HP Announces Palm Pre 2 and webOS 2.0 Features, Availability

HP is making things more official now since its acquisition of Palm with an official announcement for both webOS 2.0 and the Palm Pre 2. Initially, webOS showed us so much promise: it is intuitive, elegant, well-designed and has all the features that a modern smartphone OS should have. Unfortunately, the lackluster hardware that came in the form of the Palm Pre and Palm Pixi didn’t do it justice. Hopefully the second iteration of the Pre will fix that.

According to HP, webOS 2.0 will come packed with a number of new features (but we already knew that based on all the leaks we’ve seen). There will be a new browser that supports HTML5 features, a completely redesigned App Catalogue, additional features to unified messaging and mobile-optimized VPN.

When can we see the new OS? Well, it is launching with the Palm Pre 2 this Friday in France with SFR. The United States and Canada will have to wait for it in the coming months.

However, given its early release in Europe, we’re hoping that we get it in North America much sooner than later. We know that it will be coming to Verizon Wireless, but the carrier and Palm aren’t giving us a time frame or pricing.

The Palm Pre 2 bears a striking similarity to its predecessor, but with a few minor enhancements. Instead of the scratch prone plastic screen, HP decided to outfit the new smartphone with glass. It’s also the first Palm handset with a 1GHz processor, which will definitely help webOS 2.0 fly. Additionally, the Palm Pre 2 has a 5MP camera for photos. And yes, it still has a slide-out physical QWERTY keyboard, though I’m hoping it’s a little more tactile than the mushy plastic nubs that came on the first phone.

For more info, check out the press release on the following page.

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About The Author

Marc Flores

Marc has been a mobile fanatic for the better part of a decade and has had more devices pass through his hands than he would care to count. Originally from Los Angeles and briefly in San Francisco, Marc now lives in Brooklyn where, unlike Will Park, he longs for simpler times and simpler technology. All the while, he writes about gadgets and wireless technology as he tinkers, hacks and ultimately breaks most of his gadgets in the process. Marc has written about the mobile industry for Boy Genius Report, MobileCrunch, Laptop Magazine and has had his work appear in the Wall Street Journal, Gizmodo, CrunchGear and more.

Pre2isWack

damn … can I back to sleep now?
James M

While the Pre2 may not be bleeding edge, it’s not behind the curve either. Hardware-wise it’s very comparable to the HTC HD7, one of the premiere devices announced for WinPhone7. The only differences are the screen, compass, and autofocus. And storage, since The Pre2 has 16GB and from what I’ve seen the HD7 only has 8GB.

The Pre CANNOT have a digital compass and support an induction charging back panel. The magnets used for alignment destroy the compass. It’s a minor bummer but a fact of physics. I’d suspect the induction charger would also drive the compass insane.

Autofocus is a secondary concern to the image sensor quality. We’ll have to wait to see how the HD7 and Pre2 cameras compare.

There’s already been a leak for an “HD” version of the Pre2 that is rumored to be coming out in Q1 2011. I suspect Pre2HD will be a slightly larger Pre2 with a 960×640 3.5″ screen while their other leaked device, “Mansion”, will be either a 4″ slate or a landscape-slider.
http://twitter.com/MyDailyGadget MyDaily-Gadget

A more detailed view about the webOS 2.0 features and release date can be found here:
http://www.mydaily-gadget.com/news/2549-webos-2-0-release-date-and-features
SHEPBANK

Today at 2:33pm (10/22-2010) my attempted 911 call froze/ and I could not dial 911 for the San Diego Rescue.
I was shocked, suprised, and dismayed all at the same time. I kept tapping the call bar after inputting “911″ without results…nada, zilch, zero. I called att services and started to cancel service…I have had the Palm Pre Plus about a week, and the phone is unstable, the screen at times will not react no matter where you touch, , and wherever its as if the phonE HAD A MIND OF IT’S OWN, AND UPGRADING TO SOFTWARE TO 1.4.5 DID NOT MAKE A BIT OF DIFFERENCE IN THE WAY THE PHONE ACTED TO HUMAN TOUCH/RESPONSE. THE PHONE IS ALSO CUMBERSOME, BECAUSE OF IT BEING TOP HEAVY, WHEN YOU SLIDE THE KEYBOARD, THE HEAVYEND SLIDES LEAVING YOU WITH A “FRONTWEIGHTED” PHONE, HARD TO OPERATE FOR EXTENDED PERIODS.ANY SUGGESTIONS WOULD BE APPRECIATED [email protected]
SHEPBANK

Today at 2:33pm (10/22-2010) my attempted 911 call froze/ and I could not dial 911 for the San Diego Rescue.
I was shocked, suprised, and dismayed all at the same time. I kept tapping the call bar after inputting “911″ without results…nada, zilch, zero. I called att services and started to cancel service…I have had the Palm Pre Plus about a week, and the phone is unstable, the screen at times will not react no matter where you touch, , and wherever its as if the phonE HAD A MIND OF IT’S OWN, AND UPGRADING TO SOFTWARE TO 1.4.5 DID NOT MAKE A BIT OF DIFFERENCE IN THE WAY THE PHONE ACTED TO HUMAN TOUCH/RESPONSE. THE PHONE IS ALSO CUMBERSOME, BECAUSE OF IT BEING TOP HEAVY, WHEN YOU SLIDE THE KEYBOARD, THE HEAVYEND SLIDES LEAVING YOU WITH A “FRONTWEIGHTED” PHONE, HARD TO OPERATE FOR EXTENDED PERIODS.ANY SUGGESTIONS WOULD BE APPRECIATED [email protected]