The Treo and Meo are in Love...
Written: Jan 27 '03 (Updated Aug 23 '03)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Good concept: simple PDA, Cell, WEB - just what I wanted.
Cons: Sprint PCS Vision package alone does not include "true" email.
The Bottom Line: Damn good product. However, "true" email messaging can only be obtained by purchase of additional software & service.
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| conradnostromo's Full Review: Handspring Treo 300 Handheld |
I thought about what I wanted in a PDA Web Cellphone and this product comes very close. Here's what I wanted from the PDA part: just a PDA that I can keep lots of info, USB connectivity and sync, an installed base of freeware, and do 95% of the things I want to do. I do not prefer a 400Mhz based WinCE PDA/Cellphone; to me the idea of writing a Word/Excel/PPT document on a PDA is plain dumb -- it's cumbersome and defeatured. Ditto for reading, for reasons I won't go into here. I might add that I have a laptop which is more suited for these things. Also, these devices are bigger, and either want to do Bluetooth/802.11b or use GSM for the Cellphone.
I've seen a couple of mistakes on some of the Treo 300 epinions so far; for example, one complained about the lack of a manual; the 280 page manual is located on the CD (no book though). Also, another epinion complained of no control on the lighted keyboard; all you do is click the on/off twice in succession. Blame them for ease of use, but most the features are there. You just have to read/skim the manual; once at purchase and then again after a month or so of use.
Synchronization is very easy. One click on the USB cord and off it goes. Buuuuuutt, there is a catch: if you sync with Outlook, the provided software does not provide your TREO with the "alarm" information. This is sneaky because its a must-have feature which is only available by buying the "Professional" version of the Outlook Conduit software. Sigh...
Note: I retract the above point; my Outlook meetings are setting the alarm.
Another nit is that "private" is not the default when scheduling a todo or appointment in the calendar. So I must click "private" each time I enter a personal event so that it doesn't show up on my work computer during synchonization.
I bought the "docking station" for work, and it has a nice button on it to synchronize with my work computer. It looks quite sexy on my desk, with the lid up. I wish that they had put a headphone jack on the docking station -- this would allow me to skip plugging it in the TREO in the morning and unplugging it at night (I have a couple of earphones).
There appear to be lots of freeware on the net; I've already downloaded a bunch. There's also a free product called PalmVNC, which allows you to control a remote computer through the WEB. I haven't tried to set it up though, as I don't yet have a reason to do this. The built in security should be a little tighter; but there is freeware you can get that is much better. It appears that when you type your password you don't get '******' you get 'MarySue', so the person next to you might see your password. There may be some way to change this but I haven't found it yet.
In addition, the provided "security" only hides names and addresses, but truth be told there is no encryption of your data and any knucklehead can just upload your database and read it with Notepad. That being said, there are a number of freeware programs that let you encrypt your data.
I haven't had any problems with SprintPCS; I have decent reception from my home and cubicle (I have a window cubicle :-). You won't look like the coolest person on the block using this as a Cellphone, but then again that's a different market.
The web connection isn't too useful, but given a handheld device this is understandable. Again, my PDA design philosophy comes into play: if you really want to websurf, use a laptop or work computer. I only need the ability of a WEB connection, where I have to check my yahoo email or stock prices, if for some reason I am not near Internet access. BTW, SprintPCS Vision funnels the WEB through a proxy server which tries to custom the desired web page to something readable on such a small device. I'm not impressed by the job they do; getting my email on Yahoo is a pain in the behind and it doesn't need to be.
Price was $500 minus $200 in mail-in rebates. I don't have any qualms with the price as I think it is worth it. Sprint service was 30/mo w/ 300 anytime minutes and unlimited Web for 10 extra.
It appears that Handspring thinks "Grafitti" is not worth it and I have to agree. However, for those folks who want to use the stylus to type text by tapping a keyboard on the LCD: it's there, but only sometimes, and it isn't always convenient. You'll end up using an awkward alternation of the keyboard and stylus. But it's not too bad. The keyboard is missing some useful keys (like cursor forward, backwards,...)
The only "surprise" with this product is that it doesn't to "true" email w/o buying an additional service. You can connect to your Yahoo email account through the WEB to send a nd receive mail. It does come with an "email" program that stores your email but only sends/recieves when you synchronize to a PC. But what I thought I would get is a built in program that you can type an email message, hit send, and off it goes. This is something that Handspring/Sprint imply is there -- see their ads--, but it is not. This is the only downside of this product I have, but to some it is a big one.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 500-200=300
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Epinions.com ID:
conradnostromo
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Reviews written: 3
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