Customer Reviews

Palm Pixi Phone (Sprint)

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(10)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

This phone combines a great size and feel along with a great set of features.

I will break down this review into the pros and cons of the Palm Pixi. Please note that this review is comparing the phone to all other phones, not a comparison between the Pre. This is for people who want to know how the phone is as a phone.

Pros
*Thin, sleek candy bar design.
-The phone has an excellent look and feel to it. It is light yet still feels strong and durable. Plus the back is rubberized giving it great grip in your hand or anywhere you place it.

*WebOS software
-Multitasking, applications, synchronization with all your accounts, WebOS offers many features that make you question how you ever survived without it. The two really great features of WebOS, multitasking and synchronization, should be enough incentive alone to purchase this phone. Being able to check my email, open a link from said email into a new tab, proceed to shop on the web, then switch over to my messaging window and chat with someone while listening to music is simply stunning. Plus having my contacts list automatically update with my Gmail and Facebook contacts is a huge help. I could go on and on but I wont. WebOS is it, the future of mobile phone operating systems.

*QWERTY Keyboard
-This is just a personal preference but I love qwerty keyboards. That being said some qwerty boards are less than desirable. This keyboard may seem small but I have found very little issue using it. The buttons are raised at the perfect height, giving you nice separation between the phone itself and the keys. They also have a comfortable feel to them, providing a very satisfying click when pressed. Nice layout and design and definitely deserves kudos.

*Touch Screen
-The touch screen is detailed, vibrant, and most of all, very responsive. The screen looks great and performs very well.

*Multimedia
-The phone allows you to sync with iTunes and download your music. The music player is basic but performs very well. It also supports videos in mp4 as well as streaming sources like Youtube.

*Other Smartphone Features
-This phone offers Web Browsing, Youtube, Amazon MP3 Store, Sprint GPS Services, Palm Application Catalog, and Sprint TV.


Cons
*Mini USB Plug
-There is a flap protecting the place where you plug the phone in to charge, transfer data, etc. This flap is very difficult to open up.

*Boot Up Time
-This phone takes several minutes to boot up. This is mildly annoying if you have to turn the phone off because you will then have to wait around 3 minutes to boot it back up.

*Minor Bugs
-There are some minor bugs with WebOS. With each update they seem to make improvements but bugs still do exist. I've noticed that there have been a couple occasions where my phone has been off even though I did not power it down. When I boot it back up the battery life is fine making question what the deal is. Also when watching videos and you receive a text or phone call, the phone experiences some serious slow down and delay.


As far as performing the basic phone duties it does very well. Call sound quality is good, not exceptional, but definitely good. Also the clarity of the microphone is very good as well, no complaints when speaking to other people. The speaker phone is fairly loud yet doesn't sacrifice the quality at all. The battery life is quite sufficient in my opinion. With moderate usage, several phone calls, intermittent texting, and some web surfing, I found the phone's battery life lasts around two days.

I recommend this to anyone looking for a new phone and wants to venture into the smartphone market. This phone is sleek and provides some truly awesome features. The Pixi has some flaws but no phone is perfect, we all know that. If you take into account all the features along with the price ($24.99), this phone is simply unbeatable.

As a Pre owner and user, I understand the power of the WebOS multitasking. It truly blows everything else out of the water in the speed of getting things done. The iPhone feels like walking in quicksand after this.

I expected the Pixi to be slower than the Pre. It isn't. For some things it is faster. Word Whirl on both devices feels exactly the same. This is an extremely light and small smart phone. It feels great in the hand and the keyboard is one of the better I've used in the past years.

While I now own both, I will primarily use my Pre for two reasons: Camera and WiFi. The Camera on the Pixi is better than Centro and about equal to many cell phones. The resolution difference (2 vs 3 MP) doesn't mean anything to me. The issue is with the light sensitivity of the sensor. The Pre is much better. Since my home location is right on the border of good Sprint data, WiFi is a requirement.

If I was always in a good data coverage, I would be hard pressed to not choose the Pixi over the Pre. It is a cool phone. You won't get more functionality for under $30.

