“The future of mobile computing”? Umm, not quite. That was the general response to Jeff Hawkins’ unveiling of the new Palm “Foleo” today at the D conference hosted by Wall Street Journal personal technology reviewer Walt Mossberg.
Hyped in advance by Palm as “a new category of mobile device,” the Foleo is clearly an attempt by the Treo-maker to re-create some buzz around the popular handheld devices and overcome impressions that the Treo has an outdated operating system and a relatively clunky design compared with flashy new products from rivals Research In Motion, Samsung, and Nokia.
In a statement released prior to his onstage appearance, Hawkins — the inventor of the Palm Pilot and the Treo, two products that helped revolutionize handheld computing — called the Foleo “the most exciting product I have ever worked on.”