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I NEED A PDA !!! So all of you mobile addicts.... help me out please....

H

HardwareAddicted

Golden Member

I have finally got the mobile bug and now need to get a PDA to start with.

First of all.... I tend to be a power user.... so I'm not looking to get a $100 unit.

Second.... OS ? Pocket PC or Palm ?

Third.... I want wireless lan ability, and BIG nice display.

Dell's new one looks ok .... but I need opinions from veterans of PDAs b4 I jump in.

Sony I hear people like alot.... so what about AT forum users ?????? 🙂

I guess I should ask for 2 catagories.... "$$$ is no object", then the "best bang for the buck"

Let'r rip guys.... tell what you think.... what sucks ? What ROCKS ???

~ Mark
 
You want a PocketPC, without a doubt.

The new Dell does look nice, but definitely check out the new Viewsonic. That one looks awesome!
 
Actually, your 2 conditions are pretty easy to answer right now:

Price no object: HP iPAQ 5400/5600 series (integrated Bluetooth/802.11b/transreflective screen) Best one out, most powerful, ~$700

Best value: Dell Axim X5 (64MB model) Transreflective screen, CF/SD slot, ~$250 after rebates

There are many in between. If you're looking to drop a wad of cash, get the iPAQ. Otherwise, look at either the Dell or the Viewsonic. If you want a BIG display, the Toshiba e500G is the only way to go (the ONLY PocketPC with a 4" screen).
 

Well... I must admit.... I am looking hard at the the new Dell Axim 64mb model....

I can't seem to figure out how to get it to $250 though.... must take more time on the forums here.... I know guys here have it figured out.

Bottom line : I just can't see justify the cost of a Sony or iPaq.... the Dell seems to have it covered well.
(Although I will have to buy a wireless 802.11b adapter)

Thx for the input guys.... 🙂

If you just found this thread.... throw your 2 cents in..... it's all good.

I'm 70/30 on the Dell so far.....

~ Mark
 
I've been looking at the Toshiba e740 because of the good review on Cnet here

It's Cnet's #1 product, but the Dell is very attractive too. The biggest question is when will they be releasing a wireless adapter for the Dell?
 
Originally posted by: Syborg1211
I've been looking at the Toshiba e740 because of the good review on Cnet here

It's Cnet's #1 product, but the Dell is very attractive too. The biggest question is when will they be releasing a wireless adapter for the Dell?
Click to expand...
There are already quite a few CF wireless cards available-any of those will work with the dell.
 
Based on what I saw at Comdex, I'd get a Palm Tungsten T, definitely.

It handles Microsoft Office files even better than Microsoft's own PocketPC's do. (Documents-To-Go is included with the Tungsten T. They showed how viewing and editing a complex Word doc with pictures, tables, and columns on the Palm still looked perfect, but on the PocketPC it ended up totally ruined.)

Has a high-res 65k color screen (similar to what Sony uses) and a new ARM processor, and will run multimedia apps for MP3 and full-motion video. (I watched clips of the new James Bond movie, and the "Mike's New Car" short from Monster's Inc on it at Comdex, and with framerates higher than the actual movies.)

The PalmOS 5.0 is simply the most efficient PDA OS on the market, bar none. (PocketPC owners will try to use their "more memory" argument as a reason to buy a PocketPC, but you don't need as much memory on a PalmOS PDA because of its efficiency.)

It also has built-in Bluetooth for connectivity to Bluetooth-enabled cellphones, PC's, printers, etc. (They demonstrated making a call without ever touching their cellphone, using only the Tungsten to dial directly from the address book, and a Bluetooth earpiece.)

If you want to wait for built-in wireless, the Tungsten W will be out by February.
 
I'd get an e740 in that case. The Tungsten T is overly expensive, and as to memory, once you start loading music files on, you'll fill 16mb quickly whereas 64mb holds a decent amount. If you listen to music, you can even use 48 bit WMAs on PPC's and they'll sound pretty decent. Anyway, check out www.pricewatch.com for e740 deals cuz you can get one for ~$400, and Toshiba has a $50 rebate going. I think the e740 is the only PDA that supports wireless wifi LAN without addons right now.
 
Originally posted by: Ionizer86
I'd get an e740 in that case. The Tungsten T is overly expensive, and as to memory, once you start loading music files on, you'll fill 16mb quickly whereas 64mb holds a decent amount. If you listen to music, you can even use 48 bit WMAs on PPC's and they'll sound pretty decent. Anyway, check out www.pricewatch.com for e740 deals cuz you can get one for ~$400, and Toshiba has a $50 rebate going. I think the e740 is the only PDA that supports wireless wifi LAN without addons right now.
Click to expand...
Loading MP3 files is what expansion cards are for. 😉 You can get a 128MB SD card for about $40.

