Mar 31

Reports of webOS 1.4.1 update now coming in, Update: 1.4.1.1 available for Sprint

Posted in: firmware, palm, palm pre, PalmPre, pre, Today's Chili, update, webos
It doesn’t appear to do anything groundbreaking like overclock your Pre, but it looks like the webOS 1.4.1 update is now starting to trickle out to at least a few lucky users. According to PreCentral, one of the first reports to come in was from a Pre user who also happened to be one of the first to get the webOS 1.4 update while he was in Vietnam, and has now managed to snag the 1.4.1 update while residing in Holland. That was later followed up with a second report from a Sprint customer in Washington, but things seem to have been relatively quiet since them. Still no official word from Palm either, but the update does seem to be as minor as the number revision suggestions, with it weighing in at just 6MB. Receive yours yet? Let us know in comments.

Update: So that’s what the update does — according to Recombu, the update should allow European webOS users to finally spend their hard-earned quids and Euros on paid apps. PreCentral additionally reports that O2 Germany customers can now download the Mobile Hotspot app. Cheers!

Update 2: We’re getting a 1.4.1.1 10mb patch on our Sprint Pre as we speak, while a list of changes has arrived on Palm.com with one notable difference — the old NFL Mobile App has been renamed Sprint Football Live — but otherwise it appears to be the same. Meanwhile the word on PreCentral is that Verizon customers may be in for a wait of up to a few weeks for their own update, so slowing the pace of update checks to just once every 5 minutes would appear to be a reasonable course of action.

Reports of webOS 1.4.1 update now coming in, Update: 1.4.1.1 available for Sprint originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 31 Mar 2010 18:12:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Mar 29

Palm isn’t hot on Pre overclocking, indicates warranties are at risk

Posted in: palm, palm pre, PalmPre, pre, Today's Chili
Palm isn't hot on Pre overclocking, indicates warranties at risk

You know the hacked Pre firmware releases that have been coming out lately, first for 1.3.5.1 and then recently for 1.4? We tested out that later one and found the results to be good, and indeed one of the creators, caj2008, sent us plenty of data from early testers showing minimal heat gains and battery losses. Still, Palm isn’t exactly thanking these guys for their hard work, going so far as to issue a warning:

While we appreciate the effort the webOS community has put forth to try and help us along that path, the use of this application is neither endorsed nor recommended by Palm and will likely result in a voided warranty.

Frankly you can’t be surprised that Palm isn’t thrilled about users cranking up the clock multiplier on their phones, nor can you think less of the company for indicating that those doing so might face some warranty issues going forward. And, as we’ve said before, despite all data that these mods are safe users should exhibit caution before dialing up the megahertz. After all, you wouldn’t put a manual controller on your turbo’d car, double the PSI, and then try to get your blown headgasket warrantied… right?

Palm isn’t hot on Pre overclocking, indicates warranties are at risk originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 29 Mar 2010 12:03:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Mar 26

Pre gets a nasty 800MHz overclock patch for all 1.4 users to enjoy (at one’s own risk) (updated)

Posted in: hack, palm, palm pre, PalmPre, pre, Today's Chili, video, webos

Looking to harness the real power inside of your Pre (or Pre Plus) — and you’ve upgraded to webOS 1.4? If that’s the case, you’re going to love what a couple of Palm-loving hackers have come up with. Namely, a major overclock kernel patch for the device which boosts the CPU speed from a measly 500MHz all the way up to a finger-searing 800MHz (there’s also a more tame 720MHz variation available). The two phone magicians, unixpsycho and caj2008, had previously tapped into the power of the Pre’s CPU on webOS 1.3.5 with a small file that can be semi-easily installed using WebOSQuickInstall and a tiny bit of Linux command-line activity, and now it’s on for 1.4. So far, it looks like phones being tested with the somewhat risky tweak haven’t experienced too much of the normally expected issues (crashes, freezing, phones exploding). Also a surprise is the fact that the creators of the hack say battery life drain is only an additional 2-4 percent hit… though if you’re already struggling to make it through a day, this could be the nail in the coffin. We installed the patch on a Verizon Pre Plus, and we definitely observed a noticeable bump in app load times and improved fluidity when working with the phone — though we’ve already had one major crash. If you don’t mind possibly destroying your phone and must have a faster device right now, you can check out the patch in action and learn how to get it yourself in the video after the break.

