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    SanDisk Releasing Zire 71 Wi-FI SD CardPosted By: Ryan on Friday, June 18, 2004 2:35:13 PM
After well over a year of delays, SanDisk is close to releasing a SDIO Wi-Fi card for a Palm OS handheld, however the new card will only work with the palmOne Zire 71.
The card was first announced for Palm OS devices in January 2003 with a March 03 release. In May 03, SanDisk pushed the release back until the fall. In August the company released the card, but only with drivers for Windows Mobile devices. In November, the date was again delayed until December and it was later announced that it would finally ship sometime in late Q2 2004. The new Wi-Fi card should be available in stores in late June/July for $99 USD. The company has also confirmed that the recently announced WiFi and memory combo SD card will not be compatible with Palm OS devices.
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 It's about time.indesman @ 6/18/2004 5:41:29 PM #
Will miracles never cease.  RE: It's about time.
Not that big a miracle, really. After all it's just for one, discontinued model... RE: It's about time.
Why do they even bother with this pathetic card if it's only compatable with the zire 71?! The thing's been discontinued!! I have a TT and I want some sort of wifi compatability without having to buy some huge wifi case. There is one Palmone handheld that comes with wifi, and Sandisk is not doing anything to help matters.
RE: It's about time.trophyofgrace @ 6/18/2004 8:11:28 PM #
You gripe because the Z71 a discontinued model is getting the card, but you expect your Tungsten T to get a card? -->Visor Deluxe-->Palm m125-->Palm m505-->Ipaq 1945-->Tungsten E-->Zire 21 (cheap and fits my needs :) RE: It's about time.The Black Moose @ 6/18/2004 11:16:12 PM #
"Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me." Okay, Sandisk, don't shame me. Now I might be considered "fortunate" that I have the only compatible palm PDA for this card, Zire 71. My plan circa autumn 2003: buy Wifi card, continue to use in next PDA. Now something like this? I don't think so. Not with an aging PDA which I would soon abandon for another. Maybe I could get by with just bluetooth in a new palm since my new PowerBook has it. Not Sandisk's Fault - it's PalmSource's!
TTRules, it's not SanDisk's fault. They have been trying everything they can to get these cards working with Palm models - it is PALM's fault for not being more forthcoming with data, and now for not releasing a diver patch for the SDIO problem on some of the other Palms (I believe BHand has a little more detail and it says that SanDisk says the Z72 and T3 both require this patch - and Palm pretty much refuses to assist them (probably to incorporate their own patch to use with their upcoming WiFi card to get as many sales as possible. Stingy Bustards!!! :-) So anyway, your statement should be that Pa1mOne isn't doing anything to help the situation, not SanDisk, who would love to get all the Palm sales they can and redesigned this card to be low enough power to work in Palms that don't supply enough power to the SDIO slot (and is inarguably a bigger market than for PPC's since most of those already WiFi built in anyway). RE: Trophyofgrace
Trophyofgrace, I want a card for tungstens! Even if it just means the TT3. I would probably get a TT3 if it had wifi. One Palm to rule them all! RE: It's about time.trophyofgrace @ 6/19/2004 2:20:16 PM #
The TC has WiFi, is it not a Tungsten? -->Visor Deluxe-->Palm m125-->Palm m505-->Ipaq 1945-->Tungsten E-->Zire 21 (cheap and fits my needs :) RE: It's about time.trophyofgrace @ 6/19/2004 5:53:15 PM #
I do see your point though, I think there should be more choice in the WiFi realm for Palm OS. With PPC the options are pretty much wide open, and right now that's one of the major points that PPC has over PalmOS now, IMO
-->Visor Deluxe-->Palm m125-->Palm m505-->Ipaq 1945-->Tungsten E-->Zire 21 (cheap and fits my needs :) 
What about Tungsten E ??
My perception has always been that the Tungesten E is a Zire 71 without the camera. A little research would probably answer my question, but what is keeping the wifi card inoperable with the Tungesten E? RE: What about Tungsten E ??
