iPhone rival Palm Pre to sell for $199 after rebate on June 6th
Sprint Nextel Corp said Tuesday that Palm's much anticipate Pre smartphone will launch on its 3G network Saturday June 6th for $199.99 with a two-year service agreement and after a $100 mail-in rebate.
The announcement comes amid increasing speculation from industry watchers who believe Apple, an established rival standing in Palm's path to regaining steep market share losses, may use its annual developers conference two days later to counter the PDA device maker's latest handset with its own line of updated iPhones.
Availability
Sprint says the Pre will be available nationwide in Sprint stores, Best Buy, Radio Shack, select Wal-Mart stores and online at Sprint.com. The carrier also took a pot-shot at rival wireless providers by claiming that the device will come with its value-oriented Everything Data plans that "offer savings of up to $1,430 over two years versus comparable AT&T and Verizon plans for smartphones and PDAs."
Calling plans
Upon closer inspection, however, it appears that Sprint based those comparisons on the unlimited minute options for Verizon PDA/Smartphone Nationwide Email & Messaging with the VZ Navigator add-on and AT&T's Nation plan with the addition of a PDA Personal Bundle and AT&T Navigator.
Sprint's cheapest "Everything Data" plan with unlimited data usage starts at $69.99 per month for 450 anytime minutes, essentially inline with AT&T's entry-level iPhone plan, but also includes unlimited MMS messaging. A plan with 900 minutes fetches $89.99 while a plan with unlimited data and voice -- Simply Everything -- costs $99.99.
The Pre handset
Listed among the Pre's features is a 3.1-inch touchscreen supplemented by a physical slide-out keyboard, 8GB of internal storage, GPS, Wi-Fi 802.11b/g, 3-megapixel camera, and a removable battery. It will run and mark the debut of Palm's new webOS platform based on standard open web technologies such as CSS, XHTML, and JavaScript.
Among the software's highlights is Palm Synergy, a key feature that brings together a user's personal and professional calendar, contacts and e-mail into one centralized view, making transitions between work and personal applications easier to manage.
Unlike the iPhone, Palm has said that the Pre will run multiple apps at the same time, each one "seamlessly connected to the web and always active."Â*Using the device's multi-touch-like screen surface, users will be able to instantly flip from one app to another as if they were sifting through a deck of playing cards on a table."
"You can move back and forth between text messaging and e-mail, or search the web while you listen to music," the company said. "You can rearrange items simply by dragging them, and when you are done with something, just throw it away by flicking it off the top of the screen.
Each Pre comes with a charger in the box, but Palm will also market a $49.99 Touchstone charging dock, which it claims is the first inductive charging solution for phones, available exclusively for Pre. When bundled with a Touchstone back cover for Pre, the dock will sell for $69.99.
The announcement comes amid increasing speculation from industry watchers who believe Apple, an established rival standing in Palm's path to regaining steep market share losses, may use its annual developers conference two days later to counter the PDA device maker's latest handset with its own line of updated iPhones.
Availability
Sprint says the Pre will be available nationwide in Sprint stores, Best Buy, Radio Shack, select Wal-Mart stores and online at Sprint.com. The carrier also took a pot-shot at rival wireless providers by claiming that the device will come with its value-oriented Everything Data plans that "offer savings of up to $1,430 over two years versus comparable AT&T and Verizon plans for smartphones and PDAs."
Calling plans
Upon closer inspection, however, it appears that Sprint based those comparisons on the unlimited minute options for Verizon PDA/Smartphone Nationwide Email & Messaging with the VZ Navigator add-on and AT&T's Nation plan with the addition of a PDA Personal Bundle and AT&T Navigator.
Sprint's cheapest "Everything Data" plan with unlimited data usage starts at $69.99 per month for 450 anytime minutes, essentially inline with AT&T's entry-level iPhone plan, but also includes unlimited MMS messaging. A plan with 900 minutes fetches $89.99 while a plan with unlimited data and voice -- Simply Everything -- costs $99.99.
