Comments on: PC Mags Dan Costa on Moving from WebOS to Android

PC Magazine's Dan Costa, previously a proud proponent of the Palm Pre and WebOS, has written two related new articles on why he is dumping his Pre in favor a device on the rapidly moving but fractured Android landscape: "Why I'm Dropping My Palm Pre" and "Why I Picked Up the Samsung Epic 4G with Android".

In Costa's own words, he was an original "Palm loyalist", having used Palm PDAs and smartphones since the first Pilot but could no longer live with the Pre's various platform, hardware, and network shortcomings compared to the rapidly-improving competition. In Costa's own words for WebOS: "The platform is clearly floundering".

He claims to have made his decision partly because he needed a more capable converged device, but also because of a lack of compelling new features in WebOS 2.0 and the Pre 2's exclusivity on Verizon combined with the lack of any new WebOS device upgrade path for Sprint users. This last point has become a very common complaint, especially with the recent Sprint Pre EOL confirmation. The final point to push this once-staunch Palm advocate to the Android platform was the arrival of Sprint's WiMax network in New York City.

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Yes

M3wThr33 @ 11/16/2010 4:20:31 PM # Q
I agree, 100%.
The combination of Sprint's lack of Pre Plus/2.0, the insulting Pre 2.0 and just a poor device overall is having me lust after the Epic 4G.
The last straw was the Pre 2.0 announcement which was the bare minimum HP could have done.
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awful

Gekko @ 11/16/2010 4:49:23 PM # Q

is it just me or were those two articles just bland and awful?

RE: awful
Gekko @ 11/17/2010 4:09:32 AM # Q

p.s. hkk - don't you owe us a long promised piece on your Palm to Android transition???

are you on "southern time"???

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palm quitters world wide

attas @ 11/17/2010 5:53:24 PM # Q
I live in Saudi Arabia, I have been palm addict since USR1000. Had tought many people the ultimate benefits of super palm gadgets with hundreds of thousands of applicationd. But the world goes round and nothing stays the same. I see people now who look at Andriod as my self 16 years ago. My four boys now each hold an HTC Desire phone. Looking how promising Android is, I expect them to join the same ride I had before (with Palm). I like and proud now to say "From my Desire HD".
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Pre-mature

palmless @ 11/20/2010 4:32:02 AM # Q
I cannot help thinking this jump is a little premature...
I have this week just replaced my Tungsten T|X with an unlocked Palm Pre 2 and am now starting the migration from Palm OS to web OS. Just want to say I am loving it. Contacts etc... have gone smoothly now I am going through my applications to find out what can replace the trusted old Palm OS apps. Got my webOS 2.0.1 update after one day! I think HP Palm are going to make a dent next year. For me having an unlocked device was a boon, I could choose a SIM deal to suit me and the device to suit me something I could not do when the choice was just O2! Now I get the best of worlds a device I want to maximise with the connectivity I need. Plus if HP release a device next year in the same manner then I can upgrade! Its like being free again with PDA's not tied to phone networks and contractual tie-ins. I have a one month SIM deal rolling I can move where I want when I want and explore this new world of Pre 2. Replacing my previous Samsung and Nokia "feature" phones and hopefully replacing all the functions of my trusty old TX PDA which I may still retain for SatNav. Also the only slight concern at the moment is music playback. 99% of my music collection is in ogg format which I cannot play on my pre 2. Any suggestions?
Palm m130 > T|T > T|X > Pre 2 :D > webOS all the way now methinks!
RE: Pre-mature
hkklife @ 11/20/2010 12:53:03 PM # Q
Interesting feedback. Have you had any issues coping with the less robust PIM capabilities of WebOS vs. Garnet? How have you handled the drop in actual screen size going from your TX (same resolution, of course)?

I wish that the coverage & flexibility of carriers & hardware supporting SIM cards was as good in the USA...

But honestly, why keep the TX and its weak Bluetooth support, separate GPS puck and dated apps/maps for navigation? Couldn't you pick up a brand new "modern" GPS unit with a bigger screen, TTS, more POIs, and the latest map data for a few quid? They're dirt cheap commodity items nowadays!

Interesting point about the lack of OGG support in WebOS. That's yet another area where WebOS falls flat vs. Palm OS. Heck, I remember from Oct -Dec'02 or so, right after I got my initial Tungsten T, OGG and WAV files were all that we COULD play under OS5 before Aeroplayer came to our rescue!! I had to convert my MP3s to OGG just to play them on my T|T then switch back to MP3 once AeroPlayer and RealPlayer were out!
Pilot 1000->Pilot 5000->PalmPilot Pro->IIIe->Vx->m505->T|T->T|T2->T|C->T|T3->T|T5->Zodiac 2->TX->Verizon Treo 700P->Verizon Treo 755p->Verizon Moto Droid + Verizon Palm Centro-> Verizon Moto Droid X + Palm TX

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