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Verizon to Offer All Palm Devices on Prepaid Plans

Kris Keilhack — Thu, 02 Sep 2010 17:27:01 +0000

Once considered the red-haired stepchild to the postpaid wireless industry, the continuing economic woes plaguing our economy have brought new attention to prepaid, no-contract wireless plans. Now, a leaked Verizon Wireless screen capture shows what could be the opening salvo of a major battle for more dollars from prepaid wireless users.

If this report from Android Does is correct, VZW prepaid service is coming to nearly all of the carrier's 3G feature phones and their top tier of smartphones running WebOS, BlackBerry and AndroidOSes on September 2nd. Only Verizon's handful of Windows Mobile offerings appear to be exempt from this new prepaid push.

Sprint webOS Devices Now Free from HP

Kris Keilhack — Thu, 02 Sep 2010 17:24:01 +0000

Long past reaching their relative expiration dates, the oldest WebOS devicesSprint's original Pre and Pixihave finally seen a price drop from HP's official Wireless Central store.

Sprint's two 2009-era WebOS devices are finally "free" from HP with the usual two-year contractual commitment. Of course, the devices are still being sold for $149.99 (after $100 rebate) and $49.99 (after $100 rebate) directly from Sprint but at least WebOS diehards on Sprint who don't yet have a device can get one directly from HP without having to shell out any upfront bucks. In addition, a $50 gift card is being offered for both Sprint WebOS devices.

webos 1.4.5 Released for Verizon Pixi Plus

Kris Keilhack — Thu, 02 Sep 2010 17:17:01 +0000

After a rather lengthy delay, Palm Pixi Plus owners on Verizon Wireless have finally started to receive the webOS 1.4.5 update. Currently being pushed out to all VZW Pixi Pluses, the biggest feature of this14mb update update is PDK gaming compatibility. With this update, a number of high-end 3D-accelerated games previously only available for the Pre are now available for Pixi users.

Unfortunately for Verizon Pre Plus and all AT&T WebOS users, their version of the updates remains unreleased. The full release notes for WebOS 1.4.5 on Verizon can be found on Palm's support site.

Tam’s Preliminary PDA32 Review Posted

Kris Keilhack — Thu, 02 Sep 2010 17:15:01 +0000

In his continuing coverage of the first new Palm OS handheld in nearly five years, TamsPalm has posted a wrap-up of their preliminary overview of the device. Tam's multi-part preview is available in a number of sections discussing the physical size comparisons with other pocket-sized devices as well as the attributes of the PDA32's LCD screen. Tam has promised to update his preliminary results once he has a final PDA32 for testing.

For those who have not been intently following the long saga of the Aceeca's niche hit of the year, Tam claims that the device is "huge" but has a "...very ergonomic form factor which makes the device comfortable to hold during use". He also describes the screen as "very good" in a series of comparison photos. Again, Tam's tests were on a very early non-final piece of hardware, so his findings may vary drastically from shipping production units. Surprisingly, Tam even appears to give the nod to a factory-fresh PDA32 over a several year-old Palm TX due to its better screen, more bulkier but more comfortable form factor, and much better battery life and warranty.

Facebook 1.3 for webOS

Kris Keilhack — Thu, 02 Sep 2010 17:12:01 +0000

Palm webOS Facebook fans will be delighted to know that version 1.3 of the native Facebook app has just been released. Some eagerly-awaited features have been included in this release, such as landscape mode compatibility and photo tagging. The full changelog can be found here.

In addition, HP/Palm's very own webOS fan page has just announced over 30,000 fans for webOS. Facebook for the Palm Pre and Pixi can be downloaded here or via the on device App Catalog.

The next big (webOS) thing

Palm, Inc. — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 18:18:31 +0000

Maybe you've heard that Palm webOS 2.0 is coming. Many of the details are still under wraps, but webOS developers participating in Palm’s early access program are getting a preview of the next version of our platform. A beta version of Palm webOS 2.0, the most significant update since its inception in 2009, was released to developers today. For more information, see the Palm Developer Center.