The Pre handset
Listed among the Pre's features is a 3.1-inch touchscreen supplemented by a physical slide-out keyboard, 8GB of internal storage, GPS, Wi-Fi 802.11b/g, 3-megapixel camera, and a removable battery. It will run and mark the debut of Palm's new webOS platform based on standard open web technologies such as CSS, XHTML, and JavaScript.
Among the software's highlights is Palm Synergy, a key feature that brings together a user's personal and professional calendar, contacts and e-mail into one centralized view, making transitions between work and personal applications easier to manage.
Unlike the iPhone, Palm has said that the Pre will run multiple apps at the same time, each one "seamlessly connected to the web and always active."Â*Using the device's multi-touch-like screen surface, users will be able to instantly flip from one app to another as if they were sifting through a deck of playing cards on a table."
"You can move back and forth between text messaging and e-mail, or search the web while you listen to music," the company said. "You can rearrange items simply by dragging them, and when you are done with something, just throw it away by flicking it off the top of the screen.
Each Pre comes with a charger in the box, but Palm will also market a $49.99 Touchstone charging dock, which it claims is the first inductive charging solution for phones, available exclusively for Pre. When bundled with a Touchstone back cover for Pre, the dock will sell for $69.99.
Comments
HOT HOT HOT.
its the only other phone that I want... Can't wait till it comes to Canada.
I will switch from the iPhone....
Will the Pre come with a flash?
Love the replaceable battery and the more than one app at a time feature. Will it have a flash?
We will soon find out how hot the multi-tasking thing really is on this thing.
It is good it has a removable battery. I think it will need it.
A key will be how well supported its app store will be.
Some knock AT&T.
Sprint doesn't smell like a rose either.
Now we learn it doesn't even compete on price, until after a mail-in rebate? Mail in rebate? Are you joking?!
Dead.
Wait, here's something: "You can move back and forth between text messaging and e-mail, or search the web while you listen to music," the company said. "You can rearrange items simply by dragging them, and when you are done with something, just throw it away by flicking it off the top of the screen.
Wow! All the things I already do on my iPhone. No seriously, I can do every single one of those things right now. SMS comes up in a pop-up when you're in other apps, and the iPod plays under everything else.
Dead.
Maury
Of course, I somewhat think the Pre would not be this good if the iPhone did not exist.
You can move back and forth between text messaging and e-mail, or search the web while you listen to music
...for the 5 minutes before the battery goes dead. Until there is some massive breakthrough in battery life or power consumption, push notification is a better model.
We will soon find out how hot the multi-tasking thing really is on this thing.
It is good it has a removable battery. I think it will need it.
A key will be how well supported its app store will be.
Some knock AT&T.
Sprint doesn't smell like a rose either.
Battery life is important too. I agree Sprint is pretty bad but still need to read reviews on it and its Sprint signal before passing judgements.
The price is 299, why do these companies always put these stupid rebates, if I go and buy the phone in store, I'm not paying 199, I'll be paying 299.
I'd rather take any stupid rebate from these companies than no rebate from Apple.
I hate rebates too but still prefer it to nothing or $100 off the company's products.
Battery life is important too. I agree Sprint is pretty bad but still need to read reviews on it and its Sprint signal before passing judgements.
I had them for about 3 years and it wasn't anything special to say the least. I really haven't run into a cell phone provider that I thought was simply amazing nor have I really run into one that's God-Awful. I've had really good results w/ AT&T and they even have 3G now in my hometown of 5k (when I go to visit) so I guess that's about as good as I can ask for. I'd say they are obviously lacking in something because if you're offering plans $20 cheaper (check the unlimited MMS included) then you're trying to steal customers based on price and as we all know on this forum the way to make up for a substandard product is to make it cheaper than it's competitors...
That $100 mail-in-rebate is crap too...