In my family, we have 2 WebOS phones. I have the Pre and my son has the Pixi. As a result, I was able to make some videos comparing the relative performance of these devices. Here's a link to a playlist of the reviews:

http://www.youtube.com/view_play_list?p=943798F8E22C971F&playnext=1&playnext_from=PL

What I've found in comparing the two devices is that they provide generally similar performance, despite several other reviewers who claim the Pixi is slower than the Pre.

If I did not already have a Pre, I would have to think hard about a Pixi considering the performance. However, since I already have a Pre, I would find it difficult to live without Wifi and with a camera that didn't produce as nice of pictures as the Pre. So I won't be switching. But for the price, the Pixi is a fantastic first smartphone.

I've had Palm smartphones for at least the past 7+ years and I have always liked them so when it came to upgrade my Sprint Palm Centro in November'09 I went for the Sprnt Palm Pixi. Here are my pros/cons after using this phone for 3 months:

Pros:
+Form Factor: I got this phone because it is one of the smallest thinnest smartphones I have seen. I like to keep my phone in my front pocket and the lighter the better. After using it for 3 months the size is still great although I wish it actually was slightly taller to accommodate slightly bigger screen. I chose the Pixi over Pre mainly because I didn't want a slider (hassle to slide in/out and also durability concerns). I also like a physical keyboard and the Pixi keyboard is awesome (even for my fat fingers).
+WebOS potential: I see alot of potential in this software. Easy to use, fun to use. Nice to run multiple apps. Of course we are still in early release versions for WebOS and there are some things that need to be improved so I expect to see that over time.

Cons:
-Screen Size: Could actually be a bit bigger for internet experience even though I am partial to small phones.
-WebOS Current Reality: This is still an early generation of WebOS and that means living with growing pains. Palm has been issuing software updates which are good but some of the updates have reduced my battery life and also slowed down my phone. Sometimes there are noticeable lags when using the phone features (ie, 5-10 seconds to open up an application, etc). There are not that many downloadable apps compared to iphone and android and developers want to develop for the biggest users bases first (in fairness I should note that no smarts phones are perfect yet and iphone and android users have their own gripes in their reviews). Cloud Storage- personally I don't think web connections are fast enough or reliable enough yet to keep everything on the cloud...when I use an app dictionary I don't want the app to lookup the word on the web (sometimes I am on an airplane or in a bad coverage area, etc). I think over time WebOS can be refined to be an amazing software platform...I just hope Palm has the additional capital to invest in this and keep up with the likes of juggernauts like Apple and Google (it may be a likely scenario that another player buys Palm and invests more money in evolving WebOS).
-Brand Name: Palm "Pixi"? As a red-blooded American male I almost didn't buy the phone just because of the unmanly name...but finally I brushed my pride aside and bought it because it had the form factor I liked the best. When friends ask me what kind of phone it is I just say it is the new Palm Mini-Pre.
-Other minor details: No add-on memory card. No video camera feature yet (expected with future webos upgrade). Back cover durability. I actually like the changeable back concept but the backing that came with my phone is already torn and coming off after 3 months (I will buy a new one for $20).

Overall:
=I give this phone 4 stars (3 stars for current usability reality, 5 stars for potential= 4 star average). This smartphone technology is amazing me (gps location tools, etc) and the speed of evolution is startling compared to my old smartphones from 5 years ago. It will be scarey to see what smartphones will be in 25 years...will we just be using implantation chips...or will we be absorbed into The Matrix!?

3/13/10 update: The recent web os 1.4 software update pushed out to my phone has noticeably increased the speed of my phone...I don't have much lag anymore when switching between functions. The 1.4 also added video capabilities to the camera and I've found the vid works well. My battery life also seems improved. Keep up the improvements palm!

I hope you found my review helpful, I will try to remember to update my review if I think anything new/important is worth mentioning.

