Mini-Pre: Palm's New $99 "Pixie" Smartphone

Fans of the upcoming Palm Pre will be as excited about this news as a kid sucking flavored sugar out of a straw: a few months after the launch of the Pre (which will likely be around June), Palm will likely unveil a Centro-style mini-Pre, currently code-named Pixie and rumored to have the final, not-so-sexy name of Palm EOS. (I think I'll stick with Pixie for the duration of this post.)

The touchscreen smartphone will feature a physical keyboard and will be a bit thinner than the Pre. The Pixie will use Palm's new webOS, as will the Pre and any subsequent Palm devices most likely. Current speculation is that the Pixie will be bundled with AT&T, rather than Sprint (a carrier many are not fond of), which is bundling with the Pre.

While the Pre has received more positive press than almost any other smartphone (save the iPhone), many industry gurus fear that it won't be able to compete with the iPhone unless it is priced at an undercut on the iPhone, which is quite unlikely.

Though, Pixie offers an interesting balance. Pre fans that don't way to pay $200+ (after 2-year subscription) for their smartphone or don't want to use Sprint can opt for the Pixie, which will likely price around $99 after a 2-year commitment. Granted, the specs won't be as robust--you can find what specs are currently available for the Pixie here. To the right is what the Pixie, or EOS, is expected to look like.

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