Love at First Sight: Treo 750
Review By Tim Hillebrand | February 11, 2007
Category: handhelds (eg, PalmOne, HP, etc.)
Do you believe in love at first site? I do. It happened to me at the Consumer Electronics Show when I first laid eyes on her sleek body. When I actually got her in my hands and fondled her, there was no doubt about it; I wanted to take her home with me. There was no denying it; the beguiling, new Treo 750 enchantress had swept me off my feet.
When I got home, there she was waiting for me. Of course, once you start living together, the honeymoon is over, and some of the original glamour fades in the practicality of everyday living and requisite chores.
Certainly, by now, you have read many reviews of this exciting new product. I have written a review for Smartphone & Pocket PC magazine coming out in the next issue, so there is no point in repeating the process.
What I will do is share with you my likes and dislikes after having cohabited with this seductress now for a couple of weeks and squiring her around as my constant companion. Here is what I think Rules and what Drools about the sexy, new Treo 750:
Let me say from the outset that I really like this little beauty. I could tell that the moment I put her in my hands; she just felt so good, I couldn’t resist her.
What makes her feel so cuddly is her sleek, black, rubberized body and the grooved hips for a better grip. Another aspect of this palm pleaser is that it has a better figure and is a tad thinner than its predecessors. This Rules and sets a most favorable first impression.
From a quick glance, it is difficult to see the difference between this new Treo and its precursors except for the obvious missing antenna. Getting rid of that ugly antenna definitely rules. That unsightly appendage was worse than a wart on a witch’s nose. I’ll say it again: This Rules.
However, as you begin to examine her more carefully, you begin to notice subtle differences. The SD card slot on the top is gone, replaced with a miniSD slot on the right side under a pesky trap door that is difficult to open without a pry bar. This would not bother me except for the Wi-Fi issue, which I’ll address in a moment.
I chuckled when I saw that Palm still did not have a reset whole in the battery cover on the back, but I soon discovered that the reset button is now under that same trap door next to the miniSD card—still not easy to access. Let’s call this a semi-drool because it is an improvement of sorts.
The on/off sound switch is still on the top, which is convenient, but the IR port is now on the right side just above that little door. I’m not sure how users will like this move. Personally, I hardly ever use IR, so it really doesn’t matter. I would like to use it more, but people look at me as if I’m a little crazy when I suggest that I beam them my business card.
Other than volume and option buttons that protrude slightly more on the left side, it is the same layout.
The front key panel and screen is almost the same. The number keys on the 750 are now white, whereas they were black in the 700 series. The QWERTY keyboard RULES compared to a typical phone input keypad. I like the fact that you can use it with one hand.
Looking at the back, we find that the stylus silo has moved to the right a quarter inch. The top two-thirds of the stylus is now black plastic. Both of these changes are to mitigate antenna issues I understand. The camera lens and self-portrait mirror embedded in a panel with the speaker center on top of the battery cover. The battery cover latch is at the bottom instead of the top of the cover.
On the bottom of the device, you may be glad to see the familiar, goofy connector that requires the use of a USB cable for synchronization and a separate power cable for charging. It would be so easy to combine these into a simple, single mini USB port. I’d say the majority of machines sport these connectors now as do many other devices. It should be a mandatory standard. At least you don’t have to invest in a new cradle, which is a redeeming virtue. Otherwise, it Drools big time.
Another slobber is the carryover of the 2.5 mm earplug jack. Every other Pocket PC uses 3.5 mm jacks and so do most headphones, earbuds, external speakers, and Bluetooth stereo converters. Plan to invest in an adapter, which DROOLS.
Under the hood, we have the same memory configuration, which is reasonable, but could be better. The processor seems downsized from 312 to 300 MHz, but I did not notice any difference in performance.
To accommodate the reduction in girth, the battery is thinner by almost half. The standard battery is now 1200 mAh instead of 1800 mAh—a third smaller.
Obviously, you are not going to get as good mileage from the smaller battery as before. However, there are some solutions and work-arounds. The obvious thing to do is to buy a spare battery. You may also wish to acquire a cradle that will charge both your PDA and a spare battery at the same time. Incidentally, I think it DROOLS that Treos do not come with cradles.
Another solution is that you can use your old Treo batteries in the 750. They are just the same except for the thickness. However, the battery charge indicator bar stays at zero when you put in the old style battery. Of course, you cannot replace the battery cover over the thicker battery, and you would have to be careful not to let it fall out. Taping it in place temporarily may work in a pinch.
For a little extra silver, you can purchase a 750 battery pack that gives you a thicker 2400mAh battery and an expanded cover. When the cover is in place, it ruins the sleek, girlish figure and gives it a pitiful, ponderous look.
So, the question is whether you would prefer a slimmer look or a fatter battery. I kinda think I’m gonna go with the slimmer look because you can always pack a spare battery, and probably should anyway.
OK, put on your bib; get ready for the big, double DROOL. The Treo 750, I am so sad to report, does not have Wi-Fi! You’d think that they would get that right after all the previous iterations and the complaints. I can think of a couple of lame excuses such as it costs more, or you don’t need it because you have broadband phone networks now. Don’t kid yourself; those quasi-broadband networks do not come close to most Wi-Fi speeds. Besides, those networks are not ubiquitous by any means, and they are not free.
Although none of the Palm people I spoke to at CES could verify it, I suspect that the phone companies are behind the lack of Wi-Fi because they want you to use their networks, not a free Wi-Fi hookup.
