Mobility Watch

Palm is promising more web phones based on their WebOS software.

want your people, calendars and information to move with you, wherever you are, wirelessly, as opposed to being bound to a personal computer. Palm webOS is the first mobile platform to automatically bring your information from the many places it resides - on your phone, at your work or on the web - into one simple, integrated view.(1) The new Palm Pre and webOS are designed to be so in sync with your needs that it feels like Pre is thinking ahead for you.

“Palm products have always been about simplifying lives and delivering great user experiences,” said Ed Colligan, Palm president and chief executive officer. “webOS and Pre bring game-changing simplicity to an increasingly mobile world by dissolving the barriers that surround your information. It’s technology that seems like it’s thinking ahead to bring you what you care about most - your people, your time, and your information - in the easiest and most seamless way.”

“Pre continues Sprint’s leadership in open access to the content customers want for a great web-connected experience,” said Dan Hesse, Sprint chief executive officer. “We look forward to bringing this remarkably innovative device to our customers on America’s most dependable 3G network.(2)

Palm’s new OS is the first mobile platform to be built from the ground up to combine standard technology, innovation and integration. At its core, webOS leverages several industry-standard technologies, including web technologies such as CSS, XHTML and JavaScript. On top of that, Palm has included creative and innovative advancements to enhance the overall user experience and provided a deep integration of all elements within the platform.

The new platform was designed to allow a vast ecosystem of partners, including developers, hardware suppliers, and accessories manufacturers, to develop core solutions to complement the platform and product line. For developers, webOS shatters traditional barriers to mobile-application development by offering a rich open development environment that’s familiar to tens of millions of web developers. More people can develop for the platform and can do it faster than ever before. The platform’s flexible environment will also allow developers to distribute their applications over-the-air via an on-device Palm application store.

The Pre shows up as “target in-stock 3/15,” replacing the Palm 755p, which is slated to fizzle out in late May. Similarly, the Palm Treo Pro is slotted for February 15th, replacing the 800w, which lines up with the phone’s known launch date.

The most up-to-date information, i’ve found, is over on Palm Webosblog:

the SDK is not out of private release yet
the Pre has not yet received the FCC approval
other member reported another date June 30 from a “reliable source”
Palm Treo Pro on Sprint has been delayed to 15 Feb so many may be mixing Palm Pre with Treo Pro
It is also unlikely that Sprint will release Palm Treo Pro and Palm Pre on the same day as this would compromise sales of the Treo Pro
Sarah Lacy (the reporter who interviewed Roger McNamee and pulled undisclosed features out of him) has let us know on twitter that Sprint employees are training on Palm Pre but it won’t be out until June
There are, however, other factors that indicate that Palm Pre may be ready for a release date of 15 Feb:

Nick Henderson has let us know in comments in the post about Palm Pre release date that he has been in contact with Sprint via their generic email dan@sprint.com and has received a voicemail from Sprint that Pre will be released on 15 Feb
users blake324 and Awake over at SprintUsers forum claim that “insiders at Sprint” told them Palm Pre will be coming out 3rd week of February. Confusion over Treo Pro?
user drbyers at PreCentral said in comments that Sprint Rep confirmed Pre release in February
many other users repeatedly say that Sprint employees have already seen the phone and are getting ready for February relese.

Kudos to JKontheRun for posting this video on the new Palm Pre, which looks to be a sure winner.

Details and specs:

The new Palm® Pre™ phone is always thinking ahead to make your life easier. Pre pulls your different online calendars into one view, bringing you the information you want without having to search for it. Pre links your contacts from different sources, giving you one place to find what you need. And Pre delivers incoming messages1 and notifications in an intuitively subtle way, letting you react or respond however you want. People, events, information that matters. With Palm Pre, it’ll come to you.

Connected calendars and contacts
Pre uses the Palm® Synergy™ feature to bring your Outlook®,2 Google, and Facebook® calendars together for one logical view of your day. And if you have the same contacts in different places, Pre can link them together, making it easy to find the information you need.

