A teardown of the new Palm Pre by Rapid Repair shows $170.02 in hardware components.
Their detailed disassembly guide requires a small phillips screw driver, small flathead, pliers, solder iron, exacto razor & safe open tool.
If anyone feels like taking apart their new phone the instructions are linked here.
Photos taken by Ludle International, a wholesaler company in China, show the iPhone and Palm Pre side by side.
The poster says the Palm Pre feels smaller than the iPhone, the Pre’s plastic screen is less scratch resistant than iPhone’s glass screen, and the back of the Pre is much more scratch resistant than the iPhone’s but loves fingerprints. The Palm Pre is reportedly being mass produced right now for release soon.
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As soon as Apple rolled out its preview of iPhone OS 3.0, the comparisons to existing (and forthcoming) mobile OSs started flying. While the major update isn’t exactly a done deal, it’s pretty far along, and we’ve been able to glean quite a bit from our time with the developer beta we’ve been checking out. iPhone OS, Android, webOS, Windows Mobile, BlackBerry, S60; if you’re in the market for a new smartphone, your choices have been getting exponentially more complicated lately, and 3.0 won’t make the selection any easier. Luckily for you, Engadget is here to make sense of a frightening and uncertain landscape. Read on for an in-depth look at the similarities — and differences — between modern mobile operating systems.
When it comes to OSs, it’s generally true that you’re only as good as your kernel, and these days, there’s no shortage of options in that department. Comparing core systems is difficult — each one has its own strengths and weaknesses, but we’d be lying if we didn’t say that the underlying structure of the iPhone OS is pretty robust. Since it’s built atop OS X, which in turn is built atop Unix, it tends to be fairly sophisticated and stable (even if Apple has managed to lag it up with its UI). Android is Linux based, though its basic functionality is sandboxed in a particularly healthy variation of Java. S60 and Windows Mobile may be more mature, but that age doesn’t always work to their advantage, and while RIM has done a tremendous job at updating its look and feel, the OS — which is based around a proprietary kernel — still showcases some of its ugly, underlying Java from time to time.
As you can see in the chart below, the basics slot these devices into fairly specific categories, though it’s obvious that Apple is trying to nudge its way into the enterprise world (the company went out of its way to cite business customer satisfaction at the preview event). Of course, we don’t expect to see the BlackBerry OS and Windows Mobile leaving that space any time soon.
| Basics | Return to Top | |||||
 Android Cupcake
|
 BlackBerry OS 4.7 |
 iPhone OS 3.0
|
 S60 5th Edition
|
 Palm WebOS
|
 Windows Mobile 6.5
|
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kernel Type | Linux | Proprietary | OS X | Symbian | Linux | Windows CE |
| Platform Adaptability | Excellent | Good | Poor | Excellent | Excellent | Excellent |
| Platform Age | Young | Mature | Adolescent | Mature | Young | Mature |
| First-party Enterprise Support | None | BlackBerry | Exchange | Exchange, Domino, BlackBerry | Exchange | Exchange, Domino, BlackBerry |
| Wireless Technologies | GSM, WiFi | GSM, CDMA, WiFi | GSM, WiFi | GSM, WiFi | GSM, CDMA, WiFi | GSM, CDMA, WiFi |
Apple nailed it out of the gate with many of its UI ideas. Gestures, lists with inertia, and plenty of touch-friendly sliders, wheels, and buttons generally make the iPhone OS a pleasure to navigate. While Android borrows some of that functionality, its uneven UI still doesn’t match up (though Cupcake certainly makes a few welcome improvements). Windows Mobile and the BlackBerry OS have made some gains here over the years, but they still suffer from inborn deficiencies that are clear the moment you start using them (especially the Storm’s 4.7 implementation), and S60 has a long, long way to go before it’s up to speed. The only real competitor in terms of user-experience right now appears to be the Palm Pre, which capitalizes on many of the gains Apple pioneered and throws in a few tricks of its own, like those cards as well as a bigger emphasis on gestures.
A key innovation over the past couple years has been the emergence of capacitive touchscreens in mobile devices, which allow for lighter touch, greater display clarity, and true multitouch at the expense of stylus compatibility. The iPhone, webOS, and Android have all embraced the technology, but Windows Mobile and S60 aren’t quite there yet, largely because they still make use of UI elements too small to accurately press with a human finger. To keep up, they’ll need to get cranking on this over the coming versions. Of course, all of these platforms (save for webOS) can sport a virtual keyboard of some sort — a technology particularly suited to a capacitive screen — but we’ve yet to see a single one pull off a typing experience as solid as what Apple offers.
