After a long wait, users of unlocked Palm Treo 750 units can now get the free upgrade to Windows Mobile 6 promised to them by Palm Inc. in March.

The ROM, version 2.23-ROW, upgrades Treo 750 units which have not been branded by a carrier such as Vodafone or Cingular. These units have been sold for use on any GSM service. Vodafone-branded Treos received their operating system upgrade in August.

The new ROM update was discovered shortly before it became officially available, by forum members at Dutch-language site PalmClub.nl, who found a hidden download page. The link is now active from Palm's main Windows Mobile 6 update page, with complete instructions on installation.

Some Risks Involved

The Palm support page notes several potential drawbacks, including the fact that the Blackberry Connect client does not support Windows Mobile 6, and that once the ROM update has been applied, the user cannot revert to Windows Mobile 5.

As with any ROM update, users are advised to proceed with caution and make sure that any important data is fully backed up before attempting to install the upgrade.