Life after TX
whytea
year. All the signs don't are not good for the next Palm PDA release.
Realistically Palm smart phone is probably the way to go if I were to
stick with Palm. What I would like to know from those who have already
made the switch: what do you miss most compared to a PDA? How does a
smart phone stack up against a standalone PDA?
/Why Tea
Marilyn & Bob
If you like your TX, buy a replacement on Ebay if your current one fails.
Some are available new or barely used.
--
Peace,
BobJ
"whytea" <why...@gmail.com> wrote in message
news:g161o7$biu$1...@news.al.sw.ericsson.se...
Mark Olson
> If you like your TX, buy a replacement on Ebay if your current one fails.
> Some are available new or barely used.
Budget for replacing the crappy original digitizer with a
glass top and you'll have something you can actually use.
I had my TX replaced once under warranty for a failing
digitizer, then the 2nd one started failing exactly like
the first one after just a couple of months. The glass
digitizer has been perfect for quite a while now.
Alan Hoyle
I recently made the switch to a Treo after I killed my TX trying to
replace the digitizer. I didn't know how the cable connector worked:
I tried to force it instead of lifting the black tab to allow easy,
zero force release/install. Knowing what I know now, I'm sure I would
have been succesful. I think I crimped and/or stripped the ribbon cable on
both my original failing digitizer and the new replacement one.
With a dead TX (well, dead digitizer: the rest still works fine), I
was left with a few choices:
1. I could buy a used TX off of eBay or new one from a store.
2. I could buy a Treo off of eBay.
3. I could jump ship.
I didn't really want to get a used TX, and my cell phone contract
(family plan) doesn't expire until August. I checked eBay, and there
was a lightly used Treo 755p for my provider selling for a Buy-It-Now
price of just under $250 shipped, with no contract requirements. I
decided to give it a shot.
So far, after some initial "getting used to it," and migration hurdles,
I'm mostly pleased.
Battery life hasn't been the greatest, but getting an extended battery
and going through a couple of cycles has improved it.
I really like the keyboard. It's much better than graffiti. I feel
as though taking notes is much less of a chore, and the GMail client
is great with all of the shortcuts active.
I miss the larger screen, especially when I'm reading eBooks or
viewing media (pictures or videos). I've also switched to a
super-tiny font for Web/OperaMini so I can get more text on the screen
(luckily I still have young eyes).
I don't enjoy paying $30/month more on my phone bill for unlimited
data, but I do like the always-available connection. I don't miss
WiFi at all. EVDO is plenty fast for what I'm using it for.
The 755p has been about as stable as my TX was. I have had a few
crashes/lockups, but haven't lost data. I miss the reset button, but
removing the battery works well enough....
I like having the vibrating alarms again (I've missed that since my
T|T3 died), and it's way easier to do text messages than it was on my
old phone.
The 755p is smaller than my TX was, and I like the lightened load on
my pockets since I don't have to carry my phone too.. I just wish it
was a little bit thinner. It's about the same size as two iPhones
stacked.
If you do get a Treo, install SkinUI. it'll help the "ugly" a bit.
It annoys me that I need an adapter to use regular headphones.
Perhaps now that the iPhone has 1/8" mic/headphone plugs, other
manufacturers will start adopting that too.
My opinion is that it's not that the current model Treos are bad. Far
from it. They are good phones, and good PDAs that do what I need
without too many extraneous clicks. However, they could/should be so
much more! They would be awesome 2-3 years ago, but in the current
environment, they feel clunky in many ways. The browser is awful.
The interface is ancient and ugly (but still quick to use). The
hardware is slow and a bit laggy to switch programs.
I do like what I have, but if I wouldn't suggest an expensive Treo + 2
year contract to someone without legacy apps. The $100 for a Centro
is more appealing.
-alan
--
Alan Hoyle - al...@unc.edu - http://www.alanhoyle.com/
Ruby Vee
I switched to a Treo 755p, and I love having the smaller unit. The
smaller screen takes a bit of getting used to, but it seems as though
the screen resolution is better so it doesn't really SEEM small except
when using certain apps.
I miss the landscape option, and there are times when I'd rather use
graffiti than the tiny keyboard -- but I believe there's an application
that allows you to do that. I don't miss it enough to find out. I
don't miss the WiFi at all -- I can get the internet just fine using
the phone. It's actually easier to get my email on the Treo.
I've kept my TX -- I can still play Bejeweled 2 on it, as long as I
keep it plugged in while using it. The digitizer isn't all it once
was, but that's not as big a deal for Bejeweled 2 as long as you're not
using it in the timed mode.
All in all, I'm happy that I made the switch!
Ruby
Doug Warner
From what I've read here, there are no good alternatives if you like
PalmOS and the large screen if you use the origanizer features..
I have many reminders running in Datebk5. weekdays, weekends, Monthly
todo's, repeat until cancelled, etc.,. No one else seems to offer
this functionality (with alarms)
So, I;m getting my two busted TX's fixed (One I disassembled the
sticky layers on back of the display, so it's obvious that it's been
messed with. That one is spare parts)
I'll buy at least 4 more on ebay, and a few spare glass digitizers.
