I'm not really a gadget person, but I'm a big fan of PDA's because they really are so useful. I've had a Palm Vx, IIIc, and a Compaq iPAQ, all of which I've been very fond of and have been absolutely essential in keeping me organized.
I currently own a Sony Peg-T615C, and if I hadn't purchased it recently I would buy this one right now. I just got back from CompUSA where I gave it a test drive, and I just have to say "Wow!" This is really one cool PDA.
The flip-open clamshell design with the integral keyboard and the rotating screen has been nicely executed. If you want, the whole screen turns over 180 degrees and then you can close it and then hold it just like a normal Palm Pilot, if you don't want to hold it in "clamshell" style.
One concern I had was resolved right away. The keyboard looked sort of cheesy from the advertising photos, because it looked like one of those membrane-types that don't have very good tactile qualities, but the buttons are slightly raised and have enough spring to them so that they actually have quite a nice, solid feel. Although I'll probably stick to the Graffiti handwriting, the keyboard works quite well. The only other PDA on the market with an integral keyboard that I know of is the Zaurus, running an embedded version of Linux. Although I was impressed with it, it's more of a Pocket PC and doesn't run the Palm apps. Actually, it won't run the Pocket PC apps either because of the Linus operating system. But it's still an impressive offering in its area.
But getting back to the Sony, another thing you'll notice that's different is the Graffiti area is virtual, like the Pocket PCs, and is more evenly vertically divided between the letters and numbers areas. Also, it's noticeably taller, which increases the overall height of the PDA compared to the PegT615C, but I'm sure I'd get used to this pretty quickly. However, it does increase the height making it noticeably bigger than the Peg-T615C, but it's okay.
One thing to consider is that since the NR70 can use the whole screen, they're going to have to develop new apps that take advantage of this. The native apps, the Memopad, Todo list, and so on, probably do, but I couldn't figure out how to cancel the virtual Graffiti area to test this. Anyway, Sony says it has 4000 developers signed up to create programs for their PDAs so I'm sure there will be more apps making full use of the screen soon, not to mention the greater resolution of the Sony color screens, which are 320 x 320 instead of 160 x 160, and in the case of the NR70, 320 x 480.
The program availability problem aside, all in all I think this is a great unit. In fact, I'd give it 6 stars if I could.
This is a love-hate handheld. I've owned my NR70 for four months, and would advise someone to think twice before buying one of these machines.
First the plus side. This is the best looking handheld device I've seen. It's as much of a piece of art as a handheld gets these days. The case is a joy to hold, and the rotating screen doesn't get old after months of use it's still a blast to spin it into position. The design also serves to protect the screen against scratches. Battery life is not too bad better than I expected and it recharges quickly. The 320x480 screen is outstanding when applications support the full resolution (unfortunately few do). With 320x320 apps, the virtual graffiti area and icons are extremely clear.
Now for the negatives. I returned my first two. NR70 Clie #1 had a dead pixel. I swapped it for #2, and upgraded to the NR70V with a camera. Two problems. The camera is very poor quality and I lost interest in it after five minutes of playing with it. The second problem is that the screen brightness of my NR70V was less than that of the NR70. I could see this because my wife had also purchased a NR70 and in a side-by-side comparison, hers was brighter than the NR70V. In addition, when I went back to Circuit City, their NR70 on display was brighter than their NR70V. Not a big difference, but these are expensive machines and I like mine bright. So, I returned the NR70V and wound up with Clie #3. After 4 months of use, here are the downsides:
1) Reliability problems. My wife had to send her NR70 back to Sony for repair because it hosed her memory stick and the infrared wouldn't work. Sony told her these were "known problems" (well, why release the hardware if it has known problems?) She had a poor customer support experience the packaging Sony mailed to return it for repair arrived several days after it was promised, and it took over two weeks to get her machine back. Sony doesn't really care that users depend on these machines for their jobs and has no program to rush a replacement unit to the user. It breaks, it's your tough luck. One piece of advice from Sony was, "why didn't you purchase an extended warranty from Circuit City." Well, why should I? These machines are expensive enough already! My own Clie has had intermittent problems reading the memory stick and now is unable to transmit wireless. It's not convenient for me to be without it for two weeks, however, so I'm going to try and live with it.
