Dauber's World Predicts Future!

Back in May after the release of the Palm Foleo I declared it to be the Worst Product Idea For 2007

Turns out that was quite prescient of me. Today Palm announced that they were killing the Foleo just before it was to be launched. Oh it feels good to be right!

Palm drops Foleo on eve of launch
By Troy Wolverton
Mercury News
Article Launched: 09/04/2007 03:45:35 PM PDT

Palm is canceling its Foleo product right before the company was due to ship the new notebook-like device to retailers.

Based on early feedback on the Foleo, the company knew it needed to improve the product before selling it, company CEO Ed Colligan said in a blog entry on Palm's site in which he announced the decision. But right now, the company needs to focus its efforts on updating the operating system that runs on its Palm OS-based Treo phones, he said.

"We can not afford to make those improvements on a platform that is not central to our core focus. That would not be right for our customers or for our developer community," Colligan said. "I know there will be disappointed folks who were looking forward to carrying a Foleo for all their mobile computing needs. I am certainly one of them."

Palm founder Jeff Hawkins unveiled the Foleo at the Wall Street Journal's D: All Things Digital Conference in May, calling it "the most exciting product I have ever worked on." Shaped like a notebook computer, the Foleo was designed to work in tandem with smartphones such as Palm's Treos. The idea behind it was to provide a larger screen and keyboard that would allow smartphone users to more easily check their email and edit documents stored on their mobile devices.

The company originally planned to sell the device starting this summer for about $500 each. However, recent reports have suggested that the company had already decided to delay the launch.

Despite Hawkins' enthusiasm for the Foleo, his idea landed like a dud, and many Palm enthusiasts and analysts have questioned the need and market for the Foleo. The future of the device was put into question days after Hawkins unveiled it, when Elevation Partners announced that it was taking a sizable stake in Palm and planned to place three new directors on Palm's board, including Jon Rubinstein, Apple's former hardware guru.

The cancellation marks a big public setback for Hawkins, who was the force behind Palm's first two hits, the original Pilot pocket organizer and the Treo.

As a result of the cancellation, Palm will take a $10 million earnings charge, Colligan said. The company hopes to eventually release a product like the Foleo, but Colligan declined to say when it might do so.

"Jeff Hawkins and I still believe that the market category defined by Foleo has enormous potential," he said.

Worst Product Idea for 2007

The Comic Book Store owner from The Simpson's might be tempted to call Palm's new "smart phone companion" the Foleo the "worst product ever". That may be going too far. Worst product of 2007 seems sufficient. Why on Earth anyone would purchase this is beyond me. The Foleo connects wirelessly to your Treo so that you can use a keyboard, have a larger screen and view attachments and emails. Hmmmmm. This sounds familiar. Almost LIKE MY LAPTOP! It'd be one thing if virtually every person who carried a Treo didn't own a laptop and need to carry it around for work. However I'm guessing that cross section is above 95%. Laptops can connect to WiFi and other networks w/ optional cards. They can also EDIT attachments. The whole point of a smart phone is that you don't need your laptop. If I have my laptop out why am I using my BlackBerry (while we're on the subject the Treo is so much worse than the BlackBerry -- just had to throw that in there)? I'm on my BlackBerry mostly when taking out a laptop is inconveniet. Not to mention with the advent of a 3G, HSDPA and EVDO cards that plug into laptops the idea that you'd use you phone as a connection for a laptop like device is absurd. Even more absurd is that it's too big to carry by itself. I'd have to carry in a briefcase right next to my laptop! Seriously, who is going to buy this @ $500? Who would buy this @ $200? I'd actually pay money to not carry this.

Looking at this product reminded me of the famous Seinfeld routine about the Superman Halloween costume that he wore as a kid. Seinfeld recalls that there was a warning on the packaging that stated "do not attempt to fly wearing the Superman costume". He then says, "I'd like to meet the child dumb enough to think that they could fly wearing the Superman costume but smart enough to check for a warning label." I'm sure it's the same kid who would grow up and buy a Foleo.