PDA recommendations

**jgibson2**[$] · #1 04-14-2008, 11:19 AM

I've been dragging around an ancient Handspring Prism and my husband got me a new Palm Z22 for my birthday. The CD that came with the Z22 was blank and I am royally ticked at the Palm people because they can't replace the CD and don't have the docs available for download on their web site. I can get the Palm OS there, but none of the other features which were supposed to be on the CD, so I'm sending it back.

I'm just peeved enough not to want an exact replica. OK, it's not the PDA I'd have chosen for myself. He got it because I can load pictures on it, but I bet they all do that now.

Anybody have a favorite?

**mjfrombuffalo**[$] · #2 04-14-2008, 11:39 AM

I like my Z22. (I could have burned you a copy of the disk! Moral of the story: always post tech problems here before returning things

) My friends in the Tech world were pushing me to get any one of the smartphones - not necessarily an IPhone, but if not an IPhone, one with Microsoft Mobile on it to make it able to run Microsoft programs. My friend's mock-IPhone has a pretty solid PDA program built in. I went with Palm, though, because I'm a 7 Habits fan and their software was originally built to work with Palm, then retrofitted for Windows, so I thought I'd do better sticking with their original partner. The other caveat my Tech friends tell me is that Palm's star is falling, and the Palm you buy today may be a paperweight faster than you think if Palm bellies-up.

**jgibson2**[$] · #3 04-14-2008, 12:14 PM

I have a return authorization from Amazon, but it's not in the mail yet. My hubby bought this BECAUSE it doesn't do much more than my Prism which isn't a paperweight only because Palm is still in business.

Tech support sucks - online and by phone. That's one of the reasons I decided to return it. Sorry tech support never bodes well. The people were polite, but it took one on-line chat and 2 tech support reps to tell me they don't have CD's for this PDA.

Maybe I should say what I want in a PDA so people can give recommendations. I suspect I'm really looking for a palmtop. My handspring does every thing the Z22 does except color, so this is barely an upgrade.

If I'm going to replace the Handspring, I want to be able to carry music AND pictures and I want a headphone jack. I don't think I want a blackberry, because I like being able to tell people I can't access my email when I'm not home (OK, I could lie, but there's the monthly fee for that).

I'm not really interested in games on the thing, because then my 12 year old would steal it.

Maybe I want an ipod and keep the handspring.

**mjfrombuffalo**[$] · #4 04-14-2008, 12:51 PM

Quote:

jgibson2 said

If I'm going to replace the Handspring, I want to be able to carry music AND pictures and I want a headphone jack. I don't think I want a blackberry, because I like being able to tell people I can't access my email when I'm not home (OK, I could lie, but there's the monthly fee for that).

There's a monthly fee for lying?

At work I inherited my boss' old Blackberry, which I use as a work calendar/address book and which does not have an active data plan, so you can have a blackberry and not use it as a phone and/or for Internet/email, just don't buy that part of the plan.

**drmomentum**[$] · #5 04-14-2008, 04:48 PM

What I use:

Introducing the Hipster PDA | 43 Folders

**jgibson2**[$] · #6 04-14-2008, 06:33 PM

Quote:

drmomentum said

What I use:

Introducing the Hipster PDA | 43 Folders

Funny.

Not particularly helpful, but funny. For some reason, I cannot keep that sort of technology. I think it's because my husband is able to actually use it.

**Helen_B**[$] · #7 04-14-2008, 07:21 PM

I know this is supposed to be funny, but actually it can work. Sort of. And, I think I developed the Hipster PDA long before what-sis-name. Yay, me! (I would never want a real PDA, for fear of the replacement costs when I lose it.) For really important cards, laminate them. Mark with erasible markers as needed. Punch a hole through the corners and stick them on a ring to avoid having the clip pop off and watching them fall all over.

**mtomm**[$] · #8 04-14-2008, 09:24 PM

Quote:

drmomentum said

What I use:

Introducing the Hipster PDA | 43 Folders

Excellent!

**drmomentum**[$] · #9 04-15-2008, 10:09 AM

No, seriously - it's what I use. I gave up on the Palm and this actually worked better for me. Now I just use the old Palm IIIc for Geocaching (I upload cache pages to it).

You can print out calendars for it, and all sorts of stuff.

I find I take a lot of brief notes. The "to do list" items get entered into my to do list at Toodledo :: A to-do list to organize your tasks

It is kinda funny, but it's also true. Not helpful when you're looking for an electronic PDA, I know. But I decided a while back that I didn't want to carry an additional device. I'll just get a good smartphone someday.

For now, I like the way this works. Even if you have an electronic PDA, it's amazing how often it's handy to have blank notecards on you.

**jgibson2**[$] · #10 04-15-2008, 03:26 PM

For some reason, I cannot hang on to papers, notebooks, anything like that. I REALLY think it's because my husband and kids can use that technology and help themselves. I've had the PDA for about 5 years - maybe longer. I actually wouldn't be looking, but my husband bought the Z22. Compared to my Handspring, it feels flimsy. It has no expansion port. There are lots of things it won't do and it crashes when I try to use some of my old software (likely a problem with any new Palm).

