msmobiles.com pointed a story out on Gizmodo, it seems that user “johnnytk36″ in the TreoCentral forums reported seeing a Treo 670 in a catalog at work. He posted this -

“The company I work for gets a 4th quarter catalogue for our 4th quarter “product show” we have to go to every year to order our stuff for christmas and stuff. In the book under cell phones it has a Sprint Treo 670 listed. It also has a “new” sign showing that it is a new product. BUT it has a picture of the 650.( I guess since they don’t want to show the 670 till the show) It says more details and pricing will be avalible at the show.”

Gizmodo goes on to state -

“If the rumor is true, this means that the first carrier for the Treo 670 will be Sprint, and that it may be launched by end of this year. The rumor-monger doesn’t say anything about it running Windows, but you guys knew that already, right?”

I loved that image from msmobiles.com - reminds me of my X-Files lovin’ days.

msmobiles.com | Another Windows Mobile Treo sighting - Treo 670 coming to Sprint USA soon ?
Gizmodo | Rumor: Treo 670 Sighted in Catalog?
TreoCentral Forums | Treo 670 Sighting

Technorati Tags: smartphone, Sprint, Treo, Windows

Google just released a beta of Google Talk, Google’s new instant messaging service. If you are using anything besides Windows XP/2000, you can’t use Google’s official IM client that supports Voice chat. Fortunately, the service is based on the open-source Jabber/XMPP project - so there are plenty of alternative IM clients that you can use. On my Mac I added the service pretty easily following Google’s directions to both Adium and iChat. I did a search through my address book and added all my @gmail.com contacts to the contact list and fortunately one of my contacts was already playing with it also - Phillip Torrone from MAKE: Blog. So now that I had it set up on my computer, I quickly decided to try to figure out how to get it so I could access Google Talk on my Treo.

I did a search on the treo Addicts Software Store for jabber and came up with Causerie and IM+, unfortunately neither of these worked. I did a little more searching and found Chatopus. Since this program has SSL support, I figured it may work. After a bit of trial and error tinkering, I finally figured out how to get it to work. Here is the settings I used…
Read the rest of this entry »

Sammy from PalmAddict emailed me this morning to inform me that he mentioned treo Addicts on one of his latest 5-min Podcasts. Sammy talks briefly about treo Addicts and the fact that I am an expectant father. Thanks Sammy! I am honored that you mentioned me and my site.

Also in the podcast he talks about Lifedrive support and a survey about how doctor’s response times are quicker with PDAs then pagers.

PalmAddict | Palm Addict’s 5 minutes / Tuesday August 23rd 08:40am

Technorati Tags: baby, podcast, Treo

Palm and Audi have announced that they will offer a new generation of communications solutions designed to improve safety and convenience for drivers: easy and totally integrated hands-free calling inside the car. Using built-in Bluetooth(R) short-range wireless technology and the Palm(R) Treo(TM) 650 smartphone(1), drivers of 2006 Audi A6 and A8 vehicles can make and receive calls(2) totally hands-free using the car’s MMI(TM) (Multi Media Interface) console, voice-recognition interface(3) or steering-wheel controls.

Bluetooth will come standard in all 2006 Audi A8 and A6 vehicles and also in 2006 Audi A4 and S4 sedans and Avants when the vehicles are equipped with the optional phone preparation. Some of the features include the ability to:

– Pick up or ignore incoming calls;
– Dial outgoing calls;
– View active call status, including caller ID;
– View the Treo 650’s call history;
– Dial from Treo 650 favorites, speed dials, or call logs;
– Access Treo 650 voicemail;
– Manage multiple incoming calls; and
– View carrier information, including signal strength and roaming status.

Read more…

Palm Press Room | Palm and Audi Launch Communications Tool for Improved Safety and Convenience on the Road

You may have noticed things have been a little slow around tA. I recently spent a few days in the hospital with my wife. You may remember that we are expecting a little geek in October… well there wound up being a chance they the little tike was going to come a little early.

I took my wife to the hospital last week since she got really really sick from a nasty stomach flu. They found out pretty quickly that she was dehydrated and was having contractions. To make a long story short - we were fortunate that the doctors and nurses were able to nurse her back to health and get the contractions to stop. After a few days of sitting around and sleeping in a hospital recliner, I am happy to be back home.

