Palm Puts Windows in Treo Smartphone

Some of the first post announcement articles are starting to roll in that includes analyst viewpoints. In Technology New, Roger Entner at Ovum said, "I think it clearly shows a few things: One, that money is more important than egos. Microsoft and Palm used to butt heads with each other. That is not happening anymore."

Entner noted the new influence carriers, such as Verizon, can have in a converging world. "They certainly match the two together. Microsoft and Palm are significant customers to Verizon," he said. Entner also observed that "It's becoming more and more like the desktop computer market, where there are many vendors making hardware and few vendors making software."

"I don't think it's the end of the Palm OS. But it's a disappointing day for Palm OS," he added.

Yankee Group senior analyst John Jackson believed the deal showed that "connectivity is king" instead of "personal information management and PC sync capabilities of yesterday's PDA." Jackson said, "End users are gravitating to the value added services that offer this connectivity associated with the device out of the box."

Over at Australian magazine SmartHouse, Tim Bajarin at Creative Strategies said, "Treo is the best-selling smart phone, with 110,000 to 120,000 units sold each month," but have had trouble penetrating the enterprisexcept "through the back door," with IT workers purchasing individual units.

In comparison, Bajarin said, "Windows Mobile-based smart phones have been the handheld most able to get through the front door. "This gives IT managers a wider choice for Treo devices." In addition, Bajarin said, "if you're Siebel or SAP, you've likely created a mobile application for Windows Mobile. Now, the most popular smart phone supports Windows Mobile."

Neil Strother at the NPD Group added, "Palm was always up against market giants like Nokia and Motorola. Like it or hate it, you know Windows." He also noted the deal allies Microsoft "with the popular Treo line, which is important given that Windows Mobile-based products are not blowing people away."