PDA for under $200

[Bill Catherall]

Well, it's time to enter the world of PDAs. For my wife anyway. She really needs one...bad.

I want to buy a Palm OS based PDA, but don't want to spend more than $200.

I like the Handspring Visors because of the Springboard modules. But when I went around town looking at them, everybody (the good guys, Circuit City, CompUSA, OfficeMax) seems to be discontinuing them. What's up with that? I could buy online of course, but with the locals shutting them out I get a little worried.

So I looked at the Sony Clies, which seem nice; and the Palm Pilots, which are too costly for what you get (you can get more for the same price on Sony it seems).

Any recommendations?

[SzczerbiakManiac]

Is this a gift for your wife (i.e., a surprise)? If not, I'd take her into a couple electronic stores and have her "try them on".

If it is a gift, then I have a few questions:

• Do you want color?
  (Color may make getting one for <$200 difficult.)
• Do you want a rechargeable or a battery feeder?
• Is size (smallness) important?

I live and dye by my Palm m505. I had a Vx before that and a Palm Professional before that. I enjoy the slim profile of the Vx/m5xx line. I really like that I don't have to keep feeding them batteries! That got old fast when I had my Pro.

I've seen the Handsprings and have a couple friends that use them. They're a little clunky looking to me, but I like the color options. However, that's not enough to make me get one. While I think the concept of the Springboard expansion module is cool, I have yet to think of a reason why I would use/need one. If size is an issue, this is especially true because that slot uses a lot of space. Are you Mac people? I've heard Handsprings are a little more Mac friendly, but this may not be as true now that Apple has embraced USB. <shrug> So unless your wife has a specific need for some type of expansion module, I'd pass on the Handspring line.

I haven't had any experience with Sony's Cli so I can't say much about them. I do know many (all?) of them have "high-rez" screens, but I would think that feature would put them in a higher price category. Sony's Cli page seems to back up my theory.

Just looking at Palm's handheld page, I see several MSRPs (which I hope you don't pay!) that fit your sub $200 criteria:

• The m125 is $170 (before a $20 rebate offer) It has expansion slots, 8 MB of memory, and optional faceplate in case the Mrs. would like a change of pace. It requires batteries though.
• The m500 is $200. It also has expansion slots and 8 MB of memory. No faceplate, but it has a smaller form-factor and is rechargeable.
• If you're looking for color on a budget, consider the m130 at $250. It has expansion slots, 8 MB of memory, optional faceplates, and is rechargeable.

This may sound obvious, but make sure you're getting this for her needs, not yours. If at all possible, find out what she needs/wants.

I hope this helped.

[Bill Catherall]

I have both a Mac and a PC, but the PC is the only one with USB (the Mac is too old).

I guess I will just have to take her shopping. It's not really a surprise (we talked about it last night), but I did want to "surprise" her with it. I'm going to have to keep looking around to see who has the best display. So far CompUSA has had the biggest working display. I'm going to check some more stores closer to home later.

As for Springboard expansion...she will also need a cell phone sometime soon, and we could easily add the Phone add-on. This way she'd only have to carry one item instead of 2. But I really don't know if it's a quality product. Anybody know? Also, the GPS add-on really makes me drool (which we would both be using on occasion, but she needs it more than I do).

I'd prefer the rechargeable kind. I don't want to keep feeding the thing. I'll leave it up to her to decide on the color LCD option.

[SzczerbiakManiac]

Bill Catherall wrote:
I guess I will just have to take her shopping. It's not really a surprise (we talked about it last night), but I did want to "surprise" her with it.

Here's a couple ideas:

• Take her out for a nice (but I don't know if romantic would be appropriate) dinner and then go handheld shopping after.
• Find out the model, style, etc. she wants, but buy it for her another time (when she's not with you). That way you could wrap it up and make it more of a surprise. (Hint: put it in a much bigger box to make it more mysterious.)

I'm going to have to keep looking around to see who has the best display. So far CompUSA has had the biggest working display. I'm going to check some more stores closer to home later.

