As many Treo owners already know, your car provides many great opportunities to use your Treo. You can play MP3s through your car stereo, listen to audio books, find your way around town using GPS navigation programs, and even check email (though I would recommend against doing so while driving). However, in order to do these things you really need a way to secure your Treo in a location that is easy to see, doesn’t get in your way, and won’t slide around if you stop quickly or take a sharp turn. What you need is a car cradle, and since there are many choices available, you need to figure out what type of cradle will work best for you.

Finding the perfect car cradle for your Treo is a lot like finding the perfect Treo case because what works great in one set of conditions might not work as well in others. And the reality is that when you are buying one you should be thinking about the other because the case and the cradle need to work together to meet your needs. Some cradles will hold your Treo while it is still in the case while others require you to remove the Treo from the case, with different pros and cons for each type. The Seidio Custom Vehicle Mount for the Treo 650 is the type of cradle that requires your Treo to be out of a case and un-skinned, which was fine for me because I often use a pouch/holster-type case which is perfect for this type of cradle.

I have a dash-mounted cradle that works great in my Jeep Wrangler, but I’ve been looking for a removable cradle that I can use in my wife’s car or in rental cars while on business trips. I wanted something that would easy to install, would stay fixed and stable while in use, and would be easy to remove when I’m done. Those requirements are what attracted me to the Seidio Custom Vehicle Mount for the Treo 650, a gooseneck-type, suction-cup mount cradle for the Treo 650.

As you would expect, the gooseneck part of the cradle can be bent into different positions to provide the optimal angle between the windshield and where you want your Treo to be positioned for easy access. If you will be using the same cradle in different cars, this is an important feature because the angle of the windshield and the layout of the dashboard can vary quite a bit and you need something that will be adjustable.

How Well Does it Work?

First, I should mention that this cradle is specifically designed to hold the Treo 650 and as a result, the 650 slides in easily and fits snugly. You can use it with a Treo 700p, but the fit isn’t as perfect because you can’t slide it the entire way down to the bottom of the cradle. That said, personally I don’t see a problem with using this cradle with the 700p (it worked fine for me) as long as you realize that it won’t fit as well as with a Treo 650.

My main concern with a gooseneck cradle and suction-cup mount was that I wasn’t sure how well it would stick to the windshield or how much it would bounce around while I was driving. However, I was very impressed with how firmly the Seidio cradle stuck to the windshield and how little it moved around once it was in place. The entire structure was very stable, with almost no movement. However, I decided to put it to a real-world driving test.

In my Jeep Wrangler (a very bumpy ride), I noticed that the Treo would bounce around as I would drive over some bumps or go over a rough patch of road. But I soon realized that if I changed the angle of the gooseneck so that it was more vertical than horizontal (see above picture), the vibrations were greatly reduced. And realistically, these vibrations were only a problem if I was trying to read something on the Treo’s screen. Yes, I know I already mentioned you shouldn’t read email while driving, but since this was a road test I felt I should make an exception.

I also noticed that the vibrations could be eliminated completely if you position the gooseneck so that the bottom edge of the cradle touched the dash. The main problem with doing this is that, depending on the angle of the cradle and the dash, this might prevent you from plugging in a power charger or audio output plug into the bottom of the Treo.

The Seidio Custom Vehicle Mount also comes with a “console attachment” which is basically a plastic lid with sticky tape on one side so it can be attached to your dash or some other surface. The suction-cup side of the cradle then attaches easily to the other side of the lid. This might be useful if you want to mount the Treo on the dash or center console but don’t have a smooth surface that will work with the suction cup. While I didn’t use the console attachment, this is a nice extra to have in case you need it.

Usability

While I think the Seidio cradle worked as well as or better than I had expected for this type of cradle, there were a couple of things I ran into that might be nice to see addressed in the future.

Even though the cradle fit the Treo 650 perfectly, I kept thinking it might be nice if the inside of the cradle had some sort of soft lining so that the plastic of the Treo body wasn’t in direct touch with the plastic of the cradle. But since I didn’t notice any marks on my Treo as a result of sliding it in and out of the cradle several times, maybe I’m just being paranoid.

There were a also few times when it would have been nice if the cradle could be rotated from side to side so it can be seen by both the passenger and driver, or possibly just to change the angle if there is a problem with glare on the Treo’s screen. But this also isn’t a big deal because it is easy to remove the Treo, do whatever you need to do, and then put it back when you are done.

Summary

Overall, I was quite satisfied with the Seidio Custom Vehicle Mount for the Treo 650. Being designed specifically for the Treo 650, it was easy to insert and remove the Treo without having to adjust the cradle each time. And I was pleasantly surprised by the rigidity of the mount. If you want a cradle that you can use in a variety of cars, I would definitely recommend it.

Pros:

• Comes with suction mount for attaching to windshield, avoiding the need to stick anything to the dashboard

• Also comes with a console attachment plate for mounting to the dashboard or center console if desired
• Flexible gooseneck is very firm and resists vibration
• Excellent suction cup established a very tight bond between gooseneck and windshield.
• Specifically designed to hold your Treo. No need to make adjustments for a tight fit and no fear it will slide out.

Cons:

• Won’t work if your Treo has a skin or case on it.

• Works fine for the Treo 700p, but the 700p doesn’t slide all the way into the cradle.
• Won’t hold your iPod or other devices
• Might still have some vibration under certain conditions

Related Links

Buy Seidio Custom Vehicle Mount for Treo 650

Other Car Kits and Vehicle Mounts

Filed under: Accessory reviews