Sprint Sees Solid Pre Launch Though Apple prepares to steal Palm's thunder... Monday Jun 08 2009 11:00 EDT Analysts are apparently declaring Sprint's launch of the Palm Pre over the weekend a " success," at least in terms of selling through limited inventory. Nobody seems quite sure, given sale estimates from analysts range from 50,000 to 200,000 units sold. Any attention for that success will be short lived, given that the Apple Worldwide Developer's Conference kicks off today -- where Apple is expected to unveil a new video-centric iPhone and perhaps some price changes as well. As usual, gadget blogs Engadget and Gizmodo will be live-blogging the event, for those who didn't buy a Pre and want up to the minute news on the latest iPhone release. |
ptrowskiGot Helix? Premium Member join:2005-03-14 Woodstock, CT 1 edit |
ptrowski
Premium Member
2009-Jun-8 10:40 am
50k to 200k?That's a pretty damned wide margin there isn't it? | |
| | en102Canadian, eh? join:2001-01-26 Valencia, CA |
en102
Member
2009-Jun-8 11:40 am
Re: 50k to 200k?Hell yeah. I would have expected them to say something like 150k-200k, not 50k to 200k. | |
| | | baineschile2600 ways to live Premium Member join:2008-05-10 Sterling Heights, MI |
Re: 50k to 200k?said by en102:Hell yeah. I would have expected them to say something like 150k-200k, not 50k to 200k. I cant believe Sprint still has that many customers. | |
| | | | en102Canadian, eh? join:2001-01-26 Valencia, CA |
en102
Member
2009-Jun-8 12:51 pm
Re: 50k to 200k?Even if Sprint is (or has been) bleeding customers, it doesn't mean that they aren't still signing them up. They just south of the 50 million mark (including Nextel, Boost, and MVNO's), which isn't bad. For their sake, lets hope that Pre will give them some positive numbers this quarter. | |
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S_engineer Premium Member join:2007-05-16 Chicago, IL
1 recommendation |
Nice to see...the evolution of phones. Even if the Pre has its shortcomings, I like the direction of all of these new phones by apple, Palm, LG, Htc are taking. I'll be getting one soon. | |
| | digiblur Premium Member join:2002-06-03 Louisiana 1 edit |
digiblur
Premium Member
2009-Jun-8 11:05 am
Re: Nice to see...I've watched all the reviews and hands on videos. It looks cute but I don't see what all the hype is about. I felt the same way when the Iphone came out though.
Sticking with the TouchPro for now...better keyboard...higher resolution screen...memory card slot...tethering...wmwifirouter...etc. | |
| | | Matt3All noise, no signal. Premium Member join:2003-07-20 Jamestown, NC |
Matt3
Premium Member
2009-Jun-8 12:32 pm
Re: Nice to see...said by digiblur:I've watched all the reviews and hands on videos. It looks cute but I don't see what all the hype is about. I felt the same way when the Iphone came out though. Sticking with the TouchPro for now...better keyboard...higher resolution screen...memory card slot...tethering...wmwifirouter...etc. I felt the same way. The huge selling point that iPhone has is the app store. There is literally a very well crafted app for everything you can think of. Here is a quick listing of what I have on my iPhone: Subnet Calculator and Inventory iSSH RDP App Astronomy Planets App US History Documents Reference Twitterfon Skype Fandango Unit/Distance/Time/Weight Conversion App Facebook Blizzard Authenticator Pandora Streaming Radio AIM Google App w/ Voice Recognition Siphon VoIP Client Bank of America App ... plus 10 or so fun apps like brain teasers, games like Doom/Wolfenstein. As a hardware device, I find the iPhone so-so, but the app store is indispensable and precisely why the iPhone is a success. | |
| | | | en102Canadian, eh? join:2001-01-26 Valencia, CA |
en102
Member
2009-Jun-8 12:59 pm
Re: Nice to see...Yeah - there's a few apps that I 'need' for a PDA device, currently available on WinMo, iTune/iPhone, and G1. I can't 'view' the 'App Catalog' w/o a Pre I use: Windows Remote Desktop (often) SSH Client with Tunnels (Pocket PuTTy) - extensively IRC (Zirc) Active Sync Skype Decent web browser (Opera Mini 9.5 beta) | |
| | | | DefianceComputer Elite Premium Member join:2002-09-11 Minocqua, WI Hitron EN2251 Ubiquiti AmpliFi Alien
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to Matt3
said by Matt3:said by digiblur:I've watched all the reviews and hands on videos. It looks cute but I don't see what all the hype is about. I felt the same way when the Iphone came out though. Sticking with the TouchPro for now...better keyboard...higher resolution screen...memory card slot...tethering...wmwifirouter...etc. I felt the same way. The huge selling point that iPhone has is the app store. There is literally a very well crafted app for everything you can think of. Here is a quick listing of what I have on my iPhone: Subnet Calculator and Inventory iSSH RDP App Astronomy Planets App US History Documents Reference Twitterfon Skype Fandango Unit/Distance/Time/Weight Conversion App Facebook Blizzard Authenticator Pandora Streaming Radio AIM Google App w/ Voice Recognition Siphon VoIP Client Bank of America App ... plus 10 or so fun apps like brain teasers, games like Doom/Wolfenstein. As a hardware device, I find the iPhone so-so, but the app store is indispensable and precisely why the iPhone is a success. I bet those cost an arm and a leg too The Apple App Store is a bunch of overpriced junk. | |
