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(More customer reviews)I have owned a Treo 650 on and off and on again since this model came out. Initially, I was extremely frustrated by the phone's telephone performance and its lack of stability. Frequent reboots, freezes and dropped calls made it difficult to appreciate the phone. I ended up getting rid of it and relying on a separate palm and cell phone. Over time, PalmOne has released firmware updates (the phone's operating system) that have made the phone very stable. The improvements we so significant that they actually won me back. This review is for the GSM Treo 650.
A word about Carriers: I only use GSM because I travel abroad frequently - this limits me to Cingular and Tmobile. I have used both, and I have found that Cingular's network coverage is more complete, especially in rural areas, but Tmobile's network sounds better. It's a tradeoff - with Tmobile, you'll drop the call more often, but with Cingular you'll say "what?" more often. Their coverage is about equal in big cities and along major highways. International roaming is less expensive with Tmobile, plus Cingular has a few hurdles in place that prevent you from enabling international roaming on your account if you've been with them for less than 6 months. Verizon and Sprint use a cellular technology that is US-only, and therefore no good for using your phone abroad.
Here are the phone's pros: in your pocket, you have your address book, datebook, notes, e-mail, low-res still and video camera, a very nice sms interface that threads sms exchanges by contact, a web browser, and an mp3 player. The QWERTY keyboard makes typing much faster than a standard phone. The interface is unique and you will need a little time to get used to it, but once you do you will be as efficient at quick-dialing and keeping up with daily use as on any other phone. Also, this phone is a quad-band GSM which means that it will work very well abroad, unlike the more common tri-band GSM phones, which don't perform as well. (Remember, if you get a Treo Smartphone from Verizon or Sprint, it will not work abroad.) The screen on the Palm version is brilliant. The Windows version is not as sharp - a limitation imposed by the operating system. Also, GSM technology uses "SIM" cards, which means you can simply change out the "SIM" and use your phone on another network or another phone number, either domestically or while abroad. (You might have a phone locked onto a carrier's network until your contract commitment is complete, but that's something you can sort out on your own).
Here are the phone's cons: I said "in your pocket" because if you mount this thing on your belt, the bulge may force you to make alterations on your sport jacket. Also, in an age of identity theft and information security, you should think long and hard about just how much information is in there. Believe me, the phone quickly becomes a place to store passwords, account information, customer information, etc. Consider how you will feel if you leave it in a restaurant, or if it's stolen.
Here are lesser cons that can be worked around: The beauty of these palm phones is that they're so popular; other people have had whatever problem you might encounter, and they've written software to address / fix / work around the issue. For example, I found that the phone's volume is not loud enough. There is 3rd party volume software to fix that, as well as software that allows you to use the phone as a Bluetooth modem for your computer. Some software is freeware, some is shareware, and some is for purchase. The key is that there are so many forums and resources on the Internet that you can search around and find the answers that you need, and the phone allows you to install and uninstall with as much ease as with your home PC.
Thoughts about newer Treo phones: The 650 now costs a little less because the Treo 700w and 700p have come out. This is a good thing, because I don't see the 700 having any new features that make the upgrade a "must". Other than a slightly redesigned appearance and interface, and higher resolution camera, the phone's features are basically identical. Also, as of the Summer 2006, the Treo 700 is only available on CDMA networks. The Treo folks have staggered the release of GSM and CDMA models to give the all carriers a turn at exclusivity.
Looking to the future, there is speculation that the next generation Treo phone will be a GSM, it will be thinner, lighter, and the antenna will be internal - basically, it will more resemble a blackberry on the outside. These are much sought after features by Treo users. Maybe I'll upgrade then.
In conclusion, only 4 stars for this phone because the product wasn't ready for market when they released it. It's much better now; if they had initially released the current product, I would have given it 5 stars. I hope my perspective helps you with your decision.
UPDATE - Jan 08, 2007: the Treo750 (windows mobile) has come out in the UK with Vodafone, and here in the USA, the Treo680 (Palm OS) has been announced with Cingular. In forums on the internet, people have reported that the new 680 addresses many wish-list items for the Treo faithful: slighly thinner (a modest few millimeters), internal antenna, better keyboard, volume-too-low issue "sort of" resolved, better mp3 player (pTunes instead of Real), more memory, improved phone interface, EDGE instead of GPRS to double the data speed. Unfortunately, the camera has the same resolution (640x480) and the few millimeters thinner have meant a thinner battery. Treo 680 owners complain of poor battery life (1 day or significantly less for power users).
As of Thanksgiving, every vendor pre-selling the Treo 680 was sold out (including Amazon). This tells me two things: many Treo users are looking to upgrade immediately by choice, not out of necessity. As a result, the market should be flooded with inexpensive used Treo650s, and no doubt merchants with 650 inventory will probably sell them inexpensively enough for people who have been priced out of the smartphone market to get their hands on one.
Palm says the 680 is targeted to the every day person, not the power user. I suppose that means in a year we should expect another more expensive model that will be what the 680 should have been. I feel that Palm is releasing new models in a very slow and calculated manner in order to drive consumer spending.
My recommendation: if you want a Treo, go with the 650. With an extended battery a power user (bluetooth, e-mail, etc.) can go 2 days between charges or 3 days with normal usage. Look for it online.
The smartphone market has become very crowded with the slim Motorola Q (windows), the comparably sized and feature-rich Nokia E61 (legendary stability of Symbian OS), friendlier and proven Blackberry models, the Samsung blackjack (windows), and lately the MDA (windows) is getting rave reviews with all the features you wish you could have, including Wi-Fi.
