GearBits

I hear unlocking a treo to use a different sim can cost up to $150.

you heard wrong-

even though i dumped my old treo for a sonyericsson p900, which im much happier with, i purchased my treo direct from cingular, and popped my tmobile sim into it and used it with no problems...

most of them are not carrier locked at all, this was true at least with the earlier production runs...

i was extremely disapointed with the almost stone age screen and lack of bluetooth, and also the terrible production quality of my unit, which i had to exchange twice to get one with no defects.

i just ran into someone the other day whose headphone jack died- buyer beware, handspring is not synonomous with build control and quality- the first generation was plagued with problems, and as far as i can tell solectron is still building them (in mexico i think) and they still seem prone to defects and poor QA...

just my two cents. i'll look at the 610 when they come out, only if they've got a higher res screen and bluetooth...even then, i'm probably leaning towards the next gen MS/motorola phones, either MPX220 or 300- just because the outlook integration is just unstoppable with smartphone OS, and i'm sick of third party conduits and crappy synchronization.

It's kind of sad that one's choice of software (Outlook) determines the entire range of hardware you're able to consider. I'm in the same boat, however, to some degree -- I really depend on a piece of PalmOS-only PIM software, so a Moto Smartphone is out of the question.

That "stone-age screen" on the Treo 600 is both very battery-friendly and touch-sensitive (which the Smartphones are not). I'll gladly take those qualities in my daily "have to have" device over the alternatives.

But, I truly pity anyone forced to use Outlook...ne'er before on this Earth has such a vile and generally yucky piece of software been so widely adopted (well, maybe only second to Internet Explorer). Just my opinions, o' course.

well, i agree with you on outlooks usability, i'm very interested in the open source "chandler product under development by the OSF- you should check it out...

however- i should point out that the screen you lovingly refer to is actually the lowest resolution on any smartphone today, and its CSTN, not even active matrix, which means its probably the lowest tech screen in production, surpassed even by the 100$ nintendo gameboy...i've heard all of the arguments about how it conserves batterly life- thats just ed and the boys at handspring rationalizing their profit margin...my p900 and just about every other device i've had, (including the new color blackberry, my z600, my old p800...) all have better battery life and much higher resolution screens. and the p900 is of course a touch screen, and roughly twice the resolution...with the opera browser, you can have a full web surfing experience.

the only thing i liked about the treo was the keyboard, but ultimately the screen and lack of bluetooth killed it for me. theres going to be a lot of pissed off treo owners out there when they release the 610, i know i would be...

I've heard that in Europe you can buy prepaid minutes for your GSM phone and they'll just give you a sim card for use while you are in that area. Supposedly you can get a lot better rates than using your US carrier. See if you can do it in Mexico.

My wife's in Europe right now using a prepaid sim... good deal as long as you have an unlocked phone.

I doubt very much that the Treo 610 will have a high-res screen. I've had long talks with the folks at Handspring in charge of designing their products, and battery life is much more of a concern than screen resolution.

I moved from a Tungsten C (320x320 resolution) to a Treo 600 (160x160 resolution) as my primary daily device. I thought I'd miss the extra screen res. So far, only rarely do I even notice the lower res. All of the apps I rely on every day are so well designed that the lost resolution isn't a factor. Resolution is one thing, usability is quite another.

well, i'm glad you enjoy it, and that the device has effectively saved handspring, because its always good to have more players in the market.

tell you what- i'll bet you a dollar they bump the res on the 610, i know a lot of people claim they don't mind, but it's the number one feature requested for a newer model.

i found that web browsing just was near impossible with that screen...

one last point i forgot to mention- as i pointed out in my prevous post, theres a ton of devices with higher resoltion screens and superior battery life, and also- if it was such a concern- why does handspring leave the screen on full blast during calls? not terribly efficient.