful. <BR/><BR/>Finally, the T|X does not have the capacity of a LifeDrive. It is arguable, however, that all one needs is a T|X and a big SD card to come close to an LD anyway (though with half the capacity and at $100 more until 4GB SD cards arrive). All that you won't get with that solution is the photo offload solution.<BR/><BR/>Just my opinion, though. The LifeDrive needs to exist for the simple reason that data is getting bigger, and some of us need to carry it. 32 and 64MB is just too little, and SD cards fall out. You're hard pressed to buy a 32MB SD card these days without paying more for the packaging than the chips inside; why should I put up with such small capacity in a handheld device that's larger than an iPod nano?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17898384.post-1138588664089679602006-01-29T18:37:00.000-08:002006-01-29T18:37:00.000-08:00This is an interesting article. I must admit I'm ...This is an interesting article. I must admit I'm not nearly as critical as many users have been about the Lifedrive. I can't quite speak to the marketing aspect, but I really like using the product. I received the Lifedrive from a friend who didn't need his anymore. I've been using it for 3 months and I really like it. <BR/><BR/>My previous Palm devices were: Tungsten C, Zire 72, Handspring Visor. So I've been using Palm devices for years.<BR/><BR/>The Lifedrive is my favorite of the devices precisely because I can read documents, watch videos, and listen to audio files if I so choose. The Lifedrive also picks up wifi signals better than the T|C.<BR/><BR/>The main drawback of the Lifedrive is that some 3rd party software programs don't work that well with OS5.<BR/><BR/>I think the main barrier toward people buying the Lifedrive is the cost. Not to mention I have noticed that Palm is also not offering nice cash rewards for older Palm tradeins like it has in the past.<BR/><BR/>I don't know how I could justify $450 for the Lifedrive.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17898384.post-1138586378081240282006-01-29T17:59:00.000-08:002006-01-29T17:59:00.000-08:00Palm calls the LifeDrive a "mobile manager." What...Palm calls the LifeDrive a "mobile manager." What does that mean, anyway?<BR/><BR/>I mean, I looked up Palm's definition and I know what it means, but it's such a vapid phrase (and by extension, concept) that I doubt that anyone really knows that it means anything beyond 'does stuff.'<BR/><BR/>The fact that Palm trumpets this phrase is just more proof that they haven't a clue about what they're selling in exactly the way Mike describes.Matthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13273938607314684400noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17898384.post-1138580065004684232006-01-29T16:14:00.000-08:002006-01-29T16:14:00.000-08:00Mike,Great article. As a Physician who purchased ...Mike,<BR/><BR/>Great article. As a Physician who purchased a Lifedrive to carry textbooks, email and other very important documents, I was disappointed by the number of crashes that occurred while using the device in front of patients.<BR/><BR/>Additionally, the speed of the device was incredibly detrimental for me using this as a stand alone device. <BR/><BR/>Although I use it to watch movies and listen to podcasts and music at times and find that I cannot live without the device now, it needs to be improved ! I find myself not using certain programs because I know that the NVFS system will not cooperate. <BR/><BR/>My final solution was to purchase a 1g Ultra card and run most of my programs and multimedia files from there.<BR/><BR/>To me, I believe that Palm's solution should be to make a 4-8 gigabyte solid state device (ie. Apple Nano) as this has proven to be more stable and certainly faster than the hard drive solution. Or, implement the hard drive as a storage only device and implement a large solid state memory component. It is obvious that running programs from the hard drive or accessing files from the hard drive is what causes all of the problems.<BR/><BR/><BR/>Great insight and I am glad that someone from the "real world" and not just the tech-junkies are finally seeing the problems that plague this device. It is a great machine that should only improve with version 2 onwards.<BR/><BR/>LDD.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17898384.post-1138562282422712242006-01-29T11:18:00.000-08:002006-01-29T11:18:00.000-08:00>>LifeDrive needs ... to truly compete with the Tr...>>LifeDrive needs ... to truly compete with the Treo<BR/><BR/>It's just a guess, but I suspect Palm is trying to get the LifeDrive to compete with other companies' products... ;-)Michael Macehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17966107280587843091noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17898384.post-1138558342000993902006-01-29T10:12:00.000-08:002006-01-29T10:12:00.000-08:00Shawn Barnett said: "The LifeDrive needs to become...Shawn Barnett said: "The LifeDrive needs to become as slim and sexy as a Palm V to truly compete with the Treo. "<BR/><BR/>Hmmm, sounds to me like you are describing the Palm TX.An Investorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11604419071163977407noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17898384.post-1138519898551718432006-01-28T23:31:00.000-08:002006-01-28T23:31:00.000-08:00Josh wrote:>>from reading Mr. Mace's blog, especia...Josh wrote:<BR/><BR/>>>from reading Mr. Mace's blog, especially this entry, it seems pretty clear that this model is consciously avoided among the industry, in favor of a limited one -- the deliberate crippling of function<BR/><BR/>Woah, Josh, I don't argue for deliberately crippling anything. But most added features increase cost, weight, and/or complexity. If you try to optimize a mobile device for all purposes, you end up with something that fully meets the needs of almost no one. Different people want very different, conflicting things in the mobile market, and I think there's nothing wrong with focusing a particular device on the needs of a particular type of person.