Palm Pre Plus (and Pixi Plus) review

Hardware

As far as looks go, this should all seem very familiar to those of you who've checked out the Sprint Pre. That physical home button has been replaced with a thin LED slit, just like the Pixi, and in general we don't see it as much of a change, though we did miss the tactile feel of the physical button now and again. Even if it didn't get a lot done, the click was nice to hear. The new style certainly goes a way to retain the "polished stone" design motif which the company has touted, and we can't complain too much about clean, unbroken surfaces on our gadgets. Palm also says that the hinge for the slider mechanism (a pain point on older models of the phone) has been improved as well, and in our tests it does seem a bit tighter, though we noticed that when we used the phone with the keyboard open, it seemed to want to slide shut a bit easier than the previous version. Additionally, the company has altered the keyboard to be a bit more stiff and plasticky (a la the Pixi), though it's by no means as clicky as we'd like it to be. The overall effect is minor, and coupled with the fact that the company has yet to really tighten up its word correction / prediction, typing on the Pre still takes some getting used to. We're also not sold on the new monochromatic color scheme for the keyboard -- being able to clearly see the orange number keys was a nice little touch, now it's a bit of a challenge to find the digits.
Otherwise, changes are nonexistent, even down to the cheap, plastic cover which Palm uses on the MicroUSB door here -- we broke the first one on our original Sprint test unit, and every time we pull the thing up, it feels precarious. We wish they'd gone in the direction of the Pixi with this (a small flap which doesn't have to be pushed into place). Overall, it's the same Pre you know and / or love. Palm took smarter steps with the industrial design of the Pixi -- which feels like a more solid phone -- and we wish they'd have put some of that juice into a new version of the Pre.
Internals

Besides the small spec increase, you're left with the same phone that's been out since June -- not necessarily a bad thing, but we think Palm is likely due for some new hardware soon, especially given the current trend of smartphones with higher resolution screens; devices like the Pre and iPhone are starting to look a little cramped compared with the Nexus Ones of the world.
One other note -- the sound quality on the Pixi seems substantially better to us than the Pre, both on the earpiece and speaker. The Pre produced shrilly, almost painful mid-rangey tones, while the Pixi was much smoother and pleasant. Here's hoping Palm makes some changes in this area on upcoming hardware... though we've been spoiled by the Droid when it comes to sound on cellphones.
Software

Besides that inclusion, the software is the familiar version you probably know. Now, Palm has done a series of updates (as we noted in the intro), and the company has taken pains to add much-needed features and squash bugs. Unfortunately, we've been reminded about what is missing in webOS during our testing much more than we've been surprised by the additions (of course, we've also been tracking these updates closely). We're still waiting for basic inclusions in the software, like the ability to set our own notification tone (and set it for different alerts), better word prediction and correction on the keyboard, multiple message management in the email app (really guys?), a decent way to manage Synergy contacts and calendars, and a handful of other obvious changes that we have yet to see (we won't even get into our plea for threaded emails). And then there's the issue of consistency and speed -- for a phone which boasts a CPU as powerful as the iPhone 3GS, you certainly don't see it shine here like you expect it to. Applications still take longer than they should to open, and we still saw some lag during heavy use. We also take issue with notifications on webOS -- the little pop-ups are handy, but compared with Android, Palm still has a ways to go towards making them manageable. When you get four or five messages at a time, things can get a little hairy. And it needs to be said: the mail application is just not that good. It really needs some TLC from Palm.
Palm promises speed improvements in the next iteration of the software along with battery life improvements, and both are definitely needed. In particular, the battery life on the Pre is just awful when put through a day of heavy use. In our initial review, we noted you probably couldn't get through a full day, but now it feels like you might not even get through an afternoon. On one lengthier call (about 50 minutes), we watched our battery life dip from 67 percent to 24 percent. That's just unacceptable as far as we're concerned -- this is an issue that must be addressed by the company if it keeps pushing these data-heavy services.

