With the much-anticipated Palm Pre debuting on Sprint Nextel’s network in about a week, there is plenty of speculation about the device, how it will impact the market, and what it means for wireless carrier competition.
Will the device sync with Apple’s iTunes Store? Will it help Sprint Nextel retain customers? Will AT&T vie to pick up the smartphone after Sprint’s exclusive expires at the end of the year? Is Palm too late to the game with its latest effort?
It’s too soon to offer definite answers to those questions, but analysts are making thoughtful predictions.
“My attitude about the Palm Pre has not changed,” said Mike Disabato, a senior analyst at the Burton Group. “It is a too-late-to-market offering from a company that has abandoned its customer base. Mobile operators had to give away Palm’s last Windows Mobile handset because nobody wanted to take it. Everybody thought Palm was going out of business.”
Meantime, Verizon Wireless CEO Lowell McAdam said his company will offer the Palm Pre and a new version of the BlackBerry Storm in about six months when Sprint’s exclusive contract expires. The news sent Palm’s stock up and Sprint’s stock down.
Will iTunes Syncing Help?
There are reports that the Palm Pre will sync with the iTunes Store. That could make the device more attractive and stem the tide of Sprint customers moving to AT&T to tap into the music-playing benefits of Apple’s iPhone. The only problem is, it can’t handle old copy-protected songs.
Disabato isn’t overly impressed with the iTunes capability. Although many are calling the Pre an iPhone-killer, he said that’s not a realistic expectation. Disabato characterizes the Pre as a device from a handset maker whose future is uncertain running on a wireless carrier whose future is uncertain. The combination doesn’t make for a winning run.
“Verizon is killing Sprint…