Crystal Canadian Treo 650 up for Auction

Posted By: Ryan on Wednesday, March 16, 2005 12:24:44 PM

Crystal Canadian Treo 650 Smartphone palmOne Canada today announced an online auction for the Ultimate Canada Smartphone, a one-of-a-kind Treo 650 smartphone bejeweled with over 2,000 Swarovski crystals illustrating a wrap-around Canadian flag. Proceeds from the auction will benefit the Canadian Autism Society.

Interested parties can bid for the Ultimate Canada Smartphone at canadasmartphone.com from today until 12 p.m. EST on Thursday, April 14. All proceeds from the auction will be donated to Autism Society Canada.

The Treo 650 smartphone was just launched in Canada on the Rogers network. In addition to its inspiring design, the Ultimate Canada Smartphone sings, reads, and plays red and white through a collection of pre-loaded Canadian applications and downloads, including:

Music by Arcade Fire, k-os, Oscar Peterson and Neil Young
e-book "The Oryx and Crake" by Margaret Atwood
Audio books "Life of Pi" by Yann Martel and "A History of Ice Hockey" by Greg Proops
Ringtone "Summer of '69" by Bryan Adams
Mobile game Air Hockey
Text to "O Canada"
Canadian Donuts, an application that locates the nearest donut shop for road-weary warriors.

Crystal Canadian Treo 650 Smartphone "This all-in-one device packs and shines Canadiana cool," said Michael Moskowitz, president and CEO, palmOne Canada. "In addition to its winning design, incredible Canadian applications and the standard all-world capabilities of the Treo 650 smartphone, the Ultimate Canada Smartphone will also be a terrific vehicle for raising funds and awareness for Autism Society Canada."

Artist Debi Kisluk of Eclectics ArtWare (www.electicsartware.com) implemented the design of the Ultimate Canada Smartphone through her customization service Glitz2Go.

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This would be a fun thing to have in a GOP convention

Frenchie @ 3/16/2005 3:38:02 PM #

I would love to see the faces of people at
1. a gun show
2. GOP convention
3. In Texas
4. In Mississippi

with a Canadian Treo 650 :p

This is going to be put into South Park.

The world will end in 2006. Just as it was predicted in the bible along with the release of Microsoft Longhorn.... :p

RE: This would be a fun thing to have in a GOP convention

RhinoSteve @ 3/16/2005 4:06:38 PM #

Then we could make a Treo with the Stars & Bars on it. The phone would play Dixie as a ring tone.

I'd love to see this one at:

1. a Phish concert
2. a Democratic party convention
3. Harvard square
4. the Berkeley campus

Diff. strokes for diff. folks!

RE: This would be a fun thing to have in a GOP convention

HandyMan @ 3/16/2005 6:46:56 PM #

#5 anywhere outside the USA.

RE: This would be a fun thing to have in a GOP convention

LiveFaith @ 3/16/2005 10:41:26 PM #

Stars & Bars! That's hillarious Rhino. That baby would sell down here in GA.

Pat Horne; www.churchoflivingfaith.com

RE: This would be a fun thing to have in a GOP convention

RhinoSteve @ 3/17/2005 3:15:36 PM #

I'm sure of that. Hell, you can get faceplates with the Stars & Bars on it for Nokia cell phones now.

Stars & Bars being labeled as racist is a perfect example of "Artificial Prejudice" where minority racial leaders only keep political power by feigning victim for sympathy and influence.

However, a Stars & Bars phone is not for me. Great great granddaddy fought for the North. ;)

RE: This would be a fun thing to have in a GOP convention

cbowers @ 3/18/2005 1:03:06 AM #

"#5 anywhere outside the USA."

Nah, a Canadian would just smile politely and say "Nice phone you got there, eh?".

RE: This would be a fun thing to have in a GOP convention

RhinoSteve @ 3/18/2005 7:09:17 PM #

What you expect from someone that can't legally own a handgun?

RE: This would be a fun thing to have in a GOP convention

statik @ 3/20/2005 12:12:40 PM #

Now where did you hear that from Rhino? Shotguns & handguns are no problem to legally own up here. We just aren't as liberal with the assault class weapons as our friends south of the border. You can read up more on it here: http://www.guncontrol.ca/

Back on topic, this thing is one fugly palm. I can't see anybody in their right mind using it as a daily driver.

Unique!

Masamune @ 3/16/2005 3:38:49 PM #

Very nice - all those gems must way it down though. What national Treo will be next?

RE: Unique!

ozz @ 3/16/2005 3:42:30 PM #

I would like to see one designed by Tiffany and Co. with real diamonds all over it. They could price it at $250,000. Now THAT would get some marketing attention.