<BR/><BR/>The iPod that you cite as a great product is extremely focused, and some people would argue that Apple deliberately crippled a lot of it (you can't even add third party apps).<BR/><BR/>ANyway, you shouldn't worry about my perspective, as 95% of the mobile industry is indeed trying to create itty bitty general-purpose PCs.<BR/><BR/><BR/>>>it seems the realization of this process in the mobile device industry has come largely from osmosis with the cell phone industry: market segregation<BR/><BR/>I wouldn't worry about this one, either -- most of the mobile phone companies don't have a clue how to segment mobile data users.<BR/><BR/>To me, at least, the goal is not to create "vertical integration and ownership of the sub-market's content delivery and content," it's to serve people with products designed for their needs.<BR/><BR/>The sort of segmentation I'd like to see in mobile devices is similar to the segmentation you see in automobiles. They can all drive the same roads, but no one would think of building a sports car that's also a minivan and an ambulance. And yet that's what many mobile device companies keep tying to do. <BR/><BR/>Over and over and over again.<BR/><BR/><BR/>Anonymous wrote:<BR/><BR/>>>as a product The LifeDrive really suits me well exactly because it can do a lot at the same time<BR/><BR/>That's cool. If the product's right for you, you should definitely buy it, no matter what anyone (including me) says. That's my basic answer whenever anyone asks me about RIM vs. Palm OS vs. Pocket PC vs. whatever -- buy the one that suits you best and don't worry about what other people say, because they probably don't have the same needs as you.<BR/><BR/>Unfortunately for Palm, there don't seem to be enough people who share the same needs as you.<BR/><BR/><BR/>Shawn wrote:<BR/><BR/>>>I'm pretty sure their (Palm's) business strategy revolves around Treo, though. Smarter would be to put a 2GB flash drive into a Treo and keep aiming it at businesses.<BR/><BR/>Ouch. I think the Treo should be focused on people who want advanced communications features. More storage in a Treo would be great, but before that I would go for WiFi and a great VOIP client.<BR/><BR/>I think the document archive usage goes very well with a large screen (so you can actually read those documents). The Treo's screen is too small for that. But make the screen larger and you lose the keyboard, or you make the device too thick and heavy.<BR/><BR/>I think the communicator usage and the info archive usage are best served by separate devices, until we get flexible screens.<BR/><BR/><BR/>>>I'm sure I'm underestimating the difference in size between Palm and Apple<BR/><BR/>Apple had shrunk to about $6 billion a year when Steve came back, whereas Palm's currently at about $1.6b. Another significant factor -- Apple had only one product line to advertise (Mac); Palm has two and a half (Treo, handhelds, LifeDrive). In that sort of situation, the products almost have to market themselves.<BR/><BR/><BR/>>>The LifeDrive needs to become as slim and sexy as a Palm V<BR/><BR/>Amen!Michael Macehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17966107280587843091noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17898384.post-1138513085287375292006-01-28T21:38:00.000-08:002006-01-28T21:38:00.000-08:00Hi, and thanks for allowing public comments.I come...Hi, and thanks for allowing public comments.<BR/><BR/>I come down in complete agreement with Shawn Barnett -- by its nature the handheld computer, like its computing ancestors and siblings, is a general-purpose tool, and the time has come to fully develop its potential. But from reading Mr. Mace's blog, especially this entry, it seems pretty clear that this model is consciously avoided among the industry, in favor of a limited one -- the deliberate crippling of function; and this concept is so dominant now that we've gone through the looking-glass: limitation is now seen as virtue. But there's a more fundamental dynamic at play.<BR/><BR/>One contradiction among many in capitalism is the amazing capacity to create new technology while at the same time working to subvert technology in order to maximize profit. To me, it seems the realization of this process in the mobile device industry has come largely from osmosis with the cell phone industry: market segregation. Here the ideal is not merely product differentiation, but the walling-off of pre-defined sections of the consuming mass. The goal is vertical integration and ownership of both the sub-market's content delivery and content, and it's here that maximum exploitation is derived.