Treo 650 regrets?

**joelsquare** · 10/26/2006, 08:48 AM

Hi there,

My Treo 600 is about to die, and I just assumed that the logical upgrade would be the 650. However, the fella at the store convinced me that the Treo 650 is a bundle of trouble.

I need to replace my phone very soon. I'm wondering if most 650 users regret buying one, or if their experiences have been generally good?

Thoughts?

**Eyedeas** · 10/26/2006, 09:03 AM

You'll hear from all sorts with their favorites, but I'd say the 650 is the most stable of all the Treo line right now. Most cell companies have provided updates that make this so. I almost never get any resets, and I use a ton of 3rd party software and am almost always trying at least one new program. That said, I use PowerRun to make sure I never drop below 5MB of RAM. This seems to be a magic number where the Treo starts to have problems.

**joelsquare** · 10/26/2006, 09:20 AM

Good to know.

Will the SansDisk 256 card that I have in my 600 work on the 650 and count towards keeping the 5MB open?

**ChrisLuce** · 10/26/2006, 09:50 AM

I agree, my 650 has been the best. I have not had any major problems with this phone. It's going to 2 years now and still love it.

**meyerweb** · 10/26/2006, 10:03 AM

My 650 didn't crash on me even once a month. Get the right software on there, and get rid of the bad, and it's a wonderful phone.

**manilenio** · 10/26/2006, 10:11 AM

I ran my 600 to the ground too, and now I have the 650. It's almost 2 months old, and aside from the fact that it sometimes (more like 2 or 3 times a week) resets due to messaging (Message Store Open Item: item open already), and the change to the way it keeps the sms messages included in a thread (it also keeps individual messages in the sent folder), it's a logical upgrade to the 600. However, if the 680 was out then, I would've probably chosen the 680 over the 650.

**mistercoffee1** · 10/26/2006, 10:45 AM

My 650 almost never crashes on it's own for no reason (can go many months without seeing a spontaneous/unwarranted reset).
The only software that can make it crash is LJP.
However, this is one of five (I think) that I've had. Of the five, only one had spontaneous/unwarranted resets. The rest had other issues (loose P-key, HALRadio error, freezing after Firmware upgrade). What I'm saying then, is that once you find a good one they're great. It might take some luck getting there.

**ghiscott** · 10/26/2006, 11:00 AM

The Treo 650 is the closest I have come to Cellular Nirvana since my first cellular phone back in the early 90s.

Given the choices I have made for carrier and PDA platform, I am a happy customer. The form factor, battery life, ease of use and reliability have been better than I expected.

I stayed with GSM (shingular) so the data speeds are not what I would like but the most critical use of my data service is for shell access via the Treo or a laptop that is tethered. For that, the shingular service is adequate.

I have paid for a number of palm apps. On the order of ten of them. Switching to the winblows platform (yet again) is not going to be easy for me when the 750 comes out but I suspect I will do so once the 750 is out. I am a unix/sun/apple guy but the marketplace dictates that I deal with winblows and so I will comply.

**jrfaris** · 10/26/2006, 11:09 AM

We have 2 650s and are very satisfied with them. Upgraded from 300, skipping the 600. Both are stable, one is plain jane and the other is loaded with Tomtom GPS which causes occasional resets. The 650 is probably the best value upgrade at the moment and I expect it will have several more years of useful life before newer models make it obsolete. Of course, if latest and greatest is important to you then it might be worth skipping to one of the newer models but they all seem to have problems as well.

**Tastypeppers** · 10/26/2006, 11:16 AM

My 650 is still the gold standard against which I measure usability for mobile phones. (MDA, Blackberry 7230, SDA, Dash). I still like it. Bulkier than I'd like. Heavier than I'd like. Missing some functionality that I'd like. But immensely usable, stable, and friendly.

At the moment I have the SDA (bought on Craigslist so it's all mine), the Dash (on 30 day trial from T-Mobile), and my unlocked/unbranded 650. I thought I'd sell the 650 in favor of the Dash. Now I'm not so sure. I might keep the Dash and the 650. The Dash was/is a "bridge the gap" solution until the 750 arrives.

