Palm (NASDAQ: PALM), the failing smartphone company, has launched a new version of its Treo handset. According to The Wall Street Journal, the new version of the product has newest Windows Mobile operating system, a GPS system and WiFi capability. It will run on the fast Sprint (NYSE: S) 3G network.

The new product is unlikely to help Palm, which trades at $5.42, down from a 52-week high of $19.23. For starters, the Treo will compete with another Sprint product, the well-regarded Samsung Instinct. The Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) 3G iPhone is even more formidable competition. The fact that it sold one million units in its first three days on the market sucks a lot of demand for other products out of the market. And, why not throw in the RIM (NASDAQ: RIMM) BlackBerry.

Palm lost money last quarter. More importantly, the average price of its phones dropped sharply. Selling more handsets only helps so much when the yield-per-units is low.

The Treo may be a good product, but it comes into a crowded field that is already dominated by a few, very well-financed companies with more attractive offerings.

Why would anyone think Palm's shares would rally.

Douglas A. McIntyre is an editor at 24/7 Wall St.

Shares of Research in Motion Ltd. (NASDAQ: RIMM) are getting pummeled in after-hours trading after the maker of the no-longer edgy BlackBerry reported disappointing results and gave lackluster guidance.

Net income at the Ontario-based company in the fiscal first quarter rose to $482.5 million,or 84 cents per share, versus $223.2 million, or 32 cents per share, a year earlier. Revenue soared 107% to $2.24 billion as the company shipped about 5.4 million devices. Though these results were impressive, they were not good enough for Wall Street.

Analysts surveyed by Bloomberg News were expecting RIM to report earnings of 85 cents on revenue of $2.27 billion. Moreover, the company forecast second quarter profit of between 84 and 89 cents per share, missing the Bloomberg estimate of 92 cents. The revenue forecast of $2.55 billion to $2.66 billion, however, is slightly better than the $2.44 billion analysts had expected.

The problem that RIM has is that it's not Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL), which is now trying to lure more corporate customers with the latest version of the iPhone. In baseball terms, RIMM is like the New York Mets, a once mighty team that has fallen on hard times. Apple, on the other hand, is the high-tech world's equivalent of the Boston Red Sox, a once lowly team that now dominates the league.

Picture that the RIM team and the Apple team are playing each other in a real baseball game. RIM is trailing Apple in the bottom of the ninth, the bases are loaded with two outs. RIM management is trying to convince investors that it can hit a home run in this situation, while Wall Street is sure the company will strike out.

RIMM shares are down over 8.5% in after-hours trading to about $130. It closed at $142.336.

Here is Research in Motion earnings transcript.

MAJOR PAPERS:

• The stock is up 150% over the last year but with its move into the consumer marker BlackBerry maker Research in Motion Limited (NASDAQ: RIMM) is entering the fickle world of consumer trendiness, reported the Wall Street Journal's "Heard on the Street". Analysts are concerned about how big the consumer market can be for them, and then there's Apple Inc (NASDAQ: AAPL) and Nokia Corporation (NYSE: NOK) beating down the consumer path. Smart products will help, but price is an issue, and the shares could face a hard fall.
• The Wall Street Journal reported that Wachovia Corporation (NYSE: WB) acknowledged it has hired The Goldman Sachs Group Inc (NYSE: GS) to study its troubled portfolios of mortgages, a move which many believe indicates the bank is gauging the market value of the loans in order to eventually sell them.

OTHER PAPERS:

• Lazard Ltd (NYSE: LAZ) was hired by UBS AG (NYSE: UBS) to undertake a strategic review of the Swiss bank's businesses, the New York Post learned.
• The New York Post also reported some reported turmoil at Live Nation Inc (NYSE: LYV), following the abrupt departure of the concert promoter's chairman, Michael Cohl. Employees in the unit that was led by Cohl fear that the company will lay some of them off, and CEO Michael Rapino is accused of not being strongly committed to the company's mega-deal strategy.
• The Boston Herald reported that its unions were told the newspaper will lay off 130 to 160 workers, under its new plan to outsource printing operations elsewhere in the state.

