As 2009 draws to a close, more and more confirmations are appearing to suggest that several WebOS are headed to Verizon Wireless in early 2010. The latest rumor comes from a PhoneArena article claiming that some VZW tipsters are reporting the presence of a “Palm Pre Plus” in big red’s internal inventory system. Unfortunately, there is no clear indication of specs, pricing, or release date thus far.

For quite some time the rumor mill has been reporting several different possibilities for an improved version of the Pre on Verizon. These claims have ranged from the likely (16GB of internal storage and/or a microSD slot) to the far-fetched (a larger-size LCD). Based on Palm’s past history with upgraded devices such as the 700w/700wx, the most plausible scenario would see Verizon initially carrying refreshed versions of the Pre and Pixi, with webOS 1.3.5 possibly standard. Then those updated versions will presumably arrive on Sprint in the Q2/Q3 timeframe to replace the original ’09 editions.

Source: Palm Info Center.

Handhelds · Palm · palm pixi · PalmPre · PhoneArena · Sprint Nextel · VerizonWireless · WebOS

One of Verizon’s first webOS phones will be a direct upgrade to the Pre if a leak is accurate. The company’s internal systems reportedly show a “Palm Pre Plus” without supplying further details. What it would involve isn’t clear, but the badge suggests a similar design and that upgrades are most likely to revolve around more storage or better performance.
The tip to Phone Arena is the first to directly point to a new Palm model outside of Sprint and backs up a report of advance Verizon training for webOS as a platform. The carrier is also rumored to be receiving a Wi-Fi equipped Pixi and appears to be committing to Palm in a significant way. Both phones could be critical for the smartphone maker as its lack of carrier choices, combined with competition from the iPhone, has led to declining sales even compared to its pre-webOS days.

Read the full story on Electronista

iPhone · Palm · palm pixi · PalmPre · Smartphone · Sprint · Verizon Communications · WebOS

There’s been plenty of speculation as to when Verizon will begin offering the Palm Pre or the Pixi, but some leaked internal training slides would suggest that it’ll be sooner rather than later.

According to Phone Arena these 20-minute long training sessions are “to re-introduce Palm and webOS to [Verizon's] personnel [and] will be ongoing until January 4, 2010,” so we could speculate that there’ll be some excitement in the first quarter of the year.

Source: Gizmodo

Handhelds · Palm · Palm OS · palm pixi · PalmPre · Verizon · Verizon Communications · WebOS

While still only on Sprint, the Pixi and the Pre are in the middle of a price war between Amazon and Wal-Mart each trying to undercut the other with low, low prices in a bid to grab more online market share.

PreCentral.net has been tracking the Amazon-Walmart price war as it relates to the Pre and Pixi, which are listed on the official Sprint.com Web site for $149 and $99 respectively (with two-year contracts), although only after a $100 mail-in rebate (that’s the part where you have to fill in the paper form, cut the UPC off the cardboard box, and wait six to eight weeks for your refund; ugh).

Thanks to the battle between the two online shopping giants, however, both the Pre and the Pixi have been seeing steep discounts over the past couple of weeks.

The price tags vary from day to day, but as of Tuesday morning, I spotted the Palm Pixi for just $25 (again, with a two-year Sprint contract) on both Amazon.com and Walmart.com … no mail-in rebate required.

As for the Pre, which sold at launch for $200 with service, Walmart.com currently has it listed for $99 with a two-year contract, while Amazon is down to $80 with a two-year service agreement. (PreCentral previously found the Pre on Walmart.com for $75, but the price must have gone back up.)

Read the full story at Yahoo.

Amazon.com · Contract · Online shopping · palm pixi · Price war · Rebate · Wal-Mart · Walmart.com

Online phone retailer Wirefly is launching the Palm Pixi at a price lower than you’ll find anywhere else: $24.95 for new contract customers. Current Sprint customers won’t left out in the cold either – they’ll be able to pick up the Pixi from Wirefly for a mere $99.99 with a renewed contract. Both new customers and current Sprint subscribers will be treated to a rebate-free experience.

[Source: Pre Central]

Handhelds · Palm · Palm OS · palm pixi · Sprint · Sprint Nextel · Unix and Linux · Verizon