| | | | | en102Canadian, eh? join:2001-01-26 Valencia, CA |
en102
Member
2009-Jun-8 1:33 pm
Re: Nice to see...I agree - iTunes/App Store isn't all that cheap for many apps. Worse things about iPhone - Mobile Me = $99 subscription Sync should be FREE. I'm basically paying $199 for an iPhone, and another $199 to sync it thats nuts. Removable battery, and access to transfer files (mp3, pictures, take videos, etc should all be STANDARD). iPhone is made mostly to bridge the gap between phone, PDA and ease of use. I'd take a clone. | |
| | | | | | Matt3All noise, no signal. Premium Member join:2003-07-20 Jamestown, NC |
Matt3
Premium Member
2009-Jun-8 1:35 pm
Re: Nice to see...said by en102:I agree - iTunes/App Store isn't all that cheap for many apps. Worse things about iPhone - Mobile Me = $99 subscription Sync should be FREE. I'm basically paying $199 for an iPhone, and another $199 to sync it thats nuts. Removable battery, and access to transfer files (mp3, pictures, take videos, etc should all be STANDARD). iPhone is made mostly to bridge the gap between phone, PDA and ease of use. I'd take a clone. Then why pay $99 for MobileMe? You can sync with several other free services. | |
| | | | | | | en102Canadian, eh? join:2001-01-26 Valencia, CA 1 edit |
en102
Member
2009-Jun-8 2:08 pm
Re: Nice to see...I can upload my own mp3s for free on the iPhone - when did that occur? Also, I shouldn't need a 'service' to sync. Should be able to a) plug it into a PC / Mac / Linux box and xfer data b) ftp/scp/rsync data off over the web c) email / calendar sync (IMAP or POP client) These basic apps/functionality should be included, and a service can make use of them if you want to pay for it. Eg. I should be able to rsync to my own Linux box / Mac or Windows box running cygwin (or another rsync compatible shell). | |
| | | | | | | | Matt3All noise, no signal. Premium Member join:2003-07-20 Jamestown, NC |
Matt3
Premium Member
2009-Jun-8 2:12 pm
Re: Nice to see...said by en102:I can upload my own mp3s for free on the iPhone - when did that occur? Also, I shouldn't need a 'service' to sync. Should be able to a) plug it into a PC / Mac / Linux box and xfer data b) ftp/scp/rsync data off over the web c) email / calendar sync (IMAP or POP client) These basic apps/functionality should be included, and a service can make use of them if you want to pay for it. Eg. I should be able to rsync to my own Linux box / Mac or Windows box running cygwin (or another rsync compatible shell). You can sync your MP3's to iTunes and then sync your iPhone. You seriously didn't know you could do that? A) You can do that, see my screenshot. B) Jailbreak your phone and you can do this as well C) I can do POP/IMAP/Exchange, as well as Gmail, etc. I currently use 1 Exchange, 1 IMAP and my GMail account. I sync contacts, calendar, and tasks over the air. | |
| | | | | | | | | en102Canadian, eh? join:2001-01-26 Valencia, CA |
en102
Member
2009-Jun-8 4:26 pm
Re: Nice to see...I have a Tilt - never used an iPhone (too crippling w/o Jailbreak for me). I thought that there was some sort of issue in pulling down mp3s/pictures/video across (i.e. making mp3s into ringtones). I understand apps can't sync w/o iTunes, and Java won't run - that's an Apple restriction (probably for the same reason as scp/ftp,etc.) | |
| | | | | | | | | | Matt3All noise, no signal. Premium Member join:2003-07-20 Jamestown, NC |
Matt3
Premium Member
2009-Jun-8 5:11 pm
Re: Nice to see...said by en102:I have a Tilt - never used an iPhone (too crippling w/o Jailbreak for me). I thought that there was some sort of issue in pulling down mp3s/pictures/video across (i.e. making mp3s into ringtones). I understand apps can't sync w/o iTunes, and Java won't run - that's an Apple restriction (probably for the same reason as scp/ftp,etc.) When you connect an iPhone to iTunes it offers to scan your music for songs it can make ringtones out of. Apps can sync without iTunes. Actually, you can buy them over the air, along with music and with 3.0, movies. You may be confusing that with backing up apps? You have to have iTunes for that. You're right about Java, but that hasn't been an issue yet and FWIW, I had to hack Java onto my WinMo phone too as there wasn't an official WinMo Java distribution. | |
| | | | | | | | | | en102Canadian, eh? join:2001-01-26 Valencia, CA |
en102
Member
2009-Jun-9 12:23 am
Re: Nice to see...Interesting.. not that I'm a WinMo fan, but I've had 'Hockey Night In Canada' as a ringtone for my past Motorola phones, and my HTC Tilt. Never had to get it from a 'ringtone vendor' or scan it.