As good as they may be in stock form, both Apple and Palm leave users hanging if they want to customize — hell, changing font sizes is taboo with the iPhone, much less a total reskinning of the interface. If you’re into making your device all your own, Windows Mobile and BlackBerry are where you want to be; customization isn’t just allowed with these platforms, it’s practically encouraged. In fact, Microsoft pretty much touts the flexibility as a feature nowadays (a quick glance at this year’s MWC offerings is proof of that).
| User Interface | Return to Top | |||||
|
Android Cupcake
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BlackBerry OS 4.7
|
iPhone OS 3.0
|
S60 5th Edition
|
Palm WebOS
|
Windows Mobile 6.5
|
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Screen Gestures | Yes | Yes | Yes | Limited | Yes | Limited |
| Screen Technology | Capacitive | Capacitive | Capacitive | Resistive / Capacitive | Capacitive | Resistive |
| Multitouch | Yes (unofficial) | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | No |
| UI Skinning | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | No | Yes |
| Input Methods | Virtual keyboard, physical keyboard | Virtual keyboard | Virtual Keyboard | Virtual keyboard, T9, and triple tap; character recognition; physical keyboard | Physical keyboard | Virtual keyboard, character recognition, physical keyboard |
Now here’s a category where the operating systems really start to show their colors. While Apple is finally adding the promised — but delayed — push notification to its devices, it’s still lagging far behind in some pretty important areas. First off: multitasking. Much like an original Palm OS device, Apple seems stuck in the past with its open-quit-open app switching scheme, which it claims is in the interest of preserving battery life. Windows Mobile, S60, Android, webOS, and BlackBerry all handle true multitasking, allowing you keep multiple apps open in the background. The push notifications will help, but nothing beats being able to return to an active app, particularly if you’re doing something like loading a web page or using a map to get around.
Palm is smartly introducing a web-centric functionality called Synergy in its webOS, which allows you to pool contacts and calendars from disparate sources, while the iPhone OS, BlackBerry OS, Windows Mobile, S60, and Android still present mostly siloed options in that department (without some third-party involvement). Apple has made strides with its new calendar functionality — CalDAV support, for example — but it still doesn’t present anything as revolutionary for dealing with scores of contacts. We do give the company marks for finally, mercifully, allowing users to share contact cards, however.
A big problem that Apple has yet to address with OS 3.0 is its obnoxious, obtrusive notifications. Where Android and webOS slide a handy “tray” into view to let you know you’ve got something incoming, the iPhone regularly piles on one notice after another, leaving you with a stacked, productivity-stalling, ugly mess of pop-ups. Apple, you kill this kind of annoying garbage in your browser — why do you think users want it in their phone? Even older systems get this one more right than Apple does — both Windows Mobile and the BlackBerry OS use a mixture of pop-ups and background notifications. It’s perplexing that a company so concerned with usability and simplicity has done nothing to address the situation in three iterations of its software.
Still, Apple has certainly answered the call (no pun intended) on a lot of user-requested features. Stereo Bluetooth support, MMS, that new Spotlight homescreen (aka global search), tethering capabilities, unlocked Bluetooth support for the touch, turn-by-turn direction capability, and a whole lot more. The sad part is that these additions only really bring the OS to speed with almost all of its competition, making this update a victory, but still kind of a bummer if you take the long-view.
And don’t even get us started on copy and paste.
| Core Functionality | Return to Top | |||||
|
Android Cupcake
|
BlackBerry OS 4.7
|
iPhone OS 3.0
|
S60 5th Edition
|
Palm WebOS
|
Windows Mobile 6.5
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|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Notification Style | Tray | Pop-up, background | Pop-up | Pop-up | Tray | Tray, pop-up |
| Contact Integration / Management | BES, BIS | Exchange, ActiveSync, Mac OS Address Book | Exchange, Domino, BlackBerry, iSync | Synergy | Exchange, Domino, BlackBerry, ActiveSync | |
| Multitasking | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Copy / paste | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Media Support / Ecosystem | Amazon | Non-DRM iTunes | iTunes | Ovi | Amazon | Windows Media Player / None |
| Global Search | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
| Firmware Updates | OTA | Tethered, OTA | Tethered | Tethered, OTA | Unknown | Tethered, OTA |
| Browser Engine | WebKit | Proprietary | WebKit | WebKit | WebKit | Internet Explorer |
| Tethering | Yes (unofficial) | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Stereo Bluetooth | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
This is where Apple really shines. While Windows Mobile and S60 have had thriving developer bases for a while, no one has brought applications and app development to the forefront like Apple. It goes without saying that the company has revolutionized the way devs do business, and torn down dozens of barriers to entry in the process. No single company has made it easier for developers to create work (and profit from it) on a mobile platform. The new version of the iPhone OS seems designed to stoke that system, introducing 1,000 new APIs and allowing developers to offer things like in-game commerce and peer-to-peer networking.
