Palm Pre vs iPhone: O2 UK tariffs compared

O2 rootled round down its sofa this morning and came up with the final pieces of the Palm Pre UK launch jigsaw -- pricing and launch date.

The Pre will be here in the UK a little sooner than O2's "in time for Christmas" tease had us believe -- it'll be flying off the shelves on 16 October. It'll be available on 18- and 24-month contracts starting from £29.38 a month, as you can see in this handy chart.

O2 has pegged it at exactly the same price as the iPhone 3G 8GB -- ie, Apple's last-gen effort -- with a £34.26, 24-month contract nabbing you the Pre for free. Compare the iPhone's pricing here:

What do you think? Has Palm been too slow in shipping its renaissance phone over here? Will its slidey, Qwerty charms and lower price convince people who'd otherwise go for an iPhone 3GS? Let us know in the comments section below.