I have been using a PPC for the last 3 years. I have had the Apache and Titan. My Titan (MOGUL) started acting up a few months ago (my 4th HTC phone with issues) and I was offered the Treo 800w as a replacement from Asurion. I've had it for a few days now and have installed:
- SPB Phone Suite
- Resco Explorer with registry plug in.
- MS Live Search
- Opera Mobile 9.5 beta
- Oxios Memory
- SOTI Pocket Controller
- Sprint Picture Mail
- Pocket Express
- Google Maps
I've had no issue with running these programs and I've actually used Active Sync over Bluetooth while tethering and running SOTI Pocket Controller at the same time.
Bottom line is that I love this phone! I will probably never go back to another HTC phone. I was a little skeptical regarding the smaller keyboard but as it turns out it is much more convenient and functional for me personally, one handed operation is easy. I am one of those strange people that doesn't like fingerprints all over my screen so it works out well for me. Here is a summary of what I've experienced so far:
Pros:
- Great reception, better than my MOGUL had.
- Responsive and runs applications much faster.
- The form factor is much more pragmatic.
- The earpiece is loud and easy to hear (louder than MOGUL).
- Doesn't freeze up or studder when typing like the MOGUL did.
- It just plain works! It may not be as "fancy" as the MOGUL but
it is just a much more functional phone in my opinion.
- Many of the Palm tweaks to the interface make it easier to use.
Cons:
- The stylus is a complete joke. I think it must have seriously been
some frustrated engineer's attempt at humor. It is a piece of flimsy
plastic and isn't really worth using. Given that the phone retails for
around $600 it's kinda sad. Anyhow, not really a big deal, I ordered
a metal (with pen) aftermarket stylus for $9.
- It could use some more side buttons to be assigned to apps. It has
fewer button that the MOGUL. On the positive note it does integrate
combination buttons in the OS setup so apps can still be accessed. It
will involve a little bit of a learning curve though.
- And lastly no soft reset button. The only way I've found (so far) to
reboot the phone is to remove and reinsert the battery. Again I haven't
had to do it very much because the phone is more reliable than my MOGUL
was (I had to soft reset daily at least).
Overall I have to say that I'm very happy and wish that I could have acquired a Treo years ago, it would have saved lot's of cursing and constant urges to throw my PPC out the window of a moving car. So far so good, I'll give it a month or so to see if it craps out. Of course that's what Asurion is for
.
-P