This week, a friend of mine sent out an e-mail to his workers. Basically, he wanted to find ways to reduce e-mail by 50% or so.

And, in fact, there was a drop. But, my friend said to me, "I think I may be going through withdrawal. I think I've become addicted to my BlackBerry."

Yes, the BlackBerry seems to be a epidemic. What's more, no one seems to know how to escape it.

Interestingly enough, now we are seeing some legal action. That is, writers and producers at ABC News want to get additional compensation for their extensive BlackBerry use. As a result, there was a settlement (the terms were not disclosed).

I think it makes some sense. Let's face it, technology has made our work-life a 24/7 experience. How many times have you worked on a project -- after hours -- by messaging back-and-forth on your trusty BlackBerry? Oh, and if you don't participate, might you fear that you'll be limiting your career path?

With so many attorneys in the U.S. -- as well as BlackBerry users -- I'm sure this is an issue that will get lots of traction.

Tom Taulli is the author of various books, including The Complete M&A Handbook and The Edgar Online Guide to Decoding Financial Statements. He also operates MergerBook.com.

The week was full of news about handsets. Sprint (NYSE: S) said it would launch an "iPhone killer," a $129 phone from Samsung. Many brokerage firms upped estimates for Apple (NYSE: AAPL) iPhone sales as it appears that the demand for the new 3G version will be tremendous. Nokia (NYSE: NOK) launched its E71 and E66 high-end handsets. Lehman upped its targets for earnings estimates at RIM (NASDAQ: RIMM), the maker of the BlackBerry.

And Motorola (NYSE: MOT) shares hit a five-year low at $7.61. The company did not launch any new products. No one on Wall Street upped forecasts on the company. All that was clear is that the firm is taking a worse beating as each month passes.

Motorola plans to spin-off its handset business and keep its home networking and enterprise operations. The entire company has a market cap of under $18 billion now.

Based on Motorola's last 10-Q, the two units the company is keeping have an annual revenue run-rate of over $16 billion. They should make about $1.7 billion in operating profit in 2008. By many measures, together they would be worth $18 billion on their own.

It is a spectacular sign of how bad things are at Motorola's handset business, that, as an enterprise, it may have no financial value at all. Its market share is dropping too fast and its is losing too much money.

MOT may not even be able to give the operation away for nothing.

Douglas A. McIntyre is an editor at 247wallst.com.

Palm (NASDAQ: PALM), the troubled smartphone company, is hoping that a new product, sold through Verizon Wireless, will help resurrect its fortunes. Not likely.

The company's Centro smartphone will go for $99. According to The Wall Street Journal, the deal with the big carrier "will make the product available starting on Friday to Verizon's 67.2 million subscribers, with a two-year contract."

Good luck. According to research firm Changewave, a survey of IT professionals showed that most plan to buy RIM (NASDAQ: RIMM) Blackberries in the next quarter. Apple's (NASDAQ: AAPL) iPhone was second, and that was before the new 3G model was announced. Palm finished in last place.

Because the new iPhone has software which make it more useful to business people, the market for a smartphone from Palm is almost certain to be squeezed further. Palm has been losing money. It revenue last quarter was only $312 million.

Look around you. See all of those Blackberries and iPhones. No one is using a Palm

Douglas A. McIntyre is an editor at 247wallst.com and the author of the Ten Stocks Under $10 letter.

So what happened?

For months now that investors and Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) enthusiasts have been expecting the 3G iPhone. The past few weeks, there was so much hype that speculation over features, dates and even a new business model surfaced daily, from bloggers, reporters, investors and analysts.

Finally the day came and Steve Jobs announced a 3G iPhone for $199 to be released on July 11 in 22 countries at first with the intention of selling the iPhone in 70 countries. Not only that, but the new model includes a GPS and push email.

