Pre 2 Now Available in Canada From Rogers

Wait a second here... what's this 399$... contract month by month... checking.

hey this is strange, ealier on my first verification I saw alongside the 2 contract plans, a mention "no contract 449$ cdn" (it was not clickable). But now, that reference is completely gone.

Are they simply updating the site right now at 2h30 or is Rogers planning not to sell it without a contract.

From what I can tell, the Pre2 in Canada is a Rogers "subsidy lock" phone.

Well that's it for me folks. My quick reconsideration of Palm is yet again over. And since I can't even "smuggle" an unlocked pre 2 into Canada via hp.com (they ban shipping outside US), "It's over Johnny".

The People have to pass legislation to put a stop to these oligopoly phone carrier practices.

Gekko, I am now shopping for an Android. You were right after all.

who is your preferred wireless carrier?

unless you want to pay $50/month for a smartphone voice + data package - maybe your best bet is just to simply buy a new iPod Touch and use it on WIFI which will at least bring you into the current decade albeit kicking and screaming.

otherwise - maybe get the Samsung Galaxy S Captivate from Rogers for $99 with the minimum $50/month voice + data plan.

ubiquitous data is a beautiful thing - if not a necessity - today.

Vamp, Gekko's advice is sound. iPod Touch is the "safe" bet but you cannot rule out an Android-based non phone device.

Advantages of iPod Touch:
-Great screen resolution
-Great build quality
-Fast performance and up to 64gb internal storage
-TONS of add-on apps, peripherals, community support etc.
-Guaranteed OS updates and stability from Apple
-Good (not great, but decent) native PIM apps

Cons (The usual Apple product woes):
-No expandable storagem, especially at that resolution
-3.5" screen is a joke in 2010 and 2011
-The usual reliance on iTunes and Apple's walled garden
-Fixed battery (not user-replacable)
-Camera still image quality & resolution leaves much to be desired

Another option would be something like the Archos 43 "Internet Tablet" (essentially a 4.3" PDA or smartphone without cellular connectivity).

Advantages of the Archos:
-Expandable storage
-HDMI output
-USB host port
-Access Software's Graffiti software is available for Android (though it may not run on this kind of unsupported hardware)
-MUCH more hackable/tweakable than iOS devices. Endless possibilities for OS updates/custom ROMs etc if the hacker community rallies around this device
-Cheaper than any iPod Touch
-Better codec/file format support than iOS devices
-More cloud-centric due to Android, no mandatory desktop software component
-USB mass storage plug & play. Drag & drop your files without any silly DRM or iTunes foolishness
-Better quality still images (2mp)

Cons of the Archos:
-Flimsy build quality
-Resistive screen & no multitouch
-Questionable support in the future from Archos
-Quality of touchscreen, LCD, audio outpu etc not up to par with iPod Touch
-Android 2.x is less polished, less intuitive, and less stable and buggier than iOS 4.x
-Horrible native PIM apps
-Incompatible with some Android smartphone apps
-No official compatibility with Android Market or Google apps
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

hkklife:
thanks for the details pros and cons list.

Vamps I thought I'd go straight to the horse's mouth and look on HP Canada's website where I found a tantalising link:

http://tinyurl.com/2ao2tpr

Couldn't see any means of purchasing though.

under the specifications tab it shows:
"Service Provider Rogers"

So chances are it will never be unlocked.

ps. 3rd party resellers to ship a USA Pre 2 to Canada is a hassle and my take is that if HP does not want to or cannot sell an unlocked mobile device in Canada, then I should simply not buy anything from them. A smartphone is a luxury not a necessity. I will either buy from some other product which is unlocked, or I will simply hand onto my 1000$ and earn interest on it at the bank.

I think
1) I used to like Palm, still use Palm. The Pre2 looks nice, has the hw I want.
2) I always had good experiences when buying HP products.
3) I am unfamiliar with android.
4) 1000$ (taxes, shipping, extras) is a lot of $ and I don't want to risk high by going with a new OS I have never touched before, and buying from Samsung/HTC, companies I never bought from before. Before I do, I will be scared that there are little hardware problems for which the only way I can learn about is reading a lot on various forums; which means using my time studying (con).