RE: Unique!

ozz @ 3/16/2005 3:45:17 PM #

.....or better yet, Neiman Marcus could commission a diamond-studed pair of Treo 650s as their "His and Her" Palms for their 2005 Christmas Catalog

RE: Unique!

Frenchie @ 3/16/2005 4:14:06 PM #

Or the James Bond Treo 650 with the ability to release a parlyzing shock to unsuspecting thugs :p

Ha, Paris Hilton should pay P1 to make a Treo 650 with nothing but diamonds. That can replace her hacked Sidekick.

The world will end in 2006. Just as it was predicted in the bible along with the release of Microsoft Longhorn.... :p

RE: Unique!

Mac128k @ 3/16/2005 7:57:23 PM #

IIRC Palm did something like this for Claudia Schiffer when she signed on to market her own Palm.

It's been a while so the memories are a bit fuzzy :)

Unique but worthless

hkklife @ 3/17/2005 9:29:02 AM #

I guess this where the remaining R&D budget has gone. Instead of trying to play catch-up with Vertu, P1 should put whatever $ they have left into shoring up their build quality and software stability.

I thought we had seen the last of this gimmicky sh!!!!t with the red and blue m505s. Guess I was wrong. Remember, folks, style over substance only goes *SO* far.

I mean, a black Anthracite-colored Tungsten with a metal body would be oh-so cool and cost next to nothing to produce (in the big picture). Heck, I'd wager the $ put into this one-off Treo would been a nice upfront licensing fee towards getting Graffiti 1 back onto the platform. That's called a USEFUL expenditure!

RE: Unique but worthless

Be_True @ 3/17/2005 2:35:13 PM #

-------
hkklife:
I guess this where the remaining R&D budget has gone.

I thought we had seen the last of this gimmicky sh!!!!t with the red and blue m505s. Guess I was wrong.
-------

It's not like Palm made this, It is a One-off made by a lady that does this kind of decorating things.

PalmOne is just taking advantage of an opportunity for good press and PR.

-Chris

Tungsten C, Palm IIIxe, Wizard OZ-9520

"Quando Omni Flunkus Moritati"

RE: Unique!

RoadKnight @ 3/17/2005 8:19:58 PM #

hkklife,
WHAT are you smoking?????.....and where can I get some?
It MUST be good if you think that Pa1m would actually produce this in the factory, quantity 1, rather than job it out to somebody else. Or that Pa1m would even be involved in this outside of the most tangential manner marketing-wise.

You guys crack me up!

Target Practice

Gekko @ 3/16/2005 9:55:50 PM #

These things would be good for target practice - along with a bunch of Celine Dione CDs and anything else Canadian.

Canada lives off of the goodwill of the American people.

RE: Target Practice

LiveFaith @ 3/16/2005 10:43:30 PM #

Gekko,

I love it when you build bridges for us.

Pat Horne; www.churchoflivingfaith.com

RE: Target Practice

Token User @ 3/17/2005 9:46:47 AM #

These things would be good for target practice - along with a bunch of Celine Dione CDs and anything else Canadian.

Hey - I've seen 24. Jack Bauer gets shot at all the time defending the rights of America. Isn't Jack Canadian, eh?

~ "Don't be too proud of this technological terror you've constructed." - DV ~

RE: Target Practice

RhinoSteve @ 3/17/2005 3:20:26 PM #

I have to agree with Gekko there. If Cananda only canceled their national healthcare program, then their economy would be actually doing something.

RE: Target Practice

rye&ginger @ 3/17/2005 9:09:54 PM #

Right, read and you might learn something. Canada's economy is outpacing nearly all developed nations and is the only G7 country to not be running deficits, and has done so for over 8 years now, In spite all efforts of the USA trade protectionists. I bet you think free trade has been bad for the USA. lol.

RE: Target Practice

RoadKnight @ 3/17/2005 10:26:04 PM #

(Together)"Oh Canada, Oh Canada!...."
Draft Dodger 1:'God Save the Queen!'
Draft Dodger 2:"Yeah, we love her! She kept our boys our of Chile!"
---Old Doonesbury cartoon

RE: Target Practice

cbowers @ 3/18/2005 1:09:19 AM #

"Canada lives off of the goodwill of the American people."

That's it, we're cutting off your oil. You *do* realize we're your number 2 provider of it (occasionally your number 1 provider).

Plus all of your net natural gas imports come from us, and almost all of your electricity imports.

http://tinyurl.com/7ldt

We even buy your crappy cars. Now *there's* goodwill.