I agree. why wont sandisk do some research on teh WIFI card and see if it works with the T|E. i have a T|E and i have been waiting for a WIFI card for months. and i do agree with his philosophy, the T|E is just a ZIRE 71 without a camera. good philosophy :) RE: What about Tungsten E ??The Black Moose @ 6/18/2004 10:59:33 PM #
Actually, Tungsten E and Zire 71 are quite different beside the camera. Shall I quote specs? No, I don't feel like it; I shall paraphrase. T|E has a marginally slower processor, slightly smaller battery, twice the memory, a USB connection vs. Zire 71's "universal" connection, a better included stylus (irrelevant to discussion)... all in a thinner case. The screen appears the same though. It may be likely that a different chipset was used. RE: What about Tungsten E ??gobabushka @ 6/20/2004 10:40:58 PM #
I have waited for almost a year for the drivers, and I hope that this is completly false! I have a Zire 31 and I hope it's compatible. This whole thing has temped me to switch over to Pocket PC, and I am a die-hard Palm OS fan!
Why would Palm be reluctant to have 3rd party Wi-Fi cards?
Someone smarter than me needs to explain to me why on earth Palm would be reluctant to have 3rd party companies making Wi-Fi cards for their PDA's. For the last year or so, all of the Zire 71, Tungsten T, E, T2, and T3 owners have been waiting and waiting for someone, ANYONE to produce a Wi-Fi SD card. Think how many potential Palm purchasers probably migrated to PPC's because Palm didnt' have any easy Wi-Fi options. (Yes, I know about the Tungsten C and the Enfora case.) Why would Palm not do everything they could to facilitate Wi-Fi access for their products? It doesn't make sense to me. TMann RE: Why would Palm be reluctant to have 3rd party Wi-Fi cards?
Along the same lines, why on earth would they have neglected to write an OS 5 driver for their Bluetooth SD card, so that it could be used on the Tungsten C, E and Zire 71. Is it technically impossible? Or is there some marketing reason for not doing so? TMann RE: Why would Palm be reluctant to have 3rd party Wi-Fi cards?Alchemist42 @ 6/18/2004 6:58:44 PM #
I think there are a couple reasons for the lack of Wifi support from palm... 1. Palm doesnt seem to put alot of effort into supporting the SDIO spec... sure they say the devices are compatible, but there isnt that much SDIO hardware out there with palm drivers in the first place, so I think they kinda drop the ball on making SDIO work correctly on their devices. Hell, a couple of their devices have even had problems reading memory cards, remember the original TT anyone? 2. IMO this is the bigger reason... OS6 completely reimplements the OS wireless support, with good support for multiple wireless standards being active at once, better multitasking model for drivers, etc. so I think they might be going... we will just live with the shortcomings for now, because cobalt fixes them anyway... but its taken alot longer than I thought before a cobalt device sees the light of day. That said, I still like palms hardware, I just wish they would get a cobalt device out the door. RE: Why would Palm be reluctant to have 3rd party Wi-Fi card
In case you are REALLY interested... some days ago, a (long, often off-topic, and often painful) thread about this whole subject of drivers for OS 5 - including the ones for Palm's own SD Bluetooth card - kind of finished. Here you have the link to the most important part. If you are interested on some details, go read the whole thread and the links provided along it. I warn you: it is a long and painful read. Palm SD Bluetooth card drivers? Get 'em right here, folks!
Along the same lines, why on earth would they have neglected to write an OS 5 driver for their Bluetooth SD card, so that it could be used on the Tungsten C, E and Zire 71. Is it technically impossible? Or is there some marketing reason for not doing so? TMann The (heavily censored) thread described above suggested a reason why the drivers weren't released a while ago. You'll have to decide for yourself who is telling the truth and who is lying. Ask around + read about the driver issue - you'll find the answers. And it ain't pretty. RE: Why would Palm be reluctant to have 3rd party Wi-Fi card
Oh my Dog... I *wrote* this at the end of my previous post, but deleted it because I didn't want to re-start the stupid war. Anyway, looks like it would be informative, so I'm writing it now: [about the long and painful thread] To make it even nicer, some of the posts by a particular poster were deleted. He would say that that was because he Knows the Truth that we lesser beings are not supposed to know and so he is censored. However, the rest of the world would surely not agree and just say that he was such an obnoxious pain in the a55. Now, go judge for yourselves - if you really feel like. (Facey, looks like you finally followed one of my links and dared to read what Mr. Combee had to say about the subject. Nice. Now, let's only *suppose* that he finally tells us that he has talked with someone who should know, and definitively the drivers don't exist, as anybody would guess. Would you then accept that you were, erm, not right? Frosty: If Combee denies the SD Bluetooth drivers exist...
