October 2007 when I blogged about the US$99 PDA-Phone from Palm called Centro in this post. I was jubilant, looking forward to retire my four-year old Palm Treo.

But I was disappointed when earlier this week, the Palm Philippines website featured the Centro with a price tag of Php17,490.

What? I thought it will just be US$99 or something? But with the current ForEx of Php41 = US$1, that will be somewhere around US$426++

Shall I blame the government for the bureaucratic tax system, making the Centro’s price blow to Php17,000++? Or is it because in the States, Centro is being offered at US$99 that comes with a phone plan locked for two years (thanks to Sprint)?

I wonder when will the local telco’s offer Centro in bundle. Oh, another thing, the unit that is available locally comes in white color only. How I hate gadgets colored in white. I guess my Palm Treo will have to wait for a couple of months more before retiring.