Palm (finally) brings WiFi with the Trēo 800W

[NatCh]

It may not be Palm OS, but it is WiFi

After many years, Palm seems to have finally heard the clamor of its customers, and has released the Palm Trēo 800W, which has built in WiFi. It's not Palm OS, but presumably that the 800P will be a follow on before long.

The rest of the specs are mostly familiar, but there are a few new twists that will be much appreciated by some.

The display has changed to 320² pixels (color, of course), the expansion slot has shrunk to microSD size, supporting up to 8GB, and the connector is now one of the new micro USB ones. As you can see from the picture, the device is overall more Centro-like than previous Trēos. It will also sport EVDO Rev A. and a built in GPS function via Sprint's "benevolence."

That of course leads us to Sprint being the distributor on this one -- I guess it's their turn again. I'm sure the contracts will be similar to the ones we're already familiar with, the rebated price appears to be $249.

Some other interesting tidbits from the press release:

On EVDO Rev A:

As Sprint's first smartphone to ship immediately with EV-DO Rev. A network support, the Treo 800w offers customers the ability to quickly browse the web and send and receive emails - even those with large attachments - at broadband speeds.

...

With EV-DO Rev. A, peak network download data rates increase to 3.1 Mbps and peak upload data rates increase to 1.8 Mbps; average download speeds improve to 600 kbps to 1.4 mbps and average uplink speeds increase to 350-500 kbps.

On WiFi:

Palm's WiFi hardware and software innovations make it easy to get online fast and manage network connections and power usage. The one-touch WiFi button provides a clean, uncluttered WiFi experience that gets Treo 800w users rapidly connected at home, in the office or in WiFi hotspots.(2) It includes 802.11b/g WiFi and built-in Internet Explorer Mobile, which means faster, more secure access to web-based data.

On GPS functionality:

With integrated GPS and Palm software enhancements, the Treo 800w smartphone offers maps, point-to-point directions and point-of-interest (POI) searches for locations such as restaurants or stores.(3) POI search is available directly from the Today Screen and is integrated with contacts, giving customers one-touch access to the places they want to go. Treo 800w also supports Sprint Navigation for turn-by-turn directions as well as other popular third-party location-based services applications.

On "enterprise" email service support:

It connects directly with Exchange Server 2003 SP2 or 2007 and works within a company's existing Microsoft infrastructure, eliminating costly middleware or the maintenance of additional servers.

...

Microsoft Direct Push Technology is available out of the box and gives users connected to a Microsoft Exchange Server fast, automatic wireless updates from their email, calendar, contacts and tasks.(4)

...

The Treo 800w is compatible with Microsoft's System Center Mobile Device Manager 2008, which delivers increased security and easier smartphone management as well as access to information on the corporate network via mobile VPN.

Looks like a direct run at Blackberry, that does.

Full specs here, and press release here.

[Bob Russell]

This is an exciting release. It seems to do for WinMo Treos, what we saw with the Treo 650/700p and the Tungsten X... a device that finally has "arrived". Everything before seems to have great shortcoming. But these landmark devices put it all together.

Unfortunately for me, it has come at the wrong time. I want a bigger screen now with VGA or better resolution. HTC Touch Pro and SE XPERIA X1 both look like a step up. And PalmOS Garnet is sort of in a decommission pattern as we wait for the new Linux Palm OS (Nova).

But for someone looking for a nice zippy and powerful WinMo phone with a keyboard and hires screen at a reasonable price, I don't think there's anything else that can compare.

[HarryT]

Looks remarkably like a Windows Mobile Smartphone!

[pilotbob]

Originally Posted by HarryT

Looks remarkably like a Windows Mobile Smartphone!

Isn't it?

BOb

[NatCh]

Originally Posted by pilotbob

Isn't it?

Yes, yes it is. Sorry should have been clearer there: it's Windows Mobile 6.1.

