Way, way back in 2009 we were all left to the mercy of Palm and Sprint, as the two companies worked together to launch the Palm Pre into the wild. What looked like just "another slider phone" quickly turned into something much more, and webOS became one of the best mobile operating systems on the market. We'd see devices like the Pre 2 and the Pixi find their way out the door later, and, if you're anything like me, that Pixi smartphone surprised you quite a bit.
webOS is one of those things from the past that I wish would make a huge comeback. Just surprise everyone with not only a stable, super user-friendly user interface, but also plenty of developer support for its burgeoning app store. The latter would probably be impossible these days (just look at Windows 10 Mobile), but the former seems like it could be possible.
Will it happen? Probably not. But I can't help but start wishing when I hear that TCL is going to launch a Palm-branded smartphone later this year.
That news arrived earlier tonight, and I was a little bummed to see that there wasn't much in the way of details at the time. There still isn't: we don't know what this phone will look like, what it might feature, and what operating system it's going to be running. But of course the likely bet --the safest bet-- is that the new Palm phone is going to be running Android.
I am oddly still excited to see Palm resurrected into the smartphone market, even if we'll ultimately see "just another Android phone". But I've got hope that the new Palm smartphone will be something worthwhile, even if we're just looking at newer BlackBerry-branded smartphones. TCL has been doing some solid work there, so I'm hoping we see the same thing with the Palm brand.
But, all that being said, I have to ask: do you want a Palm smartphone? By now I imagine most of you have picked your favorite smartphones manufacturer(s), and while Palm is definitely a recognizable brand for some of us, it might not be for everyone. Getting someone to replace their Samsung smartphone for a Palm device would take some legendary marketing and hardware specs, I think.
In an unrealistic vision of the future, I'd throw money at my computer screen if TCL announced a new Palm smartphone with an updated version of webOS on board, with all the necessary apps ready to go right out of the gate. But, while I'm still excited to see which hardware design comes to light later this year, I can't help but be a bit skeptical if a new Palm phone is going to make any impact at all.
What do you think? Do you think TCL will launch a high-end flagship smartphone with the Palm brand? Or will we see a mid-range, or even an entry-level smartphone launched into the market? Are you excited for a Palm phone running Android? What design do you want to see: Pre or Pixi? Let me know!