The Best Buy near me has a nice hands-on handheld area. YMMV

As for Springboard expansion... she will also need a cell phone sometime soon, and we could easily add the Phone add-on. This way she'd only have to carry one item instead of 2. But I really don't know if it's a quality product.

The thing that concerns me about palmtop/cell phone combos is that unless you're using a headset, it's impossible to talk on the phone and use the handheld device at the same time. I'd also be very sure to check out the sound quality before committing to this option.

I'd prefer the rechargeable kind. I don't want to keep feeding the thing.

As long as the user is good about synching regularly, I absolutely think rechargeable is the way to go.

[Andrew]

Originally posted by Bill Catherall
As for Springboard expansion...she will also need a cell phone sometime soon, and we could easily add the Phone add-on. This way she'd only have to carry one item instead of 2. But I really don't know if it's a quality product. Anybody know?

I have a Visor Deluxe with the Sprint PCS Wireless Web Module. It's a Springboard module that turns the Visor into a PCS phone. When I first read/heard about it, I knew I had to have one.

Now, almost a year later, I have to say I'm rather disappointed with it. It works well for what it is, but holding the Visor up to your face to talk is definitely not comfortable--and I don't know about others, but I always get smudges on the screen just from it touching my face when I'm talking. The included Plantronics headset works but is clunky and hard to set on my ear. I could use a different earbud or headset but haven't had enough motivation to go try one out.

The main reason I wanted this was for the Wireless Web feature--the idea of checking email and browsing the Web from my phone was just too cool. There are two ways of getting mail on the phone:
1. Use the provided @sprintpcs.com email account.
2. Use your own existing email account.
For #1: Sprint's Wireless email doesn't actually send messages to the phone. It just sends a note to the phone to tell you to check your mail from a computer! Up until earlier this year, at least it sent the subject line of the email--not anymore. Almost completely useless.
For #2: Well, there is no email application included, so that was $40 or so for MultiMail (quite a good product). I can use this to check my real email account and that does actually work quite well, if a bit slowly.

And that brings me to my next point: speed. Remember dialup? Remember 9600bps dialup? That's the connection speed you get. Trying to read one of the 99% of Web sites that don't have special WAP versions at 9600bps is painful, to say the least. Turning graphics off in the included Blazer browser makes it almost bearable.

Finally, this wouldn't be complete without a word about Sprint's famed customer service and their own Web site. Unfortunately, that word is on MousePad's censored list.

When I bought the module, there were promises of being "software upgradable" to the 3G network Sprint is now rolling out. While this may be so, I haven't wanted to brave the clueless morons on the other end of Sprint's customer service lines to find out.

I still have my older phone, the one I stopped using when I got the PCS module. There's a pretty good chance I'll be reactivating it, I think.

As always, YMMV and good luck!

[Bill Catherall]

The stores closer to home don't really have much of anything (even the Best Buy) as far as display goes. The display at Best Buy is half full, and they don't have stock on some of the display items (there was a Sony I would have bought on the spot if they had it ).

After talking things over with my wife (she really doesn't know what she wants because she doesn't even really know what they have to offer) she just wants the bare minimum. That makes me want to take her out to a store even more so she can see these things first hand. Although, I'm fairly confident that if I got her a Sony she'd like it. Those hi-res screens really are nice.

Since modularity doesn't really sound like it's all that it's cracked up to be I might just change my mind about the Handspring.

I would like to take her to CompUSA tonight to show her around...but time isn't permitting. I'll go back tomorrow and take a closer look.

[Andrew]

Originally posted by Bill Catherall
Since modularity doesn't really sound like it's all that it's cracked up to be I might just change my mind about the Handspring.

I kinda went off on the phone option for the Visor Deluxe without even mentioning that it's terrific as a PDA. I love it!

[Doc Krock]

I have a Handspring Visor Pro, and it has been quite a work horse for me. Although, I've seen several new models from other vendors that look quite appealing. If I was looking to buy a new PDA, here are a few funtional things I'd look for now - roughly in order of importance:

Size
- What size will work best to help you use it the most?
My Visor Pro is a bit bulky (mostly because of the Springboard slot), and it works fine in my Franklin Planner and a fanny pack. It doesn't work so well in a pocket.
If the PDA is going to be carried in a purse, backpack, or other bag, a slightly thicker model (usually less expensive) may work just fine. Whereas, thinner is better if the plan is to carry it in a pocket.

