AllThingsD » Aberdeen Group

Windows Mobile 6.5: Instant Classic

John Paczkowski — Thu, 18 Feb 2010 21:41:06 +0000

“Windows Mobile 6.5 isn’t just a letdown–it barely seems done….[It’s] an OS that hasn’t been fundamentally changed in years, and which bears a strong resemblance to Windows Mobile 6.1, and a startlingly not-weak resemblance to PocketPC.”

– Gizmodo’s John Herman in “Windows Mobile 6.5 Review: There’s No Excuse For This”

If “Windows Phone” is to be the new designation for Microsoft’s mobile OS, the company can’t afford to have four-month-old Windows Mobile 6.5 muddle its branding. So the company is renaming it. The rumored moniker: “Windows Phone Classic.”

An obvious choice, I suppose, if it is indeed a choice–Microsoft (MSFT) refused to confirm this, telling me it hasn’t yet made any “final branding decisions” on Windows Phones 6.x; my sources tell me differently. But it’s entirely ironic given that the definition of “classic” according to Merriam-Webster is variously “serving as a standard of excellence,” “of recognized value,” and “historically memorable.” Windows Mobile 6.5 is none of these; well, it might be “historically memorable,” but if it is, it’s for the wrong reasons.

In any event, the rebranding is a wise move. As widely disparaged as it has been, Windows Mobile 6.5 is still widely used, particularly in enterprise. A December 2009 survey by Aberdeen Group showed 63 percent of respondents using the operating system, second only to BlackBerry’s 74 percent. Given that and the enterprise world’s general aversion to early adoption, continued legacy support of WinMo 6.5 is essential.

Palm Pre Ready for Launch

John Paczkowski — Tue, 19 May 2009 20:25:34 +0000

[ See post to watch video ]

Palm Pre: $199 After a $100 Rebate We Hope You Lose

John Paczkowski — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:08:51 +0000

“[The Pre is ] extremely competitively priced.”

– Sprint exec. Kevin Packingham

The great truism about rebates is that anything less than 100 percent redemption is free money for the companies offering them. That’s something Palm and Sprint are clearly counting on as they bring Palm’s new Pre handset to market with a $100 rebate.

The companies tout the Pre’s selling price as $199, but really that’s a bit disingenuous. If you intend to buy one, you still have to walk into the store with $299. Sure, you’ll be given that rebate, but Palm (PALM) and Sprint (S) are both hoping you won’t use it. And statistically speaking, you may not. Sahir Anand, Research Director at Aberdeen Group, says rebate redemption rates among the 175 organizations he recently surveyed were just 58 percent. Customers who failed to submit their rebates either found them too cumbersome or simply forgot about them. And that can end up being quite profitable for the companies that issue them. Consider this: In 2004, TiVo (TIVO) promised customers a $100 mail-in rebate within six to eight weeks of the purchase of a new DVR. About 50,000 of the 104,000 eligible for that offer failed to take advantage of it. That saved TiVo about $5 million.

How much might Palm and Sprint save on the Pre rebate program? It’s impossible to say with any degree of specificity, but certainly enough to raise the average selling price of the device above $199. Perhaps even well above it, if Aberdeen’s metrics are borne out.