There have been rumblings ever since the release of WebOS 1.3.1 that it has crippled the app catalog for European Palm Pre users, I didn’t really pay too much notice to this until today. It is only when you really want something and you cannot get it that you really start to feel the pain. I saw this really cool app, it wasn’t going to order me pizza , help me split the tip or do my online banking but I wanted it. Made Simple for webOS looked great having seen it on precentral, ahhh I thought I bet I can’t get this app. I did a search anyway and the image above is the result , to say I am not happy would be the understatement of the century. A little over the top I know but it makes for good reading.
The Palm Pre should allow all apps to appear in UK catalogues , it is up to the end user to decide if they do or don’t want it . If they are not going to do this, then they should make it clear when they sell the device that there will be a limited number of apps for UK users. I actually love looking at new apps, even if I have to pay for them and even if they are not relevant to the UK. I love the fact you can look at how people are utilising the Pre, you can even get some cool ideas for new apps. In short Palm should allow all apps available to all people , maybe the app catalog needs a filter by region for those who prefer it. What we don’t need is Palm dictating what is available to me just because of where I live.
Tagged as:
App Catalog,
WebOS 1.3.1
A week or so after the US got their update to WebOS 1.3.1 and a week before expected the update to bring UK Palm Pre users to parity with the US has finally arrived. There are a host of added features with this update, some are much needed such as text forward and yahoo synergy syncing others just increase the usability of the Palm Pre. The UK download is 123MB (seen from the screen shot above) for this update where as teh US one shown on precentral was a little smaler at 126MB, they are of course (or were) a few versions of WebOS ahead of the UK.
A full list of updates can be found on the Palm site here.
Tagged as:
WebOS 1.3.1,
WebOS Update
Palm’s latest update to its mobile operating system now allows owners of the Pre and Pixi to use Yahoo’s instant messaging client and watch YouTube videos in wide screen view, among other things.
But one the feature not included in the update is the seamless synchronization with iTunes, Apple’s popular software for managing music and other media on a computer.
Palm has long clashed with Apple over whether or not owners of its devices can sync them up with their iTunes libraries without any intermediate software.
Since the Palm Pre first became available this summer, Palm has issued several updates to its mobile operating system, causing iTunes software to recognize the phone as an Apple music player, allowing it to synchronize and transfer files between the phone and a personal computer. Apple has repeatedly disabled the syncing feature in subsequent software updates to iTunes.
The skirmish escalated in August when Palm filed a complaint with the USB Implementers Forum, an industry group that oversees standards for USB connections, claiming that Apple was restraining trade by only allowing Apple devices to access iTunes. The USB-IF rebuffed Palm’s claims, dismissing the assertion that Apple was in violation of its policies.
It also said that Palm’s strategy of having its Pre phone masquerade as an iPod so it would work with iTunes was a violation of the group’s membership agreement.
Palm confirmed that the newest release of WebOS, the mobile operating system for Palm devices, does not include a fix to the media syncing capability, although declined to specify the reasons behind the decision.
I’ve noted in previous reporting that the battle for iTunes is part of a larger rivalry between the two companies. The stakes are especially high for Palm, which has been steadily losing market share since 2007. The company is counting on its newest stable of smartphones to reverse its fortunes.
Michael Gartenberg, vice president for strategy and analysis at Interpret, a market research firm based in Los Angeles and New York, has noted how important the iTunes ecosystem is for consumers. “Palm will probably come up with a Plan B to ensure users don’t get caught in this battle,” he said.
For example, Palm could develop its own software that would allow Pre and Pixi users to sync with iTunes, as other handset manufacturers like Research In Motion have done.
The company said it was not speaking publicly yet about its plans moving forward.
Source: NY Times
Tagged as:
iTunes,
WebOS 1.3.1
To go along with the release late last week of the WebOS 1.3.1 update comes a release of a new SDK for all developers to create new apps with. The new release fixes many issues with the old SDK and has an enhanced Pixi emulator.
To get the new version just head off to the downloads section of the Palm developer site, which can be found here
Tagged as:
Mojo,
mojo sdk,
WebOS,
WebOS 1.3.1