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- 09-10-2003, 09:55 AM #1Jim HaselmaierGuest
I'm an AT&T customer considering moving to Sprint. My primary objective is
to get a combined phone/data service and device so I can keep in touch with
e-mail while on the road. A few questions:
* What are peoples' opinions of Sprint overall?
* Treo 300 Users: How well do you like the unit? Overall I like it, but
it looks big and clunky and I'm concerned it might not be a good long term
solution - mostly from size and weight perspective.
* Treo 600: Anyone heard rumors on pricing for this model? Strong
opinions on going with proven device (300) or waiting for the 600?
Thanks.
Jim H.
[email protected]
› See More: Sprint, Treo Opinions?
- 09-10-2003, 09:56 AM #2JustinGuest
Re: Sprint, Treo Opinions?
"Jim Haselmaier" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:4PH7b.406147$YN5.274158@sccrnsc01...
> I'm an AT&T customer considering moving to Sprint. My primary objective
is
> to get a combined phone/data service and device so I can keep in touch
with
> e-mail while on the road. A few questions:
> * What are peoples' opinions of Sprint overall?
> * Treo 300 Users: How well do you like the unit? Overall I like it, but
> it looks big and clunky and I'm concerned it might not be a good long term
> solution - mostly from size and weight perspective.
> * Treo 600: Anyone heard rumors on pricing for this model? Strong
> opinions on going with proven device (300) or waiting for the 600?
>
> Thanks.
>
> Jim H.
> [email protected]
Well over 90% of Sprint customers are very satisfied, until they talk to
customer service.
- 09-10-2003, 10:55 AM #3P. RealityGuest
Re: Sprint, Treo Opinions?
In article <4PH7b.406147$YN5.274158@sccrnsc01>,
"Jim Haselmaier" <[email protected]> wrote:
> I'm an AT&T customer considering moving to Sprint. My primary objective is
> to get a combined phone/data service and device so I can keep in touch with
> e-mail while on the road. A few questions:
> * What are peoples' opinions of Sprint overall?
> * Treo 300 Users: How well do you like the unit? Overall I like it, but
> it looks big and clunky and I'm concerned it might not be a good long term
> solution - mostly from size and weight perspective.
> * Treo 600: Anyone heard rumors on pricing for this model? Strong
> opinions on going with proven device (300) or waiting for the 600?
>
> Thanks.
>
> Jim H.
> [email protected]
I had a Treo 300 when they first came out, and liked it a lot as a Palm
device, but as a device for the Sprint Network, it was lacking. Like all
such multifunction devices, it has a short battery life, and unlike the
Samsung I300,330 or 500, it has an internal battery that can't be
swapped out. I also had a problem that if it went off the Sprint Network,
I had to give it a reboot to get it to find the Sprint Network again.
There's been one firmware update since I had mine, but Sprint or
handspring don't say what it fixed.
Spint's new Vision Service is a good deal for web access on the road;
and combo pDA/phones have large enough screens to use the web, as
opposed to phones which cause too much squinting for some folks.
A quick and short description of Sprint : Good Network, nice variety of
phones, pray you don't have to interact with customer service.
I currently have and like my Samsung I330, which occasionally good deals
can be found at independant dealers closing it out to carry the I500.
The Treo 300 is about to be discontinued, and if bought through the
business side of Sprint or an independant dealer, rather than consumer
side of Sprint, with credits and rebates, it'll end up costing you only
$99.
- 09-10-2003, 11:28 AM #4letsgoflyers81Guest
Re: Sprint, Treo Opinions?
Sprint overall has very good service, but that depends on your area. As
with any carrier, they're better in some areas than others. Talk to
people in your area and try to use someone's phone to see how the
service is. Their prices for what they offer really can't be beaten.
The CS is awful but I think it's worth dealing with it for the
service.
I've had my Treo 300 for about 3 months and I love it. I'll never go
back to a normal cell phone again. I've come to rely on the Palm
functionality and I use them every day. The Palm is fully featured.
