Slashdot Mirror
Palmtop Nirvana?
cakefool asks: "There seems to be a Slashdot article every day about a new palmtop/subnotebook/digitalwhoojerammy, and without fail people complain it doesn't have what they want. Let's do this the other way around - what do you need in a handheld computing device, seriously? I ummed and ahhed for ages before finally ordering a Psion 5mx, and it does everything I need it to, other than play Doom(1), and is a hell of a lot cheaper than the JVC micronotebook, and smaller than a budget laptop, with a much longer battery life than both." What features do you look for in a handheld/palmtop computing device?
I would like a no-moving parts (or rarely moving parts, e.g. the iPod hard drive) portable that is:
- no bigger than my Visor Deluxe
- can user a rechargeable lithium polymer battery or AAA
- offers wi-fi, bluetooth, or GPRS connectivity as options - this shouldn't be standard... it should be an inexpensive (less than $50) add-on.
- High-res 5" screen. I don't need color - grayscale, perhaps, but color is extra.
Modularity would be a huge benefit, but could be hard on sales. Big modular item for me: screen. I want to be able to choose between a grayscale and color screen, and replace it when I break it.That what was all this school was for... to teach us how to solve our own problems. -- janeowit
The major failing in most PDA's or palmtops is that there's very little you can usefull do with them. Everybody carries cell phones because cell phones are obviously useful. They are compact, simple (well, not so much anymore), and they are VERY useful.
I used to carry around a PDA. I used it to keep track of phone numbers and my calendar. I now have a cell phone which is ideal for the first task, and is passably useful for the second. So why would I carry around another device?
Name me one thing that I can do with a PDA I cannot do with a simple cell phone that makes it worth carrying around. Surf the web? Well it's not really that easy to do it effectively on either device. Watch videos? The displays suck for that, they don't have enough memory, and frankly I can't imagine needing this "on the go".
PDA's are the bad middle ground. They are not as compact as cellphone and they are not as useful as full size laptop. Until somebody comes up with a good reason for people to lug around yet another device, there's not much left to say about it.
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I'd be happy just getting the electronic equivalent of a notepad and pencil so long as the handwriting recognition's good, and it could sync to computer. In a pretty quick period of time, they'd probably be dirt cheap and I could have a few to use at home and work.
Yes, I could just use a notepad and pencil. But I've seen what happens with prolonged use. My dad's done that for years. And now he's got loose collection of paper and business cards, 3 inches thick, sitting in his breast pocket everyday. Every morning, he transfers this block of paper from yesterdays shirt into today's shirt. He's found stuff in that block that info over 6 years old and completely useless.
I guess really just want digital paper and I'll have to wait 10+ years for it.
As for the bluetooth comment, if you think it's competing with wifi, you've misunderstood bluetooth's purpose. It's low-cost, low-power, low-bandwidth. That's why it's so good, as you can integrate it into a device for pennies, whereas wifi costs tens of dollars. It's never ever competed with wifi (do you see any bluetooth network routers around?), as that's not what it does. The only similarities are they're both wireless. Bluetooth's low-bandwidth means it's ideal for control IO, not actual data streaming (even though it can handle streaming voice fine).