• treo,  windows mobile

    Windows Mobile 6 Update for Treo 750v

    Palm has released a Windows Mobile 6 upgrade, officially named Treo 750/750v Updater 2.18, for European-based Vodafone Treo 750v smartphones. This English-only update is available for immediate download if you own a Vodafone UK, Netherlands, or Ireland Treo 750v. According the the Palm website, a generic non branded update for the Treo 750 is “coming soon.”

    What the Update Does

    This update installs Windows Mobile 6 Professional on the Treo 750 and installs an update to address loss of system sounds. According to the Palm website, it also includes the following enhancements:

    • Improved Calendar management with enhanced User Interface
    • Enhanced E-mail messaging, HTML/Smart Filtering, SharePoint access and more
    • Voice command via Bluetooth
    • USB cable charging

    Important Safety Considerations

    Before you apply this update, there are some important things you need to know before you start. Ensure that you read and understand the following:

    • You can only download this update once. As soon as you download it to your computer, strongly consider burning the download to CD or making a backup copy or two. (You will be prompted to enter your device’s serial number to begin the download.)
    • There is no way to revert back to Windows Mobile 5.
    • If you are using the BlackBerry Connect (BBC) software on your Windows Mobile 5 Treo 750v, DO NOT install this update. Palm’s implementation of Windows Mobile 6 does not support BlackBerry Connect.
    • This upgrade is only being made available to customers until October 31, 2008.

    System Requirements

    To install this update, you will need to be running Windows 2000 SP4, Windows XP SP2, or Windows Vista. You will also need Microsoft ActiveSync 4.5 if you are not running Windows Vista. Vista customers will use Windows Mobile Device Manager to synchronize their Treo with the computer.

    More Information and Downloads

    You can read the full documentation for this update and access the download links from the Palm website.

    What About US Treo 750 Customers?

    Brighthand is reporting that Treo 750 customers who use AT&T will have to wait until September for the update to become available. No further details were made available.

  • foleo

    Companion or Stand Alone Product

    Ever since Palm announced the Foleo back in May they have been fighting an uphill battle to try and convince people that the Foleo is not a sub-notebook or Ultra-Mobile PC (UMPC).

    So while I’m waiting for my chance to buy my Foleo, I have to wonder if Palm should just go with the flow as it where and market the Foleo for what is is being perceived as: a light weight Linux notebook.

    Palm wouldn’t have to take anything away from the Foleo being a great companion product for the company’s smartphones. What they would be gaining, after some shoring up in the software department, is a new market of customers who would use the Foleo as a mobile computer.

    What do you think? Click the Comments link below and let us know.

  • treo

    Is this the Centro?

    Gizmodo is running what appears to be a press photo of the upcoming Centro smartphone for Sprint this morning.


    Wow, what a difference from the blurry photos we’ve seen previously. This thing looks really good! I was under the impression that the black device was going to be the Windows Mobile version that has been rumored to be floating around, but this photo clearly shows the standard Palm hardware buttons around the navigator ring. (The other tip off that this is not a Windows Mobile device is the lack of the Windows key. Stay tuned, there could be a Windows Mobile version still in the works.)

    Read the full Gizmodo article

    Update:

    The Boy Genius Report seems to have a listing of the Centro SKU and full retail pricing posted. It looks like the Centro will be selling for $399.99 without a new service contract.

    Keep reading

  • foleo

    InfoWorld: Palm Says the Foleo is on Target

    A new InfoWorld article out today reads:

    “As stated on May 30, U.S. availability for the Palm Foleo mobile companion will begin this summer. We will let you know if this changes,” said Jim Christensen, Palm’s director of communications.”

    I’ve been reading InfoWorld magazine for years now and I’ve come to trust their reporting. In the “yes-it-is/no-it-isn’t” ping pong game that has been going on about the Foleo, I’m inclined to err on the side of optimism and place my bet on the Foleo shipping before October of this year. We’ll see if I’m right or not.

    Read the full InfoWorld article

  • foleo

    Rumor Mill: The Foleo is Still on Target

    OK, there has been a lot of speculation this week about whether or not Palm is delaying the Foleo to work on software bugs and enhancements.

