argonut's Full Review: Handspring Visor Prism Handheld
The very first time I took a peek at the Handspring Visor Prism, I was reminded of the scene from the Wizard of Oz when Dorothy steps out of her twister-tossed house and into the magical, colorized world of Oz. I was similarly awestruck as so many of the icons and applications that once appeared in drab monochrome were now leaping at me in full 16-bit technicolor. When I ran my favorite Palm game, Bubblet, and found myself confronted with real, vibrant blues, reds and yellows instead of varying stripes and patterns of gray, I too found myself in a magical land.
Unfortunately, as with Dorothy, I was eventually forced to look behind the curtain and see whether this really was the great and almighty wizard it claimed to be.
First Factor is Form
The first chink in the Prism's green curtain was its shape and size. While it does come with a nicely contoured back, it still comes with the Visor's patented boxy look and feel. (I realize that many people like way Handspring's Palms feel, claiming that it is easier to grip. I must admit that it's growing on me, too. Sleek, however, is not a word you would associate with this device.) In addition, the Prism's handprint is quite large. Even before you slap on the Omnisky modem this sucker is too big to fit comfortably in your pocket.
While its not surprising that the Prism is large, given how tall it stands in the forest of Palm, its second weakness is more surprising. The display on the Prism is nothing less than brilliant and yet twenty minutes of staring at a brilliant black on white memo pad at an arm's distance and you find yourself yearning for the old grayscale of your Visor Deluxe. Furthermore, the oddest thing about the color screens on the PDAs is the vast improvement they give to grayscale images. While simple logos and games like Bubblet look great in color, complicated images tend to look a bit grainy.
The final distinction of the Prism is that it weighs a lot on your wallet in addition to your hand. While CNET lists the lowest current price of the Palm IIIc to be about $300, the Prism commands a hefty $449. This added dent to your wallet ties the Prism with the Palm VIIx as the most expensive Palm PDA available.
Prism Plusses Presented
The extra $150 does bring you the following advantages over the PalmIIIc:
+ Twice as many colors
+ 33Mhz processor vs. 20Mhz processor
+ A springboard expansion slot
+ Slightly better standard software applications
Without putting the two devices side by side, you will hardly notice a significant difference in either the colors or the processor speed. The springboard expansion slot, however, does allow for a wide range of modules ranging from wireless modems to electronic versions of the bible to voice recorders and even memory cards to be snapped into the device.
Unfortunately, as with all Hanspring systems, the device does not support upgrading of the OS via FlashRom. The Prism comes with Palm OS 3.5.2, though, which means that you won’t feel the effects of OS creep for a while. As far as software goes, the Prism comes with the standard Handspring software suite. If you are not familiar with Handspring products, it includes enhanced versions of the Calculator and Datebook applications as well as CityTime, which allows you to determine the time in any city in the world.
In Conclusion
Overall, I can’t really recommend purchasing the Prism unless you are a diehard Handspring fan and in desperate need of color. I do highly recommend, however, getting a rich friend to buy one so you can play with it. The device gives a great glimpse at what the future of Palmistry will be. A future where you can view full streaming video in dazzling color and sound on a device that fits in the palm of your hand awaits if we just follow the yellow brick road.
Epinions.com periodically updates pricing and product information from third-party sources, so some information may be slightly out-of-date. You should confirm all information before relying on it.
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