It looks super smooth even on an underpowered device like the Centro, and is not only pretty but functional as well. WebOS’s cards and launcher are replicated really nicely, which breathes so much life back into the Centro it might as well be a whole new phone.

TealOS is available here for $US14.95, and looks absolutely worth it. What do you think, Centro owners? [Engadget]

It goes along with what Sascha at PCMag (who would only print reliable tips) has heard: Not only will the WebOS be on lotsa Palm devices in as many form factors as colours of the rainbow, but the next WebOS may be “a lower-cost, candybar-style phone without a QWERTY keyboard.”

So even if the next WebOS phone from Palm isn’t called the Centro 2, between the two rumours, it looks likely it’ll be a cheaper model. And why not? The Palm Centro sold like bottled water in hell, despite running a dated-as-balls OS. Okay, cannibalisation—why buy the $US199 (hopefully) model model when there’s a $US149 or even $US99 model hanging around?

But given Palm’s present position, grabbing as much marketshare with its OS as fast as possible should be (and is) its top priority, and having a less fancy phone at an easy-to-swallow price is the best way to do that. It just needs to look sexy and be cheap, whatever it’s called—though Centro 2 in all its unimagination does sound a lot less stupid than Pre, so maybe Palm should stick with that. [PalmInfo via BGR, from whom I also cribbed the image]

Palm Announces Unlocked Centro Smartphone and Google Maps with My Location

SUNNYVALE, Calif., June 23, 2008 – Palm, Inc. (Nasdaq: PALM) today announced that the popular Palm® Centro™ smartphone is now available unlocked for U.S. customers. Now offered on Sprint, AT&T and Verizon Wireless – the nation’s three largest carriers – and in an unlocked GSM version, Centro gives U.S. customers the ability to choose the mobile phone that’s right for them.(1) Palm also announced that Google™ Maps for mobile with My Location on Centro is available for Centro starting tomorrow, giving customers faster access to local maps and driving directions.(2)

The unlocked Palm Centro retains the smartphone’s compact, modern design and is dressed in a new white colour with grey accents. Centro offers customers more choices to stay in touch with friends, family and co-workers by using voice, text messaging, email or the web. Also available in 25 countries worldwide, Centro is Palm’s smallest and lightest smartphone to date.

Google Maps for mobile with My Location makes it easier and faster for Centro customers to get mapping and direction information by approximating the user’s current location on the map. This saves time and keystrokes for people trying to find where they are, what’s around them, and how to get there.

In addition to My Location, Google Maps offers:

·Comprehensive information on traffic conditions in more than 30 U.S. major metropolitan areas, and partial information in many others;

·Detailed driving directions with traffic estimates to avoid congestions;

·One-touch recall of favourite locations and routes;

·Integrated search results for business locations, including directions and contact information;

·Ability to scan and drag maps using Centro’s touch screen for a PC-like experience; and

·Satellite and aerial views.

Pricing and Availability

The unlocked Centro smartphone is available online at http://www.palm.com/centro for $299.

Google Maps for mobile with My Location will be available tomorrow free of charge for Palm Centro smartphones at http://www.google.com/gmm. Please check the site for details on the download process and carrier availability.

About Palm, Inc.

Palm, Inc. is a global leader and innovator of easy-to-use mobile products that simplify people’s lives and help them stay connected on the go. The company offers a range of products — including Palm® Treo™ and Centro™ smartphones, Palm handhelds, services and accessories — to meet the needs of consumers, mobile professionals and businesses.

Palm products are sold through select Internet, retail, reseller and wireless operator channels throughout the world, and at Palm online stores (http://www.palm.com/store).

More information about Palm, Inc. is available at http://www.palm.com.

[Palm]

That should give its march past a million sold new juice, even if your friends have already been playing with it for a few months. It’s the first Palm on Verizon’s US$30 a month Smartphone plan, and runs on their 3G EV-DO network. The US$99 price is obviously w/ two-year contract and after US$70 mail-rebate (don’t forget to send it in!).

PALM CENTRO NOW AVAILABLE ON THE VERIZON WIRELESS NETWORK

Centro Debut on the Nation’s Most Reliable Wireless Network Offers Customers a High-Speed Communications Device with Compact Form Factor, Easy Touch-Screen and Full QWERTY Keyboard

BASKING RIDGE, N.J, and SUNNYVALE, Calif. – Verizon Wireless, builder and operator of the nation’s most reliable wireless network, and Palm, Inc. (Nasdaq: PALM), today announced that the Palm® Centro™ smartphone will be available online at www.verizonwireless.com and in Verizon Wireless Communications Stores beginning June 13. Dressed in a crisp cobalt blue, the Centro provides customers with the perfect tool to manage the busiest of lifestyles with voice, text messaging, e-mail and the Web.
Centro runs on Verizon Wireless’ high-speed data network, which gives customers the ability to quickly send and receive e-mail messages and attachments and browse rich Web content. Verizon Wireless customers can also use the Centro as a modem for their laptops when they subscribe to Verizon Wireless’ BroadbandAccess Connect service plan. The handset sports a vibrant colour touch-screen, full QWERTY keyboard and a lightweight design.