The Treo does a lot - it probably has the best SMS interface on the market, but the rest is just ok. For example, the mp3 player works, but not as good as a dedicated mp3 player like an iRiver or iPod. The e-mail application works, but the IMAP implementation is poor, and POP3 performance is inconsistent re: leaving or deleting messages from the server. If you want a good e-mail application on the Treo, you'll have to buy a 3rd party program that will be almost as good as the blackberry. But you will have to buy this app, and the more 3rd party apps you load, the less stable the device. What I'm saying is the Treo is a jack of many trades but it's a master of none (except SMS/MMS messaging.) While I am a Palm faithful, I'm afraid that if you want a *stable* phone, e-mail, address book and schedule, the blackberry is the way to go, but you won't have the bells and whistles (camera, mp3 player, 3rd party apps and touch screen) that come with a Treo. Yes, that means I now have a crackberry. It was a Xmas gift from a friend who was tired of hearing me complain about my Treo. Here is the bottom line: if you're getting this device as a business tool where missed calls or e-mails translate to lost money, get a blackberry. If you want a really cool phone with all the bells and whistles you can fathom and you like loading 3rd party applications and you like having a fun device to play with, then you will absolutely love the Treo.
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PalmOne Treo 650 Unlocked Phone with MP3/Video Player, and SD/MMC--U.S. Version with Warranty (Silver)To keep your smartphone's applications up to date, and to optimize the performance of your device, you may need to perform firmware and/or software updates just as you would on your PC. To learn more about updates for your device, please visit Palm's support site. Note that by clicking this link you will be leaving Amazon.com. The unlocked PalmOne Treo 650 boasts all the legendary features of the venerable Treo 600, plus a whole lot more. Now with Bluetooth, a higher resolution screen, a removable battery, and an improved keyboard, the Treo 650 is once again on the cutting edge of Smartphone technology. It offers all the functionality of a high-end Palm OS-powered PDA, a cell phone and a VGA camera. Simply put, it's the ultimate mobile office companion.
Design Under the hood, the Treo 650 features Palm OS 5.4, 32MB of RAM (23MB available for end user storage), and an Intel PXA270 312 MHz processor. The design retains the same popular form factor as the Treo 600 with a few subtle, yet significant, changes. The unit's screen has been dramatically enhanced to support 320 x 320 resolution and the full QWERTY keypad has been redesigned for greater ease of use. The top of the unit features an expansion card slot for SD and MMC-based memory and expansion cards. There's also an infrared port here for line of sight data transfers, as well as a handy switch for turning off the phone's ringer. A five-way navigator controls most of the phone's menus and operating system functions, while quick application buttons on either side of the navigator get you to your favorite applications in a snap. The left side of the unit features a volume up/down toggle plus a handy user-customizable button that can be assigned to any phone or PDA function. The rear of the Treo 650 houses a loudspeaker, as well as the VGA (640x480) camera unit. A touchscreen stylus can be tucked away on the right side of the phone. Meanwhile, a combined charging, data, and accessory attachment port is housed on the bottom of the unit, as is a standard 2.5 mm stereo headset jack.
Calling and PDA Features All the of the Treo 650's phone and PDA functions are designed to provide an integrated, seamless experience. For instance, you can type in the name or initials of a contact on the keypad to dial them. Or, use the touchscreen and stylus to copy information from an email and quickly paste it into another email or text message. All of the latest phone features folks expect are built-in, too, like a handsfree speakerphone, polyphonic ringtones, a vibrate mode and picture caller ID. The capacity of the unit's address book is only limited by the amount of internal and expansion memory available. Use the Treo 650's Bluetooth capability to wirelessly sync your contacts with your PC or Mac (yes, Mac!). Headsets, car kits and other wireless peripherals can also be paired with the unit via Bluetooth.
The Treo 650 is also a fully functional Palm OS device. That means that a huge library of applications, from spreadsheets to word processors to games, can be added to the Treo 650. It's easy to perform multiple tasks like checking your calendar while talking on the phone or dialing calls directly from your contacts list. Familiar Palm OS software ships with the handset including calendar, calculator, clock, contacts, memo, and task management applications. Real Player for video and MP3 playback, VersaMail email client, and DataViz Documents to Go for mobile access to spreadsheets and text documents, are also included.
The unit's memory expansion slot allows you to transfer music, photos, and video from your desktop. Or, use it to load additional games and applications.
Messaging and Internet The device fully supports SMS and MMS messaging for rapid exchange of pictures, text and video. You can even get mobile email and web browsing. The Treo 650's web browser supports full-size web pages, and you can enter secure pages with 128-bit SSL encryption. POP3 email accounts provided by SBC, BellSouth, Yahoo, Earthlink, Comcast and AT&T Worldnet are all compatible with the 650's email client application. IMAP and Exchange-based email systems are also supported, and you can view photos, HTML, Word, Excel and PowerPoint attachments.
Vital Statistics The PalmOne Treo 650 weighs 6.30 ounces and measures 4.40 x 2.30 x .90 inches. Its lithium-ion battery is rated at up to 6 hours of digital talk time, and up to 300 hours of digital standby time. It runs on the 800/900/1800/1900 GSM/GPRS frequencies. The phone comes with a one year limited warranty.
What's in the Box Treo 650 handset, lithium-ion battery, USB HotSync cable, headset, AC charger, user manual, software CD-ROM.
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