Users Warned Over SIM-Free Palm Pre

Users have been warned that offers to order a SIM-free Palm Pre in advance of
its UK launch may in fact be too good to be true.

However, a spokesman told eWEEK Europe today, that users should be careful of pre-ordering on websites, as Palm and O2 are expected to try hard to enforce the exclusive deal.

Two UK retailers have – fittingly enough – started taking “pre-orders”
for Palm’s touch-screen smartphone which lis selling well in the US and is due to launch in October. However, a spokesman for Palm warned users to take care, as the phone is exclusive to O2 in the UK, but is being offered SIM-free.

Handtec has no stock, but is taking pre-orders for £449.99 + VAT (£517.49), for the phone. The specifications on the page say it works on US EVDO networks, although the features include the option of HSDPA, which works in Europe. m-Phone is cheaper, at £391.29+VAT (£449.98)

The phone also features, SIM-free on more established e-commerce sites, Expansys and Play.com, but these sites are not quoting a price or taking orders yet.

This week, Palm also announced the Pixi, a cheaper sibling to the Pre, which has a hard Blackberry-style keyboard, instead of the Pre’s slide-out design. There are no UKlaunch details at all for that.

eWEEK Europe had its first encounter with a Pre today, at Bite PR’s PlayBite event in London, and it is every bit as well-designed as reviews say. Being smaller than the iPhone with a hard keyboard, and the ability to multitask may be enough to distinguish it from the Apple device.

A Palm associate at Playbite warned eWEEK Europe that there may be issues with pre-ordered phones – advice which would well apply to any model or brand of phone ordered before its official launch.