The diminutive, glossy black, rectangular design of the Palm phone looks like a shrunken iPhone. Palm has opened pre-orders for an unlocked version of the minuscule Android device that will work as a stand-alone phone on most major US carriers, including AT&T, T-Mobile and the prepaid Metro brand. No, there’s no mention of Sprint, the home of the original Palm Pre won’t get this device a decade later.
It was initially meant as a “secondary” phone for times when you didn’t want to lug around a full device, and its 3.2-inch display, Snapdragon 435 chip, limited cameras and shorter battery life reflect that. As an independent device, it’s really meant for those who hate ever-growing phone screens or prefer something that can do slightly more than the basics.
An unlocked model will cost you $350, with pre-orders expected to ship six to eight weeks.
Next up for Palm is figuring out how to balance the need for some users to have the device as a companion and others to use it as their primary phone. “As a daily driver, it needs to do a few more things,” Miloseski said. “As a companion, it needs to maintain mobility, keeping a similar footprint.”
The company “is not on a fixed schedule” to introduce a second device, but it has new hardware in the works. Camera and battery life remain key focuses, the co-founders said, as does maintaining their initial impetus: helping people look up from their screens more often.
“We are working on other devices,” Nuk said. “We do believe small is the future. Voice is the future.”
