It’s time to get back to our regularly scheduled programming. For Palm, that means more global expansion announcements after weeks of deflecting reports of the company being bought.

"As you can imagine, there's a lot of rumors and speculation out there. We're just not going to comment on that stuff," said Palm’s CFO, Andrew Brown.

Talkin’ Treo is back in full force this week (perhaps "fuller" than normal since there was two weeks of reviews to digest). So without further ado, Let’s Talk Treo!

Palm News

Number One with a Bullet! Palm reported record sell-through for their third fiscal quarter (ending March 2): 738,000 units, up 30 percent year over year and up 20 percent sequentially. Palm’s adjusted third-quarter profit and revenue beat analyst expectations.

"We delivered solid results in the third fiscal quarter and continue to expand our global market presence," said Ed Colligan, Palm president and chief executive officer. "Treo smartphone sell-through and revenue reached record levels, and Palm products were available to smartphone customers through seven of the top 10 carriers in the world."

For more on Palm’s earnings, check out TreoCentral’s coverage.

More Good News! Court Grants Stay in Palm vs. NTP Lawsuit

Per an article in The Wall Street Journal:

"It is entirely possible that the PTO (patent trade office) will determine that such patents were wrongly issued and that the Plaintiff [NTP] is not the owner of the interests in the dispute," Judge James Spencer of the United States District Court for the Eastern Division of Virginia, Richmond Division wrote in an order issued Thursday. "In that event, NTP would ostensibly lack the standing necessary to bring an action for infringement, and the case would be dismissed."

In its complaint filed in November 2006, NTP asserted that Palm's products, services, systems and processes infringe NTP's patents on wireless email systems. Palm rejected NTP's claims outright and called their patent claims "dubious" saying that the patents in question were of doubtful validity.

Palm issued only one global expansion press release this week.

Treo 680 in Ecuador

PORTA, the leading wireless telecommunications company in Ecuador, and Palm, Inc. announced the availability of the Treo 680 in Ecuador. PORTA has almost 6 million users and nationwide coverage.

Recent TreoCentral Guides, Reviews & More

Like music to my ears… It was nice to see two reviews from TreoCentral’s resident audio expert.

Review: Altec Lansing BB2001 Subwoofer - By Harv Laser

Harv remarks:

"If you own or are thinking about buying an Altec Lansing iMT1 system for your Treo (CDMA models only, as explained in Jay's review).. and you love high quality sound reproduction, splurge the extra $50.00 (or shop around, you'll find it brand new for even less) and add the BB2001 subwoofer to it. The difference it makes has to be heard to be believed. If Altec had put the power / volume knob on the front making it easier to get to, I'd call this baby perfect. In spite of that one glaring design quirk, it's a stupendous addition to the iMT1 or any other compatible portable speaker system with a sub-out jack. I absolutely love it and I think you will too."

Review: iKEY Plus - By Harv Laser

Harv writes:

"The iKEY Plus is a superb and logical upgrade from the original iKEY. It's a very cool, addictive toy you can have a ton of fun with and find many uses for. Once you learn how to operate it, which honestly is not difficult at all, you'll be digging into the closet for those albums and tapes you haven't heard in ages and give them a whole new life as MP3 files without having to buy them all over again as CDs or downloads."

Review: Warden Security for Treo - By Jay Gross

In my column back in December, I mentioned a study talking about the huge number of electronics devices that were left in taxi cabs in the San Francisco-Oakland Bay (3,106 devices) and Washington, D.C.-Baltimore (8,701 devices) areas.

Jay just reviewed a program for securing the data on PalmOS and Windows Mobile Treos:

"Think about all the things you’d like a security system to implement, and Corsoft’s Warden is probably already there, and then some. The program’s options for securing your Treo’s data, even destroying it, cover a mind-boggling list of possibilities."

Review: USB/SD Card Reader/Writer - By Tim Hillebrand

Getting data into your Treo is a snap when you have a SD memory card handy. But how to you move that data to your PC? Tim checked out one option:

"It seems to me that the keychain without one of these handy devices is far from complete. If you don’t have a USB/SD reader, you should. I’ll bet you’ve already thought of at least a couple useful scenarios for it in your life. This useful little gadget would make a nice gift or a great promotional item. You could put your company logo on it and fill it full of propaganda on an SD card."

Review: Super Slim Hard Case (Crystal) for Treo 680 - By Jay Gross

Jay provides a crystal-clear look at this slim hard case:

"Although I love the way the crimson boldness of my new Treo 680 shines through the crystal Super Slim Hard Case, I remain a little uneasy about stuffing it in my pants pockets with a ring of keys, a gaggle of coins, and other potential scratch-and-dent tempters. However, with a screen protector firmly in place, I have no problem stashing the 680 in an otherwise uninhabited pocket in my shirt, jacket, or coat. Besides, that keeps my Crimson Treasure ready to be whipped out at the slightest provocation."

Review: BookCase Options - By Douglas Morse

Over the last two weeks, Douglas checked out two different BookCase-style cases.

Regarding the Smartphone Experts BookCase for Treo 750/680, he writes:

"I have to say that at the same price, the Organizer bookcase is a better buy. However, if you want a case that works exactly as advertised, appreciate the slightly lower profile design, you will get exactly what you want."

And this is what he said about the Smartphone Experts Organizer Bookcase for Treo 680/750:

"Using this BookCase design reminds me why I wanted one in the first place. The case protects the Treo well, allows access to important functions, and can even work while closed. I also enjoy the BookCase style because it reminds me of the DayRunner the PDA replaced long, long ago. Although there are many flip cases that go over top or bottom, there is something efficient about a case that opens to the side."