Similarly, Java came with the HTC Tilt, and a few apps (demo) were with it. | |
| | | | | | | | | | Matt3All noise, no signal. Premium Member join:2003-07-20 Jamestown, NC |
Matt3
Premium Member
2009-Jun-9 9:02 am
Re: Nice to see...said by en102:Interesting.. not that I'm a WinMo fan, but I've had 'Hockey Night In Canada' as a ringtone for my past Motorola phones, and my HTC Tilt. Never had to get it from a 'ringtone vendor' or scan it. Similarly, Java came with the HTC Tilt, and a few apps (demo) were with it. I think some manufacturers license a JVM to include on their phones. WinMo doesn't include one but IBM and Sun do sell them. There was a free one you can download and install, but it was an awful experience trying to get it installed and a lot of the newer apps didn't work. The scan that iTunes offers has never found a song that couldn't be used as a ringtone, but I imagine that perhaps if a record company wanted to restrict a song purchased through iTunes as such, the iTunes DRM supports it. I have about 10GB of music, probably $500 or so that's been purchased directly through iTunes. | |
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1 recommendation |
to en102
Actually most of those apps listed above are free. I have 134 free apps on my phone ranging from utilities to games to apps that i use on my iBook, like AIm, Yahoo, Skype, DSLR.com speed test, dictionary, and of course what iPHone would be complete without the FREE shazam app (which tells you what music you're hearing), i also have mywireless, a free app from att to manage my account, abc news feed, iTrans, have2P, have2eat, an app called Sunlight that shows me how much daylight is left in the day via a graphical representation. I also have solitaire, checkers, chess, a barcode scanner, G-force meter, speedometer etc etc. The only pay app i have is called Pocket God, and it's worth the 99 cents! If i had more $ i'd be buying certain pay apps, as they outnumber the free apps something like 12 to 1. - A | |
| | | | | | | en102Canadian, eh? join:2001-01-26 Valencia, CA |
en102
Member
2009-Jun-8 2:10 pm
Re: Nice to see...Personally, I like the iPhone's display/UI over any other out there... I just wish the iPhone wasn't so locked down. | |
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| | | | Matt3All noise, no signal. Premium Member join:2003-07-20 Jamestown, NC |
to Defiance
said by Defiance:said by Matt3:said by digiblur:I've watched all the reviews and hands on videos. It looks cute but I don't see what all the hype is about. I felt the same way when the Iphone came out though. Sticking with the TouchPro for now...better keyboard...higher resolution screen...memory card slot...tethering...wmwifirouter...etc. I felt the same way. The huge selling point that iPhone has is the app store. There is literally a very well crafted app for everything you can think of. Here is a quick listing of what I have on my iPhone: Subnet Calculator and Inventory iSSH RDP App Astronomy Planets App US History Documents Reference Twitterfon Skype Fandango Unit/Distance/Time/Weight Conversion App Facebook Blizzard Authenticator Pandora Streaming Radio AIM Google App w/ Voice Recognition Siphon VoIP Client Bank of America App ... plus 10 or so fun apps like brain teasers, games like Doom/Wolfenstein. As a hardware device, I find the iPhone so-so, but the app store is indispensable and precisely why the iPhone is a success. I bet those cost an arm and a leg too The Apple App Store is a bunch of overpriced junk. Nope, most were free and the ones I did purchase were at most $1.99, with the bulk being $.99. Easily 90% of my apps are free and to call them "junk" is silly. | |
| | | | | ptrowskiGot Helix? Premium Member join:2005-03-14 Woodstock, CT |
to Defiance
