layout: post title: "The Inquirer: Why Palm is Doomed" created: 1053824220 categories:

• Handheld
• Palm

In my recent post about North America's need to build a wireless network, I admitted that I had been wrong about Palm. That they really were doomed. Turns out, The Inquirer has an article that agrees.

My view is that the rise of smartphones, with Symbian as the likeliest OS, is going to make Palm's market disappear. Those who need digital organizers will carry phones that include those features. The higher end is being staked out by much more capable devices, especially as computers become smaller and more portable while retaining their range of features and power (here's where tablets come in).

The Inquirer article actually looks at the situation from a completely different premise. Their argument is that Palm has shot themselves in the foot by making sure that their software and devices work perfectly well with their greatest enemy -- Microsoft:

The problem is that Palm has taken aim at its own foot, shot with deadly accuracy, and is in the process of handing the entire sector to Microsoft. In one seemingly simple step, it has given control of the core functionality to Microsoft.