Palm Releases Update for the Unlocked GSM Treo 650

The (not so) funny thing is that there's a PERFECT example of a low-signal GSM area on T-Mobile's network at the Palm campus in Sunnyvale. Alas, I suspect that most Palm employees are on other carriers. Whenever I drive by that (or another similar) area, I not only roam temporarily to Cingular, but when I get back to T-Mobile territory (just around the corner), GPRS often gets stuck in a loop of trying (and failing) to connect to T-Mobile Internet and T-Mobile VPN, usually until I reboot.

(Not that it would help in this case, but I really wish the T-Mobile VPN Internet profile wasn't locked so I could delete it!)

The Treo 650,

Guess which one they support the most...

I've LONG maintained that the <$200 bottom feeder models (T|E variants, Zires etc) are fine with little to no support. But the pricier models (the Tungstens, LD and all Treos) should fall under some kind of "Support Assurance" plan on Palm's behalf.

Palm should guarantee at leat one major patch/update/bugfix and then one or more minor updates during each unit's life.

Case in point would be the LD 2.0 updatpe as its major update and then a mini bundle of updated VersaMail/Blazer/PTunes/DTG a few months down the line to bring it up to speed with whatever is shipping on the latest devices.

Palm should *ALSO* offer reasonably priced upgrades of the core apps on its own website. Not OS updates, mind you--just apps. Blazer, VersaMail and Media could all fall under a $15-$20 downloadable update bundle. E-Reader Pro, PTunes & DTG could all give slightly better discount rates for upgrading/updating if you are a registered user of the app via a pre-loaded Palm bundle. Look at how NormSoft is trying to screw TX & LD owners now with their "free" updates. But if they just gave all new Palm owners the option of getting the full version for say $10-$15 a lot of the complaining would be muted.

P.S. Palm wouldn't have issued more than one update or so for the Treo 650 were it not for the incessant demands of the carriers--Verizon especially--to fix "issues".

P.P.S. Any idea if this upgrades the BT stack to 1.2? Is the hardware even capable of that? I've heard mixed things on this from Treocentral & Brighthand.

Pilot 1000-->Pilot 5000-->PalmPilot Pro-->IIIe-->Vx-->m505-->T|T-->T|T2-->T|C-->T|T3-->T|T5-->TX

Just trying to ride my contract out. I'd rather not pay the hefty Verizon ETF. Now that this update is out I'll definitely have to wait for one that's pre-patched out of the box---just one thing less to go wrong.

Pilot 1000-->Pilot 5000-->PalmPilot Pro-->IIIe-->Vx-->m505-->T|T-->T|T2-->T|C-->T|T3-->T|T5-->TX

If you have ever been cursed to support a SONY workstation or laptop you know exactly how useless SONY support is - basically, "if we blew it in the firmware, just buy another one of our fine systems."

Palm USED to issue several patches for their earlier handhelds, but they do seem to be issued every blue moon now- even the Treo 650 took nearly 6 months after release to issue a usable firmware, all the while Palm denying there was nothing wrong that a 128MB SD card wouldn't meliorate. Better than Sony, but that's not saying much.

It's cheaper for me to pay ETF on my current contract then re-up for a Treo 650 than it is to pay full retail for the 650 while in my old contract (I know someone at VZW who can supposedly give me a deal but it necessitates a 2 yr. contract)
I always like to get my stuff with the latest firmware/OS loaded onboard from the factory if at all possible.

joad et al;

In all fairness, I can count on one hand the products I've bought over the past few years that have received CONSISTENT, solid support from their manufacturers.

A few notable mentions:

1. ATI. Monthly driver releases for their video cards squash bugs and give occasional performance boosts. I maintain a fleet of Radeon-equipped (mostly) PCs between family, friends, work, and personal...every Radeon released since '00 is STILL the recipient of the latest driver set. That's sterling support--even better than Nvidia (who has fallen behind in the driver game as of late)

2. Casio. I've updated the firmware in my Z750 digicam 2x since May. They were just minor bugfixes & improvements but it's still nice to see that kind of support in a consumer level digicam.

3. Matrox. They are another graphics card vendor that's been consistently good about supporting their (otherwise lackluster) hardware. I haven't had one of their cards in several years but I still keep an eye on their workstation offerings.

