I think Palm did a good job early on to establish the PDA but the issue comes down to one of "What have you done for me lately?" And I think we can all see the handwriting on the wall...not much. No fire in the belly of Palm. Just a bunch of check collecting employees.

I admit I have a Treo, it was the best option for my work, my Mac, and small office. But if it wasn't for MissingSync there would no Treo. When my contract is up with VZ for the Treo (18 months) iPhone is going to be a serious choice.

Finally, we all know that Palm is all sweet and nice when you buy. The second you have a problem can you spell FU. And let's be truthful, Palms are not known for long live. They start to turn to poop in about 8 months.

The real truth is Jeff Hawkins is losing lots of key employees to other companies in Silicon Valley. He cannot compete with much larger companies in this industry such as Nokia, Motorola, RIMM, Samsung, LG, etc. The so-called new device is nothing more than a cheap OEM product where Palm sourced from an Asian manufacturer with very little R&D investment. Look at insiders sales and one can see the two biggest sellers of Palm's stocks in the last 2 years.

Even as this is an interesting device, and though the capabilites of the device are correctly priced, i don't see how the 'foleo' will succede as a product. It is a huge cost to consider when you add it to the cost of a mobile device, especially with the advance of bluetooth keyboards. The larger screen aspect also comes into the equation, but this is particularily what the laptops of today are for. (i had thought) Also, the device does not fit in the pocket, requiring a bag of some kind, a bag that could most likely carry a laptop. (Unless it's a handbag, and the device does not seem to be targeted at women.)

I think this device is super. Especially if it will BLUETOOTH with non-PALM phones. I like having a very small phone but I would love to have a phone enabled PDA. With this combo where I can put the FOLEO thing in my briefcase or leave it at home / office when it is not needed but yet still carry my phone with its numbers etc I would be a very happy camper! - Matt

Personally, I think a MUCH better product would be software that would allow you to plug in your Treo via USB into a computer (if possible, having the software reside on the Treo so you could launch it on ANY computer), that you would then be able to open up and edit documents, browse the web, handle e-mail, calendar, and contacts that automatically syncs with the Treo. Essentially, the Treo would become just a handheld computer that you plug in to a keyboard, monitor, and mouse as you would with a laptop today. That would allow you the same portability factor you currently have with the value added in the Foleo. All that said, I'm no programmer so I'm sure that is much easier said than done.

Can you say "HP Jornada"??? Anyone remember those from the mid-90's? Nice retro idea, only bigger. Too funny.

Happy bingo with all the french dressing regarding Henry, Patriot Games..Jabba

You're not harsh at all - read the following: http://www.trustedreviews.com/mobile-devices/news/2007/05/31/Palm-Foleo-A-Needless-Smartphone-Companion/p1

Maybe the Foleo used to be a good idea... but now that PDA's are here and a mainstream product, I don't see how Foleo will make any big impact.

Don't forget that Psion did have something like this not so long ago and that didn't make it a big hit... the name now escapes me.

But anyway, given time as companies starts squeezing more stuff into the PDA/smartphones, may... MAYBE... this is not a bad device to have... but until then... it is hard to say whether the Foleo will fill the gap between PDA/smartphones and the laptop.

One of the worst big bang rollouts ever. Palm was an innovator but lost its touch and had to buy Treo. Who in the world would want a single function brick to attach to a highly mobile Treo?

Frankly, I loved the old Newton and was disappointed to find what a small minority I was in. If the Foleo can function as a new-generation Newton, I'd be seriously tempted to take a look.

Go to Dell and buy a real laptop that can do far more for about the same price.  If it was $199, then they could sell them.  At this price, I'd rather just get an iPhone.

I reckon something along the lines of the Nokia 9500i does everything the Foleo PLUS a smartphone aims to accomplish. granted the screen is much bigger, but if I'm after a laptop in taht price range, and this is exactly what this is, then I'd rather buy a second hand PIII.

Wow... What lack of ingenuity... Wouldn't it be better to just to create a remote access software that would allow you to use your phone with a better interface from an existing or cheap laptop?

