Guess What's Official - Treo 755p

There has been a lot of buzz and chatter about the Treo 755p smartphone (when will it be available, what features does it include, etc.) Well, now it's "officially official" with Sprint as the first carrier, available in stores May 14th.

 

 

Here are some specs and features:

• Internal antenna, slimmer form factor and mini-SD slot (up to 4GB SD card)
• Two colors - "Midnight Blue" and "Burgundy"
• Built-in Microsoft Direct Push Technology that delivers automatic updates to Outlook email as well as support for Global Address Lookup and IT policies like remote data wipe
• Integrated Google Maps built into the ROM, right out of the box
• Sprint Mobile Instant Messaging - chat with AIM, Yahoo! and Windows Messenger

For more details:

http://socialnews.palm.com/release.aspx?hid=6

http://www.palm.com/us/products/smartphones/treo755p/

One new thing to check out is the Google Maps feature built into the Contacts page (personal favorite) that allows you to open Google Maps directly to a contact's address, and easily get driving directions or find local businesses.

Let us know what you think.

Rob Katcher - Product Manager

Comments

[David Rubin]

Question directly to Palm - What is my incentive on purchasing this phone over my current 700p aside from form factor? Serious question - Not looking to flame - just want to know what the true advantage is. From everything I'm reading, there really isn't one (same core radio guts, same core proc. / memory guts). If a comparison between the two could be posted by Palm it would be quite helpful. I have a lot of clients who have 700p devices, and if I was to tell them to upgrade, I'd like to know why they should or shouldn't aside from form factor.

Thanks.

[Art]

Wow. This is very nice. I've been waiting for this format to come to the CDMA networks. When can I ditch my 700p to get something like this on Verizon.

[Alberto Cajigas Jr.]

I guess my question is what every Treo 700p user wants to know. Will the Treo 700p ROM update which will be released at the end of May have the same updated ROM that the Treo 755p will have? Also, Why is Palm using Mini SD on the new Treos? Is this going to be the new memory card standard for Treos? because most of us Treo users own regular SD cards.

Al

[Ignobilitor]

What I think is that we'd better see Google Maps built into the ROM update for the 700p, along with other improvements that are being introduced in the 755...

[AndrewAZ]

I see no advantage of this phone... Way to keep using the stone age bluetooth 1.2.. I was going to call sprint and complain about my 700p in hopes of getting a free upgrade but asides from not having an antenna and having the SDmini slot I see this as a downgrade.

Also I would rather not have any program in ROM and would like versa mail out of the MR update since it seems to be the top cause of lag on the 700p.

Looking forward to the 28th, its just sad that the 700p is now being replaced and has yet to have an upgrade to let the features it was advertised with work out of the box.

Ill be in town in early June and I might stop by Palm headquarters and complain if I feel the MR patch is unsatisfactory. Come on Palm $650 phone that has a ton stupid little issues...

[Gaurav]

Seriously, what the heck is the point of this upgrade? Can someone from Palm please give us the logic of why you would release such a minimal upgrade in terms of specifications on a new Treo device like this? I am a Treo 700p user and see absolutely no reason to upgrade to this device? Was this an intentional tactic by Palm? DO they view this device as more of an incentive for 650 users who are still chugging along with their devices? IF so, when is Palm going to release a true upgrade for 700p users? I have owned every singe CDMA Treo since the 300 and have avidly contributed and moderated Treo forums around the internet, and this is the first Treo model I will NOT purchase nor recommend to anyone who currently owns a Treo 700p...sad Palm...very sad...:(

[Kelvin Wong]

Are there compeling reasons why palm treo never ever supports wifi? For example, in Singapore we have free wifi everywhere and I would like to use my treo to surf net and read news without have to incur a large cost by paying for 3G services(assuming of course that 755p will be launched in APAC with 3G).

Also why when most if not all phone support MP3 ringtones, palm treo still have not?

And can we now sent vcard to/from other phones?

BTW, you "full detais" hyperlinks links to nowhere.

[rumz]

How difficult will the burgundy color be to come by?

[SMEGGIE]

I have a 700P. (as I'm sure you know by now) :)

Why should I believe that the 755P will do all of the things it is advertised to do? Again, as you already know, we were promised things with the 700P that still haven't been realized so I have to be skeptical that this will be any different with the 755P. Having gone through this with the 700p already, I'm not really interested in beta testing another Treo. Also, I have several hundred dollars wrapped up in SD cards so a mini slot won't work for me. Professionals (this one anyway) don't want a Blue or Burgundy Treo. Black or grey is good for me. I would also like to know if we, the 700P crowd, will get the 755P ROM. Is this going to be the case?

