[refault]

I was thinking of getting a PDA w/ a WAP card so I can use the internet at campus and such.

Should I get the $300 Dell X3i with integrated 802.11b?? Or should I get an iPaq (which model though..) with an Orinco card?

If I go with the iPaq, which would possibly be the cheapest option for me?

Thanks!

 

[commando]

Have you considered Palm? I used Palms for 5 years, then stupidly bought an iPaq, didn't like it, now i'm trying to sell it. The iPaq is a lovely little machine (I have the 4350/4355) with a nice keyboard and bluetooth, but no WiFi. I just didn't like Pocket Windows, but for people used to Windows PC and who aren't g33ks, it might be better than Palm OS. Then again PalmOS is very simple too, and I much prefer it.

Oh, if you're interested in buying the 4350 PM me

 

[Edwood]

I've been lusting after the Sony Clie TH55. It has built in 802.11b. It's practically all screen.

I would've gotten the TH55 if I hadn't bought the NX80 before.

That thing's a brick compared to the TH55.

-Ed

 

[commando]

I don't like the Sony PalmOS units - no concrete reason, I just don't like the feel of them. My perfect PDA is the Tungsten C, without the reliability problems, plus PalmOS 6. With a bit of luck it'll be released with the next round of announcements in a week or so.

 

[Ari]

Hey Commando !

Compare, when you have a chance, the Palm and Clié display. I like the "Palm Feeling" as you like. But the Sony display is "mo betha"...much better.

Best

Ari

 

[erl]

Why doesn't someone release a PalmOS with a hard drive, that can be used as a music player and PDA?

 

[Wodgy]

Quote:

Originally posted by refault I was thinking of getting a PDA w/ a WAP card so I can use the internet at campus and such.

I don't mean to rain on your parade, but you might want to save your money, or look at other options. IMHO, there aren't any current PDAs that offer a really decent internet experience. The screens are very small, the processors are slow (particularly noticeable when you access sites that use CSS), and battery life is very poor. A lot of the newer devices have a real-world battery life of 5-7 hours, but if you're using them for wireless access, this gets cut down to about 2 hours (real-world). These are great organizers and gadgets for geeks, but they're not really usable for what you're looking to do.

 

[gsferrari]

Check this out...its not yet released but it holds a lot of promise!!

http://www.flipstartpc.com/

 

[aos]

I had Palm IIIXE for 3 years and around Christmas I got an IPAQ1940. Then I had problems with its Bluetooth and so I returned it and tried Sony TG-50 which I eyed for almost a year and is now quite cheap. I quickly realized that the Palm OS was nowhere near as nice for communications as this IPAQ (which I repurchased, this time without any hardware problems). For setting up Bluetooth connections (I have a BT phone which I use to connect to Internet when mobile), integration with Outlook email (especially synchronizing folders and having multiple accounts!), simplicity and power of wireless file exchange (full Bluetooth profile and file system), not to mention that web browser was actually useable unlike on Sony - the same NetFront 3.1 runs much better on IPAQ due to having enough memory. Some of this is alleviated if you get a Tungsten since it has sufficient memory. But if you use Windows, the integration is far better and you don't have to buy extra software (Documents on the Go) which can get quite expensive, and as far as email goes if you integrate with Outlook there's just nothing on Palm that integrates folders so seamlessly (as well as attachments and so on). It is actually quite useable for web browsing, due to smart fit option of NetFront, and the limiting factor is the speed of GPRS, not the processor. E.g. browsing head-fi is just fine. It is much better if you browse using Bluetooth from home as you get 30kb/s (Sony was only getting 12kb/s transfer rate btw.).

HOWEVER, while for communications I belive IPAQ is much better, for use as an organizer, Palm beats PocketPC machines. Quite simply, memos are far better organized on Palm, and I personally rely heavily on memos for everything so it's a problem for me. It's a big mess on IPAQ and integration with Outlook - well, Outlook doesn't really support categories meaning that you can't use it to browse memos. Contacts are also better in Palm though the PockePC is quite useable. Also, Palm Desktop is great for looking up contacts and memos, and modifying them, unlike Outlook which is only good for email, really. If you don't plan on using communications or you can live with (severe, in my opinion) limitations, then the Palm is quite a viable option. Sony machines are very sexy, TG-50 really looks great, feels great and has a fine keyboard. On the other hand, IPAQ1940 is very thin and light and is cheap too. Most other PocketPC machines are big.

Then again, I also recently got a Toshiba Portege R100 ultraportable laptop. This thing is thinner than most of my fingers and is only about 2.4 pounds. Easy to carry around. Or something like Panasonic Toughbook CF-W2 which is an amazing machine. Unfortunately expensive (I found Toshiba at a really good price so I bought it, and even then it's going to be affecting my finances for months to come). But if laptop were not light it would just be left at home all the time and for me it would be a wasted money. Now I can carry it in my bag whenever I want. Still the PDA is far more portable, if you go out carrying nothing but your wallet and phone then PDA is the ticket.

