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Talkin' Treo -- v062306
Week ending 23 June 2006
I was getting all excited about the Palm earnings announcement when I realized that I had the date wrong in my mind. It truly is next Thursday and not this week. I apologize if any of you went by what I wrote in my previous column. The info from Palm that appeared the last two weeks (and appears here again), is right:
Palm's earnings announcement is next Thursday, June 29, at 4:00 p.m. Eastern (1:00 p.m. Pacific), followed by a conference call for the public at 4:30 p.m. Eastern (1:30 p.m. Pacific). The conference call will be hosted by Ed Colligan, president and chief executive officer, Andy Brown, chief financial officer, and Sandy O'Halloran, senior director of Investor Relations.
 Palm has maintained their "quietness" for yet another week, with their biggest news coming from the unveiling of a "Black Tie" version of the Treo 650 as part of their 10th anniversary celebration.
For $599 you get an "unlocked" GSM Treo 650 smartphone that works with almost any GSM/GPRS network worldwide, a Palm Hard Case and a Stylus Pen. This Black Tie Edition has a sharp new look—polished chrome framework against a black backdrop with a soft-touch finish. Learn more here.
News from the UK: Blackberry Replaced By Treo
BancTec Service Europe, one of Europe's fastest growing IT support services companies has replaced its BlackBerry devices with Good Technology's enterprise wireless computing software, GoodLink running on Palm Treo smartphones. The key factors in the decision were Good Technology's superior Secure Over-The-Air(TM) handheld software management capabilities and device choice and flexibility.
BancTec, a global provider of infrastructure service management and solutions for document, content, and payment processing, initially purchased 80 GoodLink licenses and is planning a full rollout to all 230 personnel in Europe this summer. BancTec is also planning to upgrade its infrastructure and is considering mobilizing more of its enterprise applications using Good Technology.
Who's Talkin Treo 700p this Week?
This week, it was the Boston Herald, CIO Today, the Technology Evangelist and Treonauts.
Boston Herald
Eric Convey in his "Inspecting Gadgets" column writes:
"How good a phone is it? Is this a device you want to hold up to your ear and talk to someone with? That's where the Treo shines most of all. It's a great phone. Unlike most of its competitors, it feels great in your hand. And audio quality was first-rate. This is what really sets the Treo apart from the pack. Other devices with as much data capability tend to be so-so when used as regular old mobile phones. The 700p brings it all to the table."
CIO Today
Mark Long states:
"For die-hard Palm aficionados who really need the speed, and who can spend $399.99 plus the cost of a two-year service commitment, the EVDO-enabled Treo 700p might be just the thing. For the rest of us, a competing EDGE-enabled product such as T-Mobile's MDA smartphone might be a tad less speedy but it does incorporate the Wi-Fi and global roaming capabilities that the 700p lacks."
Andrew at Treonauts writes:
"...There is no doubt that the Treo 700p looks and feels great – it's slick and elegant and further refines the already winning smartphone design of previous Treo models. Additionally, the new or improved hardware components – particularly the EvDO and additional memory – significantly further enhance the capabilities of our Treo to deliver an even better Treonauts Lifestyle."
Benjamin at Technology Evangelist calls the 700p a "must have." He takes a look at the Treo 700p from the perspective of a techie and a businessperson, not just from a features standpoint:
"...the Treo 700p combined with ChatterEmail is my business and techie phone of choice. This is the ultimate communication machine."
That "Other" Smartphone
 The "Q" is still hot! In fact, it's hard to keep track of all the reviews. Here are a few more that popped up.
Peter Lewis of Fortune writes in his column ("License to thrill?"):
"To be fair, Motorola's Q is more fun than Bond's Q. It comes with Windows Media Player 10 Mobile, which, along with the Mini SD card expansion slot, transforms the Q phone into a serviceable MP3 and WMA music player. (It's especially good with an optional Bluetooth stereo headset.) It also handles video clips and digital still pictures. The built-in 1.3 megapixel camera has a flash and 6X digital zoom. The Q has feature galore at an impressive price, and it's definitely the best-looking Windows Mobile smartphone around. Too bad it lacks a license to thrill."
 At TheStreet.com, Cody Willard writes ("Let There Be Q Indeed"):
"Well, long story short, I've been playing with my new Q for about a week, and I rate it three and half rock stars out of four. (I rate things in terms of rock stars, not just any kind of star, because you want to buy a stock before a gadget becomes its own rock star, such as Apple's iPod)."
