Comments on: Palm CES Event Video Highlights

Agreed-The Pre is so beautiful it makes you wanna cry! Even Colligan looks good w/o his 5 O'clock shadow! You've all heard this one before, but after financing 1/2 of the national debt and TARP bailout plan with my legacy apps, which date back to initial releases and upgrades for the IIIc (remember that one: "keeps on ticking after clicking"), T5 (still great on a wireless keyboard for landscaping spreadsheets), and my decked-out "'Claus'-ified" Centro, I hope the Pre will support a decent emulator until the developers convert their wares over to WebOS. The Pre really, really looks great in its design, engineering, multi-tasking software, and execution, and seems to be keeping pace, if not exceening, cutting-edge graphics. A real "Dream Machine, palm! Stay in the clouds and keep up the great work!

>>>Core runs at 550mhz

Yeah, but is Palm *underclocking* it? We don't know, do we? Witness the netbooks that have come out with underclocked CPUs to extend battery life.

I sooooo want one of those... can't afford one, but still... maybe by the time its available for verizon customers...

Hey, scstraus2, think its time to remove "goodbye palm" from your sig? :-p

There appears to be no built-in backward compatibility. So, you will need to rely on a 3rd party emulator or buy all new apps, which don't exist yet.

Built-in memory is 8GB. No card slot. If I need more than 2GB on my TX, I plan to get Dmitry's app to let my TX run high capacity SD cards while I wait out the Pre to see who will carry it and what it will really do.

Palm lists the formats that it will run natively.

My guess is that this will create a market for Palm OS emulators on the major smartphone platforms to provide an escape route for long time users to move to other platforms, including webOS. The lack of compatibility with legacy POS application surprises me most.

David
Palm III> Palm IIIx> Palm IIIc> Sony T615> Sony T665> Sony TH55> Palm T|E> Palm T|E2> Palm T|X

I am not a programmer, but I understand from reading other's comments that building an emulator will not be an easy process if it is possible at all. There are really two issues involved, one is moving data to the new device and the other is running legacy applications on the new device. Data migration should be possible, running legacy applications seems to be a big question. And even if it became possible, would we like the performance? I know that you can run Windows on a Mac, but who would choose to do that as a long term solution? (That's a rhetorical question, to please no barbs from Mac users.)

David
Palm III> Palm IIIx> Palm IIIc> Sony T615> Sony T665> Sony TH55> Palm T|E> Palm T|E2> Palm T|X

You could obviously tell that I am not a programmer. So the answer is that it will be impossible to run legacy apps, is that right?

David
Palm III> Palm IIIx> Palm IIIc> Sony T615> Sony T665> Sony TH55> Palm T|E> Palm T|E2> Palm T|X

I thought that it ran Linux underneath. There should be a way to run non webos apps, and have the launcher launch it.

It was hinted at that it is "All Web now, All Web always"

A few hints were dropped very quietly that MAYBe for a big-name game title or something that really stresses the hardware as a killer app, they might make "certain exceptions" but I would not hold my breath on it.

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->?

Camera?

I'm seeing lots of videos showing windowing features.

I don't think I saw web browsing (need to be online?), though video, camera, sound are there.

Argh. Another. "screen lacks things lack "back arrows"" = "creen lacks things LIKE "back arrows"".

I need to proof better. Or is that bettr?

Oh Mike, Mike, Mike.

The iPhone is now sooooo 2007.

I'm asking the same questions. I'm not on ATT, but the iPod touch is more compelling today than it was 24 hours ago.

David
Palm III> Palm IIIx> Palm IIIc> Sony T615> Sony T665> Sony TH55> Palm T|E> Palm T|E2> Palm T|X

>>>The iPhone is now sooooo 2007.

Hahahahahaha.

Physical keyboard doesn't excite me. I've played with the iPhone alot. The virtual keyboard works fine for me. I can make the same numbers of typos with either one!

just wait to buy the unlocked version when it comes out and skip the contract and just use the wifi. if you ever want to convert it to a working phone, easily done. and who knows - maybe there'll be some type of skype app available someday. problem solved.

The one point the Pre is, to take Palm at their word, clearly superior to the iPhone is the multi-tasking-running in the background bit. Despite having promised it months ago, Apple hasn't delivered on a background notifications solution for the iPhone, which means that things like AIM are pretty useless. Also, the inability of third party applications to communicate with the iPhone's datebook and SMS client is very irritating.

I love my iPhone. Most of the complaints about it (keyboard and PIM applications included) are wrong or just nitpicks. But if Palm puts this puppy out without significant bugs and Apple doesn't solve some of the issues they've been struggling with, Palm has the better phone. Who would have thought? (okay, freakout would have guessed, but even a stopped clock...)

Pre or iPhone? I'm surprised that Mike is leaning the iPhone way. I bought an iPhone for my wife. Here in Australia, 70% of iPhone users are females... and that says it all to me.

