02-18-2004, 11:00 AM
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Swami
Join Date: Feb 2004
Posts: 4,303
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Psion Back in the PDA Business?
Heads up all you Psion fans, the UK firm could be back in the PDA business again! Now that Psion has sold it�s share in Symbian to Nokia, they may be getting back to the business of cranking out PDAs again. 8) "Symbian is the property of Nokia - and (to a lesser extent) three other phone makers, Panasonic, Siemens, and Sony Ericsson - and Psion thinks there's more to life than phones."
Only thing is, they may well be Linux PDAs: "� we see it as going way beyond Microsoft, being much wider than that. We see Linux as being very interesting, not only in terms of technology, but also in market dynamics". :?
"The key to Psion's involvement in Windows CE, is simply that it's a much more compact, responsive, and more mobile environment than Windows XP. And Linux, they think, is even more so. The irony, of course, is that when Motorola pulled out of Symbian late last year one of the reasons it gave was its desire to launch a Linux phone. But Psion won't - actually, can't - compete with Symbian in phones. Instead, it sees the value of Linux as giving the world a smaller, more reliable and more portable personal computer".
This Inquirer article goes into a bit more details about the issues involved: "The question is - having once been the leading supplier of consumer orientated handhelds in Europe - can Psion rebuild its distribution channel again? Potter appears to have forgotten that the reason given for cancelling its consumer range three years ago (the company still sells industrial handhelds through Teklogix) was that there was no demand for a Bluetooth enabled successor to the Psion 5."
"So will dispensing with the need to pay royalties to Symbian save enough money to make Psion's new generation of robust mobile devices competitive? Potter claims his company will launch a sub-notebook by Q3 2004 and a handheld with a miniature keyboard shortly afterwards."
So, what are they cooking up for us? Sounds intriguing! I�m very fond of Psion � I went through a Psion 3, Sienna, Revo and Psion Revo Plus and was considering a 5MX, before ending up with a Pocket PC. I look forward to seeing what they come up with. As the Inq says "One thing is true � Psion still has a very loyal set of users."
Just imagine what that Psion design flair teamed up with Pocket PC 2004 could produce! :sunny: It�s a thought anyway......
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02-18-2004, 11:34 AM
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Intellectual
Join Date: Sep 2002
Posts: 145
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NO... imagine Psion hardware running Linux! That is a tasty proposition...
Psion always designed fantatsic hardware (actually design was by Therefore who are partly owned by Psion) - imagine that great industrial design but updated with modern technology!
Psion were way ahead of the game and sadly the market with regard to Bluetooth. I remember sitting in brainstorms at Psion probably 4-5 years ago discussing applications for BT - shame it's taken the world so long to catch up.
So how about a Revo style device running Linux - with a colour screen that rotates in a tablet style, Bluetooth, optional WiFi, modern battery technology and a decent syncing app (remember how bad PsiWin was!).
I think that Windows Mobile will be used on the Teklogix devices but that we will (hopefully) see Psion PDAs running Linux.
Distribution channel isn't as vital as it was in the old Psion days; they should at long last follow a direct sales route. Psion had started to manufacture in the East towards the end of their PDA production so production costs won't be prohibitive - companies such as HTC could produce a Psion PDA easily.
The biggest question is has Psion got the nerve and the desire?
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02-18-2004, 12:37 PM
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Mystic
Join Date: Dec 2003
Posts: 1,639
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I saw an ad for a Windows CE Psion just yesterday. It looks very much like the Handheld Products (HHP) devices and is obviously intended for the enterpnse market. I'm very interested in this because my company sells HHP and Symbol products.
Certainly here in the US. having a comprehensive distribution channel is essential. It is rare that these kinds of device are purchased directly from the OEM.
I'm going to try and get a demo Psion to check out.
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02-18-2004, 12:46 PM
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Swami
Join Date: Feb 2004
Posts: 4,303
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I'm looking forward to new Psion hardware *whatever* OS they use.
I agree with Zensbikeshop, it'll probably be Linux, but a man can dream can't he? :wink:
Yes, let us sit and tell sad, sad tales of PsiWin :bad-words: :soapbox: What a joke that was! :jester:
So - Psion. Nice hardware, interesting OS, shame about the supporting SW?
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02-18-2004, 12:50 PM
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Intellectual
Join Date: Sep 2002
Posts: 145
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The netBook used to be sold via VARs; it wasn't intended to be sold directly to the public. I'm assuming the netBook Pro is the same as it's an Enterprise device.
I was talking more about enduser PDAs than the Teklogix gear.
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02-18-2004, 01:05 PM
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Theorist
Join Date: Dec 2004
Posts: 291
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:drool: I can just imagine a meld of my Psion Series 5mx and my iPAQ 5450
I suppose my only concern would be that the software available for a Linux PDA might be limited compared to the PPC.
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02-18-2004, 01:45 PM
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Theorist
Join Date: Dec 2004
Posts: 291
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Quote:
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Originally Posted by Jonathon Watkins
I'm looking forward to new Psion hardware *whatever* OS they use.
I agree with Zensbikeshop, it'll probably be Linux, but a man can dream can't he? :wink:
Yes, let us sit and tell sad, sad tales of PsiWin :bad-words: :soapbox: What a joke that was! :jester:
So - Psion. Nice hardware, interesting OS, shame about the supporting SW?
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Yer these ActiveSync users have life easy compare to PsiWin, at least ActiveSync allows you to connect even if it is as a Guest  With PsiWin I was getting like 1 in 20 connect success, most of my time spent staring at the blue and red symbol reaching out to the Psion on the little connection dialog. But it did have that Psion to PC Copy and Paste system, I wish that was available on the PPC
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02-18-2004, 01:46 PM
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Oracle
Join Date: Dec 2003
Posts: 830
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i never liked psion due to their devices having symbian. If they would release something with palm os or linux, that would be interesting.
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02-18-2004, 03:01 PM
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Pupil
Join Date: Dec 2003
Posts: 33
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Arnage2 - that was the best part!! The Epoc/Symbian OS was (and still is) so far ahead of WinCE... Infinitely more stable, faster, many more features. I only left because software support was waning and the price point of the Axim was just too tempting. I imagine their Linux flavor would be similarly robust. I would go back in a heartbeat, and even faster for a decent Revo/5 style keyboard.
I'll stay tuned here for news... :mrgreen:
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02-18-2004, 03:18 PM
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Sage
Join Date: Mar 2004
Posts: 734
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Epoc was certainly ahead of its time. Too bad Psion's devices weren't all that interesting or revolutionary hardware wise. Psion was still stuck on greyscale when the Ipaq was already doing 240x320 backlighted color screens 8O Hell, they were even more outdated then Palm was back then...
Still, you'll have difficulty finding more devoted fans of Psion. Hell, I own 2 - a Siena and a Revo Plus. I don't use them because they're a bit too bulky and outdated, but still.... it's a Psion.
If they do make end user, Linux powered, large screen PDA's - I'll be first in line to buy one.
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