Treo 650
The Palm Treo 650 is a Palm OS-based smartphone, the successor to Palm's Treo 600. It began shipping in November 2004, and was discontinued in 2008.
 | |
| Manufacturer | Palm |
|---|---|
| Type | Smartphone |
| Lifespan | November 2004 2008 |
| Media | MMC, SD |
| Operating system | Palm OS 5.4.x |
| CPU | Intel PXA270 312 MHz processor with Intel XScale technology |
| Display | 2.7-inch 320×320 16-bit illuminated TFT LCD |
| Input | Keypad, touchscreen |
| Camera | 0.3-megapixel |
| Touchpad | WM9712 AC'97 digitizer |
| Connectivity | GSM / GPRS / EDGE, CDMA2000, Bluetooth, IrDA |
| Power | 1800 mAh battery |
| Dimensions | 2.3 × 4.4 × 0.9 in (112 x 58 x 23 mm) |
| Mass | 6.3 oz |
| Predecessor | Treo 600 |
Specifications[1][2]
| Type | Specification |
|---|---|
| Modes | CDMA2000 850 / 1900; GSM/GPRS |
| Weight | 6.30 oz (178 g) |
| Dimensions | 4.40" × 2.30" × 0.90" (112 × 58 × 23 mm) |
| Form factor | Bar stub antenna |
| Battery life | Talk: 5.00 hours (300 minutes) Standby: 300 hours (12.5 days) |
| Battery type | 1800 mAh lithium-ion removable |
| Display | Type: LCD (color TFT/TFD); Colors: 65,536 (16-bit); Size: 320 × 320 pixels TFT |
| Platform / OS | Palm OS version 5.4 / 312 MHz Intel PXA270 processor |
| Memory | 32 MB (Non-Volatile File System built-in, flash shared memory) (23 MB available) |
| Phone Book capacity | shared memory |
| FCC ID | O8FMADECA (Approved Oct 25, 2004) |
| Bluetooth | 1.1 compliant; supported profiles: headset, hands-free, serial (sync), dial-up networking (carrier-dependent) |
| Camera | 0.3-megapixel (640×480) VGA digital camera with 2× digital zoom and video camera capability |
| Email client | Protocols supported: IMAP, POP3, Microsoft Exchange supports attachments (photos, HTML, Word, Excel) |
| Expansion card | Card Type: SD / MMC supports SDIO |
| Headset jack (2.5 mm) | stereo |
| High-speed data | Technology: 1xRTT |
| Integrated PDA | OS: Palm OS 5.4 |
| MMS | integrated with SMS (inbox and outbox) |
| Side keys | volume keys, shortcut key |
| Text keyboard | Layout: QWERTY |
| Text Messaging | two-way: yes; integrated with MMS (inbox and outbox) with "chat" functionality |
| Video capture | QVGA resolution (320 × 240 pixels) / MPEG-4 format |
| Wireless Internet | supports frames |
| WLAN | No |
| HSCSD | No |
| 3G | No |
| Alarm | Yes |
| Calculator | Yes |
| Calendar | Yes |
| Custom graphics | Yes |
| Custom ring tones | Yes |
| Data-capable | Yes |
| Games | Yes |
| GPS / Location | No, but a GPS receiver can be connected via Bluetooth |
| Infrared (IR) | Yes |
| Multiple numbers per name | Yes |
| Music player | Yes |
| PC sync | Yes |
| Picture ID | Yes |
| Polyphonic ring tones | Yes |
| Speaker phone | Yes |
| To-do list | Yes |
| Touch screen | Yes |
| Vibrate | Yes |
Carriers
The following GSM and CDMA2000 mobile phone operators currently or previously offered a custom-branded (OEM) version of the Treo 650:
In release order
- Sprint PCS (USA)
- Cellular South
- Cingular Wireless (including AT&T Wireless customers) (USA)
- Unlocked GSM
- Rogers Wireless (Canada)
- Verizon Wireless (USA)
- Earthlink Wireless (USA)
- Bell Mobility (Canada)
- Telus Mobility (Canada)
- Alltel (USA)
- Centennial Wireless (USA)
As seen on Palm's support page,[3] these carriers are the sole providers of support for the OEM phones.
