Does a PDA have this? do this?

[XiZiT]

Hey guys, I'm generally a n00b when it comes to PDAs. I never had one before and not very interested at this point. However, I would like to get someone a PDA. I know that ones like the HP iPAQ RZ1715 run on an SD card (comes with 32mb). Are there any cheap (<3$00 ones where they have their own harddrive instead of running only on memory cardS? My friend likes to snap pictures on his digi cam, so it be ideal if he can take all his photos from the camera and store them on the PDA (clear out the flash card and then reinsert it back on his camera). Is this possible? Does any PDA do this?

Much thanks!

 

[Buz2b]

Originally posted by: XiZiT
Hey guys, I'm generally a n00b when it comes to PDAs. I never had one before and not very interested at this point. However, I would like to get someone a PDA. I know that ones like the HP iPAQ RZ1715 run on an SD card (comes with 32mb). Are there any cheap (<3$00 ones where they have their own harddrive instead of running only on memory cardS? My friend likes to snap pictures on his digi cam, so it be ideal if he can take all his photos from the camera and store them on the PDA (clear out the flash card and then reinsert it back on his camera). Is this possible? Does any PDA do this?

Much thanks!

Not aware of PDA's that "run" on SD cards. They use them for storage and (if enabled) run programs from them. But they all usually have their own memory (like a hard drive). Yes, there are "inexpensive" ones that have their own hardrive. Think of a memory card as a CDRW disk for a PDA.
That HP you mentioned is actually a POS. Not enough onboard memory and way underpowered for the price with only a 203mhz processor and only 25 MB of user available storage. That's why they stress using SD cards.
As to other suggestions, there are lots but here's one worth looking at and it seems to fall into your price range......Dell Axim X30 reviews and comparisons.
One thing to keep in mind that it will be the software that will be key in viewing digital pictures; along with the power of the system itself. Here's a good one to look at but there are others. I hope this helps.

 

[RKS]

If it is for storage use only wouldn't it be cheaper and easier to carry if he just bought extra SD cards?

 

[Buz2b]

Originally posted by: RKS
If it is for storage use only wouldn't it be cheaper and easier to carry if he just bought extra SD cards?

Yeah but not as much fun as having the PDA to view them. Actually that is one point I did leave out of my post. Thanks for mentioning it. Actually, a PDA is a poor portable storage option for digital pictures. I guess I kind of got stuck on the PDA thing for a bit.
For something more dedicated to Digital photography, you would want something like this. Although products in this catagory are generally more expensive, they offer (typically) at least 20-40 GB's of storage. Again, more expensive but if you are looking strictly at portable digital photo storage and viewing, this is the route to go.

 

[RKS]

Originally posted by: Buz2b

Originally posted by: RKS
If it is for storage use only wouldn't it be cheaper and easier to carry if he just bought extra SD cards?

Yeah but not as much fun as having the PDA to view them. Actually that is one point I did leave out of my post. Thanks for mentioning it. Actually, a PDA is a poor portable storage option for digital pictures. I guess I kind of got stuck on the PDA thing for a bit.
For something more dedicated to Digital photography, you would want something like this. Although products in this catagory are generally more expensive, they offer (typically) at least 20-40 GB's of storage. Again, more expensive but if you are looking strictly at portable digital photo storage and viewing, this is the route to go.

then I would just buy any PDA with a decent screen resolution that accepts the same type of memory as my camera and still buy extra memory cards.

edit: I take a lot of pics at a time on my Canon A85 and even at the highest setting they don't even come close to filling the 1GB memory card. It doesn't seem like the OP is buying equipment for a pro photographer.

But shopping for new gadgets is always cool. I bought my wife an iRiver H320 that she hasen't even turned on so I had to 'test' it for a while.

 

[Buz2b]

Originally posted by: RKS

Originally posted by: Buz2b

Originally posted by: RKS
If it is for storage use only wouldn't it be cheaper and easier to carry if he just bought extra SD cards?

