Palm Pre (CDMA)
Phone Scoop Review
Jun 3, 2009 by Eric M. Zeman
Palm hopes the Pre can bring it back from the brink of extinction. Based on what Phone Scoop sees, Palm's chances of salvation are pretty good. The Pre is a solid phone, even if it makes a few mistakes. read review ›
User Reviews
Average Ratings
Phone gets really hot and then the screen cracks
I purchased this phone and have had it for a week before I had to return it. I noticed the phone got excessively hot when in use for long periods of time. One night I was charging the phone on the kitchen table when the screen just cracked all on its own in 3 different places. I did some research and found that quite a few other palm pre owners experienced this same problem. Needless to say, I returned the phone and got a completely different one.
Pros: Small and compact
Cons: Plasticky and fragile
Short battery life
iPhone Killer? It cant even beat my Blackberry
*deep sigh* I was excited about this phone when it first came out...until I got one and had it for a whole 4 hours before I returned it. The OS is pretty nice, its fairly easy to use (not quite as fluid as an iPhone) but the menu of this phone is poorly designed. Not only the menu the phone itself looks and feels cheap. The feel of the phone I mean. The buttons were too small (especially when someone with bigger fingers) The navigation through the phone can sometimes be a pain, because its uber sensitive. I thought one of the biggest drawbacks of the phone was syncing the device with multiple applications (like facebook) because I now have over 600 people in my address book from facebook alone. I was very disappointed with the phone. I had sprint and upgraded to get this phone, I was actually first in line to get it, but I changed it for an iPhone, especially with the new software thats coming out for it, its going to make this phone obsolete
Pre isn't all it's cracked up to be!
I left my Blackberry Curve 8330 for the Pre.
I have used it now for about a month and just switched back to the Blackberry. It has been very frustrating with dealing with incompetent Sprint techs and employees who "have never used the phone" is unbearable. The main killer on this phone was the fact that it does not properly sync with Outlook. Why? The only sync option is a piece of junk application by Chapura that is only in Beta.....and even this app only sends contacts from the Pre TO outlook. What about the 300 contacts I have in the phone that won't go back?? Deal killer for me!Regardless, here is what I found:
Cons:
-contacts sync from outlook to phone but not the other way around.
-Not many apps
-plastic case and buttons have low quality feel- gets worse with age.display clicks and moves side-to-side quite a bit in both closed and opened positions.
-no expandable memory
-no graphic screen keyboard.
-screen discoloration
-flimsy little door that covers up the microUSB port every time you charge
-canât change notification sounds.
-Easy to run into âcanât open a new card until you close some existing cards.âÂ
-forever to reboot
-you can only launch five apps from the home screen
-Cut/Paste only works in text fields where you can write, not when reading emails or SMS or web pages.
-Bluetooth calls do not work in car- only music.
-poor backup= loss of contact pictures, custom ringtones etc.
-camera doesn't zoom
-poor reception-loss of signal and calls
-phone heats up after 14 min phone call
-total sync of ALL gmail- previous email contacts and facebook. Be ready to flick through everyone youâve ever emailed and friends of friends of friends in your contact list.
-speakerphone is terrible
-when connected to PC cannot receive calls or txt
-Sprint says "not a PDA, a phone."
-no games at all. not even brickbreaker
Pros:
+Web browsing experience.
+Touch screen is smooth
+txting in IM style
+pandora rules
+nice fonts
DO NOT BUY A PALM PRE...EVER!
had 20 dead pixels on the first one and exchanged it before even leaving the store. then had 3 more replacements because of dead pixels, wobbly sliders/oreo issues, and light leaks on the borders outside the screen. these issues are NOT okay to have in a phone that is supposed to save your company...
THANK GOD i kept my blackberry bold! and within 10 days of buying the pre my number was ported back to AT&T and had a phone that actually works and doesn't suck...
Palm Pre Sucks
I had the phone for about 3 days in total.. It sucks [...]!! Battery life sucks,touchscreen sucks, not user friendly at all!!! Just so hard to use and navigate through when driving.. So iwent back to my palm pro which is great, just like my blackberry curve
Ed. note: removed profanity
Was hoping to be impressed...not!
Picked up this phone for the wife to try. She's coming from a Blackberry Curve. I was hoping to be amazed. So from her perspective and what I have experienced...
Pros:
-Multitasking cards
-decent resolution screen
-fast internet
Cons:
-synergy is not for me personally
-battery performance is horrendous
-gets super hot while charging
-touch screen is nice, but not as nice as Iphone
-screen still seems small (seems like HTC Touch I had)
-keys are too small
-Build quality feels cheap
-Slim pickings on Apps, but I'm that will change
-No memory upgrade options, stuck with 8 GB
-No video
-multitasking is nice, but slows down responsiveness with too many cards open (good try though Palm)
Needless to say, the wife is returning to the Blackberry.
Palm Pre Screen Cracks!
I bought a Palm Pre, and within 3 days of owning it, there were cracks rays radiating out of the home button on the screen. It was not abused in any way. I don't want another one. The same thing will happen.
The phone is also uncomfortable to hold when the slide is open. The case is flimsy plastic. What a disappointment.
Fragille & Frustrating
Have been waiting for a GREAT new phone from Sprint for years. Used to be a big Palm fan when I first discovered it on a Samsung i500, but all the Treos have been too bulky in my opinion. I have been using a Moto Q9 since it came out and it is a solid workhorse.
I too, was waiting outside the store before they opened on June 6th. I will be returning to the Sprint store for the 2nd time since.
First phone - dropped on day 1 from belt clip to grocery store floor. Not a hard hit and not a big drop, but slider was incredibly loose and rotated in a circular fashion. Unsure if it was from the drop, but returned to the store to see. Found that other new phones in the box were the same, but an annoying & perhaps exagerated problem anyway. Exchanged for (the 4th one tested) which was solid and tight.
Oops, I dropped this one last night in the garage while I was gathering items off my car seat. The phone was literally dropped about 1.5 feet (onto concrete) but is broken again. Landed exactly on the upper right corner and the power/screen lock button is completely inoperable.
Also was frustrated that I couldn't copy my pics from previous phone & memory card not made an option. They're NOT just for internal memory, right? Memory cards are for convenient file exchange IMHO.
Verdict & other comments:
Phone is pathetically fragile and I can't have a phone that breaks on the first drop. Nobody wants to drop their phone but the fact is, it happens. My Moto Q9 has been dropped so many times over the years and I have NEVER had any trouble with it. Plus, for a phone is NOT the Pre, the Q's speakers ROCK in comparison and I don't even have Pandora on my Q!
Pros:
Apps
Touchstone
Touchscreen
As a Pda it is good
Cons:
Too fragile
Horrible phone interface
Too sensitive phone interface
Can't use phone interface one-handed
Speakerphone/speaker quality is awful
No memory card
Awkwardness of drop-down menus from upper corners
Horrible (as a phone)