My Treo was great to have with me - I kept family informed via email, txt messaging and calls. When I was bored I was able to play a few games or toss off a couple emails.

So on the subject of babies, daddies, and Treos - I wanted to point out a cool mobile site for expectant and new dads that I found recently on Treo Today. Its called Brand New Dad [mobile.brandnewdad.com], an online community, resource center and search engine for new and expectant fathers. The mobile site features a month to month set of articles for basics of taking care of a baby, a baby name finder (helpful since the wife and I still haven’t agreed on a name yet), a pregnancy calculator, a glossary and the ability to read recent forum posts. You can visit the full site at www.brandnewdad.com.

So now I have some catching up to do - my day job, treo Addicts and at home. Fun fun fun…

Technorati Tags: mobile web, baby, Treo

Seidio has just released a standalone battery charger that is, well, different looking to say the least. It lays flat, and apparently takes up very little room on a desktop. Your Treo battery lays flush with the charger, so that further minimizes space taking. The charger comes in their “Treo Blue” and “Treo Silver” schemes, and includes a little hole to put a stylus.

The charger comes standard with a USB cable for charging, and a wall outlet and car adapters are sold separately ($9.95USD each). This little “mousey” looking bugger will set you back $21.95, and it can be found at our very own treo Addicts store on or about 8/22/05!

treo Addicts Store | Seidio Battery Charger for Treo 650

Technorati Tags: Seidio, Treo, Battery Charger

Update to my previous Opera Mini post: I was finally able to download Opera Mini to my Treo 650. I’ll skip all the standard install info…just know that you need Java in order for this work. In fact, if you don’t have Java installed, don’t even waste your time or memory installing it. Use those minutes to laugh at my experience with this browser.

When I loaded up Opera Mini (the home page was the Google search engine) and went to the menu to change it the English version, I got my first sign that something was wrong. For some odd reason, I thought I could just use the Treo’s directional arrows to maneuver around…apparently not. This is strictly a stylus-driven browser. Just clicking on the down button makes it jump about two or three links, sometimes more. So, out comes the stylus. I changed it to English and instinctively looked up to type in a web address. No can do. You have to go to the Menu in order to type in the web address. Ok..that’s no problem, that’s typical of cell phone browsers. I type in www.treoaddicts.com and the processing bar at the bottom starts flashing and then it just….quits. No error message, nothing. It just stops processing. I tried it two more times. Then I tried my own site and was able to access it. Aaah…my first positive. It’s actually pretty speedy when it can connect. Keywords being: Can Connect. I tried another site. Once again, it just stops processing. At this point, I decided to take a break from trying to surf. I decided to go Settings and change the browser to “Smooth Font”. It clearly stated that it would “fit more text on the screen, but performance might be negatively impacted”. I thought maybe it would slow it down a little bit, but little did I know I would spend the next five minutes of my life (that I’ll never get back, mind you) trying to get back to Settings to turn off the Smooth Font. Smooth Font must be Norwegian for “blurry, constant flashing to the point where you can’t even click on anything”. I was finally able to take it off Smooth Font and decided that I needed further punishment, so I went to see if Skweezer would make a difference. It got to Skweezer, but treoaddicts was a no go. I tried clicking on some links on the home page and some loaded and some didn’t. At this point, I just gave up…sorta like Opera Mini did when accessing Treo Addicts.

So what’s my opinion of Opera Mini? It’s not ready for the Treo 650. Maybe this is a great browser on a cell phone, but it’s not the browser that many Treo folks wanted to see released from Opera. The fact that you have to use a stylus, the processing bar is distracting and takes up too much screen real estate, there’s no option to make it your default browser and it just doesn’t work sometimes, makes it unusable on the Treo.

You can grab Opera Mini from mytreo.net here:
mytreo.net Downloads | Opera Mini - HiFi 1.0

Technorati Tags: Treo, mobile web, Opera

Alison from Astraware sent in a press release announce a new game from Astraware and Sandlot Games:

Meet Slyder and his Crew in the brand new game from Astraware and Sandlot Games

Astraware and Sandlot Games, the team that brought you Tradewinds, are delighted to introduce you to Super Slyder(TM) for Palm OS(R) and Windows Mobile(TM) devices. With its truly addictive nature and easy-to-play style, Super Slyder(TM) has impressed critics and fans alike, making it the must-have puzzler for the casual game audience.

