• pre,  rumors,  sprint

    Rumor: Palm Pre Set to Launch on June 7th

    May 11, 2009 /

    I just saw this over on BoyGeniusReport.com. If it is true, it looks like the Palm Pre will launch in just under a month on June 7th.

    “We’re prefacing this by saying we’re definitely not 100%, but it looks like Palm could be gearing up for a round of meetings that will lead up to the day we’ve all been waiting for — Palm Pre launch day. We just received what an anonymous tipster claims to be an internal Palm memo regarding some meetings that will take place in early June. According to the document, the meetings will conclude on Friday June 5th with what is labeled ‘LAUNCH LUNCH!'”

    Back in February I was predicting a lunch of the Pre on either May 17th or the 24th. More recently, though, we heard some rumors that Palm and Sprint might push back the launch of the Pre to ensure that there was sufficient inventory in the supply chain and that there may have been some early production problems on the Pre manufacturing line. (I can’t confirm either of those rumors.) At any rate, it looks like the Pre is go for June 7th. I really can’t wait to see how the Pre’s email stands up to the BlackBerry email system. I’ve been using a BlackBerry Curve 8330 since December and I have really become addicted to it’s virtually instanatious email delivery. Will the Pre cause me to dump my CrackBerry? We’ll soon find out.

    [Via BoyGeniusReport.com…]

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  • 1src,  podcast

    1SRC Podcast 210

    May 7, 2009 /

    The latest 1SRC Podcast has been posted for your listening enjoyment.

    This week, on the 1SRC Podcast, I cover:

    • BoyGeniusReport claims they have the pricing model for the Palm Pre on Sprint.
    • Rumors are flying this week about the Centro replacement, the Eos.
    • Will the Foleo II with Palm webOS be the netbook Foleo always should have been?

    Download 1SRC Podcast 210 enhanced edition…
    Subscribe to the enhanced 1SRC Podcast feed…
    Read the transcript for 1SRC Podcast 210…
    Discuss 1SRC Podcast 210…

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  • pre,  web os

    Bell Mobility Exclusive Carrier for Palm Pre

    May 6, 2009 /

    Palm and Bell Mobility in Canada have announced that Bell has been selected to be the exclusive carrier of Palm’s new Pre smartphone powered by Palm webOS. The Pre will be released in Canada during the second half of 2009.

    “We’re excited to bring Pre to Canada with Bell Mobility,” said Brodie Keast, senior vice president of marketing for Palm, Inc. “We’ve seen enormous interest from mobile operators worldwide and fully expect to continue to expand distribution for Pre, putting it within reach of more and more customers.”

    “Bell is excited to be only the second carrier in the world to announce the 3G Pre,” said Adel Bazerghi, senior vice president of Products for Bell Mobility. “With the unique user experience of the world’s first webOS phone, running on the country’s largest 3G network, we’re confident that Canadians will embrace Pre as the phone for their lives today.”

    You can read the full Palm press release, which includes the specifications for the Bell Mobility Pre, on the Palm website. Pricing for the Bell Pre was not announced today and the release date was only indicated as “in the second half of 2009.”

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  • web os

    Will Palm Get Its ‘Mojo’ Back with webOS and Pre?

    May 5, 2009 /

    RedmondDeveloper News has written an article on the growing grassroots support for Palm’s new mobile operating system, webOS.

    “As smartphone developers await the release of devices based on Microsoft’s Windows Mobile 6.5, tinker with the recently released Google Android SDK, and pine over the one billionth iPhone app downloaded, a grassroots movement by some influential developers is pushing the adoption of an alternative mobile platform.

    A burgeoning community of developers are investing time and resources on a device and platform they’ve barely seen from a company that was, until recently, written off for dead: Palm Inc. While many observers are skeptical that Palm can make a sizable dent in the mobile market, hundreds of developers are eagerly awaiting the release of the company’s new webOS and the Palm Pre mobile device.

    These developers have signed up to participate in dev camps that are slated to take place on the first weekend after Palm releases webOS and Pre. These camps are being organized by the developers and are not under Palm’s purview, nor Sprint’s, the carrier designated to sell the device in the United States, according to the organizers.”

    I believe that Palm doesn’t have to dominate the mobile phone market to make a fair amount of money. The mobile phone space is really big and it doesn’t have to be one vendor takes all. I also think that Palm really does have a solid foundation with Palm webOS and it can be the vehicle, together with some new hardware, to jump start the company and make it a major player in mobile computing again.

    Read the full RedmondDeveloper News article…

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  • foleo,  rumors,  web os

    More On a Possible “Foleo II” Device

    May 5, 2009 /

    While looking for more information on the rumor from this past weekend that Palm might be mulling over their options on releasing a redesigned Foleo running Palm webOS, I found this interesting article over on JKOnTheRun.com. Mr. Kendrick writes:

    “Lots of companies are currently working on Google Android netbooks and there have been whispers of how great a WebOS-based netbook could be, even though not a single device with that OS is actually shipping yet. This obsession with netbooks and how to make a great one has me thinking that there’s no reason Palm couldn’t produce one, and right now.

    Just hear me out. A netbook that is designed from the ground up to be a cloud machine could be easily produced using high-end PDA components. The main requirements would be a decent processor, very long battery life and an easy-to-use OS. Enter Palm.”

