O2 confirms Palm Pre exclusive

O2 has confirmed that it will be the exclusive distributor of the eagerly awaited Palm Pre in the UK - but no firm details yet on launch date or pricing

Updated 8 July 2009

The Palm Pre - the latest and likeliest 'iPhone killer' - will be distributed exclusively on the O2 network in the UK, the same operator has an exclusive deal with the iPhone.

The announcement on Tuesday confirmed the deal - part of a European excluiive tie-up with O2's parent company Telefonica - and said that the Palm Pre would launch in 'before Christmas'.

The UK, Spain, Germany and Ireland are the European countries where the Palm Pre will be rolled out this year. No pricing details have been released yet although eager punters can pre-register for more info on the Palm Pre website.

"We are fast becoming the home of the smartphone with the addition of the hotly anticipated Palm Pre to our already extensive portfolio," said Matthew Key, chairman and chief executive officer, Telefónica Europe. "Our customers will be the first outside of North America to experience one of the most successful mobile devices of the year."

Palm has sold 300,000 Pres in the US since it was launched at the start of June. The smartphone uses an all new operating system webOS which as the name indicates uses web technologies such as HTML and javascript as the basis for its software.

Like the iPhone, the Palm Pre features a large touchscreen that responds to gestures - but it also has a slide-out keyboard for more conventional user input.

Now O2 has got the exclusive on the Palm Pre it is in the enviable position of offering the two most hyped smartphones on the planet side by side. Sales this Christmas will really prove whether the Palm Pre is indeed an iPhone killer.