In a recent interview, Palm's Chief Financial Officer gave some new details on the Linux-based operating system his company is developing. Palm's Andrew Brown spoke with Tero Kuittinen, an analyst from Avian Securities, who came away with the strong impression that devices running the new Palm OS II will look distrinctly different from the company's current ones.

The company has already made it clear that this OS will be primarily targeted at consumers, and Brown said that it will have a new layout that makes it easier for users to download and play music, video, and games. It will also emphasize messging and working with camera images.

Centro as a Model

The Palm Centro is currently available from only one wireless carrier, but it has nevertheless exceeded both Palm's and Sprint's sales expectations.

Palm is looking at this smartphone as a harbinger of what's to come: smaller, low-cost devices with a consumer focus.

For those looking for a business-oriented smartphone, the company will continue to offer models running Microsoft's Windows Mobile operating system, which has an emphasis on use in the office.