4. Nikon. Another company with a good history for updating their cameras.

5. Plextor. Their optical drives are usually solid to begin with but you can always count on a few firmware updates for compatability & stability purposes.

6. Linksys. Good to see that being #1 hasn't made them complacent. They still release new firmwares & drivers and you can always hack your router with an unofficial firmware if you want something more powerful.

Palm, Sony, HP, Epson, Samsung, RCA/Thomson, Creative (at least for SoundBlasters), most no-name optical drive manufacturers and nearly ALL MP3 play manufacturers fall under the description given by joad. They just release something onto the market, hope for the best, and then work on getting the successor out in a timely fashion. A new trend I've noticed is abandoning printers for driver support. I had several lovely HP iunkjet & laser printers that were reasonably pricey in '99 & '00. Then in '01 I realized there were no proper XP drivers for it nor was HP going to ever write them.

Pilot 1000-->Pilot 5000-->PalmPilot Pro-->IIIe-->Vx-->m505-->T|T-->T|T2-->T|C-->T|T3-->T|T5-->TX

Hkk; heard from a friend that there may be one major update for all Treo 650s then that's it unless something major happens. From the sounds of that person, they felt that Palm is doing something big (and it was a Palm rep that spilled the beans about the slowing to an end 650 support downloads).

Other comment:
I agree, it would be smart as beans to make available seperate downloadable updates for VM, Blazer, and other apps. Make it into a n update that installs like the keyboard driver and call it a day. This would save support costs and company face in the long term.

I personally just want the tabbed WebBrowser 3 for my Treo. That would be the absoutley best browser, and its more than doable. Why NO DEVELOPER has made a web browser since the Xiino and NWeb folks is beyond me, but that browser is on point as what the Treo needs NOW.

mobileministrymagazine.com
antoinerjwright.com

So is THIS one the "big" final Treo 650 update? Or do you mean there's rumored to be one final BIG update after this one? My $ is on BB connect as nothing can be done about BT 1.2, EVDO or memory management via software.

If so, then that would fit nearly in line w/ my theory about it being the end of the line for highend POS Treos. Get the 650 to the best possible state its feeble hardware it capable of and then let it live out its natural life. By shoring up the 650's speed/voice quality/BT/stability and releasing a cheap "Lowrider" POS treo, it'll sorta artificially keep the 650 looking good in comparison for a while longer.

Pilot 1000-->Pilot 5000-->PalmPilot Pro-->IIIe-->Vx-->m505-->T|T-->T|T2-->T|C-->T|T3-->T|T5-->TX

In talking to my friend last night, he basically said that the 650 will recieve no more patches after this last round. In other words, its either TC-ish and stable enough to keep selling, or that its going to be phased out officially come the Fall release season.

He also in that same statement said that Palm would not do any patches unless something big comes, then he mentions that they say this with a smile. Personal feeling after hearing that is there will be a big update to come that will align the 700p with the 650 (for carrier support purposes). The only thing is that the only real 700p rumor (from Shadowmite state at TC) states that the 700 is only a memory and radio upgrade. That would be silly on Palm's side, but logical because of what we know of how they tweak and tweak. When the 700 was first rumored, I assumed that Palm would at least try one model with Cobalt just to see what would happen. The report earlier this year of a Cobalt phone at the PS DevCon said to me that it is at least possible that its out there. And if I were decision-maker at Palm, with my 75%+ crew of software folks, I'd make Cobalt work as one well planned and hapazardly executed just as a PalmOS is not dead note and would be just enuogh from Palm to keep the WinMob looked at as a side business. Why do 3OSes has been discussed before, its not smart, but if done right, would pan out (in either a buyout or WM take over, lest Access has even better devs).

So yea, thats all so far. Its kinda kool having people in places where they interact with Palm, and I thought just being a web developer and writer was fun :)

mobileministrymagazine.com
antoinerjwright.com

Thanks for your post.

Going off on a tangent, I remember there was announcement sometime last year about the work Palm was doing with RIM. If I recall correctly, the idea was that Palm would release some software, early this year, which would allow Treo 650 users to use the Blackberry 'push' email service.

