Tams Palm

Palm once was a poster child for firmware updates – even the humbler Palm III could be upgraded to OS4. During the OS5 time, upgrades were rare – now that we are on webOS turf, Palm has reminded itself of its old competencies.

Engadget reports the following:

HP’s Jon Rubinstein — formerly of Palm CEO fame, of course — just mentioned in an interview with Fortune that webOS 2.0 is on track for “later this year.”

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As of this writing, developers have not yet been provided beta versions – stay tuned for further info as we get it.

P.S: /me actively hopes for Qt support. Anyone else?

One of the most interesting chapters in the recent history of mobile computing has come to an end – Google has just discontinued the Nexus One:

I have not come here to praise the Nexus One, but I have not come here to bury it either – instead, I wanted to offer you one simple message (which also explains why Microsoft hasn’t created a prototype device of its own for Windows Phone 7):

An OS vendor may NEVER EVER compete directly with its hardware partners…

Not much to add here…

Verizon is one of the few carriers who deploy a navigation software of their own – in Europe, most carriers have reverted to Google or Nokia Maps for quite some time.

Big red would not be big red if it wouldn’t protect its own application somehow – in the case of their Pre Plus, the machine has been given a slightly wonky GPS implementation which throws most webOS apps off the track.

Fortunately, a fix is in the works over at PreCentral’s:

The app is very simple: once the GPS is initially woken up (most reliably by launching the VZ Navigator app to its splash screen), GPS Fix periodically polls the GPS for a current location fix, based on a user-set schedule (from 5 minutes on up), and keeps it awake. In my initial testing, the app does what I was hoping it would do: allow apps like Minimap and Navit (which do not read the stored GPS location as do others like Google Maps and YP Mobile, and therefore need current fixes to work), as well as the built-in GPS test (found by dialing ##GPS# on the keypad) to continue to function without having to relaunch VZ Navigator. There are also some nice little features (optional notifications and a manual GPS Fix button), with more coming as James continues to work on the app (in its fourth iteration since last night).

So, hit the URL above – and let us know how it goes…

Long-term followers of this blog will probably still recall that we went on a little holiday a few months ago as yours truly was presenting at the Confidence Conference in Krakow.

Given the recent emergence of a program which managed to bypass the iTunes App Store, I was reminded about uploading the video of the talk for your enjoyment. The relevant section starts around 28:30 or so:

Thanks to Martin Derm for bugging me into uploading the video!

Aceeca’s PDA32 is a modular device in a fashion similar to high-end notebooks – you can omit modules you don’t need in order to keep cost down. The question which arises in this case is: can I add modules to this Palm OS device after purchase?

I asked Aceeca’s CEO Alex Topschij, who replied with the following:

No the add-ons are not modular. We would possibly consider a low cost exchange system if a users requirements changed. They give us their old unit we give them a replacement and charge them a small premium on top of the normal additional cost. That is just a thought of the top of my head it is something we would need to think about a bit more.

What do you think about the concept?

HP’s relationship with Microsoft fatally reminds me of Samsung’s – after buying up Palm, word on the street had that their Windows-based tablet would be discontinued.

Then, the device suddenly popped up on HP’s web site. Engadget now asked HP for information, and was told the following:

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The outfit’s not sharing much, but a spokesperson from its Personal Systems group did tell us that they’re “in customer evaluations now and will make a determination soon on the next steps.”

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Given that HP makes lots and lots of money by selling Windows-based laptops, the conclusion should be pretty clear. I would not be surprised to see the device hit the road, and be “abandoned” in a fashion similar to the KIN.

When it comes to overclocking processors, getting 50% more speed out of a CPU is already considered “amazing value”. On the Pre, the 50% threshold would be around 900 MhZ – but hackers have managed to exceed this barrier for quite some time.

unixpsycho has now posted the following on the PreCentral forums:

* 1.2GHz
* NextGen Screenstate with temp monitoring
* Memory tweaks in kernel (no more TMC errors)
* No compcache (unlike previous F10x kernels)
* Only with Screenstate governor. Scales from 500MHz

This is to test 1.2GHz and new screenstate code.