Design, it looks cool. It will be a big hit with Linux enthusiasts. And it solves one issue I've had: smartphones and the like are big compared to something like a razr, I'd rather have a small phone for those times when all I want is the phone functionality - I'm not jazzed at all about doing email with my thumbs, I can wait until I'm sitting to do email. Will I run out and buy one? No, I pretty much need to have my laptop for other reasons, but it will be an ideal device for some.

Foleo??

Ever Heard of Nokia PC Suite?? I installed it in my tiny laptop and use it to copy my Documents/Contacts/files from my Nokia to Laptop and vice-versa. And I do it over Bluetooth.

I donno how does Foleo do better than my laptop.

All we need is software that resides in Laptop & Synchs with Mobile devices.

Murst!

Sorry to see all the sneers, because I love it. From what I know about it now, it's exactly what I need on the road (or out in the yard)--a very light note-taker with a good keyboard, one that I can also write on. I've been using my Palm with a keyboard for years, but this looks much better. (The Palm is just barely tolerable for note-taking; writing on it is hell. But laptops are just too damn heavy--to say nothing of power-hungry.) And with a Smartphone and ability to get online to check my feeds and use Web-based apps? Perfect.

I'm still a Psion fan. Series 5. Regular AA batteries. Full size keys. Memo recorder. Thumbs typing capable. Wished it had a color screen like Series 7 and Notebook also Psions. They all should have had phone application. All interesting shareware just dried up, probably bought out by Nokia size company, never to be free again. Some interesting apps were available. Music file conversions, touch screen, graphics and photo editors, instant messaging, compass even! Printer compatible, surprisingly decent web surfing and readable size web pages. Fit in your suit jacket pocket. Rotary razor and Leatherman not included but should have been considered. I'm with Rick, T. Wong, and Tom T., and the guy who can't get Palm serviced, not yet impressed.

Not a chance, Palm still doesn't 'get it' and if this is their escape route out of the PDA marketplace, it may be their escape out of everything but their Treo phone.
I love my Tungsten T-3 to pieces. I'm still waiting for Nextel to figure out that some portion of their "push to talk" market goes into classified spaces and camera phones are confiscated at the front desk until you leave.
What has been needed for some time now, is a slim phone only device, with real bluetooth communications (no not just the silly earpiece) and no camera, communicating with the pocket-sized computer that Palm never managed to quite make ... It wouldn't have been 'rocket science' to jump that up to a actual "pocket PC" by thickening the unit and being more serious than they were with the ill-fated 'Life Drive'. And frankly I don't see any Micro$oft oriented products getting there either.
By now I should be able to carry my 'pc' base computer around with me in a shirt pocket and just have to depend on a display device and peripherals waiting for me at the office or home. But that'd just be too much though process for the computer community.

I think many people are missing the point, however that in itself is a valid marketing standpoint since a product missunderstood is a product that has failed.

I for one welcome something that is small and light enough that I can carry in my handbag, and use on the train / underground / metro or whist away of a weekend or when camping in the middle of nowhere.

I might even start using text messaging had I one of these.

To me the killer app would be as an eBook reader, plus basic writing functions of the sort of sophistication that would enable me to to format basic RTF documents (spellchecker included please) etc.

Since it is Linux I imagine an OpenOffice Lite would be just the thing if one wanted a bit more sophistication.

My phone has all sort of things it can do, but I never use them because of the small screen and keyboard. I have sent perhaps two texts in two years (yes I am an old fogey, but not a techno-luddite as I am an engineer).

Susan.

P.S. Dear Palm, please can we have a version in pink, pretty please?

Why does anyone have Palm Foleo when s/he should select among many ultraportable notebooks? My old Panasonic W2 still does 5 hours on battery and has standard XP with 40GB of HDD storage and CD-ROM, all in 1kg body. Fujitsu Siemens makes subnotes with 8,9" and also approx. 5 hours on battery time. I remember having Jornada 820, which was Windows CE 3.0 machine with almost full size keyboard and 22 hours (!) of battery time. It was unusable for anything save writing texts.
So thanks, Palm, but no thanks. Foleo has a battery life of a notebook and usability of palm computer. Unusable.

Dear Palm,
Make a modern knockoff of Psions Series5mx with color screen, StrongArm processor, phone and video apps (see Symbian!), color one pretty pink and add eReader and CAD app that used to be shareware for Susan the engineer, and the rest basic black so the rest of us don't have to buy a purse to hide it in.

