SMARTPHONE BATTLE: PALM PRE PLUS VS GOOGLE NEXUS ONE

Verizon Wireless has made good on its promise to sell the first webOS device and is currently selling the Palm Pre Plus. This handset offers several improvements over its predecessor but can it compete with the latest batch of smartphones like the Nexus One? The Google Nexus One is one of the new smartphones for 2010 and comes with plenty of features and hype but can it overcome a tested device like the webOS-powered Pre Plus? Let's compare the specs, features and capabilities of these smartphones to find out.

Design/Form Factor:

The Palm Pre Plus looks largely the same as its Sprint counterpart except for a few noticeable changes. For instance, the absence of the "home" button from the front and the modifications made to its keyboard for better user experience (the keys are a bit clickier and less gel-like). The Nexus One sports a thin bar-style design with a large touchscreen and minimal physical buttons. The Nexus One has a sexier design with a very large display but the Pre Plus also scores some points with its improved slide-out keyboard.

Touchscreen/Display

The Prer Plus retains the original touchscreen offered by its predecessor. The device sports a 3.1-inch 24-bit color touch screen display with 320 x 480 px resolution, accelerometer, proximity sensor, ambient light sensor and more than 16 million colors. However, the Nexus One comes with a larger display and better resolution with its 3.7-inch (diagonal)widescreen with 800 x 480 pixels, 100,000:1 typical contrast ratio and 1ms typical response rate.

User Interface/OS

The enhancements on the Palm Pre Plus were not limited to improvements in hardware. this Verizon smartphone also comes with the latest software WebOS 1.3, which offers the addition of Yahoo services, like contact and calendar syncing, and Yahoo IM messenger. Pre Plus users can also upgrade to webOS 1.4 (with video capture, improvements in WebOS performance and in battery life) when it becomes available. Like its webOS rival, the Nexus One also comes with the latest software version, Android 2.1. This version provides Live Wallpapers (a Palm WebOS-like Deck of Cards feature), more home screen panes, and additional 3D items in the app tray. It also includes new API changes and bug fixes.

Camera

Unfortunately, the enhancements on the Pre Plus did not include a more powerful camera. The webOS smartphone still offers a 3.2-megapixel camera with an LED flash that takes detailed pictures especially on the phone's high-resolution screen. However, the Nexus One comes with a more powerful 5 megapixel shooter with auto-focus from 6cm to infinity, 2X digital zoom, LED flash, and video capture at 720x480 pixels at 20 frames per second or higher.

Price:

Verizon subscribers can purchase the Palm Pre Plus for $149.99 after a $100 mail in rebate and a two year agreement. On the other hand, the Nexus One for $179 with two year contract or buy it through a Google hosted web store without service ($529 unlocked) or with service through a partner (cost will be discounted).

Apps Store

The Palm App Catalog has come a long way since the Sprint Pre was introduced. The webOS app market is now offering more than 1,000 apps and has achieved more than 2 million downloads. However, the Android market has a long head-start with over 20, 000 applications available for download.

Memory/Expansion

The Palm Pre Plus comes with an improved 16 GB storage memory (8 GB on the original Pre). On the other hand, the Nexus One comes with 4GB microSD card and can be expanded up to 32GB via microSD/microSDHC memory slot card slot.

Battery Life

The Pre Plus offered pretty much the same battery life than its predecessor with up to 5 hours of 3G talk time and 300 hrs standby. On the other hand, the Nexus One is equipped with a removable 1400 mAH battery that charges at 480mA from a USB charger and at 980mA from supplied charger. It has an estimated talk time of up to 10 hours on 2G and up to 7 hours on 3G.

Conclusion

The Nexus One and Palm Pre Plus are by no means perfect devices. Numerous Nexus One owners have complained of issues and the Palm Pre Plus still suffers from many of the issues found on its predecessor. However, there's no denying that these devices belong on the smartphone elite. The Nexus One offers impressive hardware and software while the Palm Pre Plus runs on the very promising webOS platform and purchasing either one of these handsets will not be a disappointment.