Palm announced its first webOS smartphone back at CES in January and the Pre hit the market earlier this summer to lackluster sales on the Sprint network. Palm today has announced a new webOS device also bound for Sprint called the Pixi.

Palm hails the Pixi as its thinnest phone yet. The Pixi has a full keyboard that is on the front of the phone like a Blackberry rather than hidden under the screen with a slider form factor like the Pre. Palm is mum on an exact launch date for the Pixi, but says it will hit the Sprint network in time for the holidays.

“With Palm webOS, we’re creating a new, more intuitive smartphone experience defined by unmatched simplicity and usefulness,” said Jon Rubinstein, Palm chairman and chief executive officer. “Palm Pixi brings this unique experience to a broader range of people who want enhanced messaging and social networking in a design that lets them express their personal style.”

Palm will also offer the Pixi in an Artists Series with covers for the device unveiled at the Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week in New York starting tomorrow. The Pixi includes the webOS platform and the handset operates on dual-band CDMA2000 and 3G EVDA Rev A networks. The screen of the Pixi is a 2.63-inch unit with 18-bit color and a resolution of 320 x 400.

The device supports email with direct push technology, Exchange support, and Pop3/IMAP account support. Full messaging features are supported with MMS, IM, and SMS and GPS is integrated. Pixi has a 2-megapixel camera with LED flash and Palm equipped the phone with ambient light, acceleration, and proximity sensors.

The handset supports MP3, AAC, AAC+, AMR, QCELP, WAV audio formats and MPEG-4, H.263, H.264 video formats. Bluetooth 2.1 + EDR with A2DP stereo is supported as well. Internal memory is 8GB, but only 7GB is accessible by the user. A 3.5mm headphone jack is built-in, the device features Palm Synergy, and the other webOS features that the Pre offers. Overall dimensions are 2.17-inches W x 4.37-inches H x 0.43-inches D and it weighs 3.51 ounces.

Palm also confirmed the rumored price cut on the Pre. Starting today the Pre is available for $149.99 with a new 2-year agreement after a $150 instant rebate and a $100 mail-in rebate.