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Palm Centro
Compared to the Palm Treo, the Palm Centro is thinner and lighter, meaning it’s more comfortable to the pocket and the grip without losing important features. The Centro is the first smartphone under Palm which doesn’t bear the Treo brand name, and it is the lightest and smallest smartphone from Palm. The move of Palm to revert away from the aesthetics of the Treo is a good decision as Centro promised ease of use.
As stated above, the Palm Centro cuts of the bulk of the Palm Treo. It measures 4.2 x 2.1 x 0.7 inches and weighs 4.2 ounces, although it is still considered bulky as compared to smartphones released by Nokia and LG. It comes in ruby red and black onyx, with the former envisioned targeting female users, however some critics have noted that such logic made the phone looked like a toy.
The screen measures 2.25 inches and runs 65,000 colors at a 320 x 320 pixel resolution. Text and graphics are displayed crisp and bright and navigating and entering data has been very convenient with Centro.
Although it is already a touch screen, controls such as Talk and End keys, five-way toggle and shortcuts (to phone application, home screen, calendar and inbox) are also located below the display. A QWERTY keyboard is also included, but it looked very cramped and small, and typing messages with it proved to be dubious. Atop the Centro is a 2.5mm headset jack while a multi-connector port is located on the bottom. On the left side are the volume rocker and launch button while on the right side are the infrared port and microSD expansion slot. On the back side are the camera lens, speaker, stylus and the self-portrait mirror.
The good thing about the Centro is that it packed all the features of the Palm Treo in a smaller unit. It runs Palm OS 5.4.9 and comes with 128MB ROM and 64MB RAM. Productivity tools include the calendar, a to-do list, a memo pad, a calculator, a world clock, and a voice recorder. An application that can be used for opening, writing and editing Microsoft Word, Excel and Power Point documents as well as PDF documents – the Documents to Go version 10 – is also included.
E-mail is among the important features of the Centro, offering various option for access. Among the applications include the VersaMail e-mail app for real-time synchronization with Microsoft Exchange, and Sprint Mobile eMail. Instant messaging applications (Yahoo, AIM and Windows Live) are also included. Of course, like other smart phones, Centro continues to support SMS and MMS.
Connectivity features in Centro include EV-DO support and Bluetooth 1.2 for wireless headsets, hands-free kits, object exchange, and dial-up networking. However, the model doesn’t support A2DP and that a built-in radio isn’t included. It has 3G but no Wi-Fi. It also works with Sprint TV and live streaming music and talk radio. Access to YouTube is also possible with the Centro Blazer Web Browser. Listening to music is also more fun with the PocketTunes Deluxe Edition that can play MP3s. Last, the images produced in the 1.3-Megapixel camera are surprisingly sharp and decent for a camera phone.