I've finally given in to the pressure. In fact, I had no choice. My trusty SamSung i330 finally died.

Even my old visor keyboard died; and my wired headset is in a couple of pieces as well.

Ever had the feeling that all the warranties on everything you own have expired at the same time? Well, it's been that kind of a week.

We have been waiting for the new Treo devices to come out and have been hearing rumors of all the wonderful advances with the next generation of these smarter devices; but as circumstances dictate I couldn't wait 'til next spring.

I needed a phone immediately. There's something about a cell-phone/PDA bouncing off a hard concrete floor that can just ruin your day.

Anyway, I needed a cell phone and I was just around the corner from my favorite CompUSA, so I bought a Treo 650 with the Bluetooth headset and the full two-year warranty.

My business partner received one for Christmas last year and he's been showing it off to me ever since.

I figured that, if I get one, he can show me some of the tricks he's learned this past year and if he ever needs to upgrade to another phone, I'll inherit all of his accessories.

Sounded like a plan to me.

Anyway, this Bluetooth thing is pretty neat. The Bluetooth-based, wireless headset works perfectly. It never gets tangled up while I'm driving, shifting gears, and drinking my coffee at the same time.

Just a press of a button on the headset allows me to connect to the Treo without having to pull it out of my back pocket.

But, my favorite accessory is the keyboard based on this Bluetooth technology.

I purchased a Bluetooth keyboard from the folks at thinkoutside.com.

Bluetooth Power

The keyboard is made by the same guys who made my Visor folding keyboard.

The first noticeable difference with the Bluetooth-driven keyboard is the need for its own power source.

Just as with the headsets, the Bluetooth keyboard requires a battery - either rechargeable or alkaline.

My old Visor keyboard drew power from the PDA itself, which kind of shortens the battery life on the Visor.

So far, battery drain on the Treo is pretty minimal. I personally prefer alkaline batteries versus rechargeable batteries, especially for my accessories.

It's not that I'm not eco-conscious. I just like the convenience of popping into a 7- Eleven and buying a replacement battery as opposed to carrying around a charger for each one of the accessories that I own.

Of course, you need to carry around a power strip, a car adapter, and all the corded chargers. If you travel, it can be a real pain.

I was just trying to get rid of all the wires, by going wireless, and now I have to deal with all these recharge cables. Forget it. Give me a couple of AA or AAA batteries instead.

My old technique of typing everything on my Visor, then beaming the data to my Treo is still valid, but it is much easier just to carry two items instead of three - Treo and Bluetooth keyboard - as opposed to Treo (which is also my cell phone), keyboard, and Visor.

There is one drawback. The Treo still has to be "on" while doing any kind of keyboard input. (Duh!)

Of course, this puts a battery drain on the Treo, especially with its super-bright screen. Although this isn't too bad since the battery in the Treo lasts a few days on a full charge.

But, as with most PDAs, the rechargeable battery in the Treo is still a bottleneck. The new Treos 700 series will be coming out with a hot swappable battery similar to most cell phones.

Supposedly, with this next generation of Treos, you won't lose your data if you pull the battery out and replace it with a fresh one. Currently, the 650s will retain your data and will not do a hard reboot if you pull the battery like it did in the older units.

Unfortunately, the folks at Palm don't give you a second battery; nor do they give you a way to recharge a second battery independent from plugging in directly to the Treo.

Fortunately, on the other hand, the keyboard uses a couple of hassle-free AA batteries.

The Keyboard

The fold on this folding keyboard is a single "book" fold compared to the accordion-like "quad" fold on the folding keyboard for my old Visor.

The dimensions are still only 3.9"x 5.5" x 0.5" closed and 5.8" x 9.9" x 0.5" open.

The weight of the keyboard is only 5.5 oz., making it small enough to fit in your back pocket, backpack or purse.

The input stream from the keyboard is smooth and effortless. No "jaggies" like with some of the old IR keyboards, especially if you are a fast typist.

You can do text, numbers, and symbols, both domestic and international. It is a full-sized keyboard with most of the functions you would expect.

There is a slight learning curve - getting familiar with the keyboard quirks such as function keys, command keys, and scroll keys.

This keyboard is also compatible with a whole bunch of other Bluetooth devices. You are not just limited to one device should you ever add to your Bluetooth-enabled PDA or Bluetooth-enabled cell phone collection.

You can use it with your Bluetooth-compatible PocketPC device or any other compatible cell-phone unit.

The Setup

The setup is pretty easy no matter which device you use. Just put your "discoverable" setting on "yes" and the keyboard will identify itself when you select "add device."

I keep both my Bluetooth headset and Bluetooth keyboard on my "trusted device" list so they are both immediately available to me when I need them.

So far. I have been pretty pleased with this new combination of devices.