NVFS controversy
At the time of its release, a significant number of users experienced problems with Palm's new Non-Volatile File System, or NVFS, based on the FAT filesystem. Compared to the Treo 600, the previous version of the Treo, the Treo 650 used more memory per file as the FAT filesystem rounded file sizes to the next highest 512-byte multiple. Because of the larger file sizes, some users upgrading to the Treo 650 from the Treo 600 were unable to fit the contents of their old device into the same amount of memory on the new device.[4]
To remedy the initial complaints, Palm offered a free 128 MB SD flash card to Treo 650 users.[5] Later ROM updates have resolved many of the performance, instability and storage inefficiency issues.
Other main concerns surrounding the Treo 650 (during its initial release period) were as follows:
- Some users experienced random resets at one time or another. Although the cause was unknown, a complete reset via the Reset button on the back of the phone under the battery door could keep the phone stable and running most of the day.
- Some users also reported problems with the unit's microphone. They claimed that voice clarity on the recipient's end of the connection was poor, akin to talking "inside a cardboard box." (koreth, Slashdot). Users have found that bluetooth-enabled wireless headsets or fixed headsets seemed to be an effective work-around.
- Another problem people reported is that the handset's earpiece made it difficult to hear in loud environments. Using a bluetooth-enabled wireless headset would also take care of this problem.
- Further issues include static or buzzing in the background of a conversation, the recipient's voice sounding buzzy as if they were speaking through a kazoo, and the phone failing to notify the user that a text message was received until the user activated the phone's screen at which point the phone would place a false timestamp on the message and act as if it had just been received.
Firmware solutions
On March 22, 2005, palmOne released the first ROM/Firmware Update (v1.12) for Sprint-branded phones which alleviated the NVFS inefficiency, random resets and the microphone problems. This was followed by a second firmware update on June 16, 2005. The Unlocked GSM Firmware Upgrade (v1.13) was also released on the day of the second Sprint Treo 650 firmware update which also addresses the problems first fixed with the first Sprint Treo 650 firmware update. The Rogers Wireless Treo 650 Firmware Update was quietly posted at the Rogers Wireless Treo 650 support site, and like the Unlocked GSM Firmware Update, fixes the main concerns during the initial release period. The initial release of the Verizon Wireless Treo 650 and the Earthlink Wireless Treo 650 already has the main concerns assessed, including the NVFS Memory System fix. On July 19, 2005 the Verizon Wireless firmware update was released. On July 25, 2005, Cingular released firmware version 1.15, and updated to 1.17 on November 21. Unlocked GSM 1.20 was released Mar 2006.
The latest (and last) GSM firmware revision is 01.71 (released 2006), with 01.31 released late 2005.
Treo 650 users are encouraged to deploy the latest version of the Treo 650 firmware available for their radio type (GSM or CDMA2000) and carrier branding.
Special Editions
Two special editions existed of the Treo 650, the first a "special colour edition" released in 2006 with spare battery and PalmOne 256MB Card included, this apparently targeted the Japanese market with extra Language functionality available in the preferences menu.
The second was named the "Black tie" limited edition[6] targeting the Asia/Pacific region, released in 2006 and limited to 2000 units, an all black Silicone coated device celebrating 10 years of Palm, these also carried the "Palm" as opposed to the "PalmOne" logo. The "Black Tie" came with a "multi-function" stylus and a Hard case..
Both however had identical hardware functionality with the original.
Treo Ace
The Treo Ace was the rumored code name for PalmOne's Treo 650 smartphone introduced at the October 2004 CTIA Conference in San Francisco. The rumors for this product began on June 27, 2004, when TreoCentral posted detailed specifications and mockup drawings for the product. That article started the flow of hyped demand and interest for the Treo's launch that fall [7]
The current firmware updates for the device contain a directory by the name of Ace_Update, confirming the original internal code name. A string inside the Bluetooth driver file indicates that another internal code name may have been "Ace Ventura", a reference to the movie of the same name.
Successor Palm OS products
The Treo 650 was superseded by the Treo 755p (CDMA2000), and the Treo 680 (GSM).
See also
- Non-Volatile File System
- Palm Treo Smartphone Line
References
- "Palm Support : Treo 650 AT&T; (Cingular) - Learn". 30 October 2010. Archived from the original on 30 October 2010.
- Morris, John. "Performance". CNET.
- "Limited-Edition Black Tie Treo 650". www.palminfocenter.com.
- The original rumor)
- "Im in ur Treo, Linuxin' ur phonez…". 30 June 2007.
List of Palm devices | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Before Palm, Inc. |
|  | |||||||||||||
| As Palm, Inc. |
| ||||||||||||||
| As HP Palm | |||||||||||||||
^* – never released | |||||||||||||||