Palm Faces Suit over Pre PDF Viewer

Palm has found itself in a bit of legal trouble surrounding the WebOS PDF viewer to be found on its Pre smartphone, extending the laundry list of headaches that the company has had since it launched the Pre.

According to PCWorld, the issue stems from the manner in which Artifex Software has had its PDF engine licensed, a feature which seems, for the moment at least, to be a little up-in-the-air, at least where Palm is concerned. It seems that Artifex’s PDF rendering engine, muPDF, has been included in Palm’s WebOS, which is the source of all the bother for Palm.

Google News Goes Mobile

Google’s news aggregator, the appropriately named Google News, is going mobile, with the latest iteration of the service will hit different devices in custom formats, specifically to get the most from the hardware.

Word of the new update comes from the Google Mobile Blog, which is fairly quick to point out that there are already some offerings of Google News with specific hardware in mind, including Blackberries, Windows Mobile devices and S60. Now though, Google has rounded out that line-up a little with new versions of Google News available for the iPhone, Android devices and Palm’s Pre smartphone.

Apple Updates iTunes, Kills Palm Support [Again]

Apple has released a new update to its iTunes media player, adding colour options to its “grid view” and better “additional accessibility support.” The real news though, is that it blocks Palm again.

Not so fast, Palm 😦

For those who didn’t catch it the first time around, Palm’s smartphone, the Pre, had been considered by many to be one of the few devices capable of wresting Apple’s iPhone dominance from it. Of course, when Apple realised that one of the big draws for the Pre was its iTunes support, things got a bit dicey, and Apple stepped up with an iTunes update to block Palm devices.

Meteor to Launch HTC Hero November 1st

Meteor has announced an update to its fairly vague “November” launch date for the much-anticipated Hero, which we’re not told will actually happen on November 1st.

The hype about the Hero’s release in Ireland is due to a combination of it being launched on Meteor (whose smartphone range has been a little lacklustre to say the least, since O2 snagged both the iPhone and the Palm Pre). With Vodafone to release the iPhone to its customers in early 2010, the Hero could well be the handset that keeps Meteor in the game. Perhaps most interesting though, is word that Meteor intends to introduce new price plans for users who pick up the Hero.

Palm Dubiously Restores iTunes Sync?

Palm has announced that its upcoming update to its WebOS, for use with its Pre smartphone, brings back the ability to sync the device with iTunes.

Of course, this comes in the wake of news from the USB Implimenters Forum that what Palm was doing to get iTunes to recognise its devices as an iPod was essentially a violation of the policy under which the USB IF operates. Basically, in order to get iTunes to sync to the Pre, Palm had set up the smartphone so that it identified itself using the vendor code distributed to Apple for its iPod line… which is, to say the least, a bit frowned upon.

App Store Hits 2 Billion Downloads

With competitors trying to set up similar services in droves, it seems that Apple’s App Store is becoming unassailable, hitting 2 billion downloads since its launch this week.

It’s important to keep in mind that the announcement that the App Store has shifted as many apps as it has comes just 14 months after its launch in July of last year. Moreover, the most recent announcement with any hard figures for the App Store came in almost exactly at the App Store’s first birthday, informing the world and sundry that Apple had crossed the 1.5 billion download mark. That means that, in the two months since then, iPhone and iPod Touch users have downloaded another half a billion apps, which is no small feat.

Orange Nets iPhone for UK

UK cellular provider Orange has announced that it has secured the right to sell Apple’s iPhone in the UK, ending the exclusive deal between Apple and O2 for the device since its launch in the UK.

Of course, there’s no word on just what will happen with O2’s iPhone exclusivity in Ireland, but with the original deal to sell the device exclusively set to expire in October we’re all very interested to see just what happens with the iPhone in Ireland. Of course, the move by Orange is a pretty positive sign that we’ll see similar uptake here, but for now details seem pretty scant on just what might happen to the iPhone in Ireland.

RIM Profits Down

Research in Motion, best known as the crowd behind the part-product part-cultural-phenomenon, the Blackberry, has said that it’s not happy with its current financial situation.

Cnet is carrying word that the hit RIM has taken is due in large part to a combination a heft legal settlement and disappointing sales of its Blackberry smartphones. The real question now is whether or not this is the result of the general economic downturn (about which we heard so very much) or an indication that the market has shifted away from the Blackberry as a device.

Palm Pre Irish Release Dated

O2 has finally announced the release dates for Palm’s Pre Smartphone in Europe, including the Irish release date, which is to be October 16th.

Moreover, we haven’t just been given a release date for the device in Ireland, the UK and Germany, O2 has also posted details of the pricing plans it will have available to its Irish customers when the phone hits here, and the news is a lot like the news we posted during the iPhone launch. Palm’s Pre will cost you more if you’re Irish than if you’re living in the UK. Fortunately, it’s a bit less severe.

Palm’s iTunes Appeal Falls Flat

Palm’s appeal to the USB Implementers Forum has had pretty much the polar opposite of the effect it was hoping for, with the USB IF ruling in Apple’s favour on pretty much all counts.

Apple’s repeated blocking of Palm’s Pre Smartphone from the sync functionality had begun to stick in Palm’s craw a little. While Apple was busy making iTunes updates to specifically block the Pre, it seems that Palm’s response was to essentially hijack the USB Vendor ID used by Apple’s iPod line to trick iTunes into believing that Palm’s hardware was Apple approved, and for a while it worked (right down to the Pre having an iPod image under iTunes).