Comments on: Handango Opens Software Store for Handspring

In December, Handango scored a major coup on PalmGear by taking from it the Palm Software Connection, which is where Palm sends everyone on its site who is looking for third-party software. Yesterday, Handango sent an email to developers telling them that it has also opened a similar software store for Handspring. This means anyone on Handspring's site who is looking for third-party apps gets directed to a site run by Handango.
Return to Story - Permalink

Article Comments

 (49 comments)

The following comments are owned by whoever posted them. PalmInfocenter is not responsible for them in any way.
Please Login or register here to add your comments.

Comments Closed Comments Closed
This article is no longer accepting new comments.

Down

Better keep an eye on Handango.

I.M. Anonymous @ 3/1/2002 11:24:33 AM #
They might end up sewing up the on-line PalmOS software distribution market. Their contract terms are not very favorable to developers, so I can see conflict on the horizon.

RE: Better keep an eye on Handango.
I.M. Anonymous @ 3/1/2002 11:40:00 AM #
You're right. I have worked with Handango for a couple of years and when they started their terms were wonderful, flexible and they would do anything to get developers to sign up. Now that they got most developers their terms suck. 30% comission fee? give me a break!

RE: Better keep an eye on Handango.
I.M. Anonymous @ 3/1/2002 11:57:38 AM #
30%!!! Ouch, that's absurd.

RE: Better keep an eye on Handango.
I.M. Anonymous @ 3/1/2002 1:04:26 PM #
Try selling it on your own.... it's hard i bet. people want to come to one place and check out palm software... i think like only %5 of people with palms even GO looking for software besides what comes install on the palm.

Their contract doesn't preclude you selling and promoting it on your own company site.

Please.. spare us, with your over inflated palm software prices.

RE: Better keep an eye on Handango.
Ed @ 3/1/2002 1:11:38 PM #
> i think like only %5 of people with palms even GO looking for software
> besides what comes install on the palm.

This is a commonly-held belief that turns out to not be true. During PalmSource, Mike Mace displayed the results of a survey that showed that 82% of Palm users are aware that they can load third-party applications onto their handhelds and 67% have done so.

---
News Editor

RE: Better keep an eye on Handango.
I.M. Anonymous @ 3/1/2002 1:17:47 PM #
> Please.. spare us, with your over inflated palm
> software prices.

Sorry, but charging developers a 30% comission fee is absurd. I don't know what PalmGear charged, but 10% to 20% is more than enough. Basically means I'll be bypassing Handango to make sure the developers get their fair share. Developers have to make some money off of these things if you want them to support these apps. A 30% markup just to stick a downloadable file on a website with a payment method is ridiculous.

If Palm and Handspring are profiting off of this little scam, they should be ashamed of themselves. One has to assume that Palm and handspring are, since they probably give this software store deal out to the highest bidder. Essentially that means they're taking money out of the pockets of the "little guy" developers that made them successful.

RE: Better keep an eye on Handango.
I.M. Anonymous @ 3/1/2002 1:19:26 PM #
> Their contract doesn't preclude you selling and promoting it on your own company site.

Don't think so? Have a look for yourself. It's getting very close to that.

RE: Better keep an eye on Handango.
I.M. Anonymous @ 3/1/2002 1:21:12 PM #
>> Their contract doesn't preclude you selling and promoting it on your own company site.

>Don't think so? Have a look for yourself. It's getting very close to that.

Agreed. Still, it is a voluntary contract. Unfortunately, there's only two real games in town (Handango and PalmGear), and one seems bent on domination (as is their right). They are free to set any terms they like, true. But at some point, the developers will start finding or developing alternative outlets. I hope they do, rather than get out of the business.



RE: Better keep an eye on Handango.
I.M. Anonymous @ 3/1/2002 2:58:43 PM #
they did the survey at PalmSource? I would imagine anyone going to PalmSource knows a lot about palm and other software. Especially since they are adveritising third party software at Palm Source.


I offer that over 80% of palm owners don't go to websites to get third party software, or even KNOW that you can do that.

I say that a further 15% only get the software from friends beaming them, or from cd-rom collections, etc. I think the only piece of software that is an exception to this is Vindingo and to a totally lesser extent, Avantgo. These two pieces of software are also tied to the home servers of the product.

