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Rumor: Handspring "Palm V" Design?


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homer
Member

Registered: Jan 2000
Location: Twin Cities, MN
Posts: 1683

quote:

Concidering the Palm V is thinner from front to back than the top of the Visor w/o the springboard cover on, I think they can make a thinner version.

Well, that was kind of my point. The top of the visor is as thin as possible...so you can't make it any thinner AND include the springboard slot.

I do concede to StutTwo's comment...they really do need to include the springboard on all their devices to perpetuate it as a standard.

quote:

If they keep changing the springboard slot then in no way will it ever be able to take off as a standard. It will start to get like Macs are sometimes.

Well, the Springboard is already a lot like the earlier Macs. It's a win/lose type of thing. Early Macs had proprietary connections that anyone could use...they were typically better than a lot of the "standard" stuff out there, but they were Mac only. The new Macs got rid of all that crap, and, yes, it was an annoyance for those uprading, but the adoption of industry standard USB and Firewire ports put Macs in a much better spot for upgrades.

There are WAY too many PDA expansion slot formats right not...they will NOT all be around 2 years from now. Will the Springboard survive? Maybe, maybe not.

And that does put Handspring in a tough position. Yes, they need to push it as a standard, but, at the same time, they kind of need to be prepared to abandon it if it doesn't survive the next few years.

07-17-2000 08:10 PM

Hoser_back_home
VisorCentral Staff

Registered: Nov 1999
Location: bright side of the moon.
Posts: 996

I agree with you homer. I feel that inorder to survive in this field (or any for that matter) you can't become an 'extremist' on any platform and not realize that things change.

On the other topic. If handspring were to come up with a super-slim compact version of the visor, the springboard module might not have to fit properly. I wouldn't mind a compact/slim visor that i could carry around with me and occasionally plug in a module (i.e. modem) at some angle that might not lend itself to practicallity but would serve it's purpose for the brief time it's in the device. (think 90 degrees) If this would help handspring make a smaller device with the capability of springboard expansion then i'd go with it.

07-17-2000 08:36 PM

LuckyChuck
Member

Registered: Sep 1999
Location:
Posts: 81

Babylon5:

If you read through Handspring's documentation on the Springboard slot, they've stated that they won't be changing the technical aspects of the Springboard in their new models. Modules that are bought today will still work (technically) in all future Handspring PDA's.
The only stipulation Handspring has for developers is that they stick to the form factors that are given to them. This way, you don't get a wacky shaped Springboard that won't fit in a future Springboard slot.

07-17-2000 08:46 PM

Petro
Member

Registered: Jan 2000
Location:
Posts: 241

quote:
Originally posted by homer:
Well, that was kind of my point. The top of the visor is as thin as possible...so you can't make it any thinner AND include the springboard slot.

I think you missed what I was saying. I was saying that the visor could be thinner, because the Palm V is thinner than the thickness of the top of the visor (if looking down into the springboard slot from the top of the unit) without a springboard or the cover on it. In otherwords, they could at least make it a little thinner while keeping the springboard. You also have to remember that they were going for economical price when designing the Visor and Deluxe, so you know they can make the units smaller.

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07-17-2000 09:20 PM

zero
Member

Registered: Jun 2000
Location:
Posts: 24

What I first liked about the Visor was it's SpringBoard slot, it was a novel concept. The other thing that drew me to it was the bang for the buck. 8 Meg for $250. A far cry from my previous Palm Pro, with a hand soldered 2 Meg upgrade. I think that Handspring should come out with a good Color version that beats the pants off the IIIc for price and memory. Not that I'm a big fan of color, but that's where this market is going to lead. Handspring created a big pricing shift in Palm devices and have a chance to do so again with a color one as well. Just my 2 cents.

07-17-2000 11:12 PM

seansean
Member

Registered: Feb 2000
Location:
Posts: 32

IMHO, what the Visor really needs as far as a design upgrade is a spring-loaded cover for the sync contacts, as in the Palm III line. My contacts are already getting "yucky" (yes, that's a technical term).

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seanseanadams
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07-26-2000 09:30 PM

Bane
Member

Registered: Oct 1999
Location:
Posts: 103

If you guys did not want a springboard slot why not just do the smart thing and get the pda that you accually want instead of complaining that the company that makes your pda should go against a better design in favor of copying a competetors inferior (but nice looking) design aka palmV .

07-27-2000 07:48 PM

Rolando
Member

Registered: Dec 1999
Location:
Posts: 251

How about a really, really long dongle for those guys that keep the springboards in their cargo pants' pockets or shoulder holsters?

Or, wireless, with a little antenna adapter for each springboard in each pocket...

I guess if they've got special clothes for the stuff they're not really worrried about slim, huh?

But, seriously, they could slim it down a bit by making the screen flush. Also, by the play/flex of some of our visor screens, there is obviously some room in there to get rid of...

07-28-2000 02:45 PM

seansean
Member

Registered: Feb 2000
Location:
Posts: 32

If Handspring dropped the Springboard slot for a new slimmer model, the only difference between it and the Palm IIIxe would be the colors...the prices are the same between the VDx and the IIIxe, meaning the only advantage the Visor has is the Springboard! Not that I don't love it...

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seanseanadams
your friend and mine

07-30-2000 03:38 AM

Matt Nichols
Member

Registered: Jan 2000
Location:
Posts: 105

I think the dongle, or sleeve (ala the iPaq) would be great. I won a Palm V a month after I recieved my Visor, and I loved the form factor. Before I actually used it I always said to myself "So what, my Visor is small enough as it is", but the Palm V can actually act as a wallet replacement and not feel like a brick in your pocket.

I have high hopes for Sony's new color PDA. Its thinner than the Palm III/Visor, and its in color. The memory stick seems to have all the functionality of the Springboard and I think because its Sony we could actually see a lot of stick come out for it.

07-30-2000 08:52 PM

homer
Member

Registered: Jan 2000
Location: Twin Cities, MN
Posts: 1683

quote:

If you guys did not want a springboard slot why not just do the smart thing and get the pda that you accually want instead of complaining that the company that makes your pda should go against a better design in favor of copying a competetors inferior (but nice looking) design aka palmV .

Uhh...no one's complaining Bane...try reading the posts again.

What a few of us ARE saying is:

1) Some people don't use the springboard

2) For those people (ie: that target audience) a slimmer, springboard-less model would apeal to them.

Why didn't I buy a Palm V? Well, it was quite a bit more expensive, no USB support, and the Visors were just fine. And remember, it was only after the Visors came out that the Palm line dropped in price...so for a lot of people, the Visor just made more sense...with or without the springboard.

Yea the springboard it cool, yea Handspring needs to push it as a viable expansion standard, but if it does ONLY that, then its chances of surviving are just a bit slimmer if they don't look out for alternatives down the road. Eventually, one of the expansion platforms will become dominant and all Palm OS manufacturers will need to be ready to switch fast.

07-31-2000 02:18 AM

Thomas Kjolsing
Member

Registered: Aug 2000
Location: USA
Posts: 9

With new technologies like Sony's IC bare-chip mounting and flexible LCD on the horizon I imagine that all electronic devices are going to continue to decrease in size and increase in useability, including the Handspring Visor and the Springboard concept.

For now, however, and size aside, I would simply like Hanspring produce a sturdier Visor model. I am hearing about and experiencing many problems with the Visor that are related to the Visor's, primarily plastic, design. Problems like loose screens and cracked cases tell me that Hanspring should look to the more durable, and more metal, PalmV design for inspiration.

By the way, those of you who don't own a Springboard expansion module yet should check out the other ways to make use of the expansion port.

08-08-2000 01:57 AM

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