Sprint and Palm Announce Upcoming Availability of Treo Pro on 3G Network

Sprint and Palm Announce Upcoming Availability of Treo Pro on America’s Most Dependable 3G Network

Elegant Windows Smartphone Supports Blazing-Fast 3G Data Speeds, First Palm Phone to Offer Internet Explorer Mobile 6

SUNNYVALE, Calif. and OVERLAND PARK, Kan., March 4, 2009 – Palm, Inc. (Nasdaq: PALM) and Sprint (NYSE:S) today announced the upcoming availability of the Treo™ Pro smartphone for the Sprint Mobile Broadband Network on March 15.

[Read more]

           

Palm Pre: Doubters, Haters & Dreamers

The streamers and confetti at CES have not even been swept up yet and already the harsh wonderland of the blogosphere is hitting Palm’s upcoming touchscreen smartphone and/or savior, the Pre.

First of all some very reasonable doubts are now being raised by the tech press since the initial euphoria of Ed Colligan’s big announcement has passed. In their wake, of course, are the negative brickbats from the hardcore iPhone fans and the hopeful rumors started by the suddenly rejuvenated Palm faithful, who have been waiting so long for this moment.

Doubter, Hater or Dreamer? Not sure which you are yet? Look for some good examples of all three after the jump…

[Read more]

           

CDMA Treo Pro Hits the FCC, Headed to Sprint?

I thought I saw a photo of a Sprint branded Treo Pro somewhere in the last couple days, but I can’t find it now. Well, that is the rumor and the existence of a CDMA Treo Pro is confirmed with the FCC Filing that Engadget discovered. Now, where is that US, unlocked version of the Palm Pre?

For more details, navigate the hard to navigate FCC site. 

Update: WMExperts has the shot…

           

Palm Pre and Palm WebOS

I was in attendance today when Palm dropped a huge, but expected bomb on the Mobile world with the announcement of their new OS as well as a new device.

This big move by Palm today I think will cloud the market even more though. Do developers make applications for Palm WebOS, Android, iPhone, and Windows Mobile now or do they concentrate on one OS? Time will tell. From the demo of the software at the event, it seems that Palm webOS take the best of the iPhone’s UI, the best of Android, some aspects of some Windows Mobile after market UIs with some of their own flavor to create this entirely new OS. What I think Palm is doing that might make this a more appealing platform for developers over iPhone is that the applications use existing languages like CSS, HTML, Java, etc… That and the fact that Palm doesn’t seem like they want to be the all controlling overlord of the apps developed for this OS. This is based on my own opinion formed after listening to Ed Colligan today.

I will have some hands on with the Palm Pre running this OS tommorow, so I will have some more to say on it at that time. For now, read on to check out the press release and some photos from the event.

[Read more]

           

Give a Holiday Color Palm Centro for Christmas

Last month, Palm announced two new colors for their very popular Centro. The Centro has a ton of featured packed into a small, popular form factor and is very, very reasonably priced at $80. The two colors that have been added for the Holidays are Rose and Olive. Check out my photos of the Olive Centro I got.

   
Who knows, Maybe one out our Sprint Readers could get their hands on this phone December 12th. Hint Hint… Who knows.

           

HTC Touch Pro at Sprint

If you have been waiting for this great device, it is here and on the Sprint website.  A decent price reduction along with a rebate and a 2 year contract can get you one of these very cool devices.

The HTC Touch Pro is the most business-oriented of the popular Touch family of phones. From the slide-out 5-row keyboard, to the security and device management features of Windows Mobile™ 6.1, to the ability to present your company’s PPT presentation using the Video Out capability, this is the touch-screen smartphone that will keep your business humming.
Get free shipping and free activation when you purchase a device with a new line of service online!

You can get your HTC Touch Pro here!

           

Sprint ACE gets WM6.1 Upgrade!

And speaking of Windows Mobile 6.1 …. if you have the ACE (SPH-i325) from Sprint there is an upgrade available so you can enjoy the features of Windows Mobile 6.1. 

You can download your upgrade here.