... then I no longer trust anything he says now that he works for Palm. I know what I know from my "sources". You, on the other hand know... nothing. RE: Why would Palm be reluctant to have 3rd party Wi-Fi card
I work for PalmSource, and I'm not in a position to have direct contact with anyone at PalmOne outside their developer support organization. As a PalmSource employee, I cannot comment publically on any plans of our customers, the Palm OS licesees, which includes PalmOne, due to non-disclosure agreements as well as general business ethics. That's all I'm going to say. Why Palm decided to HOSE customers on the SD Bluetooth
I work for PalmSource, and I'm not in a position to have direct contact with anyone at PalmOne outside their developer support organization. As a PalmSource employee, I cannot comment publically on any plans of our customers, the Palm OS licesees, which includes PalmOne, due to non-disclosure agreements as well as general business ethics. That's all I'm going to say. As usual, you're a class act, Ben. I trust by now you've learned the truth behind the SD Bluetooth drivers. (I was surprised to hear you didn't know the story already even though you only recently came over from Metrowerks.) Maybe not actually working in Milpitas has shielded you from hearing about this kind of c r a p. Anyway, I'd suggest you refrain from commenting further about this issue unless the drivers are actually issued. By the way, I hope you have made alternate career plans since leaving Metrowerks. Palm is entering implosion mode and PalmSource's stock is tanking rapidly (closed at $15.75 yesterday and will probably be below $10 before long http://finance.yahoo.com/q/hp?s=PSRC and http://finance.yahoo.com/q?s=PSRC&d=t). The upcoming quarterly statement is quite tragic and the company is probably going to start another round of layoffs. Talk to Gavin if you don't believe me. Be careful, Ben. It would be a shame to see you get burned as well. RE: Why would Palm be reluctant to have 3rd party Wi-Fi card
Facey, of course I know *nothing* about those drivers. Exactly like anyone else - except for you and your contacts (or magical gnomes, or tooth fairies, or little birds), of course. Surely that's because I have no insider contacts. Because, you know, it's really hard to believe in someone that, when minimally pressed to reason any one of his (supposedly existing) points goes into a hysterical burst of insults, postulates and unverifiable predictions that of course only further your point. Meanwhile, like traditional honest-to-Dog future tellers, you seem unable to predict things that really do happen - like the Zire WiFi card. In fact about 3 weeks ago you were postulating (again) that those cards would never appear, supposedly because of problems with the SDIO form factor. Heh. Interestingly, all evidence now points to PalmSource to be the guilty ones... in fact, I just found this post that looks like went unnoticed at the moment, but now looks quite genuine (as it concurs with what other people are now saying, two weeks later!) http://www.palminfocenter.com/view_story.asp?ID=6846#94660 Put that together with what Mr. Combee had to say about the difficulty of drivers development on OS 5, and the picture gets somewhat clear: http://www.palminfocenter.com/comment_view.asp?ID=6879#95025 See? No postulates, no predictions, I just tried to gather facts from all over the place, and the final image looks like explaining some things. Let's see if it works better than your conspiracy theory + unaccountable insider info. What I don't really understand is why are you THAT fixated about being censored because of the Truth you only Know. As if I (or the rest of the world) was praising Palm* for whatever! I think (and tell to anybody that would listen) that they have dug a pretty tomb for themselves by letting the OS get to this point of ... staleness, awkwardness. And, funny thing is, I've said that before - but for entirely different reasons. Remember when I said that releasing a T3-class device with a crippled & crippling OS like Palm OS 5 should be regarded as a crime? RE: Why are "Jeff and Donna" regularly dumping Palm stock?
