Palm and Sprint have a hit on their hands - and the new smartphone isn't even in production yet.
Jim Suva, an analyst for Citigroup, said the Pre could be a "game changer" and projected that Palm will sell 1.5 million of the touchscreen phones in the first year.
The projection came as Suva upgraded Palm from a sell to a hold, an action that gave Palm a bump on Wall Street. The price of Palm shares has doubled since introducing the Pre during the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas last week.
"The new Pre smartphone clearly stole the show at CES," Suva wrote.
Sprint, initially, will carry the phone exclusively.
"Pre looks like a game changer for Palm and sell rating is no longer warranted," Suva wrote. "With the company's long-term viability in doubt, Palm debuted the best new handset we have seen in quite some time."
Suva projected that the phone will sell for $350 to $450 retail, with Sprint and Palm rebates cutting the price to $199 to $249. Suva said he believes Sprint has an extended exclusive contract for the phone.
The Pre has been met with enthusiasm by the telecom industry.
"It seems that there is no such thing as media overload when it comes to the new Palm Pre," reported PhoneArena. "The buzz is so loud that even Wall Street has heard it."
ZDNet's Between the Lines noted that the phone had even been mentioned on air by the Palm Treo-carrying Howard Stern.
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