Here's a special present to those Palm diehards out there that've been sticking with their Verizon service for the past months, hoping against hope that Palm will notice them hanging out over on the largest CDMA network in the States: the Verizon Treo 755p costs $400 with a two year contract, a full $150 more than you'll pay over on Sprint. The $400 price is after a $50 mail-in rebate, but if you play your cards right and spring for the right data plan you can get the final price down to $300. Obviously there's nothing new on the hardware end of things -- other than that ultra-fancy new paint job and Verizon logo -- so at least you folks know what you're getting yourselves into. Oh, and from the looks of things, this is that unnamed device Palm teased about earlier this month. Sorry to disappoint.

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]

Speculation is growing that the device Palm recently blamed for its revenue shortfall is none other than the yawn-worthy Treo 755p, a phone that launched on Sprint eons ago and, despite being rumored in Verizon trim eons ago as well, has apparently had all sorts of trouble getting through Big Red's testing process. While it's hard to deny that it's a pretty unspectacular handset at this point, we can also imagine that failing to launch it on the country's largest CDMA network would account for a significant drop in cash flow -- the Palm OS / Garnet faithful are still plentiful, after all, and there's no Centro in sight for Verizon at the moment. So, tell us: is anyone out there really drooling for this thing right now?

No surprises in the mix here, but we're delighted to see that Verizon is finally getting official with four smart devices that have been rumored to be in its pipeline for ages. Of the four, only the i760 from Samsung's been priced and slated for release -- October 19 online, November 2 in stores for $350 on contract after rebates -- featuring Windows Mobile 6 Professional, QWERTY slide-out and offset numeric keypads, and a 1.3 megapixel camera. The XV6800 succeeds the tired XV6700, going up against Sprint's Mogul by offering the HTC Titan reference design in a custom Verizon skin; it shows up with a 2 megapixel cam, WiFi, and a full QWERTY keyboard. Already released on several CDMA carriers, the HTC Libra sees the light of day on Verizon as the SMT5800 bearing Windows Mobile 6 Standard and a 2 megapixel cam (we loved the Libra's GSM cousin, and we're guessing this one's great too). Finally, make some noise, Palm OS fans -- it's okay, don't be shy! Verizon finally gets down with the Treo 755p, a phone that could ultimately serve as the platform's swan song in the classic Treo form factor. As we mentioned, only the i760 has been priced and dated at this point, but we'll keep ya in the loop just as soon as we know more.

Granted, the FCC has tugged on our heartstrings at times in the past, but shaking someone up this severely is edging on criminal. According to a slew of FCC submissions dated this month, there was actually a pair of GSM Reports ran on none other than Palm's 755p. No need to wipe the sleep from your eyes again, it says GSM -- as in, not CDMA. Of course, upon seeing such a bizarre treasure tucked away in the depths of the FCC, we feverishly clicked away and awaited as the PDF loaded, only to find a plethora of boring paperwork showing how successful this thing was at passing CDMA2000 850 / 1900 tests (presumably for Sprint). Not satisfied with the inconclusive results, we continued on to hit up every last piece of paperwork attached to the filing, only to read those four dreaded letters over and over without seeing a single mention of GSM. So, what's going on here Palm? Is there really a GSM-based 755p up your sleeve somewhere, or were there not one, but two cases of blatant mislabeling going on in this filing? After the jump, take a peek at the device associated with the listing.

Despite offering little more than a mild refresh to its already-ancient predecessor, initial reviews of Palm's latest and greatest Garnet device have been overwhelmingly positive. The same Palm OS niggles of old are still there -- the lack of multitasking capability is pretty hard to swallow at this point -- but for business users looking for familiarity and a time-tested formula, the platform simply can't be beat. Call quality and signal strength both seem to be quite good, a larger battery adds a wee bit of weight in exchange for improved standby and talk times, and the absence of an aerial is a welcome change that makes the Treo's overall design appear marginally less dated. If WiFi isn't a priority (keep in mind EV-DO picks up some of that slack), it looks like the 755p might be a great way for folks to get in on what'll likely be one of Garnet's last hurrahs.

Read - MobileTechReview (4 / 5 stars, "Another update to an already strong smartphone...")
Read - MobileBurn ("Highly Recommended")
Read - SlashGear (4.5 / 5 stars, "...still one of the best smartphones on the market...")
Read - Brighthand ("...a good buy...")

We know you're starting to get a little tired of the aerial on that 700p of yours; no, seriously, we feel your pain. You're looking longly at that 680 over there, but the leap over to Cingular -- and to GSM, for that matter -- can be a treacherous one indeed for some users. Happily, the 755p is coming just in time to save the day before you all go out of your gourds, and for a Garnet-based EV-DO piece, she's looking mighty purty. A reader wrote in to describe his recent brush with the 755p to us, and came away with the impression that it's slimmer, lighter, and easier to hold thanks to concave surfaces on the phone's sides. A couple launch keys on the front side have disappeared (leaving only two), the stylus is a little lighter, and although the camera is still a mere 1.3 megapixels, pictures are apparently of a much higher quality. Music to a weary 700p user's (or, better yet, a 650 user's) ears, eh? See you in the next couple months!

[Thanks, James]