A new report is claiming that Palm and Sprint are now hoping to launch the new Pre handset in May.

According to news site phonenews.com, which credits leaked internal memos for the information, employees at Sprint retail stores have been instructed to cancel holiday time in May and begin training on the features and uses of the new Palm smartphone.

The report speculates that the company is looking at one of two plans which would see the device released in either mid-May or late June, depending on expected stockpiles of the handsets and customer demand.

If the speculation on a May release proves true, the reports would indicate a dramatic jump in the progress toward the Pre's release. When the Pre was first unveiled in January at the CES conference in Las Vegas, Palm had set 1 July as the preliminary release date.

The report is the latest in what is shaping up to be a very busy summer in the smartphone sector. Last week, news of major chip orders from Apple sparked speculation that a new iPhone model was in the works. The company has already promised an iPhone software update for the summer.

In addition to the iPhone and Pre sagas, there has been ongoing speculation about new Google Android devices and the expected launch of Toshiba's new TG01 Snapdragon handset.