Palm Pre and Pixi for TOTAL Beginners!

A while back, I wrote an article titled "How to: Get Ringtones on your Palm Pre."  It had a lot of good stuff on there about... well, setting up ringtone! I also wrote about simple, safe, and easy fixes for the Palm Pre's most common problems.  But as I helped beginners with their Palm Pre's, I noticed how lot of people felt TOTALLY LOST on doing even the most BASIC functions (like copy/paste... hello?), even after having owned it for a while!

Fear not, friends, because TOTALLY PALMED is your mejor amigo. ... That's "best friend" in Spanish...... never mind.  Read on after the break to learn how to do the most basic things with your Pre.  (P.S. These lessons can apply to the Pixi as well!)

How-to: Erase Your Palm Pre and Palm Pixi

Sometimes in life, you just gotta go back to a fresh start... a clean slate... a new beginning... square one... tabula raza... you get the idea.  Being a Palm Pre owner since June 2009, I can tell you that this certainly applies to webOS devices. Those of you "in the know" are aware that you can do many cool things with webOS homebrew... you can make the Pre look like a Blackberry, for example.  You can patch the Pre to hang up when you close the slider.  All very cool stuff, but I noticed that after getting carried away with patches (I used upwards of 30!), my "Precious" was really starting to slow down.


Many of you have noted that your Palm Pre has slowed down dramatically since Palm's infamous 1.3.1 update.  While this update provided us with cool things under the hood (laying the groundwork for Flash, video recording), on the surface many felt like they were robbed of some of the Pre's snappiness and stability.  And we can't have that!


Fear not friends, because TOTALLY PALMED is on the case!  More after the break...

"The Palm Pre is no iPhone Killer..." Blah, blah, blah.

The moment Palm birthed the Pre into this world, it was immediately thrust into the shadow of a giant. Much like David facing Goliath, Palm's Pre stood toe-to-toe with Apple's colossal iPhone.  Although this analogy has been used time and again, people - including those who should know better! - expected the Pre to be a Goliath from the outset.


Well, it's not.  Try a pre-pubescent David with zits, and you wouldn't be far off.  Tired and seemingly hopeless biblical references aside, I think that Palm is in pretty good shape.


Allow me to explain my logic here...  after the break!

Which is the BEST Twitter App for the Palm Pre and Palm Pixi?

If you like using Twitter and have a Palm Pre or Pixi, you're in luck:  there are currently SIX full-featured Twitter apps available for webOS.  They are all very different, and suit different needs.  These choices can be a bit overwhelming, but fear not!  Totally Palmed has got your back.  I own and have used all of these apps extensively, so I can pass my impressions on to you.  Hopefully it helps you make a decision, based on your needs.  These apps are listed in the order that I downloaded them. Have a look, after the break!

HOUSE DIVIDED! Palm Pre vs. HTC Hero!

Those who follow me on Twitter know... I'm a Palm Pre fanboy.



My wife?  A bonafide iPhone fan.  Try as I might to explain to her why the iPhone is worth leaving, ultimately it was Benjamin Franklin who made the strongest case: thanks to Sprint's low rates and their Any Mobile, Anytime feature, we were able to dump our landline for good and save over two grand over two years. Not chump change.




Casting aside my strong recommendation that she get a Palm Pre, my wife instead opted to get the HTC Hero.  The reason?  She actually wanted a virtual keyboard, because it would be the closest thing to her precious iPhone.  The Palm fanboy in me was disappointed, but the geek in me was overjoyed.  And hey, with Sprint's 30 day return policy, if she didn't like  the Hero, she could switch to the Palm Pre, a phone she already knew well...  thanks to yours truly never shutting up about it! 


So how did the HTC Hero fare against "The Pre-cious?" Read on to find out.

TOTALLY PALMED INTERVIEW: Does Developing for the Palm Pre Really Suck?

If you've been following any of the daily Palm Pre gossip, you may have caught wind of a brewing controversy surrounding a certain developer named Jamie Zawinksi (jwz).  Mr. Zawinksi has an accomplished history as a developer, and was one of the first on the homebrew scene developing a tip calculator and a Dali (morphing) clock for Palm Pre's webOS.  (I personally used his tip calculator and liked it.)  But suddenly, things turned sour... he had become so upset for some reason that he announced on his blog that he would no longer develop for Palm's webOS.   Wow! Where did all this come from?  You can read his blog here.