[Olac]

When will we see Wi-fi connection on a PalmOS Treo ?????

[waldo15]

A rather meh day. This phone adds nothing of real value to us. The functionality, albeit crippled, was already there in the 700p. Heck, the 680 added more to the Palm platform and it was not on the cutting edge of 3G connectivity! If anything Palm demonstrates again their strategy of reusing the same platform for both WM and POS. So the device seems to pay dividends in that regard, but for us as users I don't know what it can bring that is new and refreshing so I guess it can only be considered a tiny leap forward in the EVDO arena.

Sadly, with this device now officially out, it is clear in my mind that the 700p was just a temporary fix for an EVDO hole in Palm's new line of devices. And I fell for it big time. I thought you would stay behind it just like you did for the 650 but the times have changed I guess.

Anyhow, certainly the "improvements" of the 755p are rather marginal and I don't see a big incentive to buy this, as I currently own the 700p. Potential buyers may want to hold off purchase until the real reviews are out and see if this 755p suffers from the same drawbacks of the 700p.

And of course, as a final note, you better be making the May 28th week a reality for a 700p MR ROM update for it will make up my mind if I want to stick with Palm devices or I switch to other carrier/smartphone company. I am willing to pay early termination fees if the 700p is not fixed to make it function as advertised not so long ago.

That is how I much I lost my confidence in your company.

[JT]

Sorry to say, I didn't see any special feature in 755p, 90% is the same 700 and 680. Be honest, I'm very disappointed with the creativity of Palm.

[Baron Sekiya]

As a longtime Palm user, a professional photojournalist, Palm app developer and someone who has recommended Palm products often I find the switch to miniSD cards to be quite insane. SD is the world's most popular memory card format, is used in many digital cameras and now videocameras along with most of the accessories made for Palm devices. I'd be quite happy to live with a slightly thicker pda to accommodate SD cards. As Art said in an earlier post most Treo users own regular SD cards. The SD card slot is the ace up the sleeve the Treo has over the closed system of the iPhone.

Three other omissions that would have made the Treo the premier smartphone would have been: mini USB connector instead of the proprietary Palm Universal Connector, EVDO RevA for faster speed and WiFi (or at least support of the SD/IO WiFi card Palm sells.

[Dan]

No wi-fi? I hate to harp on this issue, but seriously - if most of the smartphone competition in this segment has wi-fi built in, for the same price per model, why would I choose to get a phone that doesn't support wi-fi?

Then again, I gotta admit the maroon color looks pretty sweet. And it's not as if I actually use the wi-fi on my current smartphone very often...so maybe not that big of a deal.

But...when will we see some devices with the new Palm OS?

[mike s]

Is there going to be a European version of this phone?

We've been pretty much starved of upgrades with just the 680 and no 700p.

[Robb]

Does the 755P exchange activesync work any better then the 700P version. I am still trying to get it to sync fully. Very disappointing.

[Jerry]

When will the 755P be available on Verizon? I don't want to change carriers just for the phone, but I do like the new form factor. And will there be any trade up deals, since my 700P has given me a lot of trouble?

[Alex]

The http://www.palm.com/treo755p/ link is broken.

I don't quite follow the logic of releasing the 700p last year around this time, and then the 755p which is only slightly different. The significant differences are the form factor (same as Treo 750) and the change to miniSD from standard SD.

I guess this one is targeted to those that really wanted a Palm OS version of the Treo 750. It is good to see a higher capacity battery in the 755p. I currently own a 700p w/ Sprint, and I'm not compelled to get this one, but I guess I'm not the target consumer for this. You are probably primarily interested in new consumers, and anyone still owning a Treo prior to the 7xx series.

[JAV]

It looks nice.

But it is a mere 700p without the antenna, It is not Rev.A,it has the lesser battery of the 680/750 series.New sd format. I think your resourses should have been focused on the 700p Rom update and Vista Compatible Hotsync/PDesktop. You should have waited to release this handset with your new linux based os. That would have been worth the wait. If I went and bougth this release will It work with Vista Out off the Box? It don't seem that way. The people responsible for this mess need to be fired. New talent could save you if you come up with good innovative Treos that will work like they are advertised and can keep up with Windows, Linux, AND MAC. If you can not provide US with that you can always Sell to somebody like Apple or dell or Microsoft. I'm sure that when someone messes up over there they get fired.