See gallery Multiple activities
Keep multiple applications open and move easily between them—email, maps, photos, websites, whatever.3 Pre thinks of your applications as “activity cards,” and lets you flip through them, move them around, or throw them off screen.

RIM Co-CEO Jim Balsillie states buggy smartphones are the norm.

Do you agree with that statement? Are newly released smartphones expected to have bugs that that will take months and months of patches to make them work right? Should the buyer have lowered expectations for a technological device that costs upto thousands?

First Generation Nokia Smartphones are notorious for having a plethora of bugs, and I read that the iPhone wasn’t entirely 100% bug-free, either. Not that familiar with HP’s iPaq or Rim’s blackberry.

Smartphones at about.com had this to say about palm and winmo:

Palm OS: Cons
The Palm OS looks and feels dated–because it is. It has not had a major overhaul in years. The company says it is working on a new version of the OS that will combine elements of the current version (called Garnet) with elements of Linux, an operating system that runs on servers, personal computers, and some smartphones.

Windows Mobile OS: Cons
Windows Mobile is not always user-friendly. It’s easy to be confused by the operating system, partly because the environment can feel very familiar to, yet also very different than the version of Windows that you run on your PC. Windows Mobile can also be slow, sluggish, and buggy.

Hello, my name is Brick, I’ve been blogging for 451 Press for almost two years now. My first blog for 451 Press was Encouraging Health (still going strong!) and now i’m writing on eight blogs for 451 Press.

Technology and electronics have always held a fascination for me and I enjoy reading about new and emerging technology. Currently, I have a TC1100 Slate Tablet PC (that’s my main computer), a Nokia 9500 Communicator, a Nokia 7380 (just for fun and a secondary cell phone), a Planon Pen Scanner and various health related technology that I can carry around when I travel. Onto today’s post!

Where can you get the new Palm Pre? Only at Best Buy, says WebOS Arena (via Engadget), and for only 60 days.

Engadget did a great review and write up while at the CES convention recently. They were duly impressed with the UI and ensuing animations. They even say it’s better in some ways than the iPhone!

Here are the specs:

Here’s a quick rundown of everything you need to know spec-wise:

High-speed wireless (EV-DO Rev. A or HSDPA, depending on version)
802.11b / g WiFi
Integrated GPS
3.1-inch 24-bit color 480 x 320 display
Dedicated gesture area below display
Slide-out portrait QWERTY keyboard
Exchange email support in addition to POP and IMAP
IM, MMS, and SMS messaging
High-performance browser
3-megapixel camera with LED flash and “extended depth of field”
3.5mm headphone jack
Bluetooth 2.1 + EDR with A2DP
8GB of internal storage
USB mass storage mode
MicroUSB connectivity with USB 2.0
Proximity sensor for detecting when phone is near face
Light sensor to automatically dim display
Ringer mute switch
Removable rechargeable battery
59.57 x 100.53 x 16.95mm closed
4.76 ounces

Owners of the new, relatively-slinky and streamlined Palm Treo 680 (marketed in the U.S. by Cingular/AT&T) have had a problem.  A software bug caused the phone’s camera circuitry to remain on, even after you finished using the camera.  And that caused a big-time battery drain.

Palm is supplying owners with a downloadable fix.  This camera update is really just a patch, not an update to the camera’s firmware.  What that means is, if you have to do a hard reset (reboot) of the phone, you’ll need to reinstall the camera update.

Palm’s responsive attitude toward 680 owners is leading to some gripes, from owners of the Palm Treo 700p.  The complaints include screen freezes, difficulties using Bluetooth devices, digital skips and stuttering.  These 700p owners ask:  We’ve been waiting months for Palm to address our complaints, how come the Model 680 owners get immediate attention?

This doesn’t even reach the bigger question looming out there for Palm and several gazillion users of wireless devices running on the Palm OS:  When, if ever, will we have an update to Palm OS 5.4.9 (known as Garnet)?  It’s been in limbo for three years now, and there’s no new version in sight.  Palm-watchers wonder whether the OS, devices running on it and all the third-party software that’s been developed for it will be allowed to fade away.

