Outside the Apple store, my adventure began. Surprisingly, I didn't get mugged by the long line of folks waiting for the 3GS.

"It's nice to have a real, physical keyboard again. Didn't realize how much I missed it. (Sorry, 3GS.)"

The Pre's keyboard is one of the biggest things in Palm's favor right now. The 3GS's speed makes typing on the screen a whole lot quicker and easier than it has been on past iPhones, but my thumbs need more physical feedback.

Here's what really surprised me: I'm always complaining about how I hate small laptop keyboards, which would make the Pre's tiny pad seem like a prime hate target--but there I was, banging out texts and e-mail a whole lot faster than I could on screen with an iPhone. It took me a couple days to get used to daintily using the pad of my thumbs, but it worked. And I have goony sausage stumps for fingers.

While I'm on the subject, I found a bunch of neat little to keep your digits dancing.