Palm Pre Reviews

The Pre features a 3.1-inch capacitive touchscreen over a 24-bit color 320×480 resolution HVGA liquid-crystal display. The touchscreen allows for manipulation of the UI with fingers instead of a stylus, commonly used with older Palm phones and PDAs. Below the display is the “Gesture Area”, a touch-sensitive area with LED underlighting that permits additional touch commands.

Like other recent Palm phones, the Pre features a full QWERTY keyboard. On the Pre, the keyboard slides out, and is curved to follow the contour of the human face. In addition to the keyboard, the device features a single button in the center of the Gesture Area, a volume rocker switch on the side, and a ringer switch on the top.

The Pre features three input sensors that allow it to respond to its surroundings. An accelerometer automatically changes the orientation of the display between landscape and portrait when the device is rotated in the user’s hands. An ambient light sensor allows the Pre to automatically adjust the brightness of its display. A proximity sensor allows the Pre to disregard touch inputs when the phone is held close to a user’s face during a call.

The Pre also has an integrated 3.2 megapixel digital camera with LED flash.

 

Connectivity
The Pre will be available with high-speed connectivity on either EVDO Rev. A or UMTS HSDPA, depending on location. The Pre also includes 802.11b/g WiFi and Bluetooth 2.1+EDR with support for A2DP stereo headsets. A-GPS with support for turn-by-turn navigation is also included. For charging and data-transfer, the Pre uses a microUSB connector with USB 2.0 support, and audio output is supported by a standard 3.5 mm headphone jack.[18] While the phone reports support for the Bluetooth DUN protocol, Sprint is not permitting use of the Pre in tethered (or “Phone as Modem”) mode, and has made no announcements that this mode will be offered in the future.

Storage capacity
The Pre has 8.0 GB of internal flash storage (approximately 7.4 GB of which is user accessible). The Pre does not have a flash memory card slot.

Charging
The Pre is one of the first smartphones to feature wireless charging, using electromagnetic induction through an optional wireless charging dock (dubbed the “Touchstone Charger”) and a special back cover, which also is sold separately. Users can still charge the phone using the supplied MicroUSB cable.