The whole world in your Palm

Once the darling of the telecommunications scene, and the stock market, Palm Inc. changed the world. It introduced the first mobile, digital planner/communications device. In the pre-smartphone age, Palm Pilots were first a novelty and then, a necessity. When the company branched into mobile phones it was responsible for one of the first smartphones on the market.

But the golden age came to an end when smartphones evolved and Palm did not. And thus, it, like a three year-old iPhone battery, died. The tech has been consigned to the annals of history, but the brand lives on. Not a resurrection, but a new proposition, the Palm has returned.

The company is a new one, using an old name. It’s offering a sort of piggyback, miniaturised mobile that allows ubermobile users to leave their bulkier smartphones behind. Tech reviewers are busy debating the usefulness and target market of the new Palm. But, in terms of brand, the new look is a solid update on the classic.

The mobile itself will likely find a market due to its unique positioning. However the challenge and benefit for the company is its use of the Palm moniker. At once a bestower of heritage and authority, Palm is also representative of a groundbreaking company that couldn’t adapt fast enough to the new rules of a game it set in motion. However, for a relative startup in a highly competitive market, putting the authority of a name like Palm behind the product may see the company put its mobiles in the palms of many consumers.

The Palm website says, “Palm is back and ready to change the game again. The original PalmPilot made your computer mobile, now we’re making smartphones truly mobile again. We have embraced Palm’s innovative spirit and created a new ultra-mobile device that keeps you connected and present at the same time.”

Palm – now owned by a pair of entrepreneurs – has unveiled a sleek logo that helps set out the new company’s unique proposition. Comprised simply of the uppercase letters PALM, the square shaped logo is ready made for digital. The system is rounded out by a high-end feel and glamorous, on-the-go lifestyle imagery. The photos highlight the phone’s usefulness as a highly mobile gadget that allows for connectivity at all times.