Mike's just leaning towards iPhone cause Apple might release a Foleo rip off.
http://tinyurl.com/7ndtua

>>>I bought an iPhone for my wife. Here in Australia, 70% of iPhone users are females... and that says it all to me.

Australia has always been a weird country, anyway. That PM who took a walk into the ocean and never reappeared. Hey, I've read Bill Bryson's book!

I've always wanted an iPhone. But the Pre is the FIRST thing to come along that's an actual *speedbump* to getting one. I keep thinking about that kick-ass multitasking they've created. Damn, that is fine!!

Q) Can one plug a MicroSD or any other external storage card *into* the Pre (as opposed to its acting as a flash drive for another device, which it's clear it can do)?
A: No, zero external storage slot onboard. it has a fixed 8gb, of which ~7.4 is available. This is the biggest drawback of the device IMO and HORRIBLY cripples it for any serious prosumer/media savvy users. I just was at the SD committe's booth the other night. they had 64gb microSDXC cards there and the XC extension of the SD format can top out at 2GB. Palm has yet again firmly buried their hands in the sand in regards to users wanting/needing removable storage to extend the usefulness and functionality of their devices. No MicroSDHC slot on Pre==EPIC MEGA FAIL!

2) Will the Bluetooth stack include support for external keyboards?

No comment but I personally doubt it. They didn't want to say much about BT other than stressing that it's A2DP compliant and supports BT 2.1 + EDR.

3) Will it allow a developer to create Jot/Graffiti compatibility for those of us who like to write with one hand instead of typing with two?

Possible to create it with web tools but with no way to interact with the OS....I highly doubt it.

4) Will it run PalmOS apps?
Nothing was mentioned, and it was strongly hinted that Garnet is dead, gone, and in the past. this is an entirely "new" Palm we're looking at and aside from supporting legacy Palm OS users ot import their PIm data, there is really NO acknowledgement of the past 12 years of Palm OS. Sorry, guys.

5) Will it support offline apps (I'm thinking about things like Hebrew support)?
Yes, offline apps will be supported but they will still have to built with web-style "tools" and technologies. But if you are asking if an app will require online connectivity--I asked that and they said "no" in a roundabout way.

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->?

This is the biggest drawback of the device IMO and HORRIBLY cripples it for any serious prosumer/media savvy users.

But 90%+ users never use the second GB. To 90%+ users 8GB is plenty. True the power users are stiffed for now....until Pre2 comes out with a 16 GB (then one with 32...etc) memory ala iphone/ipods.

In short, I had always believed that the world involved magic: now I thought that perhaps it involved a magician.
- Chesterton

Aye, Mike, I of COURSE meant 2TB. I'm a shambles right now after the past three days. I don't CARE what most users use or don't use. Let them have their 1gb of internal storage or let them stuff it with gigs upon gigs. I want that CHOICE. Apple won't let us have choice and now Palm is becoming like that too.

I have some more disappointments straight from Palm re: the Pre:

1. NO video capture

2. NO voice dialing native, either into the phone's mic or via BT. They claim to be "looking into ways to add this feature eventually". That means, of course IMHO, getting dinged with a monthly $ charge for that rotten Nuance voice contro. A next-gen flagship device like this should have all of this standard. Let's hope they pull out another miracle in the next couple months (unlikely)

3.WebOS' Contacts app cannot have its fields renamed or have additional or custom fields added (from what I was told by the Palm reps-I was unable to confirm this personally).
So if I have Mike Cane in my contacts list and want to add his "vacation home" number, I cannot create a new field and entitle it that since I do not consider his beach condo his "home" or his "office". It appears that I am forced to shove it under home/work/fax/mobile etc. In fact, I didn't even see if you can have multiple fields for "mobile" or a spot for custom fields. I'll review our video & still footage tonight and see what I can spot.

Omitting "old school" features like IR, styli, hard app buttons, Graffiti, and even desktop synchronization is one thing. But jettisoning CRITICAL features like video capture, removable memory card slots, voice dialing and going backwards in battery mAh capacity on your powerful, fastest CPU, largest screen device yet is just retarded.

So far from CES I am announcing the following awards from what I have seen so far:

Best of Show (tie): HP DV2 premium netbook & Palm's WebOS

Biggest disappointments of show: Sony P-Series netbook & Palm Pre

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->?

>>>9.) How do you get music and video onto the Pre?
>>>You can drag and drop it over from your PC using USB mass storage, or buy songs on the device using a built in Amazon MP3 Store client.

That brings up its own set of questions too!

When plugged into a PC/Mac as a USB mass storage device, are people going to be presented with a default set of folders that CANNOT be renamed and into which specific files MUST go? This is how it works on the ECTACO jetBook eBook Reader:
http://jetbook.net/manual/jetBook_manual_Eng.pdf (PDF link)

>>>When browsing through the contents stored in the internal memory of the device, you will see the following folders: Books, Music, and Pictures. Do not delete or rename these folders!

The ECTACO allows folder creation, however. I hope the Pre will too. There'd be nothing worse than one ginormous Video folder that can't be further classified by TV, movie, music, or whatever.