Palm Pre Listed on Best Buy's Site for a Whopping $850

The Palm Pre will cost $199 with contract or about $549 (from Sprint) without a contract. So why is BestBuy.com listing the phone itself for EIGHT HUNDRED AND FIFTY FREAKING DOLLARS?? We'll assume it's a misprinted placeholder price and carry on with our day. We'll also assume that no one will pay an extra $300 to buy the Pre at Best Buy rather than just breaking their contract with Sprint.

[Originally posted at gizmodo.com[Best Buy via BGR]]

Palm confirms no visual voicemail on Pre

Ah, Twitter, how did we communicate with our favorite corporations before you came about? Mr. Yuhnke has taken advantage of Palm’s relative openness over Twitter and posed the question to Palm: does the Pre come with visual voicemail? Palm’s response is of course pro-Pre, pointing out the wonders of Synergy, but in the end the answer is indeed no. Of course, it is entirely possible that somebody could write an app that will enable visual voicemail on the Pre, but don’t expect to see it on June 6th.

[Originally posted at precentral.net]

Palm Pre Users Already Viewing Ads—Even Before The Launch

Despite the fact that the Palm (NSDQ: PALM) Pre won’t go on sale until June 6, initial users running around in the wild have already started viewing ads on the phone, according to Millennial Media, which released its second-ever monthly mobile advertising report today. While Millennial’s report only represents a portion of the overall mobile ad traffic in the U.S., it’s worth looking at its results given that it is one of the largest mobile ad networks in the U.S. Release.

Besides, the Palm Pre, the company reported that the number of ads served to iPhone and iPod Touch jumped by 8 percent compared to the prior month, helping Apple (NSDQ: AAPL) edge out LG (SEO: 066570) as the No. 2 device manufacturer. At that level of ad impressions, Millennial said the iPhone/Touch set an all-time record for company when it comes to most ads served to a single device during a given month. For the second month in a row, Samsung’s plethora of devices continued to hold on to the No. 1 spot when it comes to the number of ads served to a given handset manufacturer.

Other findings:

—The BlackBerry Storm entered the company’s top 20 list at No. 15.
—Qwerty keyboards surpassed the traditional keypad as the top input method.
—The number of Millennial customers interested in targeting very specific audiences vs. certain demographics grew by four times. That means, rather than targeting users based on simple “meta data,” like gender, a very specific audience was crafted based on information collected on an opt-in basis (for instance, a person’s preferred movie genre).

[Originally posted at moconews.net]

Palm Pre TouchStone Video

Enjoy Watching the working of TouchStone.

Palm Pre Getting Big Push From Best Buy

The electronics retailer is training its mobile specialists in the finer points of the Pre to prepare them for the Palm smartphone's launch June 6.

As Sprint Nextel (NYSE: S) and Palm gear up for their all-important launch of the Pre smartphone June 6, they'll be getting some strong support from the 1,067Best Buy (NYSE: BBY) Mobile locations.

Sprint is looking at its exclusive deal to market the Palm Pre to reverse its continuing loss of subscribers. At the same time, Palm needs the Pre's novel features to return it to the front ranks of high-end mobile phones -- a position it lost to the surging iPhone and BlackBerrys.

Best Buy has been training its Best Buy Mobile employees in the finer points of the Pre so they'll be prepared for the Pre's launch.

"We believe the ability to keep multiple applications open at the same time will be a very popular feature of the Palm Pre," Best Buy's Scott Anderson said in an e-mail interview. "It promises to be one of the best-selling smartphones of the year." With the Pre's dual attraction of touch screen and slide-out keyboard, Palm hopes it will have an advantage over other smartphones.

Anderson, who is merchant director of Best Buy Mobile, noted that the company's mobile specialists are receiving "extensive training on the Palm Pre. We offer a program called Walk Out Working -- free in-store smartphone setup by a Best Buy Mobile expert who will sync e-mail accounts, set up Bluetooth peripherals, transfer contacts, and activate other services to allow the customer to leave the store with a fully functional new smartphone."

Best Buy Mobile's approach of having customers ready to hit the ground running with new smartphones -- which are complicated gizmos for many consumers -- could be particularly helpful for Pre users because of the phone's capability of running multiple simultaneous applications.

Once king of the smartphone category, Palm has watched with chagrin as its 40% smartphone market share in 2006 dwindled to 10% in recent market research studies. "This is an opportunity for Palm to invigorate itself and become a serious contender," said Nielsen analyst Roger Entner, otherwise it "could mean the end of the road for Palm."

In addition to Sprint and Best Buy stores, the Pre will be sold at RadioShack and some Wal-Mart outlets.

The phone will cost $199.99 after a mail-in rebate at most locations, although Best Buy's Anderson said an "instant rebate" will be offered at the retailer's locations. The Pre requires a two-year contract and a monthly data plan starting at $69.99 a month.

[Originally posted at informationweek.com]

Palm Pre: $549 Without Contract, Starts at $299 for Existing Customers.

We have been getting a lot of questions on Twitter about what the Palm Pre will run without a contract and also what it will cost existing customers who want to upgrade to the device. Right now Sprint customer service is telling people that the Palm Pre will be $549 if you choose not to sign a 2 year commitment ($50 cheaper than an iPhone 3G without a contract).

This option is mainly for people who want to buy and unlock the Pre to use it with carriers other than Sprint. The majority of people will obviously end up signing a 2-year commitment and get their hands on the device for $200 after the mail in rebate.

For those of you who are already Sprint customers and looking to upgrade, the Pre’s pricing gets a bit more confusing. The Pre will cost pre-existing Sprint customers $299 or $375 after the mail in rebate, depending on which discount you qualify for.

Also, it’s worth noting that Best Buy will be selling the Pre for $200 up front, that’s right, no mail in rebate. So for those of you who are like me and hate dealing with mail in rebates - buy your Pre from Best Buy.

[Originally posted at palmpreblog.com]