www.WirelessFederation.com/news: The prices of Palm’s Pre Plus and Pixi Plus smart phones has been cut by Verizon Wireless and the operator is also offering access to a Wi-Fi service that lets the phones deliver Internet access to other kinds of devices such as Apple’s iPad.

Touch screens and standard QWERTY keyboards are the common features of the two phones which are black in color. The keyboard of Pixi Plus is built into its face while that of Pre Plus slides out from the bottom.

Strong demand of Apple Inc.’s iPhone and Research In Motion Ltd.’s BlackBerry has highly affected the sale of Palm Inc. and the price cut along with providing various applications are considered some of the good options to help the company snag bargain-hunting shoppers.

According to Verizon spokeswoman Brenda Raney, Verizon is selling Palm’s Pre Plus for $50, down from $150. The Pixi Plus now goes for $30, down from $80. Both require two-year contracts.

Limited but free service has also been offered by Verizon that lets up to five devices connect to Verizon’s wireless network through the phones, which act as a Wi-Fi hotspot.