**manilenio** · 10/28/2006, 08:15 AM

Here is a more complete list of problems I've encountered with my GSM unlocked 650:
1. Resets occassionaly when I receive an SMS. Error shows as "Line:1392, Message Store Open Item: item open already (sadly, no one knows how to fix this problem and this will cause you to not read what the message was) - this is almost a daily occurrence for me!!!
2. Becomes unresponsive - you'll have to reset the darned thing just to make it work again (keyboard, etc won't work... it won't wake or turn off)
3. Keyboard lights turn on by itself for some strange reason (and it won't turn off unless you turn it on and off again)
4. RAM/ROM/space is so very inadequate (23mb??? You'd be surprised how little space is left after you load apps)
5. Weird implementation of the threaded SMS (it leaves the messages included in the thread in the SENT folder as well, thereby eating space)

On the plus side:
1. Screen is absolutely gorgeous compared to the 600
2. Fast and responsive, when it's working
3. Camera is usable, although same mp with the 600
4. Comes with bluetooth
5. SD card is inserted correctly facing the front now

You'd want to mod your 650's ROM if you want to save on space or gain some.

Here are the apps I have loaded and I have 6.4mb free out of 22.2mb (1.20 LAP):
CallFilter
Profiles by Milan
Auto Buddy
Bejeweled 2
Butler
Checkbook
Converter
ALex Dictionary
FileProg
KeyCaps
KeyGTime+
Lunar
MiniTones
MsgBackup (here I can see the message that reset the device)
Notepad
NotifyThem
PTunes
RNS: TNT
RNS: TST
Shortcut5
SoundRec
TextTwist
Tradewinds
Uninstall Manager
PalmaSutra (in SD)

**LennyV** · 10/28/2006, 10:09 AM

I have my 650 for 2 years. With the exception of a dead button (fixed in a sprint store) it has been a great phone. Very few resets.

**ChasT** · 10/28/2006, 02:27 PM

Originally Posted by manilenio

Here is a more complete list of problems I've encountered with my GSM unlocked 650:

Have you tried deleting your Saved Preferences file and rebuilding it. It sounds like your SP file is bloated or corrupt.

I assume your apps listed above are in RAM and not loaded into a custom ROM, otherwise your Dbcache would be very low which would also cause crashes.

**manilenio** · 10/30/2006, 10:01 AM

Originally Posted by ChasT

Have you tried deleting your Saved Preferences file and rebuilding it. It sounds like your SP file is bloated or corrupt.

I assume your apps listed above are in RAM and not loaded into a custom ROM, otherwise your Dbcache would be very low which would also cause crashes.

Sir, which problem would deleting the saved preferences file fix? Also, I do not know which file to delete. What would this affect? My 650 is running pretty much ok right now, aside from the occassional resets due to the messaging problem I stated above. However, I'm open to trying something new to completely fix this (if that's possible). Can you tell me what to do? Thanks!

**Perk** · 10/30/2006, 07:44 PM

'Ve heard a lot about how Treo 650s are unstable, especially, right out of the box. Must be the luck of the draw, or something, but have had mine for almost 1 1/2 years, now. Believe the thing's only reset, on its' own, twice, in all that time.

'Course, there may've been times that it happened, during lights out. Keep some weird hours, though. So, there couldn't've been too awful many more.

Haven't had to add too many 3rd-party apps, as a result. Know that some may say this amounts to serious under-use of the Treos capabilities. Maybe, so. However, if it ain't broke I ain't much for fixin' it. Am, sadly, suffering from RLI (Re-occurring Laziness Issues).

**mortusnox** · 11/04/2006, 11:07 AM

I have had the 650 since it first came out and I have been very happy with it. Even though I now have a 700p, I still have and use my 650 every day.

**t2gungho** · 11/04/2006, 11:28 AM

The 650 is still a very good phone particularily if you are in an area that isnt supported by higher data speeds.

**whatever7** · 11/04/2006, 11:48 AM

It all depends on the price. IMO a no-contract 650 worth about $200, 700p/700wx worth about $300 and the 680 is $250. If you can find a phone below my "blue book value" then you are good to go.

**pufftissue** · 11/04/2006, 02:06 PM

Wow, I get nothing but multiple crashes per day.
I am currently trying a cocktail of dbcache tool, UDMH, and Rescoe Locker to remedy this problem.
It's almost like a side hobby of mine since I've ordered a WM5 device now. I just want to see what it will take to get a treo 650 to stay stable.

Honestly, I think there are equal numbers of Treo 650 users that experience what I am experiencing. It is well known to be a unstable device relative to the competition. As these posts will attest, it is conceivable to make the 650 stable, but for quite a few including myself, I have yet to figure out how.

**mistercoffee1** · 11/04/2006, 02:58 PM

I don't think it's a matter of making it stable, as much as it is being lucky enough to have one that is stable right out of the box. Mine is stable without the use of Resco, dbcache tool, etc.

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