That fear is magnified as Palm has introduced devices running on Windows Mobile instead of Palm’s own OS.  The Treo 700w, 700wx and now Treo 750 seem to be taking the “high end” positions in Palm’s lineup, with the Palm OS 680 in an “entry level” position.

As Apple gets ready to jump into the wireless handset business in a big way, we’re guessing Palm is doing some serious soul-searching about the future of its Treo handhelds.  A lot of sharpening will be needed to get Palm’s device line back on the cutting edge, where it had been for so long.

Palm, Treo 680, AT&T, Cingular Wireless, Apple, Palm OS 5.4.9

The good news is, Cingular has not announced plans to mark up the price of iPhones to above their retail price.  The way some car dealers do with hot new models.

The bad news is, eBay sellers will probably do exactly that once the iPhone gets out there.  (So far, the only eBay auctions related to iPhone are connected to email addresses and domain names.)  Any guesses on how high the price of a $600 iPhone might go, for the highest bidder? 

So what are people smitten with the Apple iPhone supposed to do while they’re waiting for the actual phones to be released?

Cingular has thoughtfully put an email notification blank on its website.  Let Cingular know who you are and you’ll be among the first to be able to part with $500 or $600 for an iPhone.

You don’t want to pay for one?  Guess what?  Those insidious “reward” sites that let you “earn” a free plasma TV or a free laptop, are now offering you the chance to win a free iPhone!  Isn’t that exciting?

Will the world go wild for iPhone?  I’m tempted to jump in with the skeptics like Mitch Wagner, who say there’s a good chance this phone could sink like a lead balloon.  He points to one aspect of the phone that has limited the success of other “smartphones” in the past - the iPhone’s use of a touchscreen for all input.  No buttons?  No real QWERTY keyboard?  No dial pad?  Users of phones who often “feel” their way to dial a number will be lost. 

A high percentage of phones at this price point are bought by businesses.  And the bean counters will be scratching their heads over the value of iPhones versus far-cheaper BlackBerrys or Palm Treos.  Wall Street analysts are thinking it over and beginning to realize that there’s less to iPhone than meets the i. 

(And the price of stock in the parent company of BlackBerry, which dropped 8 percent yesterday, was rebounding somewhat today.)

Apple, iPhone, Cingular Wireless, AT&T, BlackBerry, Palm Treo

 

It’s incredible.  All Steve Jobs has to do is get up on stage, dangle a phone in his hand with Apple’s name on it, and by the end of the day stock in the parent company of BlackBerry drops almost 8 percent.

The iPhone may be one very cool product, but it can’t and certainly won’t replace BlackBerry.  Analysts like Michael Gartenberg at Jupiter Research are grousing about iPhone’s shortcomings, which include no 3G (third generation high speed data) capability, no third-party software capability (no Slingplayer!), and no support for Microsoft Office attachments.  And why didn’t Apple include wireless download capability from iTunes?

Then there’s Larry Dignan of ZDNet, who says his own Motorola Q handset feels like an Edsel next to iPhone.  Dignan predicts doom not only for Motorola, but for LG and Samsung to boot.  And as for Sprint, Dignan says Cingular’s marriage to Apple is the next to last nail in Sprint’s coffin.  (Yes, I’ve read the reports about Sprint’s layoffs and gloomy outlook for 2007.  iPhone is not Sprint’s biggest problem.  Not even close.)

Jeez, remember how expensive the iPhone is, and all the things it doesn’t do.  Dignan seems to think phones like BlackBerry’s Pearl will be relegated to the trash heap by Apple’s iPhone.  I think the opposite:  People who wander into a Cingular store to see the iPhone might just fall in love with the Pearl and everything it can do.  Especially when they realize they can buy three Pearls for the price of one iPhone.

Don’t get me wrong.  iPhone is a game-changing product for wireless manufacturers and service providers.  It’s liable to be the new phone of choice for the likes of Paris Hilton.  But it offers no serious advantages for business people, who will remain attached to their BlackBerrys or Palm Treos.  And for non-business users, any phone over $200 is a tough sell.  Never mind $500 or $600.

