Linux PDA Resurfaces in U.S.

An anonymous reader writes "A high-end Linux-based Sharp Zaurus PDA thought to be discontinued in the US is actually available from two sources. The SL-6000L is available from stock from 10East, a seller of vertical market systems for the railroad industry which has established a direct manufacturing relationship with Sharp Japan, it says. The Wi-Fi equipped SL-6000L is also available in single quantities from SDG Systems, which, incidentally, is porting Linux to several PDAs that normally run Windows, including the super-rugged TDS Recon."

Comments

SL5500 owner response

[dink353]

I own a Zaurus 5500 and have used a 5600, and judging from my use of these two systems, I would not recomend doing much with these PDA's if you want to add much software that does not come with it.

I was overjoyed with the prospect of linux on a PDA and got it, and the build in keypad seemed to be a great asset. Compact flash AND SD card slots made me think that this little thing was a diamond in the rough. But it went downhill. They keypad would sometimes malfunction and require a reboot to get it to work again, package finding for the zaurus is a nightmare, and don't bother trying to find a belt holster for it without getting one custom made.

They are great using for little apointment scheduling, wireless lan sniffing, network diagnosis (what I do with it) and playing the odd game of destroyer, but really, if you are thinking about the wonderful linux stability and versitility, you may have to think again.

Re:SL5500 owner response

[Erris]

I would not recomend doing much with these PDAs if you want to add much software that does not come with it.

I'm not sure what that means, but Open Zaurus has more software than you can shake a stick at. About three weeks ago, they released 3.5.3, the second release using Bit Bake. Even GPE works well now, though Opie is better developed.

if you are thinking about the wonderful linux stability and versitility, you may have to think again.

Some of the commercial software that comes with Zaurus may not be the best. As a Debian user, crashes are a shock. OZ, when things are working, does much better. I can say for sure that 3.5.3 is working. If your choice of three platforms, the ability to compile your own applications, multiple input and output and linux fs and mount flexibility is not good enough for you, I'd like to know what you consider better. Do you know of any other PDA you can ssh into and export X sessions?

The company offering these is obviously a solution provider. They have picked a good tool for the job.

Sure, nothing works for everone. The "average user" may not need this but that's because they don't need a PDA. The average corporate drone and my wife are happy with Palm. That and the utter uslessness of Winblows based PDAs are why PDA sales are down in the dirt. Those who lug around an eight pound laptop simply to text message, web browse, email, text edit and spreedsheet, would do well with one of these.

OpenBSD Zaurus port

[west.to.east]

also making progress

Parent is not informative

[Anonymous Coward]

Not true, my friend. The Zaurus PDAs are some of the most flexible PDAs out there today, with a wide variety of software, with everything from SNES emulators to FTP servers. You won't get very far with the default software, however. I recommend installing something like OPIE or Watapon for the 5600. Some of the software is very mature. I hope to see more Linux PDAs in the States. They are all about customization.

If you're looking for a start, try the OE forums. After you get a new OS image on there, you will probably be much more satisfied.

How about a HD-equipped PDA?

[wikinerd]

Tiny 300-gram Qtopia Linux-based PDAs with 4GB HDD, 416MHz CPU, 65K-colour 640x480 screen, mini QWERTY keyboard, CF/SD/USB/IrDA and what-else are commonplace in Japan but you can buy them for 800 Euro in North America and Europe if you click here or here or here, and their interface is even translated in English. If you feel like installing your own Linux distribution on this PDA, click here. But you can also install OpenBSD on it, as you can see if you click here.

Re:Ad for Disconinued Models or Clearance?

[dangerz]

There is plenty of support.

http://www.elsix.org/
http://www.oesf.org/

Support doesn't always have to come directly from a company.