Talkin’ TreoCast

In this episode, along with the usual news and reviews, listeners find out how to use FontSmoother to make the PalmOS Treo look a whole lot better.

Elsewhere in the World of Treo…

This "Smackdown" appeared at WMExperts.com

Submitted by "gadgetluva," it compares the Treo 750 versus the Samsung BlackJack and the HTC 8525. It is a fairly long (and thorough) article. In his wrap-up, he states:

"The Treo 750 is a great one-handed device that is great for using as a phone, text messaging, and overall ease of use. The Blackjack has an incredible form factor, a great screen (albeit a bit small), and great as a one-handed usage device. The 8525 is a powerhouse of a PDA, packing in features that the other two devices don’t, a large screen and powerful processor that is best for multimedia, and a great keyboard. I’ve had these three devices for some time now, and I find it hard to get rid of any of them. However, the Treo has taken over as my business/weekday device and the Blackjack has taken on weekend duties, leaving my 8525 hanging out as an expensive paperweight. All are awesome smartphones, but I know which ones I’ll be using on a daily basis."

Review: SPE Leather HardCase

Andrew from Treonauts writes:

"Now thanks to the new SPE Leather Hardcase for the Treo 680 and 750 I’ve found a case that offers a very similar Vaja design and build quality at nearly a third of the price ($29.95) while also being available immediately."

Review: Seidio Rubberized Treo 680 Holster

John Andrews at MyTreo.net provided his thoughts on this holster:

"I’ve always liked holster cases for their slimness and the quick access they provide to my Treo. If you are looking for a holster case for you Treo 680, then the Seidio Rubberized Holster should be at the top of your list. It is both well designed and constructed of quality materials that feel great to the touch."

Review: UmeVoice theBoom Wired Headsets

TreoCentral’s Harv Laser spoke highly about UmeVoice’s products in this review and this review. Here’s what MyTreo.net’s adimiron had to say:

"I'm amazed at the quality and clarity of sound that the UmeVoice theBoom headsets provide. Whether in a crowded train terminal or the bustling streets of New York City, you can be sure that the caller will hear your every word. Each model is sturdily built and comfortable to wear. Cost and minor positioning problems may be issues for some users, but I believe the benefits of these headsets far exceed any negative. I recommend the headsets to any Treo user looking to get their message across regardless of background noise volume."

Review: Jabra C820s Active Noise Cancellation Headphones

Speaking of noise cancellation, check out this review of the Jabra C820s by Andrew at Treonauts. He writes:

"Overall, if you are a budget-conscious Treonaut who has been yearning to get the (nearly) same performance as the Bose Quiet Comfort 2 (QC2) Acoustic Noise Cancelling Headphones at a fraction of the cost then I have no doubt that you will be absolutely delighted by these new Jabra C820s Active Noise Cancellation Headphones which I very highly recommend and that offer stunning value. If I didn’t already own the QC2’s I might actually have a hard time justifying my purchase…"

Review: Agendus Professional – Calendar

MyTreo.net’s Alli Flowers wrote about the calendar portion of Agendus Professional:

"In an earlier article I extolled the virtues of Agendus contact features. But Agendus is known mostly for its time management. Agendus makes your calendar work for you, and considering the power and flexibility of this application, it does it all fairly easily. Combine these capabilities with the versatility offered by Agendus' contacts, and you'll find you can easily manage the most hectic schedule. Agendus is available for both Palm OS and Windows mobile devices."

Review: RSS Readers

Web Worker Daily posted a nice roundup of RSS readers:

"The bottom line: If it were possible to take the full browser version of Google Reader and sync it with the mobile HTML version of Bloglines, I would be a very happy camper. That said, I have to give the edge to Google Reader for the best all-around cross-platform browser feed reading experience."

Endnotes & Ponderables:

This week’s column ended up being heavy on reviews (there was a lot of catching up to do). No doubt, with CTIA taking place next week, there will be a shift towards more in the way of news.

I’m going to close with two interesting items.

Clues: 5 Ways To Protect Your Smartphone

Eric Zeman at InformationWeek has put together some handy tips on things you can do to protect you Treo (or other "smart" device). Here are a few of his pointers:

1. Buy the blasted insurance! Even if you are as agile as a cat, everyone drops stuff. You'd be surprised how many people I know drop their phones into toilets. Speaking of which...

2. Don't take phone calls, check e-mail, send text messages in the bathroom stall. Toilets attract phones of all sorts. Not only will it ruin your phone, but fishing it out is icky. I know you're at some fancy dinner with clients and reading e-mail at the table is verboten. But still, do your business before doing your business.

3. If your smartphone doesn't come with a good holster, get one. Make sure it has a flap that locks the phone in. (Your pocket just won't cut it, no matter how tight those jeans are.) Even if you drop the holster, the phone will be somewhat protected from the full impact.

Check out the other two pointers by clicking here.

Cell Phones for Soldiers

This week, an organization called Cell Phones for Soldiers announced they are hoping to turn old cell phones into more than 12 million minutes of prepaid calling cards for U.S. troops stationed overseas in 2007. To do so, Cell Phones for Soldiers expects to collect 15,000 cell phones each month through a network of more than 3,000 collection sites across the country.

According to the release, the phones will be sent to ReCellular, which pays Cell Phones for Soldiers up to $50 for each donated phone – enough to provide twenty-five hours of calling cards to soldiers abroad.

So far, Cell Phones for Soldiers, which was founded by teenagers Robbie and Brittany Bergquist from Norwell, Mass., has raised almost $1 million in donations and distributed more than 250,000 prepaid calling cards to soldiers serving overseas.

Great idea! And great project for the weekend (To Do: Dig through drawers to locate old cell phones to donate).

That’s a wrap!

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