    I think that this is a really cool idea. I’ve been using a Dell Mini 9 since late November (2008) and I have mixed feeling about it. Yes, it is light and super portable. I liked the Foleo’s exterior finishing better than the glossy lid on Dell’s netbooks. I also like the fact that I can run Windows XP on the Dell netbook, but with only about 2.5 hours of battery life, I’m not going too far without my AC adapter. (I often can’t go to a full morning’s or afternoon’s worth of meetings without having to break out the charger. Ugh!) There are only a handful of applications that I use my Dell Mini 9 for: note taking and word processing in Microsoft Word 2003; checking my email in Microsoft Outlook 2003 (I do have access to corporate email via a web mail portal but I prefer Outlook or my BlackBerry); calendaring; and web surfing with FireFox or Internet Explorer.

    Now, here comes Palm with a “Foleo re-mix” taking the best concepts of the Foleo and combining it with the flexibility of Palm’s new webOS platform, and you can have an ultra-portable device that can easily provide the kinds of features I’m looking for (word processing, email, calendaring, and web browsing) in a device that can run at least 8 hours with the screen set to a reasonable brightness level with Wi-Fi enabled. That would be a perfect device for me.

    You can bet I’ll be keeping a close eye on this rumor as we continue to move through th rest of the year.

    You can read the full JKOnTheRun.com article here…

    [Photo credit: JKOnTheRun.com]

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  • pre,  rumors,  sprint

    Rumor: Sprint Still Toying with Pre Pricing

    May 4, 2009 /

    A recent article posted over on BoyGeniusReport.com suggests that the Sprint is still considering the pricing for Palm’s Pre smartphone.

    “Pricing is supposedly still being discussed but the probable points are as follows: New customers with a 2-year contract, $199.99. Existing customer upgrades, $299.99. Outright, $999.99. Yes, seriously.”

    Ouch! A thousand dollars to purchase a Palm Pre free and clear? Yikes!

    [Via BoyGeniousReport.com…]

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  • foleo,  rumors,  web os

    Rumor: The Foleo to Become a webOS Netbook

    May 2, 2009 /

    Calling all Foleo Fanatics! I just read an interesting post over on Palm InfoCenter that was posted by Ryan.

    “Rumor: Trip Chowdhry, an analyst with Global Equities Research, asserts in a note to clients today (via Tech Trader Daily) that Palm intends to produce a $399 netbook that will run WebOS. The speculation is not without precedent as Palm has stated on numerous occasions that the WebOS will power a family of products and has said in the past that a Foleo followup is not out of the question.

    Chowdhry is saying that the device will basically be a revised version of the Foleo and will be powered by an ARM chipset and will use a Gobi 3G wireless chip from Qualcomm for an estimated 8-10 hour battery life. He says the project is being designed by three ex-Apple iPod guys.”

    Shortly after the Foleo was canceled, company officials indicated that the Foleo might return one day in the future. Here is to hoping that day has gotten a little closer.

    [Via PalmInfocenter.com…]

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  • pugcast

    What Mobile OS Will Lead the Market

    May 2, 2009 /

    PUGcast the Blog editor Clemens Schuchert has published a poll recently asking his readers what mobile OS they believe will dominate the smartphone market space for the next few years. The results are interesting and highlight the differences between Europe’s and North America’s smartphone users. Now Mr. Schuchert has put out the call for smartphone junkies across the pond to jump in and have their voices heard.

    “Thus, until now, two third of you believe iPhoneOS to be the most future safe mobile operating system. This underlines Apple success of the iPhone introduction about 2 years ago.

    Followed by Windows Mobile, which even more than the half of PUGcast readers believe to be the one to run future devices with.

    Sybian and Android is equal about 40 % and it’s hard to argue which one will succeed: Both are open source and address a huge developer community.

    Surprisingly, Palm’s new webOS (the successor of 15 years old Palm OS), is only of interest for about one fourth of the readers, which leaves room for interpretation. Do people not believe in the new mobile operating system or do they simply do not know enough about it at this stage to argue about it’s future?

    Let your readers tell us what they believe.”

    You can cast your vote here.

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  • eos,  rumors,  web os

    Rumor: Palm to Launch a webOS Blitz in 2009 With Eos

    May 2, 2009 /

    PhoneNews.com is reporting that they have received confirmation that Palm will be launching a second webOS phone in 2009. The Palm Eos, if the rumors are true, will replace the last Palm OS smartphone, the insanely popular Centro.

    Palm fans should expect to see the Palm Pre go live later this month on Sprint. Expect the Pre to show up in it’s GSM/UMTS duds on Vodafone before the end of the year. And now we should expect to see the new Eos show up on AT&T and Sprint (GSM and EVDO, receptively) before the end of the year.

    Take all of this with several gains of salt. Palm themselves have not talked about the Eos publicly yet, but the Centro needs to be replaced and I’m sure that Palm is more than ready to update their popular phone with something that is even more hip and inexpensive.

    If all of this is true, I’m feeling really good about Palm’s chances to stage a come back this year. w00t!

    Get the inside scoop as reported by PhoneNews.com on the AT&T Palm Eos and the Sprint Palm Eos.

    [Via PhoneNews.com…]

    Image courtesy of Engadget.

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