HP Veer 4G Hands On Video, Unboxing

Here’s a first look at the HP Veer 4G, coming to AT&T on May 15th at a price of $99.99 (with a 2-year agreement). Our first impressions are as you’d expect, the Veer is surprisingly small. The keyboard is reminiscent of the Palm Pre Plus keyboard, but improved. It is smaller than the Pre keyboard, with the keys roughly the size of those found on the Pixi Plus. The magnetic latch is a welcome addition. No more USB doors to fiddle with and the latch attaches with ease. The back of the HP Veer is a hard plastic, slightly different from the Touchstone backing on the Pre.


Select 1080p or 720p to watch this video in HD

We haven’t spent much time yet with the Veer, but build quality appears to be pretty solid throughout. The sliding mechanism is very smooth and quiet. The HP Veer is the antithesis of today’s smartphones. In a crowded field of large screen devices, the HP Veer dares to move in the opposite direction, with it’s impossibly small stature. Thanks to it’s small size and support for lanyards, it could have wide appeal to those looking for wearable tech or those looking to avoid the bulk found in other larger phones. It’s not a word I use often, but the Veer is “cute”. I can say with certainty that we won’t see Veer commercials with F16’s bombing corn fields.

Stay tuned for our review in the coming week.

Poll: US based Palm owners, who is your wireless carrier?

Today’s announcement of the Palm Pre 2 coming to Verizon is great news for those who prefer big red. Of course, it was only a few months ago that we saw Verizon release the Palm Pre Plus, which offered improvements over of the original Palm Pre. No doubt Verizon is the largest US wireless carrier, but how does that translate to the current install base of Palm fanatics, most of whom are desperate for an update from the original Palm Pre that dates back to June of 2009. Time to break out the polls and ask our US based readers, “Who is your current wireless provider?” Are you considering a jump to Verizon for the Palm Pre 2 or holding out hope for an updated model from either Sprint or AT&T. Let us know in the comments.
US carriers


webOS 1.4.5 Update Released for AT&T Palm Pixi Plus

Owners of the AT&T Palm Pixi Plus should be excited today as Palm has released the webOS 1.4.5 update that should be hitting your phone OTA. The big news here is that you’ll now be able to enjoy PDK developed games, so we don’t mind if go get your Angry Birds on.

webOS Update

Full changelog:

  • Version: webOS 1.4.5
  • Release date: 11 October 2010

New applications

NONE

Feature changes to existing applications

System

  • This release includes minor fixes and enhancements to support the public release of the webOS PDK.

Web

  • If a user enters text in a field on certain websites, the screen focus now remains on the text being entered.
  • This release fixes a rare problem so that podcasts now download correctly.

Security

This release addresses several security issues with the Palm webOS software.

We’d like to thank Nils of MWR InfoSecurity and Chris Clark for their help in identifying the issues addressed in this release. Individuals interested in contacting Palm to report suspected security issues can find more information at palm.com/security.

via @palm

AT&T Now Offering Refurbished Palm Pre Plus

If you are looking to save a few bucks off the price of an AT&T Palm Pre Plus, you can now order a refurbished Pre Plus for just $49. This price does require a new 2-year commitment, so it’s not a significant savings over the new model which is priced at just $99. The no-committment price is still set at $299, which is still less than Palm’s developer pricing where it’s a whopping $479.99.

AT&T Palm Pre Plus refurbished

HP has a new promo at their wireless store, offering any device on any carrier for free. In addition, you’ll receive a gift card valid for $50 in the App Catalog.

Thanks @Pound_webOS

webOS 1.4.5 Released for Verizon, AT&T Palm Pre Plus

Thankfully, we saw a unified release of webOS 1.4.5 for both Verizon and AT&T. The update will of course come OTA (over the air), so there’s a good chance it hit your phone last night. Here’s the changelog from Palm for the AT&T update.

Version information

  • Version: webOS 1.4.5
  • Release date: 13 September 2010

New applications

  • NONE

Feature changes to existing applications

System

  • This release includes minor fixes and enhancements to support the public release of the webOS PDK.
  • This release may require you to update certain apps to their latest version to properly support the launch of the webOS Plug-in Development Kit (PDK). If you have a game that is not saving your game information correctly (high scores, stages, settings), check the App Catalog for updates. For more information on updating apps, see Using App Catalog .
  • Web

If a user enters text in a field on certain websites, the screen focus now remains on the text being entered.
This release fixes a rare problem so that podcasts now download correctly.
Security

This release addresses several security issues with the Palm webOS software.

Let’s hope that going forward carriers are a little quicker on the take. In any event, get to updating and let us know how webOS 1.4.5 works for you.

Are wireless carriers responsible for the fragmentation of webOS?