I think *I* am the target market for this thing! I'm not sure how many others there are like me, though. I work at other people's offices most of the time. Yeah, I can plug a laptop into (some of) their networks, use Starbucks, tap on my Treo. There are always hassles and unexpected problems, though.

The Foleo will succeed if it has the "it just works" functionality of the iPod. I don't want to mess with an external keyboard for a Treo, Windows XP and Outlook regularly make me want to scream and WiFi hotspots are never there when you really need them. I like that I can use this without talking to Cingular at all.

I hope it's accompanied by an improved version of VersaMail, though. I'm not sure how using that as my main email program will work; very large attachments cause problems. It seems like it can't use the Treo's charger, which is odd. And if it works really well I'd probably want a smaller phone than the Treo, so it might cannibalize Treo sales in a way.

Overall, though, I can't wait to get one.

The Foleo doesn't impress me at all. I think the assessment of "stick a fork in Palm" is true. There's no new innovation coming from Palm. I still use my Palm m505, which works great. I've been tempted to look into a new Palm, but why break what's working?

Not at all interested.

At $500 (or less), I'm interested. My home is my office, and when I go to teach, I've got a long commute and already lug plenty of textbooks, etc. Adding a proper laptop would be too much; a Foleo, light, maybe rugged, instant-on, cheaper so breaking or theft is less of a concern.

But I need: (1) Unicode, especially Japanese input, at long last, (2) an Ethernet jack (or other way to plug in, because Treos don't work in Japan, and there's rarely WiFi where I work, although plenty of Ethernet cables), (3) syncing with Macs directly, and (4) a trackpad instead of a gunk collecting roller and annoying fingertip joystick.

If my current Palm TX were Unicode-compliant and Linux-stable, carrying it and my Bluetooth keyboard would almost make the Foleo unncessary.

Personally, I'm hoping for an Appleo.

For $599 I will just buy a practical computer, or sync up my e-mail on my computer with blue tooth on my PDA.

For $599 I will just buy a practical computer, or sync up my e-mail on my computer with blue tooth on my PDA.

The search continues for a new sweet spot, the next device that does it all, hassle free. It must function as a second mind for its user. A secretary in the pocket. I must look at what I use it for, its practical aplication or nothing.

Right now I need a phone with USB ports for jump drives and a touch screen/ keyboard for the input/ modification of data. If a small tablet had wireless phone capability, and long battery life, it would be the only product for my dollers. I would need a bluetooth headset I could answer the phone with. Requirements solved.

The issue with Palm is that it debuts ill-conceived products and when they fail in the marketplace, they abandon them. The LifeDrive was introduced almost exactly 2 years ago --- TWO YEARS AGO -- and it's dead and gone. Check out my blog on this topic at www.danmosqueda.blogspot.com

Everyone is so hot for the iPhone. Do you realize that besides WiFi, the only other mobile data technology it's compatible with is EDGE? I'd wait for the HSDPA version.

Had it been marketed as a standalone-instant-on-linux-Laptop-replacement for $399, yes I'd go for one. But as a $599 accessory to my $299 Treo, No thanks.

5 hours battery time seems kind of low. I'd expect a device with solid state devices to have at least 10hrs battery time.

Humm, I already have a laptop with Wi-Fi, A built in web browser, Docks to go, Ms Office & I can perform a hot sync to it so why do I need this? Umm? let's see, Ah! I don't! I thought the idea of a convergence device was to loose the laptop but now Palm wants me to replace my laptop with this inferior crap? Seems to me like Palms priorities are screwed up. Whatever happened to giving the consumer what they want? Knock, Knock, Hello Palm! All we ever wanted was Wi-fi. If I wanted this I would have got a Sony Clie. If you want to do something innovative why not just give the Treo a VGA connector? It would be really cool if we could then plug it into digital Video projectors at conference meetings or any monitor. You guys really think too small. We people want real advancements but all you guys could figure out to do was loose the antenna (something we did on our own) and make the device a little smaller (whoop dee doo). This is supposed to be a convergence device god damn it, Converge!

And for the love of God, give the Treo WI-Fi already! It hurts like hell when you travel abroad without it.

