Palm Computing launched its much-anticipated colour Palm IIIc this morning -- a mere two days after leaks from US retailer Best Buy said it would. As expected, the device sports a 256-colour active-matrix LCD, 8MB of memory and contains a built-in rechargeable battery. The price -- again as anticipated -- is $449 in the US. European pricing will be released later in the spring, when the device ships over here. And while the IIIc's dark plastic case is slightly larger than other models in the III family, it is compatible with add-ons designed for those machines, Palm said. A handful of colour-enabled Palm apps became available today, too, including AvantGo's Web browser and a digital photo viewer, Album To Go. Palm also unveiled today the IIIxe organiser, an updated version of its mid-range Palm IIIx. The new version has a dark plastic case and 8MB of RAM, all for $249. The 4MB IIIx is still available, at tthe new, lower price $229, though presumably not for long since the more capacious IIIxe is a mere $20 more expensive. Finally, Palm released its folding keyboard, a near full-size unit that folds into a pack that's about the same size as a Palm III, though quite what that says about its durability is anyone's guess. What is certain is that it costs $99. ®