Lately I have been thinking a lot about the technology that has entered and exited our lives over the past 10 years.  Over the ten-year lifespan of this blog and the mailing list that preceeded it much has changed in the technologies that permeate our daily lives — when we began this journey in 1999, desktops outsold notebooks by 4:1, Apple was a novelty computer maker for uber-geeks, and no one you knew had ever ‘googled’ themselves in public.  I thought I’d run down the most disappointing aspects of our jaunty shuffle into modernity.

What makes a technology disappointing?  Many products fail in obscurity because they try to solve something irrelevant.  What you need to do to make this list, friends, is aim high and fail wildly.   While most of the FAILs described herein are products, I did also find a couple of product categories which have really disappointed.. and one entire industry.  After all, disappointment is invariably the result of a combination of promise (our hopes & goals for the product or service) and the provider’s failure to achieve that promise.  Sometimes the predisposition for failure afflicts not just one company or product team, but an entire industry.  So here we go:

Motorola ROKR

In 2005, the fact that Apple was working on a mobile device to follow-up the iPod was a very poorly-kept secret, but the specifics were the source of much speculation.  And oh, how the fan boys wept when they thought that the sum-total of this effort was the ROKR, an epic piece of crap on which Apple collaborated with Motorola to produce a re-labelled Moto E398 with an iTunes client.  Although the ROKR had 512MB of memory on-board, the device was software-limited to 100 songs — and downloading them was a painful process as the device lacked USB 2.0.  Predictably the product was a #FAIL and Jobs and co. left Zander in the dust with the iPhone, but for those who actually believed that this was Apple’s solitary foray into mobile, there were a few sleepless months.

Satellite Radio

FM radio sucks.  There’s probably a JACK-FM station in your city, where the DeeJays “play what they want”.  Only, they don’t really.. they play exclusively Top 10 hits from the past 20 years regardless of musical genre, the result of which can easily result in a computer-controlled segue from Katrina and the Waves to a Beyonce track.  That the radio business considers this format to be innovative explains why we need alternatives, and satellite radio was supposed to be that alternative.  Sirius and XM radio both got off the ground in 2001, so to speak.  In 2003 I predicted a merger between the two, which was announced February 2007.  And while Satellite radio does permit greater diversity, and thus narrower focus, in channels there are many problems.  Foremost of these is the audio compression technology, called Lucent PAC, which according to studies has lower perceptual quality than even MP3 at the same bitrate; and the rumoured limitation of stream bandwidth to 64Kbps per channel… far worse than the MP3s on your hard drive and light years from the “CD Quality” that Sirius et al used to advertise.  This makes Satellite radio a no-go for audiophiles, but OK for talk radio and sports.  We continue to wait for decent music without wires.

Nokia N-Gage

It’s likely that the N-Gage failed simply because it failed to.. uh.. engage the game development community with much enthusiasm.  Launched in 2004, the device’s total failure was predicted by a string of awful reviews stemming from substantial usability problems, such as the fact that users had to essentially disassemble the device to swap games, or the fact that one couldn’t receive calls while playing a game, or that the device was weighty and uncomfortable and impractical for use as a phone, or the fact that the screen could not display horizontally, or its $299 price tag (substantially higher than the Game Boy Advance).  Developers probably saw the writing on the wall when evaluating early test units of the N-Gage.

The PDA

Remember the iPaq?  Or the early Palm devices?  Today, the notion of a mobile address book device that isn’t coupled to a telephone seems positively stupid.  In November 2000, I asked the market to build me a mobile handheld device that married my email to my phone and tied it together via my address book — all of which synced to my PC.  In my mind at the time, PDAs were gap fillers until we could field broadband wireless IP networks that provided persistent connectivity.  The smartphone — devices like the iPhone and Droid — killed the PDA and for most of us I suspect that is good riddance.  Nobody wants to walk around looking like Batman, their belt burdened by half-a-dozen devices beeping and squawking.  How many people bought these things or received them as gifts, only to abandon them within months?  Still, credit where it’s due — the PDA begat the SmartPhone, and we’re all better for it.

Modo.NET

I’m betting you never heard of Modo.NET because it was launched exclusively in San Francisco, LA and New York in the summer of  2000, but Scout Electromedia, the company that created it, collapsed within 3 months (in fact the device was available in SF for only 1 day before the business folded dramatically).  Like Dodgeball, which launched shortly after Modo’s collapse, Modo was all about the urban hipster lifestyle.  Built around yet another PDA-like device with a hugely innovative design, the Modo leveraged the paging network to update its users with happenings in and around the city… it was like the pager you carried with you when going out on the town on Friday nights.  Two major design compromises crippled the Modo, however… it had no keyboard; and was receive-only.  Also… like Dodgeball, the Modo was an idea ahead of its time: all of Scout’s business and consumer goals are now attainable on smartphones:  no stand-alone device or clunky SMSing necessary.  Today many of these goals are embodied in Foursquare and other services.

