New Palm Pre may nudge, not challenge iPhone
By Gareth Powell
The new Palm Pre is the machine that Apple should have launched as a successor to the current Palm. It did not. Perhaps this is because Steve Jobs sure hands are not, perhaps, as firmly on the tiller. This machine is definitely a ‘Just one more thing’ event needing Steve Jobs to launch it.
But it was Palm that launched it, not Apple.
Existing applications, even games, found on older Palm products will not work with the Palm Pre without third party involvement, but this does not matter a toss. It shows how important Palm consider the new Web OS for Palm. Palm has said the Web OS is expected to guide its application and device development for the next decade. (Note our illustration has it on its side. That fits our format.)
This new, and extremely snazzy, mobile phone will be available from Sprint in the first half of this year.
Palm will be setting up an online store similar to Apple’s App Store for users to find applications for the Pre.
The company also will release a generally available software developer kit for building applications Real Soon Now or before July when the phone will be launched.
The Web OS itself is based on Linux, with the software on top built in-house by Palm engineers. Should be relatively simple for developers familiar with CSS, Java and HTML. The first version of the phone has applications developed by about two dozen third-party developers.
It uses the touch interface pioneered by Apple on the iPhone — to some the most important development since Windows — and common tasks, such as calling up an e-mail or a text field to contact a close worker or friend, requires only one touch.
It does NOT have a virtual keyboard — which is not easy to get used to although it can be done. Instead it has slide-out QWERTY keyboard which gives it a major marketing edgle.
The glossy-black Pre has a unique curved slider body: when you slide the 3.1-inch screen up, it curves slightly towards you. This is neat, snazzy and might prevent glare. Journos who tested the keyboard said it was easy to type on with hunt and peck. Touch typing on a machine this size is probably a keyboard too far.
It has a 3.0-megapixel camera with zoom and both these could be upgraded before lauch. It also does not have video recording, a feature the iPhone also lacks, and, again, this could be fixed before launch.
The device comes with 8GB of storage and you cannot add more. Personally, that is more than enough especially as you can clear it downloading through a USB port to a Netbook.
The screen is bright with icons but most reviewers though it compared unfavourably in appearnces to the iPod. But, again, Palm can fix this before luanch.
One report said, ‘From what we saw, the new webOS is one of the silkiest and best-designed smart phone platforms we’ve seen in a while.’
So it is a knock-out phone and the few down points could easily be cleared before the end of the year.
The Pre also offers integrated Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 2.1 (with support for stereo Bluetooth), EV-DO Rev. A, and GPS. And there is a 3.5mm headphone jack, and high-speed USB 2.0.
In the United States it will be tied in to Sprint who will seriously give it a major push. It will certainly be priced iPhone.
On the specs it could be a real challenge to the iPhone. A Reality Check shows this simply is not so.
An iPhone is instant recognizable and changed the view of mobile phones overnight. Backing it is the marketing strength of Apple and, at the moment, the genius of Steve Jobs who is, indeed, the most amazing second act in business history.
At the same time the financial climate is not encouraging for people to go and get a new high end mobile. It may have changed somewhat by July. But not enough.
The Palm Pre is undoubtedly an amazing machine. But there are a lot of amazing machines out there. It is doubtful it will knock iPhone off its throne. Just give it a little nudge.
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January 29th, 2009
From what I read on Wired, it sounds like Apple may be devoting the bulk of its upgrade to its next version of the iPhone (2.x) to better gaming capacities.
Brand expert John Tantillo named Apple last week’s ‘brand winner’ (Microsoft was named the loser), specifically citing the fact that Apple, unlike Microsoft, pays attention to its Target Market and what it wants.
If Apple does allow the iPhone to evolve in the direction of gaming (rather than creating One version that improves options for gamers), I could see the Pre catching up with the iPhone–depending on what they plan to offer in future versions.
I don’t doubt that improved options for gamers may fit into an interest of some consumers (although I think that serious gamers would prefer playing at home, with a large TV screen, for hours on end..) – but IF this constitutes the main change in the evolution of the current iphone to the next version, I think that Apple will actually be ignoring the great part of its target market (non-gamers, yes, but also specifically Women.)
Tantillo actually had a post a while back on women as consumers of electronics–and how companies such as Best Buy had ignored these consumers and had started to mend their ways. Apple would be wise not to make the same sorts of mistakes.