<BR/><BR/>I think the problem here is that this is a race to the bottom. As satuation approaches (or sales slip as a recession hits), the natural outcome will be further specialization. Will we see devices that are designed for the 25-year-old customer-relations set taking community college classes on the side? And if they like emo rock, does that mean there's a special heart-shaped one that will moan comfortingly when you push the power button? Ultimately, we are all whole people, and I think that sooner or later we'll end up with what's happened with PC's -- a lower-margin market that as enveloped everyone -- yet with the opportunity for greater innovation/openness. I believe that sooner or later industry will be forced to see that a general-purpose platform (though perhaps tweaked for a certain audience) is their only salvation.<BR/><BR/>I don't care one drop if these companies make money. I'm a user, and I want my palm to do anything I want it to. But so does everyone else. An Ipod is a popular, sucessful device because it works extremely well. If a Lifedrive 2 came out that had a new UI, and did everything it was billed for well (like Mac+iLife), I think it would be hugely succesful. And it would surely make palm boatloads of cash.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17898384.post-1138512498934702492006-01-28T21:28:00.000-08:002006-01-28T21:28:00.000-08:00Perhaps Palm isn't marketing it right and you are ...Perhaps Palm isn't marketing it right and you are right at the steep price -- but as a product The LifeDrive really suits me well <I>exactly because</I> it can do a lot at the same time. Carry around my important documents as a backup? Check. Plays a lot of music and doesn't run out of battery life quickly? (I used to have a Zire 31!) Check. Surf the net over Wi-Fi? Check. Work on documents etc on the road? Check -- saves me having to drag a laptop around! And still behave as a PDA? Check. It's these things that make the LifeDrive a good device.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17898384.post-1138507643563570062006-01-28T20:07:00.000-08:002006-01-28T20:07:00.000-08:00Yes, great points. I'm absolutely arguing for Palm...Yes, great points. I'm absolutely arguing for Palm-created software solutions, not bundles, and it would require a significant outlay of funding to achieve. More important, it requires a software team to be dedicated to followup fixes and improvements. I think Jobs has proven that a small company can pull off that kind of dedicated innovation, but I'm sure I'm underestimating the difference in size between Palm and Apple.<BR/><BR/>As for marketing dollars, they've never spent enough (easy for me to say). The second time they paid for major television attention and got reasonable play--after the train commercial that introduced beaming--it emphasized the Palm's ability to serve as a flashlight in an emergency, as well as play Tetris. A $200 flashlight that you can use next time NYC loses power. Hardly compelling. Funny a few times, but they ran it into the ground until the flashlight was the main message. Would have been good to have a few more of those ads with different topics.<BR/><BR/>I'm convinced that the reason it's been so difficult for Palm to realize the benefits of being on top all this time is just astonishing corporate bad luck. With the sale of PalmSource to ACCESS it doesn't look like it will stop.<BR/><BR/>You might be right about focusing on business with the LifeDrive, but it would need a new name. I'm pretty sure their business strategy revolves around Treo, though. Smarter would be to put a 2GB flash drive into a Treo and keep aiming it at businesses. <BR/><BR/>The LifeDrive needs to become as slim and sexy as a Palm V to truly compete with the Treo. They should be able to do that with flash. WiFi battery requirements might make that harder, though. <BR/><BR/>I still have hope. Great exchanging thoughts with you.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17898384.post-1138476305399817552006-01-28T11:25:00.000-08:002006-01-28T11:25:00.000-08:00Shawn wrote:>>LifeDrive PhotoLifeDrive BusinessLif...Shawn wrote:<BR/><BR/>>>LifeDrive Photo<BR/>LifeDrive Business<BR/>LifeDrive Sport (waterproof, rugged, flash media instead of spinning)<BR/><BR/>I could get into that, with a few caveats:<BR/><BR/>--I think they'd need to do really well-integrated software solutions for each category, including modifying the UI where appropriate, rather than just bundling a few third-party apps (the usual practice). And the apps would need to be built-in and pre-installed, not an add-in.<BR/><BR/>Check out the location UI that Garmin did for its new Palm OS device. Really nice.<BR/><BR/>--Personal belief (but based on years of market research): At $450, the market for the business solution is several times larger than the other two combined.<BR/><BR/>--All of this is predicated on Palm having enough engineering staff to create the solutions, and enough advertising money to market the solutions to the appropriate audiences. I don't think they have enough of either. So I'd start with one. Better to have one product at critical mass than three that are all insufficiently funded.Michael Macehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17966107280587843091noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17898384.post-1138472565740548792006-01-28T10:22:00.000-08:002006-01-28T10:22:00.000-08:00Using fewer words and merging thoughts:LifeDrive P...Using fewer words and merging thoughts:<BR/><BR/>LifeDrive Photo<BR/>LifeDrive Business<BR/>LifeDrive Sport (waterproof, rugged, flash media instead of spinning)<BR/><BR/>Same plumbing. Different focus. Expandable with software modules to add above functionality as desired for a nominal fee.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com