What a difference a year makes…  Last year when looking at Fortune’s 100 Fastest Growing Companies, Research in Motion topped the list.  This year, however, RIM has dropped down to 33rd on the list.  RIM has dropped from 1st o 9th on the Fastest Growing  Technology companies as well.

Something tells me that unless we see some major changes in the direction that Research in Motion is going we will see another big drop on the 2011 list assuming RIM even makes the cut.  When it comes to consumers that buy smartphones, unless you just want a BlackBerry, there are much more compelling options available.  Depending on which report your read most BlackBerry users don’t even want new BlackBerry devices.  That can’t bode well for RIM…

[Via CNNMoney.com]

RIM Drops From Fastest Growing Company In 2009 To 33rd In 2010 is a post from: RIMarkable, the Unofficial BlackBerry Weblog...

Well, we knew someone was going to acquire Palm at a basement bargain price.  I hoped that it would be RIM, thought that it would be HTC or Lenovo, but, it looks like the spoils are going to HP.

Press Release

PALO ALTO, Calif. & SUNNYVALE, Calif.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–HP (NYSE: HPQ – News) and Palm, Inc. (NASDAQ: PALM – News) today announced that they have entered into a definitive agreement under which HP will purchase Palm, a provider of smartphones powered by the Palm webOS mobile operating system, at a price of $5.70 per share of Palm common stock in cash or an enterprise value of approximately $1.2 billion. The transaction has been approved by the HP and Palm boards of directors.

The combination of HP’s global scale and financial strength with Palm’s unparalleled webOS platform will enhance HP’s ability to participate more aggressively in the fast-growing, highly profitable smartphone and connected mobile device markets. Palm’s unique webOS will allow HP to take advantage of features such as true multitasking and always up-to-date information sharing across applications.

“Palm’s innovative operating system provides an ideal platform to expand HP’s mobility strategy and create a unique HP experience spanning multiple mobile connected devices,” said Todd Bradley, executive vice president, Personal Systems Group, HP. “And, Palm possesses significant IP assets and has a highly skilled team. The smartphone market is large, profitable and rapidly growing, and companies that can provide an integrated device and experience command a higher share. Advances in mobility are offering significant opportunities, and HP intends to be a leader in this market.”

“We’re thrilled by HP’s vote of confidence in Palm’s technological leadership, which delivered Palm webOS and iconic products such as the Palm Pre. HP’s longstanding culture of innovation, scale and global operating resources make it the perfect partner to rapidly accelerate the growth of webOS,” said Jon Rubinstein, chairman and chief executive officer, Palm. “We look forward to working with HP to continue to deliver industry-leading mobile experiences to our customers and business partners.”

Under the terms of the merger agreement, Palm stockholders will receive $5.70 in cash for each share of Palm common stock that they hold at the closing of the merger. The merger consideration takes into account the updated guidance and other financial information being released by Palm this afternoon. The acquisition is subject to customary closing conditions, including the receipt of domestic and foreign regulatory approvals and the approval of Palm’s stockholders. The transaction is expected to close during HP’s third fiscal quarter ending July 31, 2010.

Palm’s current chairman and CEO, Jon Rubinstein, is expected to remain with the company.

[Source]

HP To Acquire Palm For $1.2 Billion is a post from: RIMarkable, the Unofficial BlackBerry Weblog...

This probably doesn’t come as much of a surprise to anyone but, maybe, CEO Jon Rubinstein, however, the inevitable Palm buyout is imminent.  According to Bloomberg, Palm is working with Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and Qatalyst Partners to find a buyer, although the company has not officially said that they are doing so as of yet.

The big question for everyone is who will the buyer be? Both HTC and Lenovo have expressed interest.  I’ve been saying for years that RIM should have picked the company up if for nothing more than the intellectual property.  My guess is that there are a few big companies that might be interested.

Who do you think will buy Palm?  Whomever it is will get on heck of a consumer oriented mobile operating system in webOS.

Who Will Buy Palm? The Fire Sale Is On is a post from: RIMarkable, the Unofficial BlackBerry Weblog...

