Rumor: Visor Snap Coming Next Week

Coming from a very reliable source, though not from inside the company, is the rumor that Handspring will release the Visor Snap next week. The Snap is rumored to have a high-resolution color screen. The exact resolution isn't known yet, though it is reported to be closer to the HandEra 330's than the Sony N710C's. Whether this means a soft Graffiti area is also unknown.

For a processor, the Snap is reported to be running a 66 MHz Dragonball chip, though this actually takes some credence away from this whole rumor. Motorola only announced the 66 MHz DragonBall Super VZ a couple of weeks ago and it won't be shipping until the fourth quarter of this year.

When judging the accuracy of this rumor, it is important to remember that PC Expo is next week, which is important enough to be a venue for a major announcement of this kind. Also, Handspring does have a pavillion at the Expo.

Handspring has registered the domain name VisorSnap.com though they haven't done anything with it..

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Yes!

I.M. Anonymous @ 6/22/2001 11:44:19 AM #
Let's go Handspring, leak a few photos!!! ;)

RE: Yes!
I.M. Anonymous @ 6/22/2001 1:27:09 PM #
If I remember, I belive PDABuzz.com was the first to have a picture of the Edge about a week before it was announced. Let hope something is leaked or announced soon.

Marketing Mistakes?

I.M. Anonymous @ 6/22/2001 11:48:13 AM #
Let's hope that Handspring doesn't screw up and pre-announce something they don't yet have in hand. That would be horrible for sales of current products, as we have seen with Palm's recent fiasco. However, I do think that it's time for Handspring to step up to the plate with some new color machines. Their current sales are half of their projections for the quarter, I think largely due to the fact that their current lineup is nothing that special. If they want to be profitable, they need to hit a home run with a new product, and soon. If they come out with an Edge with a high-res. color screen, my m505 is headed for E-Bay!
JBH

RE: Marketing Mistakes?
I.M. Anonymous @ 6/22/2001 12:13:44 PM #
This is a RUMOR so far. This isn't an official product announcement from Handspring. Handspring has NEVER pre-announced a product. Rumors have been leaked, yes, but never an official announcement until they can start taking orders at the same time.

RE: Marketing Mistakes?
I.M. Anonymous @ 6/22/2001 12:16:11 PM #
It has been known that Handspring surprises its consumers with new products. They don't hype it up months in advance like Palm Inc. does.
-Scott
ziffbam@yahoo.com

RE: Marketing Mistakes?
I.M. Anonymous @ 6/22/2001 12:20:04 PM #
> They don't hype it up months in advance like Palm Inc. does.

The m505 was the first, and I'm sure last, time Palm had ever pre-announced a product.

RE: Marketing Mistakes?
I.M. Anonymous @ 6/22/2001 1:46:06 PM #
Do a whois lookup for visorsnap.com.

RE: Marketing Mistakes?
I.M. Anonymous @ 6/22/2001 2:22:07 PM #
Lets give the Palm OS Manufacturers a break. This preannouncement/rumours only hurt the manufacturers than help them. Palm and Handspring had a tough financial quarter, and unlike Microsoft, they don't have a bottomless pocket. Let them do their job, not force them to reveal incomplete products like what happened with the m50x. Besides, leaked informations on new products only lessen the impact of the official announcement.

RE: Marketing Mistakes?
I.M. Anonymous @ 6/22/2001 3:12:24 PM #
Well leaking product information is generally fine, but it's disastrous if it's combined with BAD/MISLEADING marketing.

The m505 screen wouldn't have been such a let down if Palm didn't paste "BRILLIANT COLOUR" on every m505 ad.

It's the marketing, not the leaking that was the downfall of the m50x launch. (oh yeah, and not to mention the manufacturing delays, but that also has nothing to do with leaks since the delays were announced after the offical launch).



RE: Marketing Mistakes?
I.M. Anonymous @ 6/23/2001 2:06:54 AM #
FYI: Most m505 customers actually like the screen. It's just the geeks that hit these online boards that don't (and a good number of us *DO* like the screen)

Not sure what you mean by "delays" since Palm announced that the units would ship by a certain date and THEY DID.

RE: Marketing Mistakes? i like the color
I.M. Anonymous @ 6/23/2001 6:57:23 AM #
color is just fine on the 505
great outside....too...
i had a prism and do not miss it at all...
couldnt read it well outside...
palm should have given us a brightness and contrast adjustment...but i am very happy with it..
it took about a day for my eyes to adjust from the prism to the palm 505..and i am sure there will even be a hack to make it even better...
i have never missed my prism...


