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Sharp Zaurus C-7x0 Reviewed
jwr writes "The fine folks at BargainPDA have a
full-length review of the latest Sharp Zaurus C-7x0 handhelds. " We've covered this PDA in the past but this is a much more in depth review on this solid looking device.
they are^Wwere running their site on the Sharp Zaurus C-7x0
Call me old fashioned, but I like a dump to be as memorable as it is devastating - Bender
Until I played with one at Office Depot.
I found navigating it was awkward and non-intuitive. It just reeked of "desktop computer" crammed into the PDA.
PalmOS is just so much easier to deal with on such a small device.
I don't need no instructions to know how to rock!!!!
That was the fastest Slashdotting ever. Seriously. I clicked the link right after the article became available to non-sunscribers. It just goes to show, even though you can get complex applications like Apache to run on a PDA, it isn't always the brightest idea.
I totally love my SL-5500, I use it mostly for phone/address stuff and quick notes from meetings and calls, but even as an mp3 player with a 64mb SD in the side and a good headset it's great even at the gym . Looking on the Ezaurus.com page looks like there is a higher end version called the C760 (the article reviews the C750) - I'm sure by the time they actually start selling in America (what maybe 2 years from now) my 5500 will just start "feeling" old.
Ave Molech Setting
Does Palm show any interest in Linux hand-held interoperability? It seems to me it would be in their best interest...They are still manufacturing hardware after all...decent stuff at that.
Yes it does, had you read the review you would have noticed that. Unfortunately even though this handheld runs Linux, it only syncs with M$ Windows OS', not Linux - bummer...
Dude, did you, like, convert the article into a telegram before you posted it or something?
The coolest voice ever.
Review of Sharp Zaurus SL-C750 from Dynamism
reviewed for bargainPDA by Ian Giblin with help from Vince Torti
Overview
The new Zaurus SL-C750 from Sharp is a versatile, linux-based PDA incorporating an XScale (PXA255) CPU at 400 MHz. In terms of software it is similar to the Zaurus SL-5600 which became available in the U.S. in April of 2003. The hardware, though, is significantly enhanced.
Contents
The content sections of this review are listed below. It makes sense to separate hardware and software discussion in any PDA; in this case it is more important because of the customisation which Dynamism have done.
Hardware:
* The Sharp SL-C750 and How To Get One
* Packaging and First Impressions
* Features Summary and Overall Design
* The Display
* Portrait Mode and the Tap-Buttons
* The Stylus
* Memory
* The Keyboard
* Input options other than the keyboard
* Battery life
Software:
* The Operating System and Basic Navigation
* Personal Information Management (PIM) Tools
* Syncing and file transfer
* Office Tools (Hancom Word, Hancom Sheet, Presentation)
* Games
* Multimedia
* Networking
* The Email Client
* The NetFront3 WWW Browser
* Other Software
* Software Availability and Compatibility
* Linux comments
* Conclusion
(back to contents)
The Sharp SL-C750 and How To Get One
At the present time this device is not available from Sharp USA. It can be bought from specialist suppliers Dynamism, who provided our review unit and have been described as the technology equivalent of an exclusive jewelery store. As well as modifying the Operating System to speak English and shipping the unit direct to you in three days (from Japan), Dynamism add lifetime free technical support, warranty coverage (they pay all shipping costs), and a wealth of experience in using these devices.
Along with the C750, another similar model called the C760 is also available; that device has a larger battery, more memory and, obviously, ten more "cool points".
(back to contents)
Packaging
The SL-C750 comes in a simple cardboard box with no clear plastic window. Just a few colour pictures of the device and some Japanese writing. The packaging is simple, light and easily recyclable.
Inside the box is the PDA securely positioned with cardboard spacers, along wih the USB connector (not a cradle), power supply, CD-ROM, incomprehensible (unless you can read Japanese) 224-page manual, another shorter booklet which looks like the quick-start guide, and a registration card with a very Japanese-looking address on it. Somehow I don't think it would make it to Japan from Queens. Just about the only English text on this documentation was the Zaurus name and numerous references to ezaurus.com, the Japanese support site which does have some cool animations.
First Impressions
"Not as clumsy or random as an iPaq, this is an elegant PDA from an altogether more civilised age..."
