Cheery Vitriol

I’ve had my Treo 700p for a couple of months. The primary reason I upgraded from my 650 is EVDO. I use the internet features a lot, including RSS reading (using QuickNews), web browsing (mostly travel directions) and checking email. It’s great to even have an internet-capable device in my pocket, but service can be slow on an older 650 connection, so it was worth it to me to upgrade to the significantly faster EVDO.

A couple of weeks ago Maria and I went to San Diego for a mini-reunion with some of the folks I worked with at StatSoft almost 10 years ago. Having a high-speed connection was very convenient. I had never been to San Diego so I used it a lot for directions. The big deal with directions and connection speed is getting lost. If you plan ahead and get directions for where you’re going, speed isn’t much of an issue. But when you’re lost, getting back on track is a lot less stressful when you’re not waiting several minutes for a page to load.

In addition, we were able to find lots of great vegan and vegan-friendly restaurants. Unfortunately we didn’t get a chance to visit the raw foods place in Chula Vista, but perhaps next time.

The keyboard is a lot easier to use, especially with one hand. They moved a couple of keys around, so that took a while to get used to, but after I had been using the 700p for a while I picked up the 650 and then the cheesiness of the older keyboard was a lot more apparent.

There are a few other minor enhancements:

• the caller ID feature tells me the caller’s state if the number isn’t in my contacts
• when a call comes in there’s a new “Ignore with Text” option that turns off the ringer and brings you to the SMS message app
• the camera is a lot nicer than the one on the 650
• perhaps not new, but recently noticed - the USB sync cable charges the battery
• muting the volume vibrates briefly to indicate quite mode
• voice recorder with dedicated side button
• more memory