Since I just went out and bought some accessories for my T3 that are sure to be doomed to incompatibility with the next Palm PDA, there's now a few rumors floating around. The next T3 would be called the T5:

The first one that will be released is the Tungsten|T5. It will come with Cobalt, 128MB RAM, HiRes+, bluetooth, WiFi, and a 520MHz PXA270 chip. The slider will be gone, and the D-pad will be Tungsten|C-styled. The battery is good enough to survive a workday. Expect it in November.

The second model is the Tungsten|E2. It won't be released before April 2005, and surely won't have a HiRes+ screen. It will however run OS6, have 64MB RAM, and the same processor as the Zire72. The built-in bluetooth will be limited to 2 meter. The price will be around $250.

An OS6 upgrade will be available for the Tungsten|C and Tungsten|T3 a month after the release of the Tungsten|T5. The Tungsten|C will still be sold with OS5, but that will change as soon as the current model is out of stock.

Aw crap. Figures. Cobalt is the biggest driver for me to upgrade. Mainly I want to be able to use multiple apps at the same time (MP3 player and GPS for example). The good news, if this is accurate, is there will be a upgrade for T3 owners. So I will be able to hold off for a while.

A big "if it's true" on all of this. That picture looks a little suspiciously photoshopped for me.

[Updated 08/01/04] It's a hoax. Bummer.