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HP Veer too small for 3.5mm headphone jack and microUSB port, gets magnetic connectors instead
Ah, fiddlesticks! It was bound to happen sooner or later with phones becoming increasingly anorexic, but we can't say that HP's solution to not having room for a 3.5mm headphone jack or a microUSB port is... um, awesome. Just as consumers had their voices heard when HTC decided to require an ExtUSB adapter to use standard headphones with the T-Mobile G1, we're guessing that quite a few potential Veer buyers will be soured by the idea of carrying around yet another dongle just to have access to a very basic port. After all, what's the point in toting around the world's smallest webOS device if you're also forced to lug around one (or two) of the world's most annoying adapters? According to Pre Central, the Veer will ship with a pair of these clips -- one of 'em attaches a USB cable for charging, while the other adds a headphone jack. Of course, Bluetooth listeners needn't worry over the latter, but those who'd rather not mess with a Touchstone will need to be extra cautious when it comes to packing your charging cable and USB nub. We'd obviously prefer the oxygen we breathe to simply recharge our gizmos in a feat of perpetual engineering, but till then, it looks like Veer owners will be tied tight to at least a couple of accessories.
HP Veer, first hands-on! (updated with video!)
How does the HP Veer look up close? Cute as a button, and small -- these pictures don't do it justice at all. We just got our hands on the pint-sized webOS 2.2 smartphone, and snapped a stack of pictures for your viewing pleasure. You won't be able to flip these around like playing cards, but they will give you a handle on what to expect from the miniature Pre 2 in the weeks or months to come, so click on through that gallery below. We'll have video in a moment, too! Update: We went back for seconds and came away stuffed impressed by the power of the tiny machine -- its form factor may bring back painful memories of the Kin One, but the Veer feels like a multitasking beast. Before our eyes, an HP rep swiped rapid-fire through enough apps to plan and communicate a Yelp restaurant date in under a minute flat, and there wasn't so much as an instant's delay when switching between each. We're big fans of the form factor, small screen aside, the sliding hinge is solid with a delightful snap, and the cute little keyboard attached to that slider is fairly usable despite its size, with rubbery little keys that reminded us of those on the Palm Centro. What's not to like? Update 2: Video after the break! Update 3: While we were unable to determine with certainty what carrier the Veer demo units were using, an IMEI was clearly displayed in the device info screen, leading us to conclude these were GSM phones (likely on AT&T). %Gallery-116132% %Gallery-116146% Myriam Joire contributed to this report.
HP Veer: smallest smartphone in the webOS stable, 2.6-inch display, coming this spring
You wanted a small smartphone? Well, you've got it in HP's Veer, the very first webOS-based device to bear the HP name alone without Palm's alongside packing Qualcomm's Snapdragon 7230 processor at 800MHz. Other headline specs include a 2.6-inch 320 x 400 display, 5 megapixel EDoF camera, HSPA+ support, 8GB of storage, an accelerometer, proximity and light sensors (as usual), Touchstone compatibility, and mobile hotspot support. It's genuinely cute -- but keyboard usability will be a big question that we'll need to have answered when the phone is released this spring. No word on carriers yet, and pricing is set to be decided upon "at a later date." Update: Added the full press release and a demonstration video after the break, and our hands-on with the device can be found here! For more on all of HP's webOS announcements today, click here! %Gallery-116081% %Gallery-116100%