This version of screenstate:

* Temp monitoring. Over 55C it scales down to 500MHz (or at least it should)
* Wall charging (1000mA) and Touchstone will scale to 500MHz, USB charging stays at max speed.
* LCD off: scale to policy->min, LCD on: scale to policy->max

Given that the CPU is now operating at two times its nominal frequency, things should get interesting in the near future – I am definitely not installing this onto my Pre…

In the past, manufacturers like Apple have had issues getting their devices into China as they didn’t support enough Chinese wireless technologies. Russia may soon join China with similar provisions.

The large German news site a-z.ch, which is hosted in Switzerland, now claims the following (translation by /me):

AFK Systema chief, maker of GLONASS; has announced that he has contacted device makers threatening them with an outright ban of their devices if they fail to implement GLONASS, Russia’s alternative to GPS.

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Putin welcomes the initiative, stating that it is good that national interests are protected…

Even though I am generally not a fan of governmental intervention and am aware that manipulating GPS accuracies is difficult as the USA has deployed some civilian transmitters to its troops, this nevertheless makes me happy to at least some extent.

After all, having extra choice is never bad…

Everyone who has had a Palm OS device should know Kinoma – the boys offered a pretty flexible media player for the Palm OS which supported some formats nobody else had.

Unfortunately, the time of Kinoma for Palm OS seems to have come to an end. A post on the official Kinoma web site reads as following:

Since the launch of the original Kinoma Player in 2002, Kinoma has led the way in mobile media technology. The platform first established in Kinoma Player lives on not only in Kinoma’s flagship product — Kinoma Play — but also in products from companies including Sony and Sling Media.

As Palm OS fades into the sunset, we’ve had a lot of folks ask what our plans are. Today we’re announcing that we’ll be ending sales and support for Palm OS products in order to focus completely on current phone OSs.

If you’re a Palm OS user, here’s what you need to know: Kinoma will be ending sales of Kinoma Player 4 EX on 8/1/2010. We’ll continue to offer support, including any necessary security and critical fixes, until 10/1/2010. Effective 10/1/2010, Kinoma will offer only community-based support Kinoma Player 4 EX via our forum at forum.kinoma.com.

We’re also ending sales and support for Kinoma Producer for Windows and Mac OS on the same schedule.

We’d like to thank everyone who’s supported these products, and helped pioneer the now-common sight of people enjoying music, movies, podcasts and audiobooks on phones. You were ahead of your time, and when you upgrade your phone we hope you’ll choose Kinoma Play.

Given that the PDA32 is just ramping up, I can envision quite a few extra sales in the next few weeks. Nevertheless, it is sad to see another Palm OS developer go…

I have just gotten my hands onto another little tidbit of information regarding our current favorite PDA.

The device will be offered in various configurations, not dissimilar to an IBM ThinkPad. Pricing is also tiered – the current scheme would look as following:

Here’s what we are proposing price wise -
$179.00 for the basic model – no IRDA or stereo socket
IRDA (with high power transmit) – add $10
Stereo socket – add $10.00
Bluetooth – add $10.00
Wi-FI – add $20.00
Please keep in mind these are list prices so we give some discount when customers buy bulk units. Means you are paying $229.00 (save you getting out your calculator) for a full featured unit – which most of our customers will not want.

Sounds innovative, yet fair – what do you think?

In what can best be interpreted as a sign of things to come, HP has just registered the trademark “PALMPAD”.

The official USPTO filing looks as following:

Of course, Palm has filed for more than one trademark which it never used (Veld, anyone?) – but given the recent history of Palm’s new owner (aka HP), the signs IMHO are clear…

The PDA32 is bigger than anything which Palm ever built. This alone makes the device predestined for good build quality – if you add its intended industrial audience, high expectations come naturally. Can the machine stack up?

At first glance, Palm veterans will note the DIA-enabled screen and the lack of application buttons:

Indeed, Aceeca has given up on the traditional application buttons. Instead, the device has a power button, a fiveway and – get this – a brightness toggle. All the buttons are well-built:

Unfortunately, the black rim around the screen gets in your way when you try to hit elements close to the border of the screen. Being a right-hander, I had consistant problems trying to hit the scroll bar of the launcher with the stylus:

The speaker and the stylus silo can be found on the back of the unit:

Looking at the top, we see an unusually large IR element and the SD slot:

Whereas a MiniUSB port is lurking at the bottom:

The stylus is ok, too:

Finally, a look at the side. If you look carefully, you will see that the bottom part of the case is textured for better grip:

In the end, the PDA32 reminds me fatally of the Samsung i780. A design by a genius – fuxated by small details. If Aceeca fixes the issues outlined above, the final release device would be a total killer.

