Palm's Treo Pro now on sale at Sprint for $249.99

We begged and pleaded for an official announcement back when we saw this beauty all boxed up, and comically enough, we're still waiting for that release. Nevertheless, Sprint has quietly hosted up the long awaited CDMA Treo Pro on its webstore, giving those with an unquenchable thirst for more Windows Mobile something to lust over. For whatever reason, this thing is being priced at $249.99 with a two-year contract ($549.99 free and clear), though we get the feeling that figure will be dropping mighty quickly. Let's just go ahead and call it the Pre effect.

Update: Looks like Sprint's pulled the Treo Pro page from its site already, so they're either not quite ready to hawk it yet or we're looking at the quickest discontinuation in consumer electronics history.

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]

Gallery: Palm's Treo Pro now on sale at Sprint for $249.99

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[Tarnation @ Jan 22nd 2009 9:10AM]

With all that pre hotness coming out soon unless your just jonesin for a WinMobile phone I see no point in this.

[Erwos @ Jan 22nd 2009 9:30AM]

Some people genuinely do need a WinMo phone for work. It doesn't make sense for Palm to drop that part of the market just because they have the Pre.

[hm042 @ Jan 22nd 2009 9:09AM]

Does that set a lower bound tfor the Pre price?

[Paul A. Chapel @ Jan 22nd 2009 9:37AM]

I would settle for a release date, although I had a Treo back in the day and I miss it.

[216 @ Jan 22nd 2009 9:22AM]

Just let me know when they've hacked this baby to run on Verizon then they'll have my $549.99

[216 @ Jan 22nd 2009 9:23AM]

lol o wait i thought this article was about the pre whoops

[cocoviper @ Jan 22nd 2009 9:29AM]

I work at Sprint and was waiting for this thing to launch so I could share some pretty cool info that I discovered a couple weeks ago:

1- It has IE Mobile 6
2- It has some form of flash support (I watched a Palm guy go to the full youtube website (not the transcoded mobile version) and watch videos as well as go to multiple other sites with flash menus.

[Dubb @ Jan 22nd 2009 9:56AM]

Skyfire, Portable Internet Explorer 6 and Opera Mobile 9.5 all support Flash.

[Tony @ Jan 22nd 2009 10:31AM]

What browser is in the phone to support flash?

[Dubb @ Jan 22nd 2009 9:57AM]

Sorry, that should be Pocket Internet Explorer 6.

[Like_A_Glove @ Jan 22nd 2009 9:32AM]

Pre is GOOD, but there are two "O"s in it.

[Jay Voorhees @ Jan 22nd 2009 9:56AM]

The Pre is the Obama of cell phones, and everyone knows that Obama is the second comming of Jesus so you can only imagine what's going to happen when it finally launches.

[backbeat @ Jan 22nd 2009 10:07AM]

Jesus didn't come the first time.

[Bomchickawahwah @ Jan 22nd 2009 10:25AM]

Were you there?

[backbeat @ Jan 22nd 2009 10:44AM]

@Bomchickawahwah: I have it on the highest of authority. ;)

[backbeat @ Jan 22nd 2009 9:45AM]

Make that $349/2-yr contract unless you opt for _approved_ plans which require overkill/overspending, ala iPhone.

[iKurt @ Jan 22nd 2009 10:05AM]

iPhone is better and cheaper.

[tartis99 @ Jan 22nd 2009 10:10AM]

The iPhone may have a good browser, but it is a kiddie phone in compared to this model. In my job, I need to cut and paste to work. I also need to be able to use Microsoft Exchange. Not everyone wants the iPhone, and it will not work for many serious applications. The iPhone is great for many things, but there is much lacking that Apple needs to address.

[backbeat @ Jan 22nd 2009 10:17AM]

^If your job requires you to cut-and-paste all the time _on a mobile device_, look for a better job.

iPhone supports Exchange and has for some time. With Pocket Informant being developed for iPhone, it will fit it like a glove.

[Aaron @ Jan 22nd 2009 10:20AM]

Hey iKurt, why don't you give up your dumbass trolling charade? You really make yourself look extremely stupid with all that self-ownage.

[zioncat @ Jan 22nd 2009 10:21AM]

@iKurt seriously why does every Mac fanboy always have to say apple this apple that. Its like there will never be a product outside of Apple to please you. Just let it go.

[Bomchickawahwah @ Jan 22nd 2009 10:26AM]

Also, does everyone forget how expensive the plans are for the iPhone. Yes, the phone may be cheaper, but for the equivalent plan on ATT, you'll be paying at least $40 more to have everything that you find in Sprint's Everything plans.

[backbeat @ Jan 22nd 2009 10:34AM]

@tartis99:

Exchange has been supported by iPhone for some time.

If your job requires you to cut-n-paste _on a mobile device_ all the time, look for a better opportunity ... like flipping burgers.

