The Windows Mobile which is update to the Treo 700wx. It is lighter and thinner than its latest series. Has a Wi-Fi and GPS with a higher resolution touchscreen. The call quality and ease of use make it a good as BlackBerry alternative.
The device measure is 4.4 x 2.3 x 0.7 inches with 5 ounces of weighs. It’s make looks great with 1.7-inch touchscreen and a resolution of 320 x 320 pixels. Windows Mobile 6.1 Professional is built for very fine touch-based interaction that often rules out using finger. Too bad the include stylus feels chintzy.
At the bottom of the Treo 800w is a micro-USB port for charging and attaching the included headset. Unfortunately, you get a 2.5mm jack instead of a 3.5mm one.
The ample, 34-button QWERTY pad has nicely spaced, larg keys. Typing was fast, rhythmic, and error-free. We liked that in word processing modes, the software attempted to complete our words after we entered a few letters.
Because Windows Mobile 6.1 Professional supports Microsoft ActiveSync for tight integration with Outlook. And Palm makes the OS more user-friendly. You can search the web from the Today Screen, start typing a name or number, and conduct a local search by typing in the field that says “Find ATM, gas, pizza …”
The Treo 800w nearly triples the amount of usable memory from 60MB to 170MB over the 700wx. Overall performance was also a bit snappier, thanks to the new 333-MHz and +TI OMAP processor. The handset comes with mobile versions of Excel, Power Point, and Word for reading and editing documents. Palm also includes a PDF reader and OneNote Mobile. The instant messaging software (AOL, MSN, and Yahoo) worked well, threading conversations in all three IM services simultaneously. Surfing the Web was speedy using the Treo 800w’s EV-DO Rev. A connection. As expected, Wi-FI was slightly faster. CNN.com and NYTimes.com each loaded in 6 seconds over EV-DO Rev. A (5 seconds over Wi-Fi) and ESPN.com in 9 seconds (7 seconds over Wi-Fi).
Sprint Navigation is definitely worth the price for road warriors who don’t want to schlep a separate navigator. Users receive voice directions, traffic updates, location publishing, 2D maps, business search (with more than 10 million POIs), and a customizable address database. The cost is bundled into Sprint’s Simply Everything unlimited data and voice plan ($99.99 per month), or you can purchase Sprint Navigation separately for $2.99 for 24 hours or $9.99 per month. Watching Sprint TV was a pleasure thanks to the relatively large display. Faces were sharp and the sound quality was strong via both the included headset and speaker.
The Treo’s 2-megapixel camera has 2X zoom and takes 1280 x 1024-pixel still images. Indoor shots appeared smoky with too much light; outdoor pictures showed accurate tones but were still hazy. Onboard editing options were pleasant surprise, allowing us to crop, rotate and autocorrect the image. The camera can also record videos up to 30 seconds in length. Unfortunately, ours turned out dark and blotchy.
Calls were crystal clear. The speakerphone was loud enough to hear from more than a few feet away and picked up our voice well from the same distance. Even calls made with the included headset, which failed to impress when we listened to music, were glitch-free.
Palm rates the Treo for up to 4 hours of talk time and 8.3 days of standby time. After about 2 hours of listening to music, another hour or so of calls, and intermittent Web use and document editing in MS Word Mobile, the battery was down to 39 percent. In four days of testing, the 800w’s battery never survived a full 24 hours.
The Treo 800w is not sexy, but it’s a fast and powerful upgrade to the aging 700wx. For business customers who want Office and Exchange in their pocket, the Treo 800w is a smart choice.
Full Specification :
CPU: 333-MHz +TI OMAP 2431; Operating System: Windows Mobile 6.1 Professional; Bands: CDMA 800/1900 MHz; Data: EV-DO (Rev A, Rev O and 1xRTT); Internal Memory: 256MB; Expansion: microSD/SDHC (up to 8GB); Display: 1.7 inches (320 x 320 pixels, 65,000 colors); Camera (still/video): 2 MP/1280 x 1024 pixels; Talk/Standby Time: 4 hours/8.3 days; Bluetooth: 2.0 + EDR; GPS: Yes; Wi-Fi: 802.11b/g; Size: 4.4 x 2.3 x 0.7 inches; Weight: 5 ounces
