Palm Pixi

Palm Pixi. It was a smartphone developed by Palm, Inc. and released in late 2009 as a more compact and affordable companion to the flagship Palm Pre. Designed to run the innovative webOS platform, it targeted a younger demographic and aimed to expand the reach of Palm's ecosystem against competitors like the Apple iPhone and devices running Google's Android.

Overview

The device was announced in September 2009 as the second phone to feature the webOS operating system, following the Palm Pre. It was initially launched as an exclusive with Sprint in the United States, with a subsequent release on Verizon Wireless in early 2010. The Pixi was positioned as a "social smartphone," emphasizing integration with services like Facebook, Google Talk, and Yahoo! Messenger directly into its core messaging and contacts applications. Its design and marketing focused on personalization, offering interchangeable back covers, a strategy reminiscent of earlier devices like the Motorola RAZR.

Hardware

The Pixi featured a compact candybar form factor with a full QWERTY keyboard, distinguishing it from the sliding mechanism of the Palm Pre. Its construction utilized a plastic body and a 2.63-inch TFT LCD capacitive touchscreen with a resolution of 320x400 pixels. Powering the device was a single-core Qualcomm MSM7627 processor clocked at 600 MHz, supported by 256 MB of RAM and 8 GB of internal storage with no expansion slot. It included a basic 2.0-megapixel fixed-focus camera without a LED flash and supported connectivity through Wi-Fi (802.11b/g), Bluetooth 2.1, and GPS. The battery was a non-removable 1150 mAh unit.

Software

The phone launched with webOS 1.2.5, inheriting the platform's hallmark features like true multitasking via its card-based interface and seamless OTA updates. Key applications included the Synergy framework, which blended contacts and messages from multiple accounts, and the universal search feature dubbed "Just Type." It had access to the nascent App Catalog, Palm's application store, though its library was limited compared to the App Store or Google Play. Later, it received an update to webOS 1.4, which brought performance improvements and support for Adobe Flash in the browser, a feature heavily promoted against the Apple iPhone.

Reception

Critical reception was mixed, with praise directed at its comfortable keyboard, sleek design, and the intuitive nature of webOS. Reviewers from publications like CNET and Engadget noted its value as an entry-level smartphone. However, widespread criticism focused on its underpowered hardware, particularly the slow processor and limited RAM, which led to noticeable lag and hampered the multitasking experience. The low-resolution camera and absence of features like 3G data on the Verizon Wireless CDMA version were also noted drawbacks. Its market performance was overshadowed by the rapid ascent of Android devices and the enduring popularity of the Apple iPhone.

Variants

A slightly enhanced model, the **Palm Pixi Plus**, was introduced in 2010, adding support for Wi-Fi 802.11n and, crucially, enabling 3G data connectivity on the GSM network for use with carriers like AT&T in the United States and O2 in the United Kingdom. Both the original Pixi and Pixi Plus were also offered by regional carriers such as Bell Canada and Telus. No other major hardware revisions were produced, as Palm, Inc. was acquired by HP in 2010, which eventually discontinued the webOS hardware line.

Category:Mobile phones introduced in 2009 Category:Palm, Inc. devices Category:WebOS devices