Layoffs coming as Palm sinks lower

Palm plans to get smaller in the coming weeks, as less money coming in the door means less money to spread around.

A company representative confirmed a report earlier Wednesday by PalmInfocenter that the struggling company has begun informing employees of job cuts, just as the holiday season kicks into full gear. The representative said Palm is not disclosing how many employees were affected by the decision to cut jobs, but PalmInfocenter said the number could be in the "hundreds." Palm had 1,247 employees as of May 31, according to its annual report.

Palm announced earlier this month that quarterly revenue and gross margin would be well below expectations after the company was unable to get a new product qualified for release, setting the stage for the layoffs. The company has struggled mightily this year as the Treo smartphone, so popular in years past, has fallen out of favor with consumers and businesses. The hardware look and feel of the Treo has grown stale against thinner models, and there still hasn't been a major update to the Palm OS since 2004, an eternity in this industry.

CEO Ed Colligan does not appear to be among those who will be laid off, at least yet. It's hard to see how fewer people will make it easier for Palm to create something new, but the company doesn't really have a choice if it wants to stay in business. It's really sad to see a company that has played such a pivotal role in the advancement of mobile computing on the brink like this.

[WJeansonne]

The pioneers rarely survive

It's the innovators that take the original concept a step further and often have far greater marketing prowess.

[Commander_Spock]

Mobile OS/2!

Palm should develop an hand held version of the IBM OS/2 Operating System and use their experience in the use of traditional mobile applications such as IBM Lotus Notes, IBM Lotus Sametime... to grab market share from the competition.

[tashman]

Palm blew up a long time ago

When palm split off the hardware and software it spelled the end of them, it has just been a long time coming. Then you combine the wasted effort on the foleo (ie crappy laptop) and that has put the final nail in the coffin.

tim

[xinuflux]

Bad, bad, bad management at Palm

I agree. How many times did their management drop the ball after hitting homeruns? The staff shouldn't be cut - those responsible should. Especially those associated with Foleo.

I have a 3 year old Treo 650 that is amazing but differs in almost no way with current Palm offerings. Sad.

[cgstayton]

A loyal Palm fan finally gives us

I've loved Palm for years BUT am having to give it up. Switched to Vista (another story) but because the Palm software for that is only Beta and doesn't seem to work on my computer (even with a new PDA), I've had to finally abandon my first love! I'm sad about and mad at them, all at the same time!

[nutreo]

Vista

And we all know how wonderful Vista is!

I'll take my Treo 755p with Palm OS over any WM phone. Despite its "age", it's still a great OS.

As for thin, I really don't want my smartphone to be any thinner. I want it have a decent battery and speaker and to have some heft so I can hold it comfortably in my hand. I want reasonable keyboard spacing, which is impossible in a smaller phone, and I want to be able to stand it up when I'm reading an eBook on it while eating lunch. I want a full-size SD card, so I can easily load my songs on it. My Treo does all of that, and I haven't seen another phone out there that can.

[jbg7474]

It's like losing a good friend

This is truly sad. I've loved Palm devices since my Palm Pilot III. My Treo 755p has been a good solid device, but a disappointing experience, since my corporate computer is Vista. The desktop for Vista is still in Beta (since July 07)--and how long has Vista been available? The Beta version is not even appropriate for all of Palm's devices, so they are really letting down a lot of customers.

You know, it's like when a good friend stops calling you back. Suddenly you discover that they just aren't there anymore.

[indianzfan]

I'm not surprised

Considering the issues I had with my Palm TX, I'm not surprised. Of course it quit working with wifi and went into an endless loop after the warranty expired. The cost to get it fixed was almost the price of a new one.

[kim10566]

Sorry to those that get the axe.

Bad decisions by upper mgmt and developers killed this company long ago. Sorry to see them go.

[CrabkillaTX]

How hard is it?

Problem with Palm is they are SLLLOOOWWWWWW.

Take the Treo 750/680. It was a great phone when it came out a long while ago. The problem with Palm is they should have / could have released a refreshed version this year!!!

It would have been really really easy to keep the form factor and release a refreshed version!

- Windows Mobile 6 or Palm OS
- 320x320 screen
- 20% to 30% thinner

The Treo is not competitive anymore - it is too thick.

MS and Palm should be marketing the a new Treo device in conjunction with Exchange 2007 to enterprises and stealing business from RIM!

[DancesWithDoves]

Is customer satisfaction a problem?

I like, and continue to use, the Palm Tungsten T and T3. They do what I need them to do. However, the T3 took 3 trips back to Palm, once, shortly after purchase, then, again, the same problem, and that days before expiration of the EXTENDED warranty. After the second repair, it went promptly back again for the same problem. I finally have it working, no doubt a refurbished substitute. Many customers will give a company only one good chance to build brand loyalty. If I had not had the extended warranty, I probably would have been a lost customer to Palm, given the cost of repair and shipping.

I hope that my experience was a rare one. The T3 was a great design, and it is a joy to use, given all of the software written for it. I have a Mac, and the Missing Sync software is an improvement over the Palm Mac desktop software, which is hopelessly out of date. My Palms are practical devices. But, you can't stay in business without good customer satisfaction.