There have been recent reports that Pre returns have hit as high as 40%, but according to Wired, these estimates may be grossly exaggerated. According to Interpret analyst Michael Gartenberg, “I would suspect that the Pre return rates would be in line or a little lower than the average smartphone. Most consumers who bought the Pre were early adopters who were waiting for the phone and knew what they are buying into at this point.”
Some of the reasons cited by those who returned their Pre include things like loosening of the slider mechanism, poor battery life, cracked screens, and dead or stuck pixels. In our experience, we haven’t seen a Pre yet that was without pixel issues. Fortunately, in spite of some of these issues, most Pre buyers stick with their phone. Have you had to return or exchange a Pre? If so, why?
Does the breaking of the iTunes/Pre sync due to Apple’s latest iTunes update got you down? It’s unfortunate that Apple would sabotage this admittedly unholy reunion to begin with, but if new Pre owners wanted an iPhone, wouldn’t they have bought one in the first place? Given that Pre users would undoubtedly purchase music and other media from iTunes, thus putting more coin in Apple’s pockets, it seems counterproductive to disable the Pre’s ability to sync with iTunes, but where one door closes, a window opens, and through that window comes Dazzboard.
Dazzboard is a media management webtop application that’s free and enables syncing music to iTunes and syncing for photos and video as well. For those of you with a Pre and willing to give Dazzboard a spin, let us know about your experience in comments and the forum.
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.
The Palm Pre ads certainly evoke a wide range of responses, anywhere from “holy smokes, that’s über-creepy!” to “hey, I’m liking the zen-like theme here. Whaddaya know? ‘Zen’ and ‘Pre’ are both three-letter words!” Either way, they are accomplishing the purpose of a commercial campaign – consistency and memorable. The latest also features Tamara Hope with a Pre, discussing the many lives of reincarnation and how all her lives are easily organized right now on the Palm Pre. Yes, it’s metaphysical. Yes, it’s a wee bit strange. And yes again, it drives home a point that the Pre and webOS easily bring our many lives (email, messaging, calendars, contacts) – be it work, home, or otherwise – together in a seamless way into the palm of our hand and at our fingertips. Give the new Pre ad a look for yourself and then please weigh in on whether you think it hits the mark or falls short.
A user at the SprintUsers forums has posted some info about an upcoming Palm Pre software update, due to be released “on or near 7/22/09”. bigchico68 claims to have received the list of changes via e-mail, sent by Sprint. So, with that said, it seems the demo software found on the Pre will cease to exist upon updating the device. In addition, Facebook users will be able to keep their friends synchronized with a PC. SMS messages will become more colorful, thanks to the added support for emoticons. Another minor change will enable the enter key to start your YouTube search. However, whether Sprint is really to roll out this update, we will know sometime around Wednesday.
Palm does deserve credit for having an App Catalog open and available, with apps on the shelf, from the first day the Pre went on sale. But the Pre faithful have grown restless as the days and weeks go by with the same few dozen apps and only promises of more to come in the future. For all you restless app-lovers out there (we being among you), the day has finally come that Palm’s webOS Mojo SDK is available to the public so that developers can create apps, stock the store shelves, and take our cash in return for 3rd-party-app bliss.
Now, to temper that excitement a little – even though the SDK is out, Palm reports that they won’t be posting new submissions in the App Catalog until this fall, likely starting in September. Yes, that’s still quite a while to wait, but to pass the time, what apps do YOU want to see in the Catalog? What are some apps you can’t live without?
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.
There are reviews aplenty on the Internet for both the Palm Pre and the iPhone 3GS, and there are numerous comparisons as well regarding their specs and capabilities. Senior Writer Darren Gladstone of PCWorld went one better by using both the iPhone 3GS and Palm Pre side-by-side for two weeks in the real world, then reports on both the good and bad of each device and how they compare. Lo and behold, Mr. Gladstone chooses the Pre over the iPhone 3GS. Give the article a read to find out why.
Palm is playing a new Pre ad titled “Go with the flow”, featuring the woman from the Chinese dancer ad and demonstrating the ease in which the Pre’s webOS can be used to flip between “cards” for information. The ad appears to compare the Pre to a day in a life that is in perfect sync, lauding the Pre’s Synergy. Many are confused by the ad and are critical of it, and maybe rightfully so, but the commercial does have merit in that it displays the simplicity of the Pre in action. Check out the commercial below and tell us what you think!
Anonymous tipsters over at PreCentral.net have delivered some good news for Pre owners who have lamented the limitations of webOS in handling Exchange accounts, particularly when a PIN number is involved. This is one of the dirty little secrets that Sprint salespeople have neglected to share, whether it be from forgetfulness or ignorance, that the Pre doesn’t play well with certain Exchange configurations. Allegedly, webOS 1.1 will address some of these issues, offering better handling of digital certificates, PIN/password support, device wiping (data, not fingerprints), and other security features. This is great news – particularly because it opens the door that much wider for enterprise/corporate users. The update is expected within 30 days or so, but this information is unconfirmed.
There have been recent reports that Pre returns have hit as high as 40%, but according to Wired, these estimates may be grossly exaggerated. According to Interpret analyst Michael Gartenberg, “I would suspect that the Pre return rates would be in line or a little lower than the average smartphone. Most consumers who bought the Pre were early adopters who were waiting for the phone and knew what they are buying into at this point.”
Although we knew that games are 
Palm does deserve credit for having an App Catalog open and available, with apps on the shelf, from the first day the Pre went on sale. But the Pre faithful have grown restless as the days and weeks go by with the same few dozen apps and only promises of more to come in the future. For all you restless app-lovers out there (we being among you), the day has finally come that Palm’s webOS Mojo SDK is available to the public so that developers can create apps, stock the store shelves, and take our cash in return for 3rd-party-app bliss.
As 
There are reviews aplenty on the Internet for both the Palm Pre and the iPhone 3GS, and there are numerous comparisons as well regarding their specs and capabilities. Senior Writer Darren Gladstone of PCWorld went one better by using both the iPhone 3GS and Palm Pre side-by-side for two weeks in the real world, then reports on both the good and bad of each device and how they compare. Lo and behold, Mr. Gladstone chooses the Pre over the iPhone 3GS. Give the article a read to find out why.
Anonymous tipsters over at PreCentral.net have delivered some good news for Pre owners who have lamented the limitations of webOS in handling Exchange accounts, particularly when a PIN number is involved. This is one of the dirty little secrets that Sprint salespeople have neglected to share, whether it be from forgetfulness or ignorance, that the Pre doesn’t play well with certain Exchange configurations. Allegedly, webOS 1.1 will address some of these issues, offering better handling of digital certificates, PIN/password support, device wiping (data, not fingerprints), and other security features. This is great news – particularly because it opens the door that much wider for enterprise/corporate users. The update is expected within 30 days or so, but this information is unconfirmed.