Nearly four months since the initial “in the coming months” Pre 2 announcement, the long-delayed Verizon Pre 2 will finally hits the market today, February 10th.

This quiet bit of news, straight from the mouth of Jon Rubinstein via yesterdays webOS event, is especially ironic considering that the long-awaited iPhone 4 hits Verizon stores on the exact same day. No word as of yet on pricing but last week’s reported $100 on 2-yr contract figure seems to be just about right. It’s unclear whether or not the free wi-fi hotspot feature found on the existing Pre Plus and Pixi Plus will be maintained with the Pre 2.

Read the full story on Palm Info Center

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• No Web OS 2.0 for Palm Pre, Pixi, or Plus devices (venturebeat.com)

Verizon Wireless will today be rolling out the latest version of Palm’s webOS, version 1.4.1 to the Palm Pre Plus and the Pixi Plus. The update will be delivered sometime today and it comes with a number of bug fixes and new features.

Source: Geeky gadgets

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• Palm Pre Plus and Pixi Plus Coming to AT&T (mashable.com)

Verizon Wireless is running a sale on Palm smartphones right now that makes a Palm Pre Plus the ultimate iPad companion. Palm Pre Plus phones are selling for $49 for two (and Palm Pixi Pluses are $29 for two), with a Wi-Fi router option coming free with your smartphone service plan. In our tests of the Pre’s Wi-Fi mode, we got about 1.2 megabits down, the speed of a basic home DSL connection. We’re not sure how long this deal will last; the router option used to cost an extra $40 per month. The plan has a 5GB usage cap, and remember you’ll run the phone’s battery down in a few hours in router mode.

Source: PC Mag

Verizon slashed the cost of its 3G Mobile Hotspot feature for the Pre Plus and Pixi Plus all the way down to $0, effectively giving you a broadband modem for your laptop, iPod touch, and up to three other devices for $60 less per month than you’d pay with a MiFi that accomplishes exactly the same function (and $50 less than any other tether-capable Verizon handset). Here’s Verizon’s official statement on the matter:
“Customers who purchase or upgrade to a Palm Pre and Palm Pixi will get the Mobile Hotspot for free. Existing customers who already have the service will find charges on their next bill will be $0.00.”
Add that in to the fact that the Pre Plus is now $49.99 and the Pixi Plus is now $29.99, both with buy-one-get-one-free deals tacked on.

Source: Engadget

It may have taken a little while for those in Europe to be able to get a Palm Pre, however that does not seem like it will be the case with the Pre Plus and Pixi Plus. The timing of this also follows up nicely on those earlier rumors suggesting that the Pre Plus was going to soon be available with O2.

Read: Palm Pre Plus & Pixi Plus Are Heading To Europe [GCF (Global Certification Forum) Approval Arrives For The Palm Pre Plus & Palm Pixi Plus] » TFTS – Technology, Gadgets & Curiosities

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• Palm Pre Plus and Pixi Plus coming to O2 this April (ubergizmo.com)

Wood TV has a review of the New Palm Pre Plus and Palm Pixi Plus. Here are the highlights:
These phones are magical. That’s right. With the push of a button your phone becomes a WiFi hotspot. The utility of being able to turn your phone into a WiFi hotspot is amazing.

No other phone has ever had this capability offered at retail. You can tether other phones to your laptop via a USB cable or Bluetooth, but the software on the Pre Plus and Pixi Plus turns your phone into a WiFi network.

I tested it out in the food court in the middle of one of the local malls. Where there was not other WiFi network present, I connected to the Pixi Plus’ network without a hitch and was able to check email and do some light browsing. I had two friends with me, who were also able to browse without an issue.

The App Catalog has grown. At the launch of the original Pre, there were just 30 apps. Fast forward to December of 2009 when I reviewed the Pixi, 774 apps were cataloged. As of this writing, there are now 1,516 apps. This number is likely to grow as Palm has released a more developer-friendly set of tools for writing apps. The 100,000+ apps of Apple’s App Store, and the tens of thousands of apps in Google’s Android Marketplace overshadow the small number in the App Catalog.

The screen sizes and resolutions are identical to the non-plussed counterparts. That means the Pre Plus sports a 480×320 resolution and the Pixi Plus has only a 400×320. From the original Pixi review: “At first glance, 80 pixels may not seem like that many, but it’s really noticeable. Cycle through to one of the images that shows the comparison of how much you’re losing on the Pixi compared to the Pre to see just what I’m talking about.”

mlive has a review of the Palm Pre Plus Vs. the Motorola Droid. Here are the highlights:

Just say no to the Pixi – First off, I’d advise staying away from the Palm Pixi.

Design: Advantage Droid
• Both devices have slideout keyboards. While I didn’t like the Droid’s flat keyboard, it does have the option of an onscreen keyboard. And with a bigger 3.7-inch screen, typing on the screen is OK.

User interface: Advantage Pre
The Android operating system has a strange system in which the user has a hard time telling whether an application has been closed, which keep several applications running in the background unintentionally. The Pre webOS “card” system is an elegant way to switch and close applications. Check out the video (skip to about the 1 minute mark) below to see it in action.

Overall
The first Pre was released last summer, so I didn’t expect a completely new device on the market for Verizon. But I wish they could have done more to improve the battery life. I also wish Palm hadn’t wasted their time with the Pixi (which was released in the fall), and I hope they can turn out another interesting device this year.
Both the Pre and Droid are fun and powerful devices, but battery life and apps are clear advantages for Droid.
Two more Android devices (Motorola Devour and Google’s Nexus One) are coming to Verizon in the next few months. If Palm doesn’t offer improvements, the application gap could squeeze Palm out of the smartphone market.

New Palm Pre Plus and Palm Pixi Plus users: Congrats and welcome!
Palm Pre Central has a full article to help you find some of the best stuff and learn about the best features of your new device.

Checkout Palm Pre Central to find out what you need to know about your new phone!

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• Verizon Confirms Pre Plus and Pixi Plus Costs, Buy One Get One Free Offer [Phones] (gizmodo.com)

Verizon now has a sign up page where you can punch in your email and register your hopeful anticipation for the Palm Pre Plus or Palm Pixi Plus on their network.

Source: Pre Central.

Palm has some good times ahead at Verizon, says Macquarie Securities analyst who upgraded the stock to buy Monday.

It became apparent that the Motorola Droid was not going to be the phone that finally slayed the mighty Apple iPhone. Throughout the past two months, Verizon has remained officially committed to selling the Palm phones early next year, when Sprint’s exclusive deal expires.

TheStreet first reported that Verizon would likely take a minimum shipment of Palm phones and offer limited sales support for the devices. At the time, people close to the company said most of the marketing resources would be focused on the Motorola Droid.

Not so, says Macquarie analyst Phil Cusick.

“Despite market worries to the contrary, our checks indicate substantial support pending for Pre and Pixi at Verizon in early 2010,” Cusick writes in his research note Monday.

Palm may have turned a corner on its troubles of 2009, Cusick argues. Spotty supplies of the Pre hampered its debut, and Sprint’s weak support as the shrinking No. 3 player didn’t help much, Cusick writes.

Read the full story on The Street.