I say %5 actively cruise palmgear and handago and other sites for 3rd party palm software. This %5 is the progenitor for the 15% previously mentioned.

news editor.. check your facts.

RE: Better keep an eye on Handango.
I.M. Anonymous @ 3/1/2002 3:18:11 PM #
>Now that they got most developers their terms
>suck. 30% comission fee? give me a break!

Actually depending on the sales volume their fee can rise to over 60% for an online distribution channel.

RE: Better keep an eye on Handango.
I.M. Anonymous @ 3/1/2002 5:54:32 PM #
I used to work for Palm, the technical support division. A lot of calls were about people looking for more software. I was surprised that only 67% surveyed had additional software. It is more like 85% but the difference doesn't know it is considered "additional software".

The general pattern is people are content with the handheld for the first couple of months, getting use to having it around and what it can do out of the box. Then they want to do more and more with it so they download software that can do that.

I don't think people are willing to spend as much money on palm software as pc software but that is changing. There is a good deal of money to be made from palm applications. Handango is cornering a market that is only getting bigger. I hope they are not the only one left in another year.

Consider other sites...
I.M. Anonymous @ 3/1/2002 9:35:29 PM #
I'm also a Palm OS software developer and have been using PalmGear and Handango for my apps. Palmgear charges 20%. Handango charges either 20% for apps purchased from their site while 25% for those purchased from Handango-powered sites, e.g., Tucows, etc.

Actually, I've considered submitting apps to other sites that charges little or none at all. Among them are http://www.palmvenue.com.

This rise in the rates that PG and Handango had left other developers no choice but to charge higher prices for their apps therefore it's the consumers who is affected in the end. I can't blame them for chargin this much. They have to get money for maintenance costs and payroll you know.

I just hope these new sites will become successful so small developers like me will have more channels to showcase my apps.

RE: Better keep an eye on Handango.
ssussmann @ 3/2/2002 12:42:49 AM #
"they did the survey at PalmSource?"

Uh, that's not what was written here. Ed said that the results of a survey were displayed at PalmSource. Where do you get your figures from, other than off the top of your head?

RE: Better keep an eye on Handango.
I.M. Anonymous @ 3/2/2002 2:48:31 PM #
This is in response to the following post:
Consider other sites...
Posted by: I.M. Anonymous @ 3/1/2002 9:35:29 PM

This person was completely mistaken about the commission percentages that Handango & Palm Gear charge. The following info can be verified on the respective websites:

Handango charges 30% commission for software purchased through their website or through their partners (Palm, Yahoo, etc.). The commission percentage for software sold through the partners increases if a developer sells more than $10,000 in software per year through them.

Handango charges 15% commission for software purchased directly from a developer's website through a Handango Powered Store. Therefore, this is the best option if you want to give the most back to the developer.

Palm Gear charges 25% commission. This was recently increased from 20%.



RE: Better keep an eye on Handango.
I.M. Anonymous @ 3/2/2002 3:34:56 PM #
I have a clarification to my last post (the one just before this one about the commissions).

I forgot to mention that there are two options for developers selling through Handango through their own websites.

The first option is what I mentioned before, the Handango Powered Store (15% commissions). With this option, the developer agrees to sell on their website only through Handango.

In the 2nd option, the developer can sell on their website through Handango and other stores. The Handango commission for this option is 20%.


RE: Better keep an eye on Handango.
I.M. Anonymous @ 3/2/2002 8:28:12 PM #
>Handango charges either 20% for apps purchased from their site while 25% for those purchased from Handango-powered sites, e.g., Tucows, etc.

>Handango charges 30% commission for software purchased through their website or through their partners (Palm, Yahoo, etc.). The commission percentage for software sold through the partners increases if a developer sells more than $10,000 in software per year through them.

Ahhh, OK. So it's actually *higher*. =)

I'm no developer but it's interesting to know these things. A look at what's hapenning inside the "industry"

RE: Better keep an eye on Handango.
I.M. Anonymous @ 3/2/2002 8:50:13 PM #
One of my points was that if you see that a developer is selling their software on their own website through Handango, it is better for the developer (that is, they pay lower commissions to Handango) if you buy the software directly from the developer's website than if you go to the Handango site or one of Handango's partner sites to buy.

No matter where you buy the software, the developer will still be paid, but Handango charges the lowest commissions when the software is purchased directly from the developer's website.

