Palm Pre & webOS: Early Multitasking That Preceded the iPhone

In 2009, Palm unveiled the Palm Pre, a smartphone that introduced revolutionary features, particularly its webOS operating system. Despite being years ahead of its time, especially in multitasking and gesture-based navigation, Palm ultimately failed to compete with Apple's iPhone, leading to its eventual sale and dissolution. However, webOS found a second life in LG smart TVs.

The Dawn of webOS

At the 2009 Consumer Electronics Show (CES), John Rubenstein, former Apple hardware chief, presented the Palm Pre. A key highlight was the demonstration by designer Matias Duarte, who showcased the phone's ability to run multiple apps simultaneously, stacked like a hand of cards, and switch between them with a simple flick of the thumb. This gesture, now ubiquitous in smartphones, was revolutionary at the time. The Palm Pre's webOS allowed for true multitasking 18 months before the iPhone could run two apps at once, and its gesture-based navigation preceded the iPhone X by eight years.

Apple, which launched the iPhone in 2007, initially defended its single-app focus as a battery-saving choice, with Steve Jobs stating it was difficult to implement multitasking without draining battery life. However, Palm's webOS proved it was possible, showcasing live, running apps that could be easily managed. This innovation rattled Apple, with COO Tim Cook publicly warning against intellectual property infringement shortly after the Palm Pre's unveiling.

Palm's Early Success and Subsequent Decline

Palm Computing was founded in 1992 by Jeff Hawkins, Donna Dubinsky, and Ed Colligan. Hawkins' unique approach involved carrying a block of wood as a prototype to ensure user adoption before writing any code. This led to the creation of the Palm Pilot in 1996, a simple, effective organizer that became a massive success, selling faster than the Sony Walkman.

Palm was sold to US Robotics in 1995, which was then acquired by 3Com in 1997. By 2000, Palm dominated the handheld market with a 65% share and achieved a market valuation of $53 billion after its IPO. However, this peak was short-lived. The dot-com bubble burst, wiping out 98% of Palm's value by 2002.

A critical blow came earlier when 3Com refused to spin out Palm as an independent company in 1998. This led Hawkins, Dubinsky, and Colligan to leave and form Handspring, which licensed Palm's OS and created the rival Visor device, quickly capturing 20% of the market. Palm essentially created its own competitor by alienating its founders.

The market continued to evolve with BlackBerry's focus on wireless email, Microsoft's Windows Mobile, and Nokia's feature-rich phones. Handspring, under its founders, released the Treo in 2002, a successful device combining email, a keyboard, and an organizer.

Palm underwent significant internal turmoil, splitting into hardware (PalmOne) and software (PalmSource) companies in 2003, losing and regaining rights to its name and OS. Eventually, PalmOne acquired Handspring, bringing the founders and the Treo back into the fold. However, the underlying Palm OS was outdated and couldn't multitask effectively.

The iPhone Challenge and Palm's Response

In November 2006, Palm CEO Ed Colligan dismissed rumors of Apple entering the phone market, believing PC makers wouldn't understand the mobile space. Just seven weeks later, Steve Jobs unveiled the iPhone.

Recognizing the threat, Palm sought new leadership and funding. In June 2007, Elevation Partners invested $325 million for a 25% stake, contingent on John Rubenstein joining as executive chairman. Rubenstein, a former Apple executive, was seen as someone who understood Apple's strategy.

The rivalry quickly turned personal. In August 2007, Steve Jobs called Colligan to propose a no-poaching agreement between Apple and Palm, threatening patent lawsuits if Palm refused. Colligan declined, and Jobs specifically accused Rubenstein of recruiting former Apple staff and using inside knowledge, highlighting the financial disparity between the two companies.

Rubenstein swiftly made changes at Palm: - He canceled the Folio, a laptop companion device, before its release. - He hired Matias Duarte in September 2007 to lead the design of a new operating system. - Duarte's team worked in secrecy for 16 months, completely rebuilding Palm's software from scratch. They used a Linux kernel and wrote the entire interface in web code (HTML, CSS, JavaScript), naming it webOS. This was a risky but forward-thinking move, aiming to attract web developers to build apps.

The Palm Pre's Launch and Downfall

The Palm Pre launched on June 6, 2009, with its innovative webOS. However, it faced several critical issues: - Limited Carrier Availability: It launched exclusively on Sprint, a network with limited reach compared to AT&T or Verizon, delaying its wider availability for almost a year. - Hardware Limitations: While webOS was praised as elegant and ahead of its time, the hardware struggled to keep up, leading to stuttering and slow app loading. Palm had designed the OS for a phone it wanted to make, but built the phone within its existing budget constraints. - Lack of Apps: Palm kept developer tools locked away for months, resulting in only 18 apps at launch. In contrast, Apple's App Store launched with over 500 apps and quickly grew to tens of thousands. - Confusing Marketing: The advertising campaign for the Palm Pre was abstract and failed to clearly showcase the phone's unique features, leaving consumers confused.

By the time hardware improvements were made in later versions, the moment had passed.

HP's Acquisition and the End of Palm

In 2010, Palm was put up for sale again. HP (Hewlett-Packard) acquired it in April for $1.2 billion, largely due to CTO Phil McKinney's belief in webOS as superior mobile technology. However, HP's CEO resigned shortly after the deal, and his replacement, Leo Apotheker, had little interest in consumer hardware.

HP launched the TouchPad, a webOS tablet, on July 1, 2011. Despite being priced at $499, it was a commercial disaster, selling only 25,000 units out of 270,000 shipped. Just 49 days after its launch, Apotheker killed webOS entirely, a decision made while McKinney was recovering from surgery. Apotheker himself was fired 35 days later. Rubenstein later called the HP deal a waste.

webOS's Unexpected Rebirth

In 2013, LG quietly acquired the remnants of webOS. LG wasn't interested in phones but sought to improve its struggling smart TV platform. Matias Duarte's card interface, originally designed for a phone, proved to be an excellent foundation for a TV interface viewed from a couch. Today, LG's webOS is a top-ranked smart TV platform, known for its smoothness and reliability. While recent versions have faced criticism for lag, ads, and privacy concerns, LG has also licensed webOS to other TV manufacturers.

Palm's story is a testament to how innovation alone doesn't guarantee market success. Despite inventing features that became standard in billions of smartphones, Palm ultimately lost to Apple's superior financial resources, hardware, retail presence, and app ecosystem. The next time you multitask or swipe away an app on your smartphone, remember the pioneering spirit of webOS.