This afternoon I had a chance to attend a Webinar held by Sprint and Palm outlining the recently announced Palm Pre for the Sprint Network.  The event was hosted by Mark Elliot along with David Owens, Director of Consumer Acquisition, Sprint and Matt Crowley, Product Line Manager, Palm.  I must warn you that no information on Palm Pre pricing or an updated release date was discussed in this webinar and the central focus was the device features and Sprint services.  I’d also like to warn those of you with SERO Plans that like the Samsung Instinct, the Palm Pre will require an Everything Plan with Unlimited Data or Simply Everything Plan.

So why did Palm choose Sprint to be the exclusive carrier for the Palm Pre?  The answer to this question boiled down to 4 main reasons starting with Sprint’s 3G network.  Since the Palm Pre runs on webOS, the device is always connected to the Internet and because of that it needs a very dependable high-speed Internet connection.  Secondly, Sprint was the first carrier to launch the Treo 300 which shows their commitment to the brand and the long history of device launches.  Third, Sprint lead the way with the Treo 700p and Centro so it is only fitting that Sprint sees the first device to launch webOS.  The last and most important reason Palm chose Sprint is the Ready Now customer support system which will be an integral part in the device launch and helping Sprint customers learn everything they want about their Palm Pre with no out of pocket expense.  While not going into specifics about Sprint’s device return rates, industry return rates on PDA’s are over 20%.  Sprint and Palm hope that the Ready Now support staff will help lower these rates and make the Palm Pre launch a smooth transition for Sprint customers. Read More →