The Official Palm Blog

Get on-the-go restaurant reservations without any reservations

OpenTable for Palm webOS is the latest addition to the Palm Pre’s beta App Catalog. The popular restaurant reservation service adds a few new goodies to the menu thanks to the unique capabilities of Palm webOS. For example, you can find restaurants with availability near your current location, and your reservations can be automatically integrated into your calendar. 

OpenTable is available to download immediately at no cost via the App Catalog. 

Also new in the App Catalog: Fliq Bookmarks, a helpful utility from Mark/Space that works with The Missing Sync for Palm Pre to transfer Safari bookmarks from your desktop (Mac for now, PC coming soon) to your Palm Pre. 

Jon Zilber

Palm webOS 1.1 enhances support for enterprise -- and beyond

“Pre” and “business” just got a lot friendlier! Today we released Palm webOS 1.1, which brings several additions to our support for Exchange ActiveSync (EAS), including remote wipe, PIN/password requirements, inactivity timeout, improved certificate handling, and more. You can find more details about how Palm webOS fits into your business environment here.

In addition to these treats for business users, Version 1.1 also includes a few other goodies for everyone -- like support for emoticons in the messaging app, and the ability to set “person reminders” in the contacts app (next time you get a message or phone call from that person, a message pops up showing you a reminder to ask them about their vacation in Maui -- cool, huh?). Oh, and one more thing: Palm webOS 1.1 re-enables Palm media sync. That’s right -- you once again can have seamless access to your music, photos and videos from the current version of iTunes (8.2.1).

For a list of the new features of Palm webOS 1.1, take a look at the release notes at www.palm.com/webos-pre-sprint-en. 

By the way, all these updates are delivered automatically to your Pre wirelessly. Over-the-air updates let you automatically get new webOS features and security updates -- all you have to do is tap to accept. 

John Traynor

VP, Business Products

Two chances to win a Palm Pre

Let’s get the bad news out of the way first: They’re for residents of the US and Canada, respectively. And the good news: It’s actually seven chances. (And no purchase is necessary.) 

US residents can enter a monthly giveaway on our Facebook page -- just log in to Facebook and leave a comment on the “Win a Palm Pre” tab explaining why you need one. The current giveaway runs through August 14, and there will be five more monthly giveaways after that. See the full rules here. 

For Canadian residents, you have until August 31 to enter a contest to win a Palm Pre from Bell Mobility, the exclusive Canadian carrier. You can enter the contest here and check the official rules here. 

Jon Zilber

Mojo SDK available to all

After a successful early access program, Palm’s Mojo Software Development Kit is available to all interested app developers. The SDK can be downloaded from a new developer portal -- Palm webOSdev -- at developer.palm.com. Any interested developer with a valid email address can access the SDK, its associated documentation, and new Mojo developer forums.

The initial response to Palm webOS apps -- from both developers and customers -- has been enthusiastic. Even in its initial beta stage, over 1.8 million apps have been downloaded from the beta App Catalog since Palm Pre was released less than six weeks ago. Thousands of developers have participated in the Mojo SDK early access program since it began in early April. New applications are in the pipeline for the Palm App Catalog, and the App Catalog submission process will be opened to all developers beginning this fall. 

Developers interested in exploring Palm webOS and the Mojo SDK further may be interested in these upcoming events:

 - Michael Abbott, Palm’s Senior Vice President for Application Software & Services, is speaking today on the emerging opportunities for mobile applications at the MobileBeat 2009 conference in San Francisco.

 - webOShelp is organizing a developer meetup (at Palm’s Sunnyvale headquarters) on July 28.

 - preDevCamp an informal network of Mojo developers, will host events in 73 cities around the world on August 8.

Additional opportunities to find out more about developing for Palm webOS can be found on the webOSdev portal. 

Jon Zilber

One Pre, two thousand photos (and counting)

Thomas Lopez (@tmomaslomez) has been busy with his Pre. Last night he tweeted "My fav photo from our trip to SF http://post.ly/1Gav nearly 2k more taken with my Pre."

Check his photo gallery and you'll find he's been busy -- and has been producing some high quality as well as huge quantity.

Got a favorite photo from your Pre? Post a link in the comments (or upload to our Facebook fan photo album). 

Jon Zilber

All-stars, on and off the baseball diamond

On the field, Ryan Howard is an all-star’s all-star. The 2008 World Champion Philadelphia Phillies’ first baseman and 2006 National League MVP was the fastest player to reach 100 home runs in Major League Baseball history. And he’ll be on the field at today’s MLB All-Star Game in St. Louis. 

But off the field, he’s an all-star in a whole different league. Last night, Palm was proud to be a sponsor of a benefit "All-Star Bash" that supported the Ryan Howard Family Foundation, an organization with an especially timely mission to improve the lives of disadvantaged youth and families by developing and implementing programs that advance education, nutrition, physical fitness, and social economic status. 

The event was attended by an impressive roster of athletes -- including Derek Jeter, Ernie Banks, Jason Bay, and Kevin Youkilis -- and entertainers -- like Alyssa Milano and DMC of Run-DMC (who also provided a special midnight performance). Red Sox first baseman Kevin Youkilis thought Pre was “really cool,” and Nationals pitcher Ross Detwiler said Touchstone was “the coolest thing I have ever seen.” Tennis star Anna Kournikova, in St. Louis for the All-Star festivities, said she thought the new Pre was “so cute” and will be donating an autographed phone to her charity.

Jon Zilber

Happy birthday to the honorary father of the Touchstone

Legendary inventor and iconoclast Nikola Tesla was born 153 years ago today (thanks for the reminder, Google home page). In his day, he was widely viewed as Thomas Edison’s archest of rivals; today he’s largely viewed as the prototypical mad scientist and as muse to a variety of pop musicians and indie filmmakers, not to mention an upstart electric carmaker.

Tesla was also a pioneer in the area of electromagnetic induction, the technology underlying the Palm Touchstone Charging Dock. So if you’re enjoying the convenience of connector-free Pre charging, be sure to wish Tesla a happy birthday as your Pre magnetically snaps onto its charging dock. 

Jon Zilber

Palm Pre to Launch in Europe with O2 and Movistar

Palm Pre will arrive in the UK, Ireland, Germany and Spain on local Telefónica networks in those countries. Scheduled to be available in time for the holidays, Pre will be offered in the UK, Ireland and Germany on Telefónica's O2 network, and in Spain on Telefónica's Movistar network. You can read more about the announcement here.

Customers who would like to register to receive additional information about Palm Pre and be notified when it's available can register at:

• UK and Ireland: http://www.palm.com/uk-pre-notify
• Germany: http://www.palm.com/de-pre-notify
• Spain: http://www.palm.com/es-pre-notify

Jon Zilber

A Fourth of July salute

Between the backyard barbecue and the fireworks, you might enjoy these photos from an event last month honoring the work of our friends at the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America.

Have a happy Fourth of July!

Jon Zilber

Getting into the independent spirit with Pre

As we slide into the Independence Day weekend, it seemed like a good time to salute some new Pre owners who reveal a truly independent spirit:

- Is it possible to live “off the grid” while using a device that relies on both electricity and a cellular network? After you read about this gentleman, you might ask whether it’s possible to live off the grid without one.

- At the other end of the lifestyle spectrum, is it possible to improve on the Touchstone inductive charger for Pre? Maybe – by attaching one to a BMW.

- Built-in Touchstone not enough of a tricked-out ride for you? How about turning your entire car into a Pre?

- Like the previous video, this was another winner in PreCentral’s “What Would You Do for a Palm Pre?” contest. (And this winner really put some skin in the game….)

Jon Zilber