You can view most regular websites with javascript supported HTML
browsers. There are several good POP3 e-mail clients as well.
Speaking of e-mail, the QWERTY keyboard is great. The integration of
the phone and PDA is very tight, better than the i330. It's not
perfect and can be a bit cumbersome at times, but I think it's far
better than anything out there other than perhaps the i500.
My biggest gripe about the Treo 300 (and 600) is the non-removable
battery. It probably won't be much of an issue with the Treo 600
though since it will have a HUGE 1800 mah battery. The Treo 300 is a
little awkward to talk on at first because of the shape and size but I
got used to it quickly. The 600 will be much more "phone shaped" so
that shouldn't be an issue.
The Treo 600 should be somewhere around $500 when it's released, not
including carrier subsidies and incentives. You can get a Treo 300 now
for $99 if you activate a new line of service on Sprint and sign a 2
year contract. Handspring has talked about a "trade-up" program where
current Treo owners can get a discount on the 600. It's possible that
between that and selling your 300 on Ebay, you could make that money
back and get a 600 when it comes out and not be on the whole from
buying the 300.
--
Posted at SprintUsers.com - Your place for everything Sprint PCS
Free wireless access @ www.SprintUsers.com/wap
- 09-10-2003, 05:46 PM #5Guest
Re: Sprint, Treo Opinions?
On Wed, 10 Sep 2003 15:55:32 GMT, "Jim Haselmaier"
<[email protected]> wrote:
>I'm an AT&T customer considering moving to Sprint. My primary objective is
>to get a combined phone/data service and device so I can keep in touch with
>e-mail while on the road. A few questions:
>* What are peoples' opinions of Sprint overall?
Claire will be first up against the wall when the Revolution comes.
>* Treo 300 Users: How well do you like the unit?
<snip>
I've used a 180 while travelling out of the country, and utterly love it. I
got the external AA recharger to recharge it in the field, which was very
practical.
I use an employer-provided Samsung SPH-i300 stateside, and love the mobile
e-mail ability. Having 2.5G and 16MB of RAM would be even better.
--
Nobody but a fool goes into a federal counterrorism operation without duct tape - Richard Preston, THE COBRA EVENT.
- 09-10-2003, 06:33 PM #6DavidGuest
Re: Sprint, Treo Opinions?
Jim - here's my two cents, hopefully its useful to you. I was a former long
term AT&T user who finally gave up on AT&T. I liked their customer service
but could no longer tolerate their dropouts and poor indoor service in the
areas which I frequent.
I am a physician with a busy practice and an admitted "gadget freak". I've
used PDA type devices since before the Casio BOSS, and have migrated through
a sharp wizard, zaurus, apple newton, palm and eventually ended up with a
Sony Clie. I've actively used cellular phones since approx 1992. I have
found the combination of a PDA and Cellular phone to be invaluable in
managing a busy schedule and personal life. For years, I have gone nowhere
without these two items.
Sorry for the long intro, but the point being that I've had my share of
experience with a variety of these devices.
I recently switched to Sprint as my carrier and I couldn't be happier.
Admittedly, I stay in metropolitan areas and I can talk without dropouts from
my home, through my neighborhood, down the freeway and into my office without
ever having a dropped call. I travel from several different hospitals with
the same experience. Much different than my experience with AT&T (either
digital or GSM)
What really has been icing on the cake for me was the purchase of the Samsung
i500. I've used it for (i think) about a month now and love it. According
to the phone I've logged 24hrs talking on it so far. I would not even
consider the treo 300. Its out of its league now. The only question is i500
vs treo 600.
Pro's to the samsung: size: its tiny! (hold it up to the similar Kyocera
product and you'll be amazed). I carry it everywhere and can comfortably
keep it in a shirt or pants pocket. It does everything (for me) that I used
my Clie for - scheduling, phone number, memo's, MS Word documents, drug
handbooks, medical references, medical calculators, games etc, while allowing
me to carry one small device, not two. Its integration with the palm system
is excellent and even lets me use my palm data (phone book) in new ways. I
love the clamshell design, and I really like having a graffiti space like on
my Clie or palm. The battery life is good enough to last me a full day of
heavy use and comes with a free backup battery. The "Vision" service works
well and lets me browse lots of websites. Email works well too, including
lotus notes integration if you want.
