Veer4g
Latest
HP Veer 4G, Pre 3 and TouchPad celebrate a melancholy birthday
Just one year ago, HP officially introduced the TouchPad, Pre 3 and Veer to its lineup. Much has happened in the 365 days since that time, which marked the end of the Palm brand, the discontinuation of the company's webOS hardware development and the decision to open source the crown jewel, webOS. Today, we hope you'll join us after the break as we bow our heads, sing some praises and remember the final three members -- for now, anyway -- of HP's webOS lineup. We'll have fireworks at the end.
HP's unreleased white TouchPad and Pre 3 for AT&T (hands-on video)
What's this? Some of HP's unreleased WebOS devices? Well yes! Say hello to the white European TouchPad, the black TouchPad 4G for AT&T, the Pre 3 4G for AT&T, and our very own Veer 4G review unit, all gathered on a fine specimen of mid-century modern upholstery. We were able to unbox these devices and handle the hardware, but the software was off limits. The owner of the Pre 3 did activate it for us, but that's as far as we were able to go. While still heavier and thicker than the competition, the white TouchPad -- a 64GB model with the faster 1.5GHz CPU -- is significantly more attractive than its black sibling, and less of a fingerprint magnet to boot. AT&T's TouchPad 4G -- with 32GB of storage and the same 1.5GHz processor -- features a working SIM slot for the carrier's faux-G network (HSPA+), but is otherwise cosmetically identical to the existing WiFi version. The Pre 3 is the same phone we handled during HP's announcement last February, save for the AT&T logo on the back. Check out our gallery below, and hit the break for our hands-on video. %Gallery-134380%
How would you change HP's Veer 4G?
We know, there isn't much point, but folks who sank untold Jacksons on one of HP's final webOS devices deserve a chance to vent. And that's exactly what we're giving them. Barring a total 180, there won't actually be a second Veer to suggest changes for, but we're still keenly interested in hearing how you'd change the smallest webOS to ever ship. Back in May, we confessed to having a less-than-enthralling experience with the bantam handset, and while we doubt the company sold a shocking quantity of these, there's no doubt that some of you are pocketing one right now. If that's you, the comments are calling. Would you up the resolution? Ditch the physical keyboard? Change the network? Rethink the form factor entirely? Let us know below, and look, it's cool to cry.
HP Veer gets bricked, disassembled after checking 'Organ Donor' box
There's a saying 'round the webOS world... something to the effect of "it's impossible to brick a webOS device." Turns out, that's hardly the case these days -- the newfangled Touch to Share technology that's tucked into the latest round of HP devices is mighty fickle, and one Rob Whitby has somehow managed to turn his Veer 4G into a bantam paperweight. Rather than using it as a projectile with a mind to make his security deposit vanish, he did the only remaining intelligent thing to do: rip it open, while taking pleasure in refusing it an epidural. There's no video of the presumably gut-wrenching procedure, but there's a shockingly detailed account of the teardown linked below. Eye candy's just a click away, and yes, donations for a replacement are being accepted. The funeral date, however, remains undetermined.
Samsung Infuse 4G and HP Veer 4G now on sale at AT&T (update)
These two smartphones probably couldn't be any different if they tried -- on the left, we've got the tiny 2.6-inch HP Veer with webOS on board, and on the right is Samsung's Infuse 4G, a giant 4.5-inch Android that costs twice as much on contract. They do have two important things in common, however: they're both available on AT&T right now, and you can read our reviews of each before tossing any money down. Enjoy! Update: The Veer 4G is actually free on contract at Best Buy right now. Needless to say, that's a much better deal. [Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
HP Veer 4G review
HP's Jon Rubenstein told us that his company wanted to veer in a new direction, and veer it surely did -- the HP Veer 4G will arguably be the smallest fully-functional smartphone on the market when it goes on sale May 15th. In a nutshell, it's a Palm Pixi Plus in the guise of a Pre, only in a delightfully downsized package with webOS 2.1 and thoroughly modern functionality. What does it feel like to Just Type on its tiny keyboard or throw app cards across its itsy-bitsy 2.6-inch screen? How is it as a pocketable HSPA+ hotspot, and will that extra G decimate its miniscule 910mAh battery? These are the questions that drove us when playing with the Veer 4G this week, and you'll find the answers shortly after the break. %Gallery-123489%
AT&T officially announces HP Veer 4G, available May 15th for $100 (update)
Well, it's a bit past May 2nd, but AT&T has now finally officially announced that it will be carrying the HP Veer -- or Veer 4G, as it prefers to call it. The diminutive smartphone will be available on May 15th in your choice of black or white for $99.99 on a two-year contract. That will buy you a 2.6-inch 320 x 400 display, an 800MHz Snapdragon processor, a slide-out QWERTY keyboard, a 5 megapixel camera, 8GB of internal storage and, of course, webOS 2.1 for an OS -- all in a package about the size of a credit card. As you might expect, however, that 4G addition does literally come with an asterisk -- the phone itself only has basic HSPA capabilities. Head on past the break for the complete press release. Update: There's been some question as to whether this bantam device would support only basic HSPA or HSPA+, so we reached out to HP and AT&T for clarification. Both outfits were adamant that the Veer 4G's hardware would indeed support HSPA+ in areas that have upgraded cell towers. AT&T affirmed that "the Veer has HSDPA Cat 10, which is HSPA+," while Palm said, "the Veer supports HSDPA Cat 10 and HSUPA Cat 6. For reference, this is the same for the Motorola Atrix 4G and HTC Inspire 4G both currently available from AT&T." Of course, we all know that not all 4G is created equal, and it seems it's becoming increasingly clear that all HSPA+ isn't either as well.