You can get it together, give us the new toy err.. Work instrument
that will leave our clients and my kid with their mouths opened like the 650 did.

[pen]

I think you need to be offering a 700p trade in program that will get the 755p in our hands for about $100.. after all us 700p owners have waited almost a year and a half for a software update while on the other hand palm has been popping new phones out left and right and ignoring it's previously existing customer base. you owe it to all of your 700p users that you've been neglecting for so long now. It's pretty pathetic that my old 650 runs smoother and faster than my 700p. I would encourage every treo owner out there to not buy a 755p until a trade-in program is offered on behalf of palm. As far as I'm concerned it's only fair if you want to keep us as customers.

[AJ0230]

Mini SD are you kidding me?

Booooooooooooooo

Will my power and sync cables work from my older Treos for this unit? If not why not?

OTOH, the integration of Google Maps into the contacts sounds like it rocks.

[Jaron Horst]

This looks like a pretty nice phone but I can only see users of a 650 or earlier even considering it (especially how after how you, Palm, royally screwed your current 700p customers). Then again, is that why the 700p hasn't seen an upgrade? My guess is that Palm is trying to use a sleazy marketing method of with-holding the 700p update just to boost the sale's of the 755p.

[LGBTech]

I am so disappointed in this release that I don't even know where to begin.

For starters, and this is the thing that is bugging me the most, Palm has once again left Palm OS users on a GSM carrier out in the cold. The 680, while a nice enough device for a beginner, is positively anemic compared to the 700p or the 755p. I will not change carriers just to get a higher end Treo with Palm OS on it and I flat our refuse to buy anything with Windows Mobile on it. What gives? You market the 700/755p as devices for business professionals. Don't business professionals use AT & T or T-Mobile?

Now for the laundry list of short comings in this new device, many of which have already been mentioned.

Where the hell is the wi-fi? Every other manufacturer of smartphone / PDA devices has figured out that this is what the customer wants and has delivered.

No stereo bluetooth. So much for the Treo being an all-in-one device. You guys blew it again.

You still have that ridiculous mini headphone jack that requires a special adapter. Do you folks have any idea how much that irritates your customers?

Ditto on other peoples remarks regarding the mini-SD card. I've already got a supply of SD cards. They all fit in my camera as well as my Palm. I don't want to have to change formats or fool around with adapters.

Blazer?! Still? Seriously, where is Opera Mobile?

GPS might have actually made this device competitive against the upcoming iPhone. Especially with the tight GMaps integration you've implemented. Another wipe out.

Come on, Palm! Get your act together!

I switched from PC to Mac three years ago and never looked back. I can do it again with Palm if need be. If you folks don't come out with a competitive device that operates on my wireless carrier (AT & T) by the time the iPhone comes out I'll be dropping Palm for good and going all Apple all the time.

[Jake Thomas]

I dumped my Treo 650 and rushed out to get the new Treo 680. Take if from me, this will not be a worthwhile upgrade for you 700p users. While I will agree that the stability of the 680 is better than my Treo 650, that is about the only positive thing I have to say. The battery life is terrible, and there are also numerous little bugs that Palm has not addressed. One big one is the battery never charges past 97% and if you leave the phone plugged in once it says it's charged, it then actually starts to discharge the battery. No more plugging your phone in overnight or you will wake up to find you battery is at 60%. I have been a Treo fan for long time, and I love the Palm OS and the Treo form factor. However, I am really tired of how Palm treats it customers and the total lack of innovation. Also, while it sounds great to have apps built into the ROM, just wait until you want to upgrade one of those apps. The only way is to install the upgrade in your RAM and leave the original in the ROM. Now you have two apps of different versions on your device. I learned that the hard way with Docs to Go. I don't think a day goes by the my wife doesn't say how she misses her Treo 650. Way to go Palm, now that's innovation.

[dj disturbed]

i wish it would have kept the normal SD slot AND added a micro SD slot.. this was we could put in a micro sd card for storage anytime.. and use the sd/io slot for our regular cards and the SDIO cards that alot of us already have so that when we need to use a SDIO card and have to remove the sd mem card we would have acess to what we had stored on a memory card b/c we could leave the micro sd card in. Just my 2cents.
I dont see this as much of an upgrade myself.