Handheld Maker Plans To Undercut PalmPilot

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August 25, 1998 (12:00 AM EDT)

By Doug Olenick,

Royal Consumer Business Products is planning to take a bite out of 3Com's PalmPilot business with the daVinci handheld device, introduced Monday, that mirrors the PalmPilot's appearance and functionality, but costs about 50 percent less.

For the daVinci, Royal employed the same tactics it used to gain market share in the pocket-organizer and paper-shredder categories, said Robert Robinson, Royal's executive director of marketing. This maneuver includes finding technology already developed and on the market, then shaping it into a product that hits a specific niche and low-price point in a hot category.

"We like to borrow technology already on the market," Robinson said. "We looked at the PalmPilot and saw it cost a lot and wanted to bring something like it to the market for less."

The daVinci, dubbed "a palm-sized organizer" by Royal, will come in two styles. The $99 suggested-retail-price version will feature a 256-kilobyte memory, writing-recognition software, a docking station, PC synchronization, and an optional keyboard. The daVinci Pro, SRP $150, includes 1 megabyte of memory, built-in e-mail and fax software, and its docking station contains a PCMCIA card modem slot. The basic version is expected out in October and the Pro in November, Robinson said.

"We want to hit the high-volume price points," Robinson said, adding he hopes to attract customers interested in the PalmPilot's utility, but who can't afford the higher price tag.

Like the PalmPilot's Graffiti script, the daVinci uses a proprietary script, called daVinci script, which users need to learn. The daVinci's operating system was also developed by Royal. The model's form factor is similar to the PalmPilot's, and daVinci uses the same Motorola processor as its competitor. Royal has also licensed the same e-mail software package used by the 3Com product.

Neither Royal product will work with an Apple computer.

Unlike the PalmPilot, no third-party software is expected to be available for the daVinci when it launches, but Robinson expects developers to create applications later.

By licensing this technology and relying more on word-of-mouth than advertising, Royal can undercut the PalmPilot's price, Robinson said. Pricing for a PalmPilot Pro typically starts at $250.