Verizon's Treo Talks to Toyotas
Here's some welcome news on the Bluetooth front: Verizon Wireless has finally released a software update that fixes one of the more annoying compatibility glitches with its version of the Palm Treo 650 smartphone. I wrote about this in Help File back in April.
Essentially, a Verizon Treo 650 would be unable to finish the "pairing" process necessary for it to use Toyota's or Lexus's Bluetooth hardware as a hands-free kit. There was no hardware fault to blame for this; other carriers' Treo 650s had included the required software fix for months already.
About two weeks ago, Verizon caught up to them. After waiting a week or so to see if other users had reported widespread problems, I applied this updater to my own 650. The software-upload process was the usual annoying routine of first backing up the Treo's data, then wiping its memory--required to free up enough memory for the updater--running the updater, then reloading all my data.
But at the end of the process, the 650's Bluetooth finally worked as advertised, pairing up successfully with the Bluetooth gear in our own Toyota Prius. And whaddyaknow, this option is really convenient! With the phone and car linked via Bluetooth, an incoming caller's number shows up on the Prius's central display; when I press the phone-answer button on the steering wheel, the stereo pauses and I can carry on the conversation using the car's own speakers and microphone. Much more convenient than trying to fish the phone out of a pocket, then hold it to my head or activate its own speakerphone function.
I can also beam over address-book entries from phone to car, then dial them with a press of a button on the Prius's screen. The only catch is the Toyota software's limit of one phone number per contact; I'll have to edit the 650's address book temporarily before sending over the numbers for the people I call most often.
I've had this Treo 650 for almost a year and a half, but this is the first time I've had a good reason to keep its Bluetooth function enabled.
Updater Available Here: