With a strong forehand swing, Palm has turned the veiled threat back onto Apple’s side of the court:

Palm’s media sync works with the current version of iTunes. If Apple chooses to disable media sync in a future version of iTunes, it will be a direct blow to their users who will be deprived of a seamless synchronization experience. However, people will have options. They can stay with the iTunes version that works to sync their music on their Pre, they can transfer the music via USB, and there are other third-party applications we could consider.

Apple has been put into a particularly sticky situation by the Pre as it masquerades as an iPhone to the iTunes application. Moving to specifically block the Pre may harm support for legacy iPods– a move that would certainly not go well for Apple.

Maybe we’re not down with DRM lockins, maybe we’re hip to Palm’s scrappiness, or maybe we just like our Davids, but we like the cut of Palm’s jib.