Treo 680 unreliable operation

[chip7]

I have the 680 with cingular. When the pda works its great. But several times a week it loses connectivity (no service) and displays a string of [FONT='Times New Roman','serif']undecipherable characters. Powering the unit off and back on sometimes corrects the problem but more often than not I have to remove the battery and even then I may have to perform the action two or three times before connectivity is restored. This happens regardless of the location within the city and in other parts of the US. When connectivity is restored its all bars with solid GPRS. I have been experiencing this difficulity for about a year.[/FONT]
[FONT='Times New Roman','serif']Perhaps its time to switch to another pda.[/FONT]
[FONT='Times New Roman','serif']Anyone else having this problem?[/FONT]

[benjie]

Either the device is defective or you are in a very weak signal area.

Ben

[chip7]

Either the device is defective or you are in a very weak signal area.

Ben

I think its defective but was wondering if mine is unique or others have experienced similar problems. Doing a little detective work I find that if I go into an area with poor connectivity and then return to the spot with good connectivity the unit cannot recover on its own and requires some combination of power off and soft reset. The problem occurs even while I remain within a favorable / high connectivity environment. Trying to get customer support / technical assistance is a revoling door experience.
I'll probably dump the unit next month when my one-year committment is up.
Thanks for the feedback.
chip7

[benjie]

Have you taken it to the dealer and asked them to check the device? The local Sprint stores here check 'em for free.

Ben