What is the verdict? Will the Palm Pre do the Job For You?
The Pre has been out for 2 weeks as of this writing. I have had one comment so far about a major short-coming of the Pre and that is the lack of a hard wire connection to your pc. I do not own one yet as I have 18 months left on my current contract and I am waiting for my carrier (Verizon) to make it available to it’s customers. That said, I want to know what your experience has been, good or bad.
The new interface is designed for social networking purposes. With instant connectivity to the social sites and the ability to carry on multiple conversations at once. Is this something that appeals to you? As I understand it the web interface is “always on” How is that aspect affecting you. Does the unit keep it’s charge when it is constantly connecting to the net to update information? How is the Sprint deal are there extra connectivity charges involved with Messaging or SMS? How is the service? Have you had any issues that required tech support? From Palm? From Sprint.
Regarding legacy applications. Did you have any previous palm applications that you used on other hand held devices that you have you been able to port over to your new phone? Are you able to sync your calendar and outlook applications? Do you use any windows applications that now work in the Palm Pre? Are there new third party applications that you have found to be useful and if so would you share them?
This site is getting about thirty visitors a day and I am sure that many come to find out more information before they make a purchase. I have used what small sources of information I could find with a lot of the info coming from sites interested in promoting the Pre. The Best source right now would be the current new users of the product, so if that is you please comment. I will post all valid comments good or bad. (Druggie spammers and Linky lookers Forget it!)
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One comment
Dan S on July 1, 2009 at 12:34 pm
I bought my Pre the day it was out (last one to get it that day from the Sprint store). I’m a former Treo 700p (and prior versions) for several years and I also own an iPod Touch (2nd Gen) and use Windows XP for work, Vista for home and Mac for work and play.
Thus far, I’ve been very pleased with my Pre. Features I use quite a bit would be the phone, speakerphone, bluetooth earbud, push mail (gmail, yahoo mail, pop3, 5 altogether), text messaging, google talk, yahoo messenger and AIM. I use the camera occasionally and with Evernote. I surf the Web about 25% of the time, 25-50% to read mail and balance to chat or talk. On occasion, when I’m travelling, I do use the Google maps and Sprint Navigation quite a bit..and find these tools invaluable.. I was in NY and SF so it was really handy.
I sync with Google Contacts and Calendar which I use quite a lot. I sync Google to my Mac Contacts, and sync my Mac contacts and calendar with MobileMe which syncs to my iPod and Windows XP Outlook contacts and calendar. This sync setup works very well for me since they are automatic for the most part. I have a consulting business so syncing contacts and calendars is a must for me and I find this setup perfect for what I need.
Palm Pre works great as a phone and as good if not better than iPod/iPhone for Wed browsing. For email, I would say comparable to iPhone with a slight advantage due to push mail, but a slight disadvantage without the Search in mail feature (not yet available). Finger gestures are as good, if not better than iPhone. Cut and paste feature comparable with iPhone (new upgrade). I prefer using an actual keyboard to type than the iPhone/iPod approach, though I like the Treo keyboard better than the Pre. I find my accuracy better with keys than a flat surface as in iPhone, but this is mostly personal preference.
I just came back from a 9 hour long drive and find the use of the Pre as a phone quite good from an audio quality standpoint. The placement of the USB charg cable on the side makes it a little more difficult to handle when you are driving. Also the slide out of the keyboard makes it more difficult (then my old Treo) to hunt and select a number to call. However, I’m sure this will get easier as I become more familiar with this phone later. Also, in a pinch (without my blue tooth mic/earbud for example) the speakerphone works well when driving and the phone is on your lap or console.
With push mail, texting, and web browsing I do, I find that I do wear down the battery more than with my old Treo, so I just make sure I plug in more often, either to my USB laptop or the AC charger. I plan to get a second battery to give me more unplugged power when I need it. I did read somewhere that battery life is better if I use WIFI whenever available and avoid using EVO to connect to the internet. So I always leave WIFI enabled and it just connects whenever it can.
The black finish is awesome with this phone and the screen is comparable to iPhone quality, though I like the slightly bigger iPod screen. I have not had a need to pop the battery out so I don’t know how easily accessible this is yet.
Overall, the Palm Pre is definately a good alternative to an iPhone. The apps selection can grow later, but that is really not what I got this phone for. If I want more apps, I can get them thru my iPod. I use this phone for business and personal but I reserve my iPod to watch movies and listen to music since I need my battery juice for my day to day work.
I plan to buy a second Pre when my second phone is up for an upgrade. Need I say more?
Goodluck to you all!
Dan