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Low-end Palm Zire released
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By Larry Garfield, Monday 7 October 2002  
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Palm's new low-end model is here. The new model under-impresses on features, but impresses where it matters most to many users: it's the lowest release price ever for a Palm OS device.
Palm is pushing farther down market to target previously untapped users with its new $99 USD Zire model, the first PDA from a major manufacturer to debut under $100. Although its feature set is limited, the Zire is the lightest Palm OS device ever and is aimed at first time users who do not need the advanced features of most manufacturer's product lines.
 | Palm's Zire, a blast from the past to woo first-time buyers
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The Zire measures 111 x 73.6 x 16 mm and is a feather-weight at just 109 grams. The case is a polished white front with a silvery back, reminiscent of the Apple iPod or iMac neo-industrial design. It also does not use the Palm Universal connector common to the rest of Palm's line, or any traditional handheld connector. Instead, it has a mini-USB port on the top of the device, along with an AC port and IR port. That makes it incompatible with existing Palm expansion devices. However, Palm does not consider those to be of interest to its target market. A mini-USB cable is included.
The screen on the Zire is a grayscale 160x160 pixels, measuring 45.7 mm on a side. It is also the first Palm OS device since the original Pilot line to lack a backlight, a move intended to keep costs down and battery life up. Inside the case is a 16 MHz Dragonball EZ processor, another blast from the past, along with 2 MB of RAM. Unlike previous low-end models, the Zire comes with a rechargeable Lithium Ion battery rather than replaceable AAA batteries, intended to make the device easier (and in the long run cheaper) for end users to keep powered. It also lacks an expansion card slot.
Zire runs Palm OS 4.1, and comes with the standard Palm PIM apps; Date Book, Address book, ToDo List, and Palm Note Pad. However, only two of them have front-panel buttons, a first for Palm handhelds. There are only two application buttons on the front, which default to the Date Book and Address book. According to Palm, those are the two PIM apps most used by the typical user. Also included is Palm Desktop and Chapura Pocket Mirror for desktop synchronization on Windows or Mac, and a few simple games.
Unlike most recent models, which have tried to packed more features into smaller packages in the hopes of wooing high-end and returning customers, the Zire is targeted at first-time, organizer-focused users. Palm is pushing the Zire at students, price-sensitive consumers, and users that would otherwise be more interested in dedicated electronic organizers. The Zire offers the same PIM functionality as such dedicated devices but offers desktop synchronization and just enough memory to tease users with the power and flexibility of the Palm platform. It may also be the last nail in the coffin for paper organizers, which until recently have still cost less than electronic handhelds. It is a return to the original goal of the Palm, for people who "just want to organize their lives". It should also help a push into academic markets, where most students (and their parents) have very limited budgets.
The Zire is available for sale now from Palm's web store for $99 USD, and should be appearing on shelves immediately at stores world-wide.
Additional hi-res pictures of the Palm Zire are available on the following pages.
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| Hands-on impressions, news, reviews, prices and release dates; now all-in-one-page: |
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| Hands-on impressions, news, reviews, prices and release dates; now all-in-one-page: |
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