Decoder with Nilay Patel

The secrets of the first real smartphone, with Dieter Bohn

Nov 4, 2021

Dieter Bohn, Verge executive editor and creator of the documentary "Springboard," dives into the fascinating story of Handspring, a pioneering smartphone startup. He shares insights about the challenges it faced and the ambition of early innovators. Discover how Handspring's influence shaped modern mobile software and the Android ecosystem. Bohn also discusses the complexities of tech innovation and offers a sneak peek of an exclusive documentary clip that didn't make the final cut. Tune in for a riveting exploration of smartphone history!

21:15

Episode guests

Dieter Bohn

AI Chapters

Episode notes

Intro

3min

The Rise and Challenges of a Pioneering Smartphone Startup

5min

The Evolution of Ideas: From Handspring to Android

2min

Pioneering Mobile Software: Lessons from Palm's Design Revolution

6min

Navigating the Challenges of Technological Innovation

5min

Welcome to a special Thursday edition of Decoder. You may have read on the site that Verge executive editor Dieter Bohn has been working on a documentary called Springboard: the secret history of the first real smartphone. It's about a company called Handspring and I think the Decoder audience will be really into this story so today we're interviewing Dieter. We talked about his documentary and he brought an exclusive clip that didn't make it into the film.

That documentary is streaming now on The Verge's new streaming apps that you can get on your TV or set top box. We have them for Android, for Amazon Fire TV, for Roku and Apple TV. We've been working on these for a long time. It's a little more complicated than you might think to make these apps, make them good, distribute them on everyone's app stores, some real Decoder pain points in there.

Links

Springboard trailer and how to get the streaming apps

Transcript

https://www.theverge.com/e/22526129

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Remember Everything You Learn from Podcasts

Save insights instantly, chat with episodes, and build lasting knowledge - all powered by AI.