Features

MOUNTAIN VIEW — Handspring Inc. has stopped shipping two models of its new Treo handheld devices after discovering some of them won’t light up. 

A defective component in the backlight assembly has caused the screens of some Treo 90 and Treo 270 models to go dark over time, making them unreadable, company spokesman Allen Bush said Wednesday. 

The Mountain View-based company expects to begin shipping the products again, after replacing the faulty part, within two to three weeks. Customers with defective models will get free replacements. 

Company officials would not disclose how many units were affected but said tests showed only a “small amount” of them malfunctioned, and that most Treo 90 and 270 models should not experience the problem.