Cons: very pricey for what you get. Uses an older palm OS (4.1), and
doesn't have removeable memory (which I never used on my Clie anyway). No
speaker phone.
Samsung vs Treo 600: The treo has some improvements over my samsung, none of
which will improve my experience. 1. larger battery - I've never used up
the normal Samsung battery (1400ma, I think). 2. External memory card -
which I never used on my clie. 3. MP3 player - just wastes your battery and
I have an iPod anyway 4. digital camera - how many people really want a low
res digital camera on their phone? Cute, but for me, not too useful. 5.
Thumboard. This is a big difference over the Samsung and the reason I did
not wait for the Treo 600 to come out. I'm used to entering data with a
stylus and have never liked thumboards. (I had one for my clie). 6.
Speaker phone - Ok, I wish I had this.
I've seen projections for the treo 600 to be approx $500. For the money, the
treo is probably a better buy. For me the Samsung product provided all the
phone and pda functionality I need and use in a beautiful, small, solidly
constructed phone. And, it was availible now! (instant gratification?) The
treo has a few more bells and whistles, none of which matter to me.
david
On Wed, 10 Sep 2003 8:55:32 -0700, Jim Haselmaier wrote
(in message <4PH7b.406147$YN5.274158@sccrnsc01>):
> I'm an AT&T customer considering moving to Sprint. My primary objective is
> to get a combined phone/data service and device so I can keep in touch with
> e-mail while on the road. A few questions:
> * What are peoples' opinions of Sprint overall?
> * Treo 300 Users: How well do you like the unit? Overall I like it, but
> it looks big and clunky and I'm concerned it might not be a good long term
> solution - mostly from size and weight perspective.
> * Treo 600: Anyone heard rumors on pricing for this model? Strong
> opinions on going with proven device (300) or waiting for the 600?
>
> Thanks.
>
> Jim H.
> [email protected]
>
>
- 09-10-2003, 07:08 PM #7Lawrence GlasserGuest
Re: Sprint, Treo Opinions?
David wrote:
>
> Jim - here's my two cents, hopefully its useful to you. I was a former long
> term AT&T user who finally gave up on AT&T. I liked their customer service
> but could no longer tolerate their dropouts and poor indoor service in the
> areas which I frequent.
>
> <snip>
Nice review... Thanks for the info!
Larry
- 09-13-2003, 11:15 AM #8Robert OliverGuest
Re: Sprint, Treo Opinions?
Great summation of the SPH-i500!
I will say that I would prefer the thumboard over the stylus -- but I
am *not* willing to sacrifice the SPH-i500 small size. The Treo600,
while a tad smaller than the Treo 300, it's still (as you noted) big
compared to the i500, and the keyboard contributes to that.
In addition, you forgot some key differences between the soon-to-be
released Treo 600 and the already shipping Samsung SPH-i500:
Treo 600: available in GSM for those world travellers (but of course,
provides less coverage in the US). Also, since Sprint (arguably) has
the best (and rather fairly priced) high-speed data network (Vision)
in the US, you don't get that if you go with a GSM flavor Treo.
Samsung SPH-i500: ***Comes with analog support*** which the Treo does
not have. Since analog roaming can be expensive (unless you have one
of Sprint's plans which includes 50% roaming time), many users will
not care about this. But consider the fact that you may really want
analog for 911 emergency calls. Consumer reports also indicated this
is a serious consideration (don't have a link for the article; sorry).
- 09-15-2003, 09:30 AM #9Isaiah BeardGuest
Re: Sprint, Treo Opinions?
Jim Haselmaier wrote:
> I'm an AT&T customer considering moving to Sprint. My primary objective is
> to get a combined phone/data service and device so I can keep in touch with
> e-mail while on the road. A few questions:
> * What are peoples' opinions of Sprint overall?
