palm

PalmOne Tungsten E Handheld
$121.99
I have owned my Tungsten E since 2004 and recently upgraded to an iPod touch--and I want my Tungsten back! I dislike the touch because it doesn't do some things that my now-obsolete Tungsten does. Most importantly, the Tungsten will connect to a Bluetooth full-size keyboard, which greatly eases writing.

I finally "upgraded" to the touch because after 5 years of sterling service (which includes one battery replacement through a third-party vendor that voided the warranty--battery replacement requires welding, which exceeds my skill set), my Tungsten E's on/off switch is broken and its plug-in charger doesn't work, so I must charge through the USB port. Add to that the obsolete OS and a clearly failing battery, and I decided it was time to upgrade. Big mistake! If I had to do it over again, I'd spend the money on a Tungsten T|X, which has wi-fi capability, or I'd send my existing unit in for repair. I angsted about buying the touch because the lack of a full-size keyboard was a deal-breaker for me, but I finally caved when I discovered the touch has Bluetooth--although alas, no Bluetooth keyboard yet exists.

I tricked out my Tungsten E with some add-ons to make it do what I wanted it to do. I'm giving three stars for "ease of use" because what I did requires some technical know-how. I downloaded and installed a number of freeware programs. I wanted the unit to do its record-keeping thing (contacts, to-do list), but I also wanted it to play music and videos, and I wanted to read e-books. My unit runs Palm OS v.5.2.1. I downloaded and installed the following updates and patches: Palm Outlook Conduit Updater; Palm Tungsten E SDIO Update; and Palm Desktop 4.1.4. I installed FileProg, which grants me access to the TE's files, so I can see directory structure.

I push music (MP3) and video (MP4) onto a cheap 2GB memory chip with PFB FilePC2PDA. (I have avoided trying any larger-capacity chips because word on the street is that the unit may not read these larger chips.) To play music, I use RealPlayer for PalmOne. I particularly like that I can listen to music while doing something else on the unit. To play video, I use TCPMP 0.72 RC1, which was very difficult to get to work because a crucial component (the audio) is disabled for intellectual property reasons. I had to use some kung-fu to make it work--but it was worth it. The video quality is wonderful. It's perfect for amusing myself while working out at the gym. To read e-books, I use Palm Reader, which came with the unit. To convert TXT files to PDB, I use Easy PDB.

The Tungsten E was/is a good fit for me because I do not really need a cell phone or wi-fi. I really like the ability to use a full-size fold-out keyboard; it's wonderful while traveling. For an easy-to-use stand-alone device, the Tungsten E is perfect for me. My existing unit is on its last legs, but I love it with an undying passion. It did everything I wanted.

PalmOne Zire 31 Handheld
$129.99
I had mine for almost five years and it worked great right up to this summer. I like the fact that I could write down notes, check my schedule or simply listen to music any time. the battery life is good, the colors on the screen were good also. I loved it! But I think that the many falls finally got to it and stopped functioning. Now, I'm trying find the same model to replace it. I have a Blackberry but I prefer the Z31.

PalmOne m500 Handheld
$199.99
My old palm pilot failed but i still had the application running on my computer. It was an easy
upgrade to the new one. the supplier provided a disc with software and instructions. my info
from the old application transferred almost automatically to the new application on my computer
and then "synched" with the new PalmOne.

PalmOne Tungsten T5 Handheld
$349.99
I've had my T5 since they first came out (how long ago was that???) even tho folks were telling me that Palm was going to treat it as an "end of life" product (the LifeDrive came out shortly afterward and then the T|X). Bottom line for me is that I feel as tho I've had it forever (my previous Palms were PalmPro (internally upgraded to a III), IIIxe, M550). I used to use it as an MP3 player (PocketTunes) but turned to an iPod for much more music & much better quality sound. Other than that -- I use it for just about everything: e-books (great for reading in bed without bothering your hubby at night using MobiPocket Reader; have over a hundred books stored on a 1 GB card with room to spare); scheduling; travel tracking; database (a customized tasking database using DataViz SmartList), calendar, games, pictures, and video (does well with QuickTime videos btw). Am struggling now with the fact that I'd like to move to something FASTER but....Palm no longer makes PDAs. That market has devolved to just HP and I don't want to lose all the apps I have that won't run in Windows Mobile at all. Sigh.. so I guess I'll continue with my trusty T5 until... (p.s. yes -- the very early version of its PalmOS had some serous issues but ever since a new version was released that I installed as soon as it appeared -- haven't had a problem since).