The Palm Pixi was originally meant for AT&T according to leaked information in June, then Palm made a surprise announcement in September not long after the launch of the Pre.

The featureset consists of 8GB onboard storage, 2.0 megapixel camera with flash and video recorder, a full QWERTY keyboard, a 2.63-inch 320 x 400 resolution capacitive touch display with the customary ringer on / off switch and 3.5mm headphone jack as well as a removable 1150mAh battery.

Unlike the Pre, the Pixi will not feature a Wi-Fi radio and will solely depend on EV-DO Rev. A access.

Update: From the press release, the Pixi will cost $99.99 with a two-year agreement after a $50 instant rebate and $100 mail-in rebate. It will be available at Sprint stores, online, through telesales, at Best Buy, RadioShack and select Wal-Mart stores on November 15th.

Palm will now be allowing developers to submit an app to Palm who will issue a unique link for open distribution of the app over the web without a review process required, as it bypasses the App Catalog entirely.

The App Catalog will still remain the best option for those who want to submit and secure a place for their application where exposure is guaranteed and Palm has even reduced the registration fee to $50 to get an application in the Catalog, which is expected to be the only way to distribute paid applications.

Palm will also be eliminating the $99 annual developer fee for developers building open source apps, as well as opening up its analytic data to allow for analysis of sales and other related data.

The iTunes media sync fuctionality has been improved by allowing users to sync Pre-resolution photos to the device while leaving the original larger image on the computer.

To update, go to Launcher -> Updates -> Install Now.

To update, go to Launcher -> Updates -> Install Now, or wait for the auto update this week.

Make sure to take advantage of our free Palm Pre offer and check the Phone Encyclopedia page for the Palm Pre changelog.

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Oh, and that includes a free Bluetooth headset and car charger. Enjoy, a nifty gift from us to you. Check PhoneCashback.net for all the details. But, hurry, you’ve got less than 72 hours to lock it in.

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Yesterday PhoneNews.com reported that Amazon.com dropped the price on the Palm Pre to $99.99. Now, LetsTalk has dropped the price of the Sprint Palm Pre to $79.99 after rebate.

Palm Pre (LetsTalk)

Clarification: Unlike the incorrect reporting on other sites, LetsTalk is the company that has dropped the price on the Palm Pre. Other news organizations mis-reported that Wal-Mart had lowered the price of their Pre, due to Wal-Mart’s online affiliate sales with LetsTalk.

Update: Coupon code 25RAFPCVER1 nets an additional $25 discount with a free car charger, Bluetooth headset and carrying case when ordering, bringing the total down to $54.99 after rebates.

In related news, the expected Thursday launch of the paid App Catalog has been delayed by Palm following a dispute with the USB Implementers Forum this week over its native iTunes sync workaround and Apple’s claim to rightfully disallow the device from native sync with iTunes.

At issue is the Pre’s spoofing of recognized Apple Vendor IDs which are required for full iTunes sync functionality. As the Pre is not officially recognized as an authorized device by iTunes or Apple, the USB IF has determined that Apple has not violated any regulations regarding device sync.

Informed speculation suggests that Palm is waiting to issue webOS update 1.2.1 following the recent 1.2 leak to enable the paid App Catalog and re-enable iTunes sync, as Palm engineers have admitted that very little effort is required to re-enable iTunes sync everytime Apple issues an update to iTunes in order to block the device.

Buy the Palm Pre from Amazon

To cope with the swarm of applications, Palm has hired more people to test and review applications with a promise to improve communication with developers.

Fortunately, Palm did work in enough power management to allow Bluetooth PAN to tether, and at least keep the battery where it is while charging. You won’t suffer battery drain while using your phone as modem.

So, how do you get My Tether to talk to Bluetooth PAN? It’s actually already supported. Just toggle over to USB and hit the On switch, enabling My Tether over USB. The device will power cycle (necessary to enable Palm’s USBNet service). After that, all you need to do is pair your laptop, and connect to Bluetooth PAN.

(Be sure to go back to My Tether and turn USB tethering on, before switching on the Bluetooth PAN connection on your laptop. Otherwise, the connection will fail.)

Phone Encyclopedia: Palm Pre

Earlier this year, Rubenstein alluded to Palm manufacturing both webOS and Windows Mobile devices with no issues, with the new development confirming Palm’s new focus on its own platform rather than developing multiple device types and operating systems.

It also reiterated its commitment to webOS updates over the internet and revealed that it sold 823,000 devices in the first quarter with no distinction on device type.