It had better be. As companies rush to converge the Internet with anything electrically powered–cell phones, TVs, videogame consoles, refrigerators–Microsoft needs to make sure it remains viable in what many refer to as the post-PC future. That’s why Microsoft president Steve Ballmer chose to personally unveil the company’s latest effort, dubbed the Pocket PC, at New York’s Grand Central Terminal last week. “For the last 25 years,” he said, “we talked about putting a computer on every desk and in every home. That was our mission. Now we talk about empowering people through great software, any time, any place and on any device.” And Ballmer knows that Microsoft has to step up its game quickly. “We’ve not had the kind of presence and success in this marketplace that we wish we’d had,” he said, candidly acknowledging the company’s failures.
The Pocket PC operating system, which runs on handhelds manufactured by Hewlett-Packard, Casio and Compaq, is an improvement over previous versions of Windows CE. The datebook, address book and to-do list are finally on par with Palm’s, especially if you use Microsoft Outlook to read mail on your PC. In addition to the onscreen keyboard, they’ve added more natural handwriting recognition (though anyone who writes like a doctor will want to stick with the keyboard). It’s not all work and no play: there’s Microsoft Reader for easy-on-the-eyes e-books; Media Player for digital music or video, and Internet Explorer for graphical Web browsing. And what Microsoft product would be complete without Solitaire?
Unfortunately, there are still several annoying problems. For all its self-flagellation about previous versions of Win CE, Microsoft remains wedded to the idea that a Windows-like interface can succeed on a small screen. It didn’t before, and it doesn’t now. Where Palm successfully created a transparent interface that rarely gets in your way, we found ourselves constantly tripped up by Pocket PC. Microsoft moved the Start button from its familiar position at the bottom of the screen to the top, yet selections like “Edit” and “Tools” remain along the bottom. Options like “Define” and “Auto Assign Applications” turn up on certain menus with no hint as to what they mean. The end result: we were often desperately tapping around the screen, praying that our familiarity with Windows would help out. It did–about half the time. At $499 to $599 per device (compared with $149 to $449 for Palm PDAs), Pocket PC handhelds will have a tough time faring any better than their predecessors.
Meanwhile, the competition marches on. Research In Motion, whose Blackberry pager has been praised for its ability to wirelessly manage office e-mail, just announced a Palm-size version. And Palm’s newly installed CEO, Carl Yankowski, isn’t resting on the company’s laurels or its successful IPO. A self-described “gadget freak” who hangs onto his old radio-controlled airplanes, he’s recruited former Sony and Apple executives to help maintain a consumer-centric approach. “If Microsoft could demonstrate a sensitivity to the end user, they’d be powerful beyond their wildest dreams,” Yankowski told NEWSWEEK. “But it’s not in their DNA.” Instead of fighting Microsoft over flashy features, he’s focusing on a handful of key areas: wireless connectivity, instant messaging, e-mail notification, voice integration and secure e-commerce. And before Christmas, Yankowski promises, there will be an even lower-cost Palm aimed at the Gen Y market. Until Microsoft figures out how to make form follow function, Pocket PC won’t be lining Bill Gates’s pockets for some time to come.