Motorola DVR Series

Hello again, Motorola!  Let me make this crystal clear for you, Mr. Zander:  Dude, I just want to be able to watch TV and record things for playback later with a minimum of interference.  In response, Motorola created an underpowered set-top device that frequently overheats, trashes its own hard drive, and has a user interface that is akin to debating Keynesian Economics with a three-year-old.  Perhaps it’s because you have an effective duopoly, along with your buddies from Scientific Atlanta, on the cable set-top-box market even despite the FCC’s insistence on the CableCard standard.  Perhaps you simply lack the kind of employees that have any affinity for user experience design.  What is evident is that you and your cable partners are under no specific motivation to improve this product, as it has now been in circulation for nearly 5 years with zero material improvement.  In fact, your products in this category, including the DCT-6412 with which I am famously saddled (this article is the number one most visited on ianbell.com) are so crappy that the FCC believes they are discouraging people from adopting Cable Television itself.  Be ashamed.  You suck.

The AppleTV

Like Afghanistan, the set top box seems to be a graveyard of empires — so much so that even Silicon Valley’s King Midas, Steve Jobs, has been laid humble before it.  The AppleTV is, like many other set top boxes, underpowered for the task at hand.  More like an iPod than a Mac Mini, the AppleTV fails to meet user expectations as an all-rounder, lacks CODECs for popular formats and wrappers like .MKV and .AVI, and only works effectively when you pay for and download all of your content from the iTunes walled garden.  Set top boxes that do satisfy tend to allow users to get their content from wherever and sync/stream it from a media server elsewhere in the house — this is true of the iPod lineup, and that is a lesson Apple should have carried forward into this product.  Moreover, the AppleTV doesn’t even have an OFF button.

Green Cars

In 2006, when I bought my Jetta GLI, I promised myself that it would be my last gas-guzzler.  I just bought another vanilla car last month, though, after seeking and failing to find a suitable practical alternative in the diesel, hybrid, pure electric, or hydrogen vehicle.  It’s important to understand that gasoline, hydrogen, and batteries are simply storage media for energy.  Where energy is derived from — whether it’s nuclear, solar, wind, coal, crude oil, or whatever else you can come up with — determines the sustainability, not what it burns or farts out the tailpipe.  Moreover for me, like most consumers, a next-generation car needs to fulfill my usual manly requirement for sportiness or (for others) accessibility or safety, with some added convenience — such as not needing to buy gas at stations or being able to drive long distances without a refuel.  The zero tailpipe emissions is a nice benefit, but not a buying feature for most.  As I pointed out last year, mainstream auto manufacturers have consistently failed to figure this out.  And if you live in a region where all of the energy on the grid is derived from coal or natural gas then you are not doing the environment any favours by purchasing a plug-in.

Pet Robots

Since Robbie the Robot did the rounds on TV sitcoms in the 1950s, Americans have fantasized about having a jetsons-style friend rendered in metal and silicon adorning their living room.  With the launch of Sony’s AIBO in late 1999, things were looking up for us.  At a price tag of $2500 though, there was still some room for improvement, and robots began to emerge all up and down the cost and capability matrix.  The most successful by far was iRobot’s Roomba, which fulfills the robot servant role quite nicely but falls flat on the personality index.  In the latter category resides the Pleo, and I will confess I have always wanted one.  Unlike the Aibo, though, the Pleo isn’t really autonomous.  It gets an hour at the most out of its batteries, and cannot return by itself to its charging station.  The Pleo is a great demonstration of how pre-programmed behaviour can trigger emotions — not in the robot itself, but in its owner — but sadly disappoints and is not viable as a “pet” robot.  Maybe next decade, Robbie.

Music Revolution

At the end of the last decade, with the massive growth of Napster, the writing was on the wall.  People clearly voted with their feet in showing how they wanted to use music.  While this had been the case for decades, with mix tapes and pirate radio, the internet as in other industries was a key enabler.  Yet rather than embrace and extend this revolution, as tech industry companies tend to do, the music industry went on the warpath via the RIAA.  Lawyers mobilized, suing 12-year-old kids, single moms, and other obvious villains.  The only accomplishment of the RIAA has been to effectively kill internet radio, which would serve to promote their artists, while music sharing has continued unabated.  Yet, at the end of the decade came one smattering of good news, and further proof of industry executives’ failure to appreciate irony:  a lawsuit revealed that the Canadian music industry has been stealing from artists for 25+ years, and faces a $6Bn liability.  Small justice, I suppose.  So while the technologies (that’s what this post is about after all) that came from the publishers has been an abject failure, the technologies, such as BitTorrent, WebJay, Pandora, et al created by users and lovers of music has flowered.  Imagine what would happen if the innovators actually had the support of that industry?

Thanks for reading, and we’ll see you through the teens.

Easy-to-use SSL gaining on IPsec VPNs Thu May 15, 8:00 AM ET

/Jim Rendon, SearchNetworking.com News Writer/

Companies have long struggled to provide their employees with secure remote access to their networks. Most recently, Internet Protocol security virtual private networks (IPsec VPNs) have been most popular, but now a new technology is gaining a lot of support.

