Palm Pre Plus For Verizon Vs. AT&T

Verizon has abused, insulted and humiliated AT&T in its ads over the past few months and it is time for some unexpected rebuttal. An anonymous tipster who has gotten hold of a yet-to-be-released Palm Pre Plus for AT&T has revealed that the new handset is comparitively much faster than what was seen on Verizon.

But wait, the credit does not go to AT&T though. The new Palm Pre Plus on AT&T runs WebOS 1.4.2 which accounts for some of the speed increase. Also, considering that the new device does not have much of preloaded information at the moment, the device may appear faster. The tipster has however noted that the QWERTY keyboard is super responsive.

AT&T should still be a happy network though.

[via PreCentral]

Palm Pre And Pixi Prices See Massive Discounts

With Palm being snapped up by HP, there is a lot of possible strategy change that is expected with the smartphone manufacturer. This means that the present flagship products, Palm Pre and Pixi may not be in the scheme of things in sometime now, though the company’s future itself is secure.

This has led to Verizon announcing a fire sale of the two devices. The 16GB 3G enabled version of Palm Pre Plus from Verizon will now be available at just $29 with a two year contract. This is $120 less than what customers paid yesterday! Sprint’s version of the device still sells at $149 though a commensurate price drop is imminent.

[via Yahoo News]

Palm Pre Plus On AT&T Show Up

Dummy units of Palm Pre Plus are reported to be making it to the stores of AT&T. This could possibly be an indication of the upcoming launch of  a GSM version of the popular smartphone handset from Palm.

No reports over the launch date, price at the moment, but according to folks at Engadget, the only thing we know for now is that the launch is happening anytime now.

Another smartphone on AT&T. Can Ma Bell handle it?

[via Engadget]

How To Add Music/Video/Picture Files To Palm Pre

Unlike iPhone, Palm Pre does not come with a native software like iTunes to download music and video files from your computer to your phone. However, there is an alternate software solution in doubleTwist. Using doubleTwist is simple and very much like using iTunes.

Here is a step by step guide for you to sync music to Palm Pre

Step 1 : Download and install doubleTwist on to your PC running Windows XP, Vista or 7. If you have a Mac, click here to download the appropriate version.

Step 2 : Connect your Palm Pre to your computer via the USB cable

Step 3 : You will now be asked to select the connection options like ‘Media Sync‘, ‘USB Drive‘ and ‘Just Charge‘. Select ‘USB Drive‘

Step 4 : doubleTwist will now launch and shall recognize your Pre automatically.

Step 5 : You may now begin the transfer process. The process can be done either via a comprehensive auto-sync or files may be transferred individually.

Auto-Sync

• On the left sidebar of the doubleTwist screen, click on the Palm Pre icon
• On the main area of the screen, select the appropriate options like ‘Sync videos with this device’ and choose whether to sync all videos or only selected, etc.
• Once you have gone through options on all the tabs, click on the ‘Sync’ button on the lower right corner of the screen to initiate the process.

Manual Sync
On the left side bar of the doubleTwist window, you will find a ‘Library‘ section. Here, click on the ‘Pictures‘, ‘Videos‘ and ‘Music‘ sections to select, drag and drop the individual files to your Palm Pre

Step 6 : The file transfer process is done. You may close doubleTwist window and unplug your Palm Pre from the computer.

Here is a video demo of the entire process

[via doubleTwist]

HP Enters Smartphone Segment With Palm Acquisition

Finally the drama surrounding the acquisition of Palm came to an end with Hewlett Packard announcing that the company is acquiring Palm for an estimated $1.2 billion.

Making the announcement on the company’s website, Todd Bradley, executive vice president, Personal Systems Group at HP said,

“Palm’s innovative operating system provides an ideal platform to expand HP’s mobility strategy and create a unique HP experience spanning multiple mobile connected devices. And, Palm possesses significant IP assets and has a highly skilled team. The smartphone market is large, profitable and rapidly growing, and companies that can provide an integrated device and experience command a higher share. Advances in mobility are offering significant opportunities, and HP intends to be a leader in this market.”

The acquisition is expected to be completed by July 31st of this year with every shareholder of Palm receiving $5.70 in cash for the stock that they hold.

