With all the iPhone 3G craze going on today, not many mobile users know that the new Treo 800w from Palm has also been released in the US. Although it was said to be launched on July 13, the smartphone can actually be bought as of now from several Sprint retail stores.

As reported on the WM Experts forum, several users have already bought the 800w. The box it comes packed in presents it as a "magical device", but is it really? Well, the overall impression of users who got the new smartphone is that it's among the best smartphones to be released by Palm until now.

Treo 800w runs on the latest Windows Mobile 6.1 OS, it has about the same dimensions as the popular Palm Centro and it's very lightweight. The smartphone comes with some features that are embedded for the first time in a Palm handset, like GPS, A-GPS and Wi-Fi with one-touch shortcut.

The QWERTY keyboard of Treo 800w is said to be very easy to use, making the handset perfect for writing text messages or emails. Moreover, the new Palm comes with EV-DO Rev A connectivity, hence offering fast data transfer speeds. The square 320 x 320 pixel touchscreen display will also help users in getting a good mobile experience, while the 400MHz processor is there to make sure no lags are interfering with any of the applications packed in the device.

Other features that 800w comes with include a 2 Megapixel camera with video recording, microUSB 2.0, email and Instant Messaging, Media player and a 1150 mAh battery capable of providing up to 4 hours of talk-time and up to 200 hours of stand-by time. The new handset can also be used as a modem for your laptop.

With a 2-year contract agreement, Palm Treo 800w can be bought for as little as $250, if you already have a contract with Sprint and are eligible for a $150 loyalty program.

Sprint will probably announce these days the availability of Treo 800w all over the US, so users who want a new smartphone should check it out when they have the chance.