If you’ve read more than 2 or 3 posts here on RIMarkable, you’ve probably gathered that I am a pretty big fan of the BlackBerry.  Some would even call me a BlackBerry Fanboy…  That being said, I recently bought a Palm Pre Plus from Verizon.  I’d be willing to bet, however, that it was for reasons other than what you are thinking…

To make a long story short, if you are at all interested in a Verizon MiFi 2200, strongly consider the Palm Pre Plus or Palm Pixi Plus as an alternative…

If you are asking yourself “what in the world does getting a Verizon webOS device have to do with the MiFi 2200“, both the Palm Pre Plus and the Palm Pixi Plus have 3G Mobile Hotspot capability built-in.  This means that the Pre and the Pixi can do essentially the same job as the MiFi 2200 allowing you to create a mobile hotspot supporting up to 5 devices via Wi-Fi over your device’s 3G connection.  The kicker is that 3G Mobile Hotspot on Verizon webOS devices is now free, and, the unlimited data plan on the Pre and the Pixi is only $39.99 as compared to $59.99 on the MiFi 2200.

At the end of the day, you can get a webOS device from Verizon to do the job of a MiFi 2200 Mobile Hotspot, but, pay less for it and get a webOS based smartphone to play around with.  Like I said, if you are thinking about getting a Verizon MiFi 2200, you should really check out Palm Pre Plus or Pixi Plus and see if it works for you…

So, I Bought A Palm Pre… is a post from: RIMarkable, the Unofficial BlackBerry Weblog...

When it comes to U.S. based mobile web traffic there are really only two players in the game.  The iPhone  sits atop the hill with over 40% total share and Adroid is right on the iPhone’s heels just a few percentage points behind.  The other dogs in the race, Palm and Microsoft, simply don’t hunt and what’s really telling is that the BlackBerry, even though it’s the number one smartphone in America, has seen a ridiculous decline since October, 2008 when it was just a few points behind the iPhone.

Web browsing on the BlackBerry is an embarrassment!

I am not sure which is the worst embarrassment…  How bad web browsing on the BlackBerry is compared to pretty much everything else, or, how long it is taking RIM to do something about it.  I know that RIM will soon release the new and improved WebKit based BlackBerry Browser, but, RIM, quite honestly, should have released a BlackBerry Browser with legs when the original BlackBerry Storm came out.  Most definitely by the time that the Storm2 came out.

What will RIM do?

I love the BlackBerry, but, I think that RIM is running out of time.  There is just too much cool stuff that you can do on these other devices that you can’t even think about doing on a BlackBerry.  There is a new iPhone coming out this summer.  Windows Mobile 7 is coming this fall.  Android keeps getting updates regularly and someone is going to eventually buy Palm, if for nothing more than the intellectual property.  (webOS is strong)  I think that we have a good idea of what everyone else is doing.  The big question for me is what will RIM do?

[Via ARS Technica]

Android Aims To Knock Apple From The Top Spot In U.S. Based Mobile Web Traffic… The BlackBerry’s Decline Is Telling is a post from: RIMarkable, the Unofficial BlackBerry Weblog...

There are have been a lot of rumors floating around the web as to whether the Palm Pre Plus and Palm Pixi Plus were just going to be delayed coming to AT&T or canceled all together. Palm today officially announced that both the Pre Plus and Pixi plus would be landing on AT&T, so, we know that they are coming, however, no definitive launch date has been given, so, we just don’t know when.

Both the Pre Plus and the Pixi Plus has $100 mail-in rebates on them and will cost your $149.99 and $49.99 respectively.

Palm webOS Smartphones to be Available for AT&T Customers

Palm to Showcase Pre Plus and Pixi Plus at CTIA Wireless

SUNNYVALE, Calif., March 22, 2010 – AT&T’s 80 million customers will soon have a new choice for staying connected in their fast-paced lives — the Palm® webOS™ platform. Palm, Inc. (NASDAQ: PALM) today announced that the Palm Pre™ Plus and Palm Pixi™ Plus phones will be available on the nation’s fastest 3G network for $149.99 and $49.99, respectively, with a two-year service agreement and after a $100 mail-in rebate.