Update: From the looks of things, that crash we experienced early on is likely due to a bug in webOS 1.4 and not related to the overclock. Actually, we haven’t experienced any further problems… in fact, the phone is seeming super speedy, and battery life has not taken a substantial hit, verifying caj2008 and unixpsycho’s claims (so far). Someone at Palm should take note — these guys have some good ideas!

[Thanks, G. Scott]

Continue reading Pre gets a nasty 800MHz overclock patch for all 1.4 users to enjoy (at one’s own risk) (updated)

Pre gets a nasty 800MHz overclock patch for all 1.4 users to enjoy (at one’s own risk) (updated) originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 26 Mar 2010 13:26:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Mar 26

Fan-made Pre ad gets the point, why can’t Palm? (video)

Posted in: ad, palm, palm pre, PalmPre, pre, Today's Chili, video, webos

We’ve already talked (at length) about Palm’s failure to properly present its wares to the public. Using promotional campaigns that have fluctuated between gimmicky and creepy, the company has never allowed its superlative WebOS its time to shine. As if to illustrate our point to perfection, a loyal Pre user has put together his own, extremely professional, advert for the device, which manages to achieve — in a mere 30 seconds — what Palm has been struggling with for nearly a year. It shows off the handsome device, the effortless multitasking, the variety of apps, integrated services and video capabilities, and, most importantly, emphasizes the sheer beauty and ease of use of WebOS. See the video after the break.

[Thanks, Chris F]

Continue reading Fan-made Pre ad gets the point, why can’t Palm? (video)

Fan-made Pre ad gets the point, why can’t Palm? (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 26 Mar 2010 04:19:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Mar 24

China Telecom launching Palm Pre, BlackBerry handsets this summer

Posted in: BlackBerry, chinese, palm, palm pre, PalmPre, pre, RIM, rumor, smartphone, Today's Chili, webos

We’ve been hearing that China Telecom would be grabbing hold of Palm and RIM’s respective stables of smartphones since early last year, but at long last we’ve some official quotes to prove those whispers correct. According to a new report over at the Wall Street Journal, Chairman and Chief Executive Wang Xiaochu has affirmed that it will offer an undisclosed amount of BlackBerry devices in China this May, while Palm’s Pre (no word on the Pixi) will hit this July. These deals could certainly bode well for the carrier; as it stands, it’s going up against China Mobile — which already sells BlackBerry handsets — and China Unicom, which is home to Apple’s iPhone. Unfortunately, pricing details weren’t available, but we’re guessing those will pop sooner rather than later.

China Telecom launching Palm Pre, BlackBerry handsets this summer originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 24 Mar 2010 02:36:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Mar 23

Palm moving to Android to stay alive? Not according to Palm

Posted in: Android, Email, palm, palm pre, PalmPre, rumor, speculation, Today's Chili

You may be seeing a rumor doing the rounds today about Palm throwing in the towel and moving to the Android platform as a means of survival — but just hang on. Most reports are citing an email that made its way to the inbox of what looks like every major tech outlet, stating that CEO Jon Rubinstein issued an internal memo to software developers at the company about the switch. The supposed memo quotes Jon as saying, “While Palm is incredibly proud of our engineers who spent timeless work and effort to bring us this advanced operating system, consumers simply have not caught on. To provide a better future for ourselves and our customers, the only logical choice is to transition our hardware and software to the Android platform.” The plan — according to this email — would be to create a kind of Sense UI-ish webOS interface on Palm devices, while leveraging Android’s market footprint. The anonymous emailer went on to say that the full memo would be made available on Wikileaks at midnight last night.

But guess what? Not only did the memo not appear at the stroke of 12, but when we picked up the phone and actually spoke to Palm, they had a pretty quick response. Their answer? Our sources at the company essentially laughed when they heard this news, and they emphatically stated that there was no memo, and no move internally towards Android. Furthermore, many of the reports are citing a bunk piece of news from Monday which erroneously stated that Palm had halted production — that news has also been refuted by the company. Admittedly, our minds reel at the concept of Android with a webOS UI, but until we get some real, verifiable evidence of that (and not just a random email), we’re going to assume it’s not happening. You should do the same.

