There was a thread on Treo vs P900 and it kinda got hijacked by talk about carriers (important of course). I've had the P800 for about 4 months now and just got the Treo 600, mainly because I truly NEED to use some medical programs only available through Palm. Most have been discussed but not many users have used both apps. Here are some impressions (remember I got the P800 first): [thanks for reading! ]
Design-wise:
- Treo has no jog dial, the SD card sticks out from the top of the unit (not good), and no handstrap (really, NO GOOD!). By contrast, the P800 has the memory stick hidden and protected by the stylus, plus the handstrap. However, the Treo fills more solid and doesn't "feel like a toy" compared to the P800.
- The 5-way navigational button on the Treo is really good once you get used to it. There's also a button for turning off the screen which improves battery life immensely. Additionally, there's a ringer switch at the top of the unit which turnes on vibrate mode and shuts ringtones... no more digging through software.
- Treo doesn't include native graffiti which really, really sucks. The keyboard is very cramped and typing won't last long. However, Jot (an app) takes care of that and enables graffiti on the Treo. That's 2 inputs vs 1.
- The other stuff is more obvious.. the P800 has more features (admitedly, some rather useless for most users) like Bluetooth and voice recording. The screen looks better on the P800.
Layout:
- If you're a former Palm user, the Treo layout is a snap. The P800 layout has a learning curve but is tweakable to the extreme; for instance, there's a menu for storing calling card information, while for the Treo you have to get an app ($$$). Attaching a picture to a contact is easy on the P800 and downright confusing on the Treo (remember I've had the Treo for around a week). Interfaces here are like apple vs oranges.
Battery life/Power Management:
- The P800 lasts more, but depend on usage and power-saving habits of the user. Also, it seems to me the Treo is more efficient in using its resources but again, some apps (like Active Desktop for P800) allow you to shut down programs.
- Of course, the fact that one can add up to 512MB to the Treo helps. A LOT. I think the Memory Stick Duo hasn't reached that level. Sony was innovative in two ways with the design of the phone and with Symbian - adding SD capability from the get go would trash the Treo head first into the dirt! Coulda, shoulda, woulda, but it didn't happen.
Programs:
- The stinker: running Symbian OS limits program availability severely. Professionals who depend on apps for their job (I'm a medical student) are screwed. The best apps available for Symbian are the productivity suits (i.e. Handy Day, Active Desktop) which have nothing to envy from Palm users. Treo beats the P800 soundly in this area.
- Doesn't Mac computers come with an "emulator" (or something, can't remember) which enables some Windows programs, and vice versa? If a developer came up with that, it would be great. Then again it's up to the companies to ensure compatibility if they want their program to be used.
Phone-wise:
- Frankly, it really depends on the network. GSM on some areas just suck, while the older networks are more establish. To some people, no signal means no good. And it should be that way since a PDA/Phone combo with no reception is just another PDA. Both seemed fine to me and I lack the technical expertise to compare the 2 on that area.
User Manual:
- The manual for the Treo seemed way to skinny. It is "user-oriented", divided into sections like "the basics", "after the first two weeks", etc (sorry, can't seem to recall the exact titles). Meanwhile the P800 just buries you in detail.
Conclusion:
- Well really not any, just an opinion. I may end up selling the P800 and using the Treo because of the apps I need. Don't get me wrong, both are truly GREAT phones/pdas in their own right, but when taking everything into account, I guess the Treo beats the P800 - but not by much.
Hi,
I read with interest your comparision.
I was a Palm user and swithed for P800 in August 03.
I am quit happy except the sync with outlook which is slow not stable and not reliable!!!
This irritates me to the point I am looking with envy a the treo 600
I am also irritated because 2 month after my purchase the p900 came out !! That's techno stuff life - allways with the old version !
anyways...
I was wondering if you had those sync problems with your P800 ? Did you sync with outlook at all ?
I could sync the contacts but not the calendar... maybe for some reason Outlook can't recognize categories or something. But at least the calendar entries are easy to replace via Palm Desktop... the contacts are priceless
I currently have a samsung I330 and love the palm os. However, i have been looking at the p800 and p900 with interest because it seems so superior in specs. I use my samsung i330 everyday and use the pda and phone alot. I know nothing of the symbian os and was wondering if it is user friendly and easy to figure out like palm and if it supports graffiti of some sort and if theirs is as easy as graffiti 1 on palm. I was also curious about the web browser and internet capabilities because i use mine for amazon.com and knology websites for ordering books, email, etc. The samsung is awesome, just slow, is the p900 or p800 capable of going to most or any websites and is it faster? Sorry if i asked too many questions! I just have alot of them. LOL..