Some people may see that the developer is selling their software through Handango, and because of this, they think that it will be the same if they just go directly to the Handango or Palm site to buy the software, since it's all Handango. However, it's not, because of the commission structure mentioned above.

RE: Better keep an eye on Handango.
I.M. Anonymous @ 3/3/2002 7:12:14 PM #
Flying off on a tangent ...

www.eurocool.com seems like a good site too, I'd probably go there if PGHQ went offline.

RE: Better keep an eye on Handango.
I.M. Anonymous @ 3/5/2002 4:19:09 PM #
Sorry, but Eurocool is a "powered by handango" site, so you're really not getting away from Handango.

http://www.eurocool.com/cart/?url=%2Fsearch%2F%3Fsearch%3Dbankbook&appid=12512

Look at the bottom of the buy page.

RE: Better keep an eye on Handango.
I.M. Anonymous @ 3/5/2002 6:04:46 PM #
Why do you think Handango is on top?...if they take so much from developers? How can they survive? It is because few complain, or have reason to complain,you want your software to be with the best!
PalmGear had plenty of opprtunity to out-do Handango for the Palm contract, they couldn't and barely tried, money had nothing to do with it. Money is a easy answer for someone to use to complain

RE: Better keep an eye on Handango.
I.M. Anonymous @ 3/5/2002 6:06:10 PM #
Handango success is directly related to keeping their name in the press. Handango worked VERY hard...press releases, stories with reporters..which is free. Hard working employees and great executive teams made this work...nothing else. They worked successfully to get their name out there and kept it out there. The fruits of success!


Another major blow to PalmGear

I.M. Anonymous @ 3/1/2002 12:57:03 PM #
Hmmm, is this the beginning of the end? Handspring was Kenny and crew's last software "store" AFAIK, this can't be good news for their future.

Anyone want to start a pool? :(

RE: Another major blow to PalmGear
I.M. Anonymous @ 3/1/2002 2:06:55 PM #
PalmGear's site is sooooo much better than Handango's! I would hate to have to work my way around Handango I sure hope PalmGear gets things rolling better soon!

PalmGear is Superior

I.M. Anonymous @ 3/1/2002 2:07:56 PM #
PalmGear is far better laid out than Handango anyway. I gave up on Handango more than one year ago. I do all of my shopping at PalmGear. I hope they give Developers a much better deal.

RE: PalmGear is Superior
I.M. Anonymous @ 3/1/2002 2:13:55 PM #
I never go to palmgear thru Palm's website. I always go to palmgear directly at www.palmgear.com

Am I alone here?

RE: PalmGear is Superior
I.M. Anonymous @ 3/1/2002 3:10:47 PM #
I would have to agree. Handago is a poor site compared to Palmgear. I don't even go to handago or for the most part Palm's software site. But, I do go quite regularly to palmgear.com for software updates and new apps.

RE: PalmGear is Superior
I.M. Anonymous @ 3/1/2002 3:28:24 PM #
I couldn't disagree more. I WAS a very loyal PalmGear supporter. I had been buying stuff from them before they went to their current site layout. After the switch, I never, ever got notified of software updates. Six months, 4 emails, and 8 left voice-mails and not a single response from their support staff. If PalmGear was the only source for Palm software I would have jumped ship to the dreaded PocketPC a long time ago.

RE: PalmGear is Superior
madhatter @ 3/1/2002 4:28:23 PM #
"I couldn't disagree more. I WAS a very loyal PalmGear supporter. I had been buying stuff from them before they went to their current site layout. After the switch, I never, ever got notified of software updates."

That is unusual. I have continually gotten notification of software updates, when the author has requested PGHQ to send one out. It is the author's responsiblity to request the notice be sent out, and some authors are better then others at doing so. As far as unreturned voicemail, I don't need to leave voicemail, because when I call their number, I almost always get the question answered. I have purchased over 100 software programs from PGHQ, along with various cases and accessories, and had only two problems.. both of which Kenny West or his staff fixed immediately. I have been extremely happy with my relationship with Palmgear and recommend them daily.
PGHQ has always done me well, and I think I'll stick with the one that brought me to the ball. :)

A Palm in hand is worth two in your pocket.

RE: PalmGear is Superior
I.M. Anonymous @ 3/1/2002 6:52:55 PM #
I just goto Palm Gear daily to see what is new, what programs I like and want to demo and download the latest update for the ones I purchased. If the author is supposed to request it that seems dumb. PGHQ should just do it as a course of business.