Memory
- What will the PDA be used for?
If just for addys, phone #'s, and appts, 2 - 8 MB would be plenty, depending on other little software add-ons.
If for data bases, files, email, ebooks, apps, etc., 16 MB is best.

Expansion
- Can you add more memory/functionality?
The most common addition to a PDA that I have seen is memory - whether SmartMedia (SM), CompactFlash (CF), Memory Stick (MS), Secure Digital (SD), or MultiMediaCard (MMC).

The Handspring Springboard slot allows for adapters for all of these technologies, so you can use the same memory as the other digital devices in your household, if you have them. Sony uses their proprietary MS technology. Palm, the Handspring Treo 90, and other vendors typically use the SD/MMC technology, which seems to be the direction many digital devices are moving.

Personally, I have a 128 MB Compact Flash card and an MemPlug on my Visor, and I keep a fairly large library of ebooks and vector street level maps of CA, NV, AZ, OR, and WA for my GPS. Given my druthers, I'd probably go with a 256 MB SD card now, but that wasn't an option at the time.

As for other expansion, like GPS, I have a Garmin 12CX GPS that I connect to my Visor via serial cable, and I have QuoVadis running on my Visor. This set up works quite well, and it allows me to put the GPS in the window of the car (for best reception) and keep the Visor near by for trip monitoring (speed, heading, etc.), mapping, and GPS operational status.

I haven't seen many raves about the various Springboard GPS systems, so I'd recommend getting an inexpensive stand-alone GPS with WAAS and cable it to the PDA for the most flexibility. Don't underestimate the power of the USB/Serial port on most PDAs - the Springboard isn't the only way to go.

With regards to cell phones, I think Andrew made the point clear. The Springboard just doesn't quite work. I'd rather have my spiffy little Nokia 3395 and relatively big Visor than either a PDA with additional hardware attached to it or a cell phone with a tiny Palm OS screen. I don't really need wireless internet, and I don't want my e-mail while I'm out - if people want me, they can call me...

Screen Resolution
- What do you need to see on a daily basis?
For basic stuff, addys, phone #'s, etc. 160 x 160 is quite tolerable.
For GPS mapping, photos, drawings, etc., 320 x 320 is almost a must. I've been getting by on my 160 x 160, but I'd sure like that extra resolution to make things more crisp and clear. More and more apps are starting to take advantage of this increased resolution.

Color
- Do the apps you plan to use actually take advantage of color?
Addys, phone numbers, ebooks, and most appointment apps don't need or take advantage of color. Sure, the icons on the launcher look better, but is it really worth the extra money? Graphic apps, like GPS mapping, astronomical apps, digital pictures, and games, really utilize color to its full advantage.
Also think about how the color is produced. Some color screens do not work well in bright light or outdoors. B&W screens typically work well under all conditions, although backlighting in the dark usually requires it to be very dark.
Right now, all of the work and play I do with my Visor works just fine in B&W, but I do have a couple of apps that I'd love to see in color.

Data Entry
- What is the most comfortable way for you to enter data?
Generally, Palm OS PDAs utilize the Graffiti handwriting recognition technology, which requires you to "relearn" how to write. Some people find this a pain, others adapt easily. The new Handspring Treo line has changed that paradigm and gone retro, and they now offer a QWERTY chicklet keyboard on the PDA for you to type with. I've never used it, so I don't know how easy it is to use.

I'm fine with Graffiti, and if I need to do a lot of data entry, I do it on my Mac or PC and sync it. Another option which several people find helpful is a full size keyboard which attaches to the PDA. I know Lani uses her's, but I've never been moved to get one.

Finally wrapping it up...
So, there are a quite a few options, but I think most people can cut through them pretty quickly. It is probably easier for a new user to decide than an e-geek who is looking to upgrade some time in the future...

Good luck, and most importantly, be sure the one you decide on is a good fit and fun to use. If it is a pain in the rear to use, it'll just collect dust.

