Palm-branded smartphones may be returning soon! According to this Android Central report, Alcatel OneTouch may’ve purchased the famous smartphone/PDA brand and could use it to unveil new Palm-named products at this year’s CES.
Bear in mind this is still a rumor, but it makes a lot of sense to us. For one thing, the Alcatel brand itself is owned by Chinese TCL, which used it to get customers in the West (as well as the East), though with limited success. Anyone looking for a high-end device will look everywhere but to Alcatel phones — these are mostly catered towards low- and mid-ends of the market.
Here are 5 things we would like to see in any future Palm-branded smartphone:
1. Sliding QWERTY keyboard
I never really understood handset makers for not pursuing this form factor with more passion. It is my belief that there are many users out there looking for a smartphone that combines physical keyboard with big touchscreen. Take the BlackBerry Passport as a proof, if you need one. A Palm-branded device has a chance to take this spot and yet again emerge as a darling of the media.
2. Android instead of webOS
While webOS is still considered amazing by many, it’s lacking behind the latest Android distribution(s). The app count may not be determining factor for everyone; most of us want the popular apps to be readily available on their devices. And that’s already the case with Android so why “get back” to webOS? To be fair, Palm’s platform did have some cool tricks which lead me to my next point…
3. webOS-like launcher
It should be possible to create a custom Android launcher that looks and feels like webOS. Think: gestures, in a best possible way. Even the latest Android 5.0 Lollipop version leaves room for improvement and that’s where this custom webOS launcher could kick in.
4. High-end specs
We don’t want another mid ranger; we want top notch specs that include Qualcomm Snapdragon 805, 3GB of RAM, 13- or 16-megapixel camera, LTE and so on. Only this kind of device would yet again put Palm on the map.
5. Big screen
We want at least a 4.7-inch display. It could be full HD, I can live with that. Just don’t give us anything smaller.
And that wraps up our list. Is there anything else you would like to see in any next Palm smartphone?