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Talkin' Treo -- v070706
Week ending 7 July 2006
 This was a quiet week for Palm (Perhaps it was their turn to take a golf holiday).
In case you haven't read it, here's our coverage of their earnings. The takeaway:"We enter fiscal year 2007 as a strong leader, capable of delivering on the rich potential of mobile computing on a global scale." --Palm Chief Executive Ed Colligan During the last two weeks there were some interesting stories and reviews of note. So let's talk Treo!
Who's Talkin Treo 700p?
For you Mac users, MacWorld's Jeff Carlson provides his thoughts in this piece:
 "Like other Palm OS handhelds, the Treo 700p offers good syncing capability with your Mac, either with the Palm Desktop software that comes on a CD-ROM with the device or Apple's built-in Address Book and iCal applications; and, although the included Palm software isn't Universal, it worked fine on both PowerPC and Intel-based Macs."
"The Treo 700p is one of the best smartphones on the market, despite its relative expense. And it's even better if you want to take advantage of its speedy EvDO Internet access."
Michael J. Miller, the chief content officer for Ziff Davis Media, recently wrote about the 700p in his "Forward Thinking" (PC Magazine) blog. Here are a few of his comments:
"At this point, there's little doubt that Windows Mobile is the more capable environment, but the Palm OS has a level of simplicity that's hard to beat. You can do most common commands much faster with the Palm version than with the Windows version."
"...But the Treo 700p works well for what it does, which is most of what I'm looking for in a phone today. Overall, the Treo set the standard, and the 700p raises the bar."
Who's Talkin Treo 700w?
 We want to make sure we don't neglect the 700p's sibling—the Treo 700w. Here are a few items of note:
David Sims of TMCnet
reports that X10DATA Corporation has just opened the window for Treo 700w users to single-handedly navigate financial, sales, service, and project management applications in real-time over Verizon's EvDO broadband network.
MobilitySite.com brought to our attention that there is a neat application called Sprite Backup that makes it very easy to backup data on your Treo 700w.
It has automatic data protection features, so you can setup your backup schedule and then let Sprite Backup automatically protect your data. Plus, the self-restoring files will provide a fast recovery when you need it. This application can be downloaded from Palm's websiteand appears to be free of charge.
Talkin' Smartphones in General
OPINION: Why the Q is Good for Palm
 PalmAddicts ran an interesting story about how Palm owners can benefit if sales of the Motorola Q take off. The author states that three agendas would be pushed:- It will raise awareness of the possibilities offered by a fully-converged smartphone to even the most 'basic' of cellphone users. It will help the fully-converged paradigm to take market-share away from the Nokia paradigm.
- It will do what great competition always does to market leaders: it will force them to be ingenious, innovative and competitive. Palm will have to move the Treo line into more diversification of models, focused on the personal user, as well as the business user (the target of their Treo 650 and 700 series). This will mean better devices, which are more convenient to use, carry and afford.
- It will validate Palm's vision for smart devices, and solidify their standing in the stock markets and with investors.
Over at BusinessWeek, technology columnist, Stephen Wildstrom answers reader's questions in his piece titled Which Treo Is Right for Me?.
The July issue of Entrepreneur magazine delves the benefits of using a PDA/smartphone over lugging around a laptop. Unfortunately, this article was written before the availability of the Treo 700p. So the article ends up comparing the Treo 650 with the Hewlett-Packard iPAQ hw6940 Mobile Messenger, the Nokia E61, the Blackberry 7130e and the Samsung V. One thing's for sure, people can't seem to say enough about how much they love the high-speed EvDO broadband network.
Recent TreoCentral Guides & Reviews
 The Best Noise Cancellation for Both Ears - By Harv Laser
"UmeVoice delivers again. In spades. theBoom Quiets are one very classy product. They're versatile. They look good, they sound good, and they're solid and comfy. They just really perform in all ways. The hard storage case is gorgeous, and since you can use them in so many ways, the price of admission, while high, is well within reason, especially when you appreciate the fact that more expensive, competing ANR headphones are single purpose and don't have the spectacular theBoom noise canceling mic at all. Treat yourself. You deserve it."
