Palm Treo 700p - silver (Sprint)

Reviewed on 5/17/06   

You can stop squinting at all the blurry camera phone pictures and cease swapping stories about what a carrier rep told you in confidence, for the Palm Treo 700p is finally here. And though the new Palm OS-based smart phone was announced for both Sprint and Verizon Wireless, Sprint is first out of the gate to offer the device, with availability expected at the end of May. So is it worth picking up? We think so. The changes aren't revolutionary, but as the successor to the Treo 650, the 700p brings some welcome improvements, such as EV-DO support and increased memory. Of course, it isn't perfect. There's still no integrated Wi-Fi, and Palm OS 6 has yet to see the light of day, but with solid performance and enhanced connectivity and multimedia capabilities, the Treo 700p is a winner. Sprint's pricing is set at $399.99 with a two-year contract or $549.99 with a one-year contract. We should also note that as of this writing, Sprint says it has no plans to offer a cameraless version of the 700p.

Design of Palm Treo 700p - silver (Sprint)

From a distance, the Palm Treo 700p looks identical to its Windows-based cousin, the Treo 700w. In fact, they share the same dimensions (4.4 by 2.3 by 0.9 inches; 6.4 ounces), the same silver and charcoal-gray color scheme, and the same integrated QWERTY keyboard. The keyboard is a slight improvement upon the one found on the Treo 650; Palm replaced the oval buttons with tactile, rectangular keys that are brightly backlit. The new buttons are more spacious as well, but since the layout overall is still a bit cramped, users with larger digits should give it a test-drive. That said, you can't beat the convenience of having a built-in keyboard for quickly firing off messages and notes, especially one that's integrated so well into the overall form factor. Like the other Treo models, the 700p feels good in the hand and is comfortable to hold up to the ear while in use, but we worry about the plastic battery cover on the back, which feels like it could easily crack if the Treo were to take a nasty tumble. To protect your investment, we recommend purchasing a protective case, since one isn't provided in the package.

Another incentive for getting a case is to prevent the gorgeous display from getting any scratches. As it is, the 2.5-inch, 65,536-color display has a tendency to hold smudges and fingerprints. But hands down, the Palm Treo 700p's display is sharper and more vibrant than the Treo 700w's, which has a 240x240-pixel resolution. You can change the color theme and the backlight time but not the font size.

Palm rearranged the navigation controls slightly from the Treo 650 and the Treo 700w. Immediately beneath the display, you'll now find the Talk and End keys instead of two customizable shortcut keys, while the quick-launch buttons for the phone, the calendar, messages, and the home page are below that, split into two groups by the five-way toggle. The layout is spacious enough, but we have to say that the 700w is easier to use with one hand. Yes, that's more of an operating-system issue than a difference in hardware, but it's worth noting just the same.

On the left spine, you have three unmarked buttons: the volume-up and -down keys and a customizable shortcut key (voice memo by default). The SD/MMC expansion slot is located on the top, along with the infrared port and a ringer/silent switch. When you slide the ringer switch to the sound-off position, the 700p automatically goes into vibrate mode, which is a new feature. Along the bottom edge, you'll find the multiconnector port found on all of Palm's recent PDAs and smart phones, as well as a 2.5mm headset jack. The camera lens is on the back, as well as a small self-portrait mirror and the speakerphone. We appreciate the fact that the battery is user-replaceable, and you can purchase an extra cell for $59.99 in case of emergencies. As far as included accessories, the list is pretty sparse. You get an AC adapter, a USB cable, a wired stereo headset, a desktop-synchronization CD, and reference material.

Features of Palm Treo 700p - silver (Sprint)

As the newest member of the already famous Treo family, the Palm Treo 700p has found a way to distinguish itself from its siblings in a couple of ways. First, it's the first Palm-based Treo to support 3G EV-DO networks so that you can enjoy broadbandlike speeds on your device--around 300Kbps to 600Kbps (see Performance for more). In other words, that means faster e-mail, messaging, and attachment downloads. In addition, the improved Blazer Web browser now includes a built-in streaming application so that you can enjoy music and video files in popular formats, such as MP3, WMA, WMV, and MPEG-4. Sprint also offers a couple of services to add to the 700p's multimedia experience. For TV junkies, you can check out Sprint TV, which brings popular channels, such as ABC News, Fox Sports, and the Weather Channel, to your phone. Meanwhile, if you want to read up on the latest news, sports, weather, stock quotes, and more, there is the On Demand feature, which instantly pulls all the current headlines for the user's region (based on zip code) from the Web and puts it into the palm of your hand. Both services are offered as part of the Sprint Power Vision pack, which ranges in price from $15 to $25 per month.