And that brings us to the PDK -- or Plug-in Development Kit. With the new tools for developers, app-makers will be able to create the same content- and graphically-rich applications that they would for say... the iPhone. We've already seen this demonstrated in the form of a handful of 3D games now available for the Pre (sorry Pixi users -- you're out in the cold here). As a first pass at gaming on the Pre, the offerings are excellent. While we noticed a slightly lower frame rate when compared side-by-side with the iPhone 3GS, they still held their own. Graphically, we couldn't see much of a difference, though the Pre's smaller screen squashed some of the details out of scenery. Small issues notwithstanding, the crop of applications using the PDK show enormous potential for webOS. Provided Palm gets these tools into the hands of developers and lets them go crazy, we could see some fascinating new software for this platform.
Network / Pricing

As far as pricing is concerned, Verizon isn't breaking any new ground with the Pre Plus and Pixi Plus. The devices will be available for $149.99 and $99.99, respectively, with a two-year contract and mail-in $100 rebate. If you're smart and buy the devices online, you get that rebate instantly, and Verizon is also offering a buy-one-get-one deal through February 14th which lets you pick up a free Pixi Plus with the purchase of either device.
Wrap-up

So let's just talk about the Pre Plus for a moment.
As far as phones go, it is by no means perfect -- like the iPhone 3GS or the Nexus One or the Droid, it has its issues, and you will find yourself annoyed by certain decisions Palm has made here. It should be obvious that as a smartphone buyer, you have some amazing options right now. If you're a Verizon customer, you can get the excellent Droid, or wait for the forthcoming Nexus One, to say nothing of the BlackBerry offerings on the network (if that's your cup of tea). If you're carrier independent, then your choice is even harder -- T-Mobile, Sprint, and AT&T offer a stack of seriously great phones that would make even the pickiest geek happy. So why choose the Pre Plus on Verizon? To answer that question, you have to figure out if you believe in the potential of webOS devices; Palm doesn't have the fastest phone, or the phone with the highest resolution, certainly not the biggest app selection, and it doesn't have a massive community behind it. What it does have, however, is a brilliant platform with huge potential to change the way you work and live with your phone (provided they tap that potential soon... as in now). If you're as hopeful as we are that that potential will be fulfilled, your decision should be a simple one.



































