Although we knew that games are in development for the Pre, it seems the webOS platform still has a long way to go until it is ready to support high-quality graphics and complex gameplay elements, such as the ones found in certain games for the iPhone (let alone the 3GS). The main reason for this, as iPhone dev Craig A. Hunter states, is the web-oriented environment provided by the current webOS SDK beta, which got available some days ago. Actually, the biggest problem is that as of now, developers do not have access to OpenGL, although the Pre supports it. In addition, the current 4 Hz sampling of raw accelerometer data seem to be pretty insufficient, compared to the required minimum of 20 Hz for accelerometer-controled apps.

Have no fear though, as PreCentral has got a Palm job listing unearthed, revealing that the company is seeking for a Game Frameworks Engineer that would help improve the platform’s gaming capabilities. With that said, we should also point out that Apple also didn’t have the breathtaking visual up and running right from the start.

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As expected, Apple has released an update for iTunes, which seems to put an end to the happy syncing time Pre users had. So, if you would rather keep iTunes syncing, then you should avoid updating it to version 8.2.1, which brings “important bug fixes” and “addresses an issue with verification of Apple devices”. However, it looks like plugging the Pre in actually brings iTunes 8.2.1 up, but then Palm’s smartphone does not appear in the sidebar.

Until the developers have figured out a way to override the fix, you can go for an alternative way to sync your content; for example, by using doubleTwist. You can find more information about it here. Mac users also have their alternative – The Missing Sync app, more about it here.

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Palm Pre owners are about to score a touchdown. An OTA upgrade from Sprint on August 1st will add NFL Mobile Live to the touchscreen handset. That will mean certain games will be able to be viewed live on the Pre. Other coverage will include live audio from any regular season game and video from the NFL Network 24 hours a day. A special “Red Zone Alert” will tell you when a team is likely to score. The carrier said that any Pre bought after August 1 will have the football package already pre-loaded (not too late for a pun) on the device.

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Palm Pre owners have been limited with apps and most likely downloaded all 30 that are available on the App Catalog. Business users like the ability to view Office files such as Word or Excel directly on their handset, but the lack of being able to edit them can limit their productivity on the go. Good news though with DataViz, creator of the popular Documents to Go software for mobile devices, confirming that it is in the works to offer the app on the WebOS platform later this year. It’s great that WebOS users are going to get the application, but now the waiting game commences. Let’s cross our fingers and hope that “later this year” will mean towards the early second portion of the year.

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And who said the Palm Pre is not good for gaming? Well, the web nature of the operating system might come with some limitations, but hey, if running a PlayStation emulator is possible then so is real gaming on the Pre! ZodTTD, the individual who is responsible for some of the best jailbroken iPhone emulators, is now developing a Pre version of the PlayStation 1 emulator, psx4all. You can watch a video demonstration of the webOS smartphone running a PS1 game below.

Interestingly, it seems the Pre puts up a better performance than Apple’s newly launched iPhone 3GS, according to the developer. However, there are still some issues that need to be fixed before everything’s ready like sound output, screen rotation, scaling, etc. In addition, ZodTTD has plans to port other emulator projects to the Pre, such as Game Boy Advance and TurboGrafx-16.

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Palm is now sending the webOS 1.0.4 firmware to its Pre users. Apparently, the new update fixes a number of security issues, which seems to have been discovered thanks to Townsend Ladd Harris (a Pre homebrewer). Palm has thanked him publicly, and the company is now inviting everyone who would want to help make the platform better and safer. Unfortunately for application homebrewers, Palm has made installing apps via e-mail impossible (for now). This is also an important security measure, since who knows what malevolent content might be sent to you someday. Still, apps that you have already installed this way will continue to work.

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It is estimated that about 150,000 Palm Pre units have been sold to date, as we said yesterday. However, it looks like these guys just can’t help but install new applications on their webOS-powered smartphones. According to New York-based mobile analytics company Medialets, the users have already downloaded a total of one million apps from Palm’s App Catalog. That figure really sounds like a lot, especially having in mind there are only 30 apps currently available on the storefront (all of which are free). That said, we certainly hope to see more and more mobile programs surface on App Catalog soon enough.

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You’ve recently bought a Pre and enjoy its syncing capabilities with iTunes? Well, there might be some bad news for you. Apple has posted a note on its site saying that iTunes syncing support will not be provided for “non-Apple digital media players”. Here is an excerpt from the official text:

“Apple is aware that some third-parties claim that their digital media players are able to sync with Apple software. However, Apple does not provide support for, or test for compatibility with, non-Apple digital media players and, because software changes over time, newer versions of Apple’s iTunes software may no longer provide syncing functionality with non-Apple digital media players.”

So, what this means in short is that Palm Pre users might soon be unable to sync their smartphone with iTunes. It would be interesting to see if Palm’s current CEO (and former senior vice president of the iPOD division) will have an answer for that.

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When push comes to shove, it looks like all the talk about hacking the Pre has hit Sprint right at the heart. Hackers around the world have probably been working night and day trying to get a way to allow tethering on the Pre. All of that came to a screeching halt when Sprint “politely” warned the team over the Pre Dev Wiki. And by politely, we mean using some big fancy words stating that Palm will be forced to take legal action – both on the ones responsible for running the wiki and IRC. So all the talk around allowing tethering on the Pre needs to stop altogether during Sprint’s exclusivity period. The team behind the site complied and posted a statement explaining their actions.

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It looks like Palm Pre users will have to wait a little before a Skype application gets released for their smartphones. The thing is, that in this case “a little” may mean very long, since the Skype development team has announced it is not currently working on a webOS-compatible app, informs GigaOM. Here is the provided official statement on the matter:

“We are focused on delivering the best Skype experience for mobile consumers that we can, across any cell phone or mobile operating system. If someone has a cell phone, we want them to be able to use Skype on it. That’s our vision and we’ve already delivered new mobile applications for Windows Mobile, Java-enabled cell phones, Android-powered devices and the iPhone in the first half of 2009. As things are evolving quickly in this space, we will continue to keep our eye on Palm’s Pre and webOS platform, which seems to be getting good traction in its first weekend. But we have nothing to announce at this time.”

So, as it seems, whether or when a Skype app will be developed for the Pre and future webOS phones is a question without an answer for the moment.