Help please. Palm Pre or iPhone 3GS?

[Huggles]

I'm thinking of changing my phone but can't decide whether to go for the Palm Pre or the iPhone 3GS. My DB has an iPhone and loves it but he's a Mac addict so that might have swayed his judgement.

So, who has what and how do you like it?

I have an iPod already so maybe don't need the extra memory provided by the iPhone, but it might be handy to have. The Palm Pre has a removable battery but would I use the iPhone enough to exhaust it and require a replacement?

Palm Pre warranty is 2 years but iPhone only 12 months despite an 18 month/ 2 year contract.

I cannot cope with choice. Please help!

 

[Boo'sMom]

my 18yo DS has the Palm Pre and he LOVES it. He prefers the Palm OS

 

[Pakey]

I have an iphone and love it so much that if the house were burning down and I could only save my husband or my phone, I'd be hoping that my husband can get himself out of there.

 

[ChrisFL]

I don't think the Palm Pre has done so well in the market, it seems as soon as it was release you stopped hearing about it.

Now the Google phones like the Droid and the Nexus One are able to compete with the Iphone, and that will be great for both companies...

Of the two that you said, definitely Iphone, I can't go anywhere without mine!

 

[padams]

I saw Palm on several year end lists of businesses expected to go under in 2010. Palm has struggled during the last few years. I'd go with the iphone. Apple will still be in business next year.

 

[FireDancer]

I would vote other...Android. Any phone that either has 2.0 (Eclair) or can be upgraded to it.

 

[Huggles]

I hadn't thought about the prospect of maybe something happening with Palm but, as you say, Apple will always be there. Also I was thinking that if I get stuck with something then DB could always help out.

Did I say I hate decisions?

Any further insight?

 

[Mickey's Minion]

I HATE my Pre.

Hate it, hate it, hate it.

I despise it. I have had a cell phone since they were the size of bricks and have never, EVER had as many problems as I have had with the pre. I completely and totally despise it.

Is there a stronger word? Am I clear on what I think of the Pre?

It is so moisture sensitive that if it is in your pocket while working out, the humidity of the sweat will cause it to malfunction. It randomly just stops working.

The Pre has only been out for 7 months and I have already had it replaced four times.

I HATE it.

And Sprint knows it is a piece of junk. You walk in with it, the technician can't turn it on as usual, and they just replace it. No sending it off, no activating the insurance on it, they just replace it.

I am also very tech savvy, so know all the tricks to it, but it still a piece of junk.

My daughter has an android phone and it is fantastic.

 

[wenrob]

I have an iphone and love it so much that if the house were burning down and I could only save my husband or my phone, I'd be hoping that my husband can get himself out of there.

What she said! I *big fluffy pink heart* my iphone. I don't have any clue about the Palm but I'd buy another iphone in a heartbeat if something happened to it.

 

[monkeybug]

I vote Iphone!! I love mine! Couldn't live with out my apps!!!!

Smart money just did a 10 things not to buy in 2010
http://www.smartmoney.com/Spending/Budgeting/10-Things-Not-to-Buy-in-2010/

#4 on the list is blackberry and Iphone competitors (palm pre is one of the phones listed in the article version) Their reason? Iphone and Blackberry have the majority of the smart phone market share, so those are the phones that companies design their apps to work for.

It's all about the apps!!!

 

[FireDancer]

I vote Iphone!! I love mine! Couldn't live with out my apps!!!!

Smart money just did a 10 things not to buy in 2010
http://www.smartmoney.com/Spending/Budgeting/10-Things-Not-to-Buy-in-2010/

#4 on the list is blackberry and Iphone competitors (palm pre is one of the phones listed in the article version) Their reason? Iphone and Blackberry have the majority of the smart phone market share, so those are the phones that companies design their apps to work for.

It's all about the apps!!!

That isn't really true. Symbian not only has a larger worldwide marketshare than iPhone and Blackberry combined but more than half of the smart phones in the world run the OS*. Their share is coming down but it won't be surpassed by either anytime soon.

More and more apps will become OS agnostic as mobile browsers mature. More open platforms will also allow anyone to vette their own apps. Unfortunately Apple tells you what apps you can put on your phone. More open platforms let you decide and don't block perfectly good apps merely because they "duplicate the function of iTunes".

There is nothing wrong with the Apple model if you don't care about openness but if you do there are better options. Everyone has their own criteria in purchasing anything and my biggest criteria for a smartphone is the control I have over the device.


* This is an often changing number and some have the Symbian % below 50% but it is hovering pretty close

 

[Mickeyluver37]

I have an iphone and love it so much that if the house were burning down and I could only save my husband or my phone, I'd be hoping that my husband can get himself out of there.

That's so funny...I love mine so much I tell everyone it's like my 4th child. I don't feel comfortable leaving the house without it, and most nights, I take it to bed with me...no joke!

OP, I think there's not much of a comparison. My friend has the Palm Pre, and it's just a phone. The Apps are what make the iPhone. And this is coming from someone who has never owned and ipod or Mac. I don't have a single song on my phone- it's not about the music for me!

 

[HonnyDipp]

I had a Palm Pre for 2 years. I HATED IT!!! So if I had to choose, it would be (hands down) the iPhone!

 

[Mickey's Minion]

I had a Palm Pre for 2 years. I HATED IT!!! So if I had to choose, it would be (hands down) the iPhone!

The Pre was just released June 6th, 2009, so hasn't even been out for 1 year, let alone 2. Perhaps you had a different Palm?

 

[Zion21]

Definitly go with the iPhone or even an Android device. These are the two biggest names on the phone market right now and both have a giant application market! Be wary of the data costs though, they can get pretty expensive!

 

[dislaney]

No experience with the Pre but I do love my iphone.

 

[HonnyDipp]

The Pre was just released June 6th, 2009, so hasn't even been out for 1 year, let alone 2. Perhaps you had a different Palm?

Yeah, must have been. But still, my vote is for the iPhone!

 

[suzanna1066@comcast.]

iPhone no question. There are over 100,000 apps for the iPhone with new ones added every day. I was an iPhone critic until I crossed over to the dark side this year and happily ate crow.

The iPhone is hands down, without a doubt, the best mobile device EVER. My husband calls his iPhone "My Precious" in his best creepy Golem voice.

 

[lemondog]

My hubby just got rid of his piece of junk Palm and went with the iPhone. He likes the iPhone about a gazillion times better. The Palm was just a piece of junk...the buttons would stick, they would lead to the wrong pages...the thing was practically falling apart when he traded it in.

Neither of us can imagine life without our iPhones anymore!

 

[Huggles]

Thank you, everyone, for your insight. I think I might well go for the iPhone. What about the battery life? I know it's completely different, but my iPod battery seemed to give up the ghost fairly quickly. I presume I won't have to send it away for a new battery before my 2 year contract is expired?

Sorry to keep asking questions, but I know you have all had much more experience of Smart phones than I.