RE: Marketing Mistakes?
I.M. Anonymous @ 6/24/2001 1:12:57 AM #
" ..and i am sure there will even be a hack to make it even better...
i have never missed my prism... "

hehehehehhe, it seems that it isn't GOOD ENOUGH. :D

Don't taunt the m505 victims!
I.M. Anonymous @ 6/24/2001 1:49:10 AM #
Don't be mean, children!

RE: Marketing Mistakes?
I.M. Anonymous @ 6/24/2001 2:19:04 AM #
For those who complain about the color screen of the M505, I strongly recommend the Ipaq... It's more expensive, heavier, bigger but has a great screen...

By the way do the people who complain use an M505 every day... I do and I like it...

comments make me think of people who complain about Ferraris but have never sat in one...

Get serious
I.M. Anonymous @ 6/24/2001 4:11:54 AM #
The m505 is more like a Yugo than it is a like a Ferrari. And the Sony N710C offers a much better screen, MP3 capability, headphones, a free 8 MB storage card, similar size + weight, jog dial and adjustable contrast for only $50 more than the m505.

I'm amazed that Palm is still selling *any* m505s at all. There's something to be said for blind loyalty.

RE: Marketing Mistakes?
I.M. Anonymous @ 6/24/2001 4:40:04 PM #
Yeah, and most of it is being said by clie' owners. A propriatary screen resolution and a MP3 player? It's definately not something to start an idiotic flame war over.

RE: Marketing Mistakes?
I.M. Anonymous @ 6/24/2001 10:47:09 PM #
I own a IIIx but at least I'm not so fanatical that I don't appreciate better technology. Sony's "proprietary" screen scales perfectly with legacy apps. It's Handera that made a non-compatible screen size (which seems to have been a mistake). Every program that works on a III series Palm with a recent OS should also work with the CLIE.

RE: Marketing Mistakes?
I.M. Anonymous @ 6/25/2001 10:56:32 AM #
handera's screen is great

RE: No Mistakes Here
I.M. Anonymous @ 6/25/2001 11:03:06 AM #
> It's Handera that made a non-compatible screen size (which seems to have been a mistake).
> Every program that works on a III series Palm with a recent OS should also work
> with the CLIE.

Every program that works on a III series Palm with a recent OS also works with the HandEra. Add in that all III series add-ons also work with the HandEra and I don't think that any mistakes were made.

VisorTwist.com???

I.M. Anonymous @ 6/22/2001 2:28:55 PM #
visor had also registered the domain name visortwist.com, do you think they will launch 2 new product just after 3 months the Edge launched???

i don't think so....

http://www.whois.net/whois.cgi2?d=visortwist.com

RE: VisorTwist.com???
Admin @ 6/22/2001 2:37:09 PM #
Both visorsnap and twist were registered back in Nov 2000.

http://www.networksolutions.com/cgi-bin/whois/whois?STRING=visorsnap.com

------
Ryan
Editor in Chief
webmaster@palminfocenter.com

RE: VisorTwist.com???
I.M. Anonymous @ 6/22/2001 3:02:22 PM #
The launch of the edge was more of a catch up than an innovation no matter how much you look at it.. It really should have been included with the prism/platinum launch backin .. october.

So handspring hasn't had a 'new' product launch in 8 or 9 months which is quite sizable considering they really need to have some sort of equivalent to the handera 330, clie 710, m50x..

I wouldn't be surprise if a new product was released close to the end of the edge rebate. I also wouldn't be surprised if the edge was suddenly reduced permenently by $50, (if not $100USD)..

But this new product is most likely the wireless visor than the colour edge.

That's my take on the current handspring situation.



RE: VisorTwist.com???
I.M. Anonymous @ 6/22/2001 4:43:12 PM #
I worked at a technology company, and it was common to register several possible domains for new products to:
a. throw competitors off our trail (since we knew for fact that our competitors frequently did whois lookups to get an idea of our new products.
b. keep our options open, since our management was notorious for making last minute decisions
c. just to hold some decent domain names so they don't get snatched up. It is tough to find a good names that are still available.

So.... Twist and Snap may be 2 different products, or just 2 possible names for the same product. My guess is that Handspring has decided to go with a cutesy naming convention like Edge, Twist, and Snap, which will replace the original Visor models.

