Gadgetell | Tech News, Reviews, and Interesting Things

Aww rats.  So what if my idea of HTC buying Palm didn’t really make any sense.  It might have been Palm’s big chance not to take a dirt nap.  HTC, refusing to yield to my new world view, decided to purchase One and Co., the design firm that helped create their awesome Touch Diamond.

Find out who One and Co. is and why it matters.

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Yesterday, Palm (PALM) issued a warning that their sales fell far from the rosy estimate analysts were expecting.  Citing the usual slumping economy, increased competition and the alignment of Jupiter and Mars, Palm is finding themselves in financial quicksand and their wriggling is pulling them downward quickly.  Palm’s warning: “we are off 41%.“  Ouch.

Can the new OS turn this around?  Follow to find out.

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HTC front man, Peter Chou made three interesting comments on Friday.  HTC is surprising just about everyone with the products they put out now under their own brand.  How good are things for HTC?  Check out these almost outlandish statements below:

How would Palm fit into HTC’s master plan?  Follow to find out.

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What would we do without rumors and speculation?  We geeks would have nothing to look forward to.  The latest rumor is surrounding the Palm Treo Pro and is calling for a CDMA version to be landing with Sprint as early as January. 

The rumored launch date is calling for January 11 to be exact, but we will have to wait for an official announcement before we begin to get excited.  Sure, some have already killed Palm off and moved on to bigger and better, but all things considered, the Treo Pro is a pretty decent offering and it is certainly a nice improvement over the Treo 800w.  Additionally, it should make a welcomed addition to the Sprint lineup.  As for pricing, that is still up in the air.

Via [BGR]

• What is going to happen at Macworld 2009?
• Palm watches wistfully as HTC buys other design firm
• Can a Hail Mary save Palm?  Warning issued

PhoneFusion announced yesterday that their Fusion Voicemail + is coming to the Android platform that will allow users to view their voicemails and listen to them in any order they choose.  This was a big selling point of the original iPhone and now it is coming to the Android platform.

Currently, PhoneFusion offers this software for free to Windows Mobile, BlackBerry, Linux, Palm and Symbian phones via their downloaded application.  PhoneFusion announced the addition of the Android to their compatible platforms at the Under the Radar: Mobility event.  The company says the application will be available before the end of this year.

Find out more about this app.  Click more to follow.

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Surveys like this are always very interesting as they show the real truths behind the reliability of products, not just the output of the company’s marketing department.  In this case, SquareTrade, a research group, have taken it open themselves to tackle smart phones and to see their reliability (or lack thereof, as the case may be) over the first year of purchase.  And what better to use than 15,000 handsets consisting of BlackBerrys, iPhones and Treos.

As my not-so-inconspicuous title suggests, the Treo performed poorly, in fact, surprisingly poorly!  After one year 5.6% of all iPhones malfunctioned, followed by a sizable jump to 12% for the BlackBerry and a massive 16% of Treos.  This is incredibly worrying if you have just a bought a Treo, but comforting if you have selected the iPhone!

Read the full details after the break.

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Gadgetell Quick Review:

Amazon Kindle

What is it?

The Amazon Kindle is Amazon’s electronic reading device. It uses E Ink technology and is available for $359.

Pros:

Easy to use, lightweight, lots of storage and free wireless service.

Cons:

The included cover needs improvement.

Keep reading for an in-depth, hands-on review. 

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There is a new sheriff in town and it’s name is iPhone.  This year, according the JD Powers the top dog spot goes to Apple’s phone, leaving RIM to finish in the #2 spot.  As you can see from the above graph, Apple’s entry was not included in last year (the survey’s inaugural year).  The graph shows some interesting items.

Find out what after the break.

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A computer that did little but browse the web and do some mundane tasks?  That will never work.  Back in 2000, 3Com (remember them?) came out with the computer for people who didn’t want a full-fledged computer.  The 3Com Ergo Audrey was the device and it never stood a chance.

Take a look at this piece of engineering.  The Audrey had a touch screen, ran its own OS and could sync to Palm Pilots.  It even had an IR keyboard so you could type e-mails or URLs easily. 

Who was the target audience?  Where was this computer intended to go?  Find out more after the break.

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A couple of weeks have passed since the T-Mobile/Google event and my uneasy silence hasn’t dissipated.  Sure, I am impressed that beloved Google is involved, the apps are cool and don’t even get me started about compass mode in maps.  Very cool stuff.  But it doesn’t matter.  Here are the top 7 reasons Android will fail.

Headed to Vegas?  Don’t bet on the G1 just yet.

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