The CDMA Treo, which will carry both the Handspring and Sprint brands, will be sold initially through Sprint's distribution channels and on the Handpsring's Web site by the third quarter of this year, according to a statement by the companies.

It will be designed to work on Sprint's 3G network, which the carrier expects to launch midyear.

Speedier Service
The 3G network will enable data services at a maximum speed of 144 kbps, with average speeds of 50 kbps to 70 kbps. Within two years, the Kansas City-based carrier expects the network to operate as speeds as high as 5 mbps.

Mountain View, California-based Handspring began selling a version of the Treo, a combination phone and handheld computer that runs the PalmSource Palm OS operating system, in the U.S. last month.

That version uses the Global System for Mobile Communication cellular technology. Handspring sells it for $549, or $399 with service activation from Cingular Wireless or VoiceStream Wireless.