Quick--Need a PDA Recommendation

well, this is not exactly what you asked, but i love my treo from palm/handspring. i would not buy another PDA that was not connected to the web, and includes a keyboard so i can answer my email. many folks these days even post their discussion board comments via their treo.

 

i have the treo300. the newer model is the 600. i still like my 300 just fine mainly because i prefer the flip case, which protects the screen and keys.

however the 300 is only a sprint phone, so it's not for everybody. the 600 is available from a number of carriers.

which also points up again why i'm not sure this is the right recommendation, we are definitely talking a convergence device that includes cel phone and internet access, and you might not be looking for that. if you are, these are great.

you can see lots more info from actual users in the discussion groups at treocentral.com

 

I love my Samsung SPH-i300. (Discontinued Palm Phone). New ones include i330, i500, i700.

PalmOS may be on its way out, with Sony's recent announcement to discontinue the Clie.

I'll never carry another phone that isn't a PDA phone.

Here are my "killer" apps:

-PocketQuicken-Synchronizes with Quicken... enter transactions while at the store, less busy work with quicken on the computer at home
-YAUC-converts any unit to any unit
-Keyring-stores passwords in an encrypted format
-TotalCar-Keeps track of car expenses
-LinkSynchronizer-Synchronize favorites between multiple computers, like home and work; allows lookup of favorites on the go
-All my PQA's (mobile wireless apps) like Mapquest, cbs marketwatch, travelocity, ebay, Aol Instant Messenger, Google, and others like a real time bus locater for Denver. These only work with wireless enabled PalmOS devices like palm VII, 7 series (using 9600 bps two way pager network) and palmphones (using the phone circuit at 14400) or 3G palmphones (using 196000 bps packet service like Sprint Vision) or Wi-Fi palmOS devices (using any available Wi-Fi access point nearby). All of these require some sort of subscription to access except the Wi-Fi at home or at the office. You likely have to pay to use Wi-Fi in public.

Good Luck selecting a PDA. If you'd like to know more about PDAPhones, check out http://www.pdaphonehome.com

Nate

 

Evan,

I'm on my third PDA in 6 years; and until the Prius came along, it's the gadget I obsessed over the most.

However, to give you recommendations, I've got some questions for you.

The main one is, what do you most want to use your PDA for:

• Daily schedules -- appointments, to-do lists, etc.
• Contacts (anywhere from simple address book to complicated client/contact/patient lists)
• Personal organization / general list-making (grocery list, etc.)
• Carrying secure information around (like passwords) securely.
• Mobile spreadsheet viewing (PDAs have gotten very good at this)
• Mobile document viewing (i.e., carrying Word documents around)
• Finances (e.g., mobile Quicken, so you can enter costs in as you travel.)
• Reference -- lot of dictionary and particularly medical reference items for PDAs right now
• Digital photo album (and cameras built into many PDAs.)
• Reading news (I read various newspapers on my PDA every morning in the vanpool)
• Games
• MP3 player
• Internet access (e-mail or web browsing via Wifi or cell phone modem)
  • 
    I realize this is a tough question, since you're not familiar with PDAs. Also, there are a lot of things I use my PDA for that I never thought I'd be doing with it.
    
    Most imporantly, of the things above, what will be the primary purposes?
    
    Also, what type of computers will you be synching your PDA with? (I.e., Mac or Windows or Linux or...) If you're a Mac or Linux person, there will be some barriers to what you can do.
    
    And do you use a cell phone? The issue of a combined cell phone PDA vs having the two communicate via Bluetooth are significant.

 

I use a Sony Clie because,it was cheaper than the Palm. But Palms are better. I recommend the Palm Tungsten T3 about $400. The Dell is a PocketPC that is more like Windows but doesn't really do what the Palm does; although it does some things better like video and audio and window apps.

 

my killer apps are

splashID which also keeps track of passwords and logins

splashphoto which takes the place of carrying family and other pix in my wallet

yahoo online calendar which syncs to everything via their own version of intellisync, and then emails me when i have appointments.

AOL for palm, which handles my aol email as well as instant messaging.

bejewelled, for those waits in line at costco

filez, for backup

and of course i would be remiss if i didn't mention my own ringtone collections which i design and sell on handango.

 

I began with the Handspring way back when all PDA's were monochrome, and now currently possess 3 of them (two that I need to eBay). They're all iPAQ's, and I'm currently using the 3970, which has Bluetooth.