Tune in soon to find out more about the screen.

Folks – looks like the folks at Palm’s finally start to appreciate friends who criticize them.

Long-term followers of this blog will probably recall the launch of Palm’s blog some years ago – it featured a list of always-Palm-friendly blogs and sites. The boys have now added us to their list, as can be seen on the left.

Big thanks from the entire Tamoggemon Content Network team…

When it comes to cell phones, available features are significantly less important than their adaption by users. For example, almost every dumbphone can run apps to some extent – but how often do you see a J2ME app running on such a device?

BrightHand now reports on an interesting study:

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More specifically, 40% of adult cell phone owners now do web surfing, e-mail, or instant messaging (IM) on their phones, up from 32% last year, say results of the study from Pew Internet.

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Yet non-voice cell phone apps are also growing fast among 30- to 49-year-olds. For instance, 39% of this older group now use their phones to record videos, an 18-point rise over 2009.

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Hit the URL above to find out more…

Dear Readers,
the single most significant complaint we received after our recent redesign was related to the background shining through images used in reviews.

We have now done tweaks to our template, which will be rolled out across the sites in the next 12 hours. From now on, the images will once again be fully opaque.

At this opportunity, please allow me to welcome all our new readers. Folks: be aware that we have a daily changing desktop background which always is related to the mobile market.

We call out the changes via out Twitter feed (@tamhanna) – hit any of the news services to take a look!

Finally, allow me to ask for feedback!

With compliments & thanks for being here
Tam Hanna for the TCN team

Palm’s take-over by HP was said to be a pretty intense bidding process. However, nobody revealed the involved parties so far.

BusinessInsider now reports the following:

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* Apple was mostly interested in Palm’s huge library of intellectual property and patents … And unlike some other bidders, Apple even seemed committed to funding Palm’s operations, perhaps to challenge RIM’s dominance in the keyboarded segment of the smartphone industry, our source says.

* RIM basically had the deal in its hands and “had to work incredibly hard to blow it,” … RIM initially came in higher than HP

* Google, likely interested in Palm’s intellectual property, supposedly only wanted it because Google thought Apple might want it. But Google supposedly didn’t know Apple was actually bidding for Palm, so it didn’t proceed.

* Nokia, bizarrely, wasn’t anywhere near the deal.

…

Hit the link below to find out more:
http://www.businessinsider.com/apple-rim-google-hp-palm-2010-7

The folks at ChangeWave’s have just published an extremely interesting bit of data: they polled about 400 smartphone buyers on their purchase intentions and current satisfaction.

First of all, RIM and Palm have become extremely unpopular:

When it comes to customer satisfaction, HTC also wins while RIM slips to place six:

Find out more via the URL below:
http://www.changewaveresearch.com/articles/2010/07/smart_phones_20100714.html

TamsPPC started out on a HP device, which still sees good use at Tamoggemon’s accountant. Unfortunately, the company then went on to release a few well-meant but poorly designed and managed devices.

MobileTechWorld now managed to catch that HP was MIA on Andy Lees’s WPC10 slide on Windows Phone 7:

As of this writing, HP itself has not stated anything. However, their purchase of Palm should speak a pretty clear language…

This is a preliminary review, which is being generated on a non-final sample of the PDA32. A full review of the shipping model will follow at a later date!
We compared the PDA32 to a variety of classics yesterday – it’s now time to look at more recent machines.

First of all, a look against the N900. It is the only current device which has somewhat similar proportions:

Our new BlackBerry Storm is a bit smaller, and a lot thinner:

Nokia’s N97 mini is slimmer:

As is Sony Ericsson’s XPERIA X1:

And the Nokia XM5800:

Finally, a shot next to HP’s ipaq rx4240:

In the end, the statement from the last part of the review also holds true here. Tune in soon to find more about the physical aspects of the device…

Updated – the headline stated webOS instead of Android erroneously. We apologize…
Some time ago, our sister site TamsPPC reported on HP’s plans for an Android tablet. Of course, this was before the buyout of Palm.