Eventually I believe Apple will extend its product line (just as it extended its line of iPods) to include lower-cost handsets, that appeal to “the rest of us”.  But by then, the other manufacturers will have developed handsets to compete with the iPhone’s heightened coolness factor.  The game may be changed by Apple’s iPhone, but the game is by no means over.

Apple, iPhone, Cingular Wireless, AT&T, Sprint, Palm Treo, Motorola Q, LG, Samsung, BlackBerry Pearl

How can I watch TV on my mobile phone?  Let me count the ways.

There’s this way.  And this way.

And this one that we haven’t talked about lately.  SlingPlayer Mobile is the wireless handset way to access your SlingBox, that way-cool technology that allows you to stream the output of your TiVo or cable box to the Internet.  SlingPlayer Mobile lets you dial up your home TV set top box while you are on-the-go, using your Windows Mobile handset or Symbian handset.

Owners of Treos running Palm OS have been wondering when Sling was going to offer a mobile version for them.  That would be right about now.

Sling Media has just announced the Palm version of SlingPlayer Mobile at the Consumer Electronics Show.  If you already have a Sling Box, you’ll only need to get the Palm client software.  Pricing hasn’t been announced, but similar Windows Mobile software goes for about $30.

“Right about now” doesn’t mean it’s immediately available.  Sling is shooting for a publicly-available Beta version within a month, and a ship date no later than the end of March.

SlingPlayer Mobile, Sling Box, Sling Media, Palm OS, Treo, Windows Mobile, Consumer Electronics Show

[via Zatz]

 

One of many rumored releases at the Consumer Electronics Show in Vegas has come true:  The Treo 750 that power users have been waiting for is indeed rolling out on Cingular. 

It’s more evolutionary than revolutionary.  The Treo 750 manages to get just about all the technological elements you could want together in one device.   These elements would include the latest iteration of Windows Mobile 5 Pocket PC, the capability to access Cingular’s 3G network plus the ability to upgrade to HSDPA data reception. 

And you’ll be seeing it show up in Palm retail stores, as well as Cingular stores as early as this week and online soon after that, at a price point Treo users are used to seeing:  $399 with a 2-year commitment.

Palm, Treo 750, Cingular, Consumer Electronics Show

[via Palm]

While scrolling through the site one day, the Palm Treo site that is, an observant Engadget reader caught a listing for the Treo 680 with a link for T-Mobile support.

So far, the only carrier in the United States selling Treo 680s is Cingular.

Does this mean T-Mobile is about to take on the Treo 680 as one of its own products?  Not necessarily.  Palm has also been selling unlocked Treo 680 handsets from its own website.  This may just be Palm trying to be helpful - offering support to T-Mobile customers who have bought unlocked 680s and want to use them on T-Mobile’s network.

There are plenty of T-Mo customers who would love to be able to have Treo 680s at a subsidized price from T-Mobile.  I might even be one of them.  But we’re not holding our breath.  Just because Palm supports 680s for T-Mobile doesn’t mean T-Mobile is on board.

Palm, Treo 680, T-Mobile, Cingular Wireless

[via Engadget]

Recently we caught an announcement on Howard Chui.com for the rollout of the Treo 680 on Rogers Wireless in Canada, and we noticed the price:  $299 with a 3 year agreement.

The $299 price refers to Canadian dollars, which explains why the price is higher than the $199 price Cingular charges for the phone in the U.S.

But what’s the deal with the 3 year agreement?

While U.S. carriers have all settled into offering their best discounts with 2 year contracts attached, Canadian carriers like Rogers and Fido also offer 3 year deals, at reduced prices.

Why hasn’t a single major U.S. carrier gone the same way?  Are citizens in the states more likely to get sick of their phones sooner, and want something new?   

Do phones stay fresher in Canada longer, because it’s so cold up there?

From what I know about Canadian culture I have no idea why a 2 year deal in the United States should equal 3 years in Canada.  Of course, my knowledge of Canadian culture consists largely of the Red Green Show and Great White North segments on SCTV.

