Why didn’t anyone tell me…

I have a deep desire to upgrade (sidegrade?) my iPod Photo 40gig to something newer, specifically to play video, and maybe more. The complexity of this problem falls in many places. I don’t mind doing a simple upgrade – the 80 or 160 gig iPods are cheaper and bigger than what I paid for my original iPod, but the problem lies in that there’s also the possibility that I could no longer carry a separate phone. Think of it – an iPod with a PDA built in! Ooh!

So here’s the problem starting. I use a Palm Treo 650 PDA-phone. I love the ToDo app. I live and die in that thing. I love the memos, syncing back and forth. I love that I don’t have a data plan and that my phone is portable across account changes. And I love that I’m currently outside any contract limits. But I don’t get email, I can’t browse anything, and syncing was a terrible mess until I decided to go with The Missing Sync. The PDA itself is a mess in many ways – pictures are annoying to find at best, media doesn’t work or convert or something, no movies that are non-MOV format – but the daily use of it is sufficient if not good. And it’s their third generation phone. They learned a couple things along the way, even if it was the wrong things. But I don’t have to think about it much. It works, mostly.

But enter the iPhone or iPod touch. You can have the data things you use your PC for as a communication device, but you have to puchase yet another data source (DSL/Cable modem alone running you 20 to 50 or more a month). As a media device, it’s incredible. As a PDA, it has a lot to learn. There is no ToDo application, counting on web apps to fulfill this currently. Memos or notes have to be tucked into emails to be sent off the phone, you have to subscribe to another data plan whether you want to or not, and the storage is currently very limited. I checked, and my current audiobook queue would fit handily, but compared to an 80 or 160 gig iPod, it’s tiny. I’d be limited to just that queue, maybe one television show and some pictures, and maybe some of my most favorite music, but it’d be full at that point.

So the question is this. Do I give up on the daily-use phone/PDA in hopes that Apple finishes this end of their device, knowing that I no longer have to maintain two devices to do the job of one (kinda), and gaining a significantly better media device out of it, or do I get another used Treo and wait for Apple to up the storage and features to match closer what I have now, or someone to beat Apple at the same game?

My suspicion is that there are lots of people in similar situations to me, watching and waiting with money that could be spent and little motivation to jump on the early wagon. My personal situation is spurred on by the surprise breaking of the Treo – the SIM won’t read properly – meaning I can try going entirely without the phone aspect for now. But what happens if I decide I don’t need one at all? Would I consider an iPod Touch 160? You bet I would. But I’d like more of the communications pieces included. Indeed, if they’re making handheld communicators, they have a bit farther to go – iChat client for both models, email client on the Touch, editable calendar on the Touch (morons!), and more.