 

[commando]

I agree with aos, but i'd like to add a couple of things.

DocsToGo comes free with most Tungsten models, and is reputed to be better at Word/Excel than pocket word/excel on the Pocket PC. I can't vouch for this.

Palm integrates fine with Outlook, for email, calender, and everything else. It's an additional piece of software, but it's free with most Palms.

My choice is Palm, as i've said, but PocketPC would suit a lot of people, especially people less experienced with computers.

 

[loveheadphones]

just to echo what wodgy said - you will not get a very satisfying internet experience out of a PDA. i have had a tungsten C since last summer (bought it while working) and i don't use it to surf the internet because it's kind of useless. AIM is nice to have but if I actually want to talk to someone I can just call them... computing centers are all around campus.
well basically all i'm saying is that now all i do with the T|C is write down appointments and little things to remember (and check the dictionary once in a while).

but i got it cheap on ebay, i've had no reliability problems, and i would probably die without the integrated keyboard... so i guess i can't complain.

 

[refault]

Quote:

Originally posted by loveheadphones just to echo what wodgy said - you will not get a very satisfying internet experience out of a PDA. i have had a tungsten C since last summer (bought it while working) and i don't use it to surf the internet because it's kind of useless. AIM is nice to have but if I actually want to talk to someone I can just call them... computing centers are all around campus. well basically all i'm saying is that now all i do with the T|C is write down appointments and little things to remember (and check the dictionary once in a while). but i got it cheap on ebay, i've had no reliability problems, and i would probably die without the integrated keyboard... so i guess i can't complain.

How much did your tungsten C go for/what's the model?

 

[aos]

While Palm does integrate with Outlook it doesn't integrate with its folders, which is a big issue for me. Basically, if I sort my email into folders, I won't be able to see it, making it useless. With PPC I can set up which folders to synchronize, up to what size attachments to use, and how many days to show. I think there's something similar for Palm (I looked high and low while I had TG-50 but with no luck) but it's still not as easy to set up and it costs at least $50. I wouldn't integrate with Outlook since Palm Desktop is much nicer.

DocsToGo only comes with some models - e.g. not with Sony TG-50 - and it's often an older and/or crippled down version. Also, my IPAQ (in addition to pocket office) comes with third party viewer which allows only viewing of Office documents but is more powerful and faithful allowing you to view documents regardless of whether they were converted for pocket use or not, getting it on par with DocsToGo. DocsToGo is also very expensive for a PDA program, about 100 bucks for top version.

I really wanted to keep the slick TG-50 but things like sending and receiving files, web browsing, email sync and file exploring was simply inadequate. Even SMS - the official reason for getting it - didn't work all that well with bundled messenger. To be honest I had to pay $10 to get one for IPAQ as they don't come with any SMS software. A good friend of mine got the same T616 phone and Tungsten T so I had chance to compare them. If I hadn't tried IPAQ I'd probably have been happy, and Tungstens are better than TG-50 but I just couldn't get over the fact that I needed an extra piece of software for just about any function that comes as normal to a windows user (e.g. browsing files, setting up connections, sending files etc.). Oh, and the biggest thing - there is no multitasking on Palm, so if you want to switch from your browser to your email or note taker, it's gone! Same with any data transfer in progress. On the flip side, if you need extra piece of software for Palm you can often find it free but for PocketPC it will usually cost you. I have found however that the best task manager and program launcher (both are a necessity for a pocket pc user to get the most out of the machine) are free but I had to try 10 different ones over many days to ferret these out.

If you don't use windows however PocketPC might not be the best choice. Also, I found that all of the more expensive models don't offer anything substantial over IPAQ1940 - with Bluetooth I don't need wifi and more memory is easily solved with an SD card, and all of them are bigger and heavier. In the end, it's all about what do you want to use it for.

 

[commando]

I didn't know that Palm doesn't do Outlook folders, but I really don't like outlook anyway, so I never use it.

DocsToGo comes with most Tugsten models, except E, and I have no idea if it comes with Sony units or not. They bundle the standard edition for free (worth US$30), and you can upgrade to premium (US$50) cheaply as they often email out specials. Premium gives you a few things, like password protection, spell check, pdf, pics, and outlook email integration, but for most users isn't necessary. Looking at their site, it seems that they do full Outlook integration in the Office edition, for $70.

So you can probably do good outlook integration in Palm, but it'll cost you. If outlook is your main reason for using a PDA, Pocket PC is probably a better choice.

 

[aos]

I don't think that even the "full Outlook integration" option works for folders - I looked at this in detail before but I might be wrong - but that same company is the only one that offers software on Palm that claims that it does. Sony comes with Clie mail but that doesn't synch folders either.

In the end, the email works great through my Bluetooth phone (I have 3 separate accounts, one is synched with PC and the other two I connect to when roaming) and the internet is useable, depending on time of the day. The experience of web is limited by the speed of connection and size of the screen but I haven't found a website that didn't work.