Installing Wi-Fi is really a non-issue for HTC, the manufacturer of the 750, because so many of their devices have Wi-Fi. I even have two HTC Smartphones with built-in Wi-Fi. HTC could also have installed a mini-USB port at the bottom because that’s what most of the rest their devices use.
Before I stop harping about the lack of Wi-Fi, let me lament the switch from SD to miniSD card. The only miniSD Wi-Fi card I know of is 801.11b instead of the faster 801.11g available in SD format. So, for now, this is an unfortunate consequence of the card format shift. I also suspect that people are not going to appreciate a Wi-Fi card sticking out the side and that trap door flopping open. I suppose these are some of the design accommodations resulting from the removal of the external antenna. On the other hand, I can think of plenty of antenna-less devices that have a card slot at the top of the unit.
Let’s give Palm a great big RULE for improving the Bluetooth stacks so that you can now use stereo headphones. This almost makes the DROOL from the 2.5 mm jack irrelevant. Now I can finally use my nice Jabra headphones without a bothersome stereo converter plugged into 2.55/3.55 mm adapter dangling way down.
One more slight slobber is that I’m disappointed in the continuation of the small, square 240x240 pixel low resolution screen. But, I have to remind myself that while that may seem miniscule for a Pocket PC, it is huge for a phone. If you want a smaller form factor, you will just have to settle for a smaller screen. If you must have a larger screen, there are certainly other choices out there.
Ho-hum, it’s still the same dowdy 1.3 MPX camera, which DROOLS when so many new devices are coming out with 2.0 and 3.0 cameras. It RULES that Palm has made so many camera settings available compared to other units I’ve seen. But, the pictures would only make an impressionist proud for the most part.
Another RULE is that you can now use a SIM card in the new 750, which was not an option in earlier models. The only SIMs I happen to have are all Cingular, but they all worked equally well in my 750, and this is a good thing.
Finally, a big time RULE is the enhancement Palm has given the standard Window Mobile 5 operating system. Some of the features I appreciate include the ability to key in a search item on the today screen for Web browsing, dial by name, and personalized photo dials. The MMS interface is awesome for wrapping pictures, video, text, and recordings into a single file to transmit to an email or phone account. The Start menu now has a separate icon for email and another for SMS and MMS. You can send an incoming call to voicemail and then respond discretely with a text message.
The 750 supports Windows Mobile Direct Push technology for users with Microsoft Exchange 2003 with SP2. You can also get your email and PIM data pushed to you via the Good Mobile Messaging application that comes bundled with the 750s. It also allows you to manage your out-of-office messages. With Good, you can invoke Advanced Encryption Standard encryption and FIPS 1240-2 certification with passwords. You can even remotely erase data in your phone if it is lost or stolen.
It RULES that you can use this smart device as a wireless modem connected to your laptop via Bluetooth. The necessary software comes pre-installed.
I like the pre-installed voice command module that allows you to make calls, invoke applications, and check on the status of the machine. It is rather enabling giving you a certain sense of power.
Cingular’s TeleNav GPS Navigator stands ready to serve you in the Treo 750, for an extra subscription fee, which doesn’t seem worth it to me compared to free GPS. Of course, to get the free GPS, you must purchase the appropriate navigation software and a Bluetooth satellite receiver.
The biggest RULE of all is that the 750 is a full-fledged 3G device, which enables it to take advantage of worldwide connectivity. What is the use of having a nice phone you have to leave at home when you travel abroad? Now you can proudly pack your Palm Treo 750 with you wherever you go.
Conclusion
With few reservations, I would not hesitate to recommend the new Treo 750 to anyone. While it definitely RULES, there are a few DROOLS, which, in my opinion, means room for improvement in future editions. There really must be such a thing as love at first sight because that’s how I feel about the 750. Not only that, but the heft in your hand feels just right with the grooved sides and rubberized finish. The new 750 has lost girth and that one-horned devil look too. She’s a slimmed-down beauty worthy of your serious consideration.
My major complaint is the lack of Wi-Fi and the subsequent shift from an SD card to a miniSD side-mounted slot. I am disappointed in the continuation of the 1.3 MPX camera and low-resolution screen. I wish for a miniUSB connector and a 3.5 mm audio jack in future editions.
However, I am delighted with the software package and all the enhancements Palm has contributed to the basic system. I am also amused that neither Palm nor Cingular refer to this Pocket PC phone edition as a Smartphone; they have dubbed it a “Smart Device,” which is smart because calling it a Smarpthone just leads to confusion. People were forever trying to install Smartphone software on a Pocket PC, which simply doesn’t work.
If you are looking for a compact convergent device that is more powerful than a Smartphone, a touch screen, quasi-broadband, QWERTY keyboard, a camera, stereo Bluetooth, and an expansion card, you cannot go wrong purchasing a new Treo 750. She is a state-of-the-art device that should serve you well wherever you roam with 3G connectivity. She will cost you $399 on a two-year contract from Cingular or $755 for an unlocked version.
In all my writing about mobile devices, I have always referred to them using the masculine gender. However, somehow, for the first time, I felt compelled to designate the Treo 750 as feminine and embrace her accordingly. Even when I found that my love at first site had a few flaws, which we all do upon close examination, I have been able to overlook, forgive them, and embrace her as a friend and faithful companion.
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