I've had the Palm Pre for about 6 months now and I'm still pretty much lovin' it so I thought I'd update my impressions. I admit, there are a few things that are first generation annoyances but that's what I get for being on the bleeding-edge of technology and I accept that.
On to the love.
1. The keyboard. It's not the greatest but I'll take a real keyboard over a virtual one any day of the week and I can so...out-text my iPhone-wielding friends...:-)
2. Synchronicity. This is their concept that your Google account; Facebook account and Exchange accounts are presented to you in the Contacts view as one single directory with the dupes hidden. The data is maintained in their separate locations or databases but the user, i.e., me, only has to deal with one person's record with all of the information combined and served up to me on the Palm.....NICE....I think every new phone should have this. This may become the phone feature I cannot live without. In fact, this kind of idea has been rattling around in my head for years for all of the various fundraising data sources out there at a nonprofit. Just think of the possibilities....:-)
3. The camera. It's pretty, darn good and sooo easy to snap a quick shot of something and send it to somone. Not revolutionary, I know but the quality and the convenience make it hard to resist.
4. Social media apps, e.g., TweeFree, Facebook, LinkedIn - These apps allow me to actually make effective and immediate use of my social media accounts. On a computer, responding to a Facebook email is irritating at best. I do not always have Facebook open, so when someone sends me an email which I receive in my email client as an email, I can't just reply, I have to go to Facebook, login and reply from their interface...truly irritating and not user-friendly at all. However, once the app is on a phone where everything works together -- now I can launch the Facebook app to post and reply....much easier. Albeit not perfect yet. From email, it wants to launch the web but if you bypass this and go directly to Facebook via the app, you can find the post and reply there much more easily.
5. Multi-tasking - We take this for granted on a computer but on a phone it becomes really necessary. I also have an iPod Touch and love it as well but I really miss the multi-tasking I can do on the Palm Pre.
6. The form and feel. Okay...this is purely subjective and has nothing to do with the technology but it just feels good to hold. The rounded stone shape just works and feels good in the hand. I took a look at a friend's Droid the other day and it was big, rectangular and boxy, i.e., kinda ugly. I like tech that works but it's always a bonus when it's beautiful to the touch as well as the eye..:-)
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