i-mate

i-mate was a mobile-device company established in 2001 by James Morrison. The company developed and marketed branded handheld computers, smartphones, and phone-enabled personal digital assistants running Microsoft's Windows Mobile software. Rather than initially manufacturing most devices itself, i-mate worked closely with Taiwanese electronics manufacturer HTC, which produced a large number of the company's handsets. This arrangement allowed i-mate to offer operator-compatible devices to business customers and technology buyers before HTC had established a major consumer brand of its own in Europe. The company's origins were closely connected with the early development of operator-branded smartphones. Before founding i-mate, James Morrison had worked in telecommunications, including work with Cable & Wireless and O2. He was involved with the team that designed the O2 Xda Pocket PC phone and helped select HTC as the original equipment manufacturer for that product. i-mate was set up in Glasgow and subsequently based in Dubai, with an international commercial presence spanning the United Kingdom, Italy, Armenia, Australia, India, the United States, and South Africa. i-mate's main proposition was to package Windows Mobile hardware and software into business-oriented mobile products. Its portfolio included Pocket PCs, Pocket PC phones, and smartphones. The devices generally combined cellular connectivity with organizer, messaging, email, web, and productivity functions associated with Microsoft's mobile operating system. Through the middle of the 2000s, the brand was a visible participant in the expanding market for converged handheld devices, competing for attention with operator-branded products, Palm devices, BlackBerry products, and emerging smartphone makers. The company entered the London AIM market in November 2005. Its public-market profile increased during the following year, when contemporary accounts described a substantial rise in its valuation. However, its business model became more difficult after HTC ended its manufacturing relationship with i-mate in September 2006. The change coincided with HTC's move toward selling devices under its own name in Europe and its acquisition of Dopod, a distributor and brand serving Asian and Australian markets. After the HTC relationship ended, i-mate sourced products from other manufacturers, including Inventec and TechFaith, but it no longer enjoyed the same strategic position it had held with HTC. The wider Windows Mobile market also came under pressure. Microsoft's mobile platform did not develop as quickly or as cohesively as Apple's iOS and Google's Android, while HTC increasingly became a direct competitor rather than only a manufacturing partner. i-mate closed most of its business in September 2009, effectively ending its principal operating period. The company later attracted attention in 2013 through an announcement for the i-mate Intelligent, a proposed 4.7-inch device intended to run a desktop version of Windows 8 on an Intel Clover Trail processor, with claimed memory and storage specifications. A publicly demonstrated working prototype did not emerge, and the project received no sustained public follow-up after Mobile World Congress 2013. i-mate is therefore primarily remembered as an early Windows Mobile device brand whose growth depended on OEM partnerships and whose decline coincided with structural changes in the smartphone industry.

i-mate emerged during the transition from separate mobile phones and personal digital assistants to integrated smartphones. James Morrison, who had telecommunications experience with Cable & Wireless and O2, founded the company in 2001. His earlier work included involvement with the O2 Xda Pocket PC phone and the selection of HTC as its manufacturing partner. i-mate was initially established in Glasgow and later operated from Dubai, where it developed an international commercial organization. The company specialized in products based on Microsoft's Windows Mobile operating system. Its devices were aimed especially at corporate users and other customers who wanted mobile email, scheduling, contacts, document handling, and phone connectivity in one unit. i-mate generally acted as a brand, product developer, and distributor rather than as a vertically integrated manufacturer. HTC produced 22 i-mate handsets during the companies' principal relationship, giving i-mate access to a capable hardware platform while allowing HTC to remain largely behind the scenes as an OEM. During the first half of the 2000s, this model benefited from growing demand for connected handheld computers. i-mate sold Pocket PCs, Pocket PC phones, and smartphones in several countries, including the United Kingdom, Italy, Armenia, Australia, India, the United States, and South Africa. The company went public on the London AIM market in November 2005. Its reported valuation increased significantly during 2006, although the business remained dependent on its supplier and on the trajectory of Microsoft's mobile software platform. A major turning point came in September 2006, when HTC ended its relationship with i-mate. The decision occurred as HTC began promoting products under its own brand in Europe and expanded its regional distribution position through Dopod. This changed the competitive relationship: HTC was no longer merely an upstream manufacturer but was becoming a branded smartphone company in its own right. i-mate subsequently sourced hardware from other manufacturers, including Inventec and TechFaith, but the loss of HTC weakened the product pipeline and the distinctive supply arrangement that had supported the brand. At the same time, the smartphone market was changing rapidly. Windows Mobile retained a presence among business users but did not evolve at the pace later set by Apple's iPhone and Google's Android ecosystem. i-mate's dependence on Microsoft's platform, its need to rely on external manufacturers, and its competition with former partner HTC combined to erode its position. Most of the company's business closed in September 2009. The name reappeared in 2013 with the proposed i-mate Intelligent. The concept was presented as a 4.7-inch device intended to run a desktop version of Windows 8 using an Intel Clover Trail processor, with claimed 2 GB of RAM and 64 GB of storage. Despite the announcement, a functioning prototype was not publicly established, and the project did not maintain a visible presence after Mobile World Congress 2013. By 2017, the device still had not become a commercially documented product. i-mate is consequently best understood as a defunct early smartphone brand whose history illustrates the importance of OEM relationships, operator distribution, and mobile-platform timing.

