This is a review of a phone that was never actually released to the public on AT&T. Despite the unfortunateness of the prior statement, we felt obligated to run this device through the wringer as a final farewell to Palm, the Pre line and webOS on consumer devices.

Man, what a weird, labyrinthine life this device has had. European carriers didn’t even want the Pre 2, and for whatever reason, those folks were the only ones to even get the Pre 3. Excluding this guy, of course. This guy, as you’ve probably gleaned, is one of only a handful of AT&T Pre 3 handsets to make it out of the factory unscathed, and we couldn’t be happier to be putting it through the paces. Well… we could be happier, but that would require Meg Whitman undoing Leo’s departing shot through the webOS heart.

All that aside, it’s been a strange few days with the final webOS-based phone, and in a sense, the final phone that’ll ever have Palm’s DNA running through its circuitry. Not even two months ago, HP was telling developers to get their Pre 3 app submissions in for approval, and a mere four weeks ago, the same company affirmed that this very phone wouldn’t ever arrive on US shores. You know, despite that whole “being announced for AT&T” thing. Turns out, a few of those units actually did pass the requisite QA tests, and if you’ve got the right connections (or a quick enough trigger finger on eBay), you too can land yourself what’ll undoubtedly go down as one of the most highly sought after pieces of Palm / webOS history. But should you? Find out after the break.

Continue reading Pre 3 for AT&T review

Pre 3 for AT&T review originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 24 Sep 2011 14:45:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Meg Whitman stepped into the HP spotlight Thursday, taking over as CEO in a whirlwind shift that saw former boss Leo Apotheker ousted in less than a year, with his ambitious and controversial plans to remake the company barely off the ground. But, amid clear signs of disarray and even panic, many eyes have remained steadily fixed on the board of directors, which arguably orchestrated the mess in the first place then turned to one of its own in a bid to end the crisis.

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Leo interviews LeVar Burton and Brent Spiner — best known as Geordi La Forge and Data from “Star Trek: The Next Generation” — live at the TWiT stage at CES 2010.
Video Rating: 4 / 5

Leo and Dr. Kiki interview vendors and journalists at the press-only Digital Experience! event in Las Vegas. Watch TWiT’s live coverage of CES at live.twit.tv and download our CES audio and video podcasts on iTunes and http
Video Rating: 4 / 5

This fella seems to be Leo Laporte mashed up with Office Space’s Milton. Here’s his YouTube channel. You’re going to want to clear your morning schedule and watch a few of these jems. God bless the Internet and all its weirdos.

Listen as Jennifer tries to explain how she used to get free Wi-Fi from the Linksys and now she can’t. Leo Laporte is nice enough not to call her a moron and instead explains, in great detail, why she is a moron.

Friends, there’s no such thing as “free Wi-Fi.” Someone is paying for something, somewhere. Heck, even municipal Wi-Fi comes out of your pocket. Practice safe browsing.