Palm Pre a Best Buy exclusive?
By Thomas Ricker 
posted Jan 15th 2009 5:26AM
posted Jan 15th 2009 5:26AM
[Via PhoneArena]
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How is it exclusive to Best Buy if you can also find it at Sprint stores? Did the word 'exclusive' get watered down while I was away?
i like swords
"Saber!"
"No Mr. Connery, those are S words. Words that begin with the letter S, not swords."
"But it began with a bloody S!"
God, I miss SNL Jeopardy.
Obviously the marketing dept and the design dept are two totally seperate entities. First off why on Sprint? Does Sprint have more users than ATT and potential Tmobile unlockers or vice versa? CDMA? Wha?
And why make it exclusive anything? Money? C'mon already.
Power to the people!!!
They hype this shit up then bring half the population back down... "Look what sweet device we got. Oh but half of you can't use it unless you fork over loads of money to pay an ETF and switch carriers."
What person in America doesn't have a cell phone already. And if they don't I highly doubt their first one will be a Palm Pre.
If you're going to make a CDMA and a GSM version release them at the same damn time.
They're going with Sprint because Sprint is their most loyal customer. They currently carry 3 Palm phones, AT&T only sells one, and Verizon only 2. Plus they would probably rather compete with a different carrier than iPhone is on, and Verizon has so many choices for phones due to their size advantage over Sprint that this probably give Palm the best exclusivity agreement they could get, particularly given their history with Sprint as a good customer.
How can it possibly be exclusive at Best Buy? I was at my local branch and asked specifically if they even supported sprint or planned to. The answer was no. Maybe it's just our branch, but from what I've been told the store here is one of the bigger, better performing stores. While i was there I explained to him I only wanted to know because of the Pre, and he had never heard of the thing. I'm running on a Treo right now because I refuse to use anything but Palm, now I have an upgrade, but I'm on AT&T. :(
all you guys are just jealous. Why Sprint? Get over it guys. If you want the Pre, Get on the nation's fastest and most inexpensive network and stop the sprint is terrible rhetoric. Or just continue to pay for your over price Verizon and At&t plans (suckeeers) on your mediocre phones, except iphone ofcourse. Want Pre, Go Sprint. Besides Sprint is not the same Company they were 5 years ago. Can't wait to get my Pre.
Its the Pre Pre order at Best Buy
I think Palm should focus more on market penetration and try to regain as wide a user-and-fanbase as possible. I'm not sure how exclusivity to retailers would "help" this objective.
A great way to do that would be to release a GSM version HERE!
That really bugs me. I'm on T-Mo and I'd pay at least $300 for this device, maybe more. Make all flavors of it to reprop your buisness, palm!
Actually, a great way would be to give me one and I shall bestow the awesome virtues of Palm's new WebOS upon all my friends and also the Pre's hardware's greatness shall seal the deal. Hey Palm, trust me, it's a good deal for you! ;)
It could be a psychological thing. Like they're hoping people think, "It's only at Best Buy? Let's get there before everyone else does!" If they released it everywhere right away, folks would probably feel less urgency to check it out.
Makes sense to me. Palm needs the Pre to be seen by as many eyes as possible when it is released -- and I'd think that BestBuy would have more foot traffic than your local Sprint store.
Put that baby side by side with the hypePhone and let people know that there is a solid alternative to the closed world of Apple. Go Palm!!
The title for the article should be
Premature failure vs the hypePhone fight
Isn't that profile picture a little inappropriate?
@CUBSWILLWIN:
That profile picture only reflects what you are thinking.
I was "uh? how is it inappropiate?" It is an "A" with weird dots.
And then Oh, two people, ok, first I tought a male an a female in a bench, the female looking up...still...not That inappropiate...
Then...I see what you saw
Dirty mind!
hehe
Still fun.
Completely agree with helixtimestwo.
I think it's a good move. Where better to sell it than at the biggest, and frankly, unchallenged, consumer electronics store? Sounds like a no-brainer to me.
Is the Palm Pre only for businessmen or is it good for personal use and for a college student as well?
Sweet, so iI had my hours cut back at work just so we could sell a phone 60 days before other people. Yeah for corporate.
Who seriously cares? Why do they even sell cell phones outside of the carrier stores? You know who your carrier is, when it comes time to buy a new phone most people are going to go to the store that carries all the available phones for their carrier, not a place that has a randomly chosen selection of phones from each one.
You'd be surprised how many phones get sold at those mall kiosks and random placements like BB.
Honestly, more people walk around in BB than in a Sprint store, atleast on the east coast, where 1/2 of people seemingly have verizon.