Guide Slyder, our adorable, spherical hero, through a world of over 200 increasingly difficult mazes, using strategy and foresight. Along the way meet friends and foes, including the sociable Boffo, the angry Unger, the immobile Reginald, and the explosive Sparky, who will try to help or hinder Slyder’s progress. Your powers of logic are the only thing that will help get Slyder to his destination and on to the next level.

“We are very excited to bring Super Slyder(TM) to the handheld market,” said Daniel Bernstein, President and CEO of Sandlot Games. “Partnering with Astraware allows us to introduce the sequel to Slyder, an already well established franchise, to handheld users looking for the most challenging and rewarding game experience available.”

Super Slyder(TM) eases the player into the game with a full tutorial explaining how to play. To advance from level to level, players must guide Slyder through a series of mazes by using the stylus or directional keys. But be careful, once Slyder starts moving he will continue in that direction until he is stopped by an obstacle or the edge of the maze. This colorful, fun puzzle game is easy to start, but so addictive you won’t want to stop playing.

Super Slyder(TM) has already proved to be a big hit with Palm OS(R) and Windows Mobile(TM) for Pocket PC and Smartphone press:

“A cool game that will keep you intrigued. This is the type of game that you just can’t put down!” - Jack Cook, Dave’s Ipaq

“It’s one of those “Oh, I can beat this easily” games which rapidly prove you wrong. This is an exceptional brainteaser which gets better and better as you play it. It’s the ultimate in compulsive gaming - you can pick Super Slyder(TM) up and start playing so easily, yet it seems impossible to put down. Top work Astraware.” - Leigh Geary, Coolsmartphone.com

Super Slyder(TM) supports multiple resolutions and is available for Palm OS(R), Windows Mobile(TM) for Pocket PC and Smartphone devices. This is the first Astraware release with full screen support for Windows Mobile(TM) for Pocket PC “square screen” handhelds and with QGVA screens on Windows Mobile(TM) for Smartphone devices. Get Super Slyder from the Astraware website: http://www.astraware.com/superslyder, priced $19.95.

Thanks Alison!

Technorati Tags: Games, Palm, Palm Software, Treo

Davy sent in these thoughts and pics from a recent vacation he took -

“I’m just back from my holidays in France and thought I’d share some of my Treo holiday experiences, and photos.

Having been a gadget fan and photography enthusiast for longer than I care to remember I have really enjoyed having my Treo 650 with me on holidays this year. It is the perfect Palm for me combining everything I need in one super compact and beautifully designed handset. I put the Treo through the usual paces for daily needs. ie: calendar, looking up numbers and making phone calls, referring to flight details in Agendus, emailing, texting etc.

But I also put it to some new uses (for me anyway) like, looking up Euro exchange rates on the XE website, checking the BBC website for news from home and I even had ‘Treo Alarm’ changed to Beziers (nearest main town) for local weather reports.
These new functions are all much more likely to happen when the comms are part of the handset, this is streets ahead of any Bluetooth mobile phone connection.

As I said I am into photography and dragged along a big photo-rucksack with my Nikon D70 (fantastic camera) and all the gear in it, no joke in the Mediterranean heat I can tell you! I did get some beautiful shots with the Nikon, but was surprised at how handy the Treo was for ‘quick on the draw’ snapshots, very useful for informal photos and for ones I wanted to email - I could not do anything with the shots from the Nikon until I got back home to my Mac. ‘Quick on the draw’ is also particularly apt when you use a Covertec holster for the Treo, I recommend one of these if you like to carry the Treo on your belt.

I posted an article here before the holidays when I bought my ‘Aquapac’ waterproof case or the Treo and I can confirm that this worked a treat, it dutifully kept many unfriendly substances from my Treo, including some windy days at the beach with pervasive sand blowing everywhere. If you’re going into any gadget-hostile places get one of these.

So all in all the Treo proved to be a really good all-rounder to take with me, definitely my favourite Palm device, so far!

So I’m back home now and processing my photos from the Nikon, but here are some of the quick ‘n’ fun shots from my Treo, hope you enjoy them.”

Thanks Davy for your thoughts and these great pictures!

Technorati Tags: mobile web, pictures, Treo

On a trip to L.A. for the past four days, my Treo proved indispensable. My wife and I used it to meet up, to find a tire repair shop and then directions to it after a flat, taking some photos and immediately uploading them to Flickr, and for sending an email or two.