Hand-held Newbie - which is best?

Hi there, I have a Compaq Ipaq 3870 and find it really, really good! sits in a cradle and links to windows no problem, is totally compatible with Access and is well supported with literature etc.

Hope this helps.

Hi: First, I'd check out Cnet's handheld section:
Once you've decided on a handheld, eBay is a great place to check for used and new handhelds. You'll have an idea of the price range and be able to choose from a good selection.

I've been using an HP Jornada 548 for the past 2 years, but I'm ready to upgrade. Two models worth considering are the new Dell Axim, and the HP/Compaq Ipaq.

The Dell Axim X5 is _by far_ the best bang for your buck.

For about $199, you get a color Pocket PC 2002 PDA with a brilliant screen, jog dial, and CF *and* SD slots. Spend $100 more for more memory, a faster processor, and the coolest Syncing cradle ever

I've had a Palm IIIx for years, and hardly ever used it. The Axim is a Porsche next to the motorized scooter that is the Palm Pilot (sure it'll GET you there, but...


--RHYNO

giemza: Have looked high and low. Almost bought a Dell Axim,purchased a Toshiba e740 on uBid.com instead. Paid $340.00 plus shipping for refurbished unit. Looks and acts like new, has built in WiFi, and I STILL have a CompactFlash II and SD/MMC slot free to add what I will. I figured that by the time I bought the Axim (at $349 less $50 rebate for the higher end model) and a CF II WiFi card, I wouild have had the same or more invested.

WiFi may not be important to you. In that case the Dell appears to be an excellent buy( and the sync cradle sure does look cool) P.S. I didn't even consider the e740 for it's advertised $599 less $100 rebate totaling $499.00, but if you can find a deal like mine, it's hard to beat!

First you have to know what you want to DO with it. If you want to be able to work with desktop applications like Word, Power Point, Excel, etc., then Palm is right out. However, if you just want to keep track of your contacts, schedule, and calendar, then you might want to get a Palm. Which Palm depends on what you want to do also. If you want to cruise the net realtime, you will need to get a Palm that works with wireless. Not all of them do. Used to be that Pocket PC's were more expensive than Palm devices, but now you can't say that. Palm devices used to have really long battery life. Pocket PC's don't. Well, now, a lot of Palm devices are using Lithium Ion batteries, because they have color screens, wireless communication, some are even telephones. All of this adds up to shorter and shorter battery life.

Pocket PC or Palm, the number of applications you can load depends on the size of the memory. Palm devices have historically been short on memory. My HP Jornada 568 has 64 Mb of RAM and I have another 256Mb memory card in the expansion slot all the time. I can play MP3's at the Y and have lots of programs stored on the 256Mb CF Card.

So, to sum it up, you need to decide what you want to do with it. Then, you can find the machine you want.

My personal preference is the iPAQ Pocket PC. I've owned a 3650, and now own a 3850. I'm 100% satisfied with their performance. Currently I use the CF and PC expansion pack for wireless 802.11b at home and a cellular PC card for Mobile Information Server Synchronization.

The downside to most of the Pocket PC's is their modularity. You have to purchase additional hardware, in most cases, to fully exploit their functionality.

If cost is not a factor go with a high ROM and RAM config at purchase. Otherwise purchase a memory upgrade (you'll find it useful).

See & Mar 2003 issue, p.47 to 50.

This is interesting:

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