said by Defiance:said by Matt3:said by digiblur:I've watched all the reviews and hands on videos. It looks cute but I don't see what all the hype is about. I felt the same way when the Iphone came out though. Sticking with the TouchPro for now...better keyboard...higher resolution screen...memory card slot...tethering...wmwifirouter...etc. I felt the same way. The huge selling point that iPhone has is the app store. There is literally a very well crafted app for everything you can think of. Here is a quick listing of what I have on my iPhone: Subnet Calculator and Inventory iSSH RDP App Astronomy Planets App US History Documents Reference Twitterfon Skype Fandango Unit/Distance/Time/Weight Conversion App Facebook Blizzard Authenticator Pandora Streaming Radio AIM Google App w/ Voice Recognition Siphon VoIP Client Bank of America App ... plus 10 or so fun apps like brain teasers, games like Doom/Wolfenstein. As a hardware device, I find the iPhone so-so, but the app store is indispensable and precisely why the iPhone is a success. I bet those cost an arm and a leg too The Apple App Store is a bunch of overpriced junk. Hardly. Many of the apps are free. | |
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Looks like Palm blew it by underestimating demandThey didn't have nearly enough devices to satisfy demand on launch day which is inexcusable considering this is being pinned as their comeback to relevance. The executive team blew it big time. | |
| | CocoaVanillaI love oranges Premium Member join:2008-04-16 Tucson, AZ |
Re: Looks like Palm blew it by underestimating demandI'm sure that was part of the plan all along, to build hype. | |
| | | en102Canadian, eh? join:2001-01-26 Valencia, CA |
en102
Member
2009-Jun-8 11:17 am
Re: Looks like Palm blew it by underestimating demandYup - just as Apple did with the iPhone.
This 'should' help Sprint get off the negative numbers for its next quarter, assuming these weren't Sprint or Nextel customers to begin with. | |
| | | | S_engineer Premium Member join:2007-05-16 Chicago, IL |
Re: Looks like Palm blew it by underestimating demandsaid by en102:This 'should' help Sprint get off the negative numbers for its next quarter, assuming these weren't Sprint or Nextel customers to begin with. As you say that both Palm and Sprint stocks are down ... | |
| | | | | en102Canadian, eh? join:2001-01-26 Valencia, CA |
en102
Member
2009-Jun-8 12:56 pm
Re: Looks like Palm blew it by underestimating demandNot to downplay it ( I use both AT&T and Sprint), most initial deployments are typically over hyped, and drop once reality sets in. I'm sure that both Sprint and Palm pumped investors hard on this one, as its their flagship, and there isn't much else for comparison besides the launches of iPhone, BB Storm and HTC G1. Out of those, I think only the iPhone has done 'really' well in terms of sales. | |
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| P NessYou'Ve Forgotten 9-11 Already Premium Member join:2001-08-29 way way out |
to jhboricua
said by jhboricua:They didn't have nearly enough devices to satisfy demand on launch day which is inexcusable considering this is being pinned as their comeback to relevance. The executive team blew it big time. welcome to xbox, wii and iphone school of hype | |
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Re: Looks like Palm blew it by underestimating demandExcept neither Palm or Sprint have the market dominance of Apple, Microsoft or Nintendo, who could afford the gamble. Specially Palm, whose future pretty much is gonna depend on the success of this device.
Palm is taking a big risk here, specially considering the upcoming announcement of the new iPhone, which I don't think is gonna be all that revolutionary, but may sway people who didn't get the Pre to it. They should have had more devices at the stores. I read reports that some Sprint stores only had 3 devices for sale. | |
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to jhboricua
Could be the Nintendo-Wii philosophy: Limit Supply, build demand
BTW I wish the Pre had a horizontal keyboard (slide sideways, not down). Typing like a keyboard, not crackberry...
