This Near-Perfect PDA Has Greatly Increased My Productivity
Written: Jul 27 '02
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Bright, sharp, full-size screen. Great expandability. Uses Palm III accessories. Perfect heavy-duty writing tool.
Cons: HandEra support is not a toll-free number
The Bottom Line: Sharp, bright screen. Easy to use, reliable, good for heavy-duty legal writing, WordPerfect and Word compatible. Large flash memory, has CF and SD expansion slots.
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| mikethelawyer's Full Review: HandEra 330 |
As an attorney specializing in civil and criminal appeals and motions, I need an easy-to-use PDA compatible with WordPerfect and a touch-type keyboard, with large storage capacity, and the ability to display a full page of text. In mid-June 2001, I purchased the HandEra 330 (and a GoType Keyboard) from MobilePlanet.
Before HandEra, I used to spend most of my days in court, waiting many non-productive hours for my cases to be called. In those days, I could only perform legal research and writing tasks after court, in the afternoon and evening. My acquisition of the HandEra330 abruptly changed that routine, and I must say for the better. On the HandEra330, I have drafted appellate briefs, motions and correspondence, all while sitting in court or on the Long Island Railroad. Because of this, my efficiency and productivity have increased.
I use QuickWord and WordSmith and like them both. The WordSmith fonts are simply gorgeous, and the 330's screen with collapsed Graffiti area is large, bright and sharp. The GoType keyboard has a crisp feel and is able to keep up with my fast typing. Using QuickWord, the screen can be viewed in landscape mode.
I save my work product as .RTF documents (rich text format"), and Hotsync them to my CPU, where I edit them with WordPerfect or Word. To ping-pong them back to the HandEra330, I save them as .RTF files, copy them into WordSmith and Hotsync them back to the PDA.
I subscribe to Lexis and also use the Internet for legal research. Because the HandEra330 (and all other PDAs) currently lack high-speed, affordable wireless real-time capability, I do my online research at home or in the office, save the results as .RTF files in WordPerfect or Word and Hotsync them to the PDA, which I later use in court or on the train when I'm drafting motions and briefs.
The ability to save nearly 900 pages of legal text in PDA flash memory is, from my standpoint, quite an achievement. I am currently investigating the purchase of a CF or SD memory expansion card, which will allow me to store an entire law library, thus eliminating the need to have real-time wireless capability.
So far, I've had but one problem with my HandEra 330. In changing the batteries, I once experienced a freeze requiring a hard reset and consequent loss of documents in flash memory. Because I HotSync at least once a day, this did not present a serious problem. I also have a tiny spec of dust behind the screen, which does not degrade my
viewing experience. Also, heavy usage drains the batteries, requiring replacement every three weeks.
In the one time I've used HandEra's Tech Support, they were very helpful. I just wish they had a toll-free number.
I've had no problems with the plastic housing, battery compartment or stylus holder. Its size and weight also present no problems, as it fits easily in my shirt pocket and inner suit-jacket breast pocket.
I paid $349.99 last year. The price is now considerably lower.
In sum, I'm very happy with the HandEra330, and highly recommend it to anyone who needs a PDA with a crisp monochrome screen that is an easy-to-use, reliable writing instrument, with large flash memory and three weeks of battery life under heavy usage.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 349.99
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Epinions.com ID:
mikethelawyer
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Reviews written: 3
Trusted by: 0 members
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