Palm Pre: Premiere - GPS and Multimedia Features

Another useful tool on the Palm Pre is its built-in GPS feature. If you have the Everything Data Plan from Sprint, you can use Sprint Navigation at no extra cost to provide precise turn-by-turn directions while driving. Google Maps also comes loaded on the Pre to provide you with real-time geographical data. This is a vital feature to have if you travel a lot or happen to find yourself in a not-so-familiar place from time to time.

Users big on multimedia will be pleased with what the Palm Pre offers in that regard, independent of storage space. You can drag and drop files from your computer to load your media to your Palm Pre via USB card; the Pre also works with iTunes as well.

One problem with the Pre is its lack of storage space (only 8GB) and there is no microSD expansion slot to add memory, so multimedia nuts will have to be selective in what they load onto their Pre.

The built-in media player on the Pre supports the most popular audio formats, such as MP3, WAV, AAC, AAC+, and AMR, and video formats such as MPEG-4, H263, and H264. If you choose to buy media online, you can do so from the Amazon MP3 store, which will download the songs to your phone in seconds. Streaming media options on the Palm Pre come available via Sprint Radio and Sprint TV, which allows you to watch programs from Comedy Central, CNN, as well as other stations. You can also view YouTube videos on the Pre.  

For all those can't-miss Kodak moments, the Palm Pre comes equipped with a built-in 3-megapixel camera. The camera on the Pre seems a bit rudimentary when compared to competitors, as it lacks any real effects or options to toggle resolution or image sizes for photos, except for Flash. Video recording is absent as well on the Pre. You can share your photos taken on the Pre with others via email or messaging, as well as upload them to social networking sites like Facebook.  

In terms of sheer volume, the Palm Pre is lacking in terms of its applications currently available. This is one area where the iPhone leaves the Pre in the dust. The selection of apps currently available for the Palm Pre is small, but the ones that are available work well.

You can download the apps to your Pre quickly via the Sprint 3G network. Some of the more basic apps that come already loaded on the Palm Pre are the DataViz DocView which is useful for viewing Microsoft Office documents, a PDF viewer, Google Maps, YouTube viewer, Sprint TV, clock, calculator, notepad, and a task list.  

Stay tuned for part two of the Palm Pre from Sprint review, where its multitasking power, design, and performance will be discussed.