Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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179 of 182 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
After getting used to it, you can't live without it., September 8, 2006
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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36 of 37 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
BUYER BEWARE OF YOUR CONTRACT, February 14, 2006
My wife and I absolutely love our phones. I am writing a warning however to alert people that this phone automatically connects to internet for whatever reasons and your cell phone service is charged tremendously without an unlimited data/internet plan. Our normal cell phone bill for both phones is typically $120. We just received a bill for more than $1100 (no joke) and our provider whose name rhymes with horizon said there was nothing I could do and it was my fault for not having unlimited data service. Just beware!
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23 of 23 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Everything I had hoped it would be...so far anyway..., January 29, 2007
I have been itching for a Treo ever since the 600 came out and I noticed that more streamlined design. When smartphones were first introduced, I bucked the trend of combining the two thinking that as often as I use my cell phone and my pda, if I bought one that integrated both I would wear it out twice as fast. And in my humble opinion, it was a valid reason because back then, the original phone/pda's were impossibly large. Well I have finally become a convert.
I spent a great deal of time researching Blackberry's vs. the Treo's vs. Pocket PC's and came VERY close to grabbing a T-Mobile Dash (which I still believe is the all-around smallest model availabe as I write this, or at least it SEEMED to be), but I finally settled with the trusted Palm OS platform (one that I have become VERY familiar with over the years using pda's for quite some time now). When I set out to get one, I really had my heart set on the Treo 680...but as I read the reviews for them, one thing kept creeping in to almost all the reviews: battery life was terrible. With that aside, quite a few of the reviewers mentioned that all things considered, they were more happy with their old 650. I saw this on so MANY reviews that I began to think twice. Then I noticed that the 700p was a more beefed up version of the 650, and began to consider it as well. Unfortunately as I write this, it isn't available with Alltell service where I am (it will, but nobody can give me a target date, and dang it, I am too impatient to wait...) so I am right back with the 650. It took a while before Palm was able to knock enough of the bugs out of the 650 that I felt like buying one would be worth it...and I am discovering more than a few bugs have been associated with both the 680 & 700p, so no matter HOW much time I spend considering upgrading to a newer model, I find compelling reasons to go right back to the Old School 650.
Reason #1 to go with it: Since it is no longer available at Palm's Official website, and with the newer models coming out, chances are you can find some pretty sweet deals on the older 650.
Reason #2: Virtually ALL of the problems originally associated with the 650 have been eliminated. You want Push email? You can get it. You want web surfing? No prob. You want to view AND edit MS Word Documents and Excell? Easier than ever with the 650 (that was one major plus over most of the Pocket PC's and ALL of the Blackberrys -- sure you can VIEW some of these documents, but you cannot EDIT them, too).
Reason #3: No matter HOW convenient the pda, I found it next to impossible to give up a touch-screen's amazing versatility and the ease with which you can use it to edit things and connect on websites.
One more important item to factor in when considering buying a 650: With the popularity with ever increasing wireless downloading speeds, I was afraid that the slower Treo would make internet surfing next to impossible because of the archaic speeds with which you are forced to endure. I was VERY pleastantly surprised that downloading web pages did not take as long as I was at first expecting. I have to tell you, after experimenting with the supposedly MUCH faster 700p with another online carrier than the one I was using (I won't say which, but they really did their best to tell me the 650 was slower than a dial-up modem from 1985), anyway, the 650 was only SLIGHTLY slower than this screaming fast 700p or the 700w. I figured that was something I could live with to be honest. Hey, it's a tiny hand-held device that allows me to send and receive email and surf the web...I'm still amazed that something like this exists at ALL to be honest with you...so downloading speed is still secondary in my opinion. If speed really IS on your list of absolutes, maybe you ought to move up to something else...but keep in mind, it is only BARELY faster than what I experienced first hand.
One more thing: the screen is amazing. There are only so many ways to say WOW. If you are considering buying a Palm that runs Windows Mobile, you ought to know that the screen clarity is almost reduced by HALF. This apparently has something to do with Window's OS, and seriously put my decision to buy one on the back burner.
Sure there are things that a smartphone cannot as yet do without some difficulty or impossibility...but that is the same with ALL current models. Do some SERIOUS research into what you want vs. what you NEED and make an informed decision only AFTER you have had the chance to go into a store and test a specific model PERSONALLY. Do that and no matter WHAT you decide on, you will most likely be happy. So far, I know I am VERY satisfied with my choice. Good luck on yours.
***UPDATE***
I opted not to get a Bluetooth hands-free device -- at first. Originally I would see people walking around with these Lt. Uhura type thingy's sticking out of their ears and I couldn't help but wonder how lazy people are that they cannot raise their hand up to their head while walking around simply to talk on the phone. For the most part I STILL feel this way, but I decided to buy a Bluetooth hands-free headset for while I am driving. I cannot afford to miss calls, and being in radio, when not at work or home I can be found in my car monitoring the radio virtually 100% of the time and unfortunately this means I sometimes cannot hear the ringer. The tethered device that came with the phone is certainly loud enough, but simply did not fit my ear (it kept falling out). I bought a replacement that came with a variable size adapter and yet while it FIT better, the sound was almost impossible to hear (the worst I have ever experienced, actually). So I took the plunge knowing full-well that the Palm Treo has a somewhat problematic history using these devices...so I made sure that I had an iron-clad return policy in place and jumped in. It took me no more than a minute to configure my head-set and I went ahead and made a test call which had more than enough volume -- in fact it had plenty to spare. All in all I am VERY satisfied with the performance. (I bought a Keycera Bluetooth, if that means anything)
One additional item that requires mentioning: I currently have call-waiting as a service with my Treo and yet I have missed at least 3 calls (that I know of). This particular feature does not seem to be supported by the 650...and IF it is, I have yet to discover any useful info regarding the problem, whether online or in the bible-sized instruction manual. I will keep looking and IF I find a solution I will quickly report it here asap. Just one more thing to think about. Otherwise, I am amazingly satisfied with my Treo otherwise. The ONLY thing I wish (other than user-friendly call-waiting) is faster downloads while online. That is supposedly possible with the newer models using EVDO and yet the 700p I tested failed to work only slightly faster than my 650. Maybe it was the network -- but not according to them (no surprise there). I still think my purchase was WELL worth it.
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