UPDATE: at bottom of review