RE: Target Practice

RhinoSteve @ 3/18/2005 7:10:27 PM #

Statements of a country's national economic growth is only the big leagues of book cooking.

RE: Target Practice

Gekko @ 3/18/2005 7:15:06 PM #

>We even buy your crappy cars. Now *there's* goodwill.

As opposed to those great Canadian cars?

Just remember - we can invade at anytime.

RE: Target Practice

hoodoo @ 3/18/2005 9:07:27 PM #

lol.

well, GM's largest facility is in Oshawa Ontario, making the truly awful Impala among others.

Does anyone here know that Ontario manufactured more vehicles than Michigan for the first time in 2004?

it's just too bad that Canadian economic growth comes at the expense of us plebs, fattening the governments' pockets. Why do you think we run such a huge surplus? **sigh**

RE: Target Practice

RhinoSteve @ 3/18/2005 9:30:31 PM #

Invade Canada? It is not worth it. There have been talks off and on in the Congress to annex Canada since the western ranges opened up for exploration. Pretty much the concensus is that it is not worth it. Becides, I would rather see Quebec go independant. That would be a nice one!

Oui!

Eclectics ArtWare

Be_True @ 3/17/2005 2:29:14 PM #

The web site listing was misspelled,
it should be:

http://www.eclecticsartware.com

-Chris

Tungsten C, Palm IIIxe, Wizard OZ-9520

"Quando Omni Flunkus Moritati"

Nice!

e_tellurian @ 3/18/2005 4:36:50 PM #

Perhaps such intellectual property will offer more choice?

Globally shared intellectual value comes in many forms.

E-T

e-tellurian

completing the e-com circle with a people driven we-com solution

RE: Nice!

Masamune @ 3/18/2005 7:00:27 PM #

I thought this one might appeal to you - being Canadian.

Does it have a customized "buzz" too?

Poopie @ 3/18/2005 8:22:32 PM #

How is anyone going to get pa1m* to refurb this unit when it starts to buzz.

... Do you hear a buzzing noise?

$1.3 Billion!?!

bigjarom @ 3/21/2005 1:25:21 AM #

[quote]Highest bid as of 1:21:31 AM EST:

$1,337,000,000.00

This frame will refresh every 5 seconds.

All proceeds from the auction will be donated to Autism Society Canada[/quote]

I'm happy to see that bidders are taking this auction seriously!

/Now palmified for over 6 years.

RE: $666,000,000,000.00

twrock @ 3/21/2005 9:13:59 AM #

Highest bid as of 9:07:55 AM EST:
$666,000,000,000.00
This frame will refresh every 5 seconds.

All proceeds from the auction will be donated to Autism Society Canada

Yeah, but I think that's in Canadian dollars. That's like $1.75 in real money, right?

RE: $1.3 Billion!?!

svrontis @ 3/21/2005 8:55:34 PM #

That nearly as much money as M$ has wasted in their WinCE/PPC/WinMobile/whatever division.

RE: $1.3 Billion!?!

The_Voice_of_Reason @ 3/21/2005 9:12:51 PM #

Still less than what Palm lost during its legendary inventory glut/bad lease/Hungarian m505/Claudia Schiffer Vx/Anyday.com/Carl Yankowski heyday.

Sword cuts both ways, Bubba. Careful you don't get nicked...

*************************************************************************************

Press release: CUPERTINO, California — February 11, 2005 — Apple® announced today that Steve Jobs will begin selling his own feces to Apple Cultists beginning March 1. Apple's new iPoo™ lineup is expected to easily surpass the iPod shuffle as the company's most popular product. Yes, Apple Cultists can already easily create their own iPoo™, but feces didn't seem cool until Jobs told them it was cool. Remember, kids: the ONLY cool feces is Jobs' highly individualistic, rebellious iPoo™ (coming soon in six different colors/flavors, including the red [hematochezia] and black [melena] U2 GI bleed model)

*************************************************************************************

******************************************************************
Sony CLIE UX100: 128 MB real RAM, OLED screen. All the PDA anyone really ever wanted.

RE: $1.3 Billion!?!

mikecane @ 3/22/2005 9:29:46 AM #

Highest bid as of 9:23:19 AM EST:

$1,010.00

This frame will refresh every 5 seconds.

All proceeds from the auction will be donated to Autism Society Canada

-- hey, that's probably what an "iBook mini" (plus tax) will cost!

RE: $1.3 Billion!?!

twrock @ 3/22/2005 8:11:43 PM #

What are they doing? Resetting the highest bid every day at midnight? This auction's setup is just asking for trouble. Any nut in a cyber cafe in Timbuktu can bid on this thing.

Palm Software on sale