Last month, the Stamford, Conn.-based research firm Gartner Inc. came out with a research note on Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) remote access for enterprises. At the same time, In-Stat/MDR included SSL in its network security report. After a slow first year, SSL is starting to gain acceptance as a remote access technology for enterprises.

Using SSL, employees can access the network from any device that supports a Web browser. There is no client for admins to manage, because the client is Internet Explorer. Users simply sign on, get authenticated and access Web-based applications and files.

“For short duration connections, this is a very simple, great way to enable more people to get work done while reducing the burden on the company,” said John Girard, research director of Gartner’s security group.

It is an approach that is likely to catch on. While in 2002, SSL generated $21 million in revenue, Jaclynn Bumback, an analyst with the Scottsdale, Ariz.-based research firm In-Stat/MDR, projects that SSL revenue will rise to $1.3 billion by 2007.

Part of the growing popularity of the approach is that it gives employees remote access without the added expense of deploying and managing a VPN, Bumback said. In a recent survey, In-Stat/MDR found that, on average, companies give 25% of employees remote access to information.

However, she said that most companies wanted to extend that access to larger groups of employees because companies see productivity gains when workers can access corporate information from home.

The ease of access to the network is one of the features that drew the Buffalo, N.Y.-based Catholic Heath System, a regional group of health care facilities, to SSL. Remote access, especially for physicians, is a necessity, said Doug Torre, director of networking and technical services for the health care system.

Using VPNs as the primary remote access technology was a challenge, Torre said. Since physicians are always on the move, they often use home computers and computers in private practices to access hospital networks. Managing VPNs across all of these unrelated systems was nearly impossible, Torre said.

“IPsec VPNs are a nightmare. Literally, they are that thing that wakes you up in the middle of the night screaming,” Torre said.

With SSL, a physician can have Web-based access from any device that supports a browser, whether it’s a PC, a Mac or a PDA, and it doesn’t matter whose computer it is.

Security, Torre said, has not been a problem with SSL. The encryption level is high, and the users are authenticated.

But SSL is not likely to be a replacement for IPsec VPNs, said Gartner’s Girard. There will always be some people in the company that need the highest possible level of encryption and access, and those that need to be connected all day long from company computers. SSL is better suited to those that only need to quickly check e-mail or update files on the road.

SSL is certainly going to be part of the authentication mix going forward, Bumback said. Right now, smaller companies rule the market, but the big players are starting to move in. Check Point Software Technologies Ltd. and Nortel Networks Ltd. have SSL products in the works. While these products lack much of the functionality that smaller players like Neoteris Inc. and Aventail Corp. provide, they show an understanding of the importance of this new approach to remote access, Bumback said.

They are the typical “Man in the street” response to a growing list of major trespasses on the U.S. Bill of Rights being carried out by the Bush Administration in its ironic quest for further hegemony over its loyal subjects.

Just as lowercase-L liberals were once outed as Communists during the reign or Senator Joseph McCarthy, they are now outed as terrorists or sympathizers. And America, seething with fear and loathing after September 11; still longing for a Bronson-esque payback after losing the twin towers; and complacent with Department-of-Homeland-Security-induced terror has begun to cede even her most basic of human rights to a government whose scrutiny and authority over our personal lives (whether we be American or not) seems to know no bounds.

What follows is a sampling of heinousness just in the past few days.

Passenger Screening for air travel based on information which includes — of all things — credit reports and bank account transaction records. This in the hands of the same minimum-wage monkeys who require you to check your power-bereft PDA as baggage, instead of in your carry-on, in case it’s an explosive device:

http://www.wistv.com/Global/story.asp?S56170

The seizure and takeover of Internet Domain Names by the FBI and DEA from their rightful custodians without due course such as a trial, hearing, or subpoena. Unwitting visitors to the sites subsequent to seizure could themselves become suspects in additional prosecutions:

http://news.com.com/2010-1071-990697.html

PATRIOT II, a complex new bill being prepared by, you guessed it, the Department of Homeland Security, which threatens to infringe on the citizenship rights of Americans who are suspected of supporting “known terrorist groups” (by whose definition?) by stripping them of their nationality and therefore their right to a fair trial.

http://writ.news.findlaw.com/mariner/20030303.html

…but why do people simply shrug these transgressions on their rights off with a simple uncomfortable smirk and a vain hope that it makes their lives safer? Fear. Americans are scared. And they’re scared because of constant media focus on Weapons of Mass Destruction, Dirty Bombs, etc., and because of the Bush Administration’s continued manipulation of the events of September 11, 2001 to meet their own ends of a bigger government that views basic civil liberties with disdain. In fact, in the recent Chicago Night Club fire, the crowd was whipped into a frenzy when someone shouted that the Pepper Spray being used to subdue the brawlers was actually a poison gas and that they were the objects of a terrorist attack — trampling dozens of people:

(Op/Ed piece on the nighclub stampede) http://www.southernillinoisan.com/rednews/2003/03/05/build/opinions/ OPI002.html

(Terrorist preparations in, of all places, Chillicothe, OH) http://www.chillicothegazette.com/news/stories/20030305/localnews/ 1111826.html

Yes, Americans are jittery. But the reality is that Americans were ten times more likely to be killed by — you guessed it — other Americans with guns than were killed by the Al Quaeda or any terrorist organization in 2001. And while the Terrorists seem to be waiting their turn, the murder rate among Americans continues to climb. And while the WTC attack was certainly graphic, painful, disturbing, and malicious it is merely a statistical blip as compared to the strife which hits Americans, of whom one out of three have no health care coverage at all, every single day.

