Bell mimics iPhone ads for Pre, may ship early
updated 08:55 am EDT, Fri August 21, 2009
Bell Pre Ad Mimics Apple
Bell stirred a minor controversy in the past day through a new TV ad campaign for its version of the Palm Pre. The 30-second commercial follows Apple's ads for the iPhone 3G and 3GS very closely and focuses on a plain background with an unseen person navigating through some core features alongside uptempo music. In Bell's interpretation, the ad focuses on Pre advantages like multitasking and distinguishes itself by zooming out to show the supposed phone user from the bulk of the commercial.
The Bell ad also appears to show Google Maps working in landscape mode, a feature that some say isn't present in the Sprint edition; a Bell spokeswoman tells Electronista that landscape mode is real and functional. The phone's wallpaper is Bell-specific as well and suggests Palm is allowing carriers more say over the default state of the phone, though it remains to be seen if the logo-based background exists only in the ad or will be there by default.
In addition to Bell more actively marketing the Pre, Electronista has heard from people familiar with the situation that the Canadian carrier is already shipping the Palm smartphone to some customers as of today. Deliveries are prioritized based on who ordered first but should give some subscribers early access to the phone ahead of its official August 27th release date. [via PreThinking]
Senior User
Joined: Jan 2001
Lame
It's a pretty poor rip-off, it doesn't really explain how the swiping is helpful. At least the iPhone ads show an real-world application i.e. a function for this or that feature on the iPhone.