Of course, the system isn’t without its negatives, and Apple has endured more than its share of (deserved) critics of its opaque and sometimes unfair application approval process. While they say 96 percent of apps receive approval, we’re fairly confident what gets left on the cutting room floor is hurting end users. Just think, with its current policies, you’ll never see an Opera or Firefox browser for the device.
Regardless, other companies are currently playing catch up to Cupertino’s game, with all of the major OSs offering some version of an application store now or in the near future. To date, none have been remotely as successful as Apple’s outing, but none have the luxury of being tied to a pre-existing revenue stream like the iTunes Store — and with the exception of Android’s Market, they really haven’t had time to marinate with the public. Only time will tell if companies like Palm, Google, and (gasp) Microsoft will be able to turn on the fire hose of development and go toe-to-toe with Apple.
| Third-Party Development | Return to Top | |||||
|
Android Cupcake
|
BlackBerry OS 4.7
|
iPhone OS 3.0
|
S60 5th Edition
|
Palm WebOS
|
Windows Mobile 6.5
|
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SDK Availability / Support | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Official App Store | Yes | Coming | Yes | Coming | Yes | Yes |
| App Availability | Medium | Medium | High | Medium | Low | High |
| Native Applications | No | No | Yes | Yes | No | Yes |
| On-Device App Management | Excellent | Good | Excellent | Good | Excellent | Good |
Wrap up
Ultimately, there are loyalties and preferences that no chart can help you navigate. We won’t go as far as saying it’s a matter of choice — we believe that the newer, younger operating systems offer far more than the aging ones can at this point (unless you absolutely need something like BES). In particular, the improvements Apple’s made in its forthcoming update speak to many of the issues we’ve had since the platform’s launch in 2007, patching a slew of flaws in its mobile OS, and making the advantages of something like Android or webOS (what we know of it) a little less obvious. That said, you won’t find the open source freedom of the former, and there are a handful of innovations in the latter (yet to be roadtested, but extremely promising nonetheless). One thing is sure regardless of what side you throw your lot in with: the hype Apple created with its devices has spurred a space race in smartphones, and the end user is reaping the benefits.
 iPhone OS 3.0 hands-on |
 Microsoft announces Windows Mobile 6.5 |
 Palm Pre: official UI shots |
 Android Cupcake |
 BlackBerry OS 4.7 |
 S60 5th Edition |
With Apple’s influence hanging over the Mobile World Congress event this week, the Royal Bank of Canada has released a comprehensive comparison chart of eight contenders that threaten to steal some of the iPhone’s customers.
Though the firm still sees the iPhone as solidly superior to its competition, analyst Mike Abramsky told clients he’s still concerned about the risk posed to Apple with the crop of newcomers.
“Some — notably Google, Palm, Microsoft, HTC — appears to offer ‘good enough’ functional alternatives, including PC-like internet browsing, consumer UI/navigation, touch manipulation, messaging, applications/services, carrier functionality — with alternative hardware form factors (e.g. keyboards, sliders, etc) that may appeal to some potential iPhone customers,” he wrote.
Abramsky believes multiple launches on North American and European carriers, expected in the second half of this year, could force Apple’s hand on pricing and marketing as the newcomers compete for mindshare and carrier shelf space. The analyst said that any new iPhone models – referring to his research note from earlier this month – could enter a “more competitive landscape” than the previous versions of Apple’s popular smartphone.
“We see possible revaluation…on revised growth/margin expectations, lowered visibility, and renewed uncertainty re leadership,” he concluded.
Abramsky isn’t the first Wall Street analyst to suggest that Apple may alter its iPhone pricing structure when a third-generation model hits the market sometime this year. Earlier this month, both Kaufman Bros’ Shaw Wu and Bernstein’s Toni Sacconaghi issued similar comments. Wu cited sources who said Apple and AT&T were discussing the possibility of offering customers more data plan options, including some restrictive but more affordable plans, while Sacconaghi simply cited comments from a one-on-one meeting with Apple’s acting chief executive Tim Cook that suggest the company is looking into “different pricing/price points” for the hardware itself.
