Treo vs. iPhone

Today I read a post at Treonauts.com comparing the Treo and iPhone. As a Treo user (and a bit of an Apple hater), I was curious to see what they had to say. While I do find the Treo better, I felt the comparison was pretty biased towards the Treo (even for a site dedicated to Treos). They break the article down into 7 sections pitting the two phones against each other. While I won’t go in-depth, I will touch on what they said.

Screen Resolution + Input Method (Palm 1: Apple 0): I will agree with them on input method. While it is cool that the iPhone has a touch screen keyboard, and multiTouch technology, there is no replacement for the recoil of a real physical keyboard. Plus in my experience, it’s easier to type on a real keyboard. However, the screen resolution on the iPhone is better. Treo: 320×320, iPhone: 320×480. I would say 1:1 here.

Operating System (Palm 1: Apple 0): I agree with them here. Palm OS is more open, and more versatile (as we’ve seen so far). However, it’s epic that a phone is running OSX. 2:1

Storage (Palm 1: Apple 0): It’s also epic that the iPhone will have 4 or 8 GB on board. However, that’s all you get. Treo has SD support, so I can have theoretically as much memory as I want. 3:1

GSM + Wireless Data + Camera (Palm 0: Apple 2): No question. iPhone wins this bout. 2.0MP camera for a phone is crazy, and WiFi built in. That is something I wish the Treo had. 3:3

Battery (Palm 1: Apple 0): The battery is removable. Plus, the Treo battery is a tank- I can’t imagine the iPhone having a great battery with the nice screen resolution, WiFi, bluetooth, and Lord knows what else going. 4:3

Dimensions + Weight (Palm 1: Apple 0): Sorry Treonauts, no matter how you slice it, the iPhone is smaller and weighs less. One thing I wish was different about my Treo is size. The 650 is like a brick. 4:4

My Overall Thoughts:: I was really impressed with the iPhone when I first saw it. It may be revolutionary. But no keyboard or removable battery is tough. Especially since the iPod has had so many problems. Built in WiFi is awesome. The internet stuff is awesome- better browsing, mail and the adaption of OS widgets is cool. But I love the Palm OS and the freeware you can get for it, it’s awesome battery life and real keyboard. If I had run the same review as the treonauts, the Treo and iPhone would be tied up. BUT, I feel like the Treo is better choice, at least for me. While the iPhone is rich in graphics and media, the Treo I feel is better for practical and general use.