We’ve gotten word from a tipster that the reason that Palm didn’t announce any carrier availability during their Treo 680 announcement was because they’re still trying to pound out the specifics. All four major carriers - Cingular, T-Mobile, Verizon and Sprint - are driving a hard bargain.
One method of deployment possible is with Cingular, offering their 680 for free, but forcing the customer to sign up for a $30 internet plan. What’s the catch? The customer can’t change or remove that $30 internet plan for the entire 2-year contract period. Doing so would incur the wrath of Cingular in the form of fees and a dog going over to chew on your tender areas. If you do the math, $30 for two years makes you…taking the integral…$720 poorer.
Of course this is just a possible launch plan. Another could be a partner with T-Mobile to offer the same thing. Except T-Mobile really wants Palm to cough up a Treo with WiFi so T-Mobile can sell their hotspot plans.
Comments
I’m amazed that people STILL pay for T-Mobile’s Hotspots. Maybe I’m just spoiled by living in Los Angeles, but I can’t sneeze without hitting a free WiFi location–coffee shops, schools, libraries–you name it. Maybe it’s different in other places. Perhaps is T-Mobile would combine an affordable plan that would combine laptop with Treo would sell, but T-Mobile hasn’t seemed to grasp the notion of a fair value. I have a laptop w/ WiFi and a Treo 700p (Sprint, EvDo) and am completely covered. Anyway, just a non-techie / consumer reaction.
Is there a chance of a Sprint branded 680? Everything I have read until now only mentioned GSM phones. I would be interested in a cheap(er) Treo alternative to replace my ailing 600. My wife might finally get on the Treo bandwagon.
Sprint and Verizon are out of the question until Palm creates a CDMA Treo 680. All the specs out there (on the Web) clearly say this is a quadband EDGE device.
I’d be really bummed if the only way I could get one was through Cingular’s $30/mo data plan. I used to have a 650 on Cingular and I only had to pay $20/month for “media max 200 bundle” for 200 txt and unlimited “medianet” aka internet.
Sorry, kids, but this article is BS. WTF do Verizon and Sprint have to do with the 680? It’s GSM and there isn’t currently a CDMA version in the works.
Also, Garnet (Palm OS 5) can’t support an additional data stack. You get voice, 1xRTT/GPRS/EDGE/EvDO data, and Bluetooth. Your data service would have to be disabled in order to access the WiFi, as Shadowmite’s hack a couple years ago showed us. Palm can certainly write a driver to do this properly, but they won’t. And T-Mobile will certainly have no say in the matter.
Oh, and off subject, but Garnet can’t support UMTS/HSDPA either, so you’re out of luck there too — that’s why the 680 lacks 3G. It’s being marketed as an entry-level phone because it can’t support GSM 3G, not because it doesn’t.
I was getting ready to get a 700p in a couple of months. Other than the difference in RAM, are there any other differences between 680p and 700p for a power user? I can’t seem to find any…
I have to concur with curtis and Hugh Jass… and being an Associate Writer on PalmAddict (as Andrew Davis), I feel its important to cut the fluff and crap. The Treo 680 that has been announced is a GSM/EDGE only device. The CDMA carriers already got their plethora of Palm and Windows based Treo’s this year. Until we hear of a 680 with CDMA (which won’t be a 680, but a 685 or a 690, etc), consider this article/post/comment to be rubbish. Palm *is* going to get the 680 sold through all the major GSM carriers, but in the US, that’s only going to be Cingular and T-Mobile.
Now as to the data plan lock-in… on one hand I say that sounds just like something that Cingular would do. But on the other hand, my Sony UX180P came with an integrated EDGE modem and a Cingular partnership, but they were only offering $40 a month for unlimited data. I’m surprised they’d offer it for less for a Treo, but whatever.
As for some possibly valid data about when we’ll see the new Treo and the possible cost, see this link: http://palmaddict.typepad.com/palmaddicts/2006/10/treo_680_dates.html. In summary… “one month and either $149 or $199 depending on the length of your contract”…
I would be glad to see them launch it for free
it will probably cost 720 in the long run but lots of people dont have 720 to shell ou in one day
Corrected link from SuppOrtLinux’ post (removed the trailing period);
http://palmaddict.typepad.com/palmaddicts/2006/10/treo_680_dates.html
Also, how certain are “we” that T-Mobile will offer the 680? Since they just got the Dash I’m not sure they are going to offer the 680 unless Palm agrees to add WiFi which I believe is possible but other providers (e.g. Sprint) have insisted they not include it.
AJH,
“Other than the difference in RAM, are there any other differences between 680p and 700p for a power user?”
Well, 700p is CDMA and 680 is GSM.
Other than that, spec wise, no other differences. The 680 does have a new UI.
But the memory difference will be big for a power user. Not because you couldn’t run programs off of an SD card, but because of memory management problems. Many users of the 650 are looking forward to the increased RAM of the 680 to decrease memory management induced resets.
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