Palm Treo Pro Pro Reviews

The Treo Pro is a plain, businesslike smartphone with a full QWERTY keyboard, rounded edges and a glossy black case.

A good effort by Palm, but it's a long way behind the best both ergonomically and functionally.

I was counted among the surprised when I heard that Palm was releasing a new Windows Mobile device in the US market, dubbed the Treo Pro, shortly after their exciting announcement of the new Palm Pre running webOS. Why would the world need another Windows Mobile device when something so wonderful, such as the Pre, was just a few short months away? After taking some time with this sturdy workhorse of a phone, I have some ideas why, but first things first.

The Gadget: The Treo Pro is a 3G-equipped, Windows Mobile 6.1-running, touchscreen smartphone that's just a sliver bigger than the iPhone 3G. Completely redesigned, it's Palm's best looking phone in years.

So we return to the Palm Treo Pro, a $549 unlocked Windows Mobile Treo aimed squarely at the business set. It's been about ...

Having enjoyed success with its sporty Centro models, Palm is taking some of the lessons it learned there back to its Treo business line: The Palm Treo Pro integrates certain Centro design elements with the Windows Mobile 6.1 operating system and with the more robust features of contemporary BlackBerrys to produce a sleek smart phone built with the image-conscious corporate user in mind.

The Palm Treo Pro is the latest Treo smartphone, featuring the familiar square touchscreen display and full QWERTY keyboard below. The Treo Pro comes in a much more slim and stylish exterior, as well as a flush display and 2 megapixel camera around back. Is this new, stylish Treo up to par with rest of the gang, or does it strike out?

As smartphones begin to penetrate the consumer market Palm, the manufacturer who brought them to the mainstream, has been fighting to stay relevant. Bigger names like RIM, HTC and more recently Apple have dominated the market. The tried and true Treo form factor that made Palm so successful also contributed to their downfall, with sleeker and better designs passing it over. About this time last year Palm made their first major design shift with the Centro, a move that netted them seven figure sales numbers and a reemergence on the scene. Now they’re at it again with the Treo Pro, and though it carries the Treo name it thankfully has little in common with Treos of yesterday. The notoriously portly line has been slimmed down and sleeked up to iPhone levels, and...

Recently, Sprint confirmed the rumors and announced that it will add the Palm Treo Pro to its smartphone lineup starting March 15. Unfortunately, the news received lukewarm response given that most people's attention is focused on another Palm smartphone coming to the carrier (that'd be the Palm Pre, of course). However, the Treo Pro shouldn't be dismissed so quickly.

Palm's upgrade to the 800W adds a few features, but still suffers at the hands of Windows Mobile.

The Treo Pro is the first of what is clearly a new design direction for Palm -- a shiny, black mutation of the popular Centro,