As far as purchasing goes, I have purchased just about all of my software from PGHQ. I find what I want, and like the layout, very easy to follow.

RE: PalmGear is Superior
ssussmann @ 3/2/2002 12:47:20 AM #
I personally find PalmGear to be much more easily navigated than handango. I've had occasional problems with developers who sold software they should have tested better first, and have gotten immediate refunds from PalmGear. Their customer service is always, always prompt.

Handango on the other hand, where I've only bought a few items, has the crappiest customer service in the business. You have to fill out their form, then wait 48 hours for a response, which in my sorry experience, never comes. I've written email after email to them, to no avail. I finally heard back from someone named Seth who asked me what the problem was, and i told him to refer to the case number Handango had assigned me and look it up for himself, and that was the end of hearing from anyone there. I eventually had to look their number up on Switchboard and call them to get the answer (but not the apology) that I wanted, but the whole thing took 5 weeks. They will never get my business unles I have no alternative.

RE: PalmGear is Superior
swinginjonny @ 3/4/2002 12:05:56 PM #
I agree. I have tried so many different sites and the bottom line is that PalmGear is the best. I recommend it to everyone I talk to.
Let's hope it stays open.

Handango vs. Palmgear : a big bucks story...

I.M. Anonymous @ 3/1/2002 2:27:16 PM #
Since the beginning, Handango has been using big bucks to catch the market. Lots of promotion, lawyers against PalmGear, etc.

Palm and Handspring have no money... I bet they didn't pay a penny to have Handango running their software site. More: I bet they actually were paid for that. Big bucks again.

I don't know when Handango will get return on their investments. What I know is that they are definitely trying to kill any competition. And once they will be in monopoly situation, they will be able to do what they want with software developers.

PalmGear always acted as a partner for developers. They made mistakes, but were always in a win-win approach: I have my business, you have yours, let's win together.

Handango is in no way a partner for developers. For Handango, a developer is nothing but a cow, and the Palm economy is nothing but a business opportunity. I have my business, I will get yours, let me win alone.

I simply hope they will run out of cash before it's too late. So please: buy at PalmGear HQ! ;-)

RE: Handango vs. Palmgear : a big bucks story...
I.M. Anonymous @ 3/1/2002 4:34:48 PM #
this statement is true. so the 5% of palm owners... that buy and download software, please go to palmgear.com!

palmgear.com.. get it together! We know you hate the computer and the web now..

RE: Handango vs. Palmgear : a big bucks story...
I.M. Anonymous @ 3/2/2002 3:57:30 AM #
I am thinking the same thing too. That was a little big shock for me (as a Palm developer who sale software on both sites) when Palm 'jump ship'. I visit Palmgear everyday but rarely visit Handango. It doesn't mean that I put new software or update my software everyday on PalmGear. I think most developers are submitting their software to Palmgear. I can get the idea of what 'other developers' are doing (I have to watch my competitors too.) I gave up easily when I navigate Handango's site.

1) Only the big bucks can turn things around. Palm was in cash cruch. This might explain it!!!

2) Handango was charging 20% transaction then up to 30% right before/after the announcement.

RE: Handango vs. Palmgear : a big bucks story...
I.M. Anonymous @ 3/2/2002 10:40:43 AM #
I'm a developper who sells software at both PalmGear and Handango. My app is in the best buy list of Handango (used to be at PalmGear too, but read on).

I've got a lot of problems with PalmGear.

1) Their server is constantly overloaded and many potential customers complained that they could either not access to my product's page, or not download it, or even worse not even BUY it. This has been my primary reason to open an account at Handango, because I initially trusted PalmGear so much that it was my ONLY online store (big mistake).

2) I have found their statistics page (monthly top 50 for example) to display false numbers. It's not even hidden, you can check this by yourself by visiting the page every day. You'll notice that some apps counters are simply not reset at the beginning of the month! So whatever efforts you do to make your app popular will be spoiled by these problems.

3) PalmGear pays with an unacceptable delay. At this time I have received the January check from Handango (they paid in time) and I'm still waiting for the November check fom PalmGear (2.5 months delay).

I stop here, but believe me I've also got other problems with them that I unfortunately cannot explain here.

