VisorCentral.com - Is Handspring dying?

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-- Is Handspring dying? (http://discussion.visorcentral.com/vcforum/showthread.php?threadid=24774)

Posted by kld1956 on 07-12-2002 10:27 PM:

Is Handspring dying?

I am starting to hear lots of rumors that Handspring is on its last legs. I am worried since I am in need of a new PDA and I can't find Handspring (except for Treo models) in very many stores.

I love my Visor Deluxe but, after more than two years, I want color, more memory, and an updated OS. The Treo 90's mini-keyboard doesn't do it for me. What I really want is a Prism, with 16MB, and OS 4.1. Palm doesn't do it for me and Pocket PC's carry more features than I need.

So, is Handspring gasping its last breath?

Posted by dampeoples on 07-12-2002 10:32 PM:

Who knows, depends on what guy you ask, Palm could be dying as well, or was that Sony was going to buy them out, or were Palm and Handspring going to merge, or <insert PDA manufacturer here> sucks, I can't keep up.
Visor's are available online, and probably will be for a long time, as will the modules. Heck, you can still get a IIIc. I would wait for the OS 5 devices to come out later this year or so if your Vdx can hold out that long.

Posted by biohazard on 07-13-2002 07:15 PM:

Handspring the company is doing just fine; the Visor Neo and Pro will probably be the last of the Visors though

__________________
the TREO'S are comming!!! Protect the Visors!!!

Posted by PEBKAC on 07-13-2002 08:52 PM:

quote:
Originally posted by biohazard
Handspring the company is doing just fine; the Visor Neo and Pro will probably be the last of the Visors though

Handspring is burning through cash awfully fast. They also have nothing thet distinguishes them from their competition without the Springboard. Samsung and others have had PDAa/phone combos out for awhile now. Intel, TI and others are gearing up for their own models. Sound to me like HS is going from being a big fish in a little pond to a little fish in the big telecom pond. Can you say LUNCH?

__________________
PEBKAC Error! Bang Head on Keyboard to continue.

A.K.A Problem Exists Between Keyboard And Chair

Posted by edgenut on 07-14-2002 05:18 AM:

Two words:
SONY CLIE

__________________
I'd Rather be Diving.......(with my PDA of course)

Check out my forum @ http://groups.msn.com/PDAPocketPCForum

Posted by Digisane on 07-14-2002 06:29 AM:

quote:
Originally posted by biohazard
Handspring the company is doing just fine; the Visor Neo and Pro will probably be the last of the Visors though

Handspring is alienating a large number of their original customer base - which have started running towards Big S Japanese Company, I don't think they'd be doing fine in the long run unless they come up with something that's new and inexpensive and practical but cool like back when they started. That's quite a lot to achieve.

Just take a look at the company's newest products: Treo 180/270. Is it a PDA? Or a phone? Or both? Or neither? Answer: All of the above.

Try to make a quick call with your thumb on one hand, like, 911 or something. Nope, won't happen, because you need to 2 hands on that thing to press the keys, plus going thru the menus. Phone? Nope. As a phone, dailpads are still needed.

Now, try to make a quick data entry. Okay this should go a little faster, but at the cost of lots of spelking misrakrs. Plus the screen and keyboard is smaller, anybody who doesnt have perfect vision will be immediately put off.

Now this: Hold it up against your ear as if you're using a phone. Big. Heavy. Bulky. And you might easily drop the thing if you're not careful enough. Oh, alright just use the hands free earphone then.

I'm not saying that the Treo Communicators are badly designed, it is practical in usage but it could've been more polished with its design and ergonomics.

Then there's the Treo 90.........

Posted by Techie2000 on 07-14-2002 05:51 PM:

Two words:

Sharp Zaurus

Posted by dampeoples on 07-14-2002 06:04 PM:

quote:
Originally posted by Techie2000
Two words:

Sharp Zaurus

Not flaming you, but do they have a word processor, Macintosh support, Pocket Quicken and RPG's?

