H-P Might Switch Jornada to Palm OS

Iain Morris, the brand new head of Hewlett-Packard's new Embedded and Personal Systems group said in a interview with Cnet today that he is considering switching the Jornada from Pocket PC to the Palm OS. He is also considering using Linux.

The Jornada is one of the best selling Pocket PC handhelds but still has only 3.5% of the U.S. market, according to figures released this week by PC Data. Morris believes the device hasn't reached its full potential. "Jornada as a product has an opportunity to become more successful," he said.

H-P announced this week that they are developing a version of the Jornada that would be a smartphone.

Mr. Morris spent 23 years with Motorola before making the move to H-P to take over one of the company's five main product groups.

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Dumping Pocket PC

I.M. Anonymous @ 2/21/2001 8:36:23 PM #
Where are all the microsoft flacks on this board now? What greater proof that pocket pc is being rejected by consumers than this! Ballmer/Gates have to be going nuts -- the threats to retaliate against HP in the pc software area must be flying!

RE: Dumping Pocket PC
I.M. Anonymous @ 2/21/2001 10:42:21 PM #
PocketPC is being reject by consumers? That must be why Compaq can't make enough iPaqs.

az

RE: Dumping Pocket PC
I.M. Anonymous @ 2/22/2001 11:23:21 AM #
Even Microsoft is no fool to money. They mentioned that they were considering developing Palm Apps to be sold for Palm based PDA's. This has nothing to do with PPCs or Windows CE. It is just good business sence and HP is at the same fork in the road. If you were a programmer and had a big hit application why stay to one platform? You can make just as much or more by moving it to other OSes. Handspring themself said they may consider other OSes in the future to develope PDAs. So whats your point? I believe it was Apple who developed an easy OS in the early 80's that was simple and user friendly and they had great success. They got to it before Microsoft ever thought about it. And 3Com/Palm was amongs the first companies who developed a PDA that was appealing to the mask public. But like Apple who keeps trying to pass of yesterdays technology with yester-years processor speed that are over priced and fancy color cases,(where the PC world just sits back and laughs because of all the DUMB-TECH people out there forking out their cash for a cool looking computer that has nothing to do with what the computer can actually do and still hasn't brought anything really new and innovative in years to the PC world) Palm is doing the same thing. No new advances to the OS. It was handspring that frightned Palm to making an expension for their up comming PDAs and newer version of OS. Their OS has basically been the same. The hardware has practically not been changed. And because of all the "dumb-tech" people out their buying their products, Palm knows they can sell the m100 with a cooler looking case but same crappy hardware and people will buy it up. Look at the Palm Vx. Can you really justify spending hundreds more for something which does no more or exactly the same as models lower than it? If so than you have proven my point.

So I don't see HP doing anything wrong here. People sell get rich quick scheams and there are suckers who will buy it. And so HP may sell Palm based BDA's and there will be people who will buy it. Good move HP. Tap in the market while there are people willing to toss out their cash. Still has nothing to do with which PDAs and OSes truly have the power to process data and information, while still keeping the user experince delightful and maniging all your PIMs.

Not my 2 cents here. Just striaght FACTS and Business smarts.

-Palm user and WindowCE/PPC supporter.

RE: Dumping Pocket PC
I.M. Anonymous @ 2/22/2001 12:32:32 PM #
Palm created their organizer as just that, a PIM. Since it's creation it has grown beyond the use as just a data manager. There hasn't been a need to drastically change the hardware or the OS. But as computer sales drop off, the computer-savy public are now noticing these PDA and demanding they do what their computers can do. That is why things are changing. By Palm's own admission, they don't have the funds or resources to constantly create new hardware models. That is why they're licensing the OS to different companies... so they can do the hardware development and adapt the OS to fit

Example:
Handspring creates the Prism.
It uses 16 bit color
They hold a unique patent on that for a year
Then OS 4 adds support for 16 bit color
Now all devices can use this

It is a very smart business idea and will reform the Palm environment very quickly.
Already Palm has alluded to one of the hardware mfg. releasing a higher resolution screen this year and another who is going to test higher powered CPU's.

It will be interesting to see what transpires.

Sweet!

I.M. Anonymous @ 2/21/2001 9:46:59 PM #
It would be great if HP were to actually switch of the the PalmOS. The way I got my Palm IIIc was afer winning a Jornada and selling it to get the Palm IIIc. The ONLY problem I had with the Jornada was that it was running the Pocket PC. The hardware inside the Jornada is awesome hardware and I'd love it to be running the PalmOS. If it were, I think HP would have a much greater chance of getting some really good market share.

See ya!


RE: Not so Sweet!
I.M. Anonymous @ 2/21/2001 10:07:02 PM #
I don't think you understand. If the Jornada were running the PalmOS, it wouldn't have those features your talking about. It wouldn't have a 320x240 display, it wouldn't have ClearType, and most importantly it wouldn't play MP3 music. All you would have left is a Palm IIIc in a metal case.



RE: Sweet!
I.M. Anonymous @ 2/22/2001 1:09:56 AM #
Whadyamean it wouldn't have those features? The Visor doesn't have the same stuff as Palm. Why couldn't HP make a version with some of those features they make themselfs?

RE: Sweet!
I.M. Anonymous @ 2/22/2001 3:54:41 AM #
Playing MP3's is not inherent to WinCE or PoketPC's only, you can develop your own hardware/software MP3 player, HP has the money and the technology to do it successful and incorporate it to the PalmOS

If my memory is good Palm claimed that one of the goals of new V4 is the ability to handle bigger screens.


RE: Sweet!
TheMoo @ 2/22/2001 7:34:26 AM #
Everyone saw this coming. The PC machine makers even witheld product and still could not significantly increase sales. They hoped to trick the buyer, but ....no dice!!!!

Its about time HP!

I.M. Anonymous @ 2/22/2001 1:22:31 PM #
My first Handheld computer was the HP 100LX, upgraded to the HP 200LX loved them both, I could not function with out them.. Well I upgraded to the HP 300LX (it was HP¡¦s first CE system). What a piece of #%*$. I hated it. Data Base GONE!, HP Calculator GONE!, Over 50,000 free programs GONE!, terminal emulation GONE! And so-on. Everything I loved about the 100/200LX series was GONE! and replaced with a slow, buggy, OS that had no usable software.

Thank God for the Palm. I tossed the 300LX and got a Palm. In my opinion the Palm OS is still not as good or as open as the 100/200LX OS but it certainly it is a solid usable handheld OS. The day HP killed the 200LX and replaced it with the 300LX was the day I lost all respect for HP. I doubt Hewlett or Packard would have let this happen if they were still in the drivers seat. HP it¡¦s about time. How about bringing back the 200LX + Palm OS YA!! ƒº


Jornada OS

I.M. Anonymous @ 3/21/2001 6:13:50 PM #
I hope HP make the OS loadable, I'd like a choice on my OS. I'd like an Opensource OS, chosen, loaded, and maybe even compiled by me. I'd like to see HP support the geeks and the businessmen with some flexibility.

Jim

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