The First Palm Pre Reviews Are In

The Palm Pre hits stores this weekend, and the first reviews of Palm's much-hyped smartphone have hit the Web. So, is the Pre the newest must-have device, or is it a simply another in a string of failed iPhone wannabes?

Reaction to the new phone is, for the most part, positive. Here's what some of the early reviewers had to say.

The Wall Street Journal

Walter Mossberg says, "It's a beautiful, innovative and versatile hand-held computer that's fully in the iPhone's class. … I consider the Pre to be potentially the strongest rival to the iPhone to date, provided it attracts lots of third-party apps, which it sorely lacks at launch. Its design is much better than that of the two other main iPhone-class competitors: the T-Mobile G1, which uses Android, and RIM's touch-screen BlackBerry Storm."

Mossberg says the Pre's biggest weakness is its App Catalog, Palm's version of the App Store, which remains in beta, and contains only a handful of apps.

Remember, though, that the Android Market launched with just about 40 titles in it, and now has thousands available. Palm seems to running behind on the App Catalog, but if the company can catch up, it sounds like the Pre has plenty of potential.

The New York Times

David Pogue calls the Pre "an elegant, joyous, multitouch smartphone; it's the iPhone remixed."

He praises the phone's feature list, which includes Wi-Fi, GPS, 3G support, a 3.2-megapixel camera, and a 3.1-inch touch screen, its hardware and software, and how well everything works together.

Pogue's biggest complaint about the Pre? Its battery life. "Depending on how heavily I used the thing, the battery was dead either by late afternoon or by dinnertime. Yikes."

USA Today

Edward Baig says the Pre "stacks up well against Apple's blockbuster device, and in some ways even surpasses it." He goes on to say the "Pre is easy on the eyes. I can't think of a more comfortable cellphone in my hand."

Baig noted that the WebOS seemed buggy and sluggish at times, and, like the WSJ's Mossberg, wished the phone had a greater selection of third-party apps available at launch.

The Associated Press

The AP's Peter Svensson has high praise for the new Pre: "Move over, iPhone. You've had two years on top of the smart phone world. Now there's a touch-screen phone with better software: the Palm Pre. In a remarkable achievement, Palm Inc., a company that was something of a has-been, has come up with a phone operating system that is more powerful, elegant and user-friendly."

He isn't as impressed with its hardware, noting that the 3.1-inch screen is noticeably smaller than the 3.5-inch display of an iPhone. He's also bothered by poor battery life and, like other reviewers, laments the lack of apps available for the phone at launch.

Despite their complaints, most reviewers are markedly impressed by the Palm Pre. Now, we'll have to see if shoppers are, too.

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