Palm Pre drops to zero bucks on Bell proper 26
Fri, 22 Jan 2010 6:32 pm EST 
We had an inkling that the Palm Pre was not doing well on Bell in Canada after third party reseller dropped the smartphone down to $0.00. But at that time, Bell was still charging $100 for the Pre. But there’s nothing like a vote of no confidence like dropping a flagship smartphone to free on contract just five months after it hit your network. Of course, it’ll still take a three-year contract to get it for free. If you’re not interested in shacking up with Bell for three full years, you can still get a Pre for $99.95 on a two year contract, $199.95 for a one year contract, and just $349.95 with no contract at all.
So what’s going on here? For one, it seems clear they’re having trouble selling the Pre. But two is the hope/fear that the Pre (or Pre Plus) may very well be available on another network - like Telus - in the very near future. If you’ll think back to late August when the Pre finally launched in Canada, Bell admitted that they had a six-month exclusive on the Pre, and that soon will expire. Do they have excess inventory to clear, or is this just a ploy to secure more smartphone subscriber customers before webOS becomes available on other Canadian carriers? Hard to say.
[via: Mobile Syrup]
Thanks to Bryan for the tip!
26 Comments
Actually, according to an earlier article on Mobile Syrup, the Pre is selling well for Bell. When the centro finally came to Bell they dropped the price to free when the Pre was announced so maybe that means something is on the horizon here at Bell.
Either way, it's a great deal, and a great way to get Pres into more hands here.
Ouch! I'm one who got my Pre on launch day for Bell and love it. What concerns me is whether Bell will have the commitment to provide updates for WebOS for us Pre owners who are Bell subscribers. At least I'm one who has unlimited data with Bell. Did I say I love my Pre.
What is also weird is the fact that even the base buy out price for the Pre was dropped. It was $599, but then they dropped to $349...
That right there tells me that it's not a selling issue, that something is in the works.
I got mine on launch too. And it was worth every penny. Bell isn't in charge of updates direct to the phone. But I really want to know where the HELL is the app catalogue.
AMEN. There are some apps I'd love to pay for but they won't let us Canadians give them our funny money.
Yes, really hoping we'll start seeing paid apps soon.
To add insult to injury, I got an email from Palm this morning excitedly telling me to check out the new 3D games available for my Pre... =\
ME TOO! I got so excited and checked the app catalogue asap! I was not too dissapointed though, a part of me was telling me it was too good to be true... I hope this means bell will be getting the pixi and the plus family soon though, I wanna get my gf the pixi, cause my company sells Bell phones now, and we can save money if she gets rid of her Telus phone. Come out come out where ever you are little pixi!
palm is teasing us canadians.lol'I bought it too,christmas past and I guess april-fool day came early.
@ Feud.
+1
I have no idea what's going on at Bell, but I do know in the last Bell magazine mailer I received, they opened it with a nice full two-page spread on the Pre before any of the other new smartphones.
The App catalogue for Canada is pathetic compared to the US. We have about 250 apps vs 1,000 +. Even worse, if you upgrade from a free app and that app is on the pay site in the US, your app gets zapped. I had my passwords in SplashID. I accept to have it upgraded, and by by password...ouch. Bell customers should be screaming at Palm and Bell for beta testing apps and then having them rudely yanked from your Pre.
Would I buy another Pre, that at best has been in Beta for the last 6 months? I don't think so.
The word gets around about the Pre in Canada. That is why it is at 0.00$ and not selling. I want my GSM Centro back from Rogers!
Or they could be dumping inventory prior to launching the plus.
I took advantage of this! To bad my screen cracked and refurbs are on back order!
I have a feeling their exclusivity is even shorter than the rumoured 6 months. All of a sudden all advertising is gone from the Bell stores, all replaced with the Samsung Galaxy they are pushing. Even the demo stands are gone.
But nonetheless, whoever launches the GSM Pre Plus will get my money.
The advertising for the Pre is still fairly strong. Just not as much as before. Bell gave all of it's employees a free Pre a couple weeks ago, to get them to play with it and promote it all around. It's surprisingly easy to sell it, our store only just got it a little while ago, but Telephone Booth says they sell them just by showing off the gestures and swipe to close apps.
Big deal for the Pre I think will be 99.99 on a 2 year, cause a lot of immigrants in my city, and they keep asking for shorter contracts cause they're not in the country that long. :S
Samsung is an Olympic sponsor, as is Bell. I would guess it has more to do with sharing ad space in Vancouver than it does anything else
I had a Centro at Rogers and left because of dropped calls. Never going back.
I think when 1.4 is released, the free Pre will be a crazy deal. But it will suck if we still can't buy apps that really take advantage of it.
I had a Unlocked Centro on Fido, it wasn't dropped calls, it was the thing resetting. I switched to a Nokia E51 and never had calling issues.
Yeah but I wouldn't be able to post a reply to this post as easily on a Centro, or a Nokia e51, as I am right now on my Pre.
Canadians need the ecomerce app catalog already.
I am hoping that they are trying to clear the pre invetory, due to bad sales, to get ready for the pre plus/GSM pre plus.
I know I'm in the minority but I LIKE the home button. Even if Bell got the Pre Plus I'd stick with my Pre.
What I really want is the app catalogue. But we Canadians are used to waiting for cool tech from the States.
Hey at least we're not Australian! (Meant with love for our commonwealth brothers and sisters.)
cant believe i had to pay 150
I got mine for $0 almost two months ago (around Dec 1) just for being an existing Bell cust with a data plan. So far, I love my Pre but I can't tell you how PISSED I am about the app catalogue. I love having a Palm for the flexibility and choice of apps. I know this isn't a "Palm" in the true sense of the word because of WebOS, but COME ON! We're NOT a 3rd world country.
I got mine for $0 almost two months ago (around Dec 1) just for being an existing Bell cust with a data plan. So far, I love my Pre but I can't tell you how PISSED I am about the app catalogue. I love having a Palm for the flexibility and choice of apps. I know this isn't a "Palm" in the true sense of the word because of WebOS, but COME ON! We're NOT a 3rd world country.
Weird! It's back to $600 no contract!!!
I met with some of the higher up Palm and Bell execs back at the September/TIFF cocktail party they hosted for us new Palm Pre owners, and everyone was so excited about this phone. I was advised to purchase the $7/month insurance option in case of loss or theft or damage, etc. It made sense at the time to pay $150 for a new $600 phone if need be. However, when I called Bell right now to see what they can do now that no-contract cost has dropped to $350, the rep could only see the $600 cost. It seems they've put it back up and it may have only been a temporary special.
I really wanted to get a discount on the $7/month cost, or at least drop my replacement cost to $75. Any suggestions?