2007/01/07

From the Treo 600 to the Treo 680

A couple of weeks ago, I finally received my long awaited Treo 680...

Let's begin this post by a few rants targeted against Palm:

1) Why do you have to screw up almost every launch? The devices tend not to be available for months after the official launch of the product, even in the case of exclusive carrier offers, so it's really frustrating for the end user to wait, and wait, and wait before receiving its new smartphone. I personally know a few people who would have purchased one, had it be available sooner. And here in France, the Treo 680 was NOT available in the brick and mortar stores (I suspect that it was on backorder on most of the web stores as well) for Christmas. Bad policy, Palm! Even if the delayed availability was intentional (for marketing purposes), IMHO it's not that good, as the (future) user's expectation grow up as they wait, and the unfortunate conclusion is that a lot of them are more or less disappointed when they lay their hands on the device. I won't even mention the "rumor" about manufacturing problems with the microphone not being correctly soldered to the motherboard on thousands of brand new units leaving the factory... What a (bad) joke if this is true!

2) Ok, so the 680 started trickling in slowly to the users. Hmm... maybe flowing in the US, anyway, but not so fast on this side of the ocean, I fear. Anyway, a couple of things that I immediately purchase with a new smartphone or PDA are: a screen protector (a Brando UltraClear Screen protector, as usual, available here: http://shop.brando.com.hk/ultraclearscreenprotector.php), a case (I've found out that a cheap (15 Euros) "Faconnable" generic phone belt case works just fine for now, although I've ordered a (very expensive) Vaja case that I'm still waiting for), and a 3-in-1 stylus with a ball pen (saving me the hassle to carry a separate ball pen with me).

I do realise that all the "bells and whistles" accessories are never available right from the start, but was pleased to receive the Brando screen protector (along with a very useful USB retractable sync & charge cable) before I even got the 680. That way the screen of my smartphone was perfectly protected right from the start! With the Faconnable beltcase, I could wait months without trouble my Vaja case, so this point, too, is settled painlessly. Now, the stylus...

I have ordered a pack of three Treo 680/750 styluses from Palm's website. They were listed in the "Treo 680 accessories" page, although the item description mentions only a 750 compatibility. But when you look at the picture describing this item, you see three styluses and three alternate plastic tips. Indeed, US users reports confirm that the styluses are Treeo 750 models, but that the three spare tips ensure the Treo 680 compatiblility.

Alas! When I received my stylus pack, there was only the three 750 styluses in the box, and no additional 680 tip. I've since returned the styluses, but I really can't understand why Palm would market different packages depending on the country. At the time I ordered the styluses, both the 750 and the 680 were officially available in France, and only the 680 in the US, yet US users get both styluses (including those for a yet-to-be-released device) when here in France 680 users have to be cautious not to lose their stylus, as NO REPLACEMENT IS AVAILABLE AT ALL! Unbelievable.

3) One side note about the 680 cradle. Yeah, I've ordered one along with a spare battery, and the 680 battery life makes me think that was a clever decision! ;-)
Except that the 680 cradle is in fact the same cradle as the Treo 650 one. Fine, I thought, if the device outer shell design is similar enough, why bother? As a matter of fact, the bottom of the 680 isn't quite the same as those of the 650. As a result, when I put the 680 in the 650 cradle, it immediately connects to the battery charge pins, but the connection to the syncing pins on the connector is much more difficult to achieve. The first couple of times, I didn't notice anything special, but now I have to insert something between the back of the Treo 680 and the cradle, so that the 680 stands more vertically, otherwise the hotsync ins't possible at all because the electrical connection is too flaky! :-(

That's about all for the initial rants, and I must say that after 4 weeks or so, I'm really happy with my Treo 680. Sure, there are a couple of issues that are annoying, but until now nnothing that would make me go back to the Nokia E61 (or even Treo 600).

In my next post I'll give more details on the Treo 680 itself, its strong and weak points. Suffice it to say for now that the battery life is rather poor, although not as dramatic as some user report, that the PDA side is brilliant (there are a couple of improvements when compared to the 650), and that the phone side is globally better that on the 650 (better sound, better bluetooth) though still inferior to, say, the Nokia E61. In a nutshell, one could say that the Treo range is a PDA first and a Phone second, whereas it was the opposite for the Nokia E61. This fits my needs much better, but it may not be everyone's cup of tea!