Posted by biohazard on 07-14-2002 11:37 PM:

quote:
Originally posted by Digisane

Handspring is alienating a large number of their original customer base - which have started running towards Big S Japanese Company, I don't think they'd be doing fine in the long run unless they come up with something that's new and inexpensive and practical but cool like back when they started. That's quite a lot to achieve.

Just take a look at the company's newest products: Treo 180/270. Is it a PDA? Or a phone? Or both? Or neither? Answer: All of the above.

Try to make a quick call with your thumb on one hand, like, 911 or something. Nope, won't happen, because you need to 2 hands on that thing to press the keys, plus going thru the menus. Phone? Nope. As a phone, dailpads are still needed.

Now, try to make a quick data entry. Okay this should go a little faster, but at the cost of lots of spelking misrakrs. Plus the screen and keyboard is smaller, anybody who doesnt have perfect vision will be immediately put off.

Now this: Hold it up against your ear as if you're using a phone. Big. Heavy. Bulky. And you might easily drop the thing if you're not careful enough. Oh, alright just use the hands free earphone then.

I'm not saying that the Treo Communicators are badly designed, it is practical in usage but it could've been more polished with its design and ergonomics.

Then there's the Treo 90.........

good point

__________________
the TREO'S are comming!!! Protect the Visors!!!

Posted by Toby on 07-15-2002 12:23 AM:

quote:
Originally posted by dampeoples
Not flaming you, but do they have a word processor,

Yes, it comes with Hancom Office, IIRC.

quote:
Macintosh support,

Dunno.

quote:
Pocket Quicken

No. Pocket Quicken is currently PalmOS only. It's usually the one thing that gives me pause about changing platforms. There's a program called TKCKapital (or something like that) which interfaces with a Linux desktop program similar to Quicken, but unless you already use it...

quote:
and RPG's?

Dunno, but I hear that bazookas might be in the works.

Posted by dampeoples on 07-15-2002 12:26 AM:

Apple OS X support and Pocket Quicken are paramount....guess I'll stay with Palm OS

Posted by edgenut on 07-16-2002 06:38 AM:

quote:
Originally posted by Techie2000
Two words:

Sharp Zaurus

The only thing I think is cool about the Zaurus is the chicklet keyboard

__________________
I'd Rather be Diving.......(with my PDA of course)

Check out my forum @ http://groups.msn.com/PDAPocketPCForum

Posted by Felipe on 07-16-2002 01:40 PM:

quote:
Originally posted by Techie2000
Two words:

Sharp Zaurus

http://news.com.com/2100-1040-943163.html

Btw, how do they have com.com. in their url?

__________________
Felipe Garcia
Happy Treo 600 user, so far. Thanx Cingular for having an unlocked phone.

My Treo 600 is my phone, my PDA, my watch, and my MP3 player. Oh yeah, I take a picture once in a while with it. Convergence is such a great thing.

Posted by Toby on 07-16-2002 03:04 PM:

quote:
Originally posted by Felipe

http://news.com.com/2100-1040-943163.html

Btw, how do they have com.com. in their url?

> whois com.com

[...]

Registrant:

CNET Networks, Inc (COM2994-DOM)

235 2nd Street

San Francisco, CA 94104

US

Domain Name: COM.COM

Administrative Contact:

Domain Contact, CNET Administrative (AD417) [email protected]

CNET: The Computer Network

150 Chestnut Street

San Francisco, California 94105

US

(415) 364-8900

Technical Contact:

System Administration, Network and (HC165) [email protected]

CNET Networks

235 Second Street

San Francisco, CA 94105

US

(415) 344-2000

Record expires on 04-Dec-2003.

Record created on 04-Dec-2001.

Database last updated on 16-Jul-2002 09:45:52 EDT.