So why spend billions of dollars and trespass on the rights of every walking human when America has real, difficult problems to solve? Well, that’s for all of us to conclude on our own I suspect… but I say to FOIB’s American friends, what were you doing when they took your rights away?

-Ian.

By Joe Wilcox Staff Writer, CNET News.com January 6, 2003, 4:00 AM PT

Apple Computer on Tuesday is expected to unveil a new portable product aimed at bolstering the company’s strategy to make itself into a major player in home entertainment, sources and analysts said.

The product, which is expected to be shown off during a keynote speech by CEO Steve Jobs at Macworld in San Francisco on Tuesday, will come with 802.11g and Bluetooth wireless capabilities and serve to make the Mac a more appealing “digital hub” than Windows XP PCs, according to sources. Machines with Windows XP Media Center Edition can be used to record TV shows, similar to digital video recorders (DVR) such as TiVo boxes, and catalog music and video.

What the product does exactly, however, remains shrouded in mystery. Some sources and analysts believe that it will be similar to the tablet computers released by Acer and others late last year. These are full-fledged portable computers complete with handwriting recognition and handwriting input.

Others, however, say it will be a device geared toward playing or capturing video. By incorporating both 802.11g and Bluetooth wireless capabilities, the device could connect to both upcoming Apple PCs (Apple has said it will support the 802.11g wireless networking standard) and the latest digital cameras and video recorders. A standard TV jack would allow the device to be hooked up to TVs as well and function as a DVR or as a bridge to let the TV act like a DVR.

Then again, it could be something entirely different, as the company has proven adept at confounding speculation preceding the convention before. An Apple reperesentative would not comment on new products ahead of the show.

One thing that is not expected at the show are new computers. Because of a relatively modest inventory bloat, Apple is delaying new models, according to sources.

Analysts note that Apple has all the pieces in place to deliver a tablet-like computer. Such a computer, outfitted with Mac OS X 10.2, Apple’s Inkwell handwriting recognition technology, iSync data synchronization capabilities and 802.11g and Bluetooth wireless would be a formidable entry.

Bluetooth would remove the need for a docking station as the mouse and keyboard would connect wirelessly. With speeds up to 54 megabits per second (mbps), 802.11g wireless networking would allow the transfer of large data files or video without the need of cables.

“That kind of device would make a lot of sense,” said NPD Techworld analyst Stephen Baker. “The idea of the digital hub is to try and tie a bunch of different product types together but provide a lot of mobility of your data–your TV entertainment data, your music data, your digital data. This kind of device would have that.”

IDC analyst Roger Kay agreed. “If it were really cool it would generate a lot of buzz and maybe even a few sales.”

A tablet computer, however, would be risky. These devices generally sell for more than $2,000, or more expensive than most notebook computers. Overall tablet sales in 2003 are expected to be fairly small: Gartner projected first-year Tablet PC portable sales of 425,000, or about 1 percent of the notebook market, while IDC said it could go up to 775,000.

Typically, Apple’s “cool” products have done well when they are relatively cheap. The first iMac, targeted at new computer users, and the iPod music player have sold well. The cube, geared for professionals and carrying a corporate price tag, did not sell well. And sales of the the flat-panel iMac, which was unveiled at last years Macworld, have cooled after an initial flurry.

iPod II But some analysts don’t believe the new product will be a tablet, but a successor to Apple’s iPod music player. The new device would have video capabilities and possibly a touch screen and wireless capabilities. As such, the device would be similar to the portable video player unfurled by Intel last year. Sonicblue is currently marketing the Intel-designed device.

“I think any rumors about a tablet computer are a smokescreen for iPod II,” said Richard Doherty, president of research firm Envisioneering Group.

Technology Business Research analyst Tim Deal agreed. “I wouldn’t be surprised to see Apple introduce an iPod with touch-screen capabilities as well as additional applications to include cell-phone connectability and gaming as it continues to evolve into a fully functional PDA,” he said. “A wireless iPod with bolstered display features would allow users to share and view digital (pictures) and videos on the fly.”

Doherty said Apple has been working on a video-capable iPod-like device for some time. “Originally, Apple had planned to announce iPod II at Expo Tokyo,” he said. In December, IDG canceled next month’s Macworld Expo/Tokyo. “We think the product can be announced, if not shipped now,” Doherty added.

The iPod II, in fact, is one of three principal pieces of hardware in Apple’s labs that Apple has shown analysts but not officially announced yet. The company is also working on computers that will contain IBM’s 32-bit and 64-bit chip and a computer with a 3D screen, similar to the screens recently unveiled by Sharp. Of course, Doherty added that not everything in the lab eventually goes public.

