How to Use Promo Codes [webOS 2.1] 4

This tip is only for devices running webOS 2.1 and higher

With the release of the latest App Catalog update, promo codes can now be used by developers or HP/Palm themselves to essentially give apps away that would normally require payment through the the App Catalog.  Assuming you are on webOS 2.1 or higher and have updated to the latest version of the App Catalog, there are two ways to take advantage of a promo code.

1. Manually enter it into the App Catalog. If you have received a promo code for a specific app, just load up that app in the App Catalog, press the "Download for $X" button on the bottom of the screen, enter your password (if prompted) and then tap the "Use Promo Code" button instead of the "Purchase" button.  Just enter in the code (or use the copy/paste functionality of webOS for easy entry) and press the "Use Promo Code" button again.  
2. Use a promo code URL. Instead of just giving you a code, you can also receive a direct URL that will open up the app catalog and pre-fill in the promo code for you.  Assuming the code is valid, you will immediately see a message stating that "You can download this app for free until [date]", and a "PROMO" label will be added to the "Download for $X" button.  At this point, you must still tap the "Download" button and follow the same steps as above to redeem the code (except you will not be required to enter in the promo code).  Be advised that until you complete all these steps, the code has not actually been redeemed and someone else may still "steal" this code out from under you, despite the pop-up message you received.

A few notes on using Promo codes:

• Unfortunately, you will still need to have a credit card attached to your profile to redeem a code
• Using the direct URL link method above will cause the App Catalog to cache that promo code in its memory. So if you go to a different app and select "Use Promo Code", you will most likely get an error saying the code is not valid, since the code for the first app will have been pre-filled for this second app. Simply delete out the pre-filled code and re-enter the proper code for that app.
• Each promo code is country-specific and is only valid for a certain period of time.  You can actually use the WebOS Internals app Impostah to identify when a given promo code is valid from/until, but going to the the "App Catalog" section of Impostah v0.8.7 or higher
• Want to try out a few promo codes? Check out our PreCentral forum thread where developers can post codes for their apps.
• Finally, please remember to post a review for the app!  The developer was kind enough to give the app away for free, so it's only fair to leave a review!