First Treo-Only Apps Appear

Posted By: Ed Thursday, February 28, 2002 1:57:23 PM

Handspring's new Treo is beginning to reach customers hands and applications designed for it are starting to appear, too. Electric Pocket has released Ringo, a free app that lets users of compose and share custom ringtones or download and install new ones from the Internet. MonkeyRinger is a similar app for personalizing ringtones. There is also a new version of PowerJog created for the smartphone.

Ringo screenshot Ringo lets the Treo use any Palm OS alarm tune or database as a Treo ringtone. Hundreds of such alarm sounds are available to be downloaded from the Internet. It also includes an on-screen keyboard that allows users to compose custom ringtones to fit their individual personalities. Users can beam their favorite ringtones to their friends through the Treo's infrared port.

MonkeyRinger lets users compose, edit, and install ringtones for a Treo. Users can download ringtone libraries from the Web, store up to 3000 tones, and beam any ringtone. It is $10.

Yamada Tatsushi, possibly better known as Hacker Dude-san, has released a version of PowerJog for the Treo, which lets the jog wheel control lots of functions, like launch applications, choose from a pop-up list, and much more. It's free during the beta period and afterwards it will be $15.

Thanks to the friendly nXt for the tip. -Ed

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iRing

I.M. Anonymous @ 2/28/2002 2:12:43 PM #

Here is a less expensive alternative:

http://www.proxyminds.com

RE: iRing

I.M. Anonymous @ 2/28/2002 2:33:16 PM #

Nothing can be less expensive than Ringo. It's free. Unless they pay you to use it...

RE: iRing

I.M. Anonymous @ 2/28/2002 2:42:05 PM #

Mmmm... not really, ringo costs $9.99. If you use the SMS to register for free you give up your identity and phone number so you can get spammed.

RE: iRing

GregGaub @ 2/28/2002 6:25:28 PM #

And during what part of the purchase and registration process that costs $10 DON'T you reveal your identity? Do you really think they guy is going to spam your phone? That kind of thing would cost a whole lot more that its worth. If he wants to spam someone, he'll spam the idiots who pay for an app they can get for free, since they're much more likely to click on some link in a spam e-mail. Duh. Anyway, spamming people's phone is a quick way to get huge fines, not to mention a whole lot of enemies and bad press.

More Treo Apps...

GregGaub @ 2/28/2002 7:16:25 PM #

Hacker Dude-san also makes an app for the Treo that does what I want, called, TreoButton, and is free:
www.palmgear.com/software/showsoftware.cfm?prodID=40243

I'm sure even more apps that take advantage of Treo features are on the way, and I look forward to seeing what comes out.

RE: More Treo Apps...

I.M. Anonymous @ 2/28/2002 7:49:51 PM #

Me Too! I am enjoying PowerJog and TreoButton.

WOW!!!

I.M. Anonymous @ 2/28/2002 8:01:38 PM #

With software like that, i should just run out and buy one now!!!!!

As much as i want to buy a new PDA, i just really don't see the treo, or new offering from palm, sony, or any PocketPC being a killer product.

Let's see the Treo is a phone, pda combo. Ok i have a phone, i have a PDA. They both work great seprate, and look like **** when put together. Why buy that?

So i get a Sony i get a good color screen, which is rather useless. I get a Palm and i get all the same crap they have been selling for years, just with a expansion slot that has very few uses.

I get a Pocket PC and i spend a ton of money, on a brick, that does a few things more then a plam, but the interface sucks ass, and it eats batteries like crazy.

I think the real problem with the whole PDA market isn't the recession, but that fact that they basically have it perfected, and did it a couple years ago.

What else do i really need in a PDA??? Maybe the whole move to ARM based CPU's will give us some interesting new features, but i kinda doubt it.

RE: WOW!!!

GregGaub @ 2/28/2002 8:36:23 PM #

Talk about seeing the glass as being half empty. Lighten up man, it can't be all that bad.

I don't have my Treo yet, but I really look forward to not carrying around my Palm Vx, Motient MobileModem, and Motorola Timeport all the frickin' time. I might still be a geek inside, but at least it won't be so bad looking on the OUTSIDE once I have only one, small device clipped to my helt rather than one big one and one normal one.

