The Palm Pre+, Palm's latest version of it's webOS based Smart phone will be available at Verizon on January 25th., along with the Pixi+. UPDATED - they are now at Verizon!
Both phones have great features including multi-tasking, personal information management, web browsers, automatic over the air sync, smart notifications, 3D games, merging of calendars and more. Flash for mobile browsers will debut on the Pre+ in February.
The Palm Pre and Pixi are top-of-the line smart phones and should be considered for educational uses. Here is an article with a list of just some of the educational apps for the Pre. http://educationaltechnologyguy.blogspot.com/2009/12/palm-apps-for-education.html
One of the things I hate right now in education is that so many people are talking about the iPhone and iTouch. We should not always look at one manufacturer for equipment. Palm, Blackberry, and Android are all great devices that can be used in education. Here is an article about keeping schools Operating System and Hardware independent.
I believe that schools should not require any specific device. We should be looking at systems that allow all students to use them no matter what computer or phone brand they use. Many students already have smart phones and could use them. If schools make things platform dependent, it leaves many students out in the cold. Everything I do is web based and all documents are on Google Docs or are PDF files so that no matter what system a student has, they can read and access the files.
For more info on the Pre+ and Pixi+, go to Palm's Website.