OK, I admit that the other PDA designs have come a long way, but as for first impressions, this device blows the competition out of the water. The device feels solid, yet high tech. The way the screen swivels to transition from landscape mode (where it looks like a tiny laptop) to portrait mode (where it looks more like a "normal" PDA) is not entirely new but it is so beautifully implemented that it really gives you the best of both worlds. Even though my hands are turning it, I imagine the sound of well-oiled machinery each time I re-orient the screen.
After calming down enough to turn the device on, the next shock is the quality of the 640x480 display. It's stunning. The OS and applications respond quickly and smoothly. The device does not crash or freeze. My co-workers stand and stare in awed silence. As the effect propagates out from midtown Manhattan, taxi drivers
Karma: Can there be a void?
.. -. - . .-. .-. --- -...
that PDA's are no longer needed, with mobiles which can do alot of a PDA's job (and in the next 5yrs certainly all) and a laptop doing the rest. laptops can be as small as you like now, the price is going down, performance is getting better, compatibility is ofcourse, great with all other types of input devices. i don't see a PDA niche anymore.
Comment: Yes I realise the username 'fuckfuck101' makes me sound intelligent, no you cannot buy it from me.
This is not entirely accurate...
Windows in the only _suported_ sync platform, but scripts (perl) exist to sync with evolution (and others). The format is open, so anyone who wants to write an app for Linux syncing is free to do so.
KOrganizer also runs on the Zaurus, so a sync app for it's data should be trivial.
Too bad Sharp decided not to sell these devices here in the US. The only way to get them now is from Dynamism or The Kompany.
But I saw one my local Sharp rep had and they are nice!
theKompany.com now carries these in the US. They're importing them. Here they are
Dynamism sounds like a good company, but if anybody wants to save $100 (and forgo the free shipping if something goes bad) you can get your Zaurus from conics.net. Check the forums for recommendations and localization instructions.
You're too late buddy. "Does it run Linux" is so 2002. The current buzz-question is "does it support Ogg Vorbis?".
Another nice clamshell, too bad its worse than the 3-year-old Psion 5mx. How come nobody can make a PDA with:
- A decent keyboard
- A screen you can see in full sunlight
- Battery life of at least 20 hours (my 5mx regularly gets 30+ hrs)
- A light set of applications for basic office work?
I'm not saying the Psion 5mx is perfect, but you would think that with all the miracles of modern technology that someone could have made a device at least as good. Maybe Moore's Law is being bested by Gate's Law -- new products must have every feature imaginable, even if that makes no feature actually usable.
Two wrongs don't make a right, but three lefts do.
Dynaism would be overflown with orders...
The so-called "clamshell" design means that the PDA opens like a tiny laptop. If cigarettes weren't so unfashionable, I'd prefer to call this a "cigarette case" design, in the style of the multi-functional gadgets used by James Bond. I showed the C750 to a number of people, geek and non-geek, and everybody liked it. It was unusally [for a computer] popular with the ladies.
Finally Sony has developed a chick magnet for geeks.
"It takes many nails to build a crib, but one screw to fill it."
I have a 5500, and all that was necessary was for me to download the GPL QTopia Desktop from Trolltech, rpm -> deb, dpkg install, then click Sync All. Worked on Linux and Windows.
./ crowd at all.
I also found a driver for Mac OS X that did the ethernet-over-usb thing well enough to let me ssh into it and scp all my Documents to the Mac. Then I put in an 802.11 card--now any of my computers can backup the Zaurus via scp, and the Linux and Windows boxes can also sync via QTopia Desktop.
So...unless Sharp broke something, this should really say "Sharp supports only their Windows sync software," but several solutions are available for Linux, none of which should scare the
The site already seems to be cracking. google has a cached version.
Here's my journal entry where I discussed this very situation and why I think all will stay around. It has to do with which devices people use together.
This is my digital signature. 10011011001
http://www.thekompany.com/embedded/devices/
The Raven
OpenZaurus is a much better distribution than the default Sharp one.
If you can't stand the small screen and keyboard, just attach a dumb terminal and away you go.
