Lots of Regular People Still Use Palm Treos (Happily)

The biggest buzz out of the CES this year was the introduction (finally) of an update to the Palm Treo. Of course the Palm Pre is being compared to the most popular handhelds, the iPhone and the various Blackberry models. It is logical to compare them, since the people who enjoy discussing these things on our technology blogs are usually first adapters. They already have an iPhone or Blackberry, so it is a logical comparison.

But when we see sales growth for Smartphones, we see exactly that – sales. In other words, we see the NEW sales. I’ve searched and cannot find any comparable numbers for Smartphones already in use. I’m talking about the ones regular people use – the people who don’t count the days till their contract is up so they can buy a new one, or carry two handhelds with them, or pay full price because they must have the newest, or buy (or care) about unlocked products. Because I think a lot of people still use Treos. Way more than anyone realizes.

I read a great news story today about a carjacker being caught by the car’s owner. While drowning his sorrows with his friends after his car was stolen, he realized he left his phone in the car. His friends sent a text message to the phone detailing a place he should go where there would be women etc, so that it would appear to be sent to the car owner. The carjackers went to the location, and they were caught. There was a slideshow showing the phone (which was in a nice new BMW) – and what do you know. The phone was a Treo.

Yes I believe it. There are TONS of people out there who were married to the Palm OS when it first came out, either via Palm Pilot or Handspring or Treo, who just aren’t like us tech junkies. They are in a comfort zone and it does everything they need it to do, why switch? Even my husband, despite our kids and myself having nothing but iPhones and Blackberries, still carries his Treo.

Lots of regular people – smart people with great careers or people who like to buy upscale cars like BMWs just don’t care about the SDK (Software Developer Kit) or the variety of applications that will be available in the Palm App Store. They just want to keep using the ones they are using without having to give them up. A whole new learning curve is not worth it to many outside our circle of gadget junkies (like myself). But for a new PALM, they will probably make the switch. No data migration, no “how will I get my Palm stuff on an iPhone”, no matter how easy it would be. My husband would never leave his ePocrates medical application (drug interactions), still only available in its robust subscription form with Palm OS. Other than that, it’s about simple functions. Addresses, phone calls, text, maybe some pictures. He would never take the time to learn something new when the old technology works just fine thank you.

I would love to see the percentage of people still using Palms. I don’t know if such a thing exists, because we don’t know how many people have been hanging on to them happily. We only see new sales figures each year. I am disappointed that once again, they will have a 6-month exclusive with Sprint, which will prohibit widespread adaption quickly. But it will happen. I suspect the Pre will be a big hit.