XPERIA X10 mini / Palm Veer / ???

S

s0darktheconofman

New member
What are the smartphones available or announced with the smallest form factors?

I'm looking for a tiny phone that can meet the following requirements:

- WiFi tethering
- Must be used with Prepaid phone/data plan (PayGo, not monthly)

Just about everything else is secondary. I could get by with a prepaid hotspot, if it met the size and cost requirements. The Cricket Crosswave is slightly bigger than the X10 mini and their cheapest monthly plan is $40. I'd prefer to pay about half that monthly (on a per-day or per-MB basis).

I have largely migrated my voice/SMS usage to a combination of Google Voice & SIP on my computer and iPod Touch, but there are instances when I don't have WiFi access and want to send a text or make a phone call. My monthly spend on telephony is near $10- and I meet 90% of my needs.
 
Of the two, probably the HP Veer (remember, Palm's brand has gone away!).

You'll probably have the option of getting it unlocked from HP -- just remember, you'll have to use a GSM carrier for that. Not sure if it'll support hotspot creation in that mode, though. A lot of carriers absolutely require a subscription plan with tethering for that to work.

My pick for the Veer is a mix of app optimization and performance. Any app written to support the Pixi works on the Veer; not many Android apps are written for the X10 mini's tiny screen. And the Veer's 800MHz second-gen Snapdragon means it should feel fluid where the X10 mini will have bogged down.

That and I've always had a love for HP/Palm's tiny phone design. There's a surprisingly good keyboard on the Pixi, and an HP engineer told me it's virtually the same on the Veer.
 
I hadn't even thought that the screen size would run into app limitations, but I'm sure it could. Thanks for the well-reasoned response.

It'd be better if HP announced a date and price on the Veer so I could make a more rational comparison. GSM is fine. Prepay / Paygo is the big sticking point.

I'm not so concerned about the tethering issue under Android, because a rooted phone can wifi tether without the carrier. IMHO, that's such a bogus cash farming distinction by carriers anyway. If they're billing for data usage, what should they care whether I use it tethered or from the device? Bits are bits, especially if you're paying as you go for them. I don't know how easy it is to tether a WebOS device wirelessly without the permission of the carrier. Good question.
 
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