Palm Pre Owners Like Their Phones, Take That Apple
A new survey of Palm Pre and iPhone 3Gs owners found that Pre owners like their phones, though not as much as iPhone owners like theirs. It's no surprise that Apple has its fans, but if you've been thinking about getting a Pre - maybe you should.
The survey was performed last week by RBC Capital and ChangeWave Research and first reported on by Philip Elmer-DeWitt at Fortune. While 99% of iPhone owners surveyed said they were satisfied and 82% said they were "very satisfied" - those numbers were 87% and 45% respectively for the Pre.
The biggest complaint about the Pre was a shortage of apps (24% of people said that was a problem) and the biggest complaint about the iPhone was...AT&T. Shocking! The sample size for the survey was small - only 40 Pre owners were talked to - but who among us gets to casually ask 40 owners of a Pre how they feel about their phones?
There's lots of reasons to consider a phone other than an iPhone, but if you were hoping that a Pre wouldn't suffer from the battery life issues Apple's phones do - this survey says you're out of luck. So far Palm hasn't been in the news for a heavy-handed app policy like Apple has, but the control Apple exercises over the software you can run on your own phone is pretty maddening.
Meanwhile, at least one study last week argued that more and more developers are building apps for Android handsets. Palm Pre developer events are going on all around the world, though, so expect to see more apps for that platform quickly.
Happy customers and more app developers on other platforms is great news. Effective competition is one factor that could contribute to Apple's getting over itself and of course to mobile innovation in general.
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Battery life on the Pre may not be much better than on the iPhone, but a second battery is pretty cheap and it's easy to pop out a spent battery and replace it with a charged one. I carry a spare with me whenever I travel just for that reason. Try that on an iPhone.
Just another happy Pre user...
I bought a 2600 mAh battery from Seidio. Now I can go all day on one battery charge. The Pre is an awesome phone, and you can install homebrew apps very easily without the jailbreak hassle of the iPhone. For a first iteration, the pre is better than the first iPhone was.
Palm Pre Owners Like Their Phones, Take That Apple! http://bit.ly/3iCwHW [from http://twitter.com/marshallk/statuses/3311617740]
Posted by: Marshall Kirkpatrick
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August 14, 2009 12:42 PM
I f#$@ing LOVE my Palm Pre. These guys should have asked me. iPhone (especially AT&T) SUX. Was very happy to make the switch from my iPhone 3G to the Palm Pre.
Its Pre for me. My only serious gripe is that some PDFs open without a hitch and others won't open at all. I expect that problem to be solved with future software updates.
I love my palm pre and am very happy with Sprint! Wonlt say anything bad about the iphone, but you would have to pay me to use at&t again. Enough said!
I cosider my Pre the coolest gadget I've ever owned........ More apps will solidify my feelings...... So hurry up already!
uhh, anyone else notice how ridiculous the headline is? Apple customers had a significantly higher percentage of happy customers than Palm
Apple better look out when the pre begins to support Flash in their browser, while the iphone vehemently resists to do so.
http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2340942,00.asp
Hey Shel....facts show that the vast majority of users don't buy 2nd batteries, and for those that do, that 2nd battery usually isn't even charged when they actually need it. These facts are the reason Apple chooses a slightly bigger permanent battery that everyone benefits from everyday instead of the replaceable battery that real people rarely take advantage of. They take a lot of media heat for this, but it actually makes sense for 99% of users. I'm sure you are a valid exception, but you are not the rule.
What I laugh at is the Pre users being so happy with 'multi-tasking', when Pre users can't even browse the web while on a phone call.
I agree with the comment about Apple needing to support Flash, that's a big problem and real opportunity for Palm to exploit.
If my first phone is Palm, may be I can't drop Palm.
@Ted Cranmore: "What I laugh at is the Pre users being so happy with 'multi-tasking', when Pre users can't even browse the web while on a phone call."
The device is capable of doing so. It's the carrier (Sprint) who introduced that limitation. Should I start laughing at your iPhone's lack of MMS and decent coverage?
As an early, early treo user (it attached to the palm) and a high tech marketing person, I have but one comment. Timing in this case may be everything and Palm Pre is late, late, late.
http://www.loadnew.com/designers/to-the-sounds-of-joy-division%e2%80%a6.html
I'm not really sure how you can make the recommendation that, "if you've been thinking about getting a Pre - maybe you should."
According to the survey, less than half of Pre owners are very satisfied, while nearly twice the percentage of iPhone owners are. Only 1% of iPhone owners are not at least somewhat satisfied, while 13% of Pre owners are not at least somewhat satisfied.
I think the recommendation, based on this survey at least, really ought to be, "if you've been thinking about getting a Pre - maybe you should think again."
I was looking at the Pre and wasn't happy with the memory... anyone who has this, is it a problem?
I love my phone as well.
[url]www.duratechsystems.com[/url]
We all know how passionate iPhone fanboys are. IMO, what do you expect them to say? They wish they can multitask? They wish they had a real keyboard? They wish they had a better network (oh, they do say that)? But besdes that, we're comparing a brand new OS to Apples 3rd gen. One that's completely open to one that's truly has to be jailbroken because of Apple/ATT's policies and services.
They both have advantages and disadvantages, so the comparisons are kinda stupid. Like I see 2 of the most disliked things about the Pre (the apps and media player) can be easily solved)
My wife, a nurse, who is not into technology at all, really loves her Pre. It is the first SmartPhone she has ever had. Her only complaint is the app issue, especially after she sees "there an app for that" commercial. I welcome the first real challenger to the iPhone and hope it is successful.
very thanks for article
I like my pre but I don't like the notifications for text and email that are preset. Is there a way to change it...I hate it. I can't hear it and I don't know if it is a text or a junk email. Please help me!! I would love my phone if I could change this.