[via HP]

How To Sync Palm Pre With Facebook

Syncing your Facebook account with Palm Pre can add all your Facebook friends to your contacts besides giving you instantaneous updates. Here is how you will do it

Step 1 : From Palm Pre, launch ‘Contacts’ and Click open ‘Preferences‘ -> ‘Accounts‘
Step 2 : You should see Facebook in the list. Tap on the link and enter your Facebook login credentials
Step 3 : Log into Facebook from another system, preferably a PC
Step 4 : Click on ‘Account‘ -> ‘Account Settings‘ -> ‘Notifications‘ -> ‘Other Applications‘ -> ‘Show More‘ (if needed)
Step 5 : Click on the ‘Facebook for Palm‘ option and select ‘ON’
Step 6 : Now launch ‘Contacts‘ on your Palm and open ‘Preferences & Accounts‘ -> ‘Sync Now‘
Step 7 : Now from your Palm Pre, tap on ‘Sync‘ in your Facebook account (small refresh sign on bottom right of phone)
Step 8 : It will take some time for the syncing to complete.

Lenovo Palm Acquisition

Yet another day, yet another acquisition rumor. The slow unimpressive sale of WebOS devices is not news anymore and Palm is known to be taking a few steps in order to position their handsets better in the market.

However, we now hear that popular computer hardware maker Lenovo may be interested in acquiring the smartphone manufacturer to expand its penetration in the smartphone market. While nothing is confirmed, Lenovo could be expected to either use the Palm brandname to extend their reach or may simply use the resources at Palm to further their own interests.

Eitherways, be forewarned that this is just a speculation and needs to be taken with a grain of salt.

[CNBC via Electronista]

Palm Fires Ad Agency, Scouting For New Partners

Following a lackluster performance over the past few quarters, Palm is known to have severed its ties with Modernista, the ad agency which was responsible for the several “creepy” looking ads of late and is reported to be talking to several agencies. Modernista is not the only casualty. The company has also reportedly fired its Director of Marketing, Scott Hancock.

The move comes following lower-than-expected sale of its Pre and Pixi handsets since the company engaged in partnership with Modernista last year. This is also a blow to Modernista as Adage notes,

“This is yet another major setback for Modernista, which lost its biggest account, General Motors’ Cadillac brand, late last year. Since the carmaker shifted its account to Publicis-backed BBH, New York, Modernista has been forced to cut staff, and in December shuttered its three-year old Amsterdam office.”

[via Adage]

Palm Peer-to-Peer Data Synchronization

Palm has clinched an important patent that relates to P2P data synchronization among several devices like desktop computers, laptops, mobile handsets,etc. The patent application that was filed way back in 2007 and awarded just recently can be a terrific shot in the arm for the now-beleaguered company.

In the patent, the inventors say that their method of data synchronization will enabled data sharing “without the need for a centralized system that keeps track of the shared data.”

The patent awarded to Palm might have just pushed its attractiveness quotient a notch higher among companies looking to buy the company out. What do you think?

Device Orientation Based Context Detection On Smartphones

In order to make applications easy to use, smartphone manufacturers offer a variety of shortcuts. Additionally, these devices also come with reconfigurable buttons so that the same button may be used for different purposes depending on the application that is open and context.

Palm Inc. wants to take it a step further by including the device orientation and GPS functionalities to determine the context. For instance, while on a camera app, pointing the device vertically (perpendicular to the earth surface) in portrait or landscape mode may let you capture a photo. However, taking the device’s orientation parallel to the earth surface may open the album.

This is among the several embodiments that Palm wants to incorporate with its new patent impending technology. Here are some examples quoted from the patent application

In an Amusement Park

“when a user enters a park (e.g. an amusement park), a server automatically downloads a file to the smartphone. When the smartphone is laid flat and a dedicated button is pressed, a map of the park is displayed. When the smartphone is pointed at an attraction (e.g. a ride, a trail, etc.) and a user input is received, information relating to that attraction (age and height restrictions, wait time, trail length and conditions, etc.) and/or other media relating to that attraction (music, an instructional video, etc.) are provided.”

Pointing at Building For Information (Uses GPS and Orientation)

“A user may point the smartphone at a restaurant to obtain information relating to the restaurant and/or other restaurants in the area. The information may include menu selections, nutritional information, hours of operation, links for making reservations, and/or other information related to the restaurant. This same example may be applied to other types of businesses and/or other buildings as well (e.g. to identify the businesses and their location in a particular building).”

Remote Control for TV

“A user first programs the smartphone to control the TV (e.g. may be a series of on-screen prompts, may be through selection of codes associated with the TV that are tested until a change is detected, may be by pairing the phone with the TV–e.g. through a Bluetooth connection, and/or may be through some other method). The user also programs the smartphone to provide quick access to the remote control functions of the smartphone when the smartphone is pointed at the TV while the smartphone is in the same room as the TV. In operation, when the smartphone is pointed at the TV, the smartphone is configured to send a signal to the TV to control the TV (e.g. using IR commands for TVs with IR receivers and using RF commands for TVs with RF receivers).”