Handheld maker’s timeframe for Linux is slow.

Palm’s Linux mobile phone won’t make its debut until 2008, and analysts on Tuesday agreed that the device maker’s slowness to launch is troubling.



“Products based on the new Linux-based platforms that we’re working on, that won’t be until sometime next year,” Palm CEO Ed Colligan said in a conference call on the company’s quarterly results last week.

Industries


Palm’s Linux Wait

Handheld maker’s timeframe for Linux is slow.
July 3, 2007

By Eydie Cubarrubia



Palm’s Linux mobile phone won’t make its debut until 2008, and analysts on Tuesday agreed that the device maker’s slowness to launch is troubling.



“Products based on the new Linux-based platforms that we’re working on, that won’t be until sometime next year,” Palm CEO Ed Colligan said in a conference call on the company’s quarterly results last week.



That’s troubling, since new products such as Linux phones are part of Palm’s strategy to deal with competition such as that from Apple’s new iPhone and Research In Motion’s ubiquitous Blackberry. The company reported revenue of $401 million for the quarter that ended in May, below Wall Street’s consensus estimate of $407 million—and further disappointed investors by offering revenue guidance of $355-$365 million for the next quarter, below the $393 consensus, and per share earnings guidance of $0.07 to $0.09, below the $0.14 consensus.

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Critics have said Palm’s own Garnet OS has failed to keep pace with mobile multimedia developments, and a low-cost Linux handset could help turn its fortunes.



“We know that Palm is working on several projects in its labs, and these could be potential hits,” Deutsche Bank analyst Jonathan Goldberg said in a research note summary Tuesday. “However … think the company lacks the sense of urgency they need in current market conditions.”



Other analyst agreed. “Palm’s recovery [is] increasingly dependent on its ‘Hail Mary play,’ depending on pending products—Foleo, Linux Treos—to drive its turnaround,” RBC Capital Markets analyst Mike Abramsky said in a report after Palm’s earnings call.



The term “Foleo” refers to a screen-and-keyboard device for use with a smart phone. It’s Palm’s first product built on the Linux operating system, released in late May (see Palm Debuts Linux “Companion”). The so-called mobile companion came out a month after Palm executives said the company was developing a new platform based on the Linux operating system (see Is Linux Palm’s Savior?).



Linux could help Palm because the system could run on phones that cost just $60 to $70 to manufacture (see Linux Jumps Into Mobiles). Besides saving costs, Linux can help Palm create phones that support increasingly richer cellular services and multimedia capabilities. For example, it makes it possible for a single chip to take care of all tasks on a smart phone. “The older technologies don’t scale well,” said Jim Ready, chief technology officer of mobile Linux company MontaVista (see Linux ‘Mobilizing’ Against Windows).



Palm has already thrown its lot in with Microsoft. It started putting out Windows Mobile phones in 2006 in order to woo business users by giving them access to more applications (see Treo Features Microsoft OS). Mr. Colligan said Windows makes up “a little bit less than 50 percent” of all its smart phones.


But he emphasized Palm’s commitment to new products. While talking about the Linux-based Foleo, the CEO said, “Whenever you define and develop new categories, it takes some time to get those things off the ground.”

Critics have said Palm’s own Garnet OS has failed to keep pace with mobile multimedia developments, and a low-cost Linux handset could help turn its fortunes.



“We know that Palm is working on several projects in its labs, and these could be potential hits,” Deutsche Bank analyst Jonathan Goldberg said in a research note summary Tuesday. “However … think the company lacks the sense of urgency they need in current market conditions.”



Other analyst agreed. “Palm’s recovery [is] increasingly dependent on its ‘Hail Mary play,’ depending on pending products—Foleo, Linux Treos—to drive its turnaround,” RBC Capital Markets analyst Mike Abramsky said in a report after Palm’s earnings call.



The term “Foleo” refers to a screen-and-keyboard device for use with a smart phone. It’s Palm’s first product built on the Linux operating system, released in late May (see Palm Debuts Linux “Companion”). The so-called mobile companion came out a month after Palm executives said the company was developing a new platform based on the Linux operating system (see Is Linux Palm’s Savior?).



Linux could help Palm because the system could run on phones that cost just $60 to $70 to manufacture (see Linux Jumps Into Mobiles). Besides saving costs, Linux can help Palm create phones that support increasingly richer cellular services and multimedia capabilities. For example, it makes it possible for a single chip to take care of all tasks on a smart phone. “The older technologies don’t scale well,” said Jim Ready, chief technology officer of mobile Linux company MontaVista (see Linux ‘Mobilizing’ Against Windows).



Palm has already thrown its lot in with Microsoft. It started putting out Windows Mobile phones in 2006 in order to woo business users by giving them access to more applications (see Treo Features Microsoft OS). Mr. Colligan said Windows makes up “a little bit less than 50 percent” of all its smart phones.


But he emphasized Palm’s commitment to new products. While talking about the Linux-based Foleo, the CEO said, “Whenever you define and develop new categories, it takes some time to get those things off the ground.”
Source :http://www.redherring.com/