[Doc Krock]

I started to add this, but then I was dragged away from my desk:

As SzczerbiakManiac mentioned, color will probably be the deciding factor if you are looking for a PDA < $200. If my wife would actually use a PDA, I would probably be looking at the $300 range, since she would probably prefer the color screen, and I'd show her:
- Handspring Treo 90 (small, 16 MB, keyboard, SD exp, low res color, $299)
- Palm M130 (slightly less small, 8 MB, Graffiti, SD exp, low res color, $250)
- Sony SJ30 (small, 16 MB, Graffiti, MS exp, high res color, $299).

Decisions, decisions...

[adriennek]

Originally posted by Doc Krock
. If my wife would actually use a PDA,

ROTFLMAOPIMP...are you kidding? We can't even find my cell-phone that we last saw on August 8.... (and I do mean "we" because WE were together last time we saw that phone...)

My Franklin's a lot harder to lose.

Adrienne K

[Bill Catherall]

Thanks for all the responses so far.

It seems the real quandary I'm in is that, while she'd be happy with the very basic essentials, I'm a gadget guy and like to think about the future. Also, if she ever ends up upgrading a year down the road then I'll be "inheriting" this item and would like it to be able to do what I want.

Also, she doesn't even really know what these things do. All she knows is that she's got to have something to help her get her life organized and she doesn't want a day planner (too bulky and too messy for her). She sees other people using the PDAs and thinks that will possibly help...and she's right. You should see all the little tiny slips of paper she has all over the house that contain her To-Do lists. Then the calendar in the kitchen is also littered with scribblings, appointments, and phone numbers in her I-went-to-college-and-now-have-bad-handwriting-from-taking-notes script. And with the calendar at home it makes it difficult for her to make doctor's appointments when she's out and about.

Anyway, I'm also concerned that if I get the cheapest possible model that meets all her needs now, it won't meet her needs in 4 months when she learns all the other possibilities they are capable of.

That's a good point about using the USB port for add-ons. I hadn't thought of that.

There's another Best Buy near my work that I didn't check yesterday. I'm going to drive by there today and see what they've got. I've now got my eye on the Sony's. They seem to offer just a little bit more for just about the same price as the Palms and the Handsprings. They've got slim designs (she carries a purse, but with her, less is "more"), and the 320 x 320 is really nice. I noticed that text is clearer with the higher resolution.

[JeffG]

One other thing that might be worth considering would also be the wireless Palm models. I have had a wireless Palm VIIx for quite a while and am extremely happy with it. It is essentially identical to the old Palm III both in size and weight, with the small added addition of a fold out antenna for wireless functions. The newer i705 is very similar to the m500, other than the wireless functions.

These PDAs don't provide full-fledged wireless web like Andrew was describing, but they certainly have been very sufficient for my needs. How they work is that you download little programs that are used for retrieving data from various sources. Many news organizations, financial institutions, online shopping services, travel services, etc. have these available. I've used mine for things like airline confirmations, purchasing movie tickets, or other similar tasks at various times.

I have also found that it works very well for email, which is actually what I use it for the most. The wireless service provides an "@palm.net" email address that can be used with the built-in software. A number of email providers (including AOL and Yahoo) offer downloadable clients for accessing there email. There are also several 3rd party clients that allow access to any pop3 email address. I use a product called Gopher King, which gives me access to my pop3 accounts via the Palm or the web for $4/month (you can also get lower rates with 6 month or annual subscriptions).

I have found my Palm VIIx to be particularly useful for checking emails while travelling or when I'm stuck in a meeting all day away from a PC. Palm sells a folding keyboard for $49 that I have found to be great for composing emails on the go. It is a full-stroke (not chicklet-style) keyboard that folds up into a package comparable in size to the Palm itself.

The Palm VIIx is no longer being made, but can still be pretty easily found for under $100. The i705 usually runs for around $399, but there is a $100 rebate after 3 months service. The service subscriptions are $20/month for limited usage, $40 per month for unlimited or $35/month for unlimited usage with a 1-year contract.

