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Clamshell Sharp Zaurus Reviewed
Bill Kendrick writes "The Gadgeteer has a review of the new clamshell-style Sharp Zaurus SL-C700 Linux-based PDA. This new model, currently only officially available in Japan, sports a larger keyboard than the SL-5500 we have in the US, as well as a full 640x480 screen and 400MHz XScale CPU. The review mostly compares it against the HP200. The reviewer got his hands on an 'English version,' made available by Dynamism for a hefty pricetag of USD$700." (See this earlier story for more screenshots from the English conversion of this device.)
Until it comes down in price, the cons are (in my opinion) a big deal.
My advice is: pick a laptop or pick a PDA. Make sure that either of them does their respective job well. Don't expect your PDA to be a laptop, and don't expect your laptop to be small enough to put in your pocket (yet!).
On a side note, Fujitsu makes a killer laptop! I've seen it in action...perhaps one of the best laptops for its size...
I'm still using a palm IIIx, and it's more than adequate. The color screens and multimedia coolness are great though...
;)
I admit that my use of a PDA is basically as a mobile "black book" and scheduling device. Seriously, how many people honestly require all these awesome features? (I understand the "bragging rights" argument, but I work with a stable of non-geeks who could hardly appreciate this device... they don't even know how to rip/encode an MP3...)
Still, I do like the fact that it runs on Linux
Even if a man chops off your hand with a sword, you still have two nice, sharp bones to stick in his eyes.
Isnt it time to change the PDA in that icon? I think we've got something better now.
-- 'The' Lord and Master Bitman On High, Master Of All
That's when I stopped reading. That's not a PDA, that's an undersized, underpowered laptop. A PDA should have a battery that at the minimum lasts a full day, so that the appointments for the day are accessible without recharging.
that's my 2cents.
~ a low user id is no indication I have a clue what I'm talking about.
Yopy was mentioned in European magazines, in December.
The Z. never was.
Trolling using another account since 2005.
>I want something that works, not something to
> make a political stand.
Agreed. I use Palm OS. But at some point you have to make the decision between a moral/political stand and convenience. I believe in open source. I don't like Microsoft Ethics - therefore I refuse to use MS products.
> why is Linux (a server based OS) on something
> that should be totally embedded?
Linux in the enterprise is actually a fairly new concept. Linus never wrote it for any other machine than his own desktop. But of course it does run well as a server. But the same argument could be said of PocketPC. Why use a desktop OS on a PDA - and furthermore - why use a desktop OS on a server. In fact I imagine linux is more suited than windows ever was, as all they have really ported is the Kernel, the rest is rebuilt, and the kernel is shrunk and tailored to a PDA anyway.
And you are right, it is a mini laptop - which is why I want it. I work 24x7 support, and the idea of pulling out a linux machine with a useable keyboard from my pocket, logging in and doing my work, is very enticing.
And the XScale and the Crusoe are in completely different classes, please don't trust MHz ratings.
---Agreed. I use Palm OS. But at some point you have to make the decision between a moral/political stand and convenience. I believe in open source. I don't like Microsoft Ethics - therefore I refuse to use MS products.
I really wouldnt mind using a MS PDA, but what I have saw, they eat battery power at horrendous rates (2 hours on my fiends pda-and that was the best times). That alone is the major deciding factor.
---Linux in the enterprise is actually a fairly new concept. Linus never wrote it for any other machine than his own desktop.
Unix based things have always been suited for servers. Linux is just a re-implementation of a Unix system.
---But of course it does run well as a server. But the same argument could be said of PocketPC. Why use a desktop OS on a PDA
In a way, that's what DOS was. Single user single tasking operating system. It didnt do much in terms of hardware (other than a very basic interface). Only the concept of 'Windowed content' brought multi-tasking to the masses.
---and furthermore - why use a desktop OS on a server. In fact I imagine linux is more suited than windows ever was, as all they have really ported is the Kernel, the rest is rebuilt, and the kernel is shrunk and tailored to a PDA anyway.