Like rats leaving a sinking ship. http://www.hoovers.com/palmone/--ID__60253,Page__1,Sort__D--/free-co-sec.xhtml Jeffrey Hawkins dumps Palm stock: http://www.hoovers.com/free/co/secdoc.xhtml?ipage=2850886&doc=0&attach=on and again: http://www.hoovers.com/free/co/secdoc.xhtml?ipage=2841680&doc=0&attach=on and again: http://www.hoovers.com/free/co/secdoc.xhtml?ipage=2834657&doc=0&attach=on and again: http://www.hoovers.com/free/co/secdoc.xhtml?ipage=2820901&doc=0&attach=on and again: http://www.hoovers.com/free/co/secdoc.xhtml?ipage=2809050&doc=0&attach=on and again, and again.... -----------------------------------------------------------------
http://www.hoovers.com/free/co/secdoc.xhtml?ipage=2847887&doc=0&attach=on and again: http://www.hoovers.com/free/co/secdoc.xhtml?ipage=2839543&doc=0&attach=on and again: http://www.hoovers.com/free/co/secdoc.xhtml?ipage=2830298&doc=0&attach=on
and again: http://www.hoovers.com/free/co/secdoc.xhtml?ipage=2806683&doc=0&attach=on and again, and again.... IT GOES ON FOR A WHILE Palm is making a big mistake
Frosty: You post a link to a message supposedly from a SanDisk employee who says: SanDisk speaks we would LOVE to offer palm support for SD Wi-Fi products. We have palm source rights to OS and have developed drivers for the OS - in its pure form. palmOne makes driver slot (SDIO host side driver) and netlib (networking files) modifications to the files in the OS and will NOT give access to the mods. This month SanDisk is releasing Zire 71 support but has had to hack the modified files for this device to accomplish this. SanDisk got all kinds of help from MSFT for their OS's and only obstacles from palmOne. This is Monty Python business logic. I have told you repeatedly that Palm has the SD Bluetooth drivers, yet you prefer to believe otherwise. I even asked Ben Combee and Michael Mace to comment on the drivers on your behalf. The (usually chatty) Mr. Mace is suddenly silent and Mr. Combee is not allowed to comment. You do the math. If the drivers did not exist, how could my contact have several Palms running SD Bluetooth cards flawlessly? Why has Michael Mace simply not popped up here and issued a statement saying there are no drivers? Simple. Because the drivers have been functioning for a long time. A LOOOOONG time. Palm purposely crippled the OS and it takes about a 5 KB update to add Bluetooth SDIO functionality back. A 5 KB patch. 5 f-ing KB!. Ultimately, people have to weigh the evidence and decide for themselves. If enough people email Palm demanding the drivers, the update could be on their site by Monday. MONDAY. I think you're starting to see what I've said is the truth, but you're too embarassed to admit it. Think about it, Frosty. Bluetooth implementation is NOT rocket surgery. Palm probably still has at least one intelligent person working for them. They built the OS. They have Bluetooth functionality in other models and the SDIO power requirements for Bluetooth aren't constraining. Do you really think Palm was unable to make SDIO Bluetooth part of their PalmOS 5 features? Surely even you can't believe that. RE: Why would Palm be reluctant to have 3rd party Wi-Fi card
Since you now look like willing to follow links, I'll give you one more. Why do I think that Palm OS has not developed those drivers? I already asked and answered myself some time ago. http://www.palminfocenter.com/view_story.asp?ID=6846#94437 Note the absence of evil plots in my self-answer, though it in fact would explain a number of things - while agreeing with known facts and with what Mr. Combee (for example) said. I have told you repeatedly that Palm has the SD Bluetooth drivers, yet you prefer to believe otherwise. Yes, I have this nasty habit of believing in what I can check ... rather than the evil secret plots that some anonymous chap rants about on some website. I even asked Ben Combee and Michael Mace to comment on the drivers on your behalf. Now I'm gonna ask them if they killed JFK and why they want to sell us as livestock to the martians. And if they don't answer, then we will now for sure that they are guilty. OK? The (usually chatty) Mr. Mace is suddenly silent If the drivers did not exist, how could my contact have several Palms running SD Bluetooth cards flawlessly? I don't know. Too much booze? Why has Michael Mace simply not popped up here and issued a statement saying there are no drivers? Simple. Yes, I can imagine Michael Mace poppin' up here, saying "there are NO drivers" ... and you staying all calm and cool, gracefully apologizing for your rants... and we all departing as good friends, enriched by the information exchange... Palm purposely crippled the OS and it takes about a 5 KB update to add Bluetooth SDIO functionality back. A 5 KB patch. 5 f-ing KB!. Would you care to ellaborate on that, please? Because it sounds a bit absurd. Are you talking about a 5 KB driver? Or about a patch? If the latter, then we still need the drivers, and as Mr. Combee said, it's easy to develop drivers that only will work on a single device. So...? Ultimately, people have to weigh the evidence and decide for themselves. If enough people email Palm demanding the drivers, the update could be on their site by Monday. MONDAY. And if we raid the offices, we could get the drivers RIGHT NOW!! Get the torches! This is war! My man, don't you think they must have been asked a number of times about those drivers? How many people would happily buy the card? How many would buy bluetooth-less Palms, knowing that the card is there when they feel like upgrading? I think you're starting to see what I've said is the truth, but you're too embarassed to admit it. Yeah, now even I am part of your proof. Think about it, Frosty. Bluetooth implementation is NOT rocket surgery. This coming from the guy that writes "JAVA", says that Windows95/98 was perfectly stable and things got worse afterwards, does not know what BSD is nor what it has to do with Unix, and does not understand what wireless file sharing could be good for. You still have not answered what I asked some time ago: have you ever used a compiler? RE: Why would Palm be reluctant to have 3rd party Wi-Fi card
I just realized that I said I would not get again into this, and anyway looks like people could not care less even if they actively tried... so, Facey, guess what? I believe you. The drivers are there. They work, and they surely are 5 KB long. Let's just hope that the martians are not mean to their new livestock. Yuck! Be happy. :) RE: Why would Palm be reluctant to have 3rd party Wi-Fi cards?