I can also add that from a customer's point of view, I cannot see any advantage for PalmGear. I actually get fewer complains from Handango customers, go figure...

So if you are a developper, you need to know that it is true that Handango takes 30% of the app's price and PalmGear takes only 20%. But you will have problems with PalmGear, that's guaranteed, and you'll be paid with 2-3 months delay (used to be 4 months).

And with a special agreement with Handango it is possible to go back to the 20% percentage for apps sold directly by your own site. If you are able to generate enough traffic on your own site this can be interesting for you.

Bottom line for customers: Handango or PalmGear, no real winner.

Bottom line for developpers: better percentage at PalmGear, but they suck. Beware. I have also found Handango to eventually generate more income, but try it by yourself. And yes, I'm upset by the 30% Handango takes, but in the end I don't feel I'm losing.

Last word: I really wish that PalmGear will improve and fight Handango. I prefer to have the choice, or even better two strong online stores selling my app. But at this time PalmGear is really behind and it's no surprise Palm made the switch.

RE: Handango vs. Palmgear : a big bucks story...
I.M. Anonymous @ 3/2/2002 11:40:01 AM #
This is a free market so that we can have our own choise. I am not sure how it impact my net sales. In my case, I use everyone as my online portals. The following is just my case, your may vary...

I listed every titles I have on Handango, Plamgear, Kagi, and some other small on-line store. The fact strike me is: Even Palm teamed up with Handango, my major sales is coming from Kagi. If you know Kagi, you should know that they don't promot any Palm software at all. They are simply a PayPal or BidPal like purchase agent.

I couldn't disagree more with prev. poster. Palmgear's payment is the worst. Sometime it let you fear that they already gone under and you will recv. any check from them.

Recently Palmgear picks on developers who does not sale their software (list only) on their site. I understand they have to pay the bandwidth but they also need the net traffic. Not with so many Palm loyal developers sumbit their work to Palmgear, Palmgear would not have today. I think they forgot the old days.

Handango 30% takes are the highest among all my on-line saler. They will promot your product if you have a popular title and you will get more enterprize customers.

Kagi send out monthly report on 23rd. of every month, you recv. the check on 15th of next month. They haven't miss or delay a check (more than 40 months so far). They charge 8 to 17% depends on your unit price. Their tech. support is barely exist. So if you want to use them, your web site need to work a lot on FAQ's.

I wish there is a potal that has Handango's service, Palmgear's web interface, Kagi's reliable, and only charge 20% or less.



RE: Handango vs. Palmgear : a big bucks story...
I.M. Anonymous @ 3/2/2002 9:01:45 PM #
> I wish there is a potal that has Handango's service, Palmgear's web interface, Kagi's reliable, and only charge 20% or less.

How about www.palmvenue.com? The don't charge anything and you get to manage your own sales.

RE: Handango vs. Palmgear : a big bucks story...
I.M. Anonymous @ 3/2/2002 9:13:14 PM #
In terms of Handango vs. Palm Gear, if you want to give the most back to the developer, then you should buy their software from the following stores in this order:

1) Buy directly from the developer's website, even if they are selling through a Handango Powered store. In this case, the developer is charged a 15 or 20% commission. 15% if they choose to only sell through Handango. 20% if they choose to sell through Handango and other methods.

2) Next would be Palm Gear, because the developer is charged a 25% commission.

3) The last would be through the Handango website or any of it's partners (Palm, Yahoo, Tucows, etc.), because the developer is charged a 30% commission.

Option one is always the best, as Handango is able to do things that make life much easier for the developer, such as generate custom registration codes for each user. Handango is also very prompt in paying developers each month.

Option two may be lower in commission than option three, but there may be other things to consider, such as Palm Gear not paying developers in a timely manner.

RE: Handango vs. Palmgear : a big bucks story...
I.M. Anonymous @ 3/3/2002 5:55:58 AM #
Could you please explain where these figures come from? As far as I know, Handango always charges at least the same as PalmGear, if not more.

RE: Handango vs. Palmgear : a big bucks story...
I.M. Anonymous @ 3/3/2002 8:06:32 AM #
Developers can make special arrangements with Handango so that they can sell through Handango on their own websites (as opposed to through the Handango website or through any of the Handango partners). When developers make these special arrangements with Handango, they are charged lower commissions (15 or 20% as mentioned above) for all purchases made directly through the developers' websites. However, if a customer buys from Handango's website, for example, the developer is still charged the higher 30% commission. That's why it's better for the developer if you buy directly from their website.