I'm also tied of that lame-ass "what if I want to upgrade my phone, but keep my PDA" argument, since all the people that upgrade their phones left and right also upgrade their PDAs on a whim. Why not just reduce the number of items while you're at it? It's not like by the time you upgrade your phone you won't also want to upgrade your PDA anyway. sheesh.

Bad Boy

I.M. Anonymous @ 2/28/2002 8:45:34 PM #

What you think of these products is your own opinion, but don't make them sound as if the entire universe thinks the same as you do.

back to your cave!

RE: WOW!!!

I.M. Anonymous @ 2/28/2002 8:51:31 PM #

Don't assume everyone just wants the buy a $400 device to use it as a phone-book.

>As much as i want to buy a new PDA, i just really >don't see the treo, or new offering from palm, sony, >or any PocketPC being a killer product.

Killerproduct, maybe not, nice to have ? For some I am sure it is/will be.

>Let's see the Treo is a phone, pda combo. Ok i have a >phone, i have a PDA. They both work great seprate, >and look like **** when put together. Why buy that?

To minimize the number of gadgets for those without the MobilePocket pants from Dockers.

You put your phone and your PDA together and they look like **** together ? Well, that is a good reason for some people to ditch both and get ONE device.

Sorry man, you wrote it yourself.

>So i get a Sony i get a good color screen, which is >rather useless. I get a Palm and i get all the same

Rather useless eh ? Again, for someone who simply wants to use the phone-book (address book for you that is), yes, I agree, color is useless. HOWEVER, IF YOU WERE TO GET A REAL PHONE, you could enter all your addresses in IT and do not even need a PDA.

PDA = Personal Digital Assistant, NOT Phone for Dummies' Address book

>crap they have been selling for years, just with a >expansion slot that has very few uses.

Very few uses for you. Again, you are generalising.

>I get a Pocket PC and i spend a ton of money, on a >brick, that does a few things more then a plam, but

Not all of them are bricks. I am not a proponent of PPC but this argument is getting old too.

>the interface sucks ass, and it eats batteries like >crazy.

That is about the only decent thing you have mentioned thus far, see, you have a brain after-all.

>I think the real problem with the whole PDA market >isn't the recession, but that fact that they >basically have it perfected, and did it a couple >years ago.

I agree with the previous poster on this one: GO BACK to your cave. What do you want ? A PDA+ that does WHAT ? Make your coffee/bread/does sexual favors for you? (well, that IS a thought...)

>What else do i really need in a PDA??? Maybe the >whole move to ARM based CPU's will give us some >interesting new features, but i kinda doubt it.

What YOU want, what the GENERAL PUBLIC wants and what the GEEKS want are all different things. Clearly, you are NOT the majority here but the general public is. And THEY seem to want a bit more than what you are saying (just look at the downloads at Palmgear and Handango to gauge the interest in different applications).

RE: WOW!!!

LarryGarfield @ 3/1/2002 2:06:27 AM #

The Treo is not a PDA.

Let's say that again, all together now. "The Treo is NOT a PDA."

The Treo is a "smart phone" (not to be confused with Microsoft's new definition of SmartPhone(tm)). That is, it is a cell phone first and a PIM/communicator second where it supports the phone. It is NOT a PDA. If you currently have an m505, CLIE, HandEra 330, heck a Visor Deluxe, the Treo is not the device for you. The Treo is targeting people looking at Nokia and Ericson, not Palm and Sony. The fact that it uses Palm OS is a convenience for Handspring developers and to make *migration* easier for developers.

Once more, with feeling.... "The Treo is not a PDA."

--
This post is ROT26 encrypted. Reading it is a violation of the DMCA

RE: WOW!!!

I.M. Anonymous @ 3/1/2002 8:13:25 AM #

"Once more, with feeling.... "The Treo is not a PDA.""

bah. Not so. My treo is a well-designed PDA FIRST and a cell phone 2nd. the lack of color, MP3, or expandability doesn't mean it's not a PDA. glomming on a cell phone to a Palm IIIx doesn't change its functionality.

Seriously, what part of "Personal Digital Assistant" does the Treo fail to meet?

Treo Rocks

I.M. Anonymous @ 3/1/2002 1:27:33 AM #

You are only being a spoiler because you don't have a Treo. Use it for a day, you will love it for a livetime.