I don't have enough storage on it to recompile the kernel locally, but I am using GCC on it to do a bit of work on a project of mine during class. The keyboard is nothing to ogle over, but it's a hell of a lot better than a virtual one.
If you want an organizer, pick an old palm up on eBay for a few dollars. If you want a handheld computer, check a zaurus out.
You can't judge a book by the way it wears its hair.
Bad Apples and how commercial companies should utilize Open Source with in-house development.
Open Source software is for most a new and unknown idea whose time has finally come. Many managers who have never even heard of Linux are finding themselves attempting to integrate it into their in-house development. They hear all of the wonderful benefits of utilizing Open Source software and want to be part of that. Unfortunately too often the projects fail for what seems unknown reasons. The majority of the time the problem stems from the false idea that Free Software means no cost across the board. Projects are done on a shoestring budget and the idea of interacting with the community is forgotten. The community is a large asset at the companies disposal that should not be ignored. A successful Open Source project within a company must incorporate developers within the community into the project.
John Macintosh owned an apple tree farm. The vast majority of his apples were shipped out by the ton to a company that made apple cider. After seeing a local farm open its fields to those who wanted to hand pick their own apples with fantastic success he decided to do it also. The margin for selling hand picked apples is much better then selling apples by the ton so why not give it a shot he thought. Come the next spring he put out a sign by the road stating that anyone could hand pick apples. As the summer wore on he found a few customers stopping by, but due to the infrequency he mostly found them to be an annoyance and considered stopping the program all together. Near the end of the August he had a friend over whom also ran an apple farm. The topic turned to John's field and the his lack of customers. His friend quickly pointed out a number of problems that John had overlooked:
Each one of these were a problem that in the end hurt John's apple farm.
Of course John Macintosh and his farm doesn't exist, but if you replace him with a manager and apples with Open Source you suddenly have an interesting situation. Most all business managers when presented with the apple story know the list of problems even before it was listed, but when talking about Open Source they go tripping all over themselves asking why didn't it work? The problem is mostly a lack of knowledge about how Open Source works. They hear about Open Source and Free Software and think that is exactly what it is, something that they can take for free and with very minimal effort get Open Source developers to help. Half of the reason for using Open Source software is to utilize the community, letting them help in improving and developing the software. Managers hear about the army of programmer just working away on code in their free time. They then incorrectly assume that this army of free programmers are just waiting for them to start their project. Managers often times think that very little to no effort will be needed to utilize the community.
Customers were given little help when picking the apples. Basics such as ladders, apple grabbers, and bags or crates were not provided.
Developers want to work on Open Source software, your Open Source software! There is no ex
Do you changes clothes while making the "chee-chee-cha-cha-choh" transformation sound?
The price is horrendous! I just found a place selling it for 840 EUR - roughly the same as the dollar. That is INTENSE!
I mean, it's not even got WiFi or bluetooth or anything like that.
On the other hand, it looks to be one of the coolest PDAs around. Keyboardless PDAs don't do it for me. I have an old Psion Revo laying around, which is pretty cool but outdated, before that I had Cassiopeia and another, but without keyboard they're not as attactive.
Give me a Zaurus with wireless and a built in tri-band phone, and I am sold. No messing.
Any technology distinguishable from magic, is insufficiently advanced.
Thus, I've 95% decided on getting the forthcoming Sony Clie UX50. Smaller than my current Clie and with built-in Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, while the Zaurus comes with no wireless built in and even the Socket model, generally agreed the best and smallest Wi-Fi CF card, would stick out a little bit from the case. Why only 95%? Because of the two big flaws in my mind with the UX50 (the tiny physical size of the screen, and the lack of portrait mode), and because the C760's manifold virtues may yet suck me into its embraces.
[1] One thing I've thought about is using Jpilot, which I happily use to sync my Clie to my Linux box, on the C760. Anyone else do this?
There is a built-in help system but unfortunately it has not been translated from Japanese.
pffft...help files! Real Linux h4x0rs don't need help files !
The Zarus is a good pda but the processor to much of a power hog. Hopefully Sharp will start using the IBM 405lp. Personally I think IBM will sign a agreement to implement the 405lp with Sharp. IBM is well positioned to do a OEM agreement with Sharp.
Don't they have a compact flash slot? You can buy a CF Bluetooth adapter.
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