Are PDAs dead?

[LuxLuthor]

Now I'm considering gutting the 640x480 screen to use in a makeshift laser projector project...

You'll shoot your eye out.

 

[Jay R]

I never wanted a smart phone for the sole reason that they are all too big. If I want to go out in shorts and a t-shirt I can slip my Samsung U600 into a pocket and there is no bulge or noticeable weight. In a back pocket you don't even notice when sitting down.

I use my Sony Clie TH55 PDA for everything else. The TH55 was way ahead of it's time. High res screen, WiFi and Bluetooth, video camera, dedicated media chip and enough apps to do anything you want. Has text to speech so it reads my e'mails to me as I drive and I can even wirelessly connect to my Sony camera and download live pics from the next room. ( Hmmm, a somewhat dodgy application if you ask me.) Bought it in 2004 and it's still going strong. I still regularly use it as my alarm, photo album, calendar, book reader, video player, address book, news reader, game boy and GPS.
Only thing I stopped using it for was an MP3 player. ( Got a Meizu M6 for that.)

 

[Cuso]

PDA who needs a PDA??? Go old fashion and remember your contacts numbers by memory..:thumbsup: Like me, my moms number is 787......................Hold on lemme grab my cell........

 

[herrgurka]

Well, my first PDA was a Revo that is lying in a drawer somewhere. I really liked the Symbian OS but the synchronisation was so-so and I came to hate the hassle of schlepping around to many gadgets. Even my next PDA, an HP 3970 that I got from work, met the same fate as the Revo, last seen on top of some papers I have to grade when Outlook tells me to...... Great paper-weight, very high-tech

I have to have a mobile phone anyway and chose one that's a compromise: it's a PDA, but not as fast or versatile as one. It's a mobile but a little bigger and bulkier than your normal slimlined mobile (but nothing too obvious compared to my old Nokia 3210). And it even serves as an MP3 and media-player, even though neither sound nor the screen are top of the cream. But I only have to carry one gadget and one charger!

 

[PurpleDrazi]

Are you kidding? The TX is far from the best palm. My TX would have a 50% of crashing when connected via Wifi. The Digitizer constantly needed to be recalibrated. How about the defective power switch?

I will say that the Palm III series was the best IMHO. It would run weeks at a time on a pair of AAA cells. worked perfectly as a PDA and not one of those monstrosities that try to do it all. Hell.. we still can't get a device that does it all the RIGHT WAY now. As much as I hate Palm now, I do have to say, their PIM apps are the best that I've ever used. I can't wait until GVM finally comes out of beta for the Maemo devices. Knowing my luck.. they'll just drop it after the last beta.

I really like my Palm TX. But Palm doesn't seem to be developing any more PDA only devices. I'm looking at a Blackberry Storm and my next device.

Francis

 

[Mike Painter]

It was pretty obvious what was going to happen.
*I* said that people would not like to have to put the phone down to use it as a PDA so the PDA wold remain the king.
Like my gud spelling and granmer, I am never wrong about these things.
I also said that nobody in a smaller town would have a lot of use for storage places and that a local store would soon go out of business.
I came close on that one. It moved about 10 years later. [size=-4](To a bigger store.)[/size]

 

[StarHalo]

*I* said that people would not like to have to put the phone down to use it as a PDA so the PDA wold remain the king.
Like my gud spelling and granmer, I am never wrong about these things.

I don't know if you know who Leo Laporte is, he's the biggest call-in tech guy in the country with a syndicated weekly radio show, several online video programs, and formerly two television shows on cable all dedicated to all things computers and tech.

A few years ago he said that people would probably not move to an all-in-one device that would combine both the phone and the PDA and/or laptop and the digital camera..

So you're more in touch technologically than you think

 

[Illum]

I've been looking to getting a multifunctional cellphone like the iphone et al. But I don't see that big of a jump in battery life from the old PDA to the new phones, in fact...the new phones seem to have relatively poorer battery life than pdas

 

[Boy SureFire]

lovecpfIt's not a true pda, But my sony psp and mylo have some good functions, heck I'm typing this post on the mylo. I think sony had some of the best stuff out, But at one time I did want Palm TX. The thing I really care about is if I can read And post on CPF, and buy parts on CPFMP. Is that not what we all strive to do in life.

 

[tebore]

I wouldn't say the iPod Touch is a good PDA. In fact it's a terrible PDA out of the box.

