PDA Explorations
I’ve had a Palm V since fall of 1999 and it more or less did what I needed it to. It wasn’t ideal, but it got the job done. I really liked the form factor and the battery life, plus I could synchronize it decently with Ximian Evolution under Linux. I didn’t like that the charging was completely tied to the cradle and that I could only synch through a 9-pin serial cable. I always had problems with my old Sony Vaio, which didn’t have such a port. I was never pleased with the results of trying to use a USB-to-serial converter under Linux, and then synchronizing over that. It seemed to have serious bufferring issues.
I didn’t bring my Palm V with me to Cambridge, because of the problems above, plus I didn’t want to invest more money into it (they’re going for $5 on EBay these days) and get the European power converter kit. Plus, I was sure they didn’t make the adapter for it anymore anyway. So I’ve been on the lookout for a replacement.
Here in Cambridge, I’ve been reevaluating my needs. I don’t have broadband at home, for example. At first, I assumed that it would be something that I’ve wanted, as it has been a daily necessity for the past five years or so. However, I’ve realized that not having it (and therefore not having my laptop at home) has resulted in me doing other things I enjoy – reading being a primary example. So, I would like to avoid getting broadband. However, I would like to be able to check my email occasionally so that if something comes up I can be aware of it. (The lab communicates primarily via email.) GPRS has become so ubiquitous that it appears to be a viable solution for this. No real surfing, but basic email.
Since I don’t have a mobile phone either, it seemed to be a good time to get a convergent device. I don’t expect to use a mobile all that much – once every day or two. The GPRS would be the primary use, I imagine. There appeared to be two options for devices currently on the market that wind up with decent PDA features: the Treo 600 and the Sony Ericsson P910i. I was not excited about the Treo, since it does not have Bluetooth (for synchronizing) and has a fairly small 160×160 screen. The P910i looked more appealing, but I don’t want to buy one outright and Orange wouldn’t allow me to set up a monthly contract (with phone subsidy) since I have only been in the UK a few weeks.
In the US, unlocked GSM Treo 600s are cheap enough (and I can import one easily) that when I did the math it would work out to buy one and go pay-as-you-go with one of the local carriers. Unfortunately, I didn’t feel like the 600 had enough PDA-ness to get me by. Good news, though! The Treo 650 was announced on 25 October and it solved my problem, in theory: Bluetooth, 320×320 screen, the works. Unfortunately, though, there is no indication at all of when they’ll actually make it available, and even less indication of when it will be available in unlocked GSM form. I emailed PalmOne for details, but they wouldn’t give me any idea at all of whether it would be weeks or months or what…
So this forced me to reevaluate my needs. I realized that the most important thing was to have the PDA. The phone could come later. Plus, PDAs can now do TCP/IP via bluetooth to a GPRS phone, so I could still wind up with that feature from a mobile later. So I ultimately decided to acquire a PalmOne Tungsten T3. I wanted to punish PalmOne for not helping me figure things out with a Treo 650 (by not purchasing from them), but ultimately I needed a good PDA more than I needed enforcement of consumerist power. Mainly, the T3 has lots of features, a big screen and a metal case. This device will be living in a backpack, so durability is key.
Stay tuned for more info on it. When I get it, I’ll post more info.