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New Palms: Zire 71 and Tungsten C
securitas writes "Today Palm released their latest in the PDA arms race: the Zire 71 and the Tungsten C. The Zire gets a color screen, digital camera and multimedia capabilities such as MP3 playback and 640x480 VGA video playback -- interesting since the screen is 320x320. The Tungsten C gets 802.11b (WiFi) connectivity and a VPN client to protect your data while in transit. More at
InternetNews, PC World and Business Week/CNet."
Review on infosyncworld.
The main gripe they have is the lack of Bluetooth, and that the IR diode isn't any stronger.
But are there not Bluetooth cards for the SD port?
Irene KHAAAAAAN!
Because Bluetooth is for connecting peripherals together, 802.11 is for providing TCP/IP-style networking. I could see Bluetooth for connecting your wireless headset (maybe), however you can get Bluetooth cards for this.
Of the two I would guess that 802.11b is much more useful for places like restaurants / shops etc. that might use wireless for stock control or whatever. Bluetooth is neat but how many people have other devices to sync up with? Personally I'd just prefer 802.11b.
Actually, the TC and Z71 have been available from various Targets and Circuit Citys for a few days now. It's all over the boards at brighthand.com and palminfocenter.com. People posted pics and specs. Shoulda done a little research! :)
I'm with you though, I like my TT better than the TC. It's still smaller and lighter and Bluetooth is now a must have for me.
And as of now, there aren't any SDIO WiFi cards. They're pretty much all coming Real Soon Now.
On top of that, there are reports that current SDIO implementations will probably limit the WiFi bandwidth to 2Mbps. Not too bad for a PDA, but pretty limiting for wireless sync and file transfer.
Well, hopefully they stick to three for a while ;-)
Seriously, it's a Good Thing that PalmOS has become as portable as it now is - different processors are best suited for different applications, and if you run on a particular platform, then there's a possibility that your OS gets selected for that use.
Dragonball, OMAP, and XScale aren't bad for starters. Though OMAP and XScale are members of the ARM family, and the software is probably pretty much compatible.
-- Josh Turiel
"2. Do not eat iPod Shuffle."
They already do. Go to the store on Palm's website and you'll see all sorts of books, manuals and guides on SD cards.
Bill Clinton: Pimp we can believe in. - The Shirt!!!
While POS devices have typically had very tiny screens, with these models they're the same as what you can get in the PocketPC world. The Sony models at 480x320 have the same res of a Newton screen, but are physically smaller and Palm OS still lacks the advanced features of the Newton OS. Some non-PocketPC WinCE PDAs have a screen about the size of Newton 2100, but they're overpriced and hard to find. It is a damn shame- it is a huge pain in the ass to take notes on a tiny 320x240 screen, especially when you've been spoiled by a Newton 2100...
Working toward a usable PDA environment in the spirit of Newton OS: Dynapad
You know, I've agreed with your sentiment for a long time. But recently I bought a Sony Clie SJ33 as a birthday gift for probably the most amazing, beautiful girl in the world, and after seeing her daily use with it, I've changed my mind on this.
I started with Palms ever since I got a Palm 1000. You know, that boxy dark-grey thing that had 128kb of memory long before Palm realized that independent developers would write thousands upon thousands of applications for the platform. Back then, they did one thing and one thing well--organize. Finally, there was some device I could hold in my hand that could actually improve my day-to-day life. Something that wasn't merely a toy but a real, useful tool.
I eventually moved up to a Palm Vx for the 8mb RAM, LiIon battery and small form-factor. To me those were great features that complemented the key point of it all--to organize. I loved my Palm Vx and shook my head with disgust as the Palms that came after disappointed me. The next Palms traded battery life for fancy colour screens and suddenly you were paying extra for features that didn't matter.
Well, this Clie SJ33 has changed my mind. Now they are actually coming out non-organizer features that are actually useful. The MP3 playback integrated with the Palm alone makes this handheld amazing. Sure, you can carry around your Palm, music playing device and cellphone. I've done that before, but I always had heavy, bulging and uncomfortable pockets as a result. The best solution I've seen is more than three years old, and it's the eholster which tucks your miniature high-tech devices under your arms. Unfortunately they aren't actually usable because they actually look like real gun-holsters and pulling out a PDA has made a few people around me jump as it looked like I was drawing a gun. Practical, but doesn't work too well in this post 9-11 society. This girl that I speak of prefers wearing pocketless skirts over bulding pants, so integrating the music player with a small form-factored Palm works perfectly for her.
Digital cameras on a Palm also work very well, found on the Zire 71 mentioned in this Slashdot article and also the memory stick cameras, not to mention the built in one on the Sony CLIE PEGNX70V or PEGNZ90. Sure, they are barely 1 megapixel, but they are a lot of fun. Basically if you're like me, you're going to have your Palm on you at all times. But I only think to bring my camera to social events. So now you have the ability to capture anything, anytime as you go through life. See a funny subway ad that you want to show your girlfriend? See Natalie Portman walking down the street and want to take a picture with her? End up spontaneously at a party and want to take some pictures? Sure the quality won't be up there, but you can still capture some memories at unexpected moments.
I could go on with the many more features available, but my point being that mere organizing changed my life, but now they are adding features that can also improve my day-to-day life, and everyday these features dive cheaper and cheaper.
Handspring sells such ROMs for the Springboard slot. My black Visor Deluxe has a 32 MB CF card with about 40 books in it, including H2G2 (I own more than one paper copy, so I don't see that as pirating).
The short answer, because it's easier to add Bluetooth. I currently own a Tungsten T, which is the first Palm I've actually loved, but it has two main flaws from my view and both of these are fixed in the Tunsten C.
1) T comes with Bluetooth built in, but I can buy a Bluetooth card from Palm. I can't seem to find an 802.11b card for the life of me. Though different companies claim to have card designs that they've sold to other people, nothing has made it to market yet that I'm aware of.
I could be up and running with 802.11b, but since I have Sprint, and Sprint hasn't come out with a bluetooth phone yet (Though SonyEriccson is rumored to have the T608 coming out this quarter), I have no internet connectivity with my Palm.
2) I used to own a Treo 300, which had a keyboard and I must say it's a heck of a lot faster to type on that mini-keyboard once you get used to it than to write grafitti. I'm kind of neutral, but somewhat leaning toward keyboard designs - especially now that the OS supports some keyboard navigation.
infosync.no has some good examples of the pictures taken at day and night with the Zire 71
day photo
night photo
Infosync's full review of the Zire 71
"And a voice was screaming: 'Holy Jesus! What are these goddamn animals?'" - HST
I'm thinking about getting a Sony with a 480x320 screen, but even those are kinda small.
I can't believe nobody makes a handheld with a screen the size of a paperback book. I don't even care what it runs, so long as it's not WinCE...
GCHQ Quantum Insert installed. If only our tongues were made of glass, how much more careful we would be when we speak
Just to clarify. The Zire brand is not aimed at 'low end' devices, but rather is focused as the consumer brand for Palm. So Zire == Consumer oriented devices, while Tungsten == professional.
Or something like that.
Turn s60 photos into awesome videos with mScrapbook for all S60 3rd edition phones!
There's a Palm Zire 71 Review at PDABuzz.
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