Sony Ericsson HBH-PV700 - By James Hromadka
"If Apple Green is your thing, you will like the Sony Ericsson PV700 headset. It has decent battery life, great sound quality, and a good price. I fear that its color may put off some potential buyers, but then again that's why Sony Ericsson makes other headsets. Apple Green is not really my style, but I would have no problem recommending this headset to my sister or female friends."
 A trio of slick RexRegina designer cases - By Jay Gross
"RexRegina's Harrison and Stanton cases bring a palette of color to the job of protecting your Treo from harm. They surround the phone with luxuriant leather of Italian descent, and the Stanton (horizontal with clip) looks particularly fabulous. All of them protect the Treo beautifully."
Speck SkinTight case for 700p and 700w - By Xious Sonenberg
"If you're rough on your gear or your job calls for heavy-duty Treo protection and you prefer a low profile case, this one fills the bill nicely. The new Speck SkinTight gets praise for improvements over the 650 version, but it still needs some work. If it had an SD card and beaming window cutout, it would get my highest rating."
Hidden Treasures: The other calculators, Pt 1 - By Jay Gross
"There are nine additional calculators in the Treo 650 and 700p than first meet the eye, and they're almost completely undocumented. Palm's manuals leave you on your own not only to find them, but to figure out how they work. This is the first of a two-part article that explores and explains those powerful extra calculators and documents their functions so you can use them, at last."
News & Reviews from Elsewhere in the Treo Community
PocketNow looks at MagnetFlipper by Sena Cases
"This is simply an awesome case. It's affordable, good-looking and will protect your 700w/p from damage. While I did have some minor issues with the magnet strength, they aren't show stoppers. You will however, need to get yourself a new UltraClip every 3 months or so, as the metal clip tab really does a number on the plastic catch on the clip. This is, however, the only real con for this case..."
Treo Ringtone Manager "Ringo Pro" Reviewed
Over at MyTreo.net, Sion Philips posted a review of Ringo Pro. He states:
I never understood why cheap candy bar phones have MP3 ringtone players but my profoundly more sophisticated and beloved Treo can only play rings in other formats. Thankfully, third party software developers such as Electric Pocket Ltd. have remedied this issue through applications such as Ringo Pro.
 Chattermail made the rounds with two reviews recently appearing.
Chattermail Killer App for Treo by Benjamin over at TechnologyEvangelist.com and I Just Got the Best of Both Worlds by Andrew at PalmAddicts.
PalmInfoCenter's Pen Stylus Shootout
If you are interested in learning more about replacement options for your Treo's stylus, then check out this story.
"The old adage of getting what you pay for rings true once again if you care about adding a multifunction stylus to your Treo. A narrow first place victory goes to the Seidio Pen Stylus over the Palm 3-pack, especially if you buy three of the styli from Seidio alongside some other accessories to mitigate the shipping charges. The Palm Pen Styli are super-convenient and found nearly anywhere but they're just a bit too flimsy for daily use. Palm's standard stylus is quite a nice one but limited in its functionality. The first time you find yourself in a pinch and needing a real pen for some emergency situation you may want to seriously consider bestowing your Treo with one of the above combo units."
Endnotes & Ponderables
Mobile content is a big deal. There's been all kinds of buzz about music downloads and video downloads. And with the new super fast EvDO, the possibilities are endless.
So guess what mobile content is the most popular?
According to a recent report published by Telephia, first time purchases are entertainment-related, but in the category of repeat purchases, it's MapQuest.
"According to Telephia, 39.5 percent of recurring revenue from repeat purchases was driven by Maps/Directions applications, with MapQuest Mobile and Verizon Superpages 2.0 claiming the highest repeat purchase revenues for the category. Nearly thirty percent of first-time purchase revenues were driven by the Entertainment category, with streaming music mobile applications, Music Choice and Sirius Music, securing the highest new purchase revenue share at nearly nine and eight percent, respectively."
While being entertained on the go is fun, knowing where you are going (and how to get there) —seems to be where it's at.
That's a wrap!
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