PalmOne releases a software update for the Sprint Treo 650

This is a major software update. Via PalmOne

The update is the first major patch that brings the following fixes:

• Overall voice quality improvements and enhanced call clarity
• Internal setting modification to allow correct access to Sprint Affiliate roaming partner networks
• Optimizes memory handling and frees up more memory
• TTY (also known as TDD or Text Telephone) optimizations and improvements
• Optimizations for data calls
• Includes VersaMail 3.0c
• Bluetooth Carkit drivers

The memory fix seems to work well, and will free some much needed memory space. Unpatched Treo 650 often hangs or reboot when too little memory is left. We posted about the issue a while back, and the problem was that Palm OS was using chunks of memory that were too large to optimally use the 32MB available. Users upgrading from a Treo 600 (32MB also) with lots of contact files were running short of memory. PalmOne had to send free 128MB SD cards to calm the infuriated users.

One still can’t use the Treo 650 as a bluetooth modem, but Sprint says that this problem will be the subject of an upcoming update.

Upgrading the ROM is a serious operation. One of the early adopter tells how the upgrade went for him on Treonauts.