RE: VisorTwist.com???
I.M. Anonymous @ 6/23/2001 3:05:10 AM #
I remember when we heard Edge was next, and we were like "are the going to release a snap and twist right now too". I won't get your hopes up for two....one "super visor" is probably enough, don't you think?

Yeah....I work in tech too, and we buy domains for even fake products we are making. If there is a demo of a new service, we buy the domain for it, even if we never put anything there. Often we will using staging servers off the domain too, just for more "outside" URLs.

Dave
www.davespda.com


Color Visor = the final nail in Palm's coffin

Satan @ 6/22/2001 3:00:10 PM #
The release of the new models from Handspring will be one of the final events that kills off Palm as we now know it. A synopsis for those who were late:

1) Palm licenses their OS to other companies thinking they will get free development + licensing fees (win - win), not thinking about lost hardware sales.

2) Palm starts losing money as sales fall well below expectations.

3) Palm begins laying off hundreds of workers, hoping to improve the efficiency of an infamously disorganized company.

4) m505 info leaked over 1 month before Palm is ready to release it, killing off sales of Palm Vx (the company's main profit maker).

5) Palm profits plummet, Palm releases shocking quarterly report, driving Palm (and Handspring) stock prices down to a fraction of previous levels.

6) Palm decides to take $300 million loss on inventory (primarily Vx models) that it will be unable to sell without hurting sales of its upcoming m50x series.

7) The long-anticipated m505 is released, however, several reviews pan it and hundreds of users post messages indicating dissatisfaction with screen.
Thousands of potential customers find m505 screen to be not good enough to warrant a $450 investment.

8) Palm and Extended Systems cancel merger, damaging Palm's ability to penetrate business market.

9) Sony releases color N710C on schedule, with minimal promotion.

10) Retailers begin dropping price of m50x in an effort to move the slow-selling units that were to have been Palm's saviour.

11) After a series of delays due to production problems with their manufacturer, HandEra ships limited quantities of the 330. While this monochrome model is expected to be a disaster in terms of sales, it's engineering advances contrast sharply with the (repackaged Vx) m50x series.

12) High return rates and slow m50x sales prompt further price cuts by retailers.

13) (Biased) report released suggesting that revenues from Compaq's iPAQ may be approaching Palm's sales.

Now, over the next few months:

14) Handspring releases new color models.

15) m50x sales drop even further.

16) Palm releases figures from current quarter showing even poorer performance, resulting in stocks reaching a new low.

17) Palm announces sales "incentives", reducing prices in an effort to move mounting inventory and unloads all non-essential assets/properties to raise capital.

m505 - $349 (sells for $299)

m500 - $299 (sells for $249)

m105 - $149 ( sells for $129)

m100 - $99 (sells for $79)

Palm now realizes - too late - that "commodity" pricing of it's products is inevitable.

18) New models from Casio et. al. running Microsoft's PocketPC4 (Talisker) released, further eroding Palm's sales.

19) Cellphone/PDA combinations using Stinger and other platforms are released, resulting in collapse of Palm's wireless strategy before upcoming m705 can develop a user base.

20) Teettering on the verge of bankruptcy, Palm is sold.

RE: Color Visor = the final nail in Palm's coffin
I.M. Anonymous @ 6/22/2001 3:31:53 PM #
The amount of time and mental effort you put into your predictions of Palms demise really amazes me. You may be right, I don't know since I have better uses for my time and effort, but the big question remains...don't you have a hobby or a girlfrien or something? Some better way to spend your time then these long Palm obituaries? Or do you just get some kind of kick out of it?

It's true. Palm is screwed.
I.M. Anonymous @ 6/22/2001 3:42:17 PM #
nt

Let's Hope Not
I.M. Anonymous @ 6/22/2001 3:59:25 PM #
If Palm Inc. goes bankrupt, I'm afraid the Palm OS is dead. Why would anyone buy it? Fairly or not, it will be known as the OS that killed its creator. It would be just another failed technology on the market. If anyone did buy it, I don't think they would want to let other companies make Palm clones.

Sony/Handspring/Symbol will just switch to WinCE. This will stink on ice but makes the best business sense for them.

But the reports of Palm's demise are exaggerated. Yes, the N710C may be outselling the m505, but the m505 is outselling the Edge and the HandEra 330. In the troubled Palm theatre, Palm itself is doing comparatively well.

