Palm P850
| Company type | Smartphone model |
|---|---|
| Industry | Mobile phones |
| Founded | 2010 |
| Headquarters | China (market) |
| Products | Palm OS smartphone |
The Palm P850, also known as the Palm Treo P850, is a smartphone operating on the Palm OS platform that debuted in 2010. This model serves as a modest revision of the Treo 650, specifically designed to offer an economical smartphone alternative for the Chinese market.
Device Release
Palm's CEO Ed Colligan declared in early 2009 that no further Palm OS devices would be produced following the Palm Centro, as the company shifted its efforts toward creating a new operating system generation. Nevertheless, the Palm P850 was discreetly introduced in China in early 2010, with initial pricing ranging from 560 to 700 CNY and dropping to approximately 200 CNY by late 2011. It was marketed exclusively with Chinese language support and had minimal exposure outside China. Due to its hardware resemblance to earlier models and limited official distribution, some have speculated that it might be an unofficial "Shanzhai" product—potentially refurbished Treo 650 units adapted locally.
Hardware & Design
The Palm P850’s appearance is reminiscent of other Treo variants, featuring call and end keys similar to those on the Palm Treo Pro. Its construction utilizes plastic and incorporates a flush touchscreen, contrasting with the raised bezels found on previous Treos. The device includes an SD card slot compatible with both storage cards and SDIO accessories such as Wi-Fi modules. The back panel is labeled "smart phone" using white silk-screen printing.
Internally, this model closely resembles the CDMA Treo 650 released over five years prior but incorporates a SIM card slot to comply with Chinese network standards and upgrades the camera modestly to a 1.3-megapixel sensor. Regulatory markings are identical to those on the CDMA Treo 650, including FCC ID (O8FMADECA) and UPC (805931014801). On startup, the PalmOne logo appears—a brand name discontinued after PalmOne merged with PalmSource in 2005. At launch, the device operated on the outdated Palm OS 5.2H version.