Whether tablet or iPod, emphasis on video would be one of the new product’s distinguishing features, Doherty said. Apple could further advance its digital media strategy around MPEG-4, the successor to the MPEG-2 format widely used for Hollywood movie DVDs.

“Nobody has better MPEG-4 tools than Apple,” Doherty said.

The ripe and the unripe During his keynote address Tuesday, Jobs also is expected to unveil new versions of the company’s digital media programs, or “i” applications. But consumers will have to pay as much as $50 for new versions of iDVD, iPhoto and iMovie, which will be sold together as a bundle. Apple released new versions of iCal and iSync on Thursday.

Bluetooth and next-generation 802.11g wireless networking will be important parts of the Macworld announcements, sources said. Apple plans to release a new version of its AirPort wireless base station using 802.11g, as the company moves up from the slower 802.11b that moves data up to 11mbps.

Meanwhile, the Cupertino, Calif.-based company apparently has delayed launching new Macs ready for Macworld until later in January, while the company sells out stock left over from the holidays, according to sources. When available, some of the new Macs are expected to include support for 802.11g and Bluetooth wireless.

The “quarter’s financial results will undoubtedly show weaker-than-usual holiday sales for Apple,” Deal said of the decision to delay new Macs.

Inventory information from distributors Ingram Micro and Tech Data indicate Apple is sitting on modest inventory–anywhere from one to three weeks–in most product categories. But some products are considerably backordered, such as the 5GB and 10GB iPod for the Mac, AirPort base station and 15-inch flat-panel monitor. Based on similar past situations, the backorders would suggest new products are coming in these categories. But sources said to watch for Apple to drop the 15-inch flat-panel monitor as the company replaces the current 17-inch display and adds a new, 19-inch model. The new monitors could debut on Tuesday, but are more likely to appear when Apple announces new Mac models.

No matter what happens on Tuesday, “The innovation ratio will be much higher than Apple’s 5 percent market share,” Doherty said.

———–

SONY/Ericsson support Bluetooth in their current round of phones, Apple has already demonstrated interoperability with them in shipping product, and Apple has mysteriously incorporated robust Bluetooth support into OSX Jaguar.

-Ian.

On Thursday, September 26, 2002, at 04:23 PM, Anson Lee wrote:

> And while we’re on the topic of the phone/pda
>
> An article that claims to have stumbled across the Apple hiPhone.
>
> Nice rendering, but what’s with that Apple logo?
>
> -Anson
>
> http://www.eprairie.com/news/viewnews.asp?newsletterIDA48
>
> Apple, Motorola Avert Confirmation of Unannounced Cell Phone
> 9/26/2002
>
> ePrairie has obtained these three photographs (dated September 2002)
> of an
> unannounced Apple cell phone called the Applele hiPhone R4 CHICAGO
> (Exclusive) – A picture can tell a thousand words. Leaked to the right
> place
> at the right time, some pictures of some products can even tell a
> story of a
> new venture by an unsuspecting company that has decided to silence the
> word.
> Well, at least for now.
>
> Such is the case with Apple Computer – known usually for making
> computers
> and MP3 players and software – regarding pictures of a new Apple cell
> phone
> that have been disclosed to ePrairie. As seen on the right, they sport
> the
> grace and colorful styling you’re used to from Apple’s computers but
> in a
> decidely more mobile fashion.
>
> Upon confronting Apple with the discovery, Nathalie Welch, a
> spokeswoman for
> the company, wasn’t interested in revealing any details. In fact, she
> wasn’t
> even interested in confirming its existence.
>
> “I can neither confirm nor deny the rumors that Apple is developing a
> cell
> phone or discuss unannounced products,” Welch said in an e-mail to
> ePrairie.
>
> Representatives from Motorola – a local company that has been known for
> working closely with Apple – also declined to confirm or deny whether
> or not
> the Schaumburg, Ill.-based powerhouse was or will be involved in
> developing
> the phone’s chipset. But several analysts, who say Motorola would be a
> logical partner, also say the release of a cell phone would make sense
> for
> Apple.
>
> “It would fit with Apple’s whole digital universe strategy in which
> the PC
> is the hub of your digital universe and the iPod (Apple’s mobile MP3
> player)
> is a peripheral,” said Kevin Hunt, a research analyst at Thomas Weisel
> Partners who covers Apple but hadn’t heard of a cell phone in the
> works.
>
> He added: “Apple has been very vehement that they wouldn’t get into
> handhelds because they think handhelds will go away and blend into a
> cell
> phone, so it would make more sense to come out with a cell phone.” The
> phones look much like Apple’s older iMacs in terms of the vibrant
> colors,
> prompting Hunt to say: “They do have some of the coolest-looking
> products.”
>
> Other analysts, though, are less convinced: “I’ve talked to some
> component
> manufacturers that say Apple’s going to do this and some that say they
> won’t,” said Dan Niles, an analyst that covers Apple at Lehman
> Brothers who
> has heard conversation of an Apple cell phone.
>
> He added: “I’m not sure how this fits in Apple’s current business
> strategy.
> I don’t view it as synergistic as the iPod. Yes, you can transfer your
> contact list [from your computer] with a cell phone, but it hasn’t
> necessarily been proven that people are using the data capabilities of
> their
> phones anyway.”
>
> Hunt says that Motorola and IBM have banded together to develop chips
> for
> Apple’s power PCs (the G4), and because Apple wouldn’t make its own
> cell
> phone chips, Motorola would be a likely vendor. He adds that the cell
> phone
> would probably be a combination device that has much of the same
> functionality as a handheld.
>
>> From Motorola’s vantage point, the sense is similar to what Apple is
>> saying
> but with the added notion of a sensible synergy.
>
> “I can’t comment on rumors,” said Amy Halm, director of communications
> for
> Motorola’s networking and computing group, “but I can say that Apple
> is one
> of Motorola’s most valued customers and has been for a very long time.
> Apple’s customers are some of the most passionate customers in the
> world.
> Every time Apple introduces a new product, they have the most loyal
> following of any company I’ve ever seen.”
>
> In terms of the chances for success in the marketplace, Hunt says this
> would
> be a very new market for Apple that would complement its own product
> line
> rather than try to compete with the big cell phone makers.
>
> He says Apple – one of the most “tightlipped” companies he’s ever
> covered in
> terms of speaking about products before they’re ready to ship – would
> likely
> begin talking about the phones in the middle of 2003 in anticipation
> for the
> next Macworld trade show. Hunt says the price point for the combination
> device might be between $300 and $500, or that of a higher-end phone.
>
> The pictures obtained by ePrairie named the phone the Applele hiPhone
> R4 and
> were dated with a September 2002 time stamp.
>
> By ADAM FENDELMAN
> Editor-in-Chief
> Reporter’s Beat: Telecom
> adam [at] eprairie [dot] com

