Treo, Treo, Everywhere!

It was a Treo-full day at GBBR. And when it was over, every agent who attended the SmartPhone Smart User seminar had a new bag of tips and tricks for using the indispensable tool of our trade. 

The guru of mobile devices, Dick Betts, led the seminar that focused on Windows and Palm-based Treos. He also talked about the Blackberry and iPhone, but there was no question that for real estate, the Treo rules. With this one device, you have a phone, calendar, calculator, computer, camera, email, iPod, and more, all in the palm of your hand.

Most of the class already had Treos, there were a few Blackberry owners and one iPhone, plus some who were there to help decide which to buy. Dick left no doubt that he's a Treo fan, and pointed out that it's hard to find a function that other phones offer that the Treo doesn't do.

We all came out of the class with new information, like how to rescue an almost drowned Treo. If you accidentally drop it in water – which Treos do not like – immediately remove the battery and use a hair dryer to get rid of the water. When it looks dry, place it in a box of rice overnight. After a good night's drying rest, your Treo should be ready to work again.

With so much good information, it's hard to pick favorites, but here are my top five tips from the seminar:

1. Graffiti. A long time ago I used a Palm PDA v5 and then an i705, and loved the graffiti feature. When I switched to the SmartPhone I could never get it work. But yesterday Dick beamed the program to my Treo and even set it up for me – yes! I have Graffiti again! That alone was worth the whole day. To top it off, I found this page on the Palm site with more on Graffiti. http://www.palm.com/us/support/handbooks/graffiti2_tips.pdf

2. Calculator. Much more than simple arithmetic is available on the calculator. There are multiple functions, and you can even run an adding machine tape!

3. PdaNet. You can use your Treo anywhere as a modem for your PC with PdaNet software, and save the $50 to $80 monthly fees for wireless service. It's slower, but the price is right.

4. Add a name and number to your Calendar – quickly. You're stopped at a traffic light and a friend wants to schedule a lunch date. Here's the quick and easy way to update your calendar:  Select day and time, select Options, select Phone Look Up, find the person, and click Add. You're done.

5. "Ignore" nicely. Did you know that when you hit the "Ignore" button, the person calling may be  aware of that? There is a way to change it – you just push the buttons on the side. Sooo simple!

Dick Betts has a lot of tips on his site – check them out at  http://tinyurl.com/ywvzhz. Dick is an NAR certified e-Pro trainer, and we were glad to have him share his expertise with the group. As for me, I'm delighted to have my Graffiti back!