Slashdot Mirror
Pen-Based PDA Market on Death Bed
An anonymous reader writes "The traditional pen-based PDA market is destined to evaporate within the next four years, according to HP, and it will be focusing its handheld efforts on converged smart phone devices, such as its latest BlackBerry rivals unveiled this week -- the iPAQ rw6800 and the iPAQ hw6900." From the article: "This won't come as a surprise to many, as HP hasn't given its traditional pen-based product line a refresh since the launch of the iPAQ hx4700 towards the middle of 2004. It released the iPAQ rx1950 in September of last year, but this was very much an entry-level product and made few waves among the high-end, tech-savvy consumers that dominate the PDA segment."
From what I read on MSNBC http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/11636942/ , the Origami project will be a paperbook sized tablet computer (i.e. a PDA on steroids) that will run regular Win-XP instead of the crippled CE or XP-embeded found on most PDAs. Basically the PDA will evolve from an embedded system with limited functionality into a more full-featured portable PC with full multi-media capability. This will could also be a threat to the iPod, since the Origami box would also be a portable player, but with other features included.
They're crap to use. I mean, they're *useless* for any serious amount of data input, have you ever tried writing a letter on one? and a PDA or smart phone is more useful for displaying data because *it fits in a pocket*...
l
. html
You want a serious computer, today, it *must* have a keyboard, otherwise it's a data display device.
For those who don't want to carry a PDA, camera, a laptop and a phone, Nokia have the Communicator devices, everything in one.
Big:
http://www.europe.nokia.com/nokia/0,,54106,00.htm
Small:
http://www.europe.nokia.com/nokia/0,6771,77854,00
Deleted
Been using a PDA for years. Read books, play games, keeps photos, my emails, phone numbers, personal notes, date reminders ... It is a part of my life really. Use it everyday. One thing it doesnt need it a damn phone. Im already around too many phones (most times i dont even bother answering my phone @ home. more bother than what it is worth.)
I will be upgrading when im inclined (to a model around $500-$600 CAD), and i guess with HP going out, that is one less model i need to be concerned with researching when i do decide to purchase. I highly recommend a PDA to anyone who enjoys any of what i mentioned above, cept for the phone thing, if you *must* have a phone, then you will have to sacrifice some things in the name of communication.
I've long held the opinion that if you gave one of these things to one of the homeless guys who stand on the street and talk to unseen people, they would cease to look crazy, but rather "productive". Go figure.
I think you've missed the aesthetic aspect entirely. It's a clothespin with a beacon. I think it makes you MUCH more attractive than a plain ol clothespin without a beacon.
I was amazed how bright that sucker is in my Plantronics 640 when it strobed as I walked through a dark hallway.
Pull my finger for my public key.
I'm getting atleast three hours of heavy use (100mW 802.11g and the screen full blast) on my 770. Four plus without network usage and a dim screen. It also seems to take less than hour to get an almost full charge. Beautiful hardware and decent, but somewhat immature software. Time will fix that and the lack of apps. Many of the deb-arm packages work if you've rooted your 770.
"I hate to advocate drugs, alcohol, violence or insanity but they've always worked for me" - HST
First of all, I was told I was working on Wednesday at 9 so I pencilled that in, and yes, it was slightly faster (but only slightly) than my Nokia. But then I hit my first snag: nowhere could I find an alarm function to remind me. Thinking it was an extra module that had to be purchased seperately (which is really bad value for money, IMO) I spent ages on Google looking for it... to no avail. Thankfully I didnt miss work because I went back to my old Nokia's calendar to remind me. (Of course, it auto-synch'd via BT next time the computer was one.)
The second problem I had was when I needed to record a complicated series of directions to get to a friend's house -- it was quite a way away and in the end my hand just got tired of writing (Oh, how I longed for a keypad). Again, the old Nokia came to the rescue and I used the record voice function to succesfully record directions -- I was very disapointed at the new solutions lack of audio recording or even a rudiumentary camera (640x480 even?)
Another problem I kept running into was the lack of any audio player (perhaps thats another module)? I mean, I dont like having to carry around 3 devices with me everytime I go out when my Nokia was very much an all-in-one. Sure, I could have written out the OGG files in HEX and hummed them back to myself but I'm a student and to be honest, I don't really have that kind of time anymore.
Another problem (they were really bugging me by this point) was no way to transfer e-books to the new solution save by hand. I tried transcribing Zarathustra but gave up only a few pages into the book -- it really wasnt worth it, so I just coppied it over BT to my Nokia. I could have bought the dead-tree with me (which I also owned) but I needed to take a few other books as well and it didnt fit into my bag.
Finally the trial was bought to an abrupt halt when I dropped it. Yes, I'd been dropping it all week with no adverse affects but it had been raining and I dropped it in a puddle -- all my appointments, all my shopping and to-do lists, gone in a slimey mess of sticky paper. Now if I'd dropped my Nokia, sure, I'd have lost those but only temporarily thanks to the automatic bluetooth sync. I was so angry! I mean, what kind of device is built in this day and age without any kind of easy backup facilities?
Folks, stay away from this -- its nothing but a sham and a waste of money.