;-o ... Hey Palm bashers. If you're so sure that the ship is sinking fast then why are you spending time posting here instead of shorting the stocks? If you're so sure, put your $$$ where your "posts" are. You 2 can become a millionaire.
But, if your wrong ... Pat Horne; www.churchoflivingfaith.com
Of Course...
How ironic. I JUST went out last week to purchase a Clie TH55. ....and I HAVE A Zire 71. The ONLY reason I did so was for the Wi-Fi, as I have a wireless network at home school and work. Here I am, 400 dollars poorer... I'm ticked now. RE: Of Course...Strider_mt2k @ 6/19/2004 8:08:20 AM #
What makes a Zire71 with a wifi card more desirable than a TH55? You can have it! Gimme my TH55 any day by comparison. RE: Of Course...The Black Moose @ 6/19/2004 12:34:28 PM #
In my opinion, nothing. TH55 is great PDA. Yet, I would never buy it. All because of Memory Stick. I want SD/MMC for not only more affordable memory, but for the pre-programmed cards sold at stores. Personally, I might very well prefer the Zire 71 with a Wifi card over an Clie with integrated Wifi and Memory Stick. Unless... Anyone know how to override copy protection (which may be illegal) to transfer pre-programmed MMC cards to Memory stick? I am sure if you want to read more tirades on Mem stick, go to the Sony suspension of clies article, there must be many there. Some find it menial, others find it everything. RE: Of Course...
I know the th-55 is a much more robust handheld to begin with and I'm quite happy with it. I just found the whole situation to be ironic. --Any others in the same boat? RE: Of Course...Strider_mt2k @ 6/19/2004 11:02:24 PM #
While I'm not in that boat, I do have to admit to harboring bad feelings over Memory Stick. In my case, I was upgrading from another Clie, so it was all good. It was Palm's lousy workmanship that drove me to Sony. I had worse feelings over that. RE: Of Course...
My first Palm was a IBM Workpad and I have been a seriously addicted Palm user since then. Well, I now have a Zire 71 and bought a Tungsten C two momnths ago. I couldn´t want any longer for the wificard. I don´t regret. The Tungsten C is just the right device for me. I use at home and at my work (a school, which is covered fully wireless. The wireless part works flawlessly. You are connected in an instant. I find that it works faster than my Zire 71, which on the contrary has a slightly better screen. What I will do with the Zire 71? Keep it. Or give it to my daughter with a wirelees card in it :) (she will certainly appreciate the mp3 and photo-part). The Zire 71 is a wonderful device too, when you have no need for wireless. RE: Of Course...
Strider_mt2k, I think the point is the $400 that did not grow on a tree, not the specs. Pat Horne; www.churchoflivingfaith.com RE: Of Course...Strider_mt2k @ 6/20/2004 1:16:51 PM #
And mine was that if the purchase has been made, and can't be taken back, then roll with the machine that's superior for the task.
One more model...
I believe he article failed to mention that this card will work with one other PalmOne model...The Tungsten C. I would like to thank SanDisk for making wifi on the TC possible. Sar´casm
n. 1. A keen, reproachful expression; a satirical remark uttered with some degree of scorn or contempt; a taunt; a gibe; a cutting jest. The sarcasms of those critics who imagine our art to be a matter of inspiration. - Sir J. Reynolds.
clueless: adj. 1. not providing any clue.
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