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A HUGE THANKS to Sammy McLoughlin and Lindsey Dyson of Palm Addicts for mentioning my post a few times recently in the past few days. I’ve been quite busy trying to finish up on the product reviews so that they are posted before Christmas that I haven’t really been reading or monitoring PDA news as much as I normally try to do. So, things have kind of slipped. Keep in mind that there’s only one of me who’s responsible for the material (video, photos, editorial, etc) as well as the web site itself. As usual, I’m very appreciative of Sammy and PalmAddicts for the continued and frequent support of Palm Discovery. Please check out Palm Addicts for Palm and PDA related news updated frequently throughout the day!

Also, another BIG THANKS to Treobits for a recent mention. Please check out Treobits also for Treo focused news and info updated throughout the day. I’m so glad that I’m getting such great support from the “bigger” Palm sites that it’s quite an honor to be mentioned and linked. Thanks to both Treobits and Palm Addicts for a variety of news related to the Palm and Treos.

A BIG THANKS to Mingo and Eva Chui of PDAir for providing the product for this review. (I have previously mentioned this in a previous PDAir product review but thought I’d mention this again.) They were also very kind enough to enclose two leather keychains (which I will be giving away in a future Palm Discovery giveaway once I get enough money to pay for the contest shipping) as well as a Christmas Card. That really shows me how much they appreciate their customers by going that extra mile and providing that extra touch. Thanks again, Mingo and Eva Chui!

Those of us who were fortunate enough to have been supplied with a cradle back in the earlier days when Palm supplied desktop cradles would have been surprised and annoyed that the newer models aren’t supplied with one. Rather than a desktop cradle, we are now given a hotsync cable and a charging cable. And I know that some of us still prefer to have a cradle so that our Treos can stand upright on a desk while charging allowing us to still have easy access to the device when we’re at our computer.

PDAir offers a solution: PDAir USB cradle for the Treo 650 and 700w.

Pics of PDAir USB Cradle for Treo 650/750

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Video of PDAir USB Cradle for Treo 650

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Alternative link: YouTube

Here are my observations.

First, I like how the cradle is very compact and takes up very little space. It’s very easy to hook up. Simply attach one end of the USB cable to the back of the cradle and the other end to the USB port of your computer or laptop. When done, simply remove them and wrap your cable together and it’s done. Unlike other cradles where the cables and cords are permanently attached, the ability to remove them make it very nice to pack up.

Second, although it wasn’t called a hotsync cradle, I would have preferred to have had a hotsync button on the cradle itself, very much like the old Zire 71 cradle that came with my Zire 71 back in the days when Palm included a cradle with the Palm device.

Third, I do very much like the cool blue indicator light on the cradle indicating that there is power. This was something that I felt Palm should have done in its earlier cradles.

Fourth, I also like how the cradle allows the Treo to stand very upright so that you can somewhat use this as a stand for the Treo, especially if you wanted to take a picture with the Treo using the cradle. Although it’s not completely 90 degrees, it’s very close.

Overall, I find the PDAir USB cradle for the Treo 650 and 700w a great product. I love how it’s compact and easy to pack and unpack and takes up very little space. The light indicator (especially the cool blue color) is a nice feature to have so you know when the cradle is powered up. I would have liked that the cradle included a hotsync button, but if you have third party programs that can initiate a hotsync, that part of it can be addressed that way. The fact that this cradle allows the Treo to stand very close to perfectly upright is a nice plus, especially for some of us who wished to take pictures with the Treo without holding it in our hands (ie. take self portraits, etc). Please check out the PDAir USB cradle for the Treo 650 and 700w at PDAir as well for other PDA and mobile accessories that they offer.

Thanks again to Mingo and Eva Chui of PDAir for providing the product for this review as well as the two nice looking leather keychains and the wonderful Christmas/seasonal card.

Thanks for visiting and supporting Palm Discovery. If you are not reading this article from Palmdiscovery.com or Palmdiscovery.net, the website you are reading it from is guilty of copying and posting my content without consent. Please visit Palm Discovery for the original source of the material.

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