Sony May Be Considering Pocket PCs

Sony was once the second biggest producer of Palm OS handhelds. But it broke the hearts of many long-time Clie users by announcing in June that it was going to stop releasing handhelds outside of its home country of Japan. Now there's an unconfirmed report that this company may be considering a return to the world market, but with handhelds running a different operating system.

When Sony made its big announcement at the beginning of this summer, it never said it would produce no more handhelds. Instead, it said it wouldn't release any more outside of Japan for the rest of this year. This leaves the door open for possible New Handhelds on the world market next year.

According to Om Malik on Broadband, Sony is contemplating a switch to Windows Mobile or the Symbian OS.

One of the reasons Sony gave for its announcement in June was declining sales of handhelds. According to the new report, this wasn't actually the reason. Instead, it is supposedly unhappy with the direction PalmSource is taking the Palm OS. No details were given as to what exactly Sony executives are supposed to be unhappy about.

Also, this report indicates that Sony executives were worried about the way both Pocket PCs and Symbian smartphones have cut into the Palm OS's share of the market. The Palm OS, which once dominated the handheld market, is now just slightly ahead of Windows Mobile in market share.

The Om Malik on Broadband article does not say that Sony will definitely release a new generation of handhelds, only that Sony executives are watching the market and considering their options.

Thanks to Engadget for the tip.

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