Walmart to carry Palm Pre, expand electronics
updated 09:10 am EDT, Mon May 18, 2009
Walmart to Get Palm Pre
Walmart is undergoing a significant expansion of its electronics section that will include the Palm Pre, the retailer says. Although recent leaks had so far only pointed to a Best Buy offering of the smartphone outside of Sprint's own stores, Walmart tells the WSJ that it expects to carry the phone "soon." Most leaks have pointed to Sprint carrying the Pre on June 7th.
Palm's inclusion at Walmart further supports notions that the company is planning a more aggressive launch of its phone that matches Apple's retail points whenever possible, as both Best Buy and Walmart are also the iPhone's sole third-party retail sales points. The financially struggling company's future depends heavily on the success of the Pre and so needs wider retail scope than its competitor, whose existing popularity reduced the need to expand sales locations beyond AT&T and its own stores.
The news reflects a larger expansion of Walmart's electronics section that will include more phones as well as an open display with notebooks and netbooks on view. It also plans to expand the range of Dell desktops it carries and will carry the Studio One 19 all-in-one in June.
