The first device to run webOS 2.0, HP’s new Palm Pre 2 smartphone, was made available on Friday 22 October 2010 in France from SFR, and is scheduled to be available in the coming months in the US and Canada from Verizon Wireless.
“With webOS 2.0, we’re advancing the innovations we introduced 16 months ago, expanding the features that make webOS great for consumers, enterprises and developers,” said Jon Rubinstein, senior vice president and general manager, Palm Global Business Unit, HP. “We’ve made tremendous strides since the platform launched, and now we’re taking our biggest leap forward with powerful new features that make it easier to get more things done with your webOS device.”
webOS 2.0 offers consumers compelling application experiences not available on any other platform, while providing developers an unparalleled level of openness to integrate their applications and services. The next generation of webOS makes it easier to get more done.
webOS 2.0 enables true multitasking; users can pause a game, tap an email notification, check your calendar, read a restaurant review, send an email reply, then switch back to the game without closing anything. webOS lets you easily manage multiple open applications and notifications using natural touch gestures. New in webOS 2.0, Stacks logically groups together your open apps so they work the way you do. Whether you’re reading email or planning a night on the town, Stacks keeps related items together so managing multiple tasks is even easier.
Also, Just Type; start an email, create a message, update your status, search your favourite websites, all before you’ve even opened an app. With webOS 2.0, whenever you want to do something on your phone, whether it’s emailing, texting, searching or almost anything, just type. And Just Type is open to developers, so they can integrate with the search function and add their own user-customisable shortcuts, called Quick Actions.
Additionally, webOS 2.0 enables HP Synergy; webOS was the first mobile OS to connect you seamlessly to multiple web services. With the Synergy feature, you just have to sign in to your Facebook, Google, Microsoft Exchange, LinkedIn and Yahoo! accounts and your information automatically populates your phone. webOS 2.0 will extend the support for Synergy so developers can easily plug new Messaging, Contacts and Calendar application sources directly into the core webOS experiences.