HP does up Mini Coopers to promote the Veer; 'Veer 4G,' actually 89
File this one under "Well OF COURSE that's what they'd do." PreCentral reader James was driving along the freeways of Los Angeles and spotted a trailer towing along two Mini Coopers done up to promote the HP Veer with the tagline "Small is the new big."
Actually, they're done up to promote the "Veer 4G." We've seen that "4G" piece before, in that now-pulled "Selling webOS" app that snuck its way into the public last month. We knew that the Veer will be a fully-capable HSPA+ device (assuming, of course, that AT&T doesn't prevent it from having full HSUPA for uploads), so by AT&T's recent naming conventions it's not a complete surprise that they're going to market it as a 4G device.
Whether HSPA+ on AT&T (the carrier we're presuming it will hit) actually deserves to be called 4G is an argument we'll leave to others. Instead we'll just bask in the glow of new HP marketing vehicles (ahem) and hope that James is right in thinking they mean a launch is imminent. One more shot after the break.
Thanks, James!
89 Comments
Hooray for hipsters!
At best 3G plus. I wish Pre-3 had LTE and Wimax, even though wimax will die off
If HSPA+ is 3G+ then LTE must be 3G++
Actually only LTE Advanced would deserve to be called 4G according to the original ITU-Specs. So either you call them all 4G (as the ITU does now too) or you don't call either of these Standards 4G (as I still do^^).
I didnt say LTE and Wimax are 4G, I just wished pre-3 had them
the next big marketing campaign will be "the carrier with REAL 4G"... all the tech newbs out there are going to b very confused haha
Meh, all the carriers and handset makers lie about 4G. HP is no different.
Its probably not HP's decision, but the carrier, so they are going with the flow as they sell devices to carrier, and carrier sells to consumer
If the carrier is marketing the network as 4G, then HP can say it's a 4G phone without "lying", they're just telling it as the carrier tells it.
honestly i dont even care anymore about 3g, 4g, whatever. as long as the internet on my phone works at a speed that isnt annoyingly slow, i am happy.
Can't wait!
Seriously, how does a SMALLER phone make it to market before the larger one?
The Pre is already tiny compared to the average smart phone.
I just don't understand the thinking here. I though HP would make better decisions than HP, but they have been as bad or worse.
I really didn't believe HP would make better decisions than HP, myself. (!)
It's not about size , it's about what consumers they're trying to reach. In the case of the Veer, HP is attempting to sell to younger teenagers as their first cell phone.
For the rest of us, the Veer is more hype than anything.
Honestly, I wish people would stop going on about what "bad decisions HP made" and support their endeavor.
If marketed smart, this device could be more than just a teen device, image the current business users who are still carrying around a mi-fi device, this will be the perfect device when paired with the much anticipated Touchpad, especially when it receives the touch-to-share upgrade.
For now I must agree it may appear to be only a hype device.
They'll stop going on about what "bad decisions HP made" when **** freezes over.
Aren't you the same guy repeatedly ranting about how HP just makes empty promises in the front page article about promo codes and other new developer features?
What makes you think that young teens want small screen phones? Maybe they don't want a 4.3" monster like my Evo, but 99% of them aspire to have an iPhone. Why would they find the Veer an attractive alternative?
How is it bad? The phone comes out in May which really isn't a buying season for phones. Alot of 2 year contracts, be it palm pres, evos or iphones.... will be ending in june/july which is (hopefully) around the time the pre 3 will be launched. Also the veer is a cool phone for teens and women. Just like the pixie was. Actually any new webos device is good news for those of us that want more/better support from developers and media in general. We need a larger share of the market. The easiest way to do that is to release multiple devices. I'm thinking may= veer, june=touchpad and july(or end of june) = pre3
It's probably just a matter of the Veer being ready and other phones like the Pre 3 and that slab that got leaked a while back not being ready. What is truly frustrating is that this would be less of an annoyance if HP had only released the Pre 2 on Sprint, Verizon, and AT&T back in November.
yeah i thought the same, but there really is a market for these phones. my sister, amongst many other girls on know with small hands, really prefer a smaller phone. they all like my pre a lot. they dont give a **** about video games and watching movies on a phone. generally girls want a keyboard and a web browser. BAM sold... alllso many people use 2 phones, work and personal. perhaps many business folk will want a smaller phone and a large one. no point in having 2 massive screened phones yuh know. i guess only time will tell with this device.
well even if its really only 3.5G it really fast compared to EVDO or even 3G . Just sayin
Hummers for the TouchPad?
nah, school buses full of palm employees giving out chapstick like last summer.
I got the chapstick from last summer, it just ran out. It was actually pretty good.
Arguing about 3G vs 4G reminds me SO much of my youth, listening to the motorheads arguing over the horsepower ratings of the Fords vs the Chevys. Who cares what the number is? The only one that matters was the ET at the end of the track! I don't care if you call it 17G or 1H; show me side-by-side tests done by independent labs doing real-world tasks and then (and ONLY THEN) will we know which phones AND which networks are fastest.