Yeah but not as much fun as having the PDA to view them. Actually that is one point I did leave out of my post. Thanks for mentioning it. Actually, a PDA is a poor portable storage option for digital pictures. I guess I kind of got stuck on the PDA thing for a bit.
For something more dedicated to Digital photography, you would want something like this. Although products in this catagory are generally more expensive, they offer (typically) at least 20-40 GB's of storage. Again, more expensive but if you are looking strictly at portable digital photo storage and viewing, this is the route to go.

then I would just buy any PDA with a decent screen resolution that accepts the same type of memory as my camera and still buy extra memory cards.

edit: I take a lot of pics at a time on my Canon A85 and even at the highest setting they don't even come close to filling the 1GB memory card. It doesn't seem like the OP is buying equipment for a pro photographer.

But shopping for new gadgets is always cool. I bought my wife an iRiver H320 that she hasen't even turned on so I had to 'test' it for a while.

Yeah but the problem is that he said:

so it be ideal if he can take all his photos from the camera and store them on the PDA (clear out the flash card and then reinsert it back on his camera).

That implies a lot more storage that even the best PDA can offer. That is why I linked to that Epson viewer-storage device. BTW OP, there are lots of this kind of "gadget" out there; some more and some for less $$. I just linked to that one because it was the first to come up in a google search.
Other than that RKS, I would agree with you about getting a PDA. I wouldn't get the one he linked to though; it wasn't worth the trouble. However, it's a moot point if he indeed wants to do as he mentioned; move digital pictures to some sort of mobile device. A PDA just isn't ideal for that......yet. Who knows what the future will provide us.
BTW, a couple of years ago I bought the wife a PDA, then last year a nephew got one from us. Both cases of course they had to go through strict "testing" by yours truely before they could be released to their new owners. It's a tough job but somebody has to do it! LOL!

 

[anarchyreigns]

The new Palm LifeDrive is what you want...comes with a four gig hard drive.

http://www.palmone.com/us/products/mobilemanagers/lifedrive/

 

[Buz2b]

Originally posted by: anarchyreigns
The new Palm LifeDrive is what you want...comes with a four gig hard drive.

http://www.palmone.com/us/products/mobilemanagers/lifedrive/

Only problem is the price, slower speed, screen brightness, battery life and weight. Other than that, it is a nice unit. Seriously though, this does have it's uses for sure. The best price I found on this was $440 w/shipping and they go all the way up to over $540 at Dell. That's a lot of change. On the bright side it does have a nice picture slide show viewer and you could certainly store a lot of pictures on the 4 gb micro drive. At this price point and size I think it's a bit over the top but it won't be long before the microdrives or similar make their way into more mainstream Windows mobile based devices at a cheaper price.
BTW, here's a pretty extensive review on this unit.

 

[XiZiT]

Thanks for all the replies. I have a better undertanding of this now. Also, the Dell Axim? X30 looks the most attractive, since unlike the Epson, it has its PDA qualities. But with only 32mb of ROM and 32mb of RAM, isn't that insufficient for transferring photos from a digi cam?

 

[gsaldivar]

Originally posted by: XiZiT
the Dell Axim? X30 looks the most attractive...But with only 32mb of ROM and 32mb of RAM, isn't that insufficient for transferring photos from a digi cam?

Um, yea.... Once you stick your camera's memory card into the X30, where do you plan to save the photos?

 

[XiZiT]

Originally posted by: gsaldivar

Originally posted by: XiZiT
the Dell Axim? X30 looks the most attractive...But with only 32mb of ROM and 32mb of RAM, isn't that insufficient for transferring photos from a digi cam?

Um, yea.... Once you stick your camera's memory card into the X30, where do you plan to save the photos?

Errr... I think you worded your answer more confusing then I did my question. But anyway I just ordered a Dell Axim X50 for $270. Not bad I think. Free shipping, 20% off original price, etc. Dell has lower prices then the other sites.

Thanks again guys.

 

[gsaldivar]

Originally posted by: XiZiT
Once you stick your camera's memory card into the X30, where do you plan to save the photos?

Errr... I think you worded your answer more confusing then I did my question. But anyway I just ordered a Dell Axim X50 for $270. Not bad I think. Free shipping, 20% off original price, etc. Dell has lower prices then the other sites.

Thanks again guys.

Sorry, my point is that the Dell PDA's you're looking at have only flash memory storage. Once you insert the memory card from your camera into the X50, where do you plan to "dump" the pictures, to free up the memory card for more photos?

