Introduction & Design
Palm broke from tradition at the beginning of 2006 by introducing their first Windows Mobile-powered device, the Treo 700w for Verizon. The 700w brought the familiarity and corporate compatibility of the Pocket PC operating system to the Treo platform. Now Sprint subscribers can get in on the Pocket PC on Treo action with the 700wx, which runs the same Windows Mobile 5 software as the 700w but doubles the available operating memory.
Once the undisputed king of the PDA/Smartphone space, the Treo has slipped in recent years in the face of innovative smartphone offerings from HTC, Nokia, Samsung, and most recently, Motorola. And, of course, there's the BlackBerry grip on corporate email to contend with.
Is a Windows-powered Treo enough to edge Palm back to the top of the smartphone heap? Or is the 700wx just a new take on a now-outdated platform?
The Treo 700wx will look very familiar to long-time Treo users. The Treo's combination of compact size and good ergonomics originally catapulted it to enormous popularity, as it pioneered the inclusion of QWERTY thumboards on mobile phones. On the one hand, the thumboard is room y enough to be comfortable and the Treo's combination of front-mounted keypad, side-mounted buttons, and touchscreen is still easy and efficient to use. On the other hand, other smartphones are getting slimmer profiles, larger screens, and other design innovations while the Treo has essentially stayed the same for a few years now.
Measuring 111 x 58 x 22.5 mm and weighing in at 180g, the Treo 700wx is quite a bit larger than slim smartphones like the T-Mobile Dash and Motorola Q, or the compact candybar-shaped BlackBerry Pearl. The phone is finished in grey and silver plastic, and the front keys are backlit and clearly labeled. A 2" x 2" square screen takes up about half of the front panel, with a speaker and LED status light above it and controls below. A large, easy to use five-way directional pad is centered below the display, with a softkey above Call and Windows Menu buttons on the left and another softkey above the OK and Cancel/Power buttons on the right. Beneath this row of controls is a full QWERTY board.
The rear panel of the phone is largely taken up by the battery cover, with a small speakerphone grill and the camera sensor housing (with self-portrait mirror) located in the top left corner along with the stylus holder. A stubby external antenna also protrudes from this corner.
Three unlabeled buttons are found on the left panel of the handset, while the right panel is blank. The top of the device features an SD expansion slot, IR port, and mute switch, while the bottom panel has an expansion port and an AC adapter jack.
Once a groundbreaking design, the Treo feels somewhat dated by today's standards. It's bulky, heavy, and the external antenna is a bit ungainly. That being said, the Treo's form has always followed its functionality, and it's hard to argue with roomy keys and a great blend of touchscreen and button-driven navigation. The 700's QWERTY keys are also a bit of an improvement over previous models, with buttons that are slightly flatter, squarer, and easier to use than those on the 650. If you're a fan of earlier Treos, you'll probably like the 700 as well. Just don't expect anything too slim and sexy.
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