It's a great personal entertainment device. You need to jailbreak it or load a few relatively expensive apps to make it a decent PDA. It would be a great PDA if I could sync it with my laptop via bluetooth but Apple has been stupid about how they implement Bluetooth.

In today's age a PDA/smart phone should offer great connectivity, storage, entertainment, ability to view all sorts of files and content and edit it, save and send. The latter is lacking on Apple products but again if you're willing to jailbreak it that fixes a few things.

The other thing is having to put up with iTunes. I wish I didn't have to use this bloated POS software. I miss the days when Floola could manage it.

I have to say my iPhone 3GS has been the best pocket swiss army knife device I'd had in a while sure it compromises all round but in the big picture it's great.

 

[John_Galt]

I still use my palm for, well everything I can't remember.

 

[Search]

I'm not sure of the difference in PDAs and smart phones but..

I've got a Blackberry Storm. The operating system is comes with is utter crap. Every leaked, beta, and hybrid there after was full of flaws.

The latest leaked OS is one amazing OS that makes my BB act just like an iPhone.

I have to say, with full internet, email (my gmail account), everything a normal phone has, and a good calendar and task thingy it's pretty sweet.

It has a lot of stuff for business people if you like the touchscreen. I preferred it because it allows my pictures and movies to be larger and prettier.

I think they are alive. I could never go back to a regular phone. Just couldn't with all of the things I can now do in my pocket.

When CPF goes mobile and I've got a paypal app, I'm done with my computer

 

[Jay R]

I'm not sure of the difference in PDAs and smart phones but..

You can't make a call with a PDA. They came out before smart phones and were just little computers. Bit like electronic filofaxes.

 

[Ras_Thavas]

I'm still hanging on to my Clie. I had to downgrade from the TH-55 to an older PEG-NR70 because the TH-55 has a cracked case where the hinge for the cover is.

You can still find Palm PDA's, but they are very expensive (Amazon has a TX for $349.)

I will probably get a Pre once they are available on Verizon.

 

[Rexlion]

My Sharp Wizard has never crashed. It has never failed to transfer files to IR backup utility. It has a 100% error free track record. Of course, I have a set of the deluxe 512KB OZ-9600II models.

It is the Shizznit.

Yeah, I agree those Sharp Wizards were pretty good. I bought a OZ-730 (I think) refurb on ebay a few years back and it was convenient & did the job well when I needed it. Then I got to where I didn't need a PDA that much any more and got out of the habit of using it, and it sat in a drawer. But about a year ago I noticed the ebay prices... so I listed and sold it for about 4 times what I'd paid for it. Wish I could do that more often!

 

[KC2IXE]

PDAs? Of course they are around, and always will be - Oh, you mean the electronic kind

(In camp counselor/people who deal with teens "PDA" also means "Personal Display of Affection" - all the way from say, hand holding all the way on up - often seen as a camp rule "NO PDA")

 

[Jay R]

I'm still hanging on to my Clie. I had to downgrade from the TH-55 to an older PEG-NR70 because the TH-55 has a cracked case where the hinge for the cover is.

My TH55 also cracked at the cover hinge as few years back. I took off the cover and epoxied it back together and it's been fine since. You can barely see the crack.

If you still have the TH55 why not just get one of the leather covers for it that some companies made. You could probably still find some for sale on the net.

 

[Mr_Light]

I am still hanging on to my Palm, awaiting the PRE to be available on Verizon.

 

[TKC]

Are you kidding? The TX is far from the best palm. My TX would have a 50% of crashing when connected via Wifi. The Digitizer constantly needed to be recalibrated. How about the defective power switch?

I will say that the Palm III series was the best IMHO. It would run weeks at a time on a pair of AAA cells. worked perfectly as a PDA and not one of those monstrosities that try to do it all. Hell.. we still can't get a device that does it all the RIGHT WAY now. As much as I hate Palm now, I do have to say, their PIM apps are the best that I've ever used. I can't wait until GVM finally comes out of beta for the Maemo devices. Knowing my luck.. they'll just drop it after the last beta.

Your TX may have been problematic, but mine never has been. Not one iota of issues.

 

[Ras_Thavas]

My TH55 also cracked at the cover hinge as few years back. I took off the cover and epoxied it back together and it's been fine since. You can barely see the crack.

If you still have the TH55 why not just get one of the leather covers for it that some companies made. You could probably still find some for sale on the net.

I would try to salvage it, but the screen is very dim and I have a hard time reading it.