Palm has confirmed via a press release and a blog posting that Canada's Bell Network will get the Palm Pre in the "2nd half of 2009." Yes, our neighbors to the north are going to have to wait a bit (Sorry, Jason!). Hopefully the windows to Bell's launch will narrow down significantly -- our experience with the Sprint "first half of 2009" has been pretty rough.
They've also confirmed that Bell will get the Pre exclusively, sorry Telus customers.
"Bell is excited to be only the second carrier in the world to announce the 3G Pre," said Adel Bazerghi, senior vice president of Products for Bell Mobility. "With the unique user experience of the world's first webOS phone, running on the country's largest 3G network, we're confident that Canadians will embrace Pre as the phone for their lives today."
Hey Bazerghi, we think you meant "as the phone for their lives sometime later this year." We're just saying. As with the release date, the exact price is also unknown.
PreCentral.net first reported that Bell would be getting the Pre way back in January thanks to anonymous tipsters.
Update from Derek: Bell Canada has a page up about the Pre where you can sign up to get notified. There doesn't appear to be any new information there, but it's a link, hey?
Update on the Update from Dieter: Hey everybody, if you haven't said hello to our new writer Derek Kessler (nee Captain Hair), you should!
Comments
Why is Bell Canada's Pre page so much better than Sprint's (who the pre is much more important too), The is clear and direct and Sprint is taking a chance on trying to be cutting edge
You must have looked at a different web page than me.
My thoughts exactly. That page looks terrible.
So now THEY will feel what it's like to sit on the edge of their seat for Palms "second half of 09" lol it will probabely be released in Dec.....
You know, if they would have put a release date for Canada you would have heard me yell from Louisiana!!! I have nothing against Canada, I used to live in Ft. McMury, Alberta, but we don't even have a release date, no one should. LOL
Are the exclusivity deals really better for Palm in the long run? Shouldn't they get a Pre in as many palms as possible?
What about Manitoba? There's no Bell here! They'd better fix this. Telus is the only carrier that has a nationwide CDMA network, why wouldn't they go with them?
I thought the fact that Telus had the Treo Pro would make this a lock. I am very disappointed. I hope that something will give in the next few months.
I really agree with you! I switch to Telus 2 years ago because Bell's service was really bad here in Quebec. I'm talking every week with my Telus rep and he was sure it would come to them. Even the Plam rep mentionned something to him about it...
No complaining until Dec 31, 2009 at 11:59:59. What part of 2nd half of 2009 do you Canadians not understand! ;)
This is terrible news.
I don't care that Bell is getting it, I care that it is exclusive, meaning that Rogers -- our only big GSM network -- won't be getting it.
Terrible.
Telus and Bell are launching an HSPA network at the end of 2009 btw so rogers won't be alone anymore. And for the record, rogers sucks they rape everyone with their prices!
I heard that Canadians can remotely dematerialize the BBs, we'd better not make fun of us Canadians.
Cr*p - Bell is the worst network in the country. Unless they've improved greatly in the last 12 months... everybody I know who used to be on Bell has fled to other networks.
I'm on Fido so I get to roam to Rogers for free but the only available phones are the cheap junk that Rogers allows them to sell.
Rogers has good coverage but it's expensive.
Telus, much though everybody hates them, have been pretty good on my daughter's phone - good coverage and the customer support has been helpful, although very error prone.
I can't really see Rogers/Fido bringing the GSM Pre up here... they're already raking it in with iPhone exclusivity, why give the public a choice?
I'd actually switch to Telus for a Pre, but Bell... I'm sorry, ain't going to happen.
Maybe there's a chance that the Bell Pre will be such a winner up here that Rogers will be FORCED to offer the GSM version in order to keep customers from defecting.
Well I guess that rules out a 4G PRE release :(
Bummer. I've checked PreCentral daily (okay, several times each day) for months now, praying to the heavens that the Palm Pre would come to Telus. The local Telus rep had told me, "Everything that comes to Bell comes to Telus, and visa versa ... just look at the Storm, both carriers have it ... the same thing will happen with the Pre." Alas, such has not proved to be the case. I will not switch to Bell from Telus for what is, most assuredly, an inferior mobile service. Guess I'll just have to wait for Palm to pull up its socks, and allow Telus as a Canadian carrier.
These exclusivity don't last eternally, maybe you'll see a Pre on Telus a couple of month after Bell's release.
My hope for getting the Pre is shattered. :( I am with Rogers in a corporate plan so I cannot switch carrier.
Cool it guys, nowhere does it say on the Bell page it is exclusive. This is going to Telus.
I hope you're right, but it does say it's exclusive if you go to bell.ca (not pre.bell.ca)
Bell... WHY??? I am with Bell and I was very much looking forward to leaving them! Now I have to stay. Damnations!
1) I've been told Bell and Telus share towers, so it's completely unfair to say one network has larger coverage.
2) Bell certainly seems to have competative rates
3) I personally still believe we will see it on Telus at or shortly after Bell's release (eg. BB Storm, Treo Pro, etc.)
Telus will get it and why not... supporting LTE?
Canada's turn to play the "when's it coming out eh?" speculation and rumors game :)
If Telus does get to offer the Pre in a few months it will probably only in Western Canada where Bell doesn't provide service. That way Bell can claim exclusivity in their service area.
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