• att,  pixi,  pre,  web os

    Palm Pre Plus, Pixi Plus Announced for AT&T

    March 22, 2010 /

    Palm’s webOS smartphones, the Palm Pre Plus and Pixi Plus, will be arriving on AT&T “in the coming months.”

    AT&T’s 80 million customers will soon have a new choice for staying connected in their fast-paced lives — the Palm(R) webOS(TM) platform. Palm, Inc. (NASDAQ:PALM) today announced that the Palm Pre(TM) Plus and Palm Pixi(TM) Plus phones will be available on the nation’s fastest 3G network for $149.99 and $49.99, respectively, with a two-year service agreement and after a $100 mail-in rebate.

    “AT&T and Palm have a history of smartphone leadership, and today’s announcement is a significant milestone for us,” said Jon Rubinstein, Palm chairman and chief executive officer. “With Palm webOS phones coming to AT&T, Palm can help most anyone in the United States stay connected so they never miss a thing.”

    “We’re offering our customers even greater choice by adding Palm Pre Plus and Palm Pixi Plus to the nation’s best smartphone portfolio,” said Jeff Bradley, senior vice president, Devices, AT&T Mobility and Consumer Markets. “Palm webOS plus included access to the nation’s largest Wi-Fi network and the ability to talk and surf the web at the same time is a powerful combination.”

    Pre Plus and Pixi Plus also support a variety of AT&T services, including AT&T Navigator for audible turn-by-turn navigation (subscription required), AT&T Address Book to easily synchronize online contacts to your phone, and YPMobile to quickly find local businesses. They also include the following features and specifications. (NOTE: A complete list of features and specifications for each phone is available at www.att.com/WebOS or www.palm.com/PrePlus and www.palm.com/PixiPlus.)

    • Palm Synergy(TM), a key feature of Palm webOS that brings your information from all the places it resides – including Outlook(3), Google, Facebook, Yahoo! and LinkedIn – into one logical view that links your contacts and calendars, so accessing them is easier than ever
    • The ability to run multiple applications simultaneously and easily move between them
    • Unobtrusive notifications
    • Universal search
    • Over-the-air software updates delivered directly to a user’s phone
    • High-quality applications from the Palm App Catalog
    • High-speed connectivity
    • Gesture area, which enables simple, intuitive gestures for navigation
    • Full QWERTY keyboard
    • High-performance, desktop-class web browser
    • Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g
    • Integrated GPS
    • Robust messaging support (combining IM, SMS and MMS capabilities)
    • Multimedia options, including music, photos, video recording and playback, a camera with LED flash and a standard 3.5mm headset jack
    • Email, including EAS (for access to corporate Microsoft Exchange servers) and personal email support (Google Gmail push, Yahoo!, POP3, IMAP)
    • Bluetooth(R) 2.1 + EDR with A2DP stereo Bluetooth support
    • USB mass storage mode
    • Charger/microUSB connector with USB 2.0 Hi-Speed
    • Proximity sensor, which automatically disables the touchscreen and turns off the display whenever you put the phone up to your ear
    • Light sensor, which reduces power usage by dimming the display if the ambient light is dark
    • Accelerometer, which automatically orients web pages and photos to your perspective
    • Ringer switch, which easily silences the device with one touch
    • Removable, rechargeable battery
    • Band/modes: UMTS bands/HSDPA 3.6: 850/1900Quad band GSM/EDGE: 850/900/1800/1900; GSM/GPRS/EDGE Class 10


    Pricing and Availability

    Palm Pre Plus and Palm Pixi Plus will be available in AT&T stores and online at www.wireless.att.com in the coming months for $149.99 and $49.99, respectively, with a two-year service agreement and after a $100 mail-in rebate. More information is available at www.att.com/webOS.

    Analysis

    With all of the negative press that Palm has received over the last week or two, I’m really surprised that Palm isn’t talking about ship dates for the AT&T versions of their webOS phones. I realize that carrier testing can be sort of a mystic black art that can consume lots of time of software developers and system engineers both at Palm and AT&T. I really do believe that time is of the essence here and that Palm and all of their carrier partners here in the US really need to take things up a notch and get on the ball with their marketing A-game so to speak.

    You can read today’s full press release on the Palm website.

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  • palm os,  sprint,  verizon,  web os

    Regarding Palm

    March 20, 2010 /

    I have been reserving my judgment and remaining silent on Palm’s future prospects lately. After reading the reports from Palm’s latest financial earnings conference call, I have to say, that I’m a little more that worried about the company’s future outlook. (PreCentral, BoyGeniusReport, PalmInfoCenter)

    Palm is sitting on a mountain of unsold webOS devices to the tune of about 500,000 according to some analyst reports. That, combined with slower than expected sales at Sprint and Verizon has lead to lower earnings for the quarter. Next quarter isn’t expected to be any better. Some analysts are revising Palm stock price estimates to a target of $0. That’s seriously not good.

