Review: Central

Central is program that features countless Treo specific utilities including alarms, minutes tracker and a unique security feature that deletes all of your information in case of loss or theft.

Review: Central

Overview

There are lots of third-party applications that allow Treo users to specify settings on their beloved device that the internal Palm OS just doesnt have like turning it on and off at certain intervals, "ignore" features for when you just cant be disturbed things like that. "Central" by Bluefish Wireless is a program that lends a bit more functionality to how you handle the many things that the Treo does, with the addition of a "kill pill" that will delete information on the Treo in case of loss or theft.

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But with similar launchers and programs on the market, does Centrals features make others obsolete? You be the judge.

Central was reviewed using a Treo 700p on the Sprint network.

How It Works

There are two categories to Centrals functions: "Call features," and "Alarms." Read on for the distinctions of both.

Call Features

Within its Call Features, Central offers two options for handling calls, SMS messages, and voicemail.

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The first of these features is a "do not disturb" feature. This feature allows the user to set pre-defined times where the phone can ignore all calls, SMS messages, turn all sounds off, and turn off the vibrate feature.

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Eight different user-defined time slots are available to set the phone to go to do not disturb mode. A manual do not disturb button can turn it on and off as needed, as well.

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The second Call Feature option allows the Treo to automatically send all calls to voicemail. This effectively does everything that the "do not disturb" feature does without the ability to customize the settings. The feature simply turns on and off, and gives you the opportunity to set a hard key to do so within the "utilities" option.

"Do not disturb" settings will still apply after the voicemail feature is turned off. When set to this feature, the Treo will not ring or vibrate; however, the caller will still hear the usual number of rings it takes to get to voicemail.

A word of caution for you Ringo Pro users: Central seems to not play nicely with it. When Ringo Pro was enabled, the phone would ring but there would be no response on the screen. When Ringo Pro was disabled, it acted as if no call was coming in.

Alarms

Central has a super "alarms" feature that offers what it claims: alarms. And many of them: Eight different alarms, to be exact, can be set at specific times on one or more specific days. Each alarm can also be named and the alarm sound is user-definable.

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Ultimately, if you have a good calendar program this feature really isnt necessary, and the feature just lends itself to offering the functionality of a glorified alarm clock. But it proffers a highly customizable alarm clock for those who need one especially for heavy travelers.

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Other Features

Central also has a basic "minutes tracker" that also does exactly what it suggests. The user must reset the tracker when the wireless provider resets its minutes according to the bill cycle, as there is no automatic reset option. But it can be helpful when you fear your end-of-the-month calls threaten to land you in the limbo of overage purgatory.

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Micellaneous Options

Central has many other utilities in its utilities section. Among them are:

• A "kill signal," which is where the user may set a password for the kill signal
• An option for wiping the SD card is available as well...which can be as easy as sending an SMS message to the phone with the password in the text
• A programmable on-off option
• The ability to launch favorites from anywhere
• Side buttons that can be extended to be used as "up and down" scrolling buttons
• A quick key for beaming a business card can be set
• The phone can be set to be turned on automatically after a reset
• A "bug me" can be set for missed calls/appointment reminders; and
• The user can set automatic updates for Addit round out the utilities" features

Conclusion

Central is a great program Treo utility, and its features make it almost a must-have. The alarms wont mean much to anyone with a good calendar program that provides the same thing. And having used both, I found that features from both Central and Butler (see Butler review) are must-haves. Many features are shared between the programs yet each program has its nuances, so in my opinion there are reasons for owning each.

Overall, Central is a great addition to the Treo with a nifty security feature in the kill signal. Id advise downloading the trial to see how much you will actually utilize all of its features.

Central retails for $14.95 and is available as a free trial through the Everything Treo Software Store.