I suppose the major reason I won't go with Palm OS again is that the Treo 300 is such a pain. I've heard that the 600 fixes many of the problems, but it doesn't fix the inherent flaws in Palm OS that make it unable to do two things at once, unstable and incapable of running services, all things Symbian can do.
Anyone else used a Treo 300 and switched to a P800 or P900? Are they more stable?
I've had both and I can honestly say that Symbian is the most advanced OS. However, the Treo 600 is a huge leap compared to the Treo 300. I'm getting acustomed to my Treo 600, but it is quite stable. If it crashes, it's mostly because of an app that it's in trial mode (guess that's part of the catch for you to buy it!).
The Treo is an e-mail machine, but browsing to the internet is not so enjoyable. The Opera browser for the P800 is GREAT, everyone should have it. It's very stable and fast. Too bad it's not available for Palm... I'm still in the process of trying browsers so watch this space...
Well, I've tried three different browsers under PalmOS and if all three had their strong points combined, they still wouldn't be as good as Opera. For instance, wellsfargo.com works with Opera but none of the available Palm browsers. That's one of the big problems I've got with Palm machines. I was going to buy a T610 and a Zaurus because of this. Also, I'm a Software Engineer, so I'd like to have access to my beloved HP 48 calculator, which is avaiable as an emulator for Symbian but not for low-res Palm.
I've got a Mac, and the Palm doesn't sync so well with the Mac. It syncs very well with Sony Ericsson phones, through bluetooth. And, with bluetooth and T-mobile, I can get unlimited internet on my laptop without cables but switch to broadband on the phone at home, all things that are difficult to do on the Palm.
I guess it does boil down to what one needs to do. Really, if I could find a well-sorted out ZaurusPhone, I'd be delighted (listening, Sharp?), but until then, looks like I'll be hunting up a used P800 to see what it's like...
I'd be very interested in your experiences with the T600, though...
I have been using the P800 for about 6 months, my screen cracked, and the insurance stuffed me with the Treo 600.
Like the previous poster, I have only used the Treo for a few days. I agree with him on several of the points. However for most people, I am assuming availability of medical software won't be the deciding factor. Thus I am providing my opinion hoping that it will be helpful to others in making this most important decision :
- The one hand usability via the jogdial is far superior to the 5-way button on the Treo. With a few clicks and turns you can pretty much do anything on the P800. Especially if you have the Tracker software customized.
-I just can't get past the fact that Palm were stupid enough to build a $ 600 smartphone without native handwriting recognition. That is just downright stupid. How much effort would it have taken on their part? They might have as well offered the phone without the touchscreen and save us some money. Now I have to rely on some enthusiast's third party software that will probably keep crashing my phone. On top of that I have to pay for this most basic feature of any PDA.
- Picture caller ID, alarm clock (which I really very frequently used on my p800), call list, ability call people from missed calls with a few clicks, calling card information, voice command are all things that are a MUST in high end phones. I mean even free phones nowadays have most of these features. With the Treo these feature are either non-existent or very diffult to use. Does it make sense to go out and buy $ 15 - $ 20 apps for an alarm clock on a $ 600 phone? All this software could add up to hundreds. Before I forget, it appears that I have to buy $ 35 software just to navigate the SD card as a drive on my computer (I know i can just use an adapter but why?) With the SE P8-900 the software allows you to navigate the phones both internal and external memory.
-The fact that Palm engineers left space for a BT TR on the chip and Palm offfered it without BT is another incredible decision. Now not only there are no BT cards available for the Palm Os but even if there you will have to spend a 100 bux and will probably have some SD card sticking out in front of your phone. Again my $ 200 t68 had bluetooth so does pretty much every other Nokia and SE worldphone. BT is extremely useful with headsets (I was addicted to mine onthe P 800), is so much faster than IR in synchronizing, can be used as a wireless modem etc...etc... Now even new cars such as the Acura TL have support for bluetooth phones. Again according to my research I have to buy $ 30 software to use the Treo as a modem with my laptop.
- And of course the screen resolution and quality on the Treo is not even comparable to that of the P800 not to even mention the P900 if you can afford it. Obviously the ridiculous keyboard limited the size of the Treo screen. But I just don't see how any average size person type on these minitaure keys. If you are dying for a keyboard you can buy SE's chatboard for $ 10 and attach it to your P800 or P900. Again, if you are dying for a number pad both SE models come with one, but you can take them off if you don't care fore the added thickness.