Besides, how much of that 64MB on a PocketPC is useable after loading apps? That's the beauty of PalmOS, a little goes a LONG way. PalmOS has thousands more apps available for it, too, most of which are free.

And, besides, the Tungsten T is smaller and sexier than any bulky PocketPC. 😎 hehe
 
I'm stuck in a similar quandry. I'm really torn three ways between a Sony Clie, a Toshiba e740, and the Dell.
I like the Toshiba because of Wifi and the expansion slots. Plus I like the elegant design. The Dell also has the expansion slots, and even though I'd need a wireless card, it's still hella cheap. What attracts me to the Pocket PC platform is the handwriting recognition, even if it sucks; I hate the idea of Graffiti. I've seen people use it, and it's so slow and cumbersome to enter someone's name and phone number, say right when you meet them or whatever. I also like the idea of being able to just take notes in my handwriting and put that in Word documents or my calendar or whatever, and either convert it to text later or just leave it the way it is. The fact that Pocket Outlook interfaces with regular Outlook is great, because both at work and at home I use Outlook for my e-mail, contacts list, and calendar.

On the other hand, there's the Sony Clie, representing the Palm platform. I tried one out in a store, and I was amazed at how smooth and intuitive the interface was. I've heard that now several Palm devices some with software that lets you write straight into a file (not Graffiti), like on a Pocket PC. I'm pretty sure that there's no handwriting recognition, though. Palms get much better battery life, as well.

I'm primarily going to use a PDA to be a mobile extension of my Outlook databases, to take notes in meetings (with a keyboard), and occasionally to browse the Internet via a wireless connection. I'm not going to be playing movies or storing music, so I don't really care about any of that related hardware/software capabilities of Pocket PC's. I want something that's easy to use (taht includes easy to interface with Outlook), but powerful enough to do Internet, and maybe a few simple games like Solitaire. I'd really appreciate if any of you could give me advice as to what kind of system I really need, and what is maybe too much for what I'm doing.

Thanks

~Rapier21
 
1. Can you load mp3's on a secure digital card? I thought the idea behind SD was to prevent copying of digital media.

2. What , if any, is the deifference in battery life of the various handhelds?
 
Originally posted by: LordOfAll
1. Can you load mp3's on a secure digital card? I thought the idea behind SD was to prevent copying of digital media.

2. What , if any, is the deifference in battery life of the various handhelds?
Click to expand...

1. Yes, you certainly can.

2. In my personal experience with iPaq H3650 I was getting about 10-12 hours of usage before I had to charge it. At the same time, I could go for at least a week and sometimes week and a half, depending on the usage, with Palm M515. So, if battery life is a concern, Palm definitely wins hands down.
 

Q) Who else has a built-in 802.11b besides Toshiba ?

The Dell is cheap, but after I buy the wireless adapter.... I'm right where I could be with the Toshiba anyway.

~ Mark
 
Originally posted by: LordOfAll
1. Can you load mp3's on a secure digital card? I thought the idea behind SD was to prevent copying of digital media.
Click to expand...

Correct me if I am wrong, but cant you just get a MultiMedia card and not even mess with the SD stuff.
 
If price isn't too big of a deal, why go iPaq (Pocket PC OS) when you could go OQO (XP) Link

CPU Crusoe 0.13 micron up to 1GHz
HDD 10GB or 20GB
RAM 256MB
LCD four inch color touchscreen
Battery Lithium Polymer
Ports FireWire, USB, audio out, OQO-link docking port, mic, 802.11 and Bluetooth
Size 4.1" x 2.9" x 0.9" less than 9 oz.

$1000 (OQO) - $700 (top of the line iPaq) = $300 dollar difference (for a "real" pc)

Kk
 
Originally posted by: Kk4JC
If price isn't too big of a deal, why go iPaq (Pocket PC OS) when you could go OQO (XP) Link

CPU Crusoe 0.13 micron up to 1GHz
HDD 10GB or 20GB
RAM 256MB
LCD four inch color touchscreen
Battery Lithium Polymer
Ports FireWire, USB, audio out, OQO-link docking port, mic, 802.11 and Bluetooth
Size 4.1" x 2.9" x 0.9" less than 9 oz.

$1000 (OQO) - $700 (top of the line iPaq) = $300 dollar difference (for a "real" pc)

Kk
Click to expand...

That looks very nice.... I must watch for the release of these sometime in the first half of 2003.....

~ Mark
 
If you want the best PDA then on Dec. 9 look for the HP iPAQ h5455. This thing freakin' rocks! It has built in 802.11b, bluetooth AND biometric security. Biometric security is the coolest thing (thumb print identification) and from the reviews, it works very well. This PDA is awesome and is exactly the one I'm getting for Christmas! 🙂
 
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