Opinions are varied, but I've found them to be a good value. YOur best
bet, really, is to try them for the 14 day period, use the heck out fo
the phone in the places you lan on using it, and see if it works out for
you. If not, take the phone back, cancel and be done with it.
> * Treo 300 Users: How well do you like the unit? Overall I like it, but
> it looks big and clunky and I'm concerned it might not be a good long term
> solution - mostly from size and weight perspective.
No, you would want to wait for the Treo 600 if you really wanted to go
that route. I had the Treo 300 for a while and found the screen to be
very dim, and reception was poor as well (and being single band didn't
earn it any points either). Combine that with an old operating system,
battery that doesn't last very long, and no expansion and you've got a dud.
> * Treo 600: Anyone heard rumors on pricing for this model? Strong
> opinions on going with proven device (300) or waiting for the 600?
I'd honestly wait to evuluate the 600. It promises a LOT more
functionality than the 300 could ever provide. I myself and considering it.
- 09-18-2003, 01:26 PM #10KeithGuest
Re: Sprint, Treo Opinions?
I have a Treo 300. I bought it about two months ago, already knowing
that as soon as the Treo 600 comes out I'll upgrade. So, I don't see
it as a "permanent" solution and that may color my opinions, in terms
of making me more forgiving toward its weak points.
That said - I'm very happy with it. In fact, I think the 600 could end
up being less appealing overall.
The reception on my 300 is fine, on par with most of my friends'
phones. I don't mind single band very much. It would be nice to have
analog in a pinch, but I don't think I've ever intentionally used
analog in the last three years.
Screen dimness - either you have very high standards, or you had your
screen brightness adjusted improperly, or maybe you just had a lemon.
My screen is fine. It is 160x160, so it doesn't compare with the
Tungsten screens. However, the 600 will also be 160x160 so that won't
change.
Old OS - I run Snappermail and AOL IM. Works fine. The OS is old, but
on a Palm device, that doesn't matter as much as one might think. I
can't think of anything I want it to be able to run that it can't run.
Large size - yeah, it's pretty big. I use the headset sometimes
because the phone's physical size can draw a chuckle in some
situations. You aren't gonna impress the teenagers, put it that way,
at least until you show them the PDA-based functions such as IM on the
go.
I find the thumbboard to be highly useable. I estimate that I can type
about 25 wpm as long as I'm typing words. That slows down drastically
when typing numbers and symbols.
Battery life is adequate, although I wish it had user-replaceable
batteries.
I personally like flip phones, and don't mind the flip that this one
has. The 600 will be a "candybar" style, which makes me nervous
regarding buttons getting pushed or the screen getting scratched in my
pocket. However, the 600 will also be significantly smaller, in
addition to some nice upgrades (144 MHz vs. 33 MHz, OS 5.x vs. OS 3.5,
SDIO slot, built-in camera), so it's a tradeoff I plan to make despite
those misgivings.
I bought my Treo 300 on ebay for $185. I have been a Sprint customer
for years. If you are new to Sprint, you can qualify for rebates that
make the Treo 300 as cheap as $100. Handspring traditionally gives
upgrade credits for users of previous models and is expected to offer
Treo 300 owners a significant discount on the Treo 600. It is very
possible that the discount will be more than you'll pay for the phone,
as a new customer.
I can usually connect to PCS Vision anywhere I have a cell signal.
Sometimes it takes a couple of tries, if the signal is weak. Speed is
comparable to what you'd get on a regular dial-up modem, I'd estimate.
It's fast enough for the types of Internet use that you'll do on a PDA
- e-mail, IM, light Web browsing.
My previous PDAs have been rather high-end: iPAQ 5455, Tungsten C,
Tungsten T. The Treo 300 is certainly the lowest-tech in terms of its
PDA functions. However, I find it the most useful and the most
useable, due to the thumbboard and PCS Vision capabilities. I'd highly
recommend it, unless you'd rather just wait two or three months and
get the 600 instead.
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