Overview

With the Pocket PC Phone Edition from T-Mobile you can achieve the next level of productivity. A combined phone and organizer, it includes pocket versions of Microsoft Word and Excel, an Internet Browser, the Windows Media Player and Instant Messaging. It all runs on the only nationwide GPRS network, by T-Mobile, where you get more. Basic info:

Talk time: 5 hrs (PDA Off) Standby time: 180 hrs Size: 5.1 L x 2.8 W x 0.7 H inches Weight: 6.8 oz

Included accessories:

Includes Charger and Battery and Hands-Free Headset and Belt Clip and Case and Sync Software Optional accessories:

Batteries

Cases and Belt Clips

Chargers and Conditioners

Data Interfaces

Hands Free / Car Kits

Vehicle Power Adapters Included services:

Built-in Paging

Caller ID

Conference Calling

Call Waiting and Call Hold

Customer Care

Access to Directory Assistance

Emergency Calls

Detailed Billing

Voicemail with Message Alert

Call Forwarding

International Dialing Supported optional services:

AOL Instant Messenger™ Service (AIM®)

T-Mobile Internet

———–

Thursday March 28, 10:00 am Eastern Time

Forbes.com IPod Redux By Ari Weinberg

Apple Computer ‘s iPod portable MP3 player debuted to rave reviews last fall. The newest version, released last week, does little to diminish the applause.

But it’s not yet deserving of a standing ovation.

The new iPod doubles the storage capacity to 10 gigabytes (roughly 2,000 songs) and adds 20 equalizer presets. That extra space comes at a cost. The 10 GB version retails for $499, $100 more than the original. Like the original, you can try to compare the Apple (NasdaqNM:AAPL – news) to the under-$400 20 GB offerings from SonicBlue (NasdaqNM:SBLU – news) and Archos. But you really can’t.

That’s because iPod still has limited Windows compatibility. It’s a shame considering that the vast majority of personal computers are Windows machines. Some third-party developers have come out with Windows-based software and firmware (for the iPod itself), but Apple has yet to reveal any plans for Windows compatability, though the company is rumored to be working on just such a product. The company is rumored to be hammering out a Windows solution, but that involves some mighty concession from both Apple and Microsoft (NasdaqNM:MSFT – news) .

Right now, Apple’s proprietary FireWire connection port is its leverage. FireWire transfers data at roughly 30 times Universal Serial Bus (USB), the current standard for interdevice connections for PCs and older Macs. The iPod’s FireWIre connection can tranfer 2,000 songs in 20 minutes. For a USB MP3 player, that would take ten hours. But as more portable devices–like digital cameras and camcorders–come with FireWire capacity, the Windows machine cartel may consider small concessions too keep the high-end digerati happy. The pressure is on Apple to play ball. Of course, it would be silly to assume that the minds at Microsoft and Intel (NasdaqNM:INTC – news) aren’t hammering out a technology to blow by FireWire.

Though many iPod owners use the device as a portable hard drive–which it is–the iPod was built for music. So why is Apple touting the introduction of new software that allows the iPod to display address databases from Palm (NasdaqNM:PALM – news) and Mac?

