Sprint Palm users lose the Blazer browser

Tags: Business,  Carriers,  Devices
September 23, 2005 by Barbara
My colleague, owner of a Samsung Palm phone, got an interesting SMS recently:
From: Unknown Callback#: Unknown
Date: 9/21/05 3:36 pm
Message: Important notice from Sprint:Your Blazer browser will not work after 9/22/05.Go to http://web.palm.com/support/blazer/sprint.html to register for a new browser.
When we went to that web page earlier today, we got redirected to the main Palm support page. Not too useful for the owner of a Samsung. However, later this afternoon, the link redirected to a valid page:
Important notice — Blazer 2 discontinuation This courtesy notice is being provided to you in connection with the terms of your Blazer 2 browser end user license agreement. As of September 22, 2005, you will no longer be able to access Internet sites using the Blazer 2 browser. If you would like to download a web browser from Novarra, Inc., please complete the registration form below. You will be sent an email with information and a web link to download a new web browser.
NOTE: Installation from your desktop computer is required. A new browser for Kyocera 6035 users will be available soon.

This was interesting on several fronts.

First, the message came within the context of a discussion about how, with Access's (publisher of mobile browser NetFront) acquisition of PalmSource (owner of the Blazer browser), the Blazer browser probably wouldn't last long. While Palm's interest in Novarra browsers as an alternative is long-standing, that shouldn't affect owners of Kyocera and Samsung Palm devices.

Second, this is unannounced and mishandled, which makes me think it was unexpected. The SMS did not have a good originator (sender) listed, the URL did not work at lunchtime, the lead time was very short, the Blazer browser actually continued to work after the deadline, and there is no browser replacement for Kyocera owners.

Third, the form on the page above had a pull-down list for carrier ... only Sprint is currently listed, but the note about Kyocera users makes me think that other carriers will be added soon.

Fourth, this appears to mark yet another break between Palm and PalmSource - the most recent of which is the announcement of the Treo 700W, a Windows Mobile device. While Access may have plans for the Palm OS, I'm not sure that Palm does. I keep thinking this is corporate suicide: without the Palm OS, what do the devices really offer? Pretty good design and poor quality phones. Sooner or later somebody else is going to figure out how to implement a good user experience and then they could be through.

I remember reviewing the Blazer browser back in 1999; it was by far the best mobile browser out there in terms of user experience. With that sort of lead, they should have been able to dominate the market. They did, and now they don't.


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3 Comments

  1. The Palm madness continues; even people in the electronics trade don’t realise that there’s something out there apart from Pocket PC these days. I finally get a wifi card for my T3 and now no Blazer? The world has gone berserk. “should have been able to dominate the market” how very true
    Never illusioned, but now definitely disillusioned
    DDB

    Comment by Dan Bird — October 31, 2005 @ 5:54 pm

  2. Palm is dying I think. I sell palm devices and every sign is the market is one to get out of. Symbol did a good job of killing the palm by never making a modern device and sort of locking up the palm scanner market in a dead zone. Palm products drop like flies. All customers want Pocket PC now. Lots of good thing perish. Look… we sell this stuff, but we have faced reality. Palm is dying.

    Comment by Mark — November 6, 2005 @ 12:21 am

  3. BTW, found this site while looking for the replacement for Blazer. Sprint dropped the browser with no notice of what to replace it with. Typical Sprint service.

    Comment by Mark — November 6, 2005 @ 12:22 am

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