This is a make-or-break product for Handspring. Don't forget, they've never been profitable. If they can't release a winner soon, they could be on the block faster than Palm.

-Dr. Bob

RE: Color Visor = the final nail in Palm's coffin
I.M. Anonymous @ 6/22/2001 5:43:45 PM #
I think that IBM is viable buyer of Palm if it ever came to that. They have unlimited cash flow for Research and development, a good working relationship with Palm, who makes their WorkPads, and IBM hates Microsoft's guts. IBM also has the clout to get the Palm OS into the enterprise.

Hmmm....Palm Computing, a wholly owned subsidiary of IBM, Inc. I kind of like the sound of that.

RE: Color Visor = the final nail in Palm's coffin
atrizzah @ 6/22/2001 8:53:35 PM #
Once again, everyone is getting too paranoid. Everyone seems to be biased against Palm for it's failures and tends to ignore the other companies and their failures. How about the old Sony Clie? Not too many of those sold, but people don't talk about Sony getting out of the business. How about the Visor Edge? Same story.

Peace Out
Alan
RE: Color Visor = the final nail in Palm's coffin
I.M. Anonymous @ 6/22/2001 9:13:44 PM #
It's true that no one has talked about Handspring's profits(or lack of), but as for Sony, they are a different company. Granted, poor sales on the Clie would hurt them, but it would hardly kill them off.

Will the new PocketPC be good enough to destroy Palm?
I.M. Anonymous @ 6/22/2001 10:25:54 PM #
I've heard it's very good, but I haven't seen the new hardware or screenshots of PPC4 yet.
If anyone here has any info, please let us know.

It's amazing that Palm could still be in business after making so many mistakes!

RE: Color Visor = the final nail in Palm's coffin
I.M. Anonymous @ 6/22/2001 10:33:19 PM #
I think when (not if) Palm is about to go bankrupt, either Sony or IBM will buy them out. They probably are just waiting for the company's value to drop even more. I doubt Palm will still be an independent company in 6 months. I doubt the Palm OS will disappear any time soon, though - they're just too many users and developers out there and the basic design is too good to ignore.

RE: Color Visor = the final nail in Palm's coffin
I.M. Anonymous @ 6/22/2001 11:28:36 PM #
I'm looking at several claims about PDA sales figures in this thread, but know one is posting links to back them up. Without sources, these posts are

C arelesly
R esearched
A rmchair
P unditry

RE: Color Visor = the final nail in Palm's coffin
Ia3n @ 6/22/2001 11:42:34 PM #
"know one"? That was careless.

RE: Color Visor = the final nail in Palm's coffin
I.M. Anonymous @ 6/23/2001 2:10:49 AM #
I could actually counter a good deal of Satan's points... and would until I realized this is the same person that posted the m505 "brightness hack" that turned out to be total crap. Yeah, I'll listen to what this idiot has to say...

RE: Color Visor = the final nail in Palm's coffin
I.M. Anonymous @ 6/23/2001 6:51:06 AM #
I don't "no" what you're talking about. :)

RE: Color Visor = the final nail in Palm's coffin
I.M. Anonymous @ 6/23/2001 1:22:37 PM #
Palm's upcoming quarterly report will confirm that they are about to crash and burn. If you don't have access to the preliminary information the report will be based on, you'll just have to wait a few weeks. At that point, all blind Palm followers will be eating a lot of crow.

This is one of the fastest company crashes I've ever seen.

Don't tell me, let me guess...
I.M. Anonymous @ 6/23/2001 1:33:20 PM #
Either you...

A> Work for the Gartner Group, and are used to being PAID for having these weird delusional fits.

B> Some poor bastard who bought a WinCE v2.x machine, and still hasen't gotten over it.

C> Drank the liquid you squeezed out of a Sterno can.

Reguardless, feel free to STFU and spare us all your juvenile daydreams.

RE: Color Visor = the final nail in Palm's coffin
I.M. Anonymous @ 6/23/2001 1:38:59 PM #
D) Have seen the sales numbers for Palm's last six weeks and then sold off all my remaining shares. (I was able to unload 95% of my shares several months ago when I found out what was going to happen with the m505.)

You can also call me an armchair quarterback if it makes you feel better, but that doesn't change the truth. Based on how defensive you are, it appears that you either work for Palm, are a fanatic, or now have the sinking realization that the company that ripped you off for years is about to go bankrupt.

Sorry if the truth hurts. Get over it.

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