Palm moving to Android to stay alive? Not according to Palm originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 23 Mar 2010 10:16:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Mar 19

Palm: this is your survival guide

Posted in: palm, palm pre, PalmPre, pre, Today's Chili

Oh Palm. Just a little over a year ago your future seemed so bright, so renewed. You walked away from CES 2009 reborn, held aloft by a completely innovative new mobile operating system, a striking piece of hardware, and a feeling amongst the press and investors that you were back in the game and playing to win. Now, less than a year and a half later, you’ve nearly returned to the dark and desperate place you’d found yourself in at the end of 2008; a rapidly declining mindshare, the bottom falling out of your stock, and bad dips in phone sales. All of it is leaving you backed into a corner where the common perception now is that you’ve got to sell to survive at all. So what went wrong? How did such a promising launch lead to such a disappointing reality? And how can you wrestle your way back from the brink yet again? Is that even an option?

In 2007 the editors of Engadget penned an impassioned open letter to the company, pleading for many of the changes we eventually saw at Palm. This isn’t a follow-up, but it’s very much in the spirit. We’re going to take a look at the missteps that put the company in its current spot, and talk about what we think can pull it back out. Palm, it’s time for a little tough love… again.

Continue reading Palm: this is your survival guide

Palm: this is your survival guide originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 19 Mar 2010 17:04:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Mar 18

Microsoft takes a note from Palm in new Windows Phone 7 Series ad

Posted in: ad, advertising, commercial, marketing, Microsoft, operating system, OperatingSystem, os, palm, palm pre, PalmPre, smartphone, Software, Today's Chili, webos, Windows, windows phone, windows phone 7, windows phone 7 series, WindowsPhone, WindowsPhone7, WindowsPhone7Series

We’ve held no punches in sharing our thoughts on Palm’s recent ad campaigns, but the one spot that was actually not heinous has seemingly served as the basis for one of Microsoft’s first-ever WP7S commercials. Debuting here at the tail-end of MIX, the ad spotlights Anna — a fictitious gal we’ve certainly heard of before — using her new smartphone to share photos with her dear lover Miles. It also features Luca, a kid with an undying love for playing Xbox LIVE titles, who seems to be caught somewhere in between the world of nature and nurture. At any rate, it’s worth your while to give the new Microsoft commercial and the Palm ad which it has oh-so-much in common with right after the break.

Oh, and Palm — we guess “Windows Phone 7 Series was your idea,” right?

Update: Yes, that definitely looks like an HTC HD2 at the 0:43 mark, but you can rest assured WP7S won’t ever come to that gem in native fashion.

[Thanks, Sean]

Continue reading Microsoft takes a note from Palm in new Windows Phone 7 Series ad

Microsoft takes a note from Palm in new Windows Phone 7 Series ad originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 18 Mar 2010 11:36:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Mar 17

Palm’s AT&T launch pushed back to summer?

Posted in: att, delay, palm, palm pre, PalmPre, pre, Today's Chili
Palm might be able to use a bit of good news right about now, but it looks like it may not be able to count on that coming from AT&T. As AllThingsD‘s John Paczkowski reports, Canaccord Adams analyst Peter Misek is now saying that Palm’s still as yet unconfirmed launch on AT&T has been pushed back from its rumored April debut to June or July. What’s more, Misek says that the delay isn’t one of the usual variety, with AT&T reportedly citing a “long list of technical issues with the Pre and Pixi,” and even going so far as to decrease its initial order size and “sharply reduce” its marketing budget for the launch. Of course, we are still taking about a rumored delay to an unconfirmed launch, but we should be hearing directly from Palm soon enough — it’s scheduled to report its third-quarter earnings after Thursday’s closing bell.

Palm’s AT&T launch pushed back to summer? originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 17 Mar 2010 14:28:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Mar 15

Overclocked Palm Pre is just what the doctor ordered

Posted in: hack, hacked, palm, palm pre, PalmPre, pre, smartphone, Today's Chili
800MHz overclocked Palm Pre is just what the doctor ordered

Is your Palm Pre feeling a bit down? In the dumps? Not as snappy as it used to? Maybe what you need is a megahertz boost! This custom kernel, demonstrated in a video below, comes courtesy of two hackers called unixpsycho and caj2008. One quick install will make your dull and lifeless 1.3.5.1 Pre come alive. Warning: use of this software may “frakk” your Pre if deployed on a 1.4 device. Side effects include reduced battery life and increased pocket warmth. If your Pre develops excessive heat see a doctor immediately — or just turn it off for awhile.

Update: caj2008 dropped us a note to point out that battery life is “not significantly affected” by this patch, but we’re still waiting on the FDA ruling on that one.

[Thanks, Darren]

Continue reading Overclocked Palm Pre is just what the doctor ordered

Overclocked Palm Pre is just what the doctor ordered originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 15 Mar 2010 08:44:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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