OK. Here's some tests:
http://lmgtfy.com/?q=3g+vs+4g
M.
WRONG. Anything containing 4G or 3G is just marketing-buzz these days.
Please use HSPA+, LTE and WiMAX to get real results.
http://www.phonearena.com/news/Verizon-LTE-vs-T-Mobile-HSPA-vs-Sprint-Wi...
haha looks like they are getting towed!!!
Probably being taken to "The Doctor"...
M.
...yea to the junkyard
i never liked the mini, it is not great looking and its overpriced for what u get... to send the proper message they should have chosen the civic si, all black, blacked-out tinted windows with orange accents. that car is small, sleek and efficient (like how they are trying to portray the veer)... i mean they should have used a BLACK CAR at least. wtf!? everyone knows shiny black cars stand out. oyyyy
I'd much rather they use anything but a MINI. A civic would be fine with me. I don't want the slime of Veer associated with my beloved MINI Cooper.
I want me an LTE Veer on Verizon soon!
I want me an unlocked LTE Pre³ soon!
Pre 3 hasn't been announced as an LTE phone, has it? I'd be surprised because HP seems to be going to Apple Route and giving consumers just incremental upgrades without the whole shebang (without the apple sales numbers, though).
i think u can only go that route if u are ahead of the curve... def not the position HP is in with WebOS
sprint?
Is Sprint GSM? No? Then, no.
yeah there really is no signs of a sweet phone from HP coming to Sprint. my sights ae on the Galaxy S II. that phone is a frickin beast and it looks like Sammy fiiinally got their **** together when it comes to software. i will miss WebOS but i think i can get used to that phone no problem... however, it doesnt even look like that phone is coming to Sprint either. mannn i really dont want that brick that is known as the EVO 3D, but i suppose i will take it
Wish the shot was clearer at the top of the phone it looks like it actually has the carrier branding. It is to short to say the normal HP webOS. They stopped using the Palm name there i believe. Also not to be conspiracy but the file is a .PNG, looks like there is circular lighter area at the top of the phone and near thumb in both pictures so doesn't seam like it can be blamed on the sun as the angle is different.
Any people better with photo wizardry able to check it out?
Looking at the original (which was a .jpg btw, taken from my Palm Pre), I can barely make out the carrier branding. I'm nearly positive it says AT&T.
Thanks
i think this phone could be a hit if marketed right. i'm just worried about the keyboard...
Isn't the Veer the same width as the Pre3?
That would make the keyboard the same as the Pre3's, wouldn't it?
If on sprint, give up now! We've waited soo long, and since the Pre3 and Touchpad are going to Verizon, and the Veer is going to ATT, that leaves no hope for sprint. The last time I talked with a sprint rep, they also didn't think any HP devices were coming.
The only possibility would be the stingray slab which will be months from now.
yeah... looks like i am going android. well at least i will b buying my next superphone from Bestbuy where they have a buy-back upgrade program so i can keep WebOS in my sights
These US-carriers are complete BS...
Forcing manufacturers to sell "exclusive" to them. Of course this wouldn't be possible without consumers that don't want to spent more than $ 150 for a $ 600 phone... (and around $ 2.500 over the whole length of the contract).
Every time there is an article about the Veer on this site I feel like I should be embarrassed for wanting one. Let the haters hate! I am not teen or mom, and I want this phone even more than the Pre 3. This thing looks so elegant (and fast to boot) and versatile. Forget the slabs and give me back my pocket space!
@xacto, how do you know that? You should be a reporter with such advanced knowledge
I wonder why they're not using the same cars as their summer tour?
http://goo.gl/oJ18l
maybe it's because the Veer is like a mini adventure :)
I for one like the look of this phone and see it as my sort of evening out phone, it can easily slip into my pocket while out and about with HP Synergy I still have all my emails, docs, contacts etc.
Hopefully it will come out in the UK as unlocked and when my Pre- contract is up for renewal in September I can grab a Pre3 on contract.
The important thing to note here is that hp is apparently pulling out all the stops, even calling the device "4G", to market the it. It can't get any worse than the way the company "marketed" the final Palm device, the Pre 2. I hope that more developers will get on board with webOS because of the first of three new devices from hp.
It's running on a network called "4G" by the carrier, why not market it as a "4G" phone?
lol they are faster to release cars than phones! :P
I really don't give a cr@p about the Veer. Where the he11 is my Pre 3?
Also what up with the censoring? I didn't even say anything THAT bad.
If you're gonna say anything bad, why say anything at all?
Can't wait. Very excited for the Veer to be released.
maybe that is why the veer has been taking so long to come out
i hope the pre3 is coming out with LTE
Interesting how the Mini Cooper/BMW is associating their name is HP
I was thinking the same thing. Im sure an association like that isnt cheap either.
I'd be surprised if MINI/BMW was even asked. HP probably just leased a couple of cars.
small HP veer is the shinny new KIN.
