Advice on PDA's

[magman007]

Well, im looking to get a pda for college, my schedual is so hectic, and i want to be able to keep control of everything. Also, blue tooth would be very nice, but as far as i know, my comp isnt setup for blue tooth


Is there some sorta Reciever i can buy for my computer? so that i can use it? im on a toshiba a25 laptop btw.

IM looking at the Palm T3 handheld. Im sure its a good pda, for 400 it better be right? I love the slide extend featue it has.

BUT! are there any other pda's you guys would reccomend? The highest zire looks pretty damn cool too, but i dont know if i need to take pictures and stuff.

So, any one have any insite?

[1stdeadeye]

I've had 3 Palms over the years. They are great, very easy to use. Plug the station into your USB port and hit the sync button. They last and have a ton of software that works on them.

[vf-xx]

I use a sony clie. Your best bet is to stick with the hotsync cable/cradle.

Personally I wouldn't spend $400 on a PDA. Just go with the cheapest one that meets your basic needs.

I use mine as an E-book reader all the time.

[Muzikman]

I have had so many different PDAs it would make ones head spin. I like the Palms simple to use interface, but it lacks when it comes to the "cool" features. I have used the HP, Compaq, and Toshiba Pocket-PCs and the Compaq was by far my favorite. But it all comes down to want you want it for. If it's just for the scheduling, I'd go Palm (any model will do). If you want to surf the web and do other "cool" things, I suggest the Pocket PC.

[magman007]

well,Toshiba offers a pocket pc, much like the Compaq, ive had interaction with the Compaq version, and i did like it, but im not sure how well i would be able to schedual things with it. Is there an easy schedualing feature like the palm offers?

I like toshiba products over Hewlett packard, so that would influence my choice, and i can find the palm tungsten t3 for as low as 324.00 on froogle. I tihnk i will go to best buy, check em out, then buy on line, does that sound good?

[cphilip]

Sure... you can add blue tooth to any computer.

Both my Macs had it built in.

but I added it to the Windows XP laptop I just retired and just gave to my kid.... I added it to that one over a year ago and it worked fine and dandy. Its a little transmitter that plugs into any USB port. I had it on the back of it. Seems like at the time I had to go online and find an updated driver to get it working right. Pretty sure its fixed now though. Was easy to do.

... and My wife also has one on the back of her older Powermac that did not have it built in either. I think she just didn't order it with that one at the time as it was new technology then and she didn't realize the value of it at that time. But later did and we added it this same way. Although the Mac set right up and found its own driver once it was plugged into it.

Anyway you just plug it in and load some software that comes with it on a CD rom and off you go. Worked great. About 25 bucks for the set up when I bought it over a year ago. They might even even be cheaper now a days.

[magman007]

so, if i went with the pocket pc, i could go on line usuing WiFi? Would i also be able to link to my computer in the same respect?

And couldnt i do the same with the palm?

also, it appears the palm has a faster processor in it, will this make that big of a difference?

[Muzikman]

Palme is a faster OS, but really when you are using a PDA, you don't really notice.

The Pocket PC has a version of Outlook and can be synced with outlook on your PC.

the WiFi on the Pocket PC is nice...and yes you can connect to your PC with it, but I would still suggest the cradle to sync. You already need it for charging, why not just plug it in. It's faster.

[Thordic]

Just kiss her, who cares who is watching.

[magman007]

Just kiss her, who cares who is watching.

hahaha funny thor. also, what about the new sony clie? it seems the best of both worlds. Palm os tweeked by sony, and wifi capabilities. wooudl you recomend that over the pocket pc?

[vf-xx]

I don't know about the new one, but my older one has been working wonderfully. Main difference between the Sony Clie's and Palm ones is that for the same funcionality the sony's seem to be a bit bigger but cheaper in price.

Is your school already configured for WiFi? I'm not sure that this will be as much of a benifit as you're thinking it is.