So I got curious. Are other developers having these same misgivings? I went right to the source and struck up an IM chat with a webOS developer, Jordan Gensler (kesne).  Mr. Gensler is the founder of Keen Studios, an upstart software development group.  After the break, see what he had to say about the whole situation...

How To: Add Ringtones to your Palm Pre

So you just got a brand-new shiny Palm Pre! Congrats! What the hell do you do next?!  Fear not, dear Palm Pre friend, for there's answers!  Keep in mind:  it took ME a good 2 weeks to get really comfortable with this phone's operating system (OS)...  so be patient! It will come, and the short learning curve is well worth it.  After all, you don't want to be some iPhone simpleton, do you?  You're better than that! (Totally joking, iFans... relax.)


My sister recently got her Pre and I've been jotting down the stuff I've taught her... the first thing she asked me was how to customize ringtones!  I've gotten this question a lot from others as well, so I'll now pass this info on to you.  Why?  Because that's the kinda guy I am.  Now pay attention! ;)

ROAD TRIP! I Push Palm Pre's Multitasking to the Limit...

Road trip!  Well... not exactly one I was looking forward to.  For several reasons.  First, I would be riding with my boss on our way to a boring convention. Second, our trip would take us right through the rural heart of Louisiana... a state not known for its great Sprint coverage (hardly any 3G at all... what the hell is that all about??).  Finally, my boss owned an iPhone and was poised to give me all kinds of grief about it, should my Pre not measure up to my glowing praise.

Read on to see if "The Pre-cious" made the cut...

DON'T RETURN IT! Simple and Easy Fixes for the Palm Pre

In my readings of Palm Pre forums and Twitter posts I noticed several common issues kept popping up, leading many people to return their Pre's as "defective."  This is a shame, because many Pre's are returned when in fact they don't need to be. With just a little bit of research you'll find the majority of the Palm Pre's "little gremlins" can be sorted out quite easily.

Plus, rest assured because Palm seems to have listened to its customers and is making improvements to the Pre's hardware.


Read my list of several of these common problems and their fixes after the break...



1) PRE SHUTTING OFF UNEXPECTEDLY!


This is probably the most common issue that I saw. Fortunately, it's a very simple problem, one that can be easily fixed.  It is due to a "battery wiggle" issue.  A minor manufacturing "snafu" was made when the battery was designed...  it's juuuuust small enough that when the Pre is jostled, or if the slider is open or closed, the battery may come off of its contacts momentarily.  This can cause the Pre's screen to flicker, shut off, or even shut the Pre down completely.  Another problem that comes from this is that this "battery cycling" actually causes the battery to wear down faster!

The solution? I've been telling owners to cut a small piece of double-sided foam tape and install it at the area of the phone where the top edge of battery makes contact.  Others have resorted to business cards and stuff, but I don't find that it's ideal.  Not surprisingly, Palm has addressed this issue on newer builds by ... *gasp!* installing a small piece of foam in exactly the same place. (I swear when I saw that I felt like such a genius! ... I know... geek is more appropriate!) 

Palm also redesigned their stock battery, presumably for a better fit.  (The old battery is the one on the left with the grooves, the new one is on the right.)  If the above fixes don't work for you, then you can march right up to your Sprint store and demand a new battery.  I've been reading that they've been generous in exchanging them. Our Canadian friends to the north should have the newer builds, so this is hopefully a non-issue for them.

2) THE OREO EFFECT!
Many people have noticed that when the Pre is closed, it seems to have a little wiggle if you twist it like an Oreo (hence the name).  THIS IS NORMAL: the vast majority of Pre's do this to a negligible degree. But some report that their Pre gets little too loose for comfort.  It happened to me once and I discovered an embarrasingly simple fix.  See if it works for you.

 

First, squeeze the two halves of your Pre together, placing gentle but firm pressure at the corners (you don't wanna crack your screen!). 

Next... keeping pressure, slowly open and close your Pre about once or twice.