Not everyone likes being forced to pay for "feature packs" of content they will never use, just to get 'Everything'. Not everyone is a 20-something punk with no responsibilities.

[Steve-o @ Jan 22nd 2009 11:04AM]

@ iKurt

I for one would like to thank you and other Apple fanboys (read: iEye) for adding the prefix " i " to let us all know that you're an Apple fanboy and not just a moron.

[CJ @ Jan 22nd 2009 11:11AM]

Flipping burgers eh?

No wonder my life has been in the dumps! It's all that Copying and Pasting I have to do when I out and about and only have my phone on me.

Thankyou, thankyou, now I can do something that REALLY matters, and now I'll also be able to shrug off the horrors of Windows Mobile and get an iPhone!

Oh wait, I'm flipping burgers, I can't afford one.

[backbeat @ Jan 22nd 2009 11:41AM]

^You're obviously paid very little or your company has ill-prepared you for the job they hired you for. Shame that it is. Maybe a $200 netbook would better suit you. ;)

[Phoenix @ Jan 22nd 2009 1:36PM]

IF HE GETS A JOB FLIPPING BURGERS he won't be able to afford an iPhone.

I'm 15, and I wouldn't change my Kaiser for anything else (except a Touch Pro), certainly till the Pre launches. The kind of person I am, I need winmo's power and adaptability.

[dukemang @ Jan 22nd 2009 12:03PM]

Sprint...yeah...not so much for me. When Palm gonna do GSM for AT&T?

[TopaZ @ Jan 22nd 2009 10:29AM]

I still can't figure out what the main differences are between this and the 800w -- they seem to be targeted for identical markets.

[Kris @ Jan 22nd 2009 11:58AM]

The 800w was created by Palm. The Treo Pro was designed and built by HTC.

The 800w includes many of Palm's custom applications such as the today screen plugin for phone calls and a couple of other things I can't remember. The 800w also has a nicer keyboard.

The Treo Pro has a 3.5mm jack (the 800w lacks this; UGH) and a flush screen.

Other than that they're basically the same. Buying a Treo Pro is basically buying an HTC phone where as the 800w is more of a real Palm phone.

[JAmerican @ Jan 22nd 2009 1:38PM]

Actually, its made by Inventec. Palm does not manufacture devices in house. They let third parties make their devices. Although, they do have a large say in what the phone will look like.

[JAmerican @ Jan 22nd 2009 1:39PM]

The 800w = Inventec. 850/Pro = HTC

[ZX10RGuy @ Jan 22nd 2009 10:35AM]

I work at Sprint and we've had the advocate (demo) phone in the store for a week now. I've gotten to play with it quite a bit and it's pretty cool. I've got a Touch Pro so I won't be upgrading to this, but if I didn't I probably would.

You can go into just about any store and ask to see the advocate Pro and they should let you check it out.

Sprint will be releasing a press release tomorrow about the phone's price and release date. The release date is the 25th of this month and the pricing is spot on.

[esoterica @ Jan 22nd 2009 11:31AM]

Seems to be gone off Sprint's site already.

[Hackettman @ Jan 22nd 2009 12:28PM]

I personally like this phone better than the pre. I think the pre is a delicious piece of hardware but honestly I like my winmo phone. Ive had one for years and like what direction theyre going in with the same functionality its hard for me to go in a new direction. I see the pre like the iphone where its less about.... I cant really describe it. Well the iphone has a great amount of storage space has great browsing and texting capability. But the email function isnt everything it can be and the office productivity is neary a great thing. (Mind you Ive used but never owned an iphone because of these reasons...... and dont worry apple fanboys and girls Im not bashing the phone)

Maybe its just time honored tradition but I love my nicely windows installed life. Im most likely going to get this phone.... Thanks to engadgets readers party really where I got to fondle the phone....

[ekimagem @ Jan 22nd 2009 1:30PM]

Yea....So i checked the site and its GONE. I called Sprint Askin About it and i was told and i quote...

"Our Web department has reported it as a glitch when it was on our site. That error has been corrected and the Phone will be released in MAY 2009"

What a joke....and they wonder why customers leave for other carriers with newer phones.

Tmobile has the Sidekick, G1, and In Feb the Blackberry 8900,
Verizon Has the Storm
AT&T has the Tilt, IPhone, and Blackberry Bold

All exclusive only to them.....

Meanwhile Theres No smartphone on sprint u couldnt get anywhere else....and thats why people skip

[Freakin Ijit @ Jan 22nd 2009 1:52PM]

yeah, this is what a TreoCentral guy says:

http://discussion.treocentral.com/showpost.php?p=1547436&postcount=42

[Pascal @ Jan 22nd 2009 10:03PM]

May 2009 is the Pre. The Pro will be this weekend. I tried it in store. Very fast very cool. Swapped out my micro card and installed a number of windows mobile programs including some heavyweights. Runs very well. It is very good machine.
If you don't like the keyboard on the Pro you will not like the one on the Pre.