True, but the the "desktop OS vs server OS" was fought between Windows NT and Win9x. NT was network suited. If you bought the higher product, you got nt Server. MS just slapped server stuff on a Desktop OS. That's what merged those two together.
---And you are right, it is a mini laptop - which is why I want it. I work 24x7 support, and the idea of pulling out a linux machine with a useable keyboard from my pocket, logging in and doing my work, is very enticing.
That's exactlty my point. They oughtta call it MINI-laptop or something. Still, if you're in tech support, does it have serial ports to use? I didnt look close at the pictures.
---And the XScale and the Crusoe are in completely different classes, please don't trust MHz ratings.
I was asking based on related energy input and heat output. The less those 2 are, the better for small computers. In a PDA type setting, I really dont care about speed of the cpu, just as long the unit is snappy (and bloat-decreased).
For my PDA, I expect it's primary duties to be a notepad + address book + scheduler + RPN calculator. I want something that is small, nimble, quick to use, easy to backup, and will never crash on me. I'll live with a wait cursor on my computers but not on my PDA. I'll live with multiple clicks to perform one task on my computer but not on my PDA. If I want a portable MP3 player, I'll get a Zen or a iPod. And for my PDA needs, the PalmOS based ones are it. I currently use a Handera330 and have no complaints. I'd take a Tungsten T in a heartbeat. Not for its whizz bang features, but for its formfactor and screen. Oh, and I'd trade color for battery life anyday on a PDA.
The Sharp would be a cool laptop backup though. If I worked as a SysAdmin, I'd carry one with a CF ethernet adapter and a serial cable everywhere. However, I'm a code slinger and much prefer my Happy Hacking Keyboard to a thumbpad.
EnkiduEOT
There is no trap so deadly as the trap you set for yourself
-Raymond Chandler, The Long Goodbye
> 1: Why not a single task system? Eliminates VM (and associated overhead).
I happy to enjoy being able to stop what I'm doing, looking up a phone number, and going right back to where I was without digging around to find the application I was running.
I also enjoy talking on IRC or checking my email while a web page loads. Or calculating some numbers while a new program is being installed.
> 2: Why soo big monitor? 640x480 is a lot of power to keep lit. Try 320x240
Hmm... Because you can see a lot more on it, no doubt? Perhaps that's why people keep making bigger monitors and TV sets. Or maybe they're all crazy, and it's an LCD conspiracy!
As for being 'big' physically (you seem to think it's a lot more space to 'keep lit'), it's no bigger than the SL-5500. The screen is about the same size as pretty much every other PDA out there. (It's the same as my Palm III, if I count the silkscreen area, which is 'soft' (ie, screen space) on most newer Palms)
> 3: WHy is monitor color? If it's a pda, you need text and grayscale images. Needless energy waste.
Since when do I need greyscale images? It's hard to read a map if all of the lines are black and white. And frankly, having a To-Do list item highlighted in red when it's past due is a pretty reasonable way to make it noticable.
> 4: People want devices that do XYZ. Why not have plugin devices that power themselves (on their own batteries)? Your 802.11 card dies. big deal. You can still use yoru pda.
I see what you're getting at here, but batteries aren't light. If everything had batteries in them needlessly, the thing would weigh way too much to be comfortable to hold. Besides, spending the extra cash on a low-power device is probably much cheaper than if the device had its own battery!
> 5: Have no keyboard onboard. Makes things too klunky. Have the gui able to handle all touch access but have a keyboard adaptor (along with keyboard battery) so you dont have to hunt letters.
You'll be wanting the SL-A300 then.
> 6: Why not use a slower processor but have dedicated circuits that are only used when demanded (music decompresser).
I guess maybe you don't know much about modern PDA CPUs...
for some reason they decided to drop the XML format from the PIM
If this is really so, this means they lost me as a prospective customer. I don't want a Linux PDA to play the same old games with proprietary formats.
At least, until SyncML synchronization is unavailable for C700, there is little reason for me to prefer it over Pocket PC. Heck, there are SyncML add-ons for Pocket PC already.
My exception safety is -fno-exceptions.