The Phone

Palm bills the Treo 750 as a smartphone, and however confusing that label is to consumers, it does point to the most important feature of the unit: the phone.  The Treo 750 is a GSM/EDGE/UMTS compatible handset and offers voice calling, speakerphone, integration with contacts for direct dialing, call logs, and more. 

Using the Treo 750 as a phone is very straightforward.  From any screen in Windows Mobile, you can access dialing mode by pressing the green Talk button on the face of the unit (this sometimes requires two presses, depending on the content of the screen).  This toggles a pop-up menu from which you can redial one of the last several outgoing calls, view the call log or call up the Dial Pad.  Redialing one of the previous nine numbers or contacts you’ve called is as simple as scrolling to that name or number and pressing the Talk button once again. 

If you want to enter a number manually, call up the Dial Pad.  The Dial Pad is a touchscreen interface with ten number keys, 0-9, along with # and * keys.  You can also enter the number or contact you wish to call from the Today Screen.  One of the Today Screen plug-ins provided by Palm is the Speed Dial plug-in, which displays a list of matching contacts or previously dialed numbers if you begin typing that contact or number.  I’ll discuss the Treo 750’s Today Screen plug-ins in more detail in the Software section of the review.   

If you prefer a more hands-free dialing method, the Treo 750 does include a software utility called Voice Command.  This utility is capable of launching applications, but can also be used to dial contacts via voice command.  You must marry the Voice Command utility to a hardware button in order to use it, which is standard requirement for software of this type.  In my experimentation with Voice Command, I was almost always disappointed by its accuracy and performance.  If you’re a user who enjoys the convenience and utility of voice command, I suggest you pick up a third-party application.

The phone portion of the Treo can be customized in any number of ways, including photo dialing, photo Caller ID, voice dialing, etc., and most of these features work well. For my own analysis of the Treo 750’s call quality, check the Subjective Analysis section near the end of the review.

Wireless Data

Like all Windows Mobile PDA Phones, the Treo 750 is designed to handle data as well as voice communication.  The Treo connects to Cingular’s wireless data network using GSM, EDGE or UMTS, depending on the type of network deployed in your area.  You’ll get better connectivity with UMTS than with EDGE, about 300kbps and 100kbps, respectively.  Unfortunately, the Treo 750 does not support the faster HSDPA 3.5G data connectivity offered by Cingular, which is currently available with the Cingular 8525 and Samsung BlackJack.

Besides browsing the Web, you can also configure the Treo for POP and IMAP internet access, and the handset is ready for SMS text messaging right out of the box.  There are also Push E-Mail options including Good Mobile Messaging, Exchange Server, etc.

You can also use the Treo’s data connectivity services to connect a Windows PC to the Internet.  This is done by way of a utility called Modem Link and requires a USB connection between your PC and the Treo.  Simply place the Treo in Modem Mode and your Windows PC will recognize the handset as a modem.  Your connection speed is limited by the type of network available in your area. 

Keep in mind that Cingular, now AT&T, requires that you purchase special data packages when using the Treo’s data features.

Bluetooth

Bluetooth 1.2 is built in, which offers fewer bells and whistles than Bluetooth 2.0, but is acceptable for connecting wireless headsets and Bluetooth peripherals like GPS receivers and full-sized keyboards to the Treo.  I easily connected a Samsung WEP200 Bluetooth headset, a TeleNav GPS receiver and a Think Outside Stowaway keyboard, and each performed well.

In addition to beaming files to other handhelds and PCs via Infrared, you can also send files to nearby Bluethooth-enabled devices, which makes sharing files relatively quick and easy.  This would be a better option for file sharing if the Treo were outfitted with Bluetooth 2.0 +EDR, but Palm didn’t see fit to include this updated technology. 

Bluetooth DUN (Dial-Up Networking) is also available if your Windows PC is  Bluetooth-enabled.  This is handy if you’re always on the go and need the power of a PC to do business over the Internet.  In my testing, this worked quite well.

No Wi-Fi?

Because the Treo 750 lacks high-speed HSDPA network connectivity, Palm’s decision not to include Wi-Fi is nothing short of inexplicable.  You can add 802.11b Wi-Fi to the Treo by way of Spectec’s miniSD Wi-Fi card, but the card protrudes from the miniSD card slot a bit, preventing you from closing the card reader cover.  To add insult to injury, you have to tweak a particular registry key in order for the Wi-Fi card to connect to and utilize Wi-Fi and networks.  

If you need Wi-Fi, the Spectec card is an option, though not a particularly elegant one.  More details on using the Spectec card with the Treo 750...