Recent TreoCentral Guides & Reviews
theBoom and theBoom "O" noise canceling headsets - By Harv Laser
"UmeVoice has created nothing less than miracles of modern acoustics technology with both of their theBoom models. They absolutely work as advertised. Both were designed by world-renowned Frog Design and look as good as they work...
Choose the style you prefer – the more compact earhook and gel style theBoom, or the headband style theBoom "O". Functionally identical, ergonomically different. I hate to slather on superlatives like frosting on a birthday cake, but I was just totally knocked out by these headsets. UmeVoice delivers what they promise, and what more is there to say?"
Task Manager Shoot-Out for the 700W - By Tim Hillebrand
"The downside to Windows Mobile's powerful, multi-tasking operating system is that ‘closed' programs remain minimized in the background eating system resources. Sure, you can close them completely, but it's a pain in the butt, requiring excavation into six levels of your device. Wouldn't it be far more convenient to manage it all right from your desktop in a tap or two? That's what task managers will do for you."
Treo Tekniques: Emulation Pt. 2 - By Xious Sonenberg
Everything you ever wanted to know about emulators, but were afraid to ask.
Welcome back to TreoTekniques: Last time we elaborated on the history of emulators, what they are, and gave your Treo a prep treatment and wax job so it's ready to Rock n' Roll in the morning.
Here in part 2, we'll explain all the bits and pieces you'll need to properly run these buggers, as well as other topics deeply related to emulation. So, lets step it up a notch and get your bytes flowing with what you're craving...
News & Reviews from Elsewhere in the Treo Community
TiVo To Go – Goes Treo??
Well, it's finally happened. TiVo To Go is now compatible with some of the most popular media players on the market, including the Sony PSP, the video iPod, and the Palm Treo 650 and 700p. The service will allow users to sync their media device to a TiVo-networked computer and download recorded programs. Transferring files to the devices requires TiVo Desktop Plus, which costs $25. An additional $20 is needed to download the needed Kinoma player to the Treo 650. The service already worked--without either charge--with Windows-friendly devices such as the Treo 700w as well as the Creative Zen Vision:M and the Toshiba Gigabeat S.
Agendus for Palm OS Version 11 Released
iambic has just released Agendus for Palm OS Version 11, a new version of its award-winning, personal information manager for Treos and other Palm OS-based handheld devices. It has been optimized to handle the dynamics of every day life and provide the type of personal assistance that's usually offered by a "real-life" assistant. For details and pricing, go to their website.
One of the new features is Agenda Walkthrough which lets you create a checklist of what you need to go over during a meeting, task or call. Then once you're done covering the specific topic, you just scroll through in the card view to quickly check it off. Very convenient.
Shall We Play Some Games?
Handmark®, a global leader in mobile media, announced that the new Tetris® Game Pak 2 will be available at retailers on June 30. This new version of the perennial bestseller offers new games and significant updates for the Palm OS® and Windows Mobile™ Pocket PC platforms and is now, for the first time, available for Windows Mobile Smartphone and BlackBerry® operating systems.
Endnotes & Ponderables
Going Sideways this Summer?
 If you are planning a trip to the Wine Country, or perhaps you just want to sound as knowledgeable as Myles in the movie "Sideways," then PDA Sommelier is the program for you. It was recently reviewed by the folks over at pdaBlast!
The program is very thorough, covering five sections: Food/Wine Pairing, Wine Search, Vintage Chart, Best Values and Best Producers. It has information and recommendations on 53,000 wines (?!).
"My favorite section is definitely the Food/Wine Pairing section. Most people I know are always asking the same question. ‘What wine goes well with this?' With PDA Sommelier you have some guidance in the area of food pairing. You select the type of food you're eating and PDA Sommelier suggests a wine. I was surprised to find that when I selected ‘Fish' PDA Sommelier prompted me to be more specific about the kind of fish I was choosing and gave me a long list of choices. iConcepts, Inc. has obviously done their homework in putting this program together."
Don't let the generic "PDA" part of the name scare you--there IS a Palm OS version.
That's a wrap!
Oh yeah. One more thing. Talkin' Treo is going on holiday next week (not to the Wine Country, however).
We'll be back on July 7.
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