That being said, the GSM not being locked is a "no go" for me. Question for me now is, do I wait for the next HPalm device, or jump into Android in January, even if blindly.

Another thing holding me back from Android is that Gingerbread has features I want and no device has Gingerbread installed. And it is not clear to me if all devices can be easily and openly be flash upgraded to Ginger.

If the OS is hardcoded/tied to device, and its not like Linux/Windows, then that is a con. HP offered the WebOS 2 upgrade to everyone, I don't know the Android culture of OS upgrades. Back in the old Palm days I seem to recall we could flash upgrade our devices regularly, I want that back.

Less vendor control and more for us.

If you're worried about obsolescence, then Android may not be your best bet. I still advocate the iPhone - predictable upgrade cycles and the most support of all smartphones.

As far as contracts go, Americans have shown great demand for subsidized phones. The original iPhone was $600 with a $20 monthly data plan including text. The next year, the iPhone 3G was subsidized and cost $300 with a $30 monthly data charge PLUS another text plan. The subsidized phone was cheaper, but people didn't care. They thought it was a price drop because they had to pay $600, and now it's only $300.

The telecoms don't have to be broken up. There are more than enough options out there for smartphones from the big four companies in the US, plus tons of prepaid and value wireless companies. More government is not the answer.

Gingerbread will be a nice interim upgrade (basically addressing most of Froyo's glaring bugs) but Honeycomb and beyond, IMHO, is when we will really start seeing Android to be a polished-looking OS.

Your best bet of avoiding obsolesence is to buy the newest, highest-end unlocked GSM Android handset from HTC come 2011. I am thinking something announced at CES and widely available a few months later will be your ticket.

As far as migrating from Palm OS, well, I was in a similar boat as you in November of 2009. I was using a Moto RAZR2 flipphone + a Treo 755p (data service only). I moved my main voice line to a Moto Droid on launch day, but kept the Treo for email & PIM purposes. I carried those 2 devices together until April or so, when I finally cut the Palm OS cord completely and dropped the 2nd line and went with the Droid as my only device. I then upgraded to a Droid X a few months ago. It's still far from perfect but it's "good enough". I still have my two Palm TXs around for legacy PIM/PIC purposes, plus the occasional game of Bejeweled 2 or Rook's Revenge or whatnot.

In hindsight, I almost wish I had just blown up all of my old contacts and started fresh from scratch. The vast majority of my Palm OS Calendar events didn't transition to Google Calendar and lots of my contact fields became corrupted. Additionally, the shitty Moto Blur layer denies you the VERY BASIC step of sorting contacts by last name, first name. Hello? I've done this on Palm OS since 1996! And even more bizarrely, stock Froyo on my Droid 1 allows this but Motorola has seen fit to remove this option.

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

richf,

Grafitti requires a classic high density screen (not like today's iPhone low density for finger swipes).

Do all Android phones have high density (don't confuse with hires) screens capable of using a stylus?

Graffiti is an ancient, slow, and inferior technology that is clung on to by nostalgia-loving dinosaurs. if you want an alternative to a traditional keyboard - Swype is the way to go.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=msxBp3FcpY0

i just use the regular keyboard because i'm not out there trying to save the world.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!!!!!!

it's faster to use, grandpa. if Graffiti was superior, everyone would be using it.

1% PalmOS and "Other"

Sorry to disappoint, but I'm still using my GarnetOS Palm TX. Very close to switching to a Droid X, I just can't seem to stop carrying the TX.

Primary phone/platform: Motorola Droid X (Android 2.2)

Primary non-phone device: iPod Touch 8gb (iOS 4.2) Basically for comparing iOS versions of apps to Android apps, iOS-exclusive apps/games and testing Ryan's latest stuff.

Secondary non-phone device: Palm TX (for PIM/PIC/nostalgia purposes)

Tertiary non-phone device: iPod Classic 160gb. Used for music and ONLY music playback.

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