At the GSMA Mobile World Congress, Adobe announced Palm is joining the Open Screen Project - a broad industry initiative dedicated to enabling standalone applications and full web browsing across televisions, desktops and mobile devices taking advantage of Adobe Flash Platform capabilities.
The work of the Open Screen Project will help deliver Adobe Flash Player for smartphones on the new Palm webOS platform. The unique capabilities of the web-centric Palm webOS, combined with Flash Player, will enable webOS device users to benefit from the huge amount of Flash based web content for a richer, more complete Internet experience.
“We’re excited that our customers will benefit from the creativity and broad range of Flash content and applications created by the millions of designers and developers using Adobe’s popular tools and technologies,” said Pam Deziel, vice president, software product management, Palm, Inc.
“As an industry innovator Palm will be an important contributor to the Open Screen Project,” said Michele Turner, vice president for Product Marketing, Flash Platform Business Unit at Adobe. “We’re aiming to bring a rich, Flash technology-enabled browsing experience to Palm’s impressive web browser.”
Led by Adobe, the Open Screen Project includes industry leaders working together to provide a consistent runtime environment and user experience across mobile phones, desktops, and other consumer electronics devices. The initiative addresses the challenges of web browsing on a broad range of devices, and removes the barriers to publishing content and applications seamlessly across screens. For more information, visit www.openscreenproject.org.
Flash Player for smartphones is expected to be available to handset manufacturers at the end of 2009. The Palm webOS platform, designed exclusively for mobile use, introduces Palm Synergy, which brings your information from the many places it resides into one simple, integrated view. webOS also lets you keep multiple applications open and instantly flip from one to another, so you can flow easily between activities without losing your place. It’s designed to be so in sync with your needs that it feels like it’s thinking ahead for you.
(via iClaified.com)
Image via HowStuffWorks.com
Apple last week was awarded a monstrous 358-page patent covering the touch screen, graphical user interface, and methods that combine to define the iPhone user experience.
Dating back to September of 2007 and granted last Tuesday, U.S. Patent No. 7479949 lists many inventors; notably, Apple co-founder and chief executive Steve Jobs, iPhone software director Scott Forstall, and FingerWorks co-founder Wayne Westerman. (FingerWorks was responsible for gadgets with an opaque surface that could respond to gesture controls before being acquired by Apple to aid its multi-touch efforts several years ago.)
The filing is essentially a summary and overview of all the technologies that come together in the iPhone. In the patent, Apple claims coverage for the device itself, the way gestures like pinches and zooms are detected, and the software the device runs. Also mentioned are many other different details and aspects of the multi-touch user interface, such as a finger swipe, a two-thumb twist, and a method of determining which object was intended when a touch seems to cover both.
Apple interim chief executive Tim Cook recently promised to aggressively pursue any company or person who “rips off” Apple’s intellectual property, and this patent affords the Cupertino-based iPhone maker the footing it would need to mount any such defense.
In detail
In setting a tone for the filing, Apple described how portable phones received more and more pushbuttons to control new features, but the inability to adapt the input methods to match the application running is a problem. Thus, a touchscreen device is a better choice; however, gestures can be difficult to interpret or translate into the commands the user actually wants the device to perform.
“Accordingly, there is a need for touch-screen-display electronic devices with more transparent and intuitive user interfaces,” the filing reads. These improved devices can take input and interpret it as “precise, intended commands that are easy to use, configure, and/or adapt. Such interfaces increase the effectiveness, efficiency and user satisfaction with portable multifunction devices.”
Future features?
There are also some interesting aspects of the filing that may hint at future plans for the iPhone and iPod, such as “a blogging application” and “a digital video camera application” — both of which have been mentioned in previous coverage of the patent. Similarly, voice-activated dialing could someday be a feature, as the document refers to audio circuitry that “converts the electrical signal [from human sound waves] to audio data and transmits the audio data to the peripherals interface for processing.”
Apple mentions a touchpad for activating or deactivating functions. The patent describes it as a “touch-sensitive area of the device that, unlike the touch screen, does not display visual output. The touchpad may be a touch-sensitive surface that is separate from the touch screen or an extension of the touch-sensitive surface formed by the touch screen.”
Interestingly, this is a feature Palm is already touting about its upcoming Pre handset. According to Palm’s press release: “[The Pre has a] gesture area, which enables simple, intuitive gestures for navigation.” The gesture area is separate from the touch screen.
Final Observations
Along with covering the iPhone, the patent filing is notable for referencing 40 other existing patents, and for naming Jobs first among its inventors. Its granted status was first reported Monday by WorldOfApple.
(via AppleInsider.com)