    So where does that leave a 10+ year user of Palm’s hardware? Well, no where, actually. I’m happy with my Palm Pre. I really like Synergy; the replacement for HotSync that collects all of my data and presents it in a single use to use location. By entering in my account information, I can have my Google, Facebook, Yahoo and Exchange data at my finger tips. Any updates on any or all of those accounts or on my phone, and the data is instantly updated everywhere else. That’s pretty cool if I do say so myself.

    But the longer term outlook could be much less optimistic. Palm’s CEO, Jon Rubinstein, was quoted as saying:

    “We had an arrangement with Sprint that when we launched with Sprint that they would invest in marketing and carry the product and for that they would get an exclusive for a period of time. That really determined when we could do our launch at Verizon. I agree with your premise that if we could have launched at Verizon earlier, prior to Droid, that we would have gotten the attention that the Droid got and since I believe that we have a better product, I think we would have even done better.“

    And there in lies the problem. Even though Palm’s webOS operating system is very good, it’s all of for not if they can’t effectively market and sell their products. Without growing sales, it is really hard to attract companies like DataViz to provide the kind of excellent applications, like Documents To Go, that are needed to add functionality to Palm’s devices.

    When you are staring down at these grim assessments, it is really kind of hard to get excited about Palm products; and this is coming from a self-proclaimed Palm fanatic. Will I continue to use my Pre for the next 15 months until my current Sprint contract runs out? Sure will. Come next June though, I may have no choice but to switch to a BlackBerry.

    In a related article, seen over on PalmInforCenter, former Palm co-founder and former Palm board member, Donna Dubinsk, was recently quoted as saying that the separation of Palm’s operating system from their hardware was a “huge strategic error” back in the early part of the 2000’s.

    “Dubinsky said all the shuffling took “critical resources and attention from product development.” And even though it happened years ago, she called the decision to spin off PalmOS a “huge strategic error.” “As RIM, Apple and Palm all have demonstrated, these devices need to be highly integrated hardware and software developments in order to optimize the user experience,” Dubinsky wrote in an e-mail to The Associated Press. “When Palm no longer could advance the OS, and had to create a new one, it lost several years.”

    So, finally, in 2010, a former high level Palm executive admits what Palm fans everywhere have known for years: selling off Palm OS to PalmSource and keeping the hardware business in house was an incredibly stupid move that caused Palm to lose their leadership position in the smartphone race. The effects of this decision are still being felt today as Palm continues to flounder and fight to stay relevant in a now crowded smartphone market space.

    [Photo via PreCentral.net.]

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  • apple,  ipad

    Apple iPad Accessories

    March 15, 2010 /

    Now that I have made my Apple iPad reservation with an Apple Store here in Connecticut, I’m taking a look at what accessories I might want to get for my new mobile gear.

    I’ve been walking around with a simple screen protector on my iPod touch and it has done the job nicely since the iPod is carried around in my laptop bag or my pocket. While that might be OK for an iPod or iPhone, the pocket trick won’t work for an iPad.
    Alan’s Must Have iPad Accessories
    If I’m going to have my iPad with me at the office, I’m going to need something more than a screen protector. I’ll have to get some kind of case of it. And it looks like Apple’ iPad Case is a perfect fit for my tastes. It no only protects the iPad, but it also serves as a stand for the iPad so that you and position it for watching video, reading, or viewing photos. It also folds to become an angled wedge that positions the iPad so you can type on the on screen keyboard. (I’m able to touch type on a hardware keyboard, but I’m not sure how well I’ll be able to “touch type” on the iPad. We’ll have to see how things go.)
    The iPad Case will go on sale sometime in April, but I don’t expect it to be ready for the April 3rd launch. The iPad Case is priced at $39.00.
    The iPad Dock works just like you would expect the iPhone or iPod dock to work. It provides you with a base to plug your iPad into and then has a dock connector port you plug in the iPad’s dock connector to USB cable and plug the other side into your Mac or PC. There is also an audio line out that you can connect to external powered speakers. The Apple iPad Dock also works with all of the other iPad dock connector accessories like the video out cable.
    The Apple iPad Dock will be available for $29.00 on April 3rd.
    3. iPad Screen Protector
    Call me crazy, but after shelling out $500+ on a new gadget, I still want the screen to look amazing and be scratch free two years after I buy it. It’s true, I baby my hardware. While I don’t see any Apple or third-party screen protectors in on the online Apple Store today, I do expect them to show up before long. And, so, I’m adding a screen protector to my list of must have accessories.
    You can see Apple’s other iPad accessories at the online Apple Store.
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  • apple,  google,  iphone,  motorola

    NTY: A Battle for the Future Is Getting Personal

    March 14, 2010 /

    The New York Times has a new article online that does a good job of detailing the battle between Apple and Google that has gone from a simple rivalry to what could become an all out war between the two tech titans.