“AT&T and Palm have a history of smartphone leadership, and today’s announcement is a significant milestone for us,” said Jon Rubinstein, Palm chairman and chief executive officer. “With Palm webOS phones coming to AT&T, Palm can help most anyone in the United States stay connected so they never miss a thing.”

Pre Plus and Pixi Plus will be featured in Palm’s booth (No. 7053) at CTIA Wireless, which runs March 23-25 in Las Vegas.

With a slider keyboard, a larger touchscreen and a high-performance processor, Pre Plus is Palm’s full-featured Palm webOS phone. It’s designed for people who want an easy-to-use phone with advanced features to help manage the different aspects of their lives, both personal and professional. The keyboard makes for quick and easy typing, while the unique gesture area provides a sleek look and intuitive navigation. Customers also get 16GB(1) of storage (~15GB user available) for applications and media. Pre Plus comes with the Palm Touchstone™ Back Cover, so it’s compatible out of the box with the revolutionary inductive Touchstone Charging Dock (sold separately).

As Palm’s thinnest phone to date, Pixi Plus fits easily in your hand or pocket and offers a host of powerful features, including Wi-Fi. It’s great for social communicators and first-time smartphone buyers who want an affordable and customizable phone with a full QWERTY keyboard instantly accessible for messaging and web content. Available in the original black as well as a new blue exclusive to AT&T, Pixi Plus is designed to let you express yourself. With the color Palm Pixi Touchstone Back Covers and the Palm Pixi Artist Series Back Covers (www.palm.com/artistseries), which are compatible with the Touchstone Charging Dock, you can easily switch covers to suit your mood and style (all sold separately at www.palm.com/store).

“We’re offering our customers even greater choice by adding Palm Pre Plus and Palm Pixi Plus to the nation’s best smartphone portfolio,” said Jeff Bradley, senior vice president, Devices, AT&T Mobility and Consumer Markets. “Palm webOS plus included access to the nation’s largest Wi-Fi network and the ability to talk and surf the web at the same time is a powerful combination.”

Pre Plus and Pixi Plus showcase the defining features of Palm webOS, including the ability to run multiple applications simultaneously and easily move between them; the power of Palm Synergy™, which brings customers’ information from the many places it resides into a single, more comprehensive view; unobtrusive notifications; and universal search.(2) Palm webOS also has a unique model of over-the-air software updates that delivers new features and performance improvements directly to a user’s phone. Past updates have included support for 3D games and video recording allowing webOS customers to use their phones in fun, new ways.

A significant advantage of Palm webOS applications is that they can be integrated into the core webOS functionalities, such as linked contacts, layered calendars, notifications and GPS, providing a rich catalog of innovative and unique offerings for Palm webOS users. The growing Palm App Catalog offers some of the best apps in the market – such as Pandora, Fandango, and rich 3D games like “Need for Speed™ Undercover” and “Guitar Hero” – unique in their high integration with the webOS device. Currently there are more than 2,000 applications for download.

Pre Plus and Pixi Plus feature Wi-Fi connectivity, and AT&T customers with these devices will receive AT&T Wi-Fi access at U.S. hotspots included as part of their unlimited data plan. The phones transparently connect to Wi-Fi when in range of an AT&T hotspot, providing customers with fast and seamless access to music, email, video and the web. AT&T has the nation’s largest Wi-Fi network with more than 20,000 U.S. hotspots.

Pre Plus and Pixi Plus also support a variety of AT&T services, including AT&T Navigator for audible turn-by-turn navigation (subscription required), AT&T Address Book to easily synchronize online contacts to your phone, and YPMobile to quickly find local businesses. They also include the following features and specifications. (NOTE: A complete list of features and specifications for each phone is available at www.att.com/WebOS or www.palm.com/PrePlus and www.palm.com/PixiPlus.)