1. 2013i-mate Intelligent is announced

   i-mate presents plans for a Windows 8-based handset, but the proposed product does not become a documented commercial release.

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2. 2009Most operations close

   i-mate closes most of its business after losing its original manufacturing arrangement and facing a difficult mobile-platform market.

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3. 2006HTC relationship ends

   HTC stops serving as i-mate's principal OEM as it develops its own brand and expands through Dopod.

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4. 2005London AIM listing

   i-mate becomes a publicly traded company on London's Alternative Investment Market.

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5. 2001i-mate is founded

   James Morrison establishes i-mate to supply Windows Mobile-powered devices, initially with a corporate-market focus.

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Business-oriented mobile computing and smartphone products combining cellular connectivity with Microsoft's Windows Mobile platform.

• i-mate Pocket PCsMobile personal digital assistants2001

  The Pocket PC range consisted of handheld computers built around Microsoft's mobile operating system. These products emphasized organizer functions, messaging, document access, and wireless connectivity. They belonged to the generation before smartphones became the dominant mobile-computing format and were produced for i-mate through external manufacturing partners, principally HTC during the company's early period.

• i-mate Pocket PC phonesSmartphone and connected PDA2001

  i-mate's Pocket PC phones combined the touchscreen and productivity features of a personal digital assistant with cellular voice and data functions. They were positioned as practical business communication tools, offering mobile email, contacts, scheduling, and other Windows-based services alongside telephony. Many of the early models were manufactured by HTC under i-mate's branding.

• i-mate smartphonesWindows Mobile smartphones2001

  The smartphone portfolio extended i-mate's Windows Mobile proposition into more phone-centered designs. The devices targeted professional and technology-oriented users who wanted messaging, web access, personal information management, and cellular connectivity. After HTC ended its relationship with the company in 2006, i-mate also carried devices made by suppliers including Inventec and TechFaith.

• i-mate IntelligentProposed Windows 8 mobile device2013

  The i-mate Intelligent was announced in 2013 as a proposed 4.7-inch handset intended to run a desktop version of Windows 8 on an Intel Clover Trail processor. Announced specifications included 2 GB of RAM and 64 GB of storage. A functioning public prototype was not established, and the device did not progress into a documented commercial product.

• 2013Announce the i-mate IntelligentProduct launch

  After most of the company's business had closed, i-mate sought to re-enter the mobile-device market with a Windows 8 concept.

  What changed. The company announced a proposed 4.7-inch Intel Clover Trail device with claimed Windows 8, memory, and storage specifications.

  Aftermath. No publicly demonstrated working prototype or sustained commercial launch was documented after the announcement.

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• 2006Move to alternative hardware suppliers after HTC separationStrategy

  HTC ended its manufacturing relationship with i-mate while expanding its own branded handset business and regional distribution activities.

  What changed. i-mate continued carrying branded devices sourced from other manufacturers, including Inventec and TechFaith.

  Aftermath. The change reduced the importance of the original i-mate-HTC arrangement and preceded the company's eventual closure of most operations in 2009.

  • HTC — HTC expanded from an OEM role into a competing branded handset business.
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• 2013i-mate announces the i-mate Intelligent

  The company announced a proposed Windows 8-based device called the i-mate Intelligent. The product was not subsequently supported by a publicly demonstrated working prototype.

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• 2009i-mate closes most of its business

  i-mate shut most of its operations after losing its original HTC manufacturing relationship and facing increasing competition and platform pressure in the smartphone market.

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• 2006HTC ends its manufacturing relationship with i-mate

  HTC ended its OEM relationship with i-mate as it expanded its own branded handset business and acquired Dopod's distribution interests in Asian and Australian markets.

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• 2005i-mate lists on London's AIM market

  i-mate joined the London Alternative Investment Market, raising its public profile as a specialist Windows Mobile device company.

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• 2001i-mate begins operations as a Windows Mobile device company

  James Morrison established i-mate to deliver Windows Mobile-based mobile devices, initially targeting corporate and professional users.

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1. I-mate