Have you heard anything more on this?

Patience, Grasshopper. Rome wasn't built in a day - but it was destroyed in one.

TVoR

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

The Palm eCONomy = Communism™

The Great Palm Swindle: http://www.palminfocenter.com/comment_view.asp?ID=7864#108038

NetFrontLinux - the next major cellphone OS?: http://www.palminfocenter.com/comment_view.asp?ID=8060#111823

Back on topic for a sec:
I still wonder about the 700p. If Palm really wanted to show committment to the PalmOS platform, why stick with Garnet, why not just roll all the marbles with Cobalt and call it a day. It might not be the smartest thing to do, but dang sure would raise some eyebrows (and according to some devs, piss folks off more).

mobileministrymagazine.com
antoinerjwright.com

TVOR;
I so would like to know who you are...you have something info wise that you arent saying that I have no idea about, and at the same time know it clearly probably. Hate to sound like a fan, but I would like to speak to ya personally (email) if you have the time.

In 2005 it was finally revealed that TVoR = Carl "Bluetooth" Yankowski. Shocking, isn't it? ;-O

Back on topic for a sec:
I still wonder about the 700p. If Palm really wanted to show committment to the PalmOS platform, why stick with Garnet, why not just roll all the marbles with Cobalt and call it a day. It might not be the smartest thing to do, but dang sure would raise some eyebrows (and according to some devs, piss folks off more).

If you like PalmOS PDAs, I'd suggest you do whatever it takes to find a new European (Bluetooth + WiFi) Sony CLIE TH55. Lock it in a safe. Use your Treo 650 or a TX until it breaks. Then gingerly unwrap the precious TH55 and use it for the next 5 years. Bill Gates has won the war (as usual). I suspect he had saboteurs working on the inside at Palm all along.

Commodore 64
Amiga
Newton
PSION
Palm

As for stock up, no need on my end, my 650 will last a good long while. I have been done with endless installing and trying of new apps for a good long time now and therefore my very stable setup should stay such for as long as I dont try another device, or find this one needing mechanical repair. And to quote Gekko, wont be going back to a two device solution if I can help it. Thanks for the advice though, always a pleasure.

mobileministrymagazine.com
antoinerjwright.com

Based on the quality of the Treo 650 I've seen, I doubt your phone will be functioning without major problems a year from now. Mark my words: your Treo 650 will be broken within a year. The TH55, on the other hand will give you 5 years of flawless, reliable PDA goodness. And it has a big, gorgeous screen, too.

I have been done with endless installing and trying of new apps for a good long time now and therefore my very stable setup should stay such for as long as I dont try another device, or find this one needing mechanical repair.

After 9 years of experimenting with all the latest apps out there, I too have decided to keep my PDAs stable with a tried-and-true set of apps (over 100, though!) I finally broke down and bought 5 or 6 apps through Palminfocenter in December, but I'm done with living as an app beta tester. Now it's all about FUNCTIONALITY and STABILITY. If you haven't downloaded Directory Assistant (by Rick Whitt), I suggest you do so ASAP. DA is probably the most useful freeware app you'll ever put on your Treo. Palm should license it + make it part of the ROM.

http://home.triad.rr.com/rlwhitt/palm/#da

And to quote Gekko, wont be going back to a two device solution if I can help it. Thanks for the advice though, always a pleasure.

As someone who had one of the first Treo 600 and then (in disgust!) went back to the separate (tiny) cellphone + (big screened) PDA route, each has it's advantages. I now use a Samsung i500 (always have PDA data with me, very high quality construction, excellent voice quality and it's the same size as a non-PDA cellphone) always and either a TH55, UX50 or VZ90 at work. The VZ90 is great for watching movies that have been converted or the occasional TV show recorded on a VR100K Memory Stick recorder. The UX50 is still my personal favorite because of its wireless abilities, small size, rugged case + keyboard. Had Sony simply released the OLED-screened version of the UX50, we would finally have had the PERFECT PDA, in my opinion.

