Palm Pre

Palm's new operating system

WebOS is Palm's new operating system, built from scratch. The interface is organized by what Palm calls activity cards, which represent open applications that can be shuffled around the main screen and tossed away with the flick of a finger. Segan likes the Pre's interface, but wishes there were more third-party apps available, which he says would make it a viable alternative to the iPhone 3G and Apple's popular App Store. He also notes that more WebOS devices are on the horizon, so those not yet sold on the Pre should wait to see what's next. The Wall Street Journal's Walter Mossberg agrees, saying, "I consider the Pre to be potentially the strongest rival to the iPhone to date, provided it attracts lots of third-party apps, which it sorely lacks at launch."

Measuring 3.9 inches by 2.3 inches by 0.7 inches, the Palm Pre boasts a 3.1-inch, 320-by-480-pixel touch screen. It's a bit smaller overall than the iPhone (which has a 3.5-inch touch screen), and some say that makes the Pre easier to hold. What sets the Palm Pre apart from the iPhone is its pullout keyboard, something the iPhone lacks. Many reviewers find the Pre's keyboard to be a bit cramped, although it's not as small as the Palm Centro's. Mark Spoonauer at Laptop Magazine says the keyboard takes some getting used to, but soon enough he is "typing… at a pretty fast clip."

The Pre's touch screen is a hit

Unlike the keyboard, reviewers are unanimous in their praise of the Pre's touch-screen interface, calling it "elegant," and "fun." One of the Pre's most talked-about features is Synergy, which consolidates contacts and calendars from a variety of sources, including Google and Facebook. With Synergy, if you click on a Facebook friend, you can email that person from any of your email accounts, or you can reply to an email with a text message. Segan, like others, finds this feature to be a "step in the right direction," but wants even more integration. Universal Search is another cool feature that draws from a number of sources simultaneously, including Twitter, Google and Wikipedia. Segan says "it would be even better if it searched e-mail, too." Still, experts agree that the Pre has "unparalleled multitasking capabilities," as CNET's Bonnie Cha puts it.

Segan calls the Pre "the best multimedia phone since the iPhone." At launch, the Pre could sync with iTunes, but as many experts predicted, that capability was later blocked by Apple via a software update. He finds the 3-megapixel camera to be fast (no shutter lag) and capable of producing good photos. The camera has a flash, but it can't capture video. CNET's Cha agrees that the Pre has a "solid set of multimedia features," and is impressed with the camera's image quality. She notes that Palm may offer video capture in a future firmware release. The Pre has 8 GB of onboard storage and, like the iPhone, no expansion slot, which several reviewers complain about, particularly those with large music collections.

What about phone calls?

CNET finds call quality and reception to be good while testing in San Francisco; in New York City,  PCMag.com finds voice quality to be good enough, but reception is weak and inconsistent. PCMag.com and CNET both test battery life, and they are equally disappointed with talk time (about four and five hours, respectively). Nearly every reviewer mentions Palm's solution to the short battery life: the Touchstone Charging Kit (*Est. $70). It has a sleek design and uses induction to charge the phone so you don't have to plug in, much the way an electric toothbrush charger works. The stand is angled so that you can easily view the screen and use the phone as it's charging. Segan admits the Touchstone is rather pricey, but he also calls it a "nifty desk accessory." David Pogue is a bit more reticent, noting that using the Touchstone requires you to replace the back of the Pre with a magnetic cover (included with the Touchstone) that doesn't match the front. Still, he can't argue with its ease of use.  

There is no shortage of professional reviews of the Palm Pre. PCMag.com, CNET and Laptop Magazine offer in-depth reviews and lab testing, complete with ratings. Tech columnists David Pogue of The New York Times and Walter Mossberg of The Wall Street Journal chime in as well. Engadget.com posts a lengthy review accompanied by wealth of images and screenshots, but does not give the phone a rating. There are already more than 120 users reviews at CNET and a handful at Phone Scoop and PhoneArena.com.