 

Keep the pressure focused at the points as shown in this pic.  It might help. Remember that you will always have some wiggle, and will likely need to do this fix again sometime. If results aren't satisfactory, you could try pressing a little harder. Again, be careful.

UPDATE: oasis9389 on the precentral.net forums has noticed that if you close your Pre from an upper left to bottom right fashion, that it has the same effect as the fix above.  This is likely due to the asymmetrical design of the original rail system for the slider.  I've read that Palm is fixing this with newer builds as well. Thanks!  Final tip: don't fiddle with your Pre after you do this maneuver. If with minimal pressure you notice your Pre is tighter, leave it alone... or you'll go blind! :)

3) EARPIECE AND PROXIMITY SENSOR NOT WORKING! 
After a long road trip listening to Pandora, Sprint TeleNav, and taking calls by bluetooth, I let my Palm Pre go to sleep mode, unplugged the AUX wire out of my Pre, and went up to my hotel. I tried to call my wife to let her know I had arrived safely, but to my horror I couldn't hear anything on the other side.  I also noticed the proximity sensor (the sensor that shuts off the Pre's touchscreen so your cheek doesn't inadvertently hit a button during a phone call) wasn't working anymore.  I did notice, however, that my speakerphone was working just fine. ... And then it hit me:  my Pre still thought there was a wire plugged into it!  All I'd have to do is plug/unplug any standard headphone into the jack!  (Funny part was, I had left the AUX wire in my boss' car... it wasn't until the next day that I sheepishly asked a total stranger at the airport to borrow his headphones... after plugging/unplugging my phone, I was in business!)




So... the solution? Don't unplug your headphones while the Pre is OFF or in sleep mode!

Others have said that if that doesn't work to try this trick while your music player is ON.  I didn't need this trick, but maybe it'll work for you.  ... It's worth noting that this problem existed on the iPhone when it first launched.  Hopefully this will be corrected by our friends at Palm, too.  ... But I wouldn't mind visual voicemail, first! ; )







For those with more resistant problems, and if the above fix doesn't work for you, then try this: 
a.   Shut off your Pre. To be safe, I'd take out the battery, too.
b.   Take a Q-tip
c.   Remove some of the extra fluff
d.   Wet the tip with alcohol
e.   Insert the tip into the headset jack and clean it really well.
f.    Let it dry
g.   Turn your Pre back on
h.   Go to "Device Info" in your launcher
i.   Open the menu and select "Interactive Tests."
j.   Select "Audio" self-test.  You should be done! Try it now...







4)  MY KEYBOARD IS ALL CREAKY WHEN I TYPE ON IT!

I hadn't seen this for myself until my wife got a brand-new Palm Pre. It didn't creak out of the box but when I replaced the back-cover on it, the creaking started and wouldn't stop no matter how I installed the backplate.  Luckily, there's a simple solution for this as well: just apply electrical tape to the inside portion of the backplate, as shown here...
















5) I CAN'T SEE MY MESSAGING CONVERSATIONS!
This problem probably occurs more commonly than it should.  Essentially, this is caused by the awesome "Synergy" feature on the Pre that links profiles (Google, Facebook, Yahoo, LinkedIn) of people all together.  Problem is, it can cause a glitch in the messaging app:  for some reason, the Pre gets confused and can't find the contact associated with that conversation.  There's a few solutions for this...

a)  Unlink your contact.  Say you've lost the conversation with your mom.  Go to her contact, and tap at the top of her contact to see all her profiles (see pic on left).  If she has only ONE profile (my mom has 3), skip to the next step. Once all the profiles pop up (see second pic on left), tap one of them.  This will pull up a menu (see third pic on left). Tap the "Unlink This Profile" button.  Repeat this for all of the profiles in Mom's contact listing.  Reboot your Pre.  (A quick way of rebooting: hold the orange, SYM, and R keys.)

b) Delete your contact. Pretty self-explanatory.  Find Mom in the contacts, and tap "Contacts" in the upper left hand corner of the screen.  Delete Mom's contact (sorry, Mom).  Reboot your Pre.  Go make a sandwich. After the Pre finally loads up, re-enter mom's contact.  Finally, try an SMS or IM conversation with her again and see if it shows up in the messaging app.  If all went well, it should work.  If not, proceed to the final step.


c) Do a PARTIAL ERASE.