Yet another distinction is that the Palm Treo 700p is the first Treo to offer built-in dial-up networking capabilities (DUN). Yes, you can finally use this smart phone as a wireless modem right out of the box. What's more, you have the option of connecting via Bluetooth or USB. The latter, however, will require that you sign up for the Sprint Power Vision Modem Plan ($39.99 per month for 40MB; $49.99 per month for unlimited) in order for you to connect the 700p to your PC or your laptop. We like the fact that using the USB connection also charges the Treo--that way, you don't run out of juice in the interim.

The EV-DO support and DUN capabilities certainly soften the blow of no Wi-Fi, but we still wouldn't mind having that option. Other smart phones, such as the UTStarcom XV6700, have it, so why can't the Treo? Even worse, it won't support Palm's Wi-Fi card. The Treo 700p does have an infrared port and built-in Bluetooth 1.2--which gives you support for more accessories, including headsets, car kits, printers, and GPS receivers--and it can wirelessly synchronize with your Bluetooth-enabled laptop or computer.

The insanely meager amount of integrated memory was a big sticking point on the Treo 650, and Palm heard you. The company increased user-accessible memory from 22MB to 60MB (128MB total); plus, you get an SDIO/MMC expansion slot that supports up to 2GB media. It also helps that the Documents to Go 8 suite, which allows you to edit Microsoft Word and Excel documents and view PowerPoint presentations and PDFs, is now included on the device's ROM.

Beyond work documents, the Palm Treo 700p has robust e-mail capabilities, which include VersaMail 3.5. Not only is it compatible with Microsoft Exchange Server 2003, but it offers contact synchronization in addition to your e-mail and your calendar. You can get push e-mail capabilities through Good or Sprint's Business Connection, and there's also out-of-the-box support for Yahoo, AOL, and Gmail accounts. We had no problems setting up our test Treo to receive and send messages from our Yahoo account.

The Palm Treo 700p runs Palm OS 5.4.9, so you get all the usual PIM functions: calendar, contacts, tasks, memos, and so forth. However, we're wondering if Palm OS 6 will ever see the light of day. During our initial meeting with Palm, we got the impression that the company was in no hurry to upgrade. Just how committed is it to this OS? As far as phone features, the 700p offers a speakerphone, a vibrate mode, three-way calling, speed dial, and the "ignore with text" feature that was first introduced in the Treo 700w. Although it supports photo caller ID, the 700p doesn't have the photo speed-dial function found on the Windows-based device.

Finally, we come to some of the Palm Treo 700p's entertainment features. The Treo 650's VGA camera has been swapped for a 1.3-megapixel camera with 2X zoom. The device comes with ScanR software, which enables you to take a picture of a whiteboard, then put the writing from the board into a Word document. You can record videos with sound and create slide shows with music and audio commentary. Also, the 700p now comes with PocketTunes 3.1 preinstalled on the smart phone, so you can enjoy your favorite MP3s. If you crave support for other music formats, such as WMA/PlaysForSure, you'll have to upgrade to the Deluxe edition ($34.95) of PocketTunes.

Performance of Palm Treo 700p - silver (Sprint)

We tested the dual-band (CDMA 800/1900; EV-DO) Palm Treo 700p in San Francisco using Sprint's network, and call quality was solid. We had no problems hearing conversations, and though our callers reported a slight hint of an echo, they said that overall, the sound quality was excellent. Audio quality diminished slightly when we activated the speakerphone, with the voices sounding tinny, but it wasn't anything distracting. Plus, volume was adequate, even in noisy environments. Pairing the 700p with the Logitech Mobile Traveller Bluetooth Headset was a breeze; we were up and running in less than a minute. Palm also said it will release a special version of the Plantronics Discovery 640 Bluetooth headset.

Surfing the Web on the Palm Treo 700p was a relatively good experience. Download speeds weren't mind-blowing, but the support for Sprint's EV-DO network definitely made a difference, as even graphics-intensive sites such as CNET.com loaded quickly. We also watched an episode of Fox's Prison Break on the 700p, and we admit it's cool having the ability to watch TV on a palm-size device, but the picture was way too pixelated to enjoy the experience. Also, the sound became muffled when we laid the device on a table; to get the best results, we suggest using the wired headset. It's nice, however, that when you're in a data session, you can accept calls. Then when you hang up, you can resume your data session automatically.

The Palm Treo 700p is rated for 4.5 hours of talk time and up to 12 days of standby time. In our tests, the 700p beat that by half an hour.