Palm Pre in-depth impressions, video, and huge hands-on gallery

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We just sat down with Palm for a more in-depth look at the device, and here are our takeaways. First off, the software and hardware they're showing right now aren't the final versions. They're updating and tweaking as we speak, so some of the features haven't been implemented yet. Our take? The UI is incredibly well thought out and smooth. Animations going in and out of apps, and all of the menus and switching are done with a grace and simplicity that we rarely see on any device. The UI outclasses most of its competition on a number of levels, and actually may be quite a bit more revolutionary than the iPhone. The multitasking works like a charm, and reps say you can push it quite hard before you'll need to close applications. One of the most fascinating components of the UI is that when you're zoomed out to cards, the data is still active in the previews. If you're on a web page, you can flip the display around. We'll post some video of that in a moment.

We're told that the OS is based on Linux, and is in some way an extension of what they've been crafting for a while now. The device will feature copy and paste, which is implemented by holding a thumb on the gesture area and grabbing the text you want with your other thumb or a finger -- there's also a dropdown menu that lets your move through a number of editing options. The browser is based on Webkit, though is actually faster at rendering and displaying pages than any of its competitors, including Mobile Safari. Palm has confirmed that there will be an app store and an SDK which will be available to anyone. The gesture area and touchscreen are actually very responsive, and most of the gestures seem fairly natural, but there is a learning curve. We didn't see a virtual keyboard anywhere on the phone, though as we said the software is still early, so anything is possible.

On the Sprint end of things, they'll be pushing their "Everything" plans, and there'll only be a black version of the phone to start. There's no global roaming (of course), though Palm does have plans for a UMTS handset.

Check out video of us playing with the phone after the break, a bunch more detailed info... and in case you're wondering... it rhymes with Tree!
Gallery: Palm pre first hands-on with live updates, part 2!
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Filed under: Cellphones, CES
Palm Pre in-depth impressions, video, and huge hands-on gallery originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 08 Jan 2009 17:39:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.


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