This should hold me until a suitable replacement comes on the market.
(The new Pre looks interesting, but there's been no mention of
organizer functions, alarms, and if it's possible to keep your
personal data and passwords off the net and palm's servers.
And, if it has organizer alarms, will they work in areas with no cell
coverage?)
Maybe Microsoft will get WinMobile right after a dozen morre revs :)
--
Email reply: please remove one letter from each side of "@"
Spammers are Scammers. Exterminate them.
David Arnstein
Doug Warner <dwar...@ccharter.net> wrote:
>
>From what I've read here, there are no good alternatives if you like
>PalmOS and the large screen if you use the origanizer features..
>I have many reminders running in Datebk5. weekdays, weekends, Monthly
>todo's, repeat until cancelled, etc.,. No one else seems to offer
>this functionality (with alarms)
>
>This should hold me until a suitable replacement comes on the market.
I have come to the same conclusion that there is no good alternative to
Palm Tungsten. I have considered your plan to load up on TXs too. I
don't like the idea of depending on a (soon to be) unsupported operating
system though. Also, the cost of purchasing multiple Palm TX is
non-trivial. So here are two other alternatives that I am considering:
1. iPod Touch plus cell phone.
I am not interested in iPhone because it is not a good cell phone. I
will continue to use my basic but very competent cell phone. Because it
has an audible alarm, I would use it to announce appointments. I would
also enter the appointment details in the iPod Touch. I would use iPod
Touch for all PDA functions (except audible alarm, it has none.). I
would sync this data to my Mac Mini. Disadvantages: entering appointments
twice. Fiddling around with third party apps to get full backup/sync of
all PDA data to the Mac computer.
2. UMPC (ultra-mobile personal computer)
The pioneer in this field is OQO. These devices are larger than PDAs.
Disadvantages: larger size, high cost. Many of these devices are
clamshells, which means an extra step before use. I am not sure if any
of these devices can autonomously "wake up" to deliver an audible alarm.
If not, then I would still need to use my cell phone as an audible alarm.
3. Netbook plus cell phone.
The netbooks offer outstanding value. The Asus eeePC was the pioneer.
Disadvantages: the much large size and clamshell design means that I
would have to change the way I use the device, as compared to a PDA.
There would be times when I would have to go without the netbook, when
I could have brought a PDA along. In such cases, I would have to rely
on my cell phone.
I am interested in other ideas. Please post yours.
--
David Arnstein (00)
arnstei...@pobox.com {{ }}
^^
kron...@gmail.com
You probably won't like this answer, but I continue to use Outlook as
my primary organizer because it has all those features you mention -
repeating tasks, appts, etc - and Hotsync keeps my 755p up to date
with everything that Outlook does. This combo is not perfect - if you
mark a repeating task as complete on the treo, and then hotsync,
Outlook does not create the next task properly - so I do updates like
that on Outlook. I am using an ancient copy of Outlook 2000 - but it
still has the most flexible calendar & task of anything I have tested.
One example - with a repeating calendar entry, you can move, edit, or
delete one entry without messing up the overall schedule.
I never got into Datebk or Agendus - especially after a recent test of
Agendus almost wiped out my phone. But maybe they will do all this.
And I am less PC-centric these days, so I would like a more capable
PDA organizer ...
I don't know what I will do when I need to replace the 755p. The Pre
looks interesting - but it's not a Palm to me -
Dan
Benjamin
screens, and no cell phone capacity. The only negative compared to the
T|X is it only has quarter VGA instead of half VGA. Other than that,
you don't lose any features and programs written for the TX resizable
screen still work.
It is $1500 and it is bigger and heavier. It also has a barcode scanner
built in. You can choose between a keyboard, and the four palm buttons
and a rocker. You still have a resizable graffitti area. You can also
drop it from four feet on concrete.
Benjamin
Gil Baron
>And I am less PC-centric these days, so I would like a more capable
>PDA organizer ...
Look in to Pimlical. Outlook is still a better organizer butonly on a PC.
Ifyou stick with Palm you would love the Datebk6-Pimlical integration.
Check the Pimlico Website.
--
Gil W0MN Yanoff +, the PDA reader
Creed en las obras y no en las palabras
kron...@gmail.com
any solution that will work with the Pre ... something to ask them!
<g>
Dan
Trevor Holyoak
OS for it), but at least one company has already announced a Palm OS
emulator for it, which may suit your needs.
- Trevor
Richard Rosenberger at punt
The PRE will run native apps, using 'Classic' from Motion Apps.
Referring to your TX troubles:
In our webshop, we have tons of older Palm-OS PDA's available,
including the Palm Tungsten TX, which currently sells for � 119.-
including the optional cradle.
Reading this newsgroup, i have added the Palm TX Unit only for
� 99.-
Also we added this week the Treo 750, Treo 750v, and some iPaq's
like the hw6515, hw6915, rw6815, and a lot more for bargain prices.
Most machines are in nearly perfect condition, but are delivered
without box, and/or manual.
The shop can be found here:
http://www.mobiletechcenter.nl/shop
Cheers,
Richard