Palm Pre Wireless Touchstone Dock Advantages

Palm Pre's wireless Touchstone dock has some useful features as well as some disadvantages.  The Palm Pre website shows that the Touchstone dock is an optional accessory.

The Touchstone is about the size of crushed soda can and is referred to as the "puck." Once the Palm Pre is placed on the Palm Touchstone, magnets align the smartphone in the correct position for charging. The Pre can used while checking the calendar, making a call, or watching videos in portrait or landscape mode.

The Touchstone dock takes about four hours to charge using an inductive process while most other chargers will take about two hours. Therefore it's charging time could slow a user down, even though it avoids the tangle of cables to a computer.
The non-slip material securely fastens dock to tables, desks, and other surfaces, and prevents dock from moving when phone is removed.Magnets align the Palm Pre in the correct position for charging, whether in portrait or landscape mode. No cables or connectors required to attach the phone to the dock. The charger requires the Palm Pre back cover for Palm Touchstone charging dock, sold separately.

Pricing has not been set for the Touchstone dock yet or the necessary Palm Pre back cover.  The Palm Pre comes with its own USB charger

What's nice about having separate charger is the Palm Pre then does not require a comptuer to be tethered to the USB connector.  Many a time, iPod users keep their computer on just to charge the iPod with the USB cradle.  This means that the Palm Pre may attract users who will use it as their primary computing device.  Remember it also syncs with Internet calendar and contacts. If the user does need to sync with a computer, then they can't accomplish it without a USB connection.

Al Sacco at CIO called the Plam Pre Touchstone dock the "most compact and aesthetically appealing wireless charging solution I've seen."  Engadget called it "a pretty wild product."  A "Reviews of Reviews" will be available when the Touchstone is reviewed.

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