Palm Pre Drops To $99 at Best Buy
Posted 07/26/09 at 02:53:22 PM by Justin Kerr
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The palm pre has been locked in a heated struggle against Apple over iTunes sync capabilities, but everybody knew they still had larger obstacles to overcome, namely price. When Apple reduced the cost of their iPhone 3G to $99 at its last WWDC, many described it as a game changer. The Palm Pre is a great device, but given the maturity and runaway popularity of the iPhone, the debut price of $199 for a Pre was clearly a problem.
The good news for Palm fans that have been holding off on upgrading, is that you can now pickup a Pre for only $99 on a two-year contract. It remains unclear if this price cut will be permanent, but it should at least help spark sales temporarily and get more Pre’s into the market.
Is this the price point you were waiting for?
Edit: Best Buy marketing manager John Bernier has reported via Twitter that the Pre is in fact still priced at $199 and that the "error is being corrected."
I wish, bro. You have no
Submitted by I Jedi on Sun, 07/26/2009 - 9:53pm
EXTRA POST - Please Ignore
GET IT WHILE YOU CAN! It's a
Submitted by SEALBoy on Sun, 07/26/2009 - 7:46pm
GET IT WHILE YOU CAN!
It's a pricing error! Read the update on the link in the article.
Price is great but Sprint is not
Submitted by Baer on Sun, 07/26/2009 - 6:37pm
Look, Palm does not get it. There are many of us that will not change from Verizon no matter if the Pre or iPhones were free. Lack of droped calls and call quality are everything. If Verizon had them I would get either an iPhone or a Pree but I will not go to Sprint and under no circumstances short of the end or the world would I return to AT&T wireless.
Submitted by mesiah on Tue, 07/28/2009 - 12:09am
I used to feel the same way. I have been a long time verizon customer and until this past year I was very happy with the service. Verizon has always been more expensive than the other wireless companies, but you where paying a premium for great customer service. Over the past year I have had several dealings with vzw customer service that were far less than stellar. I am a patient person, but when it takes 3-4 calls to customer service to get a problem fixed its simply unacceptable. I've been told I will have my acount credited for billing errors only to not get a dime until I call threatening to cancel my service, then the credits magically apear.
As for call quality, I moved into a fairly new neighborhood about 3 years ago, so I wasn't surprised that I only had 0-1 bar of signal strength. But its been 3 years now, and I have seen other companies put up towers in the area. I still have the same crappy signal on both my wifes and my phone. The same constant dropped calls, and don't even think about using the data services.
As for price. I am getting tired of being slapped in the face by verizon. They are one of the few companies left that punish their customers for buying a smartphone. You can have the same exact service on a smart phone as you do a traditional phone and it costs a minimum of $15 more a month. Sprint has a family plan with 2 lines, 700 minutes, unlimited data, unlimited text messaging, and unlimited picture messaging for $129 a month. You can get the same exact plan from verizon, also for $129 a month. However, if your phone has an html based browser you are not eligible for that plan. You have to pay $70 a month for 2 lines at 700 minutes. Then $45 per phone for unlimited data, and $10 per phone for text messaging. All that comes out to a whopping $180 a month for two phones, a small amount of minutes, and a limited number of texts per month. Sorry, but for smartphone users, I can't see how verizon is still an option in this current economic state.My current contract is up in 2 months, and my wife and I will be moving on to a company that doesn't cost me over $2000 a year for wireless service.
Submitted by ETNPNYS on Mon, 07/27/2009 - 11:18am
This is exactly where I'm at. Everybody around me doesn't seem to understand, but I'm afraid I sound like a Verizon commercial sometimes... There's just absolutely no way I'm going back to AT&T/Cingular/AT&T. I really never thought I would be happy with a cell company until I went to Verizon. The good news is that we VZW peeps will be able to get our hands the better phones around December of this year, when the Pre/Sprint contract expires.
<><
Submitted by CodeDelta16 on Sun, 07/26/2009 - 4:53pm
Locked? What do you mean? If you're referring to open-source capabilities - the Pre is one of the few devices that is completely open source (simialar to Android) and has full documentation available from Palm for working with its various features and OS capabilities. Almost a hacking guide with the Palm seal.
If it's the lock-to-sprint problem, well the titans have chosen their game. Don't blame the product.
Submitted by comptech08 on Sun, 07/26/2009 - 6:12pm
I remember reading somewhere that Webos is not completely open source. It requires some money for something, i dont know i could be completely off my rocker.
Submitted by I Jedi on Sun, 07/26/2009 - 8:08pm
It is closed source with open source componets.
Submitted by comptech08 on Sun, 07/26/2009 - 9:33pm
ya that is what i was thinking. It is not like android at all. Android is completely open source.
I have had mine for
Submitted by Fossil on Sun, 07/26/2009 - 1:23pm
I have had mine for about 4 days now, and I love it. I could honestly give a rats ass about the itunes sync battle because for what I put on it (mp3's and Movies) I just drag and drop through my computer.
Submitted by I Jedi on Sun, 07/26/2009 - 1:30pm
If only it didn't have WebOS...
The Palm Pre was a phone I was seriously considering getting, but after a friend of mine told me that WebOS was locked by Palm Pre I dropped that idea and went over to HTC and found the Hero with Android.
Still, I have great respect for the Palm Pre. I've had the chance to use one briefly from a friend who has one. Very cool and sleek smartphone.
Submitted by comptech08 on Sun, 07/26/2009 - 3:33pm
How is the Hero working for you? Looks like a pretty sweet phone. I got the Hero theme running on my G1, really like it. Wish I had enough ram on the G1 to run the sense UI.
Submitted by I Jedi on Sun, 07/26/2009 - 8:07pm
The HTC Hero is not out yet in the U.S., but I do plan to get one as soon as they become available. However, from the reviews I've read all over the Internet, it looks like the phone will be great. Although, maybe not worth waiting for when the HTC Magic is already coming out a lot sooner in the U.S.
Submitted by comptech08 on Sun, 07/26/2009 - 9:34pm
ya i know its not out here in US, just thought you might be from another country or somehow purchased it from somebody over seas.
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