My friend likes to snap pictures on his digi cam, so it be ideal if he can take all his photos from the camera and store them on the PDA (clear out the flash card and then reinsert it back on his camera)

You got a really good price on the PDA, but it doesn't do anything to solve the problem in your original post. I'd suggest cancelling the order for the Dell PDA and getting either the Epson, Palm, or similar photoviewer/PDA hybrid equipped with an internal hard drive.

Good luck! :thumbsup:

 

[XiZiT]

My friend likes to snap pictures on his digi cam, so it be ideal if he can take all his photos from the camera and store them on the PDA (clear out the flash card and then reinsert it back on his camera)

You got a really good price on the PDA, but it doesn't do anything to solve the problem in your original post. I'd suggest cancelling the order for the Dell PDA and getting either the Epson, Palm, or similar photoviewer/PDA hybrid equipped with an internal hard drive.

Good luck! :thumbsup:
[/quote]

Oh man...that's bad
So can you give me a recommendation? Does an IPaq do such a thing? I would cancel the order asap (how though?) if you can suggest something for $300 or less.

Damn, thanks for the heads up.

 

[gsaldivar]

Originally posted by: XiZiT
My friend likes to snap pictures on his digi cam, so it be ideal if he can take all his photos from the camera and store them on the PDA (clear out the flash card and then reinsert it back on his camera)

So can you give me a recommendation? Does an IPaq do such a thing? I would cancel the order asap (how though?) if you can suggest something for $300 or less.

Any hybrid PDA device equipped with a hard disk and flash memory slot should allow you to accomplish what you want. Two mentioned in this thread were the Epson P-2000 and the Palm LifeDrive. Having both a memory slot AND a hard disk will allow the device to read all the images off your memory cards, store them on the hard drive, then erase the memory cards for reuse in your digital camera. This will give you the ability to archive a large number of photos on-the-road (~1600 high quality 4MP images for the LifeDrive, ~8000 high quality 4MP images for the Epson), without having to use a computer or laptop.

There are many other devices that have both memory slots and a Hard Disk, unfortunately, I don't have first-hand experience with them, so I can't make a solid reccommendation for you. I'd suggest asking in a photographer's forum, or in Off Topic, where you may get more feedback.

Your main problem will be finding something that fits within your budget. You may have to resort to a refurbished or used unit to find something that comes in under $300. I'd suggest making a list of the units that meet your needs, and checking eBay, Craigslist, Froogle, etc. for any that might be within your price range. If you're unable to find one this way, I'd seriously consider increasing your budget or possibly financing a device that meets your needs.

If all else fails, consider investing in several large flash memory cards instead - you will lose the ability to preview your photos in a separate device on-the-road, but you should still have the ability to take large numbers of digital pictures without needing to archive to a computer or laptop periodically.

Example: 1GB CF/SD Flash Card x 4 = $299 from Costco (Each card should store ~400 high-quality 4MP images = ~1600 total images stored on 4 x 1GB flash cards.)

 

[Buz2b]

Any hybrid PDA device equipped with a hard disk and flash memory slot should allow you to accomplish what you want. Two mentioned in this thread were the Epson P-2000 and the Palm LifeDrive.

Actually, the problem is that there are damned few "hybrids" now that do this. The Epson is NOT one of them. It is not a PDA and has virtually none of the functionality of one. The Palm LifeDrive is one of the few that fit in this niche and it is too expensive; as mentioned. So he can Froogle, Google, Craiglist and ebay all he wants for this; it won't happen. There is nothing around that can do PDA AND mass storage: Not in this price point.
To the OP of this thread, there is nothing wrong with the Dell you ordered but it does not have the storage you want. Yes, it handles SD cards just fine and can offload some of the pics but not nearly as many as you would want. However, it is a damned fine PDA and would work just fine for anyone other than a serious photographer. If nothing else, your friend could view his pics directly from the SD card on the Dell and get rid of the "not so hot" pics easier than viewing on the camera. Other than that, the Palm LifeDrive is your best bet though it is still too costly. Personally, I'd stick with the PDA.

 

[XiZiT]

Thanks buz, gsaldivar and others. I'm just going to explain to my friend that the Axim is not so bad after all. Plus, I hear it has a GPS navigational system add on, so that's a plus too.