A New Treo 650 WiFi Solution: Enfora WiFi Adapter
At the recent Consumer Electronics show in Las Vegas, a company called Enfora presented a WiFi solution for both the Treo 600 and 650 which it plans to release in February and March respectively.
UPDATE: The Treo 650 Enfora WiFi Adapter is finally now available in our Treo Accessory Shop.
In contrast to the typical SDIO WiFi route (still not officially supported by palmOne for either Treo), Enfora's solution comes in the shape of an add-on module which slides to the back of the Treo and connects to its serial port. The module has its own built-in battery which has the advantage of not draining the power on our Treo as the SD WiFi card would and furthermore leaves the single SD slot available to access our programs, files and documents.
Other specifications include battery life of 5 days standby and [Corrected not 24] 3 hours usage but I don't yet have any other information such as operating range, [Update] the particular WiFi flavor is 802.11b, nor the weight of the unit. Also, from the pictures below, you'll notice that this unit is not exactly small (it reminds me of the Treo 600 battery pack) but the overall advantages of finally connecting our Treo with what appears to be a very easy solution will surely outweigh this.
Pricing for Enfora's WiFi module is estimated at $149 which compares with palmOne's $129 WiFi card (as stated before though, there are as of yet no official drivers for our Treo).
I guess that the only thing missing now is for Skype to release a PalmOS version of their software...
[Pictures via PhoneMag.]
Treonauts want to be connected... 
Comments
The problem with the sled is, you lose the mobility that you gained by going to a handheld. The wifi radio belongs inside the unit.
I agree that it's a cool product but I really shouldn't have to pay $150 on top of $600 for the Treo - p1 should have had WiFi built-in. Still, I'm resigned to using a solution like this if there's no other workaround or better smartphone to choose from.
At least it provides some way to do WiFi with a Treo.
And let's hope the price drops (considerably)over time.
What type of firewall or firewall software can you get for these with the WIFI connections?
Any word if this will actually be released?
Checked Enfora's site, still nothing released yet...
Pre-order for a may delivery is what treocentral is showing. really hope that the prices come off. HP's iPAQ is giving wi-fi and bluetooth for a cheaper price than a Treo 600!!
For the price that I payed for my Treo 650, Wifi should have been included. I do hope that they will include it in their next product, if not, I will get a different PDA
Oh my god. You've got to be kidding me! That thing is HUGE! I'm already carrying a PDA phone (which ain't too small), now to get WiFi I nee d some Frankensteinein add-on? What about the SDIO option (PalmOne SD WiFi Card, about $80- shipped)for about $75 LESS?
My PalmOne WiFi card shows up today. With ShadowMites hack, I hope to be WiFi-ing the web sometime today. I'll keep you posted.
Yeah HP IPAQ Pocket PC has a GSM phone with Bluetooth and WIFI for the price of a Treo650. Has the time to move to Windows arrived?
Can you use the Wi-fi capabilities and still ue the phone and text message at the same time? Do you have to turn off one to use the other?
I just found out about the sled from a CompUsa flyer...they're selling the sled at their stores for $149, or $99 if you buy it with a Treo...agree it's a bit large, but I love my Treo and it is removable.
I just received my Enfora sled for the TREO 650 - what poor quality! The on/off switch is very finicky. The Treo can find it about once in 30 tries, then loses it after a few seconds anyway.
Wake up Palm marketing, don't use buffalo gun to shot UFO, bad decision one after the other, get a clue, there is a huge WiFi world out there. Just add WiFi, they will come!
Hi,
Is there any news on driver patches for the Treo 650 to get the internal PalmOne Wi-Fi card to work?
Thanks!!!
Clemens
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