If the world comes to an end tomorrow, at least day traders will have found another way to make or lose money. E*Trade (NASDAQ: ETFC) has found another platform for people to buy and sell stocks. They can use their RIM (NASDAQ: RIMM) BlackBerry.

According to the AP, E*Trade "is giving its account holders an application that will let them get real-time stock quotes and trade on their phones." Will wonders never cease?

Since the BlackBerry is getting more and more competition from firms like Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) and Nokia (NYSE: NOK), it is probably nice that there is one more thing the device can do. But, the news is probably bigger for E*Trade, which has had some hard times and is in competition with larger and more well-funded discount brokers.

Beyond anything else, it is just a sign of the times. The PC was the king of internet use for years. Now little portable devices that use cellular connections can do everything from display a movie to operate as a GPS.

How long will it be before the BlackBerry and other devices will have enough intelligence to trade stocks without their owner's permission?

Douglas A. McIntyre is an editor at 247wallst.com.

Research in Motion (NASDAQ: RIMM) picked up share in the smartphone business in the U.S. during Q1. Apple's (NASDAQ: AAPL) iPhone lost some. That will come as a surprise to most people who see the iPhone as almost invincible. Research firm IDC says otherwise.

Reuters reports, "According to the report, RIM's share of the U.S. market for advanced phones with computer like features such as e-mail rose to 44.5 percent in the first quarter from 35.1 percent in the fourth quarter." Apple's slice dropped from nearly 27% to just over 19%.

While the RIMM product, the BlackBerry, may be good and the company may be building devices for the consumer, Apple may be suffering from the lack of a device that runs on a 3G network. There is a rumor a day about when Apple will come out with the faster device, but, so far, nothing.

The iPhone, with all of its web features, would benefit immensely from the ability to operate on a network that transfers data and video almost as fast as a DSL line. Instead, it runs on a slower 2.5G network.

Apple losing ground. Who would have ever believed it?

Douglas A. McIntyre is an editor at 247wallst.com and author of the Ten Stocks Under $10 Newsletter.

Companies from Nokia (NYSE:NOK) to Samsung are trying to create a product to compete with the Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) iPhone. Now RIM (NASDAQ:RIMM) will join the group.

RIM will come out with a touchscreen version of its Blackberry, probably in the third quarter. The decision is based on a false premise, which is that people want to buy an "iPhone" from someone other than Apple.

According to The Wall Street Journal "Dubbed the Thunder, the new BlackBerry is among RIM's strongest moves so far to appeal to the increasing number of consumers opting for multimedia phones."

The market has heard this song before. Over a year ago, both Sandisk (NASDAQ:SNDK) and Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) came to market with competition for the iPod. Neither made any progress.

As infantile as the reasoning may seem, Apple built a nearly perfect product, which has been confirmed by strong demand , and plans to improve on it with features like 3G capability. Competition cannot replace what the customer views as irreplaceable.

Douglas A. McIntyre is an editor at 247wallst.com and author of the Ten Stocks Under $10 newsletter.

Looks like Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ: MSFT) will be working with longtime nemesis Research in Motion Ltd. (NASDAQ: RIMM) to bring its Windows Live services to the BlackBerry mobile platform. Windows Mobile, the smartphone operating system made by Microsoft that is a direct competitor to RIM's BlackBerry smartphone operating system, is already integrated with Microsoft's Live services, naturally.

While RIM figured out long ago that instant access to secure email in a small, portable device was the key to its fortune, Microsoft took years to discover that same fact, and now provides a similar solution on its Windows Mobile platform. But providing access to Windows Live to the biggest competitor it has in the smartphone arena can mean only one thing: Microsoft is trying to fend off Apple Inc.'s (NASDAQ: AAPL) iPhone.

