So you’re in the market for a new smartphone, and the Palm Treo Pro catches your eye. The new player from Palm is sleek and professional, and has many Palm fans looking for the quickest way to cash their old player in. Featuring the standard thumb pad and bright LCD display, this smartphone is definitely a contender worth considering.
If you think the new Palm Treo Pro might be the correct choice for you, read on. This smartphone offers a little bit of everything, and just might be the best choice for you. Below is a review of the pros and cons to purchasing this device, as well as any issues current users have with the device.
Body
The body of the Palm Treo Pro is something that no business man would be ashamed to carry around. It is sleek and sharp, and looks like the ultimate in both value and style.
The bottom of the smartphone features the thumb pad that has become so standard of Palm. It is mostly black with a series of small white buttons. The unit itself is thinner than the previous version of the W80, and doesn’t have an external antenna as so many Treo’s before it has.
Above the thumb pad is a silver navigational pad, and it is easy to press and move. Four shortcut buttons surround the silver button, and are easy to press while simultaneously blending in with the design of the device.
The screen is beveled and bright, and sits nicely in the top half of the device. The plastic is glossy and reflective, and the unit itself seems strong and durable. I would recommend a case, as a drop to the ground has already been proven by other users to be fatal.
There are a few small ports, include the USB and headphone jacks, located along the edges. The battery can be removed by the user, and is fairly pricey to replace.
Features
The Treo Palm Pro features a bright touchscreen that is 16k colors and that has a resolution of 320 x 320.
The biggest features of this device is it’s wide array of wireless connectivity features, which includes WiFi, Bluetooth, HSDPA, and GPS.
The unit runs Windows Mobile 6.1 Pro, which is marketed towards business individuals who need the apps on the go. It has the standard programs such as Power Point, Excel, and Word. It also has Internet Explorer, and the basics, such as alarms, calendars, and contacts. Because the device runs Windows Mobile 6, you can upload Pocket PC apps to it.
The CPU is a 400MHz MSM7201, and it has 128MB RAM. This means you won’t be playing any Mario Brothers on it, but you can get a nice game of Kevtris going.
Issues
The price is the biggest issue right now. Coming it at a whopping $550 new, this player is more expensive than the iPhone, but not as good. The processor speed and features do not justify this cost – I wouldn’t buy it until the price drops $200, but that’s just me.
Conclusion
The Palm Treo Pro smartphone shows that Palm is moving in the right direction with their smartphones, as each one offers something a little better than the previous version. Unfortunately, the CPU on the Treo Pro isn’t quite as fast as some will want it, and the features are fairly standard. The specs on this device are very similar to that of the HTC Apache, which came out in 2004 and can be purchased for less than $200USD.