           

The Touch Diamond is available at Sprint

The Touch Diamond by HTC is available at Sprint with the following price details:

Regular price	$549.99
Instant savings	-$200.00
Mail-in Rebate	-$100.00
New price	$249.99
Requires 2-yr Agreement

A cut above the rest

With the touch of a finger, check your work and personal email, surf the web on the 2.8″ touch-screen and access your personal photos, videos and music stored on the 4GB of internal memory.
Mail-in rebate requires an Everything plan, Talk/Message/Data Share plan, Data Premier add-on or PRO Pack add-on. Get free shipping and free activation when you purchase a phone with a new line of service online!

Highlights

• 3.2 megapixel auto-focus camera and camcorder with zoom
• Windows® Mobile 6.1

Key Features

• Sprint Music Store
• Sprint TV enabled
• GPS enabled
• Web, email capable
• Built-in camera
• Speakerphone
• Bluetooth
• External display
• Voice dialing
• Broadband speeds where available

Full Feature List after the break

[Read more]

           

Choice Offering from Sprint

Speed, Ease of Use, Exclusive Content and Worry-Free Pricing

Three wireless phones debut with Sprint’s exclusive One Click interactive user interface that allows one-step access to favorite content, including Google search
Sign up for the latest information on these new holiday phones at www.sprint.com/newphones

Sprint is making three key announcements, all of which reinforce speed, simplicity and exclusive access for customers - benchmarks of Sprint’s Now Network(TM):

• The availability of One Click, a simple and customizable user interface available on three multimedia devices - LG Lotus(TM), Samsung Rant and Samsung Highnote.
• The launch of the much-anticipated HTC Touch Diamond(TM) and HTC Touch Pro - two additions to Sprint’s robust Windows Mobile portfolio.
• The upcoming arrival of several new iDEN devices, including the Motorola i576, extending Sprint’s leadership in push-to-talk technology.

These devices and One Click represent new value packed into Sprint’s Now Network, which already features Nextel Direct Connect’s sub-second connectivity, Simply Everything’s unprecedented worry-free pricing, and Sprint Mobile Broadband’s immediate access to exclusive content.

Read the rest of the release after the break

[Read more]

           

Official - Sprint Announces the Touch Pro and Diamond

Well, we knew that they were coming to Sprint, but now it’s official. The HTC Touch Diamond will be available in September and will cost $249.99 with a two-year contract and after a $100 mail-in rebate. The HTC Touch Pro will be available in all Sprint retail channels beginning Oct. 19 for $299.99 with a two-year contract and after a $100 mail-in rebate.

An excerpt about these two hot phones from the HUGE PRESS RELEASE… Thanks Jessika!

[Read more]

           

Rising Text Message rates

In my uninformed opinion, I’d call some of this an excuse to “assist” users into buying unlimited plans and to offset users preferring to send SMS messages instead of using more expensive voice minutes.

WASHINGTON (AP) — A key member of the Senate Judiciary Committee is asking the nation’s top four wireless carriers to justify the “sharply rising rates” they charge people to send and receive text messages.

In letters to top executives at Verizon Wireless, AT&T Inc., Sprint Nextel Corp. and T-Mobile, Wisconsin Democrat Herb Kohl said Tuesday that he is concerned that rising text messaging rates reflect decreasing competition in the wireless business.

Kohl chairs the Judiciary Subcommittee on Antitrust, Competition Policy and Consumer Rights. His inquiry comes as European Commission regulators are threatening to impose a cap on roaming fees for text messages sent by Europeans traveling outside of their home nations, in an effort to force prices down by as much as 70 percent.

Kohl said he was concerned that consumers are paying more than 20 cents per message, up from 10 cents in 2005. This increase, he said, “does not appear to be justified by rising costs in delivering text messages,” which are small data files that are inexpensive for carriers to transmit.

Kohl said he is particularly concerned that all four of the companies appear to have adopted identical price increases at nearly the same time. “This conduct is hardly consistent with the vigorous price competition we hope to see in a competitive marketplace,” he wrote.

Kohl also noted that these rate hikes have occurred during the industry’s recent consolidation, which has reduced the number of national wireless carriers in the U.S. to four from six. That consolidation continues, he said, as the large national wireless carriers buy out smaller, regional competitors _ as evidenced most recently by Verizon Wireless’ planned acquisition of Alltel Corp. for $5.9 billion plus the assumption of $22.2 billion in debt.

