My first handheld
Written: Jul 30 '01
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Great built-in software, pretty colors, good price.
Cons: None.
The Bottom Line: This has been a huge aid to getting organized, and it's so easy to use.
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| blscearce's Full Review: Handspring Visor Deluxe Handheld |
A few weeks ago, a co-worker asked me to attend a
meeting on his behalf while he was on vacation. I
agreed, but by the time the meeting had rolled
around, the note that I'd left myself as a reminder
had vanished into the sea of paper on my desk. I
missed the meeting.
I bought a blue Handspring Visor Deluxe to save me
from repeating that faux pas. The Visor's
"DateBook+" software comes built-in and is very easy
to use. All of my appointments are recorded, the
repeating ones are entered once and marked as
"repeating", and I have attached appropriately-timed
alarms to them (five minutes for stuff that's
happening in the same building, half an hour if I
need to drive to another city, two weeks for birthdays
so I have time to find a gift). DateBook+ also
includes "Floating Events", items you can schedule
in your calendar that include a check-box, and that
"float" into the next day until they are checked
off.
Note that almost all of those useful features are
impossible with a paper organizer.
The Visor also includes "Address", a phone/address
book; "Memo Pad", which stores pages of text and
shows them either one page at a time or as a numbered
list of first lines; "To Do List", which stores and
displays prioritized and categorized tasks, with
optional dates attached; and "Expense", which keeps
track of expenses for the purpose of submitting an
expense report (I don't use this last one). And a
multi-function calculator. All of these applications
are very easy to use. And the 8MB of memory included
in the Visor Deluxe is enough to keep track of
everything you would want to.
The Visor Deluxe includes a USB cradle that plugs
into your computer. Inserting the Visor into the
cradle and pressing a button will "HotSync" the
computer and the Visor -- in part this means that
any data you've put on the Visor is backed up onto
the computer, so that if your Visor is lost, stolen
or dead, you can re-inject all of its last-synchronized
data into a new Visor and be back in business. The
data flows both ways during a HotSync, so if you
don't like the "Graffiti" text entering system on
the Visor, you can instead use the "Palm Desktop"
software on your computer, which shows large color
versions of the Palm applications. Do your typing
on your regular computer, and then inject it into
the Visor.
And that's just the built-in software. There are
many, many developers out there writing interesting
applications for PalmOS. Far too much to cover in
a review of the gadget itself. A web search will
drown you in riches. In fact, trying to separate
the wheat from the chaff is a challenge in itself.
Of course, almost all of those features are
characteristic of any PalmOS-using device. The
Visor is slightly distinguished by having a USB
synchronization system (some use regular serial
ports, which are slower and sometimes already
occupied), by having 8MB of memory (older or
entry-level handhelds often ship with 2MB), and by
having an IR port for communication with other
handhelds. The Visor also comes in a variety of
colors, instead of just plain steely gray, and it
includes a proprietary "Springboard" expansion slot.
This slot is about the size of four AAA batteries
laid side-to-side, and you can buy cartridges to
plug into it. Some of the cartridges are "just"
software (Physician's Desk Reference, dictionaries,
golf game) that mostly serve to save the 8MB for
other software, and some are hardware widgets (GPS
module, modem, cellular phone(!)).
The screen is easy to read in good light or, with
the backlight, in pitch blackness. In low light
it's fairly hard to read.
I find it just a little too large and heavy to
conveniently carry in a shirt pocket. It's about
the size and weight of a credit-card-loaded wallet,
but putting it in a back pant pocket will crack the
screen when you sit. I usually carry mine in a front
pant pocket; if you wear a suit, the inner pocket of
the jacket would work too.
The manual says that a set of two AAA batteries (one set of which is included -- nice) will last about two months. I'm on my fourth set of batteries in a month. But the "two month" estimate is based on 30 minutes use
per day. I'm still exploring my Visor, so I use it
more than that.
This is my first handheld, so I rate it only four
stars based mostly on my personal ignorance of
competitive devices. I'm very happy with my Visor,
but I can't say for certain that I wouldn't be
happier yet with some other device. I'm really glad
I bought it, I feel much more organized now and my
desk has been largely cleared of notes scrawled on
bits of paper. And I haven't missed an appointment since.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 199
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Epinions.com ID:
blscearce
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Location: Silicon Valley, USA
Reviews written: 6
Trusted by: 0 members
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