Palm makes a new phone and no one buys it (again)

Having survived a near-death experience to launch the webOS operating system, Palm crashed and burned as an independent company earlier this year and had to be rescued by Hewlett-Packard.

HP just unveiled the latest version of webOS, and also unveiled the Palm Pre 2, which is a definite upgrade from the original Pre, though not a revolutionary change. Verizon Wireless (NYSE:VZ) is set to once again be Palm's partner for the launch, but what if no one actually warms up to webOS, even after HP's massive investment?

The combined marketing efforts of Sprint Nextel (NYSE:S), Palm, Verizon and AT&T Mobility (NYSE:T) were not enough to sell a smartphone-mad public on Palm the first time around. Does Palm have another comeback in it?

Jon Rubinstein, Palm's former CEO and now the senior vice president and general manager of the Palm Global Business Unit at HP, certainly hopes so.