2) The "keyboard" is completely useless. I never have used it. The device should have been made smaller, or this space used for a more useful feature like wireless.
3) The up/down keys and the four buttons for the Palm OS applications are useless. The device feels unnatural in the hand when opened up clamshell style you can't get a good balance holding it and using the buttons to play games. These buttons belong on the bottom of the screen. The problem is further compounded by the nonstandard configuration and ridiculously small sizes of the up/down buttons.
4) Not enough applications support 320x480. Only two applications that I use regularly do AcidImage and Mobipocket reader. It is frustrating that more apps don't support this and that Sony did not rewrite the key Palm OS apps (datebook, etc) to support 320x480.
5) Not enough applications support the hires mode. Even the new release of Bejeweled 1.6 doesn't support hires. This is frustrating because once you see a hires app, you don't want to use anything that displays at 160x160. Ever.
6) Sony makes you install a Sony version of the Palm desktop on your PC. I expected that at least after having to uninstall my old Palm desktop and reinstall the Sony desktop, the new one would at least look better. But it is just as uninspired an interface as the standard Palm desktop couldn't they have spiffed this up a bit?!
7) Too expensive. Price is coming down, but the original retail prices ...are greedily high for a Palm OS device.
8) Prepare to stock up on extra styluses because they don't stay in place too well and fall out of their slot on the side of the Clie.
9) Can't hear MP3's without headphones. Game sounds are loud, system sounds are loud, but MP3s are barely audible.
10) The hold button is easy to slide into the "on" position without knowing it. The first time I did this, it took me a few minutes of fiddling with the Clie to realize it wasn't broken after all. But it keeps happening.
11) The memory stick sometimes pops out of it's slot if the Clie is jostled around in a packpack or briefcase.
12) As noted, the camera in the NR70V is poor quality and not worth the extra price.
All in all, I do enjoy my Clie, but I'd never buy another one of these and I'm staying away from Sony next time around.
Buy Sony CLIE PEG-NR70 Handheld Now
I thought this item was the best pda in the market but I just went through the Sony website and they are advising about their new pda. Wich works with palm OS 5.0,has a faster processor and supports wireless connection. So if you are willing to spend some cash in buying the best pda around wait for this new model.
Read Best Reviews of Sony CLIE PEG-NR70 Handheld Here
I'm not really a gadget person, but I'm a big fan of PDA's because they really are so useful. I've had a Palm Vx, IIIc, and a Compaq iPAQ, all of which I've been very fond of and have been absolutely essential in keeping me organized.
I currently own a Sony Peg-T615C, and if I hadn't purchased it recently I would buy this one right now. I just got back from CompUSA where I gave it a test drive, and I just have to say "Wow!" This is really one cool PDA.
The flip-open clamshell design with the integral keyboard and the rotating screen has been nicely executed. If you want, the whole screen turns over 180 degrees and then you can close it and then hold it just like a normal Palm Pilot, if you don't want to hold it in "clamshell" fashion.
One concern I had was resolved right away. The keyboard seemed sort of cheesy from the advertising photos, because it looked like one of those membrane-types that don't have very good tactile qualities, but the buttons are slightly raised and have enough spring to them so that they actually have quite a nice, solid feel. Although I'll probably stick to the Graffiti handwriting, the keyboard works quite well. The only other PDA on the market with an integral keyboard that I know of is the Zaurus, running an embedded version of Linux. Although I was impressed with it, it's more of a Pocket PC and doesn't run the Palm apps. Actually, it won't run the Pocket PC apps either because of the Linus operating system. But it's still an impressive offering in its area.
To get an idea of the brightness of the screen, I compared it side by side with my venerable Palm IIIc, which still has the brightest screen of any Palm model. Overall, the screen resolution is superb and the brightness is excellent, and the clamshell design with the rotating screen overall was executed very well, I thought. It's not as bright as my IIIc, but the battery should last much longer than my now 2-year old than the IIIc, and it has 64k colors, whereas my IIIc only has 256.
