The Pre has a touch-screen and slide-out keyboard and will cost US$200 (S$300) with a two-year service plan and rebate. --PHOTO: AP
NEW YORK - NO DOUBT bolstered by positive reviews, Sprint Nextel CEO Dan Hesse said Saturday's release of Palm's Pre smart phone represents a 'coming out party' for Sprint as it seeks to reverse subscriber losses.
The celebration might be cut short, though, if the wireless carrier can't keep up with the high demand it expects for the device.
Sprint, which will carry the Pre exclusively at least through the end of the year, lost 1.25 million of its valuable contracted subscribers during the first three months of the year - even worse than the 1.1 million that fled to other wireless carriers in the fourth quarter.
Mr Hesse said the Pre gives Sprint an opportunity to show off its competitive voice and data networks and service plans - things that could help the company retain subscribers and lure new ones. He said Sprint has 'vastly' improved its customer service and network performance.
'We are a very, very different company than we were 12 months ago,' Mr Hesse told a group of media, analysts and customers in New York on Friday, a day before the release of the Pre.
The Pre has a touch-screen and slide-out keyboard and will cost US$200 (S$300) with a two-year service plan and rebate. It also sports Palm's new operating system, webOS. Numerous early reviews..
'This is like the Wii for us,' Mr Hess said, referring to Nintendo.'s popular gaming console, which faced shortages following its 2006 release. -- AP