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

The Palm eCONomy = Communism™

The Great Palm Swindle: http://www.palminfocenter.com/comment_view.asp?ID=7864#108038

NetFrontLinux - the next major cellphone OS?: http://www.palminfocenter.com/comment_view.asp?ID=8060#111823

100 apps, that is really a whole lot. Either you are looking to replace your laptop in most instances, or just too many programs where one doesnt do plenty/enough well. Tis a shame the PalmOS has become like this, I really wish that some programs would just flat out merge with others and have a ball givng everyone a nice and stable environment. Me, I have about 50-60 apps. I use all of them at least once a day, VersaMail, Facer, SplashMoney, and most of the builtins (not PIMs as I use KeySuite) quite often. Any more than that and its really a matter of games, and the latest Astraware titles have been amazing for my limited time to play.

Bought a 600 in Sept. I had a T5 and T616. I was very impressed. I went soley to using the T5. Kept my ear to the ground for 700p dates, got a refirb 650 from Cingular Christmas week for 150USD. Cannot beat that price, and my service plan didnt have to change. Blessings to me in a sense. The 650 is solid for most, and all but a few issues I have figured out. There are a few (datamanager and PIMsync) that can cause some nasty issues though. I wish Palm would just fix those, but that doesnt seem to be happening. Clie's were nice, but never good enough for me. They had the features, but never the polish that Palm devices had. Simple works for me, and that's why I am confident in the 650.

Thanks for the civil replies, plesant convo for sure.

mobileministrymagazine.com
antoinerjwright.com

I have marked your words, and in exactly two months and 17 days, I'm going to call you on them, Voice. :P

Tim Carroll
Your friendly customer service robot
(and big Treo fan)

http://euro.palm.com/europe/en/support/downloads.html#Treo650

Then I clicked on "Treo 650 Updater (for Unlocked GSM phones)."

IT ONLY HAS 1.13 UPDATER!!!
:-(

Time to recover your head from Planet-Rectum!

Not happy!

Tim Carroll
Your friendly customer service robot
(and big Treo fan)

^^ I take it back - there IS an Australian update. I should probably dig a bit deeper before ranting next time...

Tim Carroll
Your friendly customer service robot
(and big Treo fan)

The HK support website has not yet been updated, however,
http://www.palm.com/hk/ie/support/downloads/treo650updater/unlockedgsm.html

--
With great power comes great responsiblity.

Why exactly do North Americans get this update and not the rest of us?

I'm guessing but maybe it's got something to do with Palm having to make the update compatible with more carriers and languages in Europe than in either North America or Australia.

As for Gekko, seeing how all we Europeans are fervent socialists and communists, why don't you enlighten us - or rub it in our faces with glee - just how the "American Way" gives you update 1.20 whilst thanks to our "ubiquitous" socialism, we in the Union of European Socialist Republics end up with only 1.13?

"It is commonly said, and more particularly by Lord Shaftesbury, that ridicule is the best test of truth".
Lord Chesterfield

I'm guessing Palm has to release their updates in some sequence, and perhaps they simply upload them to their HQ's country first. If this update finally addresses those repeated "out of memory" problems loading pages in Blazer with 4MB of free dbcache, then I'm proud to be an American and have access to the update first!

Wow! That was fast! I am impressed.

Handspring Visor -> m505 -> Zire71 -> Zire72 -> Treo650

What was that you said about socialism's disadvantages Gekko? We can't hear you!
You're being awfully quiet about how God has blessed your America and condemned to damnation the rest of us in Europe and the world - who must be socialists and communists as we're foolish enough not to be Americans!

"It is commonly said, and more particularly by Lord Shaftesbury, that ridicule is the best test of truth".
Lord Chesterfield

He acts like a spoilt brat in need of a good slap.

Anyhow, Europe can't be such a bad place - I've just heard that there's a 7 tonne whale swimming up the River Thames (Gekko - that's a big stretch of water that runs through London - birthplace of modern democracy!). The whale would normally swim in the Atlantic, but reports suggest it has been scared off by the verbal polution being emmitted by our friend Gekko the RedNeck!

InSultiVator

You might want to try the forums on Treocentral. They're much more tech-support friendly, and there are quite a few knowledgeable Treo owners there. Perhaps one of them could help you.

Tim Carroll
Your friendly customer service robot
(and big Treo fan)