I work for a PDA software company. We support Palms, Pocket PCs and Blackberrys. Each of these devices has their quirks and drawbacks, but Palm was always the best for many years; Microsoft's WM5 was retarded, the Blackberry JVM that only allows 512 program modules was retarded, Palm not updating their sync software for more than 2 years was retarded. Don't even get me started on the Foleo.

Palm stopped being innovative and solid when they started making the Treo smartphones. Granted they beat the hell out of PPCs like the i730 or Blackberry 8700, but the stuff running in the background hasn't been changed for years. Their sync software and support center is cryptic at best- the error codes never mean what they should and the support site will walk you through endless loops unless you search it's knowledgebase from google.

I guess my point is that Palm needed to spend some time inventing a better handheld. It's why they exist. The lightweight laptop has been around for a while. I believe the Dell Inspiron m300 was around $6-700 and weighs in under 2 pounds. The name of their company is Palm, not Lap. They need to make their devices play better with existing laptops and PCs instead of encouraging people to invest extra money into a second computer that is less versatile then the one they already have. It's not quite a laptop and it's not much more than a handheld, but it doesn't look like it will be very good as either one.

You can get a fully functional, celeron based, 512 MB Ram, wifi et. al., 14" widescreen (if not 15") laptop computer for 500$. This leaves a very lmited market for the Foleo.

I think the biggest point missed in this discussion so far regarding this product is the size of the gadget and target market.

The problem nowadays is that most work laptops are too big to work in small places...like...on a plane!

As this device is targeted at executives and people on the go (i.e. mobile) it fits in a very important niche, literally....small freakin' airline tables.

And small countertops.

And all sorts of places that a laptop is just a bit too large for.

The Linux angle is also very intriguing. In Palm opens up the specs a good deal and helps the developers start building good stuff, the community gets in return good, FREE, software...and it's an abundant software library that has kept palm in business.

on a totally different tangent...I like the idea of a blue tooth headset using a foleo type device as a "base station" for the radio signal. The "brick" now becomes a totally crossband radio base, and the earpiece is the "phone". You have to upgrade to six bars, but that's doable.

It's small and light enough to carry around and the bluetooth penetrates backpacks.

What I want is this: a way to doc my phone in my normal PC setup so I can operate it on my big LCD screen and using my big comfortable keyboard. I want my next Treo to have 2gb or more of flash so I could in theory use it to boot a computer and use it as a portable filesystem. When we carry our phones to dumb terminals to get some real work done, I think we'll all experience something new and fun.

Palm should look at a new version of the early Treos....like the 270 flip phone. Motorola brought out the 'Ming' which is close but w/o full PIM functionality. I just don't see the Foleo being of much use as anyone who travels needs a notebook PC's functionality. A small flip phone/PDA/camera would suit my needs precisely.

With every small electronic device hanging on a belt or our ear, I'm wondering where I can hang the Foleo.

I haven't seen the Foleo in person but I have to say that I'm not impressed so far. It's about the same price of a laptop and a laptop can do so much more. Maybe if I see it in person I might see some good things about it. They should of built in a web cam and mic so people can use it as a video/phone.

Love the concept--a throwaway laptop. It handles the basics; it is small; I hope it will take more abuse than a typical laptop; and it won't cost too much. If it has decent power and a processor, a really good file format viewer, and enough slots and ports, it should be a winner.

I am sorry, Jeff Hawkins has blown a fuse somewhere. The whole concept of instant on or off is great, but why would anyone want to pay upwards of 500$ on a companion for a smartphone?

With the next generation of laptop PCs with flash harddrive will eat into the Foleo promise.

This makes no sense whatsoever.

Sad. If Palm had...

-Priced it cheaper,
-Made-up profit by selling some compelling web-services and add-on peripherals,
-Made it a more open platform for expandability and third-party apps,
-Had engineered a longer battery life,
-Marketed its advantages more convincingly,
-Added strong support for VOIP,
-Allowed the cover to flip back, added a touch-screen and screen-image rotation capabilities, then they would have a tablet computing device *and* be a larger-font, less-cramped version of a Palm PDA...creating a market for enhancments to existing apps to take advantage of the larger, more capable form factor...a Palm on Mega-Steroids, if you will...and be good for ebooks and updatable newspaper formats,
-Added a cool adjustable notch to dock cells phones, so that it didn't just hang off the Foleo but felt more integrated and secure,
-Had on-screen apps to control, backup and exchange data with the cell phone,

There are just a lot of creative ways this could have been done better. First the DOA LifeDrive, now this. Sigh.

