The Palm, though, does a lot of things better than predecessor phones, and in some cases, better than the iPhone.  It runs applications in the background and offers the ability to seamlessly transition between them, something the iPhone does not do.  It’s the one area that the newest incarnation of the iPhone is lacking, and Palm has capitalized on it some.  It can also sync with iTunes, offering the same music playing ability as the iPhone, supposedly leveling the playing field.

Except in mid-July, Apple cut compatibility with the Pre device with iTune update 8.2.1.  It is one of the few times Apple has gone out and struck against another device maker (outside of Microsoft) and it may inconvenience the current users but potentially dissuade those on the fence between using Sprint’s superior network to AT&T.  

If Apple had played its cards right and used either Verizon or Sprint for the iPhone service, there would be no competition and the iPhone would reign supreme.  AT&T benefited tremendously from the exclusive contract, and even with an inferior network, 3G dead zones and sporadic issues with call handling, Apple has made steady gains in market share.

Apple starting sending out notification e-mails to customers experiencing this little technical difficulty it termed “system issues,” yesterday, saying it’s mostly due to “high activation volumes,” as reported by cnetreviews.com.

In acknowledgment and apology for the delays, Apple also noted in the same e-mail that it plans to offer a $30 iTunes Store credit.

This is exactly what the e-mail reads:

Dear Apple Customer,

Thank you for your recent Apple Store order. We appreciate your patience and apologize for the inconvenience caused by the delay in your iPhone activation.

We are still resolving the issue that was encountered while activating your iPhone with AT&T. Unfortunately, due to system issues and continued high activation volumes, this could take us up to an additional 48 hours to complete.

On Monday, you’ll receive an email from Apple with an iTunes Store credit in the amount of $30. We hope you will enjoy this gift and accept our sincere apologies for the inconvenience this delay has caused.

Thank you for choosing Apple.

Sincerely,
Apple Online Store Team

It’s definitely a nice gesture, but let’s not forget the power of the iPhone, selling more than 500,000 just this past weekend. Kind of makes you wonder if the e-mail and the credit will make much of a difference in the long run.

That’s right, there’s now a competition that tests competitors on their texting abilities. Some of the challenges include texting blindfolded and texting while making your way through a moving obstacle course, according to Yahoo News.

Of course, this was nothing for the young Iowa girl, named Kate Moore. She sends, on average, 14,000 text messages per month. (Her parents probably thank God every night for their unlimited text messaging service.) That’s between 400 and 470 texts a day.

And if you were about to ask (because I know you were thinking it), Moore disagrees on the idea that she spends too much time texting, backing it up with the fact that she continues to get good grades and performs well in school, even though her parents have been known to take her phone away from time to time.

As for the competition, it’s actually in its third year, and is sponsored by LG Electronics Inc.’s mobile-phones division, though it is the first year it was held on a showy sound stage surrounded by TV cameras. All competitors were 22 years of age or younger.

Quick! Grab your cell phone and start texting. It could be your ticket to financial freedom, a new cell phone and maybe even carpal tunnel.

At first, this may seem like a good idea, shaving off $50 to $500 a month, but what this money saving model seems to forget are safety and availability.

Your 16-year-old daughter is driving home from college and gets stranded on the highway at night. Without a cell phone, OnStar or a GPS system, well, that’s a problem. What about being reachable by potential employers or clients?

Cutting out cell phones might not be the best idea for pinching pennies, but cutting cell phone plans might be. As Fox News reported, thousands of people are now signing up for pay-as-you-go or prepaid plans to reduce their bills.

Not only are more people signing up for these no-contract deals on cell phones, but more companies are now offering this service. AT&T, Sprint and Verizon Wireless are among these companies.

The money-crunching ability of these plans is only one advantage to pay-as-you-go or prepaid plans. Users can also change services like dropping text-messaging or adding Web access without worrying about a pricey penalty.

So with these no-contract cell phone plans you can cut costs and still remain on top of the tech-tower? I think I need to make a phone call….

That’s what one research group thinks.

Or maybe it’s just the fact that the Curve is almost half the price of the iPhone, its name is better known and it has far broader availability.

Just goes to show that even with a glossy touch screen, thousands of free, downloadable applications (one with the sole purpose of providing unlimited Bubblewrap, bubble-popping bliss), lightening fast Internet connection, and the capability of doing almost everything – including the functions of a kitchen sink – a cell phone giant can fall.

Looks like the Curve is currently one up on the iPhone…with three quarters left in the game.

BlackBerry leads in smartphone technology and has continued to outdo themselves with each phone they put on the market. The BlackBerry Storm, released earlier this year, is BlackBerry’s first touch screen phone. Sure, they’re really cool but the problem remained: butt dialing or, for the ladies, purse dialing. There’s nothing like getting a call from a friend of colleague just to hear them living their life. It’s quite irritating.

So, let’s give a round of applause to BlackBerry for finally figuring out to do a flip cell phone. Thank you! According to the Press Release, Alltel Wireless  is releasing the BlackBerry Pearl Flip 8230 in early May. Hopefully we’ll see a reduction in butt and purse dialing.