It is official - the HP iPAQ Pocket PC

[Ed Hansberry]

<a href="http://news.com.com/2100-1001-900824.html?tag=fd_lede">http://news.com.com/2100-1001-900824.html?tag=fd_lede</a><br /><br />"Compaq's popular iPaq PDA will also carry over, but with a new name. The device will be called the HP iPaq Pocket PC." <a href="http://www.usatoday.com/money/tech/2002-05-07-hp-product-cuts.htm">USA Today also has an article on this.</a> "The new product lineup will include: H-P's market-leading printers; <b><i>Compaq's iPaq handhelds</i></b>; H-P's Pavilion and Compaq's Presario consumer personal computers; Compaq's Evo business PC; and Compaq's ProLiant Windows-based servers." They have already updated their front page to reflect the change in handhelds and mentioned it at <a href="http://thenew.hp.com/country/us/eng/mergerinfo/fact_sheet_psg.html">their site.</a> Thanks to the various people that sent in links.<br /><br /><img src="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/images/hpfrontpage.jpg" /><br /><br />Looks like the integration is well under way. In a way, am surprised they kept the name, but given the iPAQ's overwhelming market success, they really had no choice but to keep the iPAQ product.

[entropy1980]

So is the Jornada dead ? Seems odd there would be no talk about the Jornada staying around....
I hope they do take some cues from the Jornada in future Ipaq design.....

[Ed Hansberry]

It would seem so. Any product not living must be dead. The Jornada seems dead as to Compaq RISC/Alpha workstations. They hypted the cost savings too much not to kill off any duplicate product efforts.

[entropy1980]

ok so what of the fabled 57x 928WDA? DOA or will they carry on.... and why do i get the feeling there is a major announcement broiling in the oven (maybe pics/announcement of a new Ipaq or maybe the new Ipaq is the new Jornada as in they are just changing the name of the Jornada to Ipaq!?) thouhgts :D ?

[Jason Dunn]

This is a sad, sad day for Jornada owners. :cry: :cry:

[Ed Hansberry]

Questions I'd like answered:

• Will HP continue to offer the Jornada 700 HPC series?
• Will they continue to offer upgrades/roms/fixes for the Jornada 56x series.
• Will now be a good time to wait for 56x close out prices - a 568 for $300 would be sweet - especially if you can continue to get ROM updates and maybe even Pocket PC 200x whenever that is released.
• Will this be the death (as if it were ever really born) of the so-called Compact Flash Ie card?

[vetteguy]

If they are indeed killing off the Jornada, there are going to be a lot of unhappy people (including myself) who will be so angry that they will no buy a new "hPAQ" either. I'm not spending $900 on a PPC and accessories only to have it removed from the market in 7 months.

[entropy1980]

I am thinking though that maybe it's not really the death but a change of name....a way for them to capitalize on the Ipaq's success through name and market share and maybe these new rumored "Jornadas" are actually the new HP Ipaq.

[RickP in AZ]

So where am I supposed to go for my next PPC? I had a specific list of the features I wanted for my next device:
Xscale
Intergrated CF slot
ClearType capable screen
Swappable battery w/ a hi-cap option
Thumb board and Stowaway options
Screen lid

The 57x was going to be just about perfect but what now? Toshiba, Casio, Fujitsu, and the others don't come close.

The 57x Jornada was supposed to be released on May 15th... Obviously they are already made and sitting somewhere. So they may actually see the light of day but as a dead product. Who's going to pay $600 for a dead line? The only way I'd consider buying one would be at a *major* discount... Anyone want to buy a cutting edge handheld at $350???

Sheesh... hopefully support will continue at least... Though I own and older iPAQ, I feel that the Jornada was the better product for my needs. :-( I *hate* sleeves!

Now to go cry into my coffee...

RickP in AZ

[Ed Hansberry]

I think this deserves one of your "stories" Rick.

[palmsolo]

Although the name will now be the Hp iPaq, I hope that the Jornada is not just killed off. If they were smart they would take the strengths of both (although most lie with the Jornada) or else keep both models going. While the iPaq has name brand recognition, I think it is primarily because they were the first on the block with the 206Mhz processor and after people bought the first iPaqs then they didn't try out the Jornada. I had an iPaq for a short while, but after the Jornada 560 series came out it was no contest. If HP had come out with a 206Mhz Jornada the first year of the Pocket PC release, it may have been a different story today.

