The secret to Palm Pre dev mode lies in the Konami code

by Ross Miller

We couldn't believe it either, but as it turns out, from the launcher screen of your Pre, simply type in the phrase "upupdowndownleftrightleftrightbastart" -- which if you parse with spacing might be more easily recognizable as the infamous Contra / Konami code (look it up) -- and up comes a hidden app called "Developer Mode Enabler." Looks like it was discovered via the leaked ROM from earlier this evening. It's apparently used to connect a Pre to a machine running Palm's Mojo SDK for webOS, and we have confirmed its legitimacy. In fact, if you want proof and you don't have a Pre of your own, head on after the break for a video we put together, just for you.

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in!]

Mossberg Confirms, New iPhone Coming Next Week

Reading Walt Mossberg's review of the Palm Pre is amusing, because Mossberg obviously has the next iPhone and can't talk about it. Read between the lines: He's straining to compare the Pre to the un-announced iPhone on his desk. He wants to do it so badly. But he can't, because that would steal Apple's thunder.

When you're suffering from a case of NDA-itis that badly, it's no surprise when things slip out around the edges. In this case, Mossberg confirmed that Apple will indeed release an iPhone next week. And did I mention that he probably has it?

"I'd note that the new iPhone to be unveiled next week will have lots of added features that could alter those calculations," he writes.

Wording is important here. He couches many of his other iPhone predictions in "I expect" or "rumor" language: "I expect to see an iPhone with up to 32 gigabytes of memory, video recording, a higher-resolution camera, a compass, and greater operating speed. Plus, there are persistent rumors that Apple will announce at least one iPhone at a drastically lower price than $199."

But the first sentence is declarative, definitive: that new iPhone is to be unveiled next week. Not "expected to" or "rumored to." We'll be there at the WWDC on Monday morning at 10 AM PT, and we'll be liveblogging.

Palm unveils beautiful new ad for Palm Pre titled "Flow"

facebook.com — The device drops on June 6, but this ad is pretty breathtaking. "It was inspired by the phone's ability to let you effortlessly flow among all your life's diverse dimensions."

Palm Pre review

by Joshua Topolsky

The Palm Pre. It's not just a phone, it's a myth, an idea, possibly a legacy... and a really, really long time coming. It's almost impossible to believe, but the crew at Engadget has been talking about a Linux-based Palm phone since way back in 2004. Through the now-distant years that followed, we were speculating, pontificating, and wishfully-thinking about a new device from a company that we'd come to expect innovation from. But we waited. And waited. And waited. We waited so long, in fact, that we actually penned a lengthy open letter to Palm, pleading for the company to get back on its game. Only when the picture looked really, truly bleak for the folks in Sunnyvale (you know, like $2 a share bleak) did we actually see a spark of hope -- two sparks, in fact -- called the Pre and webOS.

Yes, this is epic stuff. The Pre (and its accompanying operating system) could likely decide the fate of the company largely credited with ushering in the age of the do-everything phone. Since Palm's announcement at CES this year, news surrounding the Pre has been a veritable whirlwind of activity: rumors, half-truths, hate, love, fear-mongering, fanboyism, rampant gadget-lust... and even a little late night celebrity for the pint-sized phone. Finally the time has come to put rubber to road and get into the guts of this thing once and for all. Can the Pre and webOS live up to the hype -- the kind of hype we haven't seen since the launch of the original iPhone -- or do they snap under the pressure? Read on for the full review.

Part 1: Hardware, webOS / user interface
Part 2: Synergy, phone, media, applications
Part 3: Data speeds, backup, battery, Bluetooth, pricing, wrap-up

Verizon Wireless to carry Palm Pre, Storm 2 "in about six months"

by Darren Murph

Think you'll have to wait until June 6th for all the Pre surprises to emerge? Think again. A breaking Reuters report has just dropped one of the biggest cellular bombshells of the year: Verizon Wireless, America's largest mobile operator, will soon be carrying Palm's Pre. Oh, that's not enough? No worries -- it'll also be selling a "new version of the touchscreen BlackBerry Storm," which is obviously the Storm 2 that we've been toying around with. The report makes clear that both phones would be cleared for shipment in around six months, which certainly jibes with whispers we've heard about Sprint's mighty short exclusivity period. The news came from the company's Lowell McAdam, the top executive for the venture of Verizon Communications and Vodafone. To quote: "Over the next six months or so you will see devices like Palm Pre and a second generation Storm." First Sprint, then AT&T, and now Verizon? T-Mobile, where you at?