Palm Treo 650 GSM/GPRS Smartphone

As a phone, the Treo 650 gives clear calls. I have not used the included earpiece nor the speakerphone though. Calling is easy from the Contacts application. I also liked the Call Log listed in the Phone software. Texting is very easy with the QWERTY thumb keyboard - a lot more enjoyable to use than a regular phone. I do have one stubborn 'T key' that has to be pressed harder than the others, but it is such a minor problem on an otherwise perfect unit.

As a Palm OS device, the Treo is even more useful. Aside from Contacts (addressbook), it also synchronises Memos and Calendar (so all appointments can be entered or edited on the Treo). Documents-to-Go is also bundled with it -- so I can view and edit Microsoft Office documents with on. It also comes with VersaMail (for email management) and Blazer (for websurfing).

Other software I use a lot (can be purchased at palmgear.com or handango.com, some are freeware) - dictionaries (english and other languagees), thesaurus, scientific calculator, measurement converter, London tube and street map. They come in handy at different times and vary in size from <100kb to 30MB. For those interested in multimedia (not really my thing so I can't review this part), it also has a built-in camera, comes with RealPlayer software, and there are other software available to play mp3's and movies.

The Treo comes with a 320x320 bright colour display which is a pleasure to view and work on. Available memory is only 23MB, but
there is an SD slot that reads cards at good speed (so most applications launched from the card are still fast). I use a 256MB card on mine, but have read that 1GB cards are readable.

I recommend this smartphone to people who are already using or are interested in Palm OS, because you would have to invest in software to maximise the features of this very capable phone.

I also found using the QWERTY keypad really easy. I had fully expected to have to buy a portable keyboard as I have rather large hands and big thumbs and, at first sight, it seemed even smaller than I has thought. However, clever contouring and a very positive action makes it very quick and easy to use, even with two, size nine left thumbs! A word of warning though, you will NEVER want to go back to an ABC/DEF keypad again.

The huge plus for this phone though was the ease of its Hotsync functon. As the owner of a Mac G4 laptop, I had become fed up waiting for the other phone companies to get their act together and was rather sceptical as to how well handheld and lap top would work together. At the very least, I thought I might have to give up using Microsoft Entourage - which has by far the best integration and project management facilities of any desktop organizer I have yet to come across - or cobble something together using either Palm's own software (which I have used happily before) or Mac's own version (which continues to be a disappointment, even on OSX "Tiger" 10.4). Although it took two minutes fiddling with conduit settings, the Hotsync, which works with the touch of a button and takes just seconds, operates smoothly with any of the three and actually does MORE than it claims.

As for the rest, the digital camera and video both work better than my HP photosmart 812, even if I have yet to work out how to sync it with iPhoto; the built in training is better than the manual, which is bulky yet, ironically, short on detail and the MP3 player works fine. Set up, for once, was all done first time with no loss of temper. The only possible thing missing is a built in radio and I'm sure that, sooner or later, a piece of software will emerge that allows you to use the RealPlayer as an MP3 dictaphone.

Certainly, every other eventuality seems to be taken care of on the software front: it comes with edit-enabled Microsoft Office Lite (which can also be synchronised to your laptop), all of which means I can function without my G4; and everything from GPS to games is available as downloads from the (rather expensive) palm store - I invested in a dictionary, universal infra-red remote and some multi-game bundles. With regard to accessories, I found it a bit chunky to carry in a pocket so got a stylish belt pouch; the earpiece and speakers are both inadequate for music, but a simple adaptor was all that was required to use my existing ear-phones; screen protectors and a spare stylus are a must, my fingers are far too large to use the touch screen. Battery life is such that a car-charger and spare battery are not necessary. If you want multi-functionality on the go, the Treo 650 sells itself !