TCL to revive the iconic Palm brand, first Android smartphone to launch later this year: Report

It shouldn’t come as a big surprise to see that TCL is reviving the Palm brand. Back in 2015, Chinese technology company TCL bought the Palm brand. TCL did not, however, acquired WebOS, Palm’s last preparatory mobile OS before its demise. HP, the PC maker, first acquired WebOS, and then sold it to LG, which uses the operating system to power its smart TVs.

Interestingly, TCL is the same company which has got the rights to manufacture and distribute BlackBerry-branded mobile phones globally. Not surprisingly all BlackBerry-branded smartphones run on Android mobile OS. In August last year, a TCL executive confirmed that the company was planning to launch a Palm-branded smartphone in 2018. The company, however, didn’t exactly mention when the device will hit the market.

For those who’re not aware, Palm was a successful brand in the 90s and early 2000s. The company rose to fame with its Personal Digital Assistants (PDAs) and later it enjoyed success with smartphones with a built-in keyboard. But the arrival of the Apple iPhone in 2007 and a bevy of touchscreen smartphones, the Palm brand lost its mojo. In 2009, Palm did try to throttle the iPhone with its Pre smartphone. The device was launched with much fanfare, and the WebOS was praised for its multitasking capabilities. However, the device didn’t manage to live up to consumer expectations and eventually considered a flop.

In 2010, HP bought the ailing Palm for $1.2 billion. After about a year-and-a-half of its purchase of the legendary PDA and smartphone company, HP stopped making WebOS-powered smartphones and tablets due to the commercial failure of the devices. In 2013, LG acquired WebOS from HP with an intent to use the operating system to power its smart TVs.

It remains to be seen how the Palm brand will be received in its second innings. HMD Global, the Finnish company that owns the rights to market and distribute Nokia-branded smartphones, has been successful in reviving the cult brand. A recent report from Counterpoint Research claimed that HMD Global might have sold 4.4 million Nokia-branded Android smartphones in Q4 2017.