HP Hits the Official App Catalog
We have seen HP apps in the webOS beta/web feed (here). Today, for the first time as far as I am aware of, an app developed by HP staff has hit the official webOS app catalog. "World Time", a simple world time zone app, is simple and functional (and free).
World Time Zones
Simply tap the black rectangle and a scrolling dialog box pops up with a large list of countries and cities to choose from. What I would like to see in a future update of this app is for the map in the background to update to the location that you have selected in the menu. Type-to-search, seen in other apps such as @zhephree's Foursquare, would improve usability (since there is an extensive list making it difficult to manually search through). It would also be ideal to have more of a continuity between this app and the OS. Although a person may intuitively realize that you need to click the black rectangle, there is nothing from the interface that would lead a person to do so.
Overall this is a good app for finding out what time it is in another place in the world, ideal if you have contacts in other countries.
Update: It appears that the app was developed to fit the Pixi's screen. As you can see from the screenshot above, the image of the map becomes tiled to fit my Palm Pre's screen.
webOSroundup palmSpot Contest (Update x2)
Update 05/04/10: Week two of voting has gained our video (So, What Can the Palm Pre Do?) another 529 votes! webOSroundup has extended their voting until this Friday, so if you haven't gotten a chance, please view our videos below. Our video has the potential to go to the final round. Check here for more updates!
Update 04/27/10: After a week of voting, our video (So, What Can the Palm Pre Do?) is up by 70 votes (820 views total)! We are very excited and did not expect our video to have so many views. Thank you all for watching our video and if you haven't seen it yet, the video is embedded below for your viewing pleasure. For a list of the views for all videos during week 1, click here (redirects you to webOSroundup.com).
We haven't posts anything for awhile, but with good reason. We've been working hard on making videos in the recent weeks and have entered in a video contest, the webOSroundup's "palmSpot Contest" to be exact. The goal is to showcase the use of Palm's new mobile operating system, webOS. webOS has been around for almost a year and is, in this blogger's opinion, the best mobile platform out there. We've created two entries and have posted them below and hope that you will watch them. Each view counts as a vote in this contest and there is only one week left. Please spread the word and enjoy!
For more information on @webOSroundup and the palmSpot video contest please visit: www.webOSroundup.com.
1 Month In… The Palm Pre.
Admittedly I am not a fan of Apple products (the iPhone) but wanted to upgrade to something sleek and modern… Then the G-1 came out. I was under contract with Sprint for another year and didn’t want to shell out the $200 it would cost to cancel and move to a whole new network… So, I waited and like magic my prayers were answered when Palm announced a multi-touch phone that was being dubbed “The iPhone Killer” for the Sprint Network. I got my Pre the second week it was out, excited and thankful my wait was over. Now that the “honeymoon” phase is over, here are my impressions of this elegant handheld.
Design: The viewing area is slightly smaller than the iPhone (as brought to my attention from an iPhone user). The slide out keyboard is nifty, although at times I feel as though I might break it; the action isn’t as fluid as one would hope (perhaps because of the way it curves upward). I would disagree with some people who have complained about the size of the keyboard and how “sharp” the edge of the keyboard is. The keyboard seems just about right, I do think the edge should be rounded; however, it would take away aesthetically from the “closed” position. Another common problem with the Pre is that in the closed position the screen is wobbly and twists slightly from the body. A 3.2MP camera and a L.E.D. Flash on the Pre is outstanding and clearly a winning feature.
The Touchstone: The wireless charging base, works very well and is the primary way I charge the phone (the Pre also chargers via a usb but the door to open the port is very flimsy). The only drawback from this is the lack of a “sleep” screen. When you place the Pre on the touchstone, the time and the “lock” icon are always displayed. The Touchstone comes with a replacement battery cover which is made specifically for use with the charger. Personally, I like this cover more than the one that comes shipped with the Pre. This cover doesn’t have the glossy appearance of the Pre and feels sturdier than the original cover.
Palm Pre Screenshot
OS/Interface: Simply Beautiful. The only complaint I have is that it does have a tendency to lag from time to time when I scroll through the list of apps and click on one randomly (a problem with every operating system I would imagine). It is extremely easy to get accustomed to the interface; it almost seems to come naturally. The ability to multi-task is also a huge advantage and gives it more of a desktop experience.
Wish list: Like every other reviewer of the Pre out there, I want more apps to play with. A video camera app, is one of the tops on my list, second to a word processor (which I hear DataViz currently has in the works) and image editor.
My Rating: 8.5 out of 10. Definitely the best phone I have had or used, and don’t see anything toping it anytime in the near future.
Edit: List Price for the Palm Pre: $199.99 after rebate and service agreement.
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