Foleo mobile companions work with Palm's Treo smartphones (Palm OS and Windows Mobile versions). However, the folks at Palm say that most smartphones based on Windows Mobile should work with little or no modification and that smartphones based on operating systems from Apple, Research in Motion and Symbian "likely can be supported with a modest software effort." The Foleo's synchronization architecture is open, and Palm expects to work with third-party developers to support as many smartphones as possible.

Foleo and its paired smartphone stay synchronized throughout the day or at the touch of a button. This combination is for productivity-minded business people who want a more complete mobile solution for email, attachments and access to the web, says Jeff Hawkins, founder of Palm and the man behind the Foleo's concept and definition.

The Foleo mobile companion turns on and off instantly and features a battery that lasts up to five hours of use. Its applications include email, full-screen web browser, and editors or viewers for common business documents such as Word, Excel, PowerPoint and PDF files. The Foleo stays synchronized via Bluetooth wireless technology and uses the smartphone's radio or the Foleo's built-in Wi-Fi radio for general Internet connectivity.

Although designed primarily as a companion to a mobile phone, Foleo is a computer on its own, Hawkins says. Its Linux-based operating system and built-in Wi-Fi radio make it easy for developers to create new applications that can be installed with a single click in the browser, he adds. The Foleo has a USB port, video-out port, headphone jack, and slots for SD and compact flash cards for memory expansion.

U.S. availability for the Palm Foleo mobile companion will begin this summer. The price of the Foleo mobile companion is expected to be US$499 after an introductory $100 rebate. For more information go [url=http://www.palm.com/seefoleo]here[/url].

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