Remember the "any day now" claim slapped on that alleged Treo 680 update for AT&T back in October? Well, it's out now, which means that "any day now" works out to... oh, about 50-odd days in AT&T lingo. Fortunately, it may have been worth the wait; it seems every rumored feature has made the cut, meaning 680 owners are now entitled to goodies like push-to-talk, integrated IM, SDHC support, and the all-important AT&T branding (seriously, who wants to be seen walking around with a Cingular device these days?). Grab the update now straight from Palm's site.

[Via Brighthand]

AT&T Treo 750 owners have been waiting patiently (or not so patiently, as the case may be) for an update to Windows Mobile 6 seemingly since Earth was a hot, lifeless mass of molten lava -- and thankfully, it seems that wait might be drawing to a close. TreoCentral's forums have turned up what appears to be a legit slide deck from within AT&T detailing software upgrades for both the 750 and the Palm OS-based 680, with the former getting the aforementioned Windows Mobile 6 Professional, 1.8Mbps HSDPA, Cellular Video, AT&T Mail, AT&T Music, MobiTV, TeleNav, and a refreshed active call display. The 680 gets boosted with PTT support, MP3 ringtone capability, TeleNav, MobiTV, and instant messaging. The slides list October 15 as the rollout date for the 750 update -- a date which has obviously come and gone, so we're holding out the naive belief that we'll see it pretty much any minute now. The 680, meanwhile, allegedly gets hooked up on the 22nd. Here's hoping!

[Via Palm Infocenter]

Palm has patched a bug for several Palm OS-based Treo devices, including the 650, 680, and 700p. Apparently, when password protection is enabled on your device, somebody else could still pick it up and use the "find" feature from the Make Emergency Call screen. The find will reveal details from your contacts, calendar, tasks and the like -- though we can't help thinkin' that when somebody has permanently borrowed your handset, this may be the least of your worries -- so while this wouldn't hurt your handset, security-conscious users may appreciate the fix. Hit the read link for links to the patches form Palm's support site.

[Via Phone Scoop]

We didn't think Sprint would have the spotlight with the latest CDMA Treo for long, and it turns out we were right. Our pal HTC Kid over at Verizon tells us that the new #1 is planning to release its own Treo 755p variant shortly. Feature lineup appears to be similar (except possibly some LBS), but for the forgetful among us, we'll give them to you again -- dual-band CDMA with EV-DO Rev. A, a 1.3 megapixel shooter, and what appears to be a sleeker, refined look a la Treo 680. Make sure you stay tuned for more details.

[Thanks, HTC Kid]

We've gotta admit, this is pretty cool. Palm has started offering a beta of its "Backup" utility which wirelessly backs up the contents of your Palm OS-based Treo (the 650, 680, and 700p, to be exact). Into the password-protected ether, as far as we can tell; it appears that carriers are involved in the action, since it currently only works for AT&T, Sprint, and Verizon customers. The software and service are free (though an unlimited data plan is, obviously, highly recommended) and can be kicked off from anywhere you have a signal. It can also be set to automatically kick off on a schedule, and it only chews up 2MB of storage space on your beloved Treo. As with any beta, be wary -- but at least it's free, right?

[Via Wirelessinfo, thanks Emily]

Hey you, rabid Palm OS fan, 700p owner, and Sling advocate -- remember that SlingPlayer Mobile for Palm OS Beta you signed up for last month? Well, it's time to lose a little more sleep over it, but this time you'll be enjoying the niceties of streaming media on your handset instead of sweating the release date. According to SlingCommunity, the beta will be going live today, and will officially support the 3G-enabled Treo 700p, but "early reports" are suggesting that 680 owners may be able to enjoy limited success even without Sling's stamp of approval. Of course, the beta will remain free of charge until a public release is ready to rock, and then you'll have the option of cutting ties or ponying up the $29.99 purchase price to keep on slinging. Additionally, the kind folks over at UneasySilence have done the hard work for you already, so be sure to hit them up for a nicely appointed pictorial walkthrough while your waiting to get your own install on.

[Via jkOnTheRun, thanks Tie Guy]
Read - SlingPlayer Mobile for Palm OS Beta launching
Read - UneasySilence's Walkthrough

There are two things worth noting about that image to the right. First, it's red. No, not (PRODUCT) RED, just red as in the rumored red Pearl we heard was coming to AT&T. It's not even that red making this more of a RIM CranBerry. The pic comes to us by way of a helpful anonymous tipster who claims it will pop as early as Monday (along side a crimson Treo 680) to business channels even though this would be RIM's least business-y release to date. The other thing to note here of course is the new AT&T branding. Is this the real deal? We're not sure, but we'll see on Monday now won't we.

If you've been a bit paranoid of late after hearing that a blatant security hole was found in the now-deceased Palm OS, help has unofficially arrived. Reportedly discovered by Symantec, the vulnerability entailed a hole that allowed the operating system's Find functionality to be accessed even when the device was set to Locked, allowing ill-willed hackers to sift through text message history, calendar entries, tasks, etc. The hole had been confirmed on the Treo 650, 680, and 700p, but now users of the handsets can rest a bit easier after applying this patch. As expected, the update simply disables the Find feature, which essentially closes off the last remaining security loophole and protects prying eyes from seeing that backlog of steamy Valentine's Day texts. So if you're looking to unofficially patch things up with your Palm, be sure to hit the read link and get that install completed, but we're not the ones to come crying to if something goes awry.