I also think if people honestly tried out both devices, the iPaqs market would not be so overwhelming and dominant. The only improvement in the Jornada that Compaq can provide is resoltuion of the dust issue. However, there are many improvements that the iPaq could take from the Jornada (integrated CF, rocker button, rubber sides, integrated flip cover, long life, removeable battery, nice 8 way D pad with button). Sorry, if I am ranting a bit, but I really love the Jornada line and am sad to see it end. At the end of the day, we are all Pocket PC users and I hope some of you iPaq owners can sympathize with us as we mourn the end of an AWESOME device.

I wonder what I will get with my 3 year accidental coverage now if I happen to drop my Jornada in a year?

[Ed Hansberry]

I also think if people honestly tried out both devices, the iPaqs market would not be so overwhelming and dominant.
Why do people think that the 2M iPAQ users were brainwashed or were not allowed to evaluate a Jornada? In both cases, the 540 was out 2 months before the 3600 and the 560 out about 2 months before the 3800's shipped. Yet people waited.

The iPAQ is a love/hate device - you either love it or hate it - no question about it. But if you hate it, don't assume most people would hate it if they just gave the Jornada a chance. :roll:

[I. Bergman]

This is so sad. I'm an electrical engineer by profession and grew up with HP calculators (completely gone), HP oscilloscopes (can't remember that stupid computer-generated name they choose for that branch), now this. All that remains are laptops and the printers that rip you off (can't print black-and-white w/o colour cartridge, Deskjet 970 cxi, switched to Kyocera now). Another 2 years or so and a name that was built over more than 60 years will be gone. Thanks, Carly, you really earn your salary and options.

[claytonlai]

Well, according to the USA Today article, it would seem that HP will be killing off the Jornada line of products.

Quoted from the article:
"Among the product lines that have or will be axed: H-P's handheld model, Jornada; its Vectra business PC; and its Windows-based servers."


http://www.usatoday.com/money/tech/2002-05-07-hp-product-cuts.htm

[fgarcia10]

[/quote]
The iPAQ is a love/hate device - you either love it or hate it - no question about it. :roll:[/quote]

I agree with you. And I must say that I HATE IT!.

:evil:

[Ed Hansberry]

This is so sad. I'm an electrical engineer by profession and grew up with HP calculators (completely gone),

Calc's are here - http://hp-at-home.com/gatewayPages/calculators.htm - I am a happy 17B-II owner. :D

[jpzr]

Well, according to the USA Today article, it would seem that HP will be killing off the Jornada line of products.


Hm, actually I don't believe that whole line of the Jornada's will be killed. I know from unofficial sources that HP has invested a lot money in PocketPC with integrated phones, so actually HP will somehow try to sell these - maybe they will just rebrand it - by putting "iPAQ" logo on these Jornada's...

[Dave Conger]

If HP is going to serve both Compaq and HP PC's to consumers, I wonder why they don't feel they can serve both Compaq and HP Pocket PC's to the public? Maybe it is the state of the economy and they don't want to spend the extra money on two development groups, but I would think they would want to try and keep the "Jornada faithful" happy and the "iPAQ faithful" happy. I don't know how happy some iPAQ lovers will be with an HP iPAQ, nor how happy some Jornada lovers would be with an HP iPAQ. I think they are trying to combine "the best of both worlds" but it doesn't seem like it will work all that well. In some ways, with the merge it would be nice to see both the Compaq and HP teams merge to make a new series Pocket PC that can combine the best of both worlds instead of trying to make Jornada users happy with an iPAQ.

[fgarcia10]

If HP is going to serve both Compaq and HP PC's to consumers, I wonder why they don't feel they can serve both Compaq and HP Pocket PC's to the public? Maybe it is the state of the economy and they don't want to spend the extra money on two development groups, but I would think they would want to try and keep the "Jornada faithful" happy and the "iPAQ faithful" happy. I don't know how happy some iPAQ lovers will be with an HP iPAQ, nor how happy some Jornada lovers would be with an HP iPAQ. I think they are trying to combine "the best of both worlds" but it doesn't seem like it will work all that well. In some ways, with the merge it would be nice to see both the Compaq and HP teams merge to make a new series Pocket PC that can combine the best of both worlds instead of trying to make Jornada users happy with an iPAQ.

