Registered: Apr 2001
Location: Kuala Lumpur
Posts: 65

Maybe no Colour Edge.

Well we did get the interview from HS that they will put out a Color Edge when it was possible.

Anyways.. Sony has done it with the T600C, slim, MS slot, enhanced speakers and 360x360 screen to boot. With a bluetooth adapter, it would just be perfect for me at this moment.

Obviously the technology is here but with the Treo coming out in January, and a colour one soon after that, there might not be a need for a colour Edge if HS follows it's belief in convergence of PDAs and handphones.

However I'm hoping that HS also believes that there is a market with people like me who would prefer to have 2 devices, a bluetooth handphone and a PDA (with springboard) that has bluetooth built in.

Why? I would still like to have a large hirez colour screen as compared to a small one on a phone to view web pages, maps and so on. But would still like wireless access via bluetooth to my handphone. A springboard adapter will also allow me some flexiblity when I need it, eg. smartmedia adapter to send/view images from my digital camera as an email with notes.

The problem is that HS might not have the financial means to develop and produce a Color Edge soon due to the Treo.

I hope I'm wrong, but if HS is a little too late, the Sonys 6 months from now might be too far ahead for HS to keep its marketshare in the PDA market. By then a colour Edge with nothing else, and if overpriced would be another mistake all over again.

- hmm just reading the Japanese site

Sony also has for a december release, a PHS (CMDA) adapter for wireless access, an MP3 add-on plus GPS and Camera. Guess its making the springboard less valuable for me, as it was one of the factors in me buying the Edge.

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Last edited by kaeru on 11-21-2001 at 09:13 AM

Registered: May 2000
Location:
Posts: 116

If someone would make a T600 sled that takes a springboard module then we can all switch over to the new Sony model.

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Scott Olendorf
Sony Clie N610C,
Blue Visor Deluxe, Magellan GPS Companion

Registered: Nov 2000
Location:
Posts: 72

They people at handspring have always stressed that if they can't make a 'good' pda, they won't make one at all... right now a Colour Edge wouldn't be 'good' enough to justify the production of it. I think one of the biggest hurdles is the springboard. They've acknowledged that the spingboard backpack was bad implementation of a good idea. If they were to release a 'colour edge', the backpack would certainly be back.

Aside from the backpack, everything else that would be put into the colour edge (basically jsut the colour screen), couldn't compete with Sony's enhanced sound, screen, IR, and memstick slot (or even with just the m50x's sd card). You can argue that the springboard can match some of those features, but only at the expense of the form factor, which is exactly the reason why we'd be getting an edge in the first place right?

So to buy an edge is to not enjoy the formfactor... Sounds silly isn't it? But it's true... Theres just too much emphasis on expandability right now in the PDA world.

So even though a colour edge is technically possible, it's main selling point (the form factor) is easily cancelled out by it's expandability options.

that's probably the main reason why colour edge will never be. Not becuase of money, but because of market and the product itself.

Registered: Apr 2001
Location: Des Moines, IA
Posts: 248

I dunno, I don't mind the backpack mentality. I can expand it when I need to, and still have the thin form when I don't. I find the flexibility a plus.

Personally, I'd love to see a color edge with a SD slot, and the backpack. It'd have to have 16 MB of Ram though.

And everyone keeps talking up the Flashable Rom's...I keep wondering where they think they're upgrading to? Palm OS 5 will run on the Intel StrongArm, and there's no way the DragonBall will handle those changes...So where do they think they're upgrading to? Any palm device you buy now, is pretty much a non-upgradable product anyway, right?

I'd love a Color Edge, SD Slot, 16 MB's Ram, and I'm ready to buy. But given recent comments, the new HS mantra is 'Treo, Treo, Treo' Personally, I don't want it. I like the 2 seperate devices.

(Of course, IMHO...)

Registered: Apr 2001
Location: Kuala Lumpur
Posts: 65

I totally agree with the backpack. I can use a camera, memplug adapter, gps etc. that are not limited because of size like the ms/mmc factor. And have a thin PDA when I don't. But other things do have to be built in, at least 16mbs, bluetooth and either an SD or Memory stick slot and mp3 so that I don't need to use backpack for at least 95% of the time. Why Mp3? Well.. 2 devices is enough for me, I don't like the idea of a seperate mp3 player when I can and should be able to use the same sd/memory sticks that I have for my PDA/ future Camera.

That's the little advantage that HS still has right now. The springboard, with the memplug I can get smartmedia, cf or memory stick to work with my Edge. But not if I get a Sony or Palm, then I only have one option which is either SD or Memory Stick.

But JUST a colour Edge won't hack it in the marketplace anymore. Heck.. we can't even by a stowaway keyboard for the Edge still. Which is one more disadvantage of having an Edge.

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