Centro’s built-in Google Maps™ application delivers quick, reliable directions and lets users perform local searches and view moveable/scalable maps, satellite imagery and traffic updates. Customers can also map a contact’s address directly from the contact application simply by selecting the “maps” button.
Customers using the stylish Centro will get access to VersaMail® 4.0 with built-in Microsoft Exchange ActiveSync® support for Microsoft Direct Push Technology to deliver e-mail and calendar updates from a home or office PC using Outlook® directly to their handsets. Centro users also have the option of using Wireless Sync, Verizon Wireless’ proprietary e-mail solution, for quick and easy access to personal or corporate e-mail, contacts, calendar and tasks from their home or office PC. Wireless Sync supports POP3 or IMAP e-mail accounts and it supports Microsoft Exchange, IBM Lotus Notes® and IBM Lotus Domino®.
The Palm Centro also includes the following features and capabilities:
• Text, picture and video messaging (text messages are presented to customers in a “chat-style” view so customers can see their entire conversation unfold)
• Superior phone functionality, including one-touch speakerphone and conference calling, the ability to respond to a call with text messaging, and the option to use the touch-screen dial pad
• Smart, fast Web browsing using the award-winning Blazer browser
• 2x digital zoom camera with video capture
• Media player with Pocket Tunes™ Deluxe (PlaysForSure-compatible)
• Bluetooth® v. 1.2 with support for hands-free car kits and headset profiles
• 64 MB available user storage and microSD™ memory card slot with support up to 4 GB
• User-friendly, familiar Palm OS® 5.4.9, including one-touch access to key applications
• Small, sleek form factor: 2.1″ (l) x 4.2″ (w) x 0.7″ (d)
• 4.2 ounces with battery
• 320 x 320 pixel colour touch-screen and full QWERTY keyboard for easier e-mail, messaging and Web use

Pricing and Availability
The Palm Centro smartphone will be available online at www.verizonwireless.com and in Verizon Wireless Communications Stores, including those in Circuit City, for $99.99 after a $70 mail-in rebate with a new two-year customer agreement. Customers may want to pair their Centro voice plan with Verizon Wireless’ E-mail and Web for Smartphone service for $29.99. This is an unlimited monthly data plan for Web browsing and e-mail support for up to eight personal e-mail accounts. To tether the Centro to a laptop with a USB cable, customers may opt to include a BroadbandAccess Connect plan in their service package for $30.
For more information about Verizon Wireless products and services, visit a Verizon Wireless Communications Store, call 1-800-2 JOIN IN or go to www.verizonwireless.com. Business customers may call 1-800-VZW-4BIZ or contact their Verizon Wireless Business Sales Representative.

[Verizon Wireless]

So, basically take the current Palm OS, add a dash of web 2.0 internet and you’ve got Palm 2.0. I don’t even have a serious affinity for Palm, but man I hope Ed here is just a master of understatement. Because fundamentally, I like writing about companies and people beating back the odds and the weight of history, not relics. [APC]

So hit the jump for our Frankenreview on the Palm Centro—seven takes that will let you know the whole story.

Computerworld
Palm appears to have carefully thought through the size of the device. For instance, it was just small enough to stow comfortably in a jeans pocket. And it is just barely large enough to have a full QWERTY keyboard.

Treonauts
Again, the touchscreen is smaller in size but luckily Palm kept a high resolution 320×320 display. I didn’t have any problems at all viewing all sorts of information on this screen but admittedly the smaller size does make it just a bit harder to reach some buttons or menus with your fingers…

Gizmodo
Like Brian said, that keyboard is seriously tiny. It’s much easier to use the screen to type in phone numbers, for instance, and in general, it’s significantly more cramped than a Treo.

Slashgear
…it uses the smaller jack, for which I don’t have an adapter or any headphones that fit, but the quality, and volume of the built in speaker more than makes up for it, it really is amazing. I could literally hear music from 2 rooms away after I turned the volume up to max, and it was still understandable; there was some crackle in the highs when I cranked it up, but other than that, it sounded great.

CNET
Despite the smaller size, the Palm Centro still manages to pack in all of the features of the Palm Treo 755p and then some…Of course, you get the standard personal information management tools…the Centro isn’t just an electronic organiser, though, as the smartphone comes preloaded with Documents to Go (version 10), so you can open, create, and edit Microsoft Word and Excel documents, and view PowerPoint presentations and PDFs.

PCAdvisor
Web browsing in the US with the Palm Centro’s Blazer browser over Sprint’s EvDO network was a sheer delight…Email setup went smoothly…[and] the Palm Centro supports concurrent instant messaging sessions with the three supported IM services…

InfoSyncWorld
So, why would anyone still buy a Treo? Palm reps claimed business users would be enticed by the larger keypad and screen, though the Centro does have the same 320 by 320 resolution as our larger Treo. Any other differences? None that Palm reps could name, at least none in favor of the Treo.
Final thoughts: The Palm Centro had a very positive response from reviewers. But it’s getting obvious that smartphones, and maybe Palm’s especially, just aren’t achieving that “wow” factor of old. Even with some of the new features, many reviews read more like impressions. Because the biggest updates most users will notice are the price and the form.