Could the iPod be Apple’s doorway into the crowded personal digital assistant market? Let’s hope not. Apple has a hit going with iPod’s current design and format–to try to morph it into an upscale PDA could be a Newton-sized mistake.

Related Links at Forbes.com

http://www.handspring.com/products/treo/index.jhtml

Now what we need is a wireless carrier that will let us have multiple devices on one phone number, so that when I DON’T need this big clunky thing I can just haul around my tiny Samsung.

-Ian.

Thursday January 24, 3:26 pm Eastern Time

Press Release SOURCE: Nextel Communications

Nextel, RIM and Motorola Agree To Produce Voice-enabled Handheld

RESTON, Va., WATERLOO, ON & SCHAUMBURG, Ill.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–

Jan. 24, 2002–

New Wireless Handheld Will Combine the Power of Blackberry With

Nextel’s Voice and Packet Data Network

Nextel Communications, Inc. (NASDAQ:NXTL – news), Research In Motion Limited (RIM) (NASDAQ:RIMM – news; TSE:RIM – news), and Motorola, Inc. (NYSE:MOT – news) today announced an agreement to develop a new Nextel/BlackBerry(TM)handheld with both voice and data capabilities.

This Personal Data Assistant (PDA) style form factor handheld will operate on Nextel’s national network using Motorola’s iDEN®integrated digital wireless network technology.

To facilitate this effort, Motorola and RIM have signed a licensing agreement allowing specific iDEN and RIM technologies to be incorporated into certain devices from each company.

RIM’s award-winning BlackBerry wireless email solution will be integrated with Nextel’s digital cellular, Nextel Direct Connect® digital two-way radio service, text and numeric paging, and Nextel Wireless Web online services, which were recently rated number one by Cahner’s In-Stat/MDR in customer satisfaction. The device will also support Java(TM) 2 Micro Edition (J2ME(TM)) applications.

“The combined Nextel/BlackBerry device will provide an additional platform on which businesses can create meaningful and cost effective applications for their mobile employees,” said Tim Donahue, Nextel’s president and chief executive officer. “The wireless email capabilities of this exclusive device will complement our Direct Connect and packet data services, and serve as a powerful new business tool for our customers.”

“RIM and Nextel have both developed unique wireless solutions for corporate customers,” said Mike Lazaridis, president and co-CEO at Research In Motion. “This new integrated offering, together with our mutual commitment to Java-based wireless applications, will provide an innovative and attractive proposition for our business customers and development community.”

“Motorola’s iDEN technology gives Nextel the power to offer wireless voice, data and application services in a single device,” said Bill Werner, corporate vice president of Motorola and general manager of the iDEN Subscriber Group. “Our agreement with RIM will allow Nextel to leverage the advanced capabilities of their nationwide iDEN network to offer customers the choice of a messaging centric device in addition to an existing array of voice centric Java-enabled handsets.”

More than 13,000 organizations across North America already use BlackBerry to provide wireless email capabilities through an “always-on” connection, and RIM recently began marketing BlackBerry to customers in Europe. The Nextel/ BlackBerry offering will include advanced Java(TM)-based wireless handhelds, desktop tools, enterprise server software, and end-to-end security.

It will also operate fully on the Nextel National Network, the largest guaranteed all-digital wireless network in the country covering thousands of communities across the United States.

RIM and Nextel have signed a multi-year supply agreement for BlackBerry Wireless Handhelds with associated software and service. The new Nextel BlackBerry product is scheduled for release sometime in the fourth quarter of this year. Further details of the agreement were not disclosed.

Nextel leads the industry in providing business customers with wireless data solutions that increase the productivity of the mobile workforce.

Customers within key vertical industry segments such as financial and information services, manufacturing and distribution, and many others will find the unique combination of native J2ME support, data security, messaging, and application management services a powerful platform for mobilizing corporate data and applications residing behind company firewalls.

About Research In Motion

Research In Motion Limited is a leading designer, manufacturer and marketer of innovative wireless solutions for the mobile communications market. Through development and integration of hardware, software and services, RIM provides solutions for seamless access to time-sensitive information including email, messaging, Internet and intranet-based applications.

RIM technology also enables a broad array of third party developers and manufacturers around the world to enhance their products and services with wireless connectivity. RIM’s portfolio of award-winning products includes the RIM Wireless Handheld(TM) product line, the BlackBerry(TM) wireless email solution, embedded radio-modems and software development tools.

Founded in 1984 and based in Waterloo, Ontario RIM operates offices in Canada, the United States and England. RIM is listed on the Nasdaq Stock Market (Nasdaq:RIMM – news) and the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSE:RIM – news). For more information, visit www.rim.net. Investors may contact investor_relations [at] rim [dot] net. Customers may contact info [at] rim [dot] net.

About Nextel

Nextel Communications, Inc., based in Reston, Va., is a leading provider of fully integrated wireless communications services and has built the largest guaranteed all-digital wireless network in the country covering thousands of communities across the United States. Nextel and Nextel Partners Inc., currently serve 195 of the top 200 U.S. markets.