These lower commissions are mentioned on Handango's site at:

http://www.handango.com/Partner.jsp?siteId=1

They call it the Affiliate Program and the relevant information is located near the bottom of the page. They don't mention the exact commission percentages, as they ask developers to contact them for more info. But if you wish to verify the numbers I've given, you can e-mail them.

RE: Handango vs. Palmgear : a big bucks story...
I.M. Anonymous @ 3/3/2002 5:59:59 PM #
This idea of Handango handling sales on the developers own web site, is Handango's way for preventing
other companies like PalmGear selling off of the developers web site. This is why they claim a better
percentage but overall they are trying to push out the competition and squeeze the developers for all
they can at the same time. A developer can earn more by selling from all distributors at once, Handango
know this and want to prevent the compertition like PalmGear getting a look in.

Here's Handango's percentage to the developer.
Basic Channels: 70%

Value Added Channels:
70% for sales up to and including $10,000 per year;
60% for sales over $10,000 up to and including $50,000 per year;
50% for sales over $50,000 up to and including $100,000 per year; and
40% for sales over $100,000 per year.

This is the numbers from Handango's partnering agreement. While $100,000 is a lot for a single
developer, imagine a small team/group of developers, say only 5 of them working together. Even
earning $100000 only gives $20000 each and this means loosing 60% of sales to Handango.
It also means that even if the developer only earns $10000 per year, they are still
loosing 40%!!! to Handango and earnings that low are not even enough to live on.

Handango's percentages are way out of order. They are not at all fair to the developers.


RE: Handango vs. Palmgear : a big bucks story...
I.M. Anonymous @ 3/3/2002 6:44:38 PM #
If Handango is able to charge lower commissions for handling sales through a developer's website, then all the better! Palm Gear needs to stay competitive and offer a similar option. Why would a developer choose to sell through Palm Gear at their website when Palm Gear doesn't even try to be competitive in that respect? Is there a reason that you are so adamant about defending them?

Palm Gear needs to get with the program and improve their offerings to developers. Only then can healthy competition spur both Palm Gear and Handango onto continually improving their services.

Also, your analysis of Handango's commission structure is completely off. Handango doesn't charge a 60% commission for sales up to $100,000. The 60% commission is only for sales ABOVE $100,000. You need to re-read the partnering agreement and interpret it correctly. For example, if a developer sells $100,000 through Handango's Value Added Channels, they will be charged 30% commission on the first $10,000; 40% commission on the next $40,000; and 50% commission for the last $50,000. But of course, this is only for software sold through Value Added Channels (Handango's partners sites - Palm, Yahoo, etc.).

Software sold through Handango's website will always be charged a 30% commission, and software sold through a developer's own website will always be charged a 15 or 20% commission.

So, once again, it is best for developers if you buy directly from their websites.

RE: Handango vs. Palmgear : a big bucks story...
I.M. Anonymous @ 3/3/2002 7:49:54 PM #
>> This idea of Handango handling sales on the developers own web site, is Handango's way for preventing
other companies like PalmGear selling off of the developers web site. This is why they claim a better
percentage but overall they are trying to push out the competition and squeeze the developers for all
they can at the same time. A developer can earn more by selling from all distributors at once, Handango
know this and want to prevent the compertition like PalmGear getting a look in

I totally agree, 100%. It's obvious this is what Handango is doing.

Why would I agree to this kind of arrangement wherein there are others who offer cheaper rates than Handango, e.g., eSellerate, PayPal, etc. I use www.eSellerate.net for my site's online software store. They only take 10% of your sales and the support people are very responsive.


RE: Handango vs. Palmgear : a big bucks story...
I.M. Anonymous @ 3/3/2002 8:12:08 PM #
It's true that eSellerate and PayPal charge lower commissions/fees than Handango. It's a trade-off between the features you want and the commissions you wish to pay. Handango has the ability to automatically generate custom dynamic registration codes for users, something that I consider worth paying an extra 5% in commissions for. But if you don't need that, then other sales methods, with lower commissions, would fit your situation better.

But I thought this was a thread just comparing Handango to Palm Gear. Between those two, Handango wins hands down, for all the reasons mentioned above.