    Today, Ryan Kairer over at PalmInfoCenter posted a short article indicating that,

    “A Palm spokesperson has told PalmInfocenter that the company is still standing by its original timeframe originally announced back in May, saying “U.S. availability for the Palm Foleo mobile companion will begin this summer.”

    So the question that every Foleo Fanatic has on his or her mind is: Is the Foleo delayed or not? I wish I knew, but I still have no idea which rumor is closer to the truth at this point. My only hope is that Palm pre-announces the release date a few days, maybe a week, in advance to I can plan to be at the New York Palm Store when it opens so I can get my hands on one with in the first 15 minutes of it being available.

    Read PIC’s full article

  • foleo

    Barron’s – Over Simplification

    Ben Combee has been spotted on the message boards again. This time he is commenting on the #comments blog story regarding the recent Barron’s article (details) about the Foleo’s apparent delay.

    Ben writes:

    “I can’t talk much about when we’re launching yet, but I can say that the comments in Barron’s are a major simplification of what’s been happening this summer. We’re not stupid; we’ve been working on lots of complicated sync issues on lots of phones for the last year, including testing with a wide range of Treo devices. The issues haven’t been “it doesn’t sync”, but more like “after syncing large numbers of emails over a four day time period, the operation fails 25% of the time and cannot restart without resetting the device.” We’ve been doing lots of stress testing, and sometimes that finds problems that have been hidden for a while or problems that are really hard to debug because of the need to setup a reproducible case with instrumentation.”

    OK, I’m feeling better about this. I think Ben goes out of his way to show that Palm is working long and hard to ensure that the Foleo launch goes smoothly and without any software issues.

  • 1src

    1SRC Podcast 143

    This week’s 1SRC Podcast has been posted for your listening enjoyment.

    1SRC Podcast 143 Show Notes

    • Carl W. Brooks, Editor of PalmLoyal.com is my special guest this week.
    • Palm confirms the existance of the Centrol.
    • PIC has details on pTunes for the Foleo.
    • Check out Gx-5’s DialByPhoto. For a limited time, it is 50% off!
    • 1SRC Editorial: Foleo: Big Blue Inside.
    • What’s on my Palm

    Listen to the 1SRC Podcast 143

  • Uncategorized

    Ed Colligan Responds to Engadget Open Letter

    Earlier today on the Palm company blog, Palm CEO, Ed Colligan responded to Engadget’s open letter which was posted on the Engadget website this past Tuesday.

    “I forwarded it to our entire executive staff and many others at Palm have read it. Although I can’t say I agree with every point, many are right on. We are attacking almost every challenge you noted, so stay tuned. Let’s remember that it is very early in the evolution of the smartphone and there is enormous opportunity for us to innovate. We have only just begun to fight!

    Thank you for taking the time to write. I really do take your comments to heart and I know the team at Palm is totally committed to delivering the best mobile computing solutions in the world.”

    -Ed Colligan

    Commentary

    I think that this really gets back to what I’ve been saying about Palm in my weekly 1SRC.com podcasts: That Palm has been steadily executing a plan that will make Palm the company it was allowing them to bring innovative products to market. We know that Palm is working on a number of major projects and all we have to do is wait for them to be ready. I know that there have been delays, but do you really want more buggy hardware and software? Let’s just give Palm the space they need to get everything done correcrtly right out of the gate.

  • foleo

    Rumor Mill: Has the Foleo Been Delayed?

    Tiernan Ray writes for Barron’s website today that Palm may have pushed back the release date of the Foleo to late September to early October. The Barron’s article cites Deutsche Bank’s Jonathan Goldberg who wrote, “In a round of checks yesterday we learned that the Palm Foleo will be delayed” in a briefing released today. Mr. Goldberg’s briefing continues:

    “The product was supposed to hit Palm stores this week, but was delayed when software bugs were detected. These apparently included an inability to synchronize the Foleo with most models of the Treo, in particular the nominally high-volume Treo 680. Our contacts indicate Palm now expects the device will ship in late September/early October.”

    This is surely some sad news for my fellow Foleo Fanatics who are waiting for this device to become available, however, I would rather seem Palm work out all the kinks before the device ships. If that means that software on the Foleo or the various Treo smartphones needs to be fixed, I would rather Palm fix it and have a solid launch than ship a product that isn’t complete.

    Read Barron’s Tech Trader Daily article

    [Thanks to everyone who emailed me about this report.]