I don't like apple products very much, but they realized this too and placed a Touch kiosk in alot of Walmart stores just to get people to look and touch it.
They may make alot of their sales at Sprint stores, but BB will be the messenger, the commercial maker, and the first place all of the niche crowds will go to look at this thing. Believe it!
rip dattebayo (atleast to me)
I think you answered your own question: "You know who your carrier is"
Palm & Sprint don't care about you if you're already a Sprint customer (exaggeration but you get the drift). They want new eyes, ears & wallets.
When my contract last expired, I went right to a Best Buy to check out what all the different carriers had to offer.
Well that certainly cancels out the RadioShack rumor that said the Pre was coming late January/early February!
Gotta love those rumors!
I am eating up all the Pre coverage. Keep it coming.
Its funny that a lot of the apple fanboys want it to stop. I guess we both know what the other side feels like.
Well all fanboys are different. For example I'm an Apple fanboy but I really love this Pre coverage and think there really is too much Apple stuff here. I mean no wonder Apple stock falls when Steve is sick when even an iPod dock is "breaking" here. Sites like Tuaw or MacruMors have less Apple coverage.
I now have a permanent Firefox tab reserved for Pre related stuff. It will stay there until I have this phone in my hands.
I just bought my Touch Pro in December, but I have already been thinking about the Pre. Damn technology and its resultant consumer short-sightedness!
Anyway, I'm going to stick with my Pro, but this phone seriously looks awesome. It's a shame my old device had to break, because I would certainly be up for an upgrade to this device otherwise.
You know, your Pro can break too if you REALLY wanted it to.
Sorry for the double post, but has there been any info on how strong the radios in this phone are? Like, how good the GPS and the call reception / quality is? Since this is solely on Sprint (for the time being), there is obviously going to be a bit of scrutiny in such areas, methinks.
Put it this way, I've been in the lower level of a parking structure beneath a multiple story building in downtown Los Angeles, in the basement area of buildings, I am still able to get good call reception and a GPS signal. Sprints signal has damn good permeation.
Hrm, my house must be made of lead or something because I usually only get 2 bars max no matter where I go, and if it's in my basement, I'm lucky if I can make calls at all.
Great, they finally make an awesome device and lock it into the worst phone company and the most evil store.
Looks like the comeback might have died before it got off the ground.
I want the Pre yesterday, but NOT from Sprint. I'm a roamer.
I can't believe it there won't be a GSM unlocked version for 3 FULL MONTHS. That's a lot of time.
Of course it will be a Best Buy exclusive. By this time next week, they will be the only big-box electronics retailer still in business!
My thoughts exactly!
Well, being a best buy exclusive worked great for Chinese Democracy.
I returned an HTC phone last night and told them I was going to wait it out for the Pre and the manager said they were going to be the exclusive retailer for the Pre... thought that was strange to say but I guess not....
I don't see how this is a big deal or would affect anything at all? If you hate BB, then just get it from the Sprint store. If you hate Sprint, then you won't be getting this phone, now will you?
Personally, I'd rather get it from Best Buy than Sprint. Reward points and good extended warranty if you opt for it.
BTW - their extended warranty or "service plan" is crap. Save your money.
Customer Rep @ BestBuy : Sir, really. If you buy these $2500 Monster cables your phone will be able to handle the UI better
"And we don't work on commissions, really."
Actually, they aren't on commission, although you wouldn't notice because corporate makes them harass people so much. I worked at Worst Purchase for about 3 years and haven't set foot in the store since I quit. Their "service plan" is utter crap, as if it were actually of much benefit to the customer at all they wouldn't be making any money on them...ergo they wouldn't be selling them.
i prefer to shop at Frys
For the record, I think some folks are misinformed or they're confused. The Palm Pre is exclusive to Sprint in terms of American carrier branding. Bestbuy apparently will carry the Pre which again, will have Sprint branding. Palm said the Euro GSM version will be released in regions not served by Sprint. Most likely there will not be branding from a carrier in Europe, Asia, you will most likely have to buy the GSM version straight from Palm. There will be a GSM or CDMA (or both) version for Canada, GSM will probably go to Rogers and CDMA will probably go to Telus.
the Palm Pre's cumming to Best Buy!
I'm with 000000!
If you're gonna put this time and resources into R&D to create what you think will be a great phone create and release both versions (CDMA&GSM) at the same time!
that is where I will be getting my palm pre so it don't matter too me.
Son of a bitch ...
This better not be true.
Stop ragging on Sprint. My Sprint phones are great. .... I wonder how long we get a Pre Walke Talkie Yellow mess nextel construction industry less than average iq moustashe culture wonder.