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Android is a Linux. XCode is free, and there is a much larger fraction of free apps on Linux than on OSX, especially excluding darwinports/fink apps. iPhone started the whole app store concept, Apple created a huge market for small application vendors.

I just don't see the $99 as much of a disincentive. If I'm willing to donate days / weeks / months of my time why would $100 even be a question?

Android is a fork of JAVA (DALVIK) that runs on the Linux kernel. OSX and iOS run on the MACH kernel and BSD *nix. Applications run on the COCOA API. As far as iPhone starting the whole app store concept...Yeah RIGHT. Handango and PocketGear have been around since 1999 dishing out all things Palm, Windows Mobile, Blackberry, Symbian, and Android.

The old PalmOS has by far the most "apps" and they don't have to be approved by anyone:

http://www.freewarepalm.com/
http://www.handango.com/
http://www.pocketgear.com/
http://www.mobihand.com/
http://www.pdastreet.com/
and also: http://sf.net/

I never understand why everyone is so amazed by the iPhone's "Apps". Handheld apps have been around for over 10 years.

Out of curiosity, is that actually true? Last time I checked, the only way to compile applications for the Windows Mobile platform required that you have at least the "Standard" edition of Visual Studio, which will set you back $250.

http://cegcc.sourceforge.net/
http://classic.pocketgear.com/software_detail.asp?id=11502&associateid=1224

I'm sure at least one of these WinCE ports of GCC works.

This basically confirms my suspicions, that the technology hasn't gotten to the right level yet.

I'm also a huge fan of the handwriting recognition on my Pocket PC; however, it does require a specific deviation from my normal handwriting. At the same time, not everybody can read what I jot down on regular old paper, so maybe I'm the better for it - but that's besides the point. Handwriting recognition in Windows Mobile (I'm using PPC v. 2003, if that's worth pointing out) is good, but not good enough. It'll get there someday, though.

At the same time, I love keyboard - even small "thumb board" - input, and I'm nearly convinced I'll eventually either grab the thumb-board addon for my Dell Axim x50v, or a bluetooth mini-keyboard. Still, nothing beats using a pen-sized stylus and writing into my Word docs while on the subway. After barely a day of frequent use, it now feels natural to me.

That said, by and large the reason I love my Pocket PC is for its versatility. I read my books off of it, listen to my OGG Vorbis files and watch XviD DVD rips with it, play Snails on it... Oh yeah, and all that document authoring, e-mail, web browsing, contact management, scheduling crap that other people talk about. And it's all in my pocket. I love it.

But I wouldn't mind trying out a Nokia 770 someday. The stuff the community's brewing is very exciting.

Math skills to calculate tip? what is internet for?
http://www.onlineconversion.com/tip_calculator.htm
http://www.pocketgear.com/software_detail.asp?id=5 910

Actually, I put 1-1.5GB XviD-compressed full DVDs on my Microdrive. I usually compress to a resolution of 704 pixels wide, and the Axim is able to downscale it to 640 just fine using Beta Player. It was a daily habit of mine a while back to take a DVD backup to keep me occupied on the subway (now ebooks do that job).

Microdrive was the best thing I bought for it. I also have a 512MB SD card in there, but I use it for applications (documents and files go on the MD).

To blur the iPod functionality lines a bit further, I could try this - although Windows Media Player is hardly my most used app.

MiniStumbler. It's Net Stumbler for your PocketPC (free)
http://www.stumbler.net

PocketLAN. It allows you to connect to network shares, and print to network printers. ($15)
http://www.pocketgear.com/software_detail.asp?id=2 825

If you feel like trying to find it, and screwing around with a few hacks, TodayPlus is an abandoned today screen replacement. It was abandoned about a year ago, while it was in beta testing. The beta versions all expired earlier this year, but there is a small but very loyal userbase that has a crack for it. I still haven't found anything that comes close to the features that this program offers, and it's free. Good luck finding a download though.
http://www.jhollin1138.com/todayplus/

Pocket Streets. Take a map with you. The newest version also supports GPS. ($30-$120)
http://www.microsoft.com/mappoint/pocketstreets/de fault.mspx

I use PocketIRC on my iPaq, for just that. Tapping out sentences on the onscreen keyboard sucks a bag of cocks, though.

Easiest thing to do would be to use something like

IR Remote
or alternatively for a more home brew approach set up a web server or even a perl httpd process (only accesible by your network) on your PC connected to the sterio, and have some web pages set up that run one of the several command line mp3 players. Then you can use the browser on your pocket PC to control what's getting played.

check out #bookz on us.undernet.org - chm versions of oreilly's are well readable with a copy of Aroy's CHM Reader for PocketPC.

actually i do have an ipaq... quake really runs kinda slow on it, its playable, but no as cool as doom... :)) but after all it is somewhat strange to play it on my ipaq, de d-pad is not well placed as you said... i prefer simcity 2000!

you can take a look at some pocketpc games here .