Wah. Do you work for palm or something? The last I checked the smaller the laptop monitor, the cheaper the laptop unless they have solid state drives in them. This fake laptop is going to be obsolete along with the Treos probably by this time next year.

You don't screw your customers! It's bad business practice. I can't even begin to count how many times Palm reps have promised Wi-fi for the Treo Then came out and said "forget it its not going to happen" just to turn right back around and promise it again! This company is the laughing-stock of the industry. Just Read the interviews with their representatives, Nobody believes anything they have to say & on a whole Palm seems to be clinging on by a butt hair to any edge they have.

Stop comparing this to budget laptops. This is far smaller, sleeker, and more portable. Also, please don't compare it to ultra-portable laptops which cost at least three times as much.

The foleo is an 'instant-on' communication device focused on email accesibility and easy full-screen web access. Imagine pairing this with a blackberry pearl. All of a sudden you have a light, portable, long-battery-life unit with the convenience of a larger screen and full keyboard.

Obviously this unit is not for everyone, but there is a definite undeniable niche for the Foleo. Blackberries are a hit because portable communication is becoming increasing necessary in our busy lives, and the Foleo allows much greater productivity in less time than a Treo or Blackberry alone can.

If you were to use this with a Blackberry Pearl, you wouldn't even notice your phone in your pocket as you wirelessly surf on the interest ANYWHERE through the Foleo's bluetooth access of edge from your phone.

It's not revolutionary, it's not for everyone, but it's a brave product in a sheep follow sheep world, and there is a niche, whether all the gadget nerds with empty inboxes believe there is or not.

Stop comparing this to budget laptops. This is far smaller, sleeker, and more portable. Also, please don't compare it to ultra-portable laptops which cost at least three times as much.

The foleo is an 'instant-on' communication device focused on email accesibility and easy full-screen web access. Imagine pairing this with a blackberry pearl. All of a sudden you have a light, portable, long-battery-life unit with the convenience of a larger screen and full keyboard.

Obviously this unit is not for everyone, but there is a definite undeniable niche for the Foleo. Blackberries are a hit because portable communication is becoming increasing necessary in our busy lives, and the Foleo allows much greater productivity in less time than a Treo or Blackberry alone can.

If you were to use this with a Blackberry Pearl, you wouldn't even notice your phone in your pocket as you wirelessly surf on the interest ANYWHERE through the Foleo's bluetooth access of edge from your phone.

It's not revolutionary, it's not for everyone, but it's a brave product in a sheep follow sheep world, and there is a niche, whether all the gadget nerds with empty inboxes believe there is or not.

I think BenM should patent his idea about extra specs and sell it to Palm. I should get 5% of the profits for suggesting it (LOL). If he were in charge of product development, I'd buy one right now.

"You shouldn't necessarily need to haul around 5 or 6 pounds of laptop, at $1,000 and up, just to check your e-mail, browse the Web, view photos and listen to some music."

Right, that's what I use my Nokia N800 for, and it's currrently available for much less than $400, which is what I gladly plaid. And I can and do watch movies on it as well.

I am very interested in this product, or something like it (Asus also has a ultraportable coming out, and the VIA Nanobook also looks great.

I don't care about it as an add-on to a cell phone. I don't use a phone much - I keep a Tracfone in the car for emergencies and that's about it. So at least for me, Palm won't sell anything on the phone connection.

But I hate hauling my laptop around when I'm in town, just because it is so bulky and annoying to carry. Yet, having access to my business web site and email is important to me when I'm away from my desk, and something light like these items, with wireless abilities, USB ports, the ability to use different flash cards for off-device storage, and Windows and/or Linux abilities - well, this is getting close to my perfect replacement for both PalmPilot and laptop.

Plus, because they are solid state, the start-up and shut-down are nearly instantaneous. The slow start and shutdown of my laptop is one of the most annoying laptop features, in my opinion.

So definitely, there is a place for these devices.