    “In the last six months, Apple and Google have jousted over acquisitions, patents, directors, advisers and iPhone applications. Mr. Jobs and Mr. Schmidt have taken shots at each other’s companies in the media and in private exchanges with employees.”

    You can read the full article at The New York Times website…

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  • apple,  ipad

    Skip the Line, Reserve an iPad Online, Pickup at the Store

    March 13, 2010 /

    Apple’s Wi-Fi iPads go on sale here in the United States on April 3rd. Don’t want to wait in line? Don’t want to run the risk of not getting your iPad on launch day? Don’t feel like waiting around the house all day fro the delivery truck to come?

    Apple has you covered! You can reserve your iPad online and then mosey on down to the nearest Apple store and pick it up! Problem solved. The reservation system will allow you to hold your iPad from 9am – 3pm, after which time, your reserved unit goes into the first come, first served pool, so don’t take too long to get down to the Apple store. Once you have made your reservation, you will receive an email confirmation that contains a link that you can use to change your reservation if you need too. (I’m only ordering one iPad, so I don’t know if the 2-unit limit is being enforced, but I’m willing to wager a bet that it is.)

    You can reserve your iPad on the Apple website.

    Thanks for the fun iPod touch, I’ll take my iPad now

    I want to get an iPad to replace my first generation 16GB iPod touch which has been having some trouble with the headphone jack for a long time now. I primarily use my iPod touch to surf the web, watch TV shows and movies, listen to music, and play games. Since I do surf and watch a lot of video, I think the jump up to a 10-inch screen will be nice. I’m also going make the jump from 16GB to 32GB, but don’t tell me wife that will cost me an extra $100.

    I’m also interested in seeing what newspaper and magazine subscriptions will be coming to the iPad: specifically what will happen with The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, and magazines like Time and Newsweek. (Ok, I occasionally read Entertainment Weekly too.)

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  • cell phones

    2009 Global Cell Phones

    March 6, 2010 /

    I was just reading an interesting fact published in the March 8 Time, which should be on newsstands now.

    In 2002 there was an estimated 1 billion cell phones in use worldwide. In 2009, there was an estimated 4.6 billion cell phones in use.

    Wow!

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  • Uncategorized

    This blog has moved

    March 6, 2010 /

    This blog is now located at http://blog.smartphonefanatics.com/.
    You will be automatically redirected in 30 seconds, or you may click here.

    For feed subscribers, please update your feed subscriptions to
    http://smartphonefanatics.com/atom.xml.

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  • google

    Moving Day

    March 6, 2010 /

    A few weeks ago, I mentioned that I was going to have to change the way I use Blogger to manage SmartphoneFanatics.com. (Details)

    Today is the day that I am going to attempt to make the move. If the site becomes unavailable, rest assured that we’ll be back as quickly as possible.

    Update
    The server maintenance is now complete! To access SmartphoneFanatics.com in the future, point your browsers to:

    blog.smartphonefanatics.com.

    If you continue to use www.smartphonefanatics.com, you will be redirected to the new page after 30 seconds.

    -Alan

    Read More
  • apple,  ipad

    Rumor: Will Apple’s iPad Launch Be Delayed?

    March 2, 2010 /

    Will the launch of Apple’s iPad be delayed by a month? That may be the situation if a recent report from Canaccord Adams analyst Peter Misek is accurate.

    In an report to investors released yesterday, Mr. Misek writes:

    “The upcoming iPad launch may be somewhat limited as a manufacturing bottleneck has impacted production of Apple’s newest device,” Misek wrote. “An unspecified production problem at the iPad’s manufacturer, Hon Hai Precision, will likely limit the launch region to the US and the number of units available to roughly 300K in the month of march, far lower than the company’s initial estimate of 1,000K units.”

    If true, I don’t expect any long term impact to Apple or the iPad. Apple is likely motivated by having a good experience during the initial roll out of the iPad, and having long lines at regional Apple stores and limited supply would not be a good experience. If Apple isn’t able to significantly ramp up production of iPads, I fully expect the the company to push back the release date of the iPad from the end of March to the end of April.

    There is no word on what will happen to the launch date of the 3G enabled iPad models that are suppose to ship about a month after the Wi-Fi only units ship.

    [Via AppleInsider.com…]

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  • pre,  sprint,  web os

    Pre webOS 1.4.0 Battery Test: Part 2

    February 28, 2010 /

    My Palm Pre battery test continues. It’s about 6:30pm and my Pre is reporting that the battery is now at 84% with little use since about 2:00pm today.

    So far, I have been losing 4% charge an hour. I haven’t made any phone calls or used the phone to play games or surf the web. The only thing that has been going on with the phone is scheduled sync check with my single Gmail account.

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