Assistance Requested: Treo 700P vs. Q - Treo Forums

David Price · 04-18-2007, 02:24 PM

Hello all. My name is David Price and I am in the market or a SmartPhone. I decided to see if there was an 'everythingTREO' site to complement the 'everytyhingQ' site I posted the following on, hoping I can get some feedback from either forum. Just reading some of the forum posts, there's a lot of folks that know their stuff here.

The main reason I'm bothering you (and apologies if this in in the wrong place) is that I'm torn between the Palm Treo 700P and the Motorola Q. I know, right there we're at apples and oranges since they are not running the same OS, but there's a reason behind my madness.

I am lifelong Palm OS user. From the first Pilot 1000 up to my current Palm T|X (which I love), I've never had a problem with any Palm device. So I can't see why I would buy Palm hardware running anything other than the Palm operating system.

That said, I was at Verizon yesterday and the salesman was showing me the Q (his own, not the one on display) and he does like it. So now there are some things I'm torn on:

I'm running a MacBook at home so I know I'll need third-party software to sync the Q. I do have Entourage and I know it works with my T|X. Are there any problems with the Treo and Mac?
The Q is slightly cheaper, but I'm told that I'll need a miniSD card and that the battery drains quickly. Battery life has never been an issue with my Palm PDAs. But I suppose I'll continue to use screen guards (I'm not a big fan of scratched screens).
The overall feeling of redundancy in having two Palm devices.
Entourage is currently retrieving three email accounts (.mac, home ISP, and the address for my podcast) and I'd like the Treo to do the same.

I suppose when and if I leave the T|X at home, I would still have a Palm device that will be my address and date book as well as my phone with a host of other bells and whistles.

I already have a lot of software for my Palm and it's nice knowing that I wouldn't have to buy anything for a new device.

Again, I know it's not fair to compare the two. I suppose I'm just looking to see if anyone was in the same boat, or help lean me to one over the other. I also know I'm forgetting some things for that list above. Hopefully they'll come to me soon. I plan on making my purchase Saturday.

Thanks in advance.

benjie · 04-18-2007, 05:16 PM

The devices are really not in the same league, though one with a more liberal view point may argue. They are different in terms of operating systems, touch screen, number of applications and over all abilities. If you have never used a device that does what the Palm does, then yes another device with lesser capability is fine. The Treo 700p suffers a few problems and so does the Q. Has your salesman ever used a touch screen PDA? Probably not. Does your salesman make heavy use of the device in a business environment? Probably not. Does your salesman need an email application with the capabilities of ChatterEmail? The ability to have IMAP PUSH goes without saying as a huge plus in the business world. Does your salesman need to edit documents? Probably not.

I have a 650 and 700p that are both rock stable. The wife uses the 650 and I the 700p. The company I work for makes very heavy usage of email and Excel. It is not at all unusual to receive an email with an Excel attachment and react accordingly without having to hit a desk top computer. From the field I can read the email, open the attachment, due the work required and email it right back - something you cannot do on all devices that people lust over. I can do a price survey and have it to the boss in Word or Excel format before my Blackberry Pearl equipped co-worker. In fact, I get exactly the same email messages before she does. As I am typing this, an email was received/announced by ChatterEmail four seconds before it hit the lap top. This happens as often as not. I keep track of the company's fleet vehicle maintenance work, schedule maintenance appointments, special assignments, et cetera using a variety of applications such as HanDBase, DateBook 6, 2Day, et cetera.

Have I looked elsewhere? Yes; however, no other device offers what the Treo does, especially the Palm OS series. The WM series are great devices, but with the appropriate applications and a bit of time spent setting it up, the 700p is a device that holds its own against any other device.

Ben

photojojo · 04-22-2007, 09:09 AM

I bought a Treo, got confused and traded it for a Q, then slapped myself the next day and went back for the Treo. I've had the Treo for a month now and am VERY happy.

ronstoppable · 04-23-2007, 09:37 AM

I got a Q the day they were released from VZW. Happy with it until I played around on my friends 650p, like benjie said.