In addition to the various advantages of the newer Palm models (expandability, rechargable batteries, newer OS, etc.) the i705 also offers some "always on" functionality such as new email notifications and instant messaging. I probably will upgrade eventually, although I'm kind of waiting to see if they eventually come out with a color wireless model...

-Jeff

[Bill Catherall]

Well...it's final. I went out and bought one.

I first went to the Best Buy in Concord to see if they had a better display, but it wasn't any better. Then I ran over to Costco and they only had 2 models on display and neither one was a Palm OS. So I went back to CompUSA. Their display was the best of all the stores I visited and their prices matched everybody else. After much twittling about...playing with every single one of the PDAs in my price range (and some out), looking over the accessories, playing with the PDAs some more. I finally found myself going back and forth between the Sony Clie PEG-SL10 ($149) and the Palm Pilot m500 ($199). I decided on the Clie. When the sales guy got out the package I was looking over the contents when I suddenly realized that it didn't use rechargeable batteries. I definitely wanted rechargeable batteries. So I had him put it back and get out the next model up...the Clie PEG-SJ20 ($199). It was the same thing but with twice as much memory and a rechargeable battery. (Priced the same as the m500 it offered twice as much resolution and twice as much memory.)

Then I was able to get it marked down to $179 by signing up for AOL (which I plan on dumping as soon as I can pick up the phone).

I hope to sneek it into the house tonight and quickly wrap it up for her.

Thanks again everybody!

[Lani]

Good choice, Bill! If I were to purchase one now I would probably get a Clie. They are amazingly well-built, elegant, sleek machines that do not feel like the toys that Visors do (sorry Handspring!).

[mrcoffee]

Then I was able to get it marked down to $179 by signing up for AOL (which I plan on dumping as soon as I can pick up the phone).

You might want to check on that; I think you have to sign up for a year, or you'll have to pay back the rebate..

(But then again, you only saved $20, so maybe the rules on this one is different.. I was thinking of the $100 rebates, so I'm just confusing the issue even more. )

Thomas

[Wizard69]

I love my Visor Prism. I had a Deluxe before but it broke so I bought the Prism and absolutely love it. It has 8MB memory and color. I also have the Magellan GPS with it too. I would take back the Clie and get a Visor Prism. You can find them for about $160 on the net refurbed. You can get 8MB memory for $29.99 from Handspring. This will bring the total to $189.99 and you get color.

[Bill Catherall]

mrcoffee - Nope. Not that kind of deal. It wasn't a rebate, just a $20 off special (actually it was a $10 off special, but when I turned it down he upped it to $20 ). They actually rang it up at the register at $179. I canceled just this morning (forgot to do it yesterday). The operator was a little confused that I would sign up yesterday and cancel today, but she did the cancel anyway (after first trying to convince me to stay ).

Wizard69 - Thanks for the advice, but due to previous experiences, I don't buy refurbed products.

By the way, she loves the Clie.

[Andrew]

Originally posted by Bill Catherall
mrcoffee - Nope. Not that kind of deal. It wasn't a rebate, just a $20 off special (actually it was a $10 off special, but when I turned it down he upped it to $20 ). They actually rang it up at the register at $179. I canceled just this morning (forgot to do it yesterday). The operator was a little confused that I would sign up yesterday and cancel today, but she did the cancel anyway (after first trying to convince me to stay ).

An AOL operator confused? Stop, this is shaking my worldview too much.

Wizard69 - Thanks for the advice, but due to previous experiences, I don't buy refurbed products.

By the way, she loves the Clie.

I've had to replace my VDx twice. The first time, something went wrong with the digitizer (it would display fine but wouldn't accept stylus taps). Since it was still within warranty, Handspring replaced it for just the cost of shipping.
The second time, the belt clip I'd been using since adding the PCS module broke sending the Visor crashing to the floor and cracking the screen. Definitely out of warranty this time, but again Handspring helped out by offering a factory refurbished model for about half the price of a new one.
This third unit has been A-OK for about nine months now. Basically I don't have problems with factory-refurbished units as long as there's a warranty of some description.
This is not the same thing as Fry's Electronics infamous "white sticker of doom"--I avoid those like Rancho del Zocalo's chili cheese fries.