Wonderful world of Palm VII
Palm Computing finally released the Palm VII nationwide today (that's October 4, 1999) for $499, down from its original price of $599.

To start using the Palm VII's Internet access, you have to sign up to the Palm.Net service, which has expanded its coverage from the metropolitan New York area to over 260 areas of the U.S. without additional roaming charges.

All you have to do to sign up is raise the antenna and enter your billing and credit card information or your purchase order information onto the screen that appears. If you're new to the service, you'll have to pay a one-time set-up fee of $9.99.

By using Palm.Net, you can use the Web clipping applications to get information from Web sites like ABC News, Bank of America, ESPN.com, Moviephone.com, and others. Palm Computing just announced new applications from Amazon.com and Fidelity Investments, which will let you shop and trade stocks with your Palm VII.

Email and instant messages
Palm VII organizers include the iMessenger application. This will let you send and receive instant messages wirelessly.

There are now third-party applications on Palm.Net if you want to use the Palm VII for sending and receiving email messages from your Internet service provider (ISP), POP3, IMAP, or Internet-based email provider.

If you get your email through an ISP, POP3, or IMAP mail, there's the Thin Air Mail Web clipping application.

There's also Monkey Mail's service, which forwards ISP mail directly into your Palm VII's iMessenger account.

If you use corporate mail, there's the Visto Briefcase. This application is on a desktop that is connected to your corporate network and automatically forwards your mail to the Palm VII.

For Internet-based mail from Excite or Yahoo!, you can get your mail through their Web clipping services. AOL plans to develop a Web clipping application, which is expected to be introduced by the end of the year.

For details on downloading these and setup instructions, check out http://www.palm.net.

New service plan
Perhaps the biggest change in Palm.Net is the price of the service. There are now three options you can use to sign up to the service.

The first one is the Basic Plan, where you pay $9.99 per month for 50 kilobytes, or approximately 80 transactions. The second is the Expanded Plan, which will cost you $24.99 per month for 150 KB, or roughly 240 transactions.

Finally, there's the brand-spanking new Volume Plan. For $39.99 per month, you can get 300 kilobytes, or about 480 transactions.

Palm Computing set up a special promotion for those of you who sign up to the Palm.Net service before January 4, 2000. If you sign up before January 4, you'll receive a whopping 1,000 KB per month for the first six months of service.

What if you use more than what you signed up for? There's an overcharge of $.20 per kilobyte on all service plans.

For more on the Palm VII, read Bob Freud's review of the Palm VII at http://www.palmpower.com/issues/issue199906/palmseven001.html.