I absolutely adore my pixi. I went through three phones trying to get to one I liked and am head over heels for the pixi. First I tried the reclaim, loved everything but the keyboard. It was so hard to type. Switched to the Incognito, it was too complicated, big and I didn't like the keyboard on it either. When I returned it I intended to get the Lotus but the sales guy helped me decide what I really wanted and showed me the Pixi. I was looking for a phone I could text one handed or two handed, could hold audiobooks and had a decent speaker, wasn't complicated to operate, reasonably durable, and was not ugly or huge. The Pixi is all that and more. I wasn't sure I would use the web or email applications but they are so easy to use on the Pixi I use them daily. My three year old has chucked it and it survived but I had it in a case. So far I have only two complaints about it but they're minor. The speakerphone isn't as loud as I would like although it's decent (the incognito's was awesome) and I wish it had a dedicated call and hang up button. It's frustrating to me to have to get the screen active then push the touchscreen hang up. I also have a hard time answering calls if i'm already on the phone for the same reason. It's confusing to have to activate the screen then try to switch. I almost always end up hanging up on everybody. But, neither of those problems would cause me to give up the phone. It's so easy to use and so cute. My hubby had an iphone which I used for a week when my phone broke and the pixi is so much better than the iphone. I would NEVER go back to an iphone after using the pixi. So, love this phone! It's perfect for a techno-leary person who just wants a good phone that's easy to use with a few bells and whistles. update 8/15/10 I still love using my pixi but am trading it in for something new. It has started doing what they call power surges where the screen does little starbursts all over and opens random applications. It complains that I have too many cards open when I have nothing open. It gets all in a dizzy about using the gps or music player and I have to back out of the application and restart it several times before it will finally do it. Sometimes it locks up so bad I have to physically remove the battery to reset it. Turns out the battery is a pain in the rear to get out. And, when you remove the battery it loosens up the back of the phone so it doesn't ever go back on right. I ended up having to buy a whole new back. The little magnet that holds the micro-usb flap shut fell off too which was really annoying. Sprint replaced my first phone with a refurb and I was hopeful that would fix it. It isn't as often as the original but it's starting the same way that one did. I'm planning to get either the samsung intercept or the samsung epic. Haven't decided yet if I'm going to spend the big bucks on the epic yet. I'll still never go back to the iphone and would have been happily using my pixi if it weren't for the quality issues. In the end I'm disappointed by my pixi. I started with 5 stars and dropped it to 3 stars. The phone is usable but annoying as all get out to fuss with all the time.

This phone is great! in comparison to the palm pre, it is almost equal, except for the lack of wifi (which is not that important to me). i like the fact that the phone integrates all my calendars and contacts from aol, gmail, facebook, etc. its VERY easy to use and set up. it has a touch screen with a ripple effect to help me see where i am touching, which is very helpful. i like the fact that it has a touch screen AND a qwerty keyboard. the keys are raised, so even though its a tiny keyboard, it isn't too hard to push the correct keys. the screen is very bright, even on the lowest power setting. the phone weighs next to nothing. camera takes decent pictures, and the sound quality is great. the internet looks just like the internet, similar to the iphone. the only issue with the internet is that since the screen is so small, i have to sometimes look at it in portrait mode or be maximizing and scrolling a lot to see large web pages, but that's a minor complaint, and its what i expected for buying such a small screen. This phone is sprint exclusive, and I had to switch from ATT to sprint to get the phone, and I have to say, so far, sprint has been very easy to work with and I have had no issue with my sprint service. the battery life is the only real con on this phone, but if you keep the screen brightness a little lower, adjust how often its connected and syncing to your email it's not too bad, about equal to most other smart phone battery lengths. it charges very fast,and it comes with a charger and usb connector in one, which i like. I could go on and on, but for a smart phone that does basically everything that the pre does or is comparable to the androids and iphones coming out- this is a great little phone, and its practically a steal at $24.99....SOOOOO worth it! Also wanted to mention- i was scared to purchase a phone and plan and switch service through amazon, but it really was simple, and the phone comes with instructions to change your service/switch your number, its foolproof, even for the not-so-tech-savy-me.
BUY THIS PHONE!!!!

