Handspring doesn't just offer GSM phones. Sprint customers have the option of the Treo 300, Handspring's color CDMA 1xRTT phone/handheld hybrid. Larry Garfield weighs in.
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GSM may be the leader worldwide, but in the US CDMA cellular networks are still the most common. That's why Handspring offers a CDMA version of their Treo Palm OS phone, the Treo 300, which is available exclusively through Sprint. It offers all the same advantages of the GSM-based Treo 270 with a few extras.
Design
The Treo 300 is a flip-phone design, measuring 11.7 x 7.1 x 2.1 cm and weighing 162 grams, slightly larger and heavier than the Treo 270. The casing is a not-unattractive subdued gray plastic. A 1.5 cm long, non-telescoping antenna sits atop the device, next to the stylus silo. The angle of the flip cover is good for holding against the face, although the thin top cover makes it difficult to hold against a shoulder.
 | The Treo 300 is the same as the Treo 270, but with CDMA and a few extra tweaks
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The only problem with the form factor is the width, which is just a bit too wide to hold as a phone for very long periods of time. After about 30 minutes, the angle at which the wrist is held begins to get uncomfortable, at which point the included ear bud or speakerphone mode come in handy. Otherwise, it feels fine. The angle of the flip cover also keeps the screen at least 1 cm away from the face at all times, which should help reduce facial oil on the display.
The display is a 160x160 12-bit color LCD. It's slightly smaller than a typical handheld display in order to make the device thinner, but is not as small as the Palm Zire's screen. Color quality is good, and the refresh rate is good but not stellar. It should be adequate for the business/telephony applications for which the Treo is designed, however.
Standard for the Treo line, the Treo 300 includes a thumbboard in place of a writing area. In order to support non-alphabetic characters, the thumb board includes a blue "Fn" key, which also alters the functionality of the four application buttons.
The Treo's application buttons are a bit different from the standard Palm layout, in order to support more connection-oriented applications. Left to right, they are Phone Book, Date Book, Blazer (Handspring's proxy-based web browser), and Memo Pad. However, pressing the Fn key and then an application button offers access to the additional programs, SMS Messages, To Do, City Time, and Calculator, respectively. Note that this is slightly different from the Treo 270's application arrangement. Sadly, there is no Home button. Getting to the launcher requires pressing Fn+Find.
All of the application buttons are fairly small but nicely dimpled. A two-button rocker sits between them, as usual. The Treo also includes a jog wheel on the left side, heavily supported by the built-in telephony applications but not commonly supported in other programs, and a switch on the top of the device to quickly toggle between audible and silent mode. Theatergoers the world over rejoice. The power button is also on the top of the handheld. Pressing once will toggle the handheld on and off, while pressing and holding will activate and deactivate the CDMA radio.
Handspring also did well with the indicator LED next to the power button as well. When on AC power and charging, the LED will glow red. When fully charged, it glows green. When off AC power, if the radio is active the LED will flash green every few seconds. It's surprising how many companies are unable to built decent LED feedback systems, so it is nice to see that Handspring knows how to build one.
There is a lanyard loop built into the top right of the device. The stylus is in the usual place on the top left. The stylus is a good width, but is a bit short and light for our tastes. It does, however, have a nice solid metal barrel. For standard palm applications, the Treo 300 offers only the standard Palm tweeter speaker.
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