Ford Motor Company as GMC had bought others vehicle companies (ie. Volvo, Jaguar, Saab) and they have kept the line of cars these companies make. Some people just won't buy an american luxury car. Plus I'm sure there is a profit. Jornada is a popular brand, maybe there would be more Ipaqs sold, but I doubt that it will be equal to Jornadas sold.

[Terry]

The merger is about profits. Keeping two marginal lines (Jornada and IPAQ) isn't the profit way (pun intended).

The decisions we're seeing are Carly...er clearly...balance-sheet based...if either of the consumer PC lines eclipsed the other, we would see the other line discontinued. I suspect that we'll see the demise of one consumer line or a merger of design (i.e., the same PC with both HP and Compaq "lines" like the Ford Explorer and Mercury Mountaineer) to keep home users happy one line sold at Costco and direct, the other line at CompUSA and Fry's.

So will go the Jornada. I'm reeling at the prospect that my entire IT infrastrucure (at the office) has just been made obsolete (we use Netservers, Vectras, and Jornadas).

[JonnoB]

I also think if people honestly tried out both devices, the iPaqs market would not be so overwhelming and dominant.
Why do people think that the 2M iPAQ users were brainwashed or were not allowed to evaluate a Jornada? In both cases, the 540 was out 2 months before the 3600 and the 560 out about 2 months before the 3800's shipped. Yet people waited.

The iPAQ is a love/hate device - you either love it or hate it - no question about it. But if you hate it, don't assume most people would hate it if they just gave the Jornada a chance. :roll:

I still get the question.. "Is that a PalmPilot or an iPaq" when referring to my 568. Most people don't know the difference from PPC to PPC. I upgraded from an iPaq... and I loved it for a while. I don't hate or love either device. I just hope HP doesn't leave customers in the lurch so soon after a new product was launched. I suspect that the products themselves will be around another 18 months or so, just changing names to iPaq to help build more brand equity.

[Ed Hansberry]

I still get the question.. "Is that a PalmPilot or an iPaq" when referring to my 568.

Exactly. More often than not it is "is that a PalmPilot" but every once in a while, you get an "ipaq" identification when it is a cool color screen - regardless of what PPC it is. Too much cachet in the name iPAQ to do away with the form or name.

I do hope they continue to support the Jornada and offer upgrades for at least 2 years.

[JonnoB]

I do hope they continue to support the Jornada and offer upgrades for at least 2 years.

I suspect that the noise about discontinuing Jornada is more about discontinuing the name as opposed to the product. It will survice long enough.... long enough perhaps to replace both the existing iPaq and Jornada with something significantly better than both.

Although this narrows the competitive field a bit, there are enough new players now to keep HP/Compaq innovating.

[I. Bergman]

"Calc's are here - I am a happy 17B-II owner. "

They may still be around but to my knowledge the whole line is to be cancelled. This was, however, a decade long decline, at least here in Europe. Today all you get in the stores is Casio and TI.

[Ed Hansberry]

I suspect that the noise about discontinuing Jornada is more about discontinuing the name as opposed to the product. It will survice long enough.... long enough perhaps to replace both the existing iPaq and Jornada with something significantly better than both.

The info at HP's roadmap is pretty clear about this. "The Compaq iPAQ™ Pocket PC, re-named the HP iPAQ Pocket PC, will be our smart handheld platform. The best of the current HP Jornada technology will be engineered into the platform. Jornada products will be phased out of the market in 2002. HP will continue to innovate in wireless, mobility and voice technology. HP also will offer the iPAQ Blackberry device for end-to-end wireless e-mail solutions, under the HP brand."

That doesn't sound like a name cancellation. Sounds more like a device cancellation.

[scoble]

Just a note: I work for NEC in their Mobile Solutions division and while I can't announce anything, we are definitely quite interested in the PocketPC market and have a pretty good PocketPC right now (I have an HP which I acquired before I started working at NEC. It's quite nice, but the NEC has more slots and I like the screen better too).

Anyway, nice to be in this group.

--Robert Scoble