By Bob Freud
The crowd around me in Ricardo's Pizzeria couldn't have cared less about my calzones. They were mesmerized by my new Palm VII, shown in Figure A. People started to notice when I put up the antenna. While waiting for my meal, I sent email to a friend. Some patrons saw this and then watched me download the latest headlines from ABC News. The talk turned to price. "Only $600? I would have expected to pay more," was one reaction. The people I talked to all agreed that the price was reasonable.
FIGURE A
The Palm VII looks a lot like a Palm III or Palm IIIx -- until you raise the antenna. (click for larger image)
The Palm VII was released only in the New York area. [We find it a bit troubling that this device is only sold in the New York metro area, even though the company claims wireless coverage throughout the US, as shown in Figure B. -- DG]
FIGURE B
Wireless functionality appears to be available in many parts of the US. (click for larger image)
[Even though coverage is shown to be available throughout much of the country, Palm.Net indicates that a percentage of the coverage is "outdoor only". As Figure C shows, the dark-brown areas near Denver, for example, are where you can get coverage while both indoors and out. The light-brown areas indicate regions where you'll have to put on your galoshes to check your email. -- DG]
FIGURE C
You may need to enjoy a walk in the park to use your Palm VII's wireless functionality. (click for larger image)
The Palm VII looks much like a Palm III. In fact, it fits into the same cradle. It runs all the Palm applications that my old Palm III runs. But once the antenna on the right side of the device is lifted up, the device becomes a networked device, wirelessly connected to the rest of the world. The Palm VII can send and receive email and also retrieve information from the Internet.
Wireless Palm
The Palm VII doesn't use a modem to connect you to the world. Instead, a battery operated radio transmitter/receiver is built into each unit. It allows you to connect only to Palm.Net, which runs on the Bell South wireless network. Applications running on Palm.Net have a pretty good idea of who you are and where you are geographically located. By using a proxy IP address and determining the closest antenna to you, Palm.Net can tell a content provider your identity and approximate the location from where you are transmitting.
Web clipping
For a clearer picture of the Palm VII user experience, don't think about traditional Web browsing. Instead consider 3Com's new Web clipping metaphor. It's like getting a newspaper clipping rather than the whole newspaper. When it works well, just the information you need is retrieved.
