help me choose! laptop vs palm

[JDMcelica]

Well I will be off to college soon and I want something that I can use to 1) log on to the internet via wireless lan card in campus and surf the net, chat, check email, compose email 2) take notes during class at a preferablly fast speed

my friend has recently purchased a Sony NX70v with WiFi Card and 16meg memory stick and he needs money fast. He is willing to sell it for around 350 dollars to me, and everything is in excellent condition. (The wifi card alone costed him 150 dollars). I am all for this but I dont know just how practical this might be. I will only use it to surf the web and take notes but I dont know if it'll be convenient enough to take notes on... you have to use a thumb keyboard i believe.

heres a review on the NX70V
http://reviews.cnet.com/4505-3128_7-20490023.html

OR

I can purchase an old sony lap top (those very minature ones with like 10' inch screens) for who knows how much. I believe I can find like a pentium 2 300 mhz one for sub 500 dollars. Can you guys suggest a model of this sort if you have any idea?

What would you do if you were in my position? I know the palm is a great buy but I dont know if I am going to use it all that much. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated! thanks guys.

 

[hjo3]

FWIW, you can buy a full size keyboard to connect to the NX70V, but it's $90 new from SONY.

 

[JDMcelica]

yes i definately do want a laptop but i also dont want a huge one to lug around everywhere. what do you guys think of picturebooks like the one here. http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dl...&category=31556

are there alternatives to picture books? im looking for a laptop that is very very small in size.

btw they dont offer a foldable keyboard for that specific model pda.

 

[daniel1113]

I would check out the laptops on eBay. You can get a 600 Mhz (or so) P3 with 256+ MB of RAM and a 20GB hard drive for $350. The pockect PCs are nice, but they are not good for notes in class. The keyboards are not that good, and the screens are just to small to use for that sort of thing. I would say go for a laptop instead.

 

[hjo3]

> btw they dont offer a foldable keyboard for that specific model pda.

Though not specifically listed as a compatible model, the PEGA-KB11 is compatible with the PEG-NX70V. A call to Sony technical support confirms this.

 

[Jeff7181]

Definately don't get a Palm as your main internet connection... but they do come in handy... I'd recommend getting a cheap one... like the Palm Zire or Palm m5xx series.

 

[corkyg]

Both are ideal. If you only have one - go laptop. I've somehow never enjoyed a DVD movie on a PDA!

 

[DaveSimmons]

If you have a spare $1500, Sony has a 1.8 LB sub-notebook, or $1900 for it with a 12-hour battery.

 

[kalster]

how about a small laptop with a 12" screen


check this out

http://www.averatec.com/demo2.html


this can be had for around 600 dollars, not bad ayye

not the most powerful pc but will more than do wat ur look for and can play the occasional dvd too

 

[vegetation]

Definitely get a laptop, a palm type device isn't very good at seriously browsing the internet or inputting large amounts of text. Even a very old P2 laptop will run circles around the best of the pda's out there.

 

[JDMcelica]

Originally posted by: kalster
how about a small laptop with a 12" screen


check this out

http://www.averatec.com/demo2.html


this can be had for around 600 dollars, not bad ayye

not the most powerful pc but will more than do wat ur look for and can play the occasional dvd too

wow 600 dollars? where? can you show me a site?

 

[Cadaver]

The PalmOS & its apps are nice for what they do (I've gone from a Palm III to a Palm V to a Clie TEG665c), but I'm finding for things like wireless networking/internet the PocketPC platform to be better. Just my opinion of course, but I have no trouble using the 802.11b built-in to my Toshiba e755 to check email & nearly any website from work (building-wide wireless access) and home (wireless at home, too). PocketPC 2003 also has a Terminal Services app which allows me to access my WinXP desktop remotely - very cool for such a little device.

If I add the $99 adapter that gives me an 800x600 VGA out, I could practically live without a laptop (which I often carry around to give PowerPoint lectures off of).

Plus, the ability to view/edit most Word and Excel files without modification (i.e., Documents To Go on the Palm) is a big bonus, too. The CF and SD slots on the e755 are a huge plus as well.

I still love my Palm devices, but for me the e755 and PocketPC 2003 is much more powerful and flexible.