While this isn’t exactly news to anyone that follows the mobile industry, Palm announced today what has been known for some time — Verizon will be receiving PalmOS devices this year. Starting January 25, Verizon will begin offering the Palm Pre Plus and the Palm Pixi Plus.
The added “Plus” comes from the fact that the Pre Plus now features 16GB of internal memory (up from 8GB on the original model; 15GB of which is user accessible) and a Palm Touchstone battery cover which was previously an optional accessory. The Palm Pixi Plus on the other hand, bring Wi-Fi to the table — a feature that wasn’t available on the original Palm Pixi.
“The Palm experience is all about helping our customers stay connected so they never miss a thing,” said Palm CEO Jon Rubinstein. “We’re constantly enriching this experience with new features and innovations. The Verizon Wireless launch of Pre Plus and Pixi Plus is the next phase in delivering this unique Palm experience to more people.”
Another new addition offered up by Palm today is the new Palm Mobile Hotspot webOS app. The app, which is available from the Palm App Catalog, allows Verizon customers to share their 3G connection with up to five other Wi-Fi enabled devices.
The addition of two webOS devices to Verizon’s network brings a well-balanced smartphone portfolio to Verizon’s network. The company already has two competent Android-based smartphones with the Motorola Droid and the Droid Eris. The wireless company will also be getting its own CDMA version of Google’s Nexus One in the spring. And if all of the planets align, Verizon could possibly land a fourth generation iPhone which would make its smartphone lineup a force to be reckoned with.