Picked the Pixi up on its release date and still can't believe how great my experience has been thus far in every respect (size, weight, battery life, snappiness, build construction, intuitiveness of OS, call quality, network speed, keyboard, sexiness, EVERYTHING). So glad someone finally built a fully-functional smartphone that is not an enormous beast like the iPhone or TouchPro or Droid. I hope Palm keeps this form-factor and continues to release future improved generations -- I will be a lifelong customer if so because this device is really perfect. Sprint's EVDO Rev A data network is incredibly snappy and I never used the WiFi on my prior smartphone (HTC TouchPro), so I don't mind the lack of WiFi on this device at all. Only minor complaint so far is that the charging/USB port cover takes 30 seconds to pry up and then it's almost impossible to jam the cord in while holding it back. Also, it's taking me a bit of time to figure out how to customize certain elements (launch pad, ring tones, speed dials). General critique of webOS pulling in too many junk contacts applies as well and it would be nice to have desktop PIM but that's about it. I never dreamed this company could turn their ship around so dramatically but I sure am glad they did. THANKS PALM!!!!!

This phone is perfect for me. It is small, works fast, looks great, and has a great keyboard. My husband has the palm pre and loves it, but I didn't love the slide out keyboard. As for the number one complaint of no WiFi, for me it is no big deal at all. The internet works so fast that you can stream pandora while driving in the car. I have also heard some complaints about the battery life, which I also haven't found to be an issue. The customer service rep who I spoke to when I activated my phone said to fully charge it right after you activate it, then let the battery drain completely down until it shuts off, then fully recharge it again. I followed these instructions, so maybe that is why my I still have plenty of battery life left at the end of the day(through multiple hours of talking and internet use).

The Palm Pixi is great little phone but IF you live on your phone
and basically need a computer in your pocket. ~THEN STOP READING~
this isn't the Iphone or droid

The Pixi works best with people who occasionally enjoy toying with
their phones when they are bored in a waiting room or in the car (not driving)
don't get me wrong the phone has many apps and functions that
your average phone can't touch. I enjoyed it a lot. Many reviews
knock it for the so called "lag" when you have multiple apps open
3-5 seconds isn't terrible. or people complain about the screen size
come on it's a phone IF you need a TV in your pocket then get a
Iphone or droid. The Pixi's screen is great very clear

The only problem is the battery life but then again I haven't put it down (which doesn't help)
But there are a couple of functions you can turn off and dim to help

PROS: many apps, great functions, touch screen, size, keypad
webOS,

CON: battery life (but not bad)


update:
I download preware and download a lot of patches for the phone (made it my own style)
also added uber kerels and a Govnah app
then set the compcache to performance
min freq 122.8 MHz
max freq 600MHz
compcache 24mb


now the my Pixi is faster then ever without WiFi

Let me start this review off by saying, I am a Palm fan. I loved my Treo 755p with gusto for over two years. So when it finally went belly up and two replacement phones from Sprint did the same after 1 month - I figured it was time to upgrade to bigger (Smaller?) and better things. Boy, was I wrong!

Initially, I felt like the Pixi was almost *too* small. It was hard to type on, and my text messages looked more like a 2 year old smacking the keyboard than an intelligent 20-something trying to send a message. Nonetheless, I carried on - confident that I'd come to be just as proficient on this phone as I was on my last.

It never clicked. After 8 months of this phone, I admit defeat. I am not impressed with the quality, speed, or features of this phone. I'd take my brick-like 755p back any day.

The Good: It's tiny. Elf-like as a matter of fact. The colors on the screen are vibrant and I like the ease with which it synced with my gmail and my google calendars. I also love the quality of the photos and the built-in flash that my last phone didn't have.

The Bad: Ringer volume and actual speaking volume should never be the same. I can't tell you how many times I've turned up the volume on this thing to hear someone on a phone call and then nearly been deafened the next morning when my alarm went off because the volume was now set to super-insanely-loud because I changed the speaker volume. That feature is awful. Next up - durability. I admittedly nose-dived this phone once - on CARPET. It has a huge scratch on the screen, some interestingly gel-like piece fell off the top of it this morning and the final indignity - a plastic piece around the charger area came out, resulting in a lovely bulge on the side of the phone. Finally, the speed. After a great "update" from Sprint - this thing is slower than a snail in taffy. It takes a good 10 seconds for any feature to open up - calendar, text messaging, photos - you name it.

In closing, I hate this thing. Hate it so much in fact that I'm purchasing a blackberry just to get away from it until my contract is up and Sprint has another phone that I want - or I go screaming to AT&T in search of greener pastures. Buyer beware on this one!