Treo Reviews

I.M. Anonymous @ 3/4/2002 11:12:32 AM #

Why aren't there any treo reviews? i've read a few but they're all established technical reviewers who probably take kick-backs. i wanna read something by an average joe who's actually used the device and doesn't get paid to say nice things about it.

RE: Treo Reviews

I.M. Anonymous @ 3/4/2002 10:30:14 PM #

I got my Treo in HK the day after it's launched. I love it very much. At first, the battery seems drain very fast. But after several days used, it's getting better and better, just like those nokia's battery. And now, I charge it every other day. I receive around 10 phone calls every day.

And I'm very happy to see more and more Treo-Only applications appear. This is just like what I expected before.

The only complain from me is Treo still doesn't support Chinese in it's SMS function.

RE: Treo Reviews

I.M. Anonymous @ 5/17/2002 4:24:39 PM #

I've had mine for about a week, I don't consider myself a heavy cell phone user or heavy PDA user. Keeping that in mind, I can say the Treo is an exceptional device. If you're a heavy cell phone user you may find the phone awkward in shape and possibly a little bit uncomfortable when put up to your ear.

As a PDA it seems to function as expected, I absolutely love the keyboard. I never like Graffiti, just wasn't my thing.

I'm using Cingular as my carrier, they also act as my ISP, which is very convenient. The blazer web browser seems to function fairly well.

The battery life has been exceptable, I understand early production units had issues with batteries which I believe has been addressed through software changes (power management I guess). Not sure if they are using a better battery or not.

I use the SMS messaging, primarily inbound. No problems here. Works well outbound also.

Setup was a bit challenging with Cingular, it was just a matter of time before I got someone on the phone who was experienced, from there it went well.

I had a serious problem trying to carry 2 devices (cell / pda), just wasn't practical. The Treo has been the answer I've been looking for, it may not be perfect but it is VERY capable.

Jonas

RE: Treo Reviews

I.M. Anonymous @ 7/25/2002 4:33:04 AM #

I have a treo 180 and it works pretty well. Its not too large and the sound quality is a lot better than expected. There are some small flaws though....little things like a keboard that doesn't have keys that light up...the screen does, so why not the keyboard? Also, the Blazer web browser is pretty crappy...I highly suggest using one called Xiino. It works awesome...just about every site works and it even does java. Bottom line is this phone/pda is pretty nice, the biggest plus is the fact that I could use my current Cingular plan to use the web features...and the same minutes apply (free nights and weekends, etc...) From an average Joe....."very nice phone/pda, easy to use, lots and lots of cool upgrades and hacks, some small flaws and not worth the $579 sticker price." Good thing I got it for $275 =)

When can we use treo as a dictation machine?

I.M. Anonymous @ 5/20/2002 10:24:08 AM #

Hi,

The treo already has great speech compression capability (GSM standar), and it has a mic and a speaker, it can be linked to your PC, so it has all the hardware for a nice dictation machine.

I would like to use it as such. Anybody knows how hard will that be?

- Khaled

RE: When can we use treo as a dictation machine?

p4lmw4re_syst3m @ 12/16/2003 8:04:01 AM #

Greetz,
i've had a treo 180 for a couple of months now - one of the best toys i've ever had, my mates are calling it the "hitch-hikers guide" already,

i just love how it can give me a uk tv guide via avantgo and then be used to change the channel on the tv! start the video! dim the lights!
then display a searchable map of my home city or any other! AND allow me to use it as a usb modem on a windows pc! - pdaNet is amazing software - windows PC's can use pdaNet software to use your Treo as a modem! either on GPRS network or using a normal dialup account!
And the ssh clients! i can now log into my linux server at home from anywhere and over gprs its pretty quick too! I've even got a VNC client for it now too!
Also I've come across audioplayer for palm - this is working well, so my treo can play wav files, surely then this wav playing ability could be linked up to the ringtone manager - so i could play wavs as ringtones? all the stuff seems to be there but no-one has yet linked it all up. ??

I too would like to be able to dictate, it seems the sound support on the treo has worlds of undeveloped software waiting to be coded.

but how about it? linking audioplayer to monkeyringer so that wavs (converted to pdb of course) can be played when my phone rings? that would be amazing.