Is the Palm Pre Going to Challenge the iPhone?
The Palm Pre was one of the most anticipated handsets of 2009, with a plethora of tech blogs continually reporting on its progress towards release. But in an iPhone's world, just how much of a chance does a new contender to the mobile throne actually have?
Well, so far, since its release in June, the Palm Pre has garnered serious good reviews. The Consumer Electronics Show (CES) this year awarded it with many prizes, including Best in Show, Best in Category: Cell Phones & Smartphones and People's Voice - a fairly incredible result for a phone that is not the world's most popular.
The iPhone, on the other hand, sold a million handsets when it was first released. It has since been shown that this feat is achievable, particularly when key rival Google managed to score the same number of sales in the same amount of time with its inaugural Google phone, the HTC G1. The iPhone 3G, however, went to take things a little further. When it was released, the device flew from shelves and Apple managed to sell a whopping one million in just three days! It's clear, then, that the Palm Pre has some very hefty competition on its hands.
Already, fur has been flying. In recent times, Apple has attempted to lay sole ownership to some aspects of its touchscreen phone - where users can use more than one finger to make different commands - and even shut down the functionality of one of the Pre's biggest sales points - that it could sync with iTunes. However, the sync has since been restored until the next round - and it looks as though all of this legal battling hasn't exactly endeared Apple too much to its fans either. Instead of simply relying on the strength of its handset, Apple resorted to seeking out violations of its shaky copyright, which isn't exactly the sort of thing you'd consider healthy competition.
Whether or not the Palm Pre comes close to challenging the iPhone seriously is something that only a matter of time will be able to clarify, but it is certainly the case that many mobile phone manufacturers have wised up to the threat the iPhone poses to the industry, and thus know they must continue to develop bigger and better smartphones to impress both contract and pay as you go mobiles owners alike in order to win back some of that crucial market.
Jonathan Wallace writes for a digital marketing agency. This article has been commissioned by a client of said agency. This article is not designed to promote, but should be considered professional content.