6)  MY SCREEN FLICKERS / GOES BLACK WHEN I TRY TO USE THE PHONE!
This is a problem I found on my wife's brand-new Palm Pre: when I'd open the phone app, the screen would flicker on and off and wouldn't stop until I closed the phone app.  It was very worrisome, but turned out to have a very simple fix:  take off the screen protector! Normally, the proximity sensor on the Palm Pre and Pixi deactivate the screen when your face comes close, to avoid accidental pushing of buttons while on a call.  In my wife's case, the screen protector was "fooling" her Pre into thinking that her face was close to the phone.  After removing it, cleaning the screen really well, and replacing the screen protector, the problem never returned.




7) MY KEYBOARD STOPPED WORKING!

This happened to me one morning and scared the hell out of me.  I had just switched out the battery when this occurred. So, I powered the phone off, pulled the battery out and placed it back in, and voila! My keyboard was working again.  I have no idea what caused it, but at least there's a simple fix for it!

8) MY TOUCHSCREEN STOPPED WORKING!
This has not happened to me, but I have read in a couple forums that some people were able to get their phone working by doing a battery pull, just as in solution #4 above.  It didn't work for everyone, but hey it's so simple it's worth a shot.

9)  MY GPS ISN’T WORKING RIGHT! (VERIZON AND BELL)
There seems to be a small bug on the Palm Pre Plus where the GPS fix isn’t accurate at all, even with GPS turned on.  It’s an issue being investigated, but for right now, there seems to be a fix that works:  open the VZ Navigator app, even if you haven’t paid for the service.  This supposedly fixes it.  No idea why.

10)  MY PHONE WON’T SEND MMS MESSAGES! (VERIZON)
For some reason, the Wifi on the Palm Pre Plus does not play nice with MMS.  I’m sure this will be fixed soon, but in the meantime, there’s a simple fix:  turn wifi OFF when sending an MMS.




There you have it. Ten simple problems with simple fixes for the Palm Pre.  I'm not claiming these fixes will work for everybody, but heck they're so easy it's worth a shot before running back to your Palm retailer. If you have any other simple fixes that you'd like me to feature in this blog, leave a comment! Thanks.

MY RANT: Five Reasons Why I Left the iPhone for the Palm Pre

If you've read any of my tweets on Twitter (where else would ya read tweets?!), you've probably heard a thing or two about how I owned an iPhone before I got my awesome Palm Pre, and how I think the Pre is "soooo much better for this, and soooo much better for that."


Well..... it is.


Now... the iPhone has plenty of redeeming qualities.  When I'm in my less "trash-talky" moods, I'll answer the common "what to get... iPhone or Palm Pre?" tweet with something along the lines of:  "Depends on your needs... Media/games biggest priority? Then iPhone. Everything else, plus multitasking? Palm Pre. Easy."


I tweet this because it's true: as a media and app platform, the iPhone remains second to none...  that, in addition to slick advertising and the mind-controlling chemicals that Steve Jobs puts in our water, has been a major reason for its success.  It's simple, simple, simple to use: my MOTHER could use it...  well, almost.

After the break is a rant I wrote (courtesy of Twitlonger) to someone who asked me why I left the iPhone. It's by no means complete or as detailed as I'd like it to be, but I don't want to put you to sleep, either.  Enjoy. (Or iHate... whatever you prefer...)

TOTALLY PALMED: Mission Statement

 There's plenty of fantastic Palm-centric websites and blogs out there... I don't plan to be a me-too site, nor do I wish to step on anyone's toes. 




After the break, you can read what I plan to accomplish with this blog...

TOTALLY PALMED: This is Only the Beginning!

Welcome!

 

 In this world of short attention spans and information overload, I felt compelled to add yet another blog to the blogosphere... "Why," you ask?

Heard of Apple's "Jesus phone?"

... Meet Palm's "Hail Mary..."

 The Palm Pre!

This website is dedicated to the Palm Pre, and Palm's miraculous comeback from the brink of oblivion. The Palm Pre is simply the best damn phone I've ever owned, and easily one of the best purchases I've made in recent memory. Before we get things started, I’d like to thank my friend Ves for getting me started on all of this.

For this first post, I figured it would be appropriate to go into…