MemoWare Features is an editorial column covering a variety of topics related to PDAs and handheld computing.
All opinions expressed are those of the author and not necessarily shared by MemoWare or Handmark, Inc.

 May 13, 2002 -- Kenneth Rhee's Clie Corner: Sony at Crossroads?

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity . . . Charles Dickens, A Tale of Two Cities.

Yes, this is the best of times for Sony Clie users. Two new devices are finally released in US to rather favorable reviews. Bigger, faster, and more . . .those are the descriptions befitting the new devices from Sony. However, a recent Business Week article about Sony on March 11, 2002 talked about Sony's great innovation, but its troubling bottom line: "Sony remains a consumer-electronics company--and that sector continues to sink in economic quicksand." Furthermore, with new devices with ARM processors with new Palm OS 5 looming in the background (is it foolish to release another device with a short life span) and a competition from other Palm OS manufacturers such as Handspring with their Treo phone PDA's (incredulity--got to try it to believe it), Sony cannot rest on its past or current laurels.

In my last column, I contemplated about a "super" device that meets the needs of every user I can think of, but of course, it is not realistic to expect to have all those features clammed into one device that still meets my pocket and weight test. Furthermore, it also has to meet my new "absent-mindedness" test: "Oh, I forgot to recharge my Clie last night and now it's pretty much dead." Given that it's not possible to have "the ideal device," what might be next for Sony?

When Clie was first introduced, everyone asked two questions: what does Clie mean, and how do you pronounce it? I think most people have learned to pronounce Clie the right way, but the acronym still escapes most people: Communication, Link, Information, Entertainment. I think therein lies the problem or dilemma Sony faces.

As far as I am concerned, the current Clie (including NR-70V) falls short of meeting the Clie acronym. Yes, built-in MP3 players and camera definitely help, but I have seen and heard people complaining about how the recent devices (including T-615) are not game friendly at all (mostly button shapes and configuration). Also if I want to be entertained, I would love to see movies, listen to the radio and watch TV. Right now either you can't do any of these or it's not practical in terms of processor speed and storage size (too slow to play and too small to store the movies).

Sony has not also done a good job with communication, I am afraid. Right now I have a cable from Clie connected to my Motorola Startec. I can surf the web around 14.4 Kbps and download/upload e-mails. However, it's agonizingly slow. Obviously you cannot blame Sony for slower speed, but Sony hasn't made it easy to connect to the web or access our e-mails. In fact, it's so cumbersome to use my Clie and cell phone with the cable that I only use it when I absolutely have to. I had a chance to play with my colleague's Treo for a few days, and I have to say it was a whole new experience for me.

Now Sony obviously is counting on its Bluetooth module (soon to be available in US) and Ericsson phones (given their relationship with Ericsson), but it was so much more convenient to carry one small device for a change--my two-day experience with Treo has convinced me of this. I am not ready to trade in high resolution and expansion capability for that; however, I have to say if someone is going to come out with a Treo-like device with color, high resolution, and expansion capability, I think most people would be gravitating toward that direction. Also a lack of dual card slots makes inconvenient to use the Bluetooth card. I do not want to take the card in and out every time I want to use the wireless capability either. Furthermore, more and more my readers are asking about Wi-Fi (802.11b) capability in Sony devices.

It seems with the recent introduction of top-end Clie products, Sony might be going after the low price-elastic high-end PDA market--the early adopters and technology savvy market segment. However, Sony cannot ignore the corporate market. So, starting with T615, they started to include a copy of Document to Go with their devices. This was definitely a shift in their strategy from earlier models including 760C. As we know already, PC is becoming a consumer commodity in recent days. You can buy a Pentium IV Dell desktop machine for around $619 these days (including monitor). I think when an average consumer sees a Clie NR70V retailing for $599, I think he/she would think twice before purchasing it. So, it's obvious that NR-70(v) devices are not targeted for average consumers.

Despite all the excitement about high-end Sony's, Sony also cannot ignore the low-end market. More and more young people who are computer literate will be using a PDA for their organizing and computing. Palm's best sellers have been their low end devices: M1xx series. Palm's strategy on this is to get the consumers hooked on the low-end device first (i.e., cost effective versions), and as they move onto higher-end devices (i.e., more expensive and profitable), they will stick with the Palm brand.

According to the latest marketing data, Sony ranks #4 among PDA manufacturers with the world-wide market share of 7.7%. The number sounds "small" compared to Palm's leading 39%, but if you consider Sony as a new player (their real serious PDA (Clie 710C) only came out about a year ago), that is astounding. Their worldwide shipment grew 257.1% last year to support that claim (IDC report, April 22, 2002). So, it's not too shabby if you ask me, but I really think the game is afoot right now. Handspring seems to be banking on the proliferation of integrated devices (cell phone+PDA combination). Sony seems to be targeting the high end consumer market with emphasis on its technological innovation. Palmsource is charging forward with OS5, and Palm (hardware division) is gearing up for wireless devices and Arm processor driven PDA's.

If you think it's all confusing, join the camp. I'm not sure anybody knows what is going to happen in the future. Perhaps Sony's strengths in innovation and consumer electronics might be a winning combination for the future, but it's anyone's guess at this point. One thing that is for sure is someone is going to emerge as a standard (just like MS Windows and Intel for PC), and I sure hope it's going to be Palm OS and Sony is going to be a key player. I'm not sure if any of my prognostications will come true, but in the meantime, let us enjoy the ride.

Let me know what your thoughts are on this at clieandbeyond@fuse.net

Next week: Something new on the horizon...

Past Features:
• April 22, 2002 -- Kenneth Rhee...New Clies on the horizon and beyond?
• April 15, 2002 -- Craig previews some new PDA-related hardware & devices
• April 1, 2002 -- The Pocket Goddess Speaks...on Wasting Time with your PDA
• March 25, 2002 -- Kenneth Rhee...in search of the Holy Grail of high-res programs
• March 11, 2002 -- The Gadgeteer looks at some interesting accessories for Palm PDAs
• March 4, 2002 -- Craig clears up some confusion about PDA document formats
• February 25, 2002 -- The Pocket Goddess speaks about a bright future for PDAs
• February 18, 2002 -- Kenneth Rhee examines a disturbance in the PDA universe
• February 11, 2002 -- Craig goes to PalmSource 2002 and likes what he sees
• February 4, 2002 -- The Gadgeteer looks at hard case options for m500 series Palm PDAs