I use the calendar and contacts programs daily, and have a program that lets me do my email from the PDA. I've also recently added a wireless network to my house, and a Compact Flash WiFi card to the iPAQ, and can wirelessly check my email and surf the web, working through the small screen and on-screen keyboard. It's not the fastest thing around, but it does the job.

I'm personally looking at getting one of the new Dell Axim X30's, which has WiFi and Bluetooth built-in. I wouldn't give up my Bluetooth, especially with my BT GPS receiver that I use on trips (sorry, not driving the Prius with GPS!). My next PDA will definitely have both Bluetooth and WiFi built-in...it's like PriusChat; once you have a taste of it, you can't let it go!

Without knowing anything except your budget, I'd tell you to consider the HP iPAQ 4355. Built-in WiFi and Bluetooth, plus a built-in thumbpad. It'll run you $499 right now on HP's web site.

If you're not looking for a Cell-phone/PDA combo, I'd say the 4355 is a good bet, especially with your somewhat unlimited budget. If you don't need the built-in keyboard, I'd suggest the new Dell Axim X30.

Again, www.aximsite.com, www.brighthand.com, and www.pocketpcpassion.com can get you much more information about all of the offerings. Brighthand also has a new "Advisor" available, where you put in what you need out of a PDA, and it gives you suggestions.

Hope that helps!
Tim

 

Staples does carry the iPAQ line, as well as the Palms that you looked at. As long as it's not open, you should be able to return/exchange it without too much trouble. You've got 14 days...don't loose the receipt!

Tim

 

Neutral. I have used PDAs with the Palm software, as well as ones with the Microsoft PocketPC software, and find them about equal. I just use the iPAQs and like them, and was making a suggestion. I'm sure there are others here who use Palm software and swear by them. Many software developers use the Palm OS as their platform, as it's cheaper to write software for it.

I don't think you'll be lacking in support or programs with either a Palm-based or PocketPC-based PDA. Just try one out and see what you think.

Not sure if that really helps...

 

I have worked with both Palm and PocketPC for years, and last year switched to the Pocket PC, because I use too many Word files, Excel files and they work better on the PocketPC. I do my Prius mileage on Excel on the PocketPC. Both Word and Excel are included in the PocketPC and synch with just putting the PocketPC in the cradle- no DocumentsToGo translation. My HP (IPAQ 2210) has bluetooth (will not sysnch with car the Prius only syncs with phones). The newer models have wireless (I added it separately) and phone built in. I use Outlook and that will synch with both the Palm and the PocketPC.

 

i think the above is generally true, pocketPC and windoze mobile are more compatible with windows stuff but palm has more apps and works very effectively with its own software if you don't need the microsoft compatibility

not totally unlike the mac vs windows scenario. i have been very happy with my palm OS software and its functioning, but i don't need word or excel documents on the go.

 

The other difference would be that there is a wider selection of Palm software than PocketPC software; and that Palm software is (by and large) cheaper.

I would also add that SW compatibility (i.e., does older software run on your newer Palm or PocketPC PDA) seems better on the Palm. I've worked with some people who write software for Windows CE (PocketPC), and you have to jump through some hoops to get it to work with different versions of the OS.

 

As a Sony Clie user of 3 years, I'd say that Sony has never done a very good job of supporting their PDAs. :roll: But... that doesn't matter much, because your Sony runs the Palm OS, and that's what all the Palm apps are working with.

Probably the biggest incompatibility you may find with Palm software and the Sony will be screen resolution. I can't remember what the screen resolution(s) for the UX50 are, but Sony tends to use a proprietary API (i.e., not Palm's) for some of their screen views; and applications that want to display documents in "landscape" mode (so to speak) may need to be written specifically for specific Sony models.

However, that really should affect a pretty small subset of the Palm apps that you'd be using.

No, I think it will continue to be easy to find SW for the Sony, for just the reason you suggest.

Again, depends on what you want (seems good to neutral for me; my next PDA will probably be a T3 or something similar -- but, I'm not interested in something that is also a cell phone, or is connected to the internet via wireless).

Let me recommend a site to take a look -- www.brighthand.com. They review and discuss PDAs -- both Palms and PocketPCs -- and have a pretty balanced view of what's good and not so good about both the platforms and the individual models.

Their main web page has a "Recent Reviews" section to the right of the "Featured Stories" section. I'd recommend looking at the reviews for the Handspring Treo, the Sony UX50, the Dell Axim, and the Palm Tungsten T3.