But hey, I had a Palm once. Can't hurt to go back... | |
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PhoenixDownFIOS is Awesome Premium Member join:2003-06-08 Fresh Meadows, NY |
Thumbs up on the pictureAliens vs Predator. | |
| Matt3All noise, no signal. Premium Member join:2003-07-20 Jamestown, NC |
Matt3
Premium Member
2009-Jun-8 12:32 pm
Good luck!I hope the Pre does well. More competition = good for consumers! | |
| wifi4milezBig Russ, 1918 to 2008. Rest in Peace join:2004-08-07 New York, NY |
Eh...I am personally waiting for the new Blackberries to come out. Rumor has it that a handful will be released "this summer", and they are replacing the trackball with an optical sensor. The Pre looks ok, but I dont see myself buying it. Now if someone were to give one to me I would certainly play around with it! | |
| | en102Canadian, eh? join:2001-01-26 Valencia, CA |
en102
Member
2009-Jun-8 1:35 pm
Re: Eh...Exactly - I'm in no rush to burn money until I've tested it, and make sure it works for 'me', and have the Apps that I need (I don't care for Twitter, Facebook, etc. they're just the replacements for AIM, etc). | |
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Koil Premium Member join:2002-09-10 Irmo, SC |
Koil
Premium Member
2009-Jun-8 1:13 pm
Sheeesh...anyone think ole Karl's got an iPhone?For what appeared to be at the surface, a story regarding the Pre...whole lot of Apple going on in the description. | |
| | •••• | cob_1310nm Of Goodness Premium Member join:2003-07-08 Tulsa, OK |
cob_
Premium Member
2009-Jun-8 1:41 pm
Of noteI live in a small town that has recently had a Best Buy built. I went there Saturday morning, and the girl behind the mobile phone counter had a Pre in her hands. I watched her play with it for a bit, and she told me that there was a line outside the store early in the morning for it, and they gave out numbers. I would say there is definitely demand, and I don't know why Karl insists on flogging Sprint with hypotheticals and suggestive speech, like "apparently" and quoted "success". | |
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Re: Of noteThere's "demand" for lots of stuff, doesn't mean it's going to be a hit.
- A | |
| | | cob_1310nm Of Goodness Premium Member join:2003-07-08 Tulsa, OK |
cob_
Premium Member
2009-Jun-8 3:34 pm
Re: Of notesaid by FastiBook:There's "demand" for lots of stuff, doesn't mean it's going to be a hit. - A We talking about an album, or a phone? | |
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Tried one; decent deviceI tried a Pre at a Sprint corporate store last weekend, just for kicks.
The young lady who demoed it for me was really putting on the sales pressure. The thing I noticed most about it was that it is very fast. The web experience seems about the same as an iphone; I think they're both using the same webkit engine. I made mistakes with the keyboard because of the small size of the keys, but not too many. The battery was low so I didn't get to use it for too long. Calendar looks nice; that is something Palm devices have always done well (I used to use a IIIc).
The $2,000+ cost over two years and the thought of Sprint service though would definitely keep me away. That and I don't really have a desire or need for mobile interweb anyway. But it was fun to try. | |
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I loved my Pre!!!I say "Loved" because I took it back this afternoon after owning it for only 48 hours. In a nutshell, the Pre is a BEAST and can run circles around the iPhone. Given a choice between the two, I'd pick the Pre. So why did I take it back? After using it for two days I felt that it didn't do anything that justified giving up my $33 / month SERO plan (Sprint doesn't allow the Pre on SERO accounts even if you pay full retail for the phone).
It's a magnificent device and if for some reason I ever lose my SERO plan I'll certainly look into getting another Pre. In the meantime, I'm sticking with SERO and waiting for the Touch Diamond2 to be released later this year. I realize it won't be as innovative as the Pre but at least it'll work with my current plan.
- Tate | |
| hayabusa3303Over 200 mph Premium Member join:2005-06-29 Florence, SC |
Big dealjust other phone. | |
| drewRadiant Premium Member join:2002-07-10 Port Orchard, WA |
drew
Premium Member
2009-Jun-9 12:37 am
Sprint doing something rightI just used their "bill optimizer" online to mix things up. Saving $20.00 and didn't have to give them a call.
While this isn't specifically PRE related and it's entirely possible that Sprint's version of the bill switching utility is sub-standard, it made me a very happy customer. | |
| chlenEthically Challenged Premium Member join:2001-01-16 Saratoga, NY |
chlen
Premium Member
2009-Jun-9 3:22 pm
Got mine works great.After having the centro for two years, I got the pre today and it works well. The build is a bit shaky like the iphone, the centro I used to open beers for 2 years, but not with this phone.
It is really quick. That is the #1 feature. EVDO is almost like road runner, and the phone responds quick. I liked that I did not have to sign a new contract and it was still same price as a new contract - so 200 and I got about $70 for an old nextel 830 and sprint katana which have been collecting dust for years.
Connected with no problems with my personal domain IMAP work Exchange, Gmail, and multitasking is great.
Only had it for a few hours so the complaints will come later. | |
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