In what can be seen as an attempt to prevent Amazon from monopolizing the sales of the Palm Pre, the world's largest supermarket Walmart has undercut the Amazon offer for the Pre with a $20 discount!

While the online retailer is selling the Pre for $100, Walmart is now offering the smartphone for $80 on a two year contract with Sprint. 

However, the customers must purchase the smartphone at its full price of $179.99, and then avail rebates that bring the price of the device to $79.99. Depending on the user location, Sprint’s most economical contract will begin from $69.99, for 450 minutes and unlimited data.

Going by the suggestions put forth by some market observers, Palm's new Pixi would also probably need to be priced fairly lower than the $79.99 price line; while a few others even opine that the device may be offered ‘free’ with new contracts, and after mail in rebates.

The news of the lower price offered for the Pre by Walmart comes close at the heels of an earlier announcement by the biggest US mobile phone operator, Verizon, which rebuffed rumors about its likelihood of selling the Pre next year.

Though the $80 offering for the Palm smartphone is good news for potential buyers, the early purchasers who bought the phone for $200 may be put off a bit!