Jon Zilber

Facebook for Palm webOS: You asked for it, you got it

Palm, Inc. — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 13:51:58 +0000

We heard two things from you after we launched Facebook for Palm webOS 1.1 back in March: You really liked the new features, and you wanted more. Since then, there's been a great dialog - everything from your latest feature wishlists and bug reports, to explanations of some of the gnarly techie details our developers have faced - on our Facebook page dedicated to the app.

For the more adventurous among you, we maintain a beta version of the webOS Facebook app, as well as the “official” release and we love the feedback we get on the beta version. For example, version 1.2.30 of the beta app was the first version to support selectable feeds. Within an hour of its release, Kris Venden told us that he'd like the app to remember his most recently selected feed between launches. Our team agreed, implemented that feature later that day, and released the updated 1.2.32 version a couple of days later.

Today, Facebook for Palm webOS 1.3 is available. The new official release includes dozens of new features and and enhancements, many of which were prompted or refined by all of you. Highlights include selectable feeds, comments in the feed, photo tagging, landscape mode, clearing multiple notifications at once, and lots of performance enhancements. Want more details? Click here. (Or better yet, click here to download or update the app right now!)

Special thanks to the Palm webOS community for making ours the highest-rated Facebook app on any smartphone. We couldn't have done it without you!

Justin Ried

Got game? Palm Pixi Plus on Verizon does

Palm, Inc. — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 05:57:18 +0000

Palm webOS 1.4.5 has been released for Pixi Plus on Verizon Wireless. And that means it’s game time!

With 1.4.5’s support for PDK gaming on the Pixi platform, Verizon Pixi Plus customers can now enjoy games built with the webOS PDK (Plug-in Development Kit), including 3D games. Popular titles now available for Pixi Plus on Verizon include “Crusade of Destiny,” “ExZeus,” “Galcon,” “Assassin's Creed - Altaïr's Chronicles” and “Need for Speed Undercover.”

You can find these and other great new games for Pixi Plus in the Palm App Catalog, so check them out. The detailed 1.4.5 release notes for Verizon Pixi Plus can be found here.

Paul A., Palm PR

VZW Pre Plus EOL in Oct, Pixi Plus to Live on Until March

Kris Keilhack — Wed, 25 Aug 2010 22:20:01 +0000

Hot on the heels of our recent news of the Pre Plus approaching oblivion with Verizon Wireless comes another report from PhoneDog offering some tantalizing information about the Pixi Plus.

According to the leaked screen capture, Palm's current Pixi Plus is not slated to be EOL'd with Verizon until March 31st 2011, an end date shared with some more newer and far more popular devices such as Motorola's recently-released Droid X and Droid 2. Additionally, a solid EOL date of October 21st 2010 is mentioned for the Pre Plus, lending further credibility to reports that a replacement flagship webOS device may indeed be due for the holiday season.

Interestingly, the Pixi Plus' March 31st date also is linked to a number of other devices of varying ages and price points. It's entirely possible that this is an arbitrary placeholder date that is subject to change.

Verizon Pre Plus Nearing EOL Status?

Kris Keilhack — Wed, 25 Aug 2010 17:53:01 +0000

After reports earlier this year of very disappointing webOS results on Verizon, the CDMA giant has been surprisingly supportive of Palm and their two webOS devices, bundling in the wi-fi hotspot functionality for free and offering the devices in-store at drastically reduced prices sans mail-in rebates. Now it looks like the writing is finally on the wall for the Verizon version of the Pre Plus, if the latest Engadget report is correct.

According to some screenshots and internal documentation received by Engadget, Verizon is set to EOL a number of 3G modems and smartphones, the Pre Plus among them. Somewhat surprisingly, the Pixi Plus is not set for "phase out" status like its more powerful Pre Plus sibling. Whether this is a move designed to merely clear Pre Plus stocks altogether or making way for a "Pre 2" successor device as rumored is as of yet unknown.

Several recent Verizon Wireless corporate store visits revealed the Pre Plus to be in stock but the Pixi Plus was on display and tagged as a 'special order' item.