Treo 600 vs. Treo 650 vs. ??

[salguod]

Well, I broke another sccreen on my Clie TJ27 :mad: and I'm pondering what to do. I think I'd like to upgrade to a Smartphone. I've got Cingular wireless, but just signed a new contract a few months ago, so no upgrade deals. I've got a bunch of Palm software that I'd rather not give up too, so the Treo is my only option, I think.

The Treo 650 is just too much $$. Even unlocked on ebay they're $450. The Treo 600 is going for half that on ebay now for an unlocked.

Here are my questions:

1 - What do I give up on the 600 vs. the 650?
2 - What should I watch for getting an unlocked GSM phone? I have a Samsung x427m with a SIM card now.
3 - What do I need to know about a Smartphone vs. just a PDA?
4 - Any other options? A switch to Windows mobile means giving up my Palm apps and wouldn't save em any money, probably. What about the older Treo's? Any of them any good, assuming I can find one?

[pgenie]

Smartphone = Phone + PDA
Is the Treo 650 better than the 600?
-That depends on what you mean by better. The 650 sports a few design improvements and some options that the 600 doesn't, the most notable of which is Bluetooth support. However, the new Treo has less integrated memory (23MB vs. 32MB). So if you'd like to use your Treo with a wireless headset, the 650 is probably your best bet. Of course, the 650 is going to cost you around $450, while you can score a 600 for less than $200.
Source: zdnet

[salguod]

What about real world experience, since you have both? I've read about complaints of 'buzzing' in the 600.

[pgenie]

Based on reviews found on cnet, Here is the list of the top smartphones:
More Details (http://reviews.cnet.com/4521-6522_7-5021304-4.html?tag=dir.tsp)

[pgenie]

To be frank with you, I will not suggest you to buy a Treo 600...Yep I bought the treo 650 when it came out...
I was not happy with the Res of the 600, buzzing sounds..i have heard complaints but mine works fine..The 650 has Bluetooth and many more....I would advise u to save or add few more $$$ and go for the 650..It will keep you happier for a long time!!!

[alex_mathews]

I think Bluetooth and higher resolution screen are good reasons to go with the 650 over the 600.

[kennyd]

I'm using a 600 and not the 650, but only for one reason. Even the 650 could not completely replace my Zodiac. The 600 only serves as a nicer communications device for me but neither the 650 or the 600 would shelf my Zod. I got the 600 for $180 and serves me a lot better than a Nokia Symbian phone could. I do a lot of document work, project building, CAD rendering, gps navigation, movie watchin'...things that I'm not willing to lose my text entry speed (MessagEase for me) or screen real estate of the zod.

So I would encourage you to decide whether either device could function as the only pda you had. If not then I would go for the 600. If the 650 could take care of all of your device needs then I would say go for the 650.

[Antoine]

I just scored a 600 on Craigslist for less than 200. Its in great condition and besides not having enough RAM, hi res and BT, its quite perfect. I can see why it caught on so fast adn why the 650 is thuoght of even more.

I think that if you can choke for it, get the 650. But if not, and you need a hold over till the next Treo, get teh 600 and get acquainted with the lighter side of mobile computing.

[arizona cactus]

differences:

- dedicated phone on/off
- bluetooth
- depending on your perspective; less overall memory but more stable memory
- newer OS
- better screen (brighter and more vibrant)


"smart phone" is typically used to windows smartphone OS, which is not the same as windows mobile. however the upcoming version of windows mobile adds "soft keys" and other features which close the gap between mobile and smart phone.

in my own opinion, and i own both treo 650 and dell axim x50v, the treo 650 is the better pda/phone combo vs existing pda/phone combos including windows. however, there are several upcoming windows smart phone models that i can see will be very very attractive. even for now, the i-mate jam is pretty nice and pretty small (i simply wanted the keyboard and "one handed operation" of the treo. you may also know that a windows treo is due out early 2006.

if you are looking to buy an unlocked gsm phone, there isn't much to look for, except to make sure (if buying used) that it is in fact unlocked. however, through ebay and other means, you can easily unlock most gsm phones for $50 or less.

[arizona cacus]

http://www.palm.com/us/products/compare/

palm's comparison page

[Jayman]

I suggest you take a trip to a cell phone kiosk and try them both out, I know a lot of people that are very happy with their Treo 600's however, the screen is night and day different.

[hecklerTreo650]

differences:

- dedicated phone on/off
- bluetooth
- depending on your perspective; less overall memory but more stable memory
- newer OS
- better screen (brighter and more vibrant)

All the above are great points and I also believe that the 600 does not have a removeable battery. With this it also does not have non volitile memory- the "more stable memory" listed above- meaning your Treo 600 memory needs power to keep information-- no juice and everything is wiped. An interchangeble/replaceable battery is a must for me as the memory of losing all the info on my PalmV mid-Trip some years ago is still too fresh... :(

Also, with the recent firmware update to the Treo650 (Cingular) we gained a very nice memory increase. I went from 3.5 megs free to about 11.5. And since I have only used 2 more megs. With an SD card, most of the memory comparisons are a wash, IMHO

Go with the 650 if you want to stay with palm and a keyboard- forget the 600. Or look at the Audiovox SMT 5600 ($250- Win Mobile) for a more 'phone-like' smart/pda phone. I use that as well and it's a tough decision which one the SIM card goes into :)

[arizona cactus]

that's right -- i forgot to add that the 600 does not have a removable battery and the 650 does.

by the way, i have a mugen 650 battery that is the same size as original but around 25% more juice.

my own opinion is to go with the 650.

lastly, the connector ports are also different.

[salguod]

OK, somehow my subscription to this thread got botched since my last post. I wondered why no one else had replied. :confused:

Anyway, I got a 600 from ebay for about $225 shipped including a cradle. I appreciate all the comments, but given the price (about double) difference I'd still get the 600.

So far I'm happy, butit's only been 24 hours ....

[palmsolo]

One point I haven't seen mentioned is that the Treo 650 supports EDGE data networks. I was thinking of getting a 600 for cheap, but once I found out T-Mobile had EDGE in my area I went for the 650. Plus, using a Bluetooth headset for my is extremely valuable when driving.