Through recent market launches, Nextel and Nextel Partners service is available today in areas of the U.S. where approximately 230 million people live or work. In addition, through NII Holdings, Inc., wireless services are provided outside of Nextel’s domestic markets, primarily in selected Latin American markets. For more information visit www.nextel.com.

About Motorola

Motorola, Inc. (NYSE:MOT – news) is a global leader in providing integrated communications solutions and embedded electronic solutions. Sales in 2001 were $30 billion. Today, more than 10 million iDEN handsets are in service in North America.

iDEN handsets combine the capabilities of a digital wireless phone with “always on” Internet access, text pager, and two-way radio to enable users to instantly communicate with one or hundreds of individuals at the push of a button. For further information, visit www.motorola.com/iden.

“Safe Harbor” Statement under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. A number of the matters and subject areas discussed in this press release that are not historical or current facts deal with potential future circumstances and developments. The discussion of such matters and subject areas is qualified by the inherent risks and uncertainties surrounding future expectations generally, and also may materially differ from actual future experience involving any one or more of such matters and subject areas. We have attempted to identify, in context, certain of the factors that we currently believe may cause actual future experience and results to differ from current expectations regarding the relevant matter or subject area. Such risks and uncertainties include the successful performance of new technologies and devices, timely development and delivery of these new technologies and devices, economic conditions in currently existing and targeted markets, competitive conditions, market acceptance of these services and devices, technological changes, access to sufficient capital to meet operating and financing needs and those that are described from time to time in reports filed with the SEC by Research In Motion Limited, Nextel and Motorola, including each of their annual reports on Form 10-K and their subsequent quarterly filings on Form 10-Q. This press release speaks only as of its date, and Nextel, Research In Motion Limited and Motorola each expressly disclaims any duty to update the information herein.

Nextel, the Nextel logo, and Nextel Direct Connect are trademarks and/or service marks of Nextel Communications, Inc. Research In Motion, RIM and BlackBerry are trademarks of Research In Motion Limited. Research In Motion and RIM are registered with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office and may be pending or registered in other countries.

MOTOROLA, the Stylized M Logo and iDEN are registered in the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office.

Java and all Java-based marks are trademarks or registered trademarks of Sun Microsystems, Inc. in the U.S. and other countries.

Management & Trends Palm, Handspring Should Merge Lisa DiCarlo, Forbes.com, 06.08.01, 1:30 PM ET

NEW YORK – If Palm and Handspring have any hopes of maintaining the handheld platform’s dominant market share and opening new markets, they should swallow a little bit of pride and merge. It’s the best way to capitalize on their respective strengths.

Both companies are hurting. On Thursday, Handspring (nasdaq: HAND – news – people) said it would miss fiscal fourth-quarter revenue targets by more than 50%. Chief Executive Donna Dubinsky cited price pressure from Palm (nasdaq: PALM – news – people) and new product introductions coming from Japan’s Sony (nyse: SNE – news – people). That came a few weeks after Palm said its fiscal fourth-quarter sales would be half of expectations, and that its pro forma operating loss would be twice as big as it had earlier predicted.

First, consider the increasing competitive pressures. After a few false starts, Microsoft (nasdaq: MSFT – news – people) has finally gotten it right with its PocketPC platform, which rivals Palm’s operating system (OS). Several big PC makers, including Compaq Computer (nyse: CPQ – news – people), sell PocketPC-based personal digital assistants (PDA) and have made inroads into Palm’s market. Domestically, the Palm platform lost four market share points in the last 12 months to 79%, while PocketPC gained a few points to 12%, according to International Data Corp.

IDC analysts say that Palm will lose more market share in 2002, citing the better opportunity for PocketPC to make inroads to large corporate customers.

Now consider the synergies between Palm and Handspring. Palm’s primary function is software development and licensing. PalmPilots were the first successful handhelds because the software was simple to use. Palm continues to sign up software developers to write applications for the platform, as well as computer companies to bundle it with their devices. On June 1, it signed on Taiwan’s Acer, which will build devices for the Taiwanese and Chinese markets.

Handspring is a licensee of Palm’s OS, but most of its innovation has been in the device itself. Its Springboard modules plug into the Visor handheld, transforming the PDA into, among other things, an MP3 player, cellular phone or global positioning system. The beauty of it is that users don’t have to add any software or reconfigure the device.

If they did merge–and there has been no speculation that they will–one piece of the company would focus on software development and global licensing of the platform; the other would develop and sell devices with unique features à la Springboard. The combination of resources would blunt Microsoft’s growing piece of the handheld pie, give it better economies of scale and, with nearly $2 billion in sales, could give it the clout to penetrate large enterprise accounts.

Palm is the larger company by a factor of almost three, in terms of sales. As of March, it had $595 million in cash and equivalents, compared to $107 million for Handspring. Shares of both companies have been pounded, with Handspring and Palm down 61% and 78% respectively, from year-ago levels.

There is value in what both companies bring to the market, but it won’t be fully realized if they continue independently.