-Now as you can see I have been quiet disappointed with several things that Palm left out such as bluetooth, handwriting recognition, useful software). BUT I just can't believe that a high end phone such as the Treo is shipped without a cradle. What PDA (other than the $ 49 Zire) come without a cradle. This is absolutely unbelivalbe. Now I know I can go out on Ebay and get one for $ 10 plus shipping but the point is WHY? Couldn't palm just include the damn thing? Sony even includes a beautiful set of stereo headphones which again go for an extra $ 29 if you want to go the Treo way.
Just about the only area where the Treo beats the P800 or P900 is Outlook sychronization. OL sychronization on the P phones is slow. Sony's software doesn't synch recurring appointments. If you a create a contact with a company name such as a restaurant in the P800, it will appear nameless in your Outlook probably because it doesn't have the File As field.
CONCLUSION: If you want a truly well-packaged phone, P800 or P900 is the way to go.
I haven't even taken out the screen protector off my Treo, if anyone is interested it's for sale. Everything other than the charger is still sealed. It's under 1 year warranty. I am going back to SE without a doubt.
My (bad) experiences with the Treo 600 continue. It is an e-mail machine to be sure and it is superior to the P800 on this. The keyboard, while cramped, is very useful and after a while, better than grafitti. BTW, maybe now I understand why Palm didn't include native grafitti on the Treo 600 - the screen is so bad it feels like it's going to break! Obviously not good, but that is still two inputs versus one.
Also, memory managament on the Treo 600 sucks. There is no easy way to transfer files from the onboard memory to the SD card. That's the reason why the Treo 600 reboots during the day. Like the previous poster, some things on the Treo are just plain stupid. Ringtones and pictures MUST be stored in the internal memory to be used for caller ID. This quickly fills up limited memory space. The P800 can store all of it on the Memory Stick with no problems. Third party software must be purchased in order to acomplish this, which again is more $$$ for a very $$$ phone.
Palm Desktop software is really good and use it exclusively, since Outlook sucks.
Again, while the Treo 600 is a really good smartphone, the P800 is superior in many ways except software availability.
Like lonen I got stuck with a Treo 600 when my p800 screen cracked. I was so flustered with the trea that I sent the P800 in and got it repaired. (It was done as warranty work) I gave the Treo to the weef, who is a palm os weenette. she seems pleased with the thing. I found it cumbersome, with the system not being very flexible.
Hello everybody,
I am using a Sony Ericsson P800 for two years now. Basically I encountered two problems. One is sychronization of calender that two above users faced. The second being the voice call. It happened quite often when the voice call is connected, the other party can hear me 3-5 seconds earlier than I can hear the other party. I don't know if there are any users facing this problem, but my colleague in our Beijing office has this same problem.
I 've been thinking to upgrade to a P900 and now found out P910 is now available in my market. ( I live in Hong Kong). But I don't know whether upgrading to a P910 or P900 will solve my two problems. Your above discussions have discouraged me from looking into Treo 600. Furthermore, the keyboard is so small that I don't know how to make call with one hand.
Hope to hear your views.
YUSIM
My cell contract recently expired and I was able to sell my P800 and buy a new phone. Without doing a lot of research I found the Treo 600 to be the most featured-filled phone available at the time, so I picked that one.
After using the SE P800 for over two years, and with a little over four months using the TREO 600 (having never used Palm OS before) my conclusions are: SE gives you more bang for your buck.
When I originally bought my SE P800 it came with everything I needed, charger, stereo headphones / hands free, a cool cradle, extra stylus, memory stick, usb cables, even a cd with several cool applications and games. During the two years that I used P800 I found many cool applications for the phone, but I must say that the phone was pretty packed right out of the box. Excellent browser, a good e-mail client and I didn't have any trouble synchronizing with Outlook (e-mails with attachments and everything).
From my TREO, pretty much the only thing I like about it so far is that the SMS messages are displayed as a chat session, phone reception is a little better than in the P800 and finally that I can reuse my digital camera's SD cards storing many Mp3 files (for which I then had to purchase pTunes to play).
My conclusions are that since both phones are about the same price, and P800 came out like three years earlier than the TREO 600, it is by far a superior device, and it also has all the applications you may need. In order to get my Treo to the same level that my P800 had when I took it out of the box, I have to spend like 150 to 200 dollars in purchasing applications such as Versamail (synchronize outlook email folders), Dataviz (view MS Office docs), pTunes (play Mp3 files), and who knows what other software for features I am yet to be disappointed to see that are not "out of the box" available on my Treo 600.
Those thinking about migrating from P800 to Treo600: don't do it. Get a P910 instead.
Treo 600 vs P800 (part deux)
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Running Screaming From Treo 300
Sad migration to TREO600
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