Other PDAs: Hardware Reviews: Review: Palm Treo 750 – Windows Mobile Model a First for Cingular

Palm's major announcement so far this year is the Treo 750, an upgrade to the 700w/700wx for those who prefer the Microsoft Windows Mobile OS or need it for business communications. There's no "W" after the name this time, because there's no Palm OS version.

The 750 reaches the U.S. a few months after its debut in Europe, making it much-anticipated. So far it only works with the Cingular network, adding another notable exclusive to the Cingular portfolio. It's still the only company with colorful versions of the Treo 680 and soon it will be the only one with the Apple iPhone.

If you're not a Cingular user and you're not enticed by its high-priced calling plans, this is a bitter pill. It's enough to make you long for a day when all phones are sold unlocked, giving the user the freedom to pick his or her own carrier. But if you're a business user with a business account, as we suspect most 750 users will be, the tab doesn't really matter. That's good because the 750 sells for a steep $399 with a two-year commitment.

The 750 works with Cingular's 3G UMTS network-provided you live or work in one of the supported major metropolitan areas-which offers fast Internet connection speeds whether you're downloading large attachments or streaming media. But the smartphone doesn't yet support the even higher-speed HSDPA protocol. It will, but despite a few false news stories to the contrary, Palm hasn't announced the updater download yet.

The 750 includes Bluetooth 1.2 with support for wireless headsets, but doesn't include Wi-Fi. That's not a surprise, but we're hoping that Palm adds it to new Treos one day. It's a quad band world phone (GSM/EDGE 850/900/1800/1900) with 128MB Flash memory (60MB user available), and a 300-MHz Samsung processor. The battery is rated for 4 hours of talk time and 10 days of standby.

Side View

Design
Like the 680, the 750 has a sleeker look thanks to an internal antenna, so there's no stub antenna sticking out the top. Not counting the antenna, it's just a bit smaller than the 750w (4.4 x 2.3 x0.8-inches versus 4.4 x 2.3 x 0.9-inches), but noticeably lighter (5.4 ounces versus 6.4 ounces). The body has an attractive deep metallic blue color and it's easy to hold thanks to a soft, grippy texture and contoured sides.

The 750 is another step in the slow evolution of the Treo, not a great leap forward. The design is familiar to anyone by now, with a 240 x 240 TFT, 65,000 color touch-screen over a thumb-operated QWERTY keyboard. In between is a directional navigation pad, two soft keys, call start and stop buttons, and two function buttons for opening the Start menu and clicking "OK."

We've been wishing for a while now that the Treo would make a leap forward, since the touch-screen is looking small and pale next to competitors with larger and more vibrantly colored displays. They're mostly not touch-screens, though. They have the advantage, however, of being thinner and offering a wider keyboard. The Treo keyboard is well-designed, with differently colored number keys and backlighting, but it's starting to look a little cramped.

The top of the 750 features the ringer on/off switch, although it's now a bit smaller and a bit harder to click when you're not looking (such as when you want to reach into your pocket to prevent your phone from ringing during a meeting or a show). From the top you can also pull out the stylus, which feels thinner and less substantial with this release.

It's not the pleasantly sturdy stylus we've used with past Palms. The left side offers volume controls and a button for calling up either your media files or the pocket version of the Windows Media Player. The right side doesn't offer any buttons, which is good for right-handers, but holds the miniSD card slot (card not included) and the IR port.

On the rear you'll find the speaker, camera lens, and self-portrait mirror. The camera offers 1.3 megapixels and a 2x digital zoom. We don't know the specs on the image sensor, but the photos aren't that great. You'll see noticeable graininess, even with good lighting. You can take pictures in five resolutions (1,280x1,024, 640x480, 320x240, 240x180, and 160x120) and the camera offers burst mode and a self-timer. Missing are effects (such as sepia or black and white) and a flash.

Rear view showing camera lens.

The 750 comes with a power cord, USB connection cable, wired stereo headset, printed guide, and CD. Our test model lacked the headset and manual. There's no cover or belt clip, unfortunately, so budget one in, if you're planning on buying.

Software
The 750 is a business phone, and the software enhancements should please corporate customers. For e-mail, you can choose from Microsoft's Messaging and Feature pack for push e-mail, calendar, tasks, and contacts; Good Mobile Messaging; and Cingular Xpress Mail. You can view and edit Word and Excel documents with pocket version of both apps, view PowerPoints with the pocket PowerPoint, and view PDFs with the included Picsel Viewer. You'll also get a pocket version of the Windows Media Player and Pocket MSN.

Using the Treo 750 is a pleasure thanks to some Palm software touches. You can create thumbnail portraits of your contacts, then create a photo speed dial list on your Today screen. You can also search the Web directly from your Today screen, saving you the trouble of opening the Web browser first.

If you receive a call when you're busy, you can choose to ignore it with text, to send a message to the caller. We also like the ability to choose any imported MP3 as a ringtone or the novel ability to use videos as video ringtones. Frequent travelers will like the ability to subscribe to the TeleNav GPS Navigator service through Cingular.

While it's made up of small improvements, they add up to a significantly better package. We'd still like to see a design overhaul, but the Treo 750 is a great choice for business users who need to keep in touch.