One of the benefits of purchasing a webOS device are the free and often regular updates pushed out by Palm. I’ve lost count of how many software updates have been released for the Sprint Palm Pre, all of which have improved my user experience with the phone. There’s been plenty of discussion about fragmentation on other platforms, most notably on Android phones. Are we starting to see fragmentation on webOS phones as result of the carriers? The current shipping version of webOS is 1.4.5 and it’s been available for both the Sprint Palm Pre and Palm Pixi since August 11th. That’s not the case with the other two US carriers.
Let’s take a look at Verizon. Yesterday we reported that webOS 1.4.5 was starting to ship for the Palm Pixi Plus. No word on the same update for Palm Pre Plus owners on Verizon, arguably the bulk of webOS owners on that carrier. No word on when that update is coming, this at a time when we are already seeing word of webOS 2.0 on the horizon.
AT&T hasn’t updated either the Palm Pixi Plus or Palm Pre Plus. As to when that might be happening, there has been no word from Palm or AT&T. Just yesterday, HP’s Rahul Sood summoned customers to ask carriers for the updates.
“Palm customers, you want game? The carriers have their updates. Get together and ask for 1.4.5″.
Palm has done a remarkable job with providing an operating system that can deliver updates OTA (over the air) with little effort on the part of consumers. Why are the carriers so slow to push updates and is this the start of fragmentation across the webOS platform.

One of the benefits of purchasing a webOS device are the free and often regular updates pushed out by Palm. I’ve lost count of how many software updates have been released for the Sprint Palm Pre, all of which have improved my user experience with the phone. There’s been plenty of discussion about fragmentation on other platforms, most notably on Android phones. Are we starting to see fragmentation on webOS phones as result of the carriers? The current version of webOS is 1.4.5 and it’s been available for both the Sprint Palm Pre and Palm Pixi since August 11th. That’s not the case with the other two US carriers.
Let’s take a look at Verizon. Yesterday we reported that webOS 1.4.5 was starting to ship for the Palm Pixi Plus. No word on the same update for Palm Pre Plus owners on Verizon, arguably the bulk of webOS owners on that carrier. No word on when that update is coming, this at a time when we are already seeing word of webOS 2.0 on the horizon.
AT&T hasn’t updated either the Palm Pixi Plus or Palm Pre Plus. As to when that might be happening, there has been no word from Palm or AT&T. Just yesterday, HP’s Rahul Sood on Twitter suggested customers nudge carriers for the updates. “Palm customers, you want game? The carriers have their updates. Get together and ask for 1.4.5″.
Palm has done a remarkable job with providing an operating system that can deliver updates OTA (over the air) with little effort on the part of consumers.

Why are the carriers so slow to push updates and is this the start of fragmentation across the webOS platform.

AT&T Palm Pre Plus Now Just $99 On Contract

Good news for those of you considering the Palm Pre Plus on AT&T. TFTS lets us know that AT&T is now offering the Palm Pre Plus for just $99 after a $50 instant discount. It’s currently out of stock, so it’s not clear why they would be dropping the price. For those of you looking for attractive no-committment pricing, you can score the Palm Pre Plus for just $299. For more information, check out AT&T Wireless online.

AT&T Palm Pre Plus

HP Offering Palm Pre Plus, Palm Pixi Plus Free on Contract

As we noted, HP did not waste any time getting the line of webOS phones and accessories on their site once the deal was finalized. The company also has a special promotion on webOS phones going on now through July 7th. For a limited time, you can get a Palm Pre Plus (AT&T, Verizon) or a Palm Pixi Plus (AT&T, Verizon) for free with a new account or new line of service. For AT&T lines, you’ll also have the activation fee waived. It doesn’t end there. Palm Pre Plus customers receive an accessory kit that includes:

  • Premium In-Vehicle Charger
  • Axiom Premium Genuine Leather Case
  • Renegade Mini Bluetooth Headset

You can find these promotions at HP.

Palm To Subsidize 50% Off All App Catalog Apps

Surprising news today coming from a developer webinar hosted by AT&T and Palm. According to one of the slides, Palm will be running a 50% off promotion on all App Catalog apps. Of course this benefits end users, but it also benefits developers who will still see payments based upon the full retail price of their apps. Palm will be subsidizing the promo. For those counting at home, that’s $1 million for the Hot Apps promo ending June 30th, another $1 million for the PDK Hot Apps promo and now this limited time 50% promotion. Palm is certainly doing everything they can to stir up excitement among both developers and end users. The rumored dates for this promotion are June 21st through July 9th.

crazyeddie

Source: PreCentral

Amazon Drops Price on AT&T Palm Pre Plus To A Penny

If you’ve been sitting on the sideline waiting for a price drop on the AT&T Palm Pre (see our review), your patience has been rewarded with a new deal available at Amazon. The Palm Pre Plus is available for a penny. This does require you either sign up for a new contract. If you are upgrading, the price jumps to a wallet-friendly $49.99. The Palm Pre Plus comes with free shipping and no activation fee. Unlike the iPhone 4, Amazon has plenty in stock, but we bet they’ll sell faster at this new rock bottom price.

screen-shot-2010-06-16-at-43912-pm

via PreCentral