At first I thought it was a joke, but it looks like it is for real:

Palm announces acquisition of Handspring

Yes, it’s true… as of today, Palm, Inc. has announced plans to acquire Handspring. The deal is supposed to close this fall.

I’d like to observe a moment of silence for the company that made the break away from Palm in the beginning to offer innovative, value-packed PDA’s. The Visor’s trademark feature was its “Springboard” expansion slot, which allowed developers to create pluggable hardware modules that could be added at any time. Some modules which I myself have had include:

Wireless Web Digital Link: This turned my Visor into a SprintPCS mobile phone
Magellan GPS Companion: This turned my Visor into a Global Positioning System tracking device
MemPlug Compact Flash: This allowed my Visor to read and write to Compact Flash memory storage cards
Backup Module: This allowed my visor to back up its entire contents in a jiffy, and restore them just as quickly.

My first Handspring, purchased in the summer of 2000, was the Visor Deluxe. I later purchased the thin, metallic Visor Edge and gave the Deluxe to Becky. I continue to use the Visor Edge to this day. I keep all of my phone numbers and addresses on it, use it to keep track of appointments, balance our checkbook, get information on restaurants and other attractions while traveling, and read news and entertainment updates.

It has been a great piece of equipment, and I fully plan to continue using it until it dies or has outlived its usefulness.

I present a photo of the Visor Edge, taken today with my cameraphone, as a salute to the wonderful products that Handspring has created. Hopefully their innovations will continue with their acquisition by Palm, and perhaps I will be a Palm customer in the future.