BloggingStocks http://www.bloggingstocks.com BloggingStocks http://www.blogsmithmedia.com/http://www.bloggingstocks.com/media/feedlogo.gif BloggingStocks http://www.bloggingstocks.com en-us Copyright 2012 Weblogs, Inc. The contents of this feed are available for non-commercial use only. Blogsmith http://www.blogsmith.com/<![CDATA[Palm (PALM) picks up cash, Apple (AAPL) execs]]>http://www.bloggingstocks.com/2007/09/13/now-what-for-palm-an-apple-redux/http://www.bloggingstocks.com/2007/09/13/now-what-for-palm-an-apple-redux/http://www.bloggingstocks.com/2007/09/13/now-what-for-palm-an-apple-redux/#commentsFiled under: ,

Palm Inc. (NASDAQ: PALM), the struggling smart-phone developer, announced yesterday that shareholders approved the company's transaction with Elevation Partners.

The deal calls for Palm to receive a $325 million investment from Elevation Partners and borrow up to $400 million in debt financing. The cash proceeds will be used to pay a fat $9 dividend to shareholders. Elevation will gain board seats as partners Fred Anderson, Apple Inc.'s (NASDAQ: AAPL) former chief financial officer, and Roger McNamee, the long-time tech investor, will join the board. On their way out are directors Eric Benhamou and Scott Mercer.

Palm will also get Jonathan Rubinstein, the former head of Apple's iPod business, to become the new executive board chairman.

Palm pulled its new product initiative, Foleo, last week. Now it appears the device maker will try to outdo Apple by bringing Anderson and Rubinstein on board. However, the major ingredient that is still missing is that Apple has Jobs and Palm does not. Right now, Palm is a show-me stock -- show me the results before I jump into these shares.

Palm (PALM) picks up cash, Apple (AAPL) execs originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 13 Sep 2007 10:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>aaplappleelevation partnersElevationPartnersfoleoFred AndersonFredAndersoninthenewsJonathan RubinsteinJonathanRubinsteinpalmRoger McNameeRogerMcnameesmartphonetreoThu, 13 Sep 2007 10:45:00 EST<![CDATA[Palm's (PALM) Foleo pulled; financing in question]]>http://www.bloggingstocks.com/2007/09/05/palms-foleo-pulled-financing-in-question/http://www.bloggingstocks.com/2007/09/05/palms-foleo-pulled-financing-in-question/http://www.bloggingstocks.com/2007/09/05/palms-foleo-pulled-financing-in-question/#commentsFiled under: , , ,

Palm Inc (NASDAQ: PALM), the California-based smartphone developer, has pulled its recently released Foleo product line, as it had turned out to be a big flop.

Now investors need to ask how they are going to make money in this stock. Is selling out to Motorola Inc (NYSE: MOT) or another handset manufacturer the only way? Despite a reasonably passionate following by Treo users, with many claiming the merits of the Palm produced device over that of the Blackberry produced by Research-in-Motion Limited (NASDAQ: RIMM), Treo just has not gotten enough of a following, as it failed to take the enterprise approach that Research-in-Motion took.

Further, as functionality improves and wireless networks are able to handle more capacity, low-end devices will be able to better handle data, making it even more difficult for Palm to bring new products to market.

All told, Palm is looking more like a value trap than a value stock. While management has done an excellent job improving its balance sheet and increasing its cash generation, this is one company that is now in desperate need of a new product, which looks like it could take a while. If you are buying Palm, you are betting on a buyout at this stage of the game.

Palm's (PALM) Foleo pulled; financing in question originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 05 Sep 2007 08:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>blackberryfoleointhenewsmotmotorolapalmresearch in motionResearchInMotionrimmtreoWed, 05 Sep 2007 08:30:00 EST<![CDATA[Smartphones, superphones: iPhone, LG Prada, and Treo + Foleo compared]]>http://www.bloggingstocks.com/2007/06/05/smartphones-superphones-iphone-lg-prada-and-treo-foleo-com/http://www.bloggingstocks.com/2007/06/05/smartphones-superphones-iphone-lg-prada-and-treo-foleo-com/http://www.bloggingstocks.com/2007/06/05/smartphones-superphones-iphone-lg-prada-and-treo-foleo-com/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , ,


I like to call them "superphones" but the industry phrase is "smart phones," and the best of the bunch still exist in our collective imagination and in sparkling light-on-black press photos on the internet: the Apple iPhone (due out June 29), the LG Prada ("late summer") and the Foleo, a companion to the Palm Treo (more "late summer").

While many of the details are known, of course, I haven't actually touched any of these superphones. But that's part of the deliciousness. I can already tell you which one I want to have in my big purple knitted bag immediately (the iPhone) and which I'm fine admiring from afar, and on the cover of US Magazine (LG Prada) and which I might only buy if I was far more idle and in possession of way more disposable income than I now have (Palm Foleo).

