Chicago (IL) – Palm has confirmed that its Pre phone will debut in Canada during the second half of 2009.
The Palm Pre, based on the new webOS mobile platform, will be carried by Bell Mobility’s 3G high-speed mobile network.
“We’re excited to bring Pre to Canada with Bell Mobility,” said company spokesperson Brodie Keast. “We’ve seen enormous interest from mobile operators worldwide and fully expect to continue to expand distribution for Pre, putting it within reach of more and more customers.”
The Palm Pre features a QWERTY keyboard that slides out only when needed, allowing users to easily type e-mails and text messages. The device also offers linked contacts, layered calendars and combined messaging. In addition, the new WebOS supports universal search and is capable of running multiple applications simultaneously.
Other features include:
- Integrated GPS
- 3.1-inch touch screen with 24-bit color 320×480 resolution
- 3-megapixel camera with LED flash
- Bluetooth 2.1 + EDR with A2DP stereo Bluetooth support
- 8GB internal memory
As TG Daily previously reported, Palm has high expectations for the Pre. The creator of the Palm Pilot and the company that is generally considered to have introduced the first true smartphones (Treo series in 2001, then introduced by Handspring, which was later acquired by Palm) needs a successful product after losing ground to the popular iPhone and Blackberry.
According to Tina Teng of iSuppli, the “similarity between the Pre and the iPhone clearly reveals the mark Palm is trying to hit.”
