Out with the old?
Both 3 and O2 have announced they will be stocking new smartphones before long today. 3 has wasted little time in embracing HTC's mass-market play - the Wildfire - which was only announced a few days ago, although details are thin on the ground, with neither the price or timing being revealed yet.
Pricing will be key as high-end HTC smartphones like the Desire are currently selling like hotcakes and we've seen the HTC Legend on offer for as little as £20 per month for a ‘free' one. Also added into the mix today is the LG Viewty GT, which is being positioned as a feature-rich camera-phone and will be ‘free' on 3 for £15 per month.
O2, meanwhile, has jumped on the Palm bandwagon just as most people - bar HP - seem to be jumping off it. The Pre Plus and the Pixi Plus will be on offer from 28 May, starting at £35 and £30 per month respectively on a two-year basis if you don't want to pay anything up-front.
Even current Palm CEO Jon Rubenstein has got in on the press release, saying: "We are excited to bring Pre Plus and Pixi Plus to the market for O2 customers. With the choice of these two new Palm webOS phones, customers across the UK can stay connected, so they never miss a thing."
The timing of this O2 announcement is interesting, with the HP acquisition imminent and the difficulties Palm has faced in taking-on the incumbents already fully apparent. Perhaps O2 is laying the ground for exclusivity on the HP/webOS tablet we expect to see later in the year.
