Mobile-review on the Treo 680

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So, what are the major differences between the Treo 680 and its predecessor? Here is the list of the most crucial changes:

* Design. Absence of an external antenna, more curvy shapes, portable dimensions, four trims;
* Volume of bundled flash-memory is now twice as big;
* Capacity of the battery has been significantly shrunk (the biggest drawback);
* Slot SD/MMC moved to the right side;
* New phone application;
* Theoretically supports Bluetooth A2DP profile;
* Changes in the software: VersaMail 3.5 (support for MS Exchange), Blazer 4.5 (work faster), built-in PocketTunes (instead of Real Player), client for Google Maps;
* Low starting price.

As a matter of fact, Palm has already succeeded in releasing the most affordable PDA ever, whose price is about 100 USD. But will they make it in time and launch the cheapest communicator (price without a contract)? When looking at current prices for Sony Ericsson M600 communicator, one could really start doubting about that. The official price of an un-contracted Palm Treo 680 is still a matter to be clarified – no doubt, the model will have much success in the US during the before-Christmas boom, but as for other markets, the Treo 680 might just not be able to make it. But before drawing any conclusions, we should better wait for the release of the final version.
Specifications:

* Type: communicator (smartphone, as the company puts it);
* Position in the line-up: above Palm Treo 650;
* Trims: Arctic, Copper, Graphite, Crimson;
* Operating System: Palm OS Garnet 5.4.9;
* CPU: Intel XScale PXA270 312 МГц;
* GSM 850/900/1800/1900, EDGE, GPRS multislot class 10;
* NVFS-memory: 64 Mb;
* Connectivity: SD/MMC-slot with SDIO support, IrDA, Bluetooth 1.2;
* Display: TFT, diagonal 2.44” (44x44 mm), resolution 320x320 pixels, 65 K colors;
* Built-in VGA-camera (digital zoom up to 2x), video recording feature (maximum resolution – 352x288 pixels);
* Battery: removable 1200 mAh Li-Ion. Claimed lifetime:
o 4 hours of talk time;
o 300 hours in standby mode.
* Bundled QWERTY-keyboard (35 keys), 5D-joystick, 9 extra keys, including the side-mounted one, one sliding switch (volume on/off);
* Dimensions: 113x59x21 mm;
* Weight: 158 g.