How sad.
Palm Pre/Pixi owners failing to recognize their failure to correctly choose the winning smartphone platform, then flailing away at the keyboard in a vain attempt to rewrite history and influence the future.
And what's that stench? It's the lie of Jonnny Fail smoldering in the fail bin. I'd suggest checking out an iPhone during your stay, but won't find one there, clown.
@Ariel Bender
Good to know you're not biased. Keep in mind who the CEO of Palm is btw
How do I get one in Scandinavia?
zune fone
I hope the Pre Plus comes to Germany. I own a Pre but I would love to have 16GB plus double the RAM!
Palm seems to be making the right moves at the moment and I hope they can go fast with their plans. WebOS is the best mobile OS available (for the moment).
Where can I get that background from? Or a similar one, Looks awesome?
Ta.
@danetweedale I too would like this wallpaper. Anyone?
This is the phone I want so bad, BUT its now on Verizon, which is great for Verizon users but as a T-Mobile user this saddens me because I've been waiting for a WebOS device. I can't imagine paying Verizon's unlimited plan even after the latest price drop. I guess I will go to the Cliq. You can take off the annoying blur apps right?
Palm OS really deserves more credit
Nice and extensive review! I recently got to play with a German Pre (it's not yet available where I live), and I really like the direction Palm has taken with WebOS. I'm not sure if I like the decision to remove the physical home button either, but it sure looks sexy.
One thing that bothers me about this review though, is that it's so US-centric. I can imagine it's the curse of POV, but for your international readers, such as myself, it's very confusing to be reading about the Pre Plus being referred to as "the Verizon version". As I understand the device comes prepackaged with carrier-selected software in the US, I can see how you included a discussion of the navigation solutions of the different carriers, but does this have to be intertwined with a review of what is essentially a phone designed for the global market, not just the US-one.
I found another good review of the Pre Plus here:
http://cellphoneforums.net/cell-phone-reviews/t307700-palm-pre-plus-review.html
Any word on when the Pre and Pixi Plus might be released in the UK? It's hard to justify getting one when I know this revision is just around the corner.
Thinker’s analysis of what makes the Palm Pre special – webOS!
Ok, let’s not make any bones about it, l like the Palm Pre smart phone. And I think it is the greatest thing to come along since sliced bread (i.e. the iPh.). But I also like all of the usual suspects (Android, iPhone, BB, Nokia, and that fellow that’s missing in action “W. Ph.”). As they say, a battle is not interesting unless there is an opponent. It’s hard to believe that the Palm Pre has been out no more than seven months, and we already have “nearly” a second generation device, as in Palm Pre Plus. I would have thought the biggest news for Palm was how they quickly launched an App Store, remove App Limits, add OpenGL support for 3D game development, enhanced battery life, and expand the developer model from JavaScript, HTML, and CSS, to also include the C and C++ programming language. And then gave us the innovative Ares development tool. I am starting to believe that Palm is not a small company, after all. How can a $1.2 billion company be small?
But the story that had the most impact was the surprised revelation that this phones beauty is not just skin deep (that is, simply an innovative user interface incorporated into webOS). We learned that the operating system, popularly known as webOS is not only a new, innovative, and robust platform, but is a platform that Palm is able to enhance practically on a monthly basis with significant new features; for example, in January 2010, Palm released 3D games, and next month (Feb. 2010), we will get camcorder video recording enabled and also Flash 10.1 support. What better way to echo Palm’s claim that webOS was built to power all types of devices, than to see PreCentral ‘s stunning revelation (brought to us by Engadget) that the Palm Pre Plus smart phone can run or multitask 50 applications simultaneously. This in my view is the single, greatest revelation that webOS is truly a revolutionary platform that is more than skin deep! If you do not catch the significance of this stunning achievement, imagine this, the iPhone can only run 1 developer application at a time. Yet with 50 applications opened in your Palm Pre Plus smart phone, you can at the same time take the “Need for Speed” 3D game for a spin with breathtaking acceleration. So when people talk about the speed of the microprocessor, they usually do not appreciate the significant impact a robust operating system like webOS can have on a smart phone’s performance.
Every device has its strengths and weaknesses. But the Palm Pre smart phone with webOS is a wonderful achievement that gives you the feeling that it is nearly perfect. It shows that all the talk about hardware is no good, if at the end of the day, you are not enjoying your phone. Seven months after buying my Palm Pre phone, I love it every day. I purchased the “Need for Speed” 3D game last week, and it is awesome. Next month I am looking forward to getting camcorder video recording and Flash 10.1. In seven months, Palm has given us nine upgrades to webOS 1.3.5. Yet each of these operating system upgrades happen over the air, I do not need to connect my Palm Pre phone to my computer. This is called cloud computing. I can say a lot more, but I just want to say, thank you Palm. Thank you for giving me a device that has been such a joy to use, that every day when I wake up, it is one of the things that bring a smile to my face as I reach for it, and go about my day’s activities.
This is so misleading, in the second video he includes Windows mobile as on of the "non multi tasking" Os's out there.
That is so WRONG...Windows mobile has been able to multi task since 2003 LMAO. Of course not in the nice elegant way the web os does it but at least it does do multi tasking.
wish i had the money for multiple phones...this and a good android phone when they come to ATT and the next iPhone...
So. The Wallpaper, where can I get it?
Great review by the way. But I do love the wall paper.
I'm thinking of making the Switch to the Pre. I've been a Windows Mobile user for a long time. Currently using the Palm Treo Pro. My question is how is the syncing with MS Exchange? Email, calendar, and contacts. It does "push" type email and updates correct? I dont want to be setting it to update every ## minutes. If syncing is not as good as on Windows Mobile.. not sure I can make the switch. Any commenters out there?
@bridge
There is a plethora of information about Microsoft Exchange syncing in the Palm User Guide which you can access online at Palm's website. The user guide is in an Adobe PDF document. Search for “Exchange” inside the Guide, and then step through an extensive list of contents on Exchange syncing that is spread throughout the guide. Happy reading!
Palm Pre Users Guide (Microsoft Exchange Syncing):
http://www.palm.com/us/support/handbooks/pre/p100eww/PalmPre_UG_Sprint_p100eww.pdf
Might have to go take a look-see down at the Verizon store, although it will be hard to contemplate the switch from a blackberry to a palm...
Multitasking makes it much more productive and useful than other phones. Also check Speed Dial Pro app. Palm needs to rapidly increase number of Apps in the Catalog/Store
I have an iPhone 3GS and I like it but I want a Palm Pre so badly. I'd have them all if I could afford it!
I've been waiting for reviews on the new Palms before deciding on my new phone. It had been between either the Pre Plus and the Droid.
Frankly, now that I see the Pre Plus isn't really a huge upgrade. The Droid has Android behind it, with all the acceleration and growth that platform is experiencing. Plus, I found the Droid for only $109.99 over at BuyDroidPhones.com, so it's significantly cheaper, too.
The wallet almost always speaks loudest, I guess...
Nexus one or palm pre plus??? which is better?