You get a $200-$300 instant rebate when you buy an iPhone. You can either get a $199 iPhone w/ no mail in rebate or you can get a $299 Pre and wait for the extra $100 to come back to you. Sounds like a no-brainer... Also, you're going to pay tax on that extra $100 and you certainly aren't going to get that back.
the Palm Pre is hot.
HOT HOT HOT.
its the only other phone that I want... Can't wait till it comes to Canada.
I will switch from the iPhone....
We knew that.
http://developer.palm.com/webos_book/book3.html
I don't see why leaving one window open on one email while typing a new email in another window would consume more battery if the system is done right.
On an aesthetic note I think it (Pre) looks a bit stodgy.
I'd rather take any stupid rebate from these companies than no rebate from Apple.
I hate rebates too but still prefer it to nothing or $100 off the company's products.
An iphone is 199 when you buy it in the store, this phone is 299. The Pre needs a rebate, lol.
Replaceable battery, give me a break. No one stocks up on cell phone batteries, and most of you dump the phone after a year when something better comes out anyway. My Razr worked great, and I never had to replace the battery, and I had the phone for 2 years before I got the iPhone. The only problem: the battery cover would never sit right on the back of the phone. The iPhone battery lasts longer than the Razr battery. I had an old Nokia phone that had a slide-on clip battery that had enough play in it that it would disconnect power whenever it moved. The only solution was taping it to the phone. Replacement batteries had the same problem. So in my opinion, removable batteries suck.
So it "looks good"? Big f-ing deal! Has anyone actually touched or used this thing for longer than 10 seconds? It's a Potemkin Village, folks! It's all facade, smoke, and mirrors!
Tell me: How well does that touch screen actually work? How rugged is it? Battery life good with all those background tasks running all the time? Will you need a bandolero of them for a day's calling and "computing"? How's the reception on the Sprint network? Moreover, how's the Sprint network itself? Hate AT&T and Verizon's coverage? Then you're absolutely going to convulse over Sprint's!
Gonna save some money with this device? Yeah? Not if there aren't any useful, rock-solid applications for it. Not if the service and support after the sale aren't there. Palm is on its way DOWN, ladies and gentlement. The slightest misstep with this phone, and it's GONE.
A TRUISM OF THE ELECTRONICS INDUSTRY: Never, never, never buy anything with a zero on the end of its version number. Now, let's see. The "Pre" is coming out with NO real-world testing by anyone and usage information from no one--and it's in Version 1.0. GOOD LUCK, people. Believe the dream. Maybe this beleaguered company can pull the first miracle in history and release a perfect device the first time.
The grass is always greener on the other side. Always. Until you get there and taste it. (Here's to the BlackBerry Storm, Vista, Windows 7, cars that run on water, the free lunch, and "the check's in the mail.")
I'd rather take any stupid rebate from these companies than no rebate from Apple.
I hate rebates too but still prefer it to nothing or $100 off the company's products.
so for an 8gb iPhone, you'd rather shell out $300 up front, then wait for your 100 bucks to come back in the mail....rather than just pay $200 and be done? Makes sense.....
Didn't the Pre CEO (or sprint CEO, i forget) make some snively comment such as, "why would we price it the same as an iPhone when we have the better product"? HA what a shithead. Is a mail-in rebate his idea of pricing the Pre higher? Gimmie a break.
the one thing iphone lacks is being able to run 1 background app like music streaming, but i hear that if you jailbreak it then you can do that too!
That $100 mail-in-rebate is crap too...
You get a $200-$300 instant rebate when you buy an iPhone. You can either get a $199 iPhone w/ no mail in rebate or you can get a $299 Pre and wait for the extra $100 to come back to you. Sounds like a no-brainer... Also, you're going to pay tax on that extra $100 and you certainly aren't going to get that back.
Good try but that statement is absolutely FALSE.
I know you didn't invent this falacy but perhaps your drink is extra spiked this morning?