· Palm Synergy™, a key feature of Palm webOS that brings your information from all the places it resides – including Outlook(3), Google, Facebook, Yahoo! and LinkedIn – into one logical view that links your contacts and calendars, so accessing them is easier than ever

· The ability to run multiple applications simultaneously and easily move between them

· Unobtrusive notifications

· Universal search

· Over-the-air software updates delivered directly to a user’s phone

· High-quality applications from the Palm App Catalog

· High-speed connectivity

· Gesture area, which enables simple, intuitive gestures for navigation

· Full QWERTY keyboard

· High-performance, desktop-class web browser

· Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g

· Integrated GPS(4)

· Robust messaging support (combining IM, SMS and MMS capabilities)

· Multimedia options, including music, photos, video recording and playback, a camera with LED flash and a standard 3.5mm headset jack

· Email, including EAS (for access to corporate Microsoft Exchange servers) and personal email support (Google Gmail push, Yahoo!, POP3, IMAP)

· Bluetooth® 2.1 + EDR with A2DP stereo Bluetooth support

· USB mass storage mode

· Charger/microUSB connector with USB 2.0 Hi-Speed

· Proximity sensor, which automatically disables the touchscreen and turns off the display whenever you put the phone up to your ear

· Light sensor, which reduces power usage by dimming the display if the ambient light is dark

· Accelerometer, which automatically orients web pages and photos to your perspective

· Ringer switch, which easily silences the device with one touch

· Removable, rechargeable battery

· Band/modes:

o UMTS bands/HSDPA 3.6: 850/1900

o Quad band GSM/EDGE: 850/900/1800/1900

o GSM/GPRS/EDGE Class 10

Availability and Pricing

Palm Pre Plus and Palm Pixi Plus will be available in AT&T stores and online at www.wireless.att.com in the coming months for $149.99 and $49.99, respectively, with a two-year service agreement and after a $100 mail-in rebate. More information is available at www.att.com/webOS.

[Source]

Palm Pre Plus and Palm Pixi Plus Coming To AT&T is a post from: RIMarkable, the Unofficial BlackBerry Weblog...

This is just a quick little poll that I probably should have included with my Note to RIM post that I wrote earlier today.

[poll id="9"]

Poll: Should Research In Motion Buy Palm? is a post from: RIMarkable, the Unofficial BlackBerry Weblog...

As some of you long time RIMarkable readers may know, I am on the record several times stating that Research in Motion should buy Palm.  The last time that I felt strongly about this was back in late 2008 before webOS came out and Palm’s stock price was down under $2.00.

Even though webOS is a strong mobile operating system, in my opinion, Palm just can’t seem to get right when it comes to running the company.  Their stock price today (at the time of this posting) is down 19% or so to $4.60 and the downward spiral, according to some analysts, is going to continue downward to $0.  (I’ve never heard of a $0 target before)

I will go on the record again…

Research in Motion should buy Palm!

If for no other reason RIM should buy Palm just in case the the next BlackBerry OS misses the mark.  I know that mobile operating systems take years of development and RIM is already heavily invested in whatever BlackBerry OS 6 is going to be, however, if OS 6 doesn’t do all the cool stuff that Windows Phone 7 will do and what the iPhone, Android, and webOS do now, the BlackBerry’s chances in the consumer market are all but shot.

I am not saying that RIM should just completely scrap the new BlackBerry OS for webOS.  webOS, however, has legs, and isn’t the reason for all of Palm’ woes.  If RIM can pick up Palm on the cheap, I say go for it.  They would have a solid OS to pull ideas from, a small, but, loyal base of fans that may stick with webOS if they know a company like RIM is standing behind them, and RIM may be able to divert BlackBerry users looking to defect to a line of devices still in their family.

webOS is too good a mobile OS for it to just die off with Palm.  Someone is going to by them.  It may as well be RIM…

Note To RIM — Buy Palm… Just In Case… is a post from: RIMarkable, the Unofficial BlackBerry Weblog...

Palm reports today the COB and it is expected that they are going to have a pretty big miss on earnings… $0.43-$0.48 per share.  Normally you would see companies stock price in this situate tank, however, Palm has been on an upward journey most of the day.  The reason for this, I’m guessing, is that Palm is a prime takeover target about right now and the rumor mill is churning.

Palm Takeover Rumors Sends Stock Up Even Though Big Miss On The Street Is Expected is a post from: RIMarkable, the Unofficial BlackBerry Weblog...