What Should I Buy Now?
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All the new devices make it more difficult than ever for a prospective
buyer to choose the right model. Like many decisions, the specific
choice depends on personal preferences and priorities. Considering the
new releases, here are some factors to consider before making a
purchase decision: PRICE
While the new units premiering this Spring have been at the middle to
high end (up to $500), their release has prompted price reductions in
both Palm and Handspring lines. The most affordable is the Palm m100,
which now lists for only $129. Sporting unique consumer features like
snap on faceplates and a viewable clock window in its flip up cover,
the unit is otherwise functionally identical to any other monochrome
Palm. The only drawbacks are a slightly smaller screen and only 2Mb
of memory. The latter can be rectified by upgrading to an
m105 which sells for $199.
For only $149, Handspring offers its entry-level 2Mb Visor, which has
a full size screen, USB support, and expandability via its Springboard
modules. They've also dropped the price on their Visor Deluxe units
to $199, which come with 8Mb and a choice of colors.
UPGRADEABILITY
The downside to all Handspring units, including their new Visor Edge,
is that they include the Palm OS in read-only-memory (ROM). ROM chips
are cheaper and in more plentiful supply than write-able Flash memory
but they limit future upgrade potential. For instance, the Visor and
Visor Deluxe units ship with Palm OS 3.1, which does not fully support
16-shade grayscale in system interface routines. Consequently,
customers with entry-level Visors cannot run some programs or access
certain features, and cannot upgrade their
operating systems to do so. While this is not usually
a major concern, it's something to keep in mind if
you're the type who likes to try new programs or have
the latest and greatest.
FORM FACTOR
Most PalmOS organizers are similar in same size and shape. At the
high end, however, four slim-line models are available: the Palm m500,
m505, Visor Edge, and Palm Vx. All four have sleek metal cases, are
similar in weight, and are slim enough to fit in a combination
Palm/wallet case. The Edge has the advantage of coming in three
bright colors, though the Palm Vx has also been available at times in
limited special edition gold, blue, and teal (the Claudia Schiffer
edition) versions. The Edge also has a removable flip top cover,
but sadly this cover must be removed to access the
expansion port at the top.
BATTERY TYPE
The choice of alkaline or rechargeable batteries is largely a matter
of personal preference. Rechargeable battery packs are used in the
Palm V series, m500, m505, Palm IIIc, Visor Prism, and the Sony Clie
series. Other units use AAA batteries. Most people prefer
rechargeables to replacing two AAA's every month or so. The downside
with rechargeable is that when caught out of power, one can't simply
swap in a new set of batteries. The only exception is the Handera
330, which supports both options, as it can run with either
four alkaline batteries, or a removable, rechargeable
lithium-ion battery.
DISPLAY
In the past, display options consisted mostly of the choice between
either a monochrome or color display. All displays were 160x160 pixels
and about the same physical size, except for the Sony Clie and Palm
m100 series, which are slightly smaller. Now with the new releases,
the choices are not as straightforward.
The m505 offers a much-needed improvement in color screen technology,
using a side-lit reflective screen that can be seen in bright
sunlight, removing one of the biggest limitations in previous color
screens, making it a sure choice for many who can afford its $449
price tag. It also supports a 16-bit display mode, matching the
available colors of the Visor Prism.
The HandEra's new high-resolution 240x320 display breaks new ground in
monochrome displays, but presents some issues that one should be aware
of before choosing it. Programs must be specifically enhanced to take
advantage of some of the extra features of the HandEra's enhanced
display. While all the bundled standard programs have been
appropriately modified, unmodified programs run instead in a hybrid
emulation mode. HandEra made extensive modifications to their own
version of PalmOS to try to support programs that were
not written with the HandEra in mind. On such
programs, the HandEra rearranges the program's screens
"behind its back" while trying to fool it into thinking
it's still running on a 160x160 device. The result is
that text appears in the higher resolution, while
graphics get algorithmically stretched and slightly
distorted in the process.
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