Domain servers in listed order:

NS.CNET.COM 209.249.250.13

NS2.CNET.COM 128.11.40.194

Posted by kld1956 on 07-16-2002 09:20 PM:

FWIW:

I sent a message to Handspring, asking about the future of the company and of the Visor. I received this response from Handspring Customer Care:

"Handspring has no plan today for discontinuing Visor. It is clear though that over time, communicators will represent the majority of the market, and this is where we see the greatest opportunity for Handspring. This is a long-term vision for the company, not an immediate plan of action."

That first line reminds of all of the times I have heard a V.P. or company president say, "At this time, we have no plans for layoffs..." That usually translated to, "We're meeting tomorrow to plan the layoffs."

Posted by edgenut on 07-17-2002 05:53 AM:

A letter from HS

I also have contacted HS and heres what they said:

Hi Frank,

I am sorry that you are so upset. We are continuing to make and sell Visors.
You can still purchase a Visor Edge from our web site. We will continue to sell
Visor as long as consumer demand warrants. As products evolve, some are
discontinued over time.

We are very happy with Springboard. With Treo, keeping the product to a very
compact size was one of the top priorities. The Springboard expansion slot
physically is too large to fit into our Springboard line.

Please let me know if you have any other questions.

Best Regards,
Holly

Holly McDermott
Corporate Communications Manager
Handspring
189 Bernardo Ave.
Mountain View, CA 94043
650-230-5427
650-230-5372 fax

__________________
I'd Rather be Diving.......(with my PDA of course)

Check out my forum @ http://groups.msn.com/PDAPocketPCForum

Posted by Digisane on 07-17-2002 08:08 AM:

Re: A letter from HS

quote:
Originally posted by edgenut
"The Springboard expansion slot physically is too large to fit into our Springboard line."

Uh, is that a mistake, what he means is Treo, or does it really mean they're really dropping springboards because they're too large to fit into springboard line of products (Visors)??

Posted by Toby on 07-17-2002 11:40 AM:

quote:
Originally posted by kld1956
[...] That first line reminds of all of the times I have heard a V.P. or company president say, "At this time, we have no plans for layoffs..." That usually translated to, "We're meeting tomorrow to plan the layoffs."

That reminds me of what happened to someone I know. He was told Friday morning that the final round of planned layoffs at his company was finished. Saturday morning, he signed paperwork for a new house. Monday morning, he found out he'd been laid off effective Friday. His only consolation was that since his wife hadn't signed the paperwork yet, he wasn't obligated to go through with the house.

Posted by Toby on 07-17-2002 11:57 AM:

Re: A letter from HS

Translations and clarifications:

quote:
Originally posted by edgenut
I am sorry that you are so upset. We are continuing to make and sell Visors.

Just not the Edge.

quote:

You can still purchase a Visor Edge from our web site.

.. if you're willing to buy a refurbished one.

quote:
We will continue to sell Visor as long as consumer demand warrants.

We still have a bunch of Edges and whatnot that we had to fix, so until the warehouse is empty, we'll be trying to clear them out.

quote:
As products evolve, some are discontinued over time.

.. like the Edge, except in keeping with industry practices, we won't make an official announcement. We'll just let it become 'no longer available' in our order system.

quote:
We are very happy with Springboard. With Treo, keeping the product to a very
compact size was one of the top priorities. The Springboard expansion slot physically is too large to fit into our Springboard line.

I'm really on a roll now, and I'm not even paying attention to what I'm saying.

quote:
Please let me know if you have any other questions.

Please don't ask me anything else. I don't even pay attention to our website which shows that new Edges are no longer available.

Posted by Limitles on 07-17-2002 06:01 PM:

As far as I am aware Handspring's focus on Wireless isn't unwarranted as a lot of people are loving the Treos!
Think of the space in your purse or pckets to carry a cell phone, your visor, and the module for it to get on the internet! All that does NOT fit into the tiny thing I call my purse. So I can see why people would be interested in the Treos aside from their functionality

Now as for discontinuing Visors I'm sure that will be possible only according to the public response. IF the public still wants the simple rule of supply and demand will keep the visors on teh market. If the public is no longer interested in the Visors then what's the point of making them.

Any questions?

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