**amykhar** · #11 04-15-2008, 06:23 PM

I abandoned my pda and now use my iphone exclusively. The one drawback is I know there's a lot of medical software written for palm devices. Right now, iPhone doesn't have any official 3rd party applications. That will change this summer.

Is a palm or windows based smartphone not an option for you?

**jgibson2**[$] · #12 04-15-2008, 07:20 PM

I really haven't looked at the smartphones. That would downsize my purse, so I probably ought to look at them. Screen size is an issue, because I use my PDA on a daily basis. I don't use medical software, but there are a couple of utilities I'd really miss if I couldn't use them. I'd end up dragging around the Handspring anyway.

OTOH, I don't really NEED a new PDA. Hubby wanted to get me a birthday present and got something I don't really need. If I'm going to have an upgrade, it should really be an upgrade, not just what I've got in a smaller size with color.

poseidon · #13 04-16-2008, 07:35 AM

I guess if I used a cell phone and I wanted a PDA, I'd get a smart phone instead of a PDA. Why carry around two machines when you only need one?

I carried around two for a year.

Now, I use a BlackBerry Curve, and it is smaller than either of the two machines I had, plus it is more useful.

The screen size on the Curve is certainly not the same as a Palm, but it took me almost no time to get used to it.

Jeff

**jgibson2**[$] · #14 04-16-2008, 11:31 AM

Thanks, Jeff. I guess I really need to just go into the store and look at some options. It would be nice to only have one machine to haul. My purse is a deadly weapon already.

brian_igo · #15 04-17-2008, 06:25 PM

I don't have one, but I've heard nothing but great things about the Blackberry Curve.

About the iPhone vs the other smart phones, it will probably come down to how much typing you do on your PDA. The iPhone is clearly superior as a media device and a platform for web browsing. But the touchscreen is still slower and more prone to error than the physical keyboard on Blackberry's.

Cost and provider is also an issue. A Curve will have a net cost from zero to $50 after rebates with a service agreement with T-mobile, Sprint and Verizon. (Prices from Amazon - they're great.) With an iPhone you're forced to take AT&T and you're going to pay full retail - $399 for the 8GB and $499 for the 16GB.

**jgibson2**[$] · #16 04-17-2008, 10:23 PM

Thanks, Brian. iPhone isn't going to happen until the prices come WAY down. I'm used to the touch-screen interface on my ancient Handspring, and I'm not sure I'd be impressed with the tiny keyboard on a Blackberry - but I won't know until I hold it in my hands. We're currently on AT&T, primarily because T-mobile and Sprint barely have coverage here and I've had it with Verizon's customer service (ask Joan).

I could get a refurbished Curve on ATT for $49. If I wait a little while, I can probably get something cheaper. I don't currently have email capability and I don't really WANT it. I like being able to tell people I'm not available -- especially since it's for volunteer positions, not paid ones.

poseidon · #17 04-18-2008, 09:10 AM

Quote:

jgibson2 said

Thanks, Brian. iPhone isn't going to happen until the prices come WAY down. I'm used to the touch-screen interface on my ancient Handspring, and I'm not sure I'd be impressed with the tiny keyboard on a Blackberry - but I won't know until I hold it in my hands. We're currently on AT&T, primarily because T-mobile and Sprint barely have coverage here and I've had it with Verizon's customer service (ask Joan).

I could get a refurbished Curve on ATT for $49. If I wait a little while, I can probably get something cheaper. I don't currently have email capability and I don't really WANT it. I like being able to tell people I'm not available -- especially since it's for volunteer positions, not paid ones.

WARNING: Do not pick up one BlackBerry, use the keyboard, and assume they're all the same because they're not. The Pearl, for instance, has a crummy keyboard.

The Curve has the best keyboard of any BlackBerry that I've held. And, while that keyboard looks tiny, it is amazing just how fast you can go after a few hours of playing with the machine. The learning curve (pardon the pun) is amazingly fast.

There's an 88xx World Edition that also exists. It is similar to the Curve in looks and is slightly larger and also more expensive. If someone can figure out WHY it is more expensive than the Curve, I'd love to hear the reason. The Curve has WiFi/UMA so you can make free calls off of any WiFi connection, the World does not. The Curve has a built-in 2mp camera (that does a surprisingly good job) and the World has no camera. The Curve will find pretty much any network in the most remote part of the country, the World will not.

How do we know this? My wife has the World and I have the Curve, and we've compared them side-by-side on road trips. After driving from Colorado to Wisconsin and back, my wife decided that she wants a Curve once her contract runs out.

The only benefit to the World that we've discovered is that it can be used overseas. However, the Curve can (as can many other phones) simply buy purchasing a SIM card, which is less than the additional premium of the World over the Curve.

The World might look like a better option, especially when you try out the keyboard because it is slightly bigger than the Curve. However, always remember you're using the phone in lighted conditions. Another huge drawback of the World is that the keyboard is backlit in blue. The keys are black-lettered, and without the assistance of light, the keyboard is darned impossible to see with the blue backlighting. The Curve is backlit in white, and the numbers are very easy to see at night (this is something else my wife complains about fairly regularly about her phone).

Jeff