Maybe U.S. carriers are missing an opportunity.  Then again, maybe we U.S. citizens would rather not tie ourselves down to one phone and one carrier, for that much time.

Treo 680, Canada, Canadian culture, Great White North, Rogers, Fido, Red Green Show, SCTV

 

[via Howard Chui.com]

Wireless carriers in the U.S. have tried everything to reduce “churn” - the loss of customers to competing providers.

Until the FCC mandated number portability, one of the best ways cell phone providers kept unhappy customers locked in was by forcing them to give up their phone numbers if they switched carriers.

Now that we are legally guaranteed the right to take our number with us, providers keep us from switching carriers willy-nilly by “locking” the handsets they sell us - preventing the handsets we bought from being easily used on another carrier’s service.

But the practice of locking handsets may also be waning.  We’ve reported that rumor that Apple’s new iPhone will be sold unlocked, capable of being used on a range of carriers.  CompUSA already sells Motorola, Nokia and Sony Ericsson handsets, unlocked.  Palm is selling its new Treo 680 on its own website, unlocked - so it is usable on any GSM cell phone carrier (such as Cingular or T-Mobile in the U.S.).

You can also buy the Treo 680, locked, from Cingular, for much less - with a two year commitment.  Cingular and nearly all other U.S. carriers subsidize handset prices, knowing that they’ll make the money back over the long haul, off the air time they sell you.  Until now, America’s addiction to cheaper handsets has allowed carriers to get away with locking handsets.

The U.S. Copyright Office contributed to the unlocking trend by ruling last month that copyright law was not violated by schemes to unlock phones.  Seems there’s little that handset makers and providers can do about it.  Although they don’t like to talk about it, T-Mobile will usually give out the unlock codes for its phones to customers, after they’ve had service for a while (6 months is the norm, we hear).  It’s led to a booming handset resale business on auction sites like Ebay.  Unlocking phones makes them easier to sell because they’re usable on a variety of carriers, not just one. 

We can safely assume that, if Apple aggressively direct markets its new iPhone, unlocked, that the other major handset manufacturers will have no choice but to do the same.  It could, and should, lead to additional price incentives and more choice - maybe even lower overall prices for handsets and wireless service.

unlock cell phones, Nokia, Motorola, Sony Ericsson, Palm, Cingular, T-Mobile

[via Business Week] 

Reports of technical difficulties aside, the arrival of the Treo 680 at Cingular this Friday could be worth waiting for, if you’re trying to decide on one of the new “affordable” smartphones.  That is, if you consider just under $200 with a 2 year contact and data plan commitment ”affordable”.

For one thing, The Palm Treo line has a huge fan base, which has generated a lot of cool software for you to enjoy with it.  And although it’s not as sleek as the BlackBerry Pearl (T-Mobile) or Motorola Q (Verizon) or the Samsung Blackjack (also Cingular), the 680’s just-big-enough keyboard and touchscreen combination give it a nice usability factor.  Maybe more usable for many people than the smaller smartphones.

And if you’d prefer to get one without a commitment to Cingular, Palm now has them up on their website, available unlocked, for $399.  (If you want the “extreme colors” - arctic, copper, crimson - those are only available unlocked from Palm.) 

[via Laptop Magazine]   

We’re not sure how these things happen.  Someone on the assembly line taking an abnormally long coffee break?

It’s reported that 144,000 new Treo 680s shipped from the factory had to be shipped right back.  Someone, it seems, forgot to connect the phones’ internal microphones.

It may have been only a coincidence, but CrunchGear had reported seeing the above ad for Treo 680s (unlocked version) on Amazon, but indicated the ad was pulled soon after that.  (FYI, the $413 price requires no commitment to a carrier.)  Does the disappearing Amazon ad have anything to do with the fact that all those phones had to be shipped back? 

Whoever’s on the assembly line for these phones, let’s keep them away from the assembly lines for anything really important.  Like heart medicine.  Or bulletproof vests.

[via CrunchGear]