Bought the 700p and the Q is now collecting dust.

Hollywood · 04-23-2007, 04:43 PM

Used a Sony Clié (Palm OS PDA) for years until it recently began to fail. Saw the 700p and thought, "Dang, the best of both worlds"!Yes, I've had some minor setbacks, but at the end of the day, there's NOTHING out there I'd trade my Tréo for at the moment. (And yes, having the Palm OS is wonderful)."Hollywood"

David Price · 04-25-2007, 02:01 PM

Thank you all for taking the time to post your comments. It's appreciated.

The more I thought about it, the more it made sense to stick with what I know. My programs work with it, I love the OS, and now I don't need to take my phone, PDA, iPod, and lord only knows what else just to run some errands.

I'm very happy with the decision. Now I just have to decide if I want to stick with Verizon's Wireless Sync (doubt it), VersaMail (most likely), or spend some money on something like ChatterEmail...

Again, thanks.

stevetaz · 04-26-2007, 08:16 AM

Hi David:

Glad you seem so happy with the Treo choice. I just wanted to mention one thing you should be very cautious of. Since you are a long-time Palm user, be very careful of installing any applications not specifically written for the Treo Palm OS. Older software not for the newer platform can wreak havoc and cause all kinds of problems like freezing, resets, etc.

Enjoy!

SteveTaz

Quote:

Originally Posted by David Price

Thank you all for taking the time to post your comments. It's appreciated.

The more I thought about it, the more it made sense to stick with what I know. My programs work with it, I love the OS, and now I don't need to take my phone, PDA, iPod, and lord only knows what else just to run some errands.

I'm very happy with the decision. Now I just have to decide if I want to stick with Verizon's Wireless Sync (doubt it), VersaMail (most likely), or spend some money on something like ChatterEmail...

Again, thanks.

Hollywood · 04-26-2007, 08:38 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by stevetaz

Hi David:

Glad you seem so happy with the Treo choice. I just wanted to mention one thing you should be very cautious of. Since you are a long-time Palm user, be very careful of installing any applications not specifically written for the Treo Palm OS. Older software not for the newer platform can wreak havoc and cause all kinds of problems like freezing, resets, etc.

Enjoy!

SteveTaz

Ditto! I originally installed the "new" 700p software over my old Sony Clié (Palm) software, in order to Import my Contacts/Schedule etc., and experienced many of the problems described above.With this (my fourth) 700p, I exported & saved everthing I wanted to keep, & then did a "Clean" install of the 700p/Palm Desktop Software, & then Imported the Contacts/Schedule etc.So far, this device has been a lot more stable than the three previous Treo's. I think this "Clean Install" of the software has a lot to do with it.Good Luck!"Hollywood"

David Price · 04-26-2007, 12:44 PM

Hollywood and stevetaz: thanks for that.

I'm thinking of doing a complete reset on the device because it did import a lot of extras from my TX during the first sync. I know I don't need the files related to Graffiti, for example. Problem is, there are a lot of files with names that that don't make a whole'lotta sense so I'm not sure what's necessary for the Treo and what I can trash. Most of the device memory has been eaten up, so I really want to reclaim that space. Time to move a the games to the SD card. And I really want to lose that Quick Tour application. Time to seek out some backup/restore apps. As well as a luncher that I like.

I think that's a lot of the fun I have with my Palm handhelds. Looking for software.

stevetaz · 04-26-2007, 05:38 PM

David:

Sounds like a good plan to start over. One additional thing I should have mentioned just to be sure you know is that my caution also applies to using older versions of the Palm Desktop. Don't do it. Hollywood kind of mentioned it when he said he did a clean install of the 700 Desktop, but I want to be sure I stressed it.

After you hard reset and before you sync don't forget to rename your back-up folder so you don't restore what you just deleted.

Happy exploring!

SteveTaz