Gallery: Smartphones, Superphones

The Apple iPhone, subject of ooohss and ahhhhsThe Apple iPhone rates cooler than coolPalm Treo, with its sidekick, the Foleo (or is the other way around?)How does the Palm Foleo rank?The sexy, fashion-y LG Prada phone

Continue reading Smartphones, superphones: iPhone, LG Prada, and Treo + Foleo compared

Smartphones, superphones: iPhone, LG Prada, and Treo + Foleo compared originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 05 Jun 2007 19:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>aaplappleapple iphoneAppleIphonefoleoiphonelaunchlaunch dateLaunchDatelglg pradaLgPradapalmpalm foleopalm treoPalmFoleoPalmTreopradaprada phonePradaPhonetreoTue, 05 Jun 2007 19:45:00 EST<![CDATA[Palm Foleo reviewed: How the Foleo scores in usefulness and coolness]]>http://www.bloggingstocks.com/2007/06/05/palm-foleo-reviewed-how-the-foleo-scores-in-usefulness-and-cool/http://www.bloggingstocks.com/2007/06/05/palm-foleo-reviewed-how-the-foleo-scores-in-usefulness-and-cool/http://www.bloggingstocks.com/2007/06/05/palm-foleo-reviewed-how-the-foleo-scores-in-usefulness-and-cool/#commentsFiled under: , ,


When Palm Inc. (NASDAQ: PALM) announced its new Foleo (with a little horizontal line over the "e") at the D conference last week, we all let out a collective, huh? It's not that the Foleo isn't cool -- it is, a little -- or useful -- a bit. But the Foleo, which will be available sometime this summer, has way to many huh moments.

Here's a rundown:

What is it? The Foleo is, essentially, a laptop extension for your Palm Treo. It's based on open-source Linux software (score one cool point), and as such, software is easy to build for it, and it will operate much faster than your actual laptop. Instead of opening and waiting for the usual several minutes of start-up-and-warm-up-and-log-in, the thing just turns on, instantly, and presto! e-mail. (Score another cool point, and a usefulness point.) It's small, it has a keyboard and a couple of ports (headphone jack, USB port, etc), but doesn't require plugging into your Treo (score one usefulness point).

How much? The Foleo is $599 with a $100 mail-in rebate, which (let's be honest) most consumers won't jump through the hoops necessary to reclaim. $599. You also must have a Treo already, ranging from $49 to $699 depending on the version and service plan you sign up for at time of purchase, for a total of at least $649.

Continue reading Palm Foleo reviewed: How the Foleo scores in usefulness and coolness

Palm Foleo reviewed: How the Foleo scores in usefulness and coolness originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 05 Jun 2007 04:34:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>foleofoleo reviewfoleo reviewedFoleoReviewFoleoReviewedpalmpalm foleopalm foleo reviewpalm foleo reviewedPalmFoleoPalmFoleoReviewPalmFoleoReviewedreviewsmart phoneSmartPhonesuper phoneSuperPhonetreoTue, 05 Jun 2007 04:34:00 EST<![CDATA[A second on Palm's Foleo: Can Palm bridge the 'truly mobile PC' divide?]]>http://www.bloggingstocks.com/2007/05/30/a-second-on-palms-foleo-can-palm-bridge-the-truly-mobile-pc/http://www.bloggingstocks.com/2007/05/30/a-second-on-palms-foleo-can-palm-bridge-the-truly-mobile-pc/http://www.bloggingstocks.com/2007/05/30/a-second-on-palms-foleo-can-palm-bridge-the-truly-mobile-pc/#commentsFiled under: , ,

Palm Inc. (NASDAQ: PALM) unveiled its new Foleo product today. This is the new mobile mini-PC 'somewhat' meant to go after Apple's iPhone (NASDAQ: AAPL) and R-I-M (NASDAQ: RIMM), yet the gains here may be short-lived. The CEO on CNBC today tried to play down any chances of a merger or buyout, although you know they never will say anything one way or another until (actually IF) a deal everir gets signed. The problem is that Palm just laid the groundwork for R-I-M and Apple to do the exact release if this works well.

Here is another issue to consider: mobile mini-PC's, even an instant on non-Windows version, are essentially just a newer version of tablet PC's. Personally, I am a huge fan of these devices because you can travel nearly anywhere much lighter than by taking a full blown laptop or shipping your PC around. They are great for mobile business executives. The problem is that the overall penetration has never really caught on like wildfire as the entire industry hoped. In 2003 I purchased my first tablet PC by Acer, and the truth is that it still looks fairly advanced compared to many other devices out on the market today. I am a Palm Treo user and the thought of being able to marry the two works great for me. But I am in a different boat than many and we'll have to see how preliminary sales do at $499.00 AFTER a $100.00 rebate.

Unfortunately this will probably end up just being another incremental source of revenues for Palm. This extends their Palm Treo's or other smart phones. This will be good for mobile business presentations, but the real issue is now that items can be forwarded off of emails and mobile flash drives have become versatile enough and powerful enough that PC users rely on these devices for far less. The price has come way in on these devices, now the question is if $499.00 is yet low enough.

Jon Ogg can be reached at jonogg@247wallst.com; he does not own securities in the companies he covers.

A second on Palm's Foleo: Can Palm bridge the 'truly mobile PC' divide? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 30 May 2007 17:44:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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