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What PDA Would You Recommend?

Posted by Cliff on from the christmas-gift-hints dept.

kinetix asks: "I'm in the market to buy a PDA, and I've basically narrowed it down to the ever popular Palm Vx or the very cool Xircom Rex 6000. I would like to ask the /. community, what they think about these (or any other) PDAs, especially about which interface better with Linux?"

4 of 28 comments (clear)

  1. Please, moderators by dubl-u · · Score: 3

    I wrote this message, and it is not a post worth a 4 or a 5 (it has now received 3 +1 funny, 1 +1 insightful, and 1 -1 overrated).

    When I write posts that are worth a 4 or 5, they look like this informative post, not this smart-ass jab at people who lose track of the real world while lost in a digital one.

    Oh, and the obligatory on-topic content:

    I've been using various Palm products since the first one, and I'm very pleased with them. For me, I love the ability to run the many third-party apps, which the Rex doesn't seem to have. I have been using a Palm V for about 18 months, and I love the metal casing and the smaller size; despite numerous drops to the pavement, I haven't broken it yet. My only gripe is the relatively small amount of memory, which the Vx solves.

    Since you're a Slashdot user, you're probably the type who would enjoy being able to add and remove an endless stream of possibly useful utilities, tools, clever hacks, and games; for that reason I'd encourage you to look to the Palm rather than the Rex, which appears more limited.

    But for god sake, make sure to use it unobtrusively. The next Palm user that I catch blocking the middle of a busy sidewalk while trying to figure out Graffiti will get his stylus imbedded in his fleshy parts.

  2. I'd recommend by dubl-u · · Score: 4

    What Public Display of Affection would I recommend? Really, I don't know that I would; they make many people uncomfortable. And they often make you appear off in your own little world, oblivious to what is going on. But if you have to, I'd recommend the smallest, most modest one that meets your needs; save the heavy stuff for when you're in private.

    Oh, and now that I think about it, I'd give the same advice for a Personal Digital Assistant,

  3. Palm or Handspring... by Menacer · · Score: 3
    Well, looking at your message, it's pretty safe to assume that you want a black-and-white PDA, either for the money or the battery life, so my recommendations would be either the Palm IIIxe or Visor Platinum or Visor Deluxe.

    I've personally never seen the advantage of paying a lot more money for a Palm Vx, when all you get is the "sleeker" look (which isn't that grand if you have it in a leather case like I keep my Palm IIIxe in, anyway), and the LiIon battery, which I don't particularly like. I haven't spent but maybe 5-10 dollars on AAA batteries since I bought my IIIxe back in August.

    Keep in mind that you'll also be paying about $200 more for your Vx, since they're listed at $399, and IIIxe's are now going for $199 thanks to a Christmas rebate. All in all, I like my Palm IIIxe, and I'd recommend it to anyone looking to buy a Palm.

    On the other hand, I also like the looks of the Visors. The Springboard Modules look like great add-ons, and the Platinum runs at twice the clockspeed of normals Palms and Visors, meaning you might not get those slowdowns when playing pinball (darn it all!). You'll be paying an extra hundred dollars over the Palm IIIxe's price, but you'll still save over a Vx.

    The Deluxe also looks nice, with the same Springboard capabilities, with the lower price and lower clockspeed. It's still $50 more expensive than the IIIxe thanks to Palm's rebate, but I was always amazed that the Deluxe was the same cost, when it had more features (included the m100's changeable faceplate, yay :-| ).

    Unfortunately, I can't answer your questions about Linux interface.. I can only give details of my experiences in the handheld world.

    Overall, I can personally recommend the Palm IIIxe, since it's been a dream to use, and it's on sale. However, if I was going and buying a new PDA right now, I, personally, would look into the Handspring market.

    Menacer

  4. My recomendation.. by cmowire · · Score: 3

    I'm leaning towards getting a compaq h3650 when my current one dies. Yes, it's not a Palm, which is what everybody else, and probably for very good reason uses. I just like having a little more PC-like capabilities in my pocket. I have a Philips Nino right now. It's old, monchrome, discontinued, and the paint is slowly flaking off, but I actually use the nice audio hardware for grabbing interesting sounds without the trouble of carying a tape recorder.

    But back to why the Compaq would be nice. Why? It has an optional clip-on PCMCIA card slot. Therefore, Wireless Ethernet is possible. Therefore, there's not a lot of difference between your PDA and the PADDs on Star Trek. ;)

    Of the two that you mentioned, get the Palm. But consider other options.

    --
    Gentoo Sucks