Verizon Wireless, a joint venture of Verizon Communications Inc. and Vodafone Group PLC, said it will respond to Kohl’s letter once it has had a chance to review it. And Sprint said “we look forward to responding to the Senator’s inquiry about the text messaging options we offer our customers and we will fully cooperate with his request.”

T-Mobile, which is owned by Deutsche Telekom AG, and AT&T did not immediately return calls seeking comment.

Link

           

Palm Treo 800w Review

I’ve got a little confession to make: I’m one of the unwashed masses who has never handled a Treo device before. I was tempted last year by the Treo 700wx when I was looking for a suitable upgrade path for my Motorola V3m, but decided in favor of the Samsung SCH-i760, the only Pocket PC phone with Windows Mobile 6 available from Verizon at the time. In any case, permit this neo-Treo user to share his thoughts on the new Treo 800wx Pocket PC phone via Sprint.

Read on for more information on this new Windows Mobile offering from Palm.

[Read more]

           

Sprint’s HTC Touch Diamond: September 14 for $249

According to an article a PC Magazine article on Yahoo, the Touch Diamond will be available on Sept. 14 from Sprint for $249.99 with a two-year contract and $100 rebate. This pricing info and date were leaked out by the Wall Street Journal folks who reviewed the phone. I won’t talk about this laughable review though. Anyhow, Sasha Segan from PC Magazine had this to say…

The Wall Street Journal broke the news today about Sprint’s version of the HTC Touch Diamond, a Windows Mobile smart phone with a touch screen and a new, 3-D interface.

The Touch Diamond is a small, slab-style smart phone with a 2.8-inch high-res VGA screen, and it puts a cuddly interface of large icons over Windows Mobile’s PDA-style home screen. TouchFlo 3D isn’t just a home screen, either; HTC and Sprint have written a custom YouTube application, a customized version of the Opera Web browser, and a customized media player to try to make Windows Mobile more palatable to consumers.

I don’t really care what the WSJ has to say about something not made by Apple and I hope that you would do the same before casting judgement on the HTC Diamond.

           

California Judge Says Early Termination Fees Illegal

This is only for one State and the appeal in inevitable, but Early Termination Fees are a blight to consumer advocacy. They say it is to subsidize handset prices, while others say it is to lock consumers into a provider regardless of satisfaction and price gouging.

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — The fees that cell phone carriers charge customers who break service contracts took a big hit in a California courtroom when a judge said such charges by Sprint Nextel Corp. likely violate state law.

The judge, in a tentative ruling issued late Monday, said Sprint will have to pay $18.3 million to customers who sued over the fees and credit $54.8 million to those who were charged but did not pay the fees.

The same judge is considering other lawsuits against telecommunications companies over their so-called early termination fees, which can range from $150 to $225. This month Verizon Wireless agreed to pay $21 million to settle an identical lawsuit just as trial was starting.

Alameda County Superior Court Judge Bonnie Sabraw rejected Sprint’s argument that a state court had no business deciding an issue the company said should be left for federal authorities. And while her ruling isn’t legally binding outside the state, it cut to the heart of an ongoing debate in other state courthouses and in Washington, D.C., over the fairness of the fees.

Who would have believed that a San Francisco Judge would have made a good decision? :-)

(of course it is an anti-business ruling, so perhaps that is why)

Link

           

Treo 800w Review

It has been quite some time since Palm has come to the table with a new Windows Mobile Professional device: enter the Treo 800W, WM 6.1. At first glance it doesn’t appear all that different than its predecessor, the Treo 750W. But there are some subtle and not so subtle differences.

The new Treo is much thinner, the screen is the same size, there is a Sprint logo on the top, there are two new hardware buttons—one for mail, one for calendar, the keyboard keys have a new look and feel-they are flat instead of rounded and therefore seem to have less definition.

A quick glance at the bottom made me quiver with delight for I thought that at last Palm has gotten rid of its goofy, proprietary connector and opted for the more universal mini USB connector. But my hopes were quickly dashed upon closer inspection because it was what they call a micro-USB connector, which is far from standard. This means that you can’t use the old Treo cradles, and you have to pack yet another cable and charger when traveling—not a good thing.

[Read more]