The first smartphone to come out of Palm labs under HP management displays a quick processor, 5 mega pixel camera and the new WebOS 2 Operating system that plans on teaching Apple’s iOS something.

HP, which last April acquired Palm, declared yesterday the launch of a new smartphone. The PRE 2 is an upgrade of the first PRE, both in regards to hardware and its OS that receives a significant upgrade. The PRE 2 runs on WebOS 2.0 which a number of analysts claim with give Apple’s iOS a run for its money.

The new model has a design reminiscent of a smooth pebble. It incorporates a sliding physical keyboard with a 3.1 inch capacitive screen. It has 16 Giga internal memory (which can be expanded through an SD slot) 1GHz processor and a 5 mega pixel camera. You can also find full connectivity: Bluetooth, WiFi and GPS which are standard these days.

The most interesting about the new device is the fresh new operating system, the WebOS 2.0. it has new functions such as searching its entire components – including applications, categorizing active applications according to type and purpose and full multi tasking. The first reviews for the system describe a colorful, intuitive user interface which is also very comfortable. On the other hand, the email and messages synchronization system is a little cumbersome for business users and still needs some work and software repairs.

Will it sink or swim?

Analysts believe that a reduced budget and failed marketing campaign are what caused the failure of the first PRE. But HP learns from its mistakes and it intends to revive the brand. The PRE 2 will be launched in France this coming weekend and in a few months in the US and Canada.