The race in smart phones gets interesting this quarter with the introduction of the Nexus One First Generation Smart Phone. But palm is about to hit hard with the Palm Pre Plus and Pixi a second generation phone on Verizon.
Palm Pre Pixi Plus Coming to Verizon
That and add that AT & T and Verizon just dropped their plans FINALLY taking the nod from Sprint. Any frugal buyer that had sprint coverage could see that oh saving $1,000 over 24 months on an unlimited plan was quite substantial.
"Palm has become the Apple of the Smart Phone World."
The elegance of the Palm OS and it's limited number of applications sounds a lot like the the Macintosh a decade or so ago.
Apple was first to the market defining the market itself. We all were aghast at the interface
but many of us were locked out of the phone if we could not switch to AT & T. This left a lot of Mac Users (Myself, at the time.) out.
So Palm the creators of the original Digital Handheld Assistant finally came to the table with Palm Pre and a new OS. Since Palm had it's own elegant os not connected to either PC or Mac that was it's original Strength and with a program like Synergy it's easy to see that they are hell bent on productivity.
Android pops up and then DROID shows up only quickly to be surpassed by the Nexus One. What makes this interesting is Nexus One Sheer Processing POWER combined with the Google Applications being NATIVE. That and the geek factor of an open system lends itself to high creativity towards application.
So that all being said the real questions are...
"What are you using your smart phone for?"
Business? Games? Social Media? School? Internet Company? etc.
"What are you close friends or associates using?"
From a social bonding perspective and shared tips aspect as well as a financial friends calling circle this is a good question.
"Is this smart phone a liability or a productive tool?"
To borrow a concept from Robert Kiyosaki...Which phone is going to make you the most productive?
If I were still an everyday apple user and an Itunes user I would be using an iphone.
Palm Pre is exciting because it's trying to be elegant and stay true to its roots of a productivity tool. (Who remembers the little reminder "ding" from the calendar application.) That and this phone is second generation the Palm Pre Plus and Pixi will allow itself to be turned into HOTSPOT. THAT IS COOL.
Finally Droid like the Linux, Mozilla mentality comes an open system.GEEK ON BABY! I sort of want a Nexus One because its the first generation kick ass 1 mhz processor with ability to have 32 gb of ram. Come on my first computer had 16k. I like the turn by turn connected to google maps.
The largest reason I consider the Nexus one really is because we are using a ton of google applications right now and the model of an internet company creating a phone means that they have googe users "me" in mind.
My final word is on Applications. I don't really care about the number of applications that are available right now because that's not the kind of free time I have. I am worried most about being able to access a document for review, getting access to the internet for information and if I need do something for a client or customer online. I worry about managing a team via text or IM. (I have in the past directed a team in India via a smartphone IM chat program while sitting at a table with friends in the evening.) I worry about getting lost on my way to see a client or getting to a gig on time.
So my suggestion is to answer the above questions in making a decision to what smart phone is best. The reality is that they are damn comparable.
"The Second Quarter of 2010 gives you the best options in
Smart Phones with the release of the Nexus One to Verizon."
If you can wait, and I know some of you can't. The second quarter looks good. Nexus One on Verizon gives you an almost second generation phone with a really large network. Palm Pre Plus is on Verizon as of Jan. 25th. and with the drop in pricing you really do have more options.
If I had unlimited resources I would probably grab a no contract Nexus One with a T-mobile plan. I like having a physical keyboard and the hotspot on the Palm Pre Plus so most likely that will be my next phone. The elegance of the OS and it's mindset to be a productivity tool is hard for me to ignore as a former daily mac user with a Palm/Handspring that's what most attracts me to Palm.
Please COMMENT, DIGG, BLOG, TWITTER THIS. I would love to hear your decision or feedback in using any smartphones...