My take is that this people (HP) have no clue about what will sell. I'm a Long time webOS fan. I left my pre for the Epic on sprint cuz I had no webOS options. Biggest complaint about the pre was the speed, battery life and screen size. How on earth can you veer smaller. I can understand that if you were apple you could take such a risk, but you are trying to compete after almost being killed and the first opportunity you get to compete you come up with this **** Please keep all that "huge horsepower in a tiny package" BS to yourself. No normal human being with regular size hands will buy this ****
So what, it's small and it's automatically a KIN? There are so many different things that are different between how the KIN was conceived and how the Veer was conceived, making that comparison really just makes you look ignorant.
curious to see how if hp will market this phone as aggressively as motorola, htc, and apple market their phones. this will go a long way in showing me how committed they are to webos for phones.
Well, they put a custom wrap job on two Cooper Minis. That must have cost about $75K. What more do you want?
Actually these are both JustaCoopers (the base model). And they probably leased them on a short term lease. Had them dropped off at a wrapper place for $1000 each. They'll turn them back in in 90 days, rip off the wrapper. You'll see them as dealer loaners for the rest of the year. Total cost is probably $5000 tops. Typical cheap HP. Another reason WebOS is dead. HP drives another stake in its heart. So sad.
Oh yes, because they really want to satisfy YOU. YOUR satisfaction is so important to them. Forget everyone else, it's all about showing YOU how committed they are to webOS for phones.
HP really pulled out all the stops borrowing Uncle Jesse's truck and Cooter's trailer to tow them around with.
Ha Ha, all of the whiners, complainers and haters posting in this forum that the Veer was outdated because it was only going to be 3G, as usual, wrong again.
well we always knew it was HSPA+, which "they" are calling 4G these days... sooo we always knew it was 4G. all the haters are just misinformed
i hope this means pre 3 4g
Pre 3 is HSPA+ so yes, it is 4G.
I think people complained it was outdated because it's the Pixi - a phone that came out in the Fall of 2009 - with a sliding keyboard and a faster processor.
That phone was also marketed to hipsters, and its size was also touted as its greatest asset. The result...well, we all know.
Of course, things are different now. The market is WAY more competitive than it was back then (especially in the lower end), and HP can pay for the ad to run more times than Palm could. Should be a completely different outcome.
The Pixi has nothing on the Veer.
In the same way the Pre has nothing on the Pre 2, but its speed, OS, and build quality upgrades have made NO difference whatsoever in the perception of WebOS to the market at large or in the eyes of carriers?
I mean, it's the exact. same. scenario. Same length of time between the original dropping and this new upgrade (roughly 15-17 months). Same upgrades (faster processor, glass, supposedly better build quality). Same new OS version. Same one-US-carrier-that-already-has-the-iPhone-and-various-super-Android-handsets launch scenario. And we see where that gets this platform. HP's advertising/launch parties is the only difference, and that's not much of a difference.
Verizon is the carrier. I can see the red Z in the second photo.
wow - it took until the second post for things to go a bit negative.
Smart discussion doesn't take place here anymore. Everyone has memorized a few talking points and are parroting them constantly.
The Pre3 will be 4G of course. If you think that the Veer will be 4G and the Pre3 won't, somethings really wrong... lol
And coming soon: The HP Touchpad - Fat is the new thin.
thick is the new thin
late is the new on-time?
Very clever advertising... I'm impressed.
wow, i guess that can sell the Brooklyn bridge to all these grown people that want a Veer. The pre didn't do well, one of the major issues, screen size. And they make it even smaller? Its frustrating to surf the web on the pre because of the screen size and then they make it even smaller? unless you're 10 yr old, if you want this phone as an adult, u must be retarded.
I'm loosing all hope for Sprint.
loose all you want.
Yay marketing! (I never thought I'd say that)
I couldn't agree more then what the majority of people are saying about the HP Veer. You need to remember that HP's loyal customers are most likely the ones who are on this site and for the most part we are the only ones left. Actually I switched to WP7 (HTC Arrive) just two weeks ago, I couldn't wait till June or August for HP to drop the Pre 3...they really need to get there act together and quick. I still am a fan of WebOS but everything else about the phone is just terrible or at least has been thus far, 3years!!!
HP knew what consumers wanted so why would they do the exact opposite and make the Veer? No one will ever find out. When I heard that the Veer was coming out before the Pre 3 I just jumped to WP7 and I will encourage others to do so also. Its a very nice OS and the hardware is also really good (HTC, NOKIA, SAMSUNG, etc). I just do not understand how Microsoft, being on the market with WP7 for only several month now, has overtaken HP which has been on the market for a few years (in terms of market share. Doesn't make any sense. I'm not going to be loyal customer to a company that is walking backwards. I have a feeling that HP will stay at the bottom of the food chain in this industry. They simply do not take consumer wants into consideration. Also why would they release the specs on there phones and then release them 6 month later. Complete stupidity. When the Pre 3 comes out every handset maker will have surpassed it by at least one generation. Look at the market now...there are phones that already surpass the Pre 3 by far and thats not including the HTC EVO 3D set to drop two month, also before the Pre 3 drops. WTF HP!!!
I can go on and on...
With how small the Veer is, they should have put the ad on a Smart car.