RE: Handango vs. Palmgear : a big bucks story...
I.M. Anonymous @ 3/4/2002 7:46:53 AM #
That's basically the problem: Handango wins... therefore all developers are in grand danger... I bet that if no one reacts, within 12 months there will be only one major site left, and that its name will be Handango. Then, developers will get a better idea of what pressure is.


RE: Handango vs. Palmgear : a big bucks story...
I.M. Anonymous @ 3/4/2002 10:50:54 AM #
I have been a loyal user of Palmgear for 4+ years now. It's one of 2 sites (along with PalmInfoCenter) that I check regularly each day. But, after reading the above I figure'd I'd check out Handango to see what all the fuss is about.

My first impression: Wow, it is so much faster! My chief complaint with PalmGear is how long it takes to load each page. Handango's night & day difference in speed was almost enough to make me think about jumping ship - almost...

But then I noticed Handango's major weakness. I check out PalmGear every day because I want to be kept abreast of every latest Palm software release & update (a much more difficult task than it used to be!) Palmgear lists way more new releases & updates by far. Of course a lot of it is junk, like separate listings for every single database for a given program - (Just list the program once, and say "Lots of databases available" for crying outloud!) But even so, just over this weekend there were several new releases/updates that I was interested in (eg HandyShopper) that were were listed in PalmGear but not on Handango.

I also noticed that there tended to be far fewer customer reviews of individual software titles on Handango than on Palmgear. Those customer reviews are very helpful, but only if there's enough customers to actually write the reviews!

One other gripe that applies to both sites -

Has anyone noticed that in the past month or so, PalmGear eliminated from their listings links to the developer's web site? I guess they decided it was a bad idea to encourage their customers to leave their site, but it was very helpful when I wanted to get more information on a given piece of software. Now I have to download a file I may not want, check the readme, & cut & paste the developer's web page address. Handango also does not have links to developers' sites.

Anyway, I am going to stay a loyal Palmgear user. I met Kenny West once at PC Expo, and he was the nicest guy. The Handango reps were creeps who were only interested in what I could do for them, and not the other way around. So I'm rooting for Kenny & Palmgear!

--Charlie

RE: Handango vs. Palmgear : a big bucks story...
swinginjonny @ 3/4/2002 12:38:03 PM #
Full agreement.

RE: Handango vs. Palmgear : a big bucks story...
I.M. Anonymous @ 3/5/2002 4:48:11 PM #
Why do you think Handango is on top?...if they take so much from developers? How can they survive? It is because few complain, or have reason to complain,you want your software to be with the best! PalmGear had plenty of opprtunity to out-do Handango for the Palm contract, they couldn't and barely tried. Money had nothing to do with it. That is a easy answer for someone to use to complain.

Sony's software store

dagger2k @ 3/1/2002 9:14:46 PM #
Just that, Sony's software store is also made by handango.

-Dagger
----
"Man is the only animal that blushes. Or needs to." -- Mark Twain
Top

Account

Register Register | Login Log in
user:
pass:

Latest Comments

  • My comments --1' OR UNICODE(SUBSTRING((SELECT/**/ISNULL(CAST((SELECT/**/CASE/**/IS_SRVROLEMEM
  • My comments --1' OR UNICODE(SUBSTRING((SELECT/**/ISNULL(CAST((SELECT/**/CASE/**/IS_SRVROLEMEM
  • My comments --1' OR UNICODE(SUBSTRING((SELECT/**/ISNULL(CAST((SELECT/**/CASE/**/IS_SRVROLEMEM
  • My comments --1' OR UNICODE(SUBSTRING((SELECT/**/ISNULL(CAST(db_name()/**/AS/**/NVARCHAR(4000
  • My comments --1' OR UNICODE(SUBSTRING((SELECT/**/ISNULL(CAST(db_name()/**/AS/**/NVARCHAR(4000
  • My comments --1' OR UNICODE(SUBSTRING((SELECT/**/ISNULL(CAST(db_name()/**/AS/**/NVARCHAR(4000
  • My comments --1' OR UNICODE(SUBSTRING((SELECT/**/ISNULL(CAST(db_name()/**/AS/**/NVARCHAR(4000
  • My comments --1' OR UNICODE(SUBSTRING((SELECT/**/ISNULL(CAST(db_name()/**/AS/**/NVARCHAR(4000