Tech analysts were recently pleased at the announcement that Palm’s Pre device would be able to sync with Apple’s iTunes software, but now it seems their hopes may be dashed.
Apple recently updated the support information on its site, and has added a new category titled “iTunes: About unsupported third-party digital media players”.
“Apple designs the hardware and software to provide seamless integration of the iPhone and iPod with iTunes, the iTunes Store, and tens of thousands of apps on the App Store. Apple is aware that some third-parties claim that their digital media players are able to sync with Apple software,” the site reads.
“However, Apple does not provide support for, or test for compatibility with, non-Apple digital media players and, because software changes over time, newer versions of Apple’s iTunes software may no longer provide syncing functionality with non-Apple digital media players.”
The update is possibly a warning to Palm users hoping to use iTunes to regularly ‘sync’ their device with a media library. Unfortunately, it seems Pre owners may not enjoy compatibility for much longer.
Patrick Stafford is a freelance journalist and a former deputy editor of SmartCompany.
