UK gadgetheads who have looked longingly over the Atlantic at Palm’s Treo 700w, essentially the popular Treo 650 but running Windows software rather than Palm’s own system, will not have to wait much longer.

Vodafone has announced it is launch a Windows-based Palm smartphone by the end of this year in the UK and for other European countries. The device is expected to be a powerful rival to BlackBerry devices since it will offer real-time push email and will also offer the higher data speeds of Vodafone’s 3G network.

Vodafone’s Nick Jeffery says: "The new Treo smartphone will be a market-leading device, which combined with our high-speed 3G/UMTS network and real-time push email, will make this an invaluable business tool."

Further details will be announced closer to launch but it will be surprising if the new device, which has not yet been named, does not include onboard wi-fi.