At the same time, Microsoft wants to get as many customers using its Windows Live services on those mobile phones as possible. The iPhone reportedly will shortly work with Microsoft's Exchange corporate email servers to allow the same "push email" functionality that put the BlackBerry on the map. That is, instant, real-time email wherever you are. Those with Microsoft's Hotmail email service will also enjoy real-time "push" email with this new partnership. But make no mistake -- RIM and Microsoft will need to do more to fend up the upstart competitor, Apple. If a new iPhone is announced this summer as expected, both RIM and Microsoft will see even more turbulence in the mobile markets.

Tax rebates are starting to arrive, and many retailers are looking for ways to get your money from you with enticing deals.

Research In Motion (NASDAQ:RIMM) can't afford to lose any market share to the Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) iPhone. Apple has other businesses. RIM has only smartphones.

So as not to be bested RIM has a new BlackBerry. According to The Wall Street Journal, the device, called Bold, "runs on high-speed 3G wireless networks that carriers are rolling out to handle media-rich features." It also has multi-media features for downloading music.

The launch misses a critical factor in business smartphone devices. Enterprise users probably have little interest in BlackBerry beyond its e-mail features. The fact that the phone runs on faster 3G networks added to the function. Putting multi-media features into the product does not. It simply adds cost. The 3G capability will also help sales outside the US where 3G is more widely deployed.

RIM has a problem. While it is not likely the BlackBerry will ever become a music player, the new 3G iPhone may well attract business users with better e-mail, calendar, and web-searching features. The iPhone also sell well because it is consider "next-generation" with its touch pad. It also benefits from the "halo" effect from the company's iPod and iTunes products.

Apple can add e-mail to the iPhone and have a device that can cut across business and consumer users. It is not clear that BlackBerry can ever get beyond its core enterprise market.

Douglas A. McIntyre is an editor at 247wallst.com and author of the Ten Stocks Under $10 letter.

This post is part of our Battle of the Brands feature. Let us know which brand you prefer, and check out other Battle of the Brands posts.

"I'm like Ma Bell, I got the ill communication." -- Beastie Boys

When considering these two particular companies, it is important to note their roots as offspring of the famous "Ma Bell" network. The Bell System, which has produced the most complex ongoing series of mergers and break-ups in the history of the United States, is the origin of the companies that are now AT&T Inc. (NYSE: T) and Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE: VZ), as well as competitor Qwest Communications International (NYSE: Q). A lot has changed since those early times -- remember, after all, that the second "T" in AT&T stood for Telegraph. Now phones are the latest devices to be made supercomputers. AT&T has its exclusive deal with the Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) iPhone, while Verizon slings the Research in Motion Ltd. (NASDAQ: RIMM) BlackBerry.

Since wireless is the way of the future, the wireless divisions of these companies is the most hotly contested, and the focus of this "Battle of the Brands." It is important to note that despite Verizon Wireless bearing solely Verizon's name, it is not owned by just them, it is a 55%-45% joint venture between Verizon and Vodafone Group (NYSE: VOD). It is also important to note that AT&T Mobility is the service formerly known as Cingular, which was acquired by AT&T in 2006 when it bought BellSouth for $86B.

This post is part of our Battle of the Brands feature. Let us know which brand you prefer, and check out other Battle of the Brands posts.

Research in Motion Ltd.'s (NASDAQ: RIMM) BlackBerry wireless email device has been a staple of the corporate world for years now. RIM, a Canadian company, took the function everyone wanted -- easy and superb access to mobile email -- and turned that single function into an entire industry. Of course, RIM's wireless units now handle voice calls, pictures, document editing and more, but that's not what customers buy BlackBerries for. The single function of secure, instant and mobile email is still the killer application for the BlackBerry.

Enter Apple Inc. (NASDAQ: AAPL) and its uber-popular iPhone that's been on sale for coming up on a year now. The company has sold way over 4 million of the devices since then and has taken a large swipe at the "smartphone" wireless handset category where the iPhone competes. Reminder: the unit has not even been on the market for a year. Apple has selectively released upgrades to the iPhone to make it more competitive in the business customer arena, and with the possibility of the iPhone being able to handle corporate push email, it may become an even bigger threat to RIM in the very near future.