[Cthulhu]

Not a big fan of Windows Mobile. Tried to navigate in on some friends' smartphones. Not as intuitive as one would think. In my opinion, Windows does not port well. That being said, many people complain about a lack of updates for the Palm OS.

Last year, I got the new Palm hotness, the 755P. One sweet machine. GPS tied in with Google Maps would be stellar, but I do all right with dead reckoning from a known starting point.

Natch:
Does this new Treo offer mini-USB chargeability? That is one function that I see as a nifty feature on other manufacturer's phone, like every Motorola. Can charge the 755p from my laptop hotsync cable, but a universal charger really is the way for ALL THE PHONES to go.

Of course, whatever would happen to all those kiosks selling every known charger & adapter except the one you need?

[HarryT]

Charging via mini-USB is, I believe, a part of the Windows Mobile 6 hardware platform spec.

[NatCh]

Originally Posted by Cthulhu

Does this new Treo offer mini-USB chargeability? That is one function that I see as a nifty feature on other manufacturer's phone, like every Motorola. Can charge the 755p from my laptop hotsync cable, but a universal charger really is the way for ALL THE PHONES to go.

It's actually micro USB, rather than mini. I hadn't heard of it before (been slacking, obviously), but it's apparently a new standard aimed specifically at things like phones.

To answer your question, my understanding is that the standard is supposed to include charging via the micro USB port. I don't know that Palm has complied with the standard in that regard (if they specifically said, I missed it), but I would be awfully surprised if they hadn't, since that's apparently one of the primary aims of the standard.

[pilotbob]

Here's a pic of Mini vs Micro:

[JAcheson]

Originally Posted by pilotbob

Here's a pic of Mini vs Micro:

So... they're essentially the same size, but incompatible?

The great thing about standards: you have so many to choose from.

Though, any halfway standard USB is still a big improvement from the Palm Stupid Connector of the Week.

[NatCh]

I think the trick is that the micro is thinner, which is good as devices get thinner too.

The other thing is that the micro USB ("μSB" anyone?) is that it incorporates into the standard that it be the actual charging point as well as the data xfer point. Yeah, the USB and mini USB can do that, but it's not officially part of the standard.

At a guess, I'd expect to see USB/mini to μSB adapters before too long ... whether such would be of any actual use or not.

[HarryT]

All the mini-USB devices I have (HTC Touch Smartphone, Garmin GPS, CyBook) both charge and do data transfer through the same cable, so even if it's not officially "required", it certainly seems to be extremely common in practice. It is very useful being able to use the same charger and cable for multiple devices when one is away from home.

[NatCh]

Yeah, I've got several things that use the mini USB for charging too, and I agree it's handy, and certainly possible without a driving standard.

However, Palm has been ... shall we say "bone-headed?" ... about insisting on including a separate charging connector since their second generation of rechargeable devices (I believe the first one -- Palm IV, I think -- charged from the regular connector, someone please correct my memory if it's slipped). They could have reduced their connector footprint (slightly) and probably their costs (very slightly) by combining them some time ago, but they've been resistant for whatever reason.

The fact that they're using the μSB (pronounced "myoo ess bee" by the way ) connector on the new model, and the fact that the μSB connector includes charging as part of its standard suggests that they may have finally expelled whatever mental flatulence was driving the "separate charging connector" thing for them. I'm hopin' so anyway.

The picture of the bottom of the 800W shows only the one connector, so I'm thinking that my hopes will (finally) be realized.

[JoeD]

I've had WiFi on my Palm since 2003 when I bought the Tungsten C Don't use it anymore though since it only supports WEP and we run WPA here.

The picture of the bottom of the 800W shows only the one connector, so I'm thinking that my hopes will (finally) be realized.

I hope more devices include support charging via usb connectors. It'll be very useful when holidaying to only need one charger for all your devices

[NatCh]

Yeah, but this actually built into the device, rather than as an SDIO card addon.