In the past I've been vaguely critical of the Treo 680, going so far as to label it the poor-man's 750v and question the sort of person who wouldn't spring the extra cash and get the top-spec model. After spending some time with it, however, I'm beginning to change my mind; no small part of this is thanks to just how user-friendly the 680 can be.

Battery life, impacted by that 320x320 touchscreen (that's reasonable but lacks the eye-popping crispness of, say, the Samsung BlackJack), reaches the four hour mark; that's down on previous models, but in an attempt to follow the industry trend of slimness above all else the battery - as well as the casing - has been shaved slightly. It's now 0.8-inches thick and weighs just 5.5 ounces.

So why have I changed my mind? At first and even second glance, the Treo 680 looks to be a phone of compromises: moderate wireless data speed, middling battery life, average size and weight, all summed up with a reasonably low price (currently $199 with a two year contract). And yet in use its simplicity works for it, makes it more than the sum of its parts.

There's no steep learning curve, little of that niggling "I'm only using 10%" doubt that you sometimes feel with the top-spec Windows Mobile smartphones. Don't get me wrong, it's not feature light - setting up push-email with our Exchange server was a cinch, and webmail is handled nicely with some simple wizards. Pre-installed guide software will show first-time users how to get started, while Cingular and Palm have collaborated on a telephone helpline that's toll-free for the first ninety days of ownership.

To call the 680 a poor-man's alternative to the 750v is to miss the point of it entirely. Yes, it presents a lower price point to enter the world of Treo ownership, but it also caters to the many thousands of people who "just want it to work". Palm have been shrewd sticking with their incredibly user-friendly OS as opposed to the sometimes-tricky Windows smartphone offerings, and have built a handset that follows that straightforward ethos. I'd be very surprised if it fails to win them a whole lot more fans.

You can see the SlashPhone video unboxing and menu-walkthrough here, more photos of the Treo 680 here and find out details of Cingular's 680 deals here.