[Via PalmInfoCenter]

We hope all you orangey-coppery Treo fans got your phones, because it's come to our attention that the 680 in Copper (i.e. the creamy-pukey-orange Treo) is "no longer available" according to Palm's site. Bummer dude. Maybe the Moto tactic of releasing your phones in as many colors as possible just isn't working anymore (by the way, did you hear they're laying off 3,500 people?), perhaps you should try renovating your handsets, Palm? We know you've got it in you. Somewhere.

[Thanks, Michael]

"All Treo 680 users should install the Camera Update." That's the official directive booming down from the Palm heavens this week as the first software patch for the stubless, Palm OS-based smartphone has gone live. While there's nothing terribly interesting going on here, the update seems pretty critical nonetheless -- if you value battery life, that is. The shipping software apparently has a tendency to leave the cam enabled even when the device is in standby, leading to a rather staggering power draw. No new features, no interesting changes, just one rather important fix. We can almost hear those overtaxed 680 batteries breathing sighs of relief already.

[Thanks, Matt]

Ah, Palm's site -- a veritable (occasional) treasure trove of unreleased Treo references. Oh whatever, like anyone's really surprised T-Mobile's getting the Treo 680 at some point. We'd just like to know when, and whether they'll be exercising their option for many colors.

[Thanks, Will]

Just in case you haven't already told us what shiny new toys you unwrapped this morning, a few clever hackers are giving you one more gift to top things off. While those of you toting the recently-unveiled Palm (sorry, WinMo users) Treo 680 can boast about your "exclusive" SDHC support, we folks using the 700p simply don't have that luxury. If you've been clamoring about getting SDHC support on the 700p, and were let down that the "big patch" didn't include even a whisper about such support coming your way, take heart. Apparently, copying the slot driver from the 680 onto the 700p allows it to use SDHC cards, and while it hasn't been confirmed quite yet, it looks the ole 650 may get a bit of that high capacity lovin' as well. So if Santa wasn't quite as good to you as you thought he'd be, be sure to hit the read link to make even better use of that (presumably costly) SDHC card you (hopefully) just received.

[Via Phone News]

Hey, Canada: it looks like Cingular was just the first stop on a comprehensive North American tour for Palm's new entry-level Treo 680, and your own Rogers is next. In fact, if you head on over to Rogers' website as we speak, you'll find it listed for $300 CDN on a three-year contract after rebates. Yes, that's right, we said "three-year contract," so we'd like to caution would-be owners that there's very little chance they're going to want the same phone a full 36 months from now -- especially seeing how Rogers is only offering the plain-vanilla Graphite variety.

[Thanks, Darien]

Featuring the same 312MHz Intel processor, 320 x 320 pixel display and EDGE modem as its 650 predecessor, the Treo 680 isn't by any means a revolutionary smartphone. Frustratingly for aficionados of Palm's software design, the 680 improvements are for the most part a consolidation of small tweaks that have been made to other models in the Treo line-up which have been coupled with a slight slimming down in dimensions and weight. Fortunately, the incremental improvements are numerous: usable memory has been increased to 66MB, version numbers of bundled-apps like DocumentsToGo and the Blazer web browser have been upped, and according to LaptopMag, the new dimensions and 0.7 ounce weight reduction results in a device that "feels a lot lighter than it looks." Unfortunately the lack of WiFi, the appalling VGA camera -- which Palm claims isn't much different than a 1 megapixel camera (right) -- and the staid design results in a device that PC Magazine says has "a strong whiff of 2004 about it." (Say, didn't we state just that a few days ago?) Ultimately it's up to you whether you think the relatively low price ($199 w/2 year Cingular contract), incremental updates, and the ever-brilliant Palm OS are good enough to distract you from the weak hardware and budget-price feature set.

Read - LaptopMag, 4/5 "Priced for the masses but also designed for the masses"
Read - PC Magazine, 3/5 "The masses will find it helps them get organized, but for early adopters, there's just not enough spice here"
Read - CNET, 7.0/10 "...the Palm Treo 680 is a good smart phone for the first-time buyer"
Read - MyTreo "It feels nicer in the hand than my Treo 700p with its external antenna"

After initially announcing availability on a handful of devices last month, Cingular and TeleNav are expanding their partnership by bringing navigation to the recently-launched Nokia E62 (and, oh yeah, the Treo 680, too -- though there's no specific mention of Big Orange involvement on that one). The software package rings in at $6/month for 10 trips and $10/month for unlimited use, offering all the same navigational features that you'd find on TeleNav's previous Cingular offerings -- the 8125 / 8525, Treo 650, and HP hw6925 -- with a couple of added bonuses on the E62: the new "fuzzy search" feature, as the name implies, completes user entries based on predictive logic and previous searches, while 3D maps also make an appearance for the first time. Sorry, 680 users... maybe next version.

[Via Slashgear]

Read - Nokia E62
Read - Treo 680