Rumor: Treo 700wx Windows Mobile 6.0 Upgrade

Later this summer, it would appear that Palm is planning on releasing some ROM upgrades for their devices.

Of particular note is the Windows Mobile 6.0 Professional for the Verizon Treo 700wx. Note that this is not a Windows Mobile 6.1 Professional upgrade and it will not be made available for the Verizon Treo 700w. (The Treo 700w has 32MB of RAM versus the 64MB on the Treo 700wx.) Palm is also reportedly working on two minor upgrades for the Sprint Centro and Treo 755p for Verizon that will likely be released later this year.

According to the latest rumor, the Windows Mobile 6.0 update for the Treo 700wx is be no different than the already released update for the AT&T Treo 750. Also like the Windows Mobile 6.0 update for the Treo 750, there are some important things to consider before applying the upgrade:

• You can not revert back to Windows Mobile 5.0
• The update will be available for free from the Palm website
• The upgrade can only be downloaded once. You are advised to burn the installer to a CD before applying the upgrade
• Any Treo 700wx sent in for repair service will automatically be upgraded
• The upgrade can be installed either from the desktop computer or by running the upgrade directly off of a SD card
  

I honestly never expected this update to be released for the Treo 700wx. I'm glad to see that Palm will be releasing the update. A lot of Treo 700wx customers have been asking for it.

[Thanks to Ain't No Snitch for the tip.]

Alan is "Bizarro"

I've been accused of being exactly like this comic. Apologies to Dan Piraro, creator of the Bizarro comic strip. To read more Bizarro comics online, check out the Seattle Post-Intelligencer website.

Club Astraware offers for May 2008

The Club Astraware Member-only discount offer for May 2008 is Golden Skull for just $9.95, that's a huge saving of $10 off the regular price!

Golden Skull is a puzzle adventure game that will take you on an unforgettable journey through undiscovered Mayan pyramids and long forgotten ruins.

Featuring amazing graphics, and an entertaining story mode, Golden Skull delivers challenging gameplay with unbelievable production value. It's a puzzle adventure game the whole family will enjoy.

There are 3 double points offers in Club Astraware this month, so members can build up their points even quicker and get even bigger discounts on games in the future! The games offering double points this month are Text Twist, Platypus, and Astraware Boardgames. Simply buy any of these games at full price and get twice the regular number of points! For example: buy a game for $19.95 and you'll get almost $4 worth of points to use against your next purchase!

These offers are only available in Club Astraware until the end of May 2008. To get your hands on them simply join or login to Club Astraware at http://www.astraware.com/club. It's quick to join and completely free too!


Readers of Foleo Fanatics and listeners of my weekly 1SRC.com podcast know that I'm a huge fan of Astraware's games. Joining Club Astraware is a great way to pick up some outstanding games for your favorite Palm OS or Windows Mobile smartphone or PDA handheld.

Office Mobile 2007 Upgrade

I just ran across a link on the Microsoft Windows Mobile website for the Office Mobile 2007 upgrade.

Depending on the build of Windows Mobile 5.0 installed on your smart devices the upgrade will be free for some users while others will have to pay $49.95 for the upgrade kit. (Yikes!) Before purchasing the upgrade, I strongly suggest that you check with your smart device vendor to see if they have any Windows Mobile upgrades available. You might be able to upgrade your install of Windows Mobile and then qualify for the free Office Mobile upgrade.

On the Microsoft Office Mobile Upgrade or Purchase page, there is a simple series of questions that helps you determine if your device qualifies for a free upgrade or not. Microsoft was nice enough to publish a Office Mobile 6.1 FAQ so you can learn about what is included in the latest version of Office for Windows Mobile devices before pluncking down the cash for the upgrade. Upgrades can be purchased from Handango, and volume licenses are available if you have a fleet of Windows Mobile 5 devices to upgrade.

I see this upgrade being important for users who find themselves with a Windows Mobile 5 device with no vendor provided upgrade to Windows Mobile 6, and who need support for Microsoft Office 2007 files. If you are a non-corporate user who doesn't need the latest and the greatest, I would skip the upgrade until you need to purchase it. $50 is a lot of money to gain support for Office 2007. DataViz Documents To Go 10, which added support for Office 2007 on the Palm OS platform, only ran customers $29.95.

Weathering an Outage?

I've noticed over the last day or two that I am no longer to get mobile weather updates on my Treo 755p and Apple iPod touch. Have you?

On the Treo, I'm using GX-5's Treo Weather and on the iPod I'm using Apple's Weather applet. As far as I know, both applications use a connection to Yahoo! for weather updates.

I'll post an update when things are working again. Stay tuned.

UPDATE:
The Weather applet on my iPod touch is now working. So it is just my Sprint Treo 755p and GX-5's Treo Weather that is being difficult.

UPDATE 2: GX-5 has released and upgrade that addresses the issue.

NYPC PalmPilot Meeting Feb 6

NYPC PalmPilot SIG meetings are held the 1st Wednesday of the month and start at 6:30 PM. All user levels are welcome.

NYPC membership is not mandatory, but highly recommended to Palm SIG members.

Location: Meetings are held at NYPC's offices in the New Yorker/Ramada Hotel, 8th Avenue & 34th Street, Suite 551.

Directions: Take the A, E, or C trains to 34th Street.
(Map:http://tinyurl.com/yavrxj)

Feb. 6th Meeting: Content, Content, Content

We'll not only explore the popular knowlege-based Palm websites but delve into the nooks and crannies of what in-depth information there lies within.

As per a great suggestion by member Jerry V, we'll follow links, and realy get to the meat of what these websites have to offer.

See you on Wednesday.

Ted and Grace

===================
NYPC PalmPilot SIG
Grace Lee & Ted Cohn, Co-Chairs
email: nypcpalmpilot@gmail.com
URL: http://nypc.org/palm.php

Pocket Tunes 4.0.6 Update

I just received and email from NormSoft alerting me that the PocketTunes 4.0.6 upgrade has been released. The 4.0.6 update includes one enhancement and several bug fixes for the 4.x code base.

This is a free upgrade for customers who have purchased PocketTunes 4 or for LifeDrive, TX, Treo 680, Treo 700p, Treo 755p, and Centro customers who have PocketTunes bundled on their devices. Customers who purchased PocketTunes 3.x qualify for special upgrade pricing.

A complete list of PocketTunes 4.x features and fixes is available on the NormSoft website.

You can download the desktop updater or install the update directly on your Internet connected device with the Help > Check for Updates command in PocketTunes. The PocketTunes 4 user guide is also available online.