I just had a couple of complaints, but they're not serious. The only problem with the screen is that it rotates only one way, which is clockwise. If you try to rotate it the other way, you'll find it won't go at all. This makes it different from the small LED screens on most camcorders, but it's okay.
The other problem is that if you rotate the screen 180 degrees and close it, so that you're now holding it like a regular Palm, rather than clamshell style, you now can no longer reach the four application buttons. Had they placed the buttons at the bottom of the screen, it wouldn't be a problem. However, there is a workaround for this. If you want, you can configure the jog-wheel to pop up your applications instead. Not a bad solution.
The other complaint I've heard is that the battery technology is a little flakey. A friend of mine that has one says the unit powers off without warning when the battery gets low. My Palm IIIc at least tells you when you need to put it on recharge. Also, he said the manual says you only need to recharge it for 4 hours before using it. But when he tried that, the unit wouldn't power up all the way and would lock up.
Another thing you'll notice that's different is the Graffiti area is virtual, like the Pocket PCs, and is more evenly vertically divided between the letters and numbers areas. Also, it's noticeably taller, which increases the overall height of the PDA compared to the PegT615C, but I'm sure I'd get used to this pretty quickly. However, it does increase the height making it noticeably bigger than the Peg-T615C, but it's okay. But perhaps best of all, the Graffiti area displays your strokes, which helps to increase accuracy. There are programs, such as GrafAid, that do this also, but with the Sony, you don't even need that anymore. Also, the strokes are displayed on the Graffiti area itself instead of on the screen above it, as in the case of the GrafAid or the original built-in Graffiti program.
One thing to consider is that since the NR70 can use the whole screen, they're going to have to develop new apps that take advantage of this. The native apps, the Memopad, Todo list, and so on, probably do, but I couldn't figure out how to cancel the virtual Graffiti area to test this. Anyway, Sony says it has 4000 developers signed up to create programs for their PDAs so I'm sure there will be more apps making full use of the screen soon, not to mention the greater resolution of the Sony color screens, which are 320 x 320 instead of 160 x 160, and in the case of the NR70, 320 x 480.
The few minor problems I mentioned and the program availability issue aside, the NR70 is the most advanced Palm PDA out there, and all in all I think this is a great unit. In fact, I'd give it 6 stars if I could.
Want Sony CLIE PEG-NR70 Handheld Discount?
I compared this PDA side by side with my venerable Palm IIIc and was very impressed with it. The screen resolution and brightness are superb, continuing Sony's success with the PEG T615C, and the clamshell design with the rotating screen overall was executed very well, I thought. It's not as bright as my IIIc, but the battery should last much longer than my now 2-year old than the IIIc, and it has 64k colors, whereas my IIIc only has 256. I just had a couple of complaints, but they're not serious.
The only problem with the screen is that it rotates only one way, which is clockwise. If you try to rotate it the other way, you'll find it won't go at all. This makes it different from the small LED screens on most camcorders, but it's okay.
The other problem is that if you rotate the screen 180 degrees and close it, so that you're now holding it like a regular Palm, rather than clamshell style, you now can no longer reach the four application buttons. Had they placed the buttons at the bottom of the screen, it wouldn't be a problem.
The other complaint I've heard is that the battery technology is a little flakey. A friend of mine that has one says the unit powers off without warning when the battery gets low. My Palm IIIc at least tells you when you need to put it on recharge. Also, he said the manual says you only need to recharge it for 4 hours before using it. But when he tried that, the unit wouldn't power up all the way and would lock up.
Overall, though, a great PDA. I would give it 6 stars if I could.
The Cassiopeia EM-500 looks like a pretty sweet deal. It can do almost anything the E-115 does, and it's smaller and faster. If you compare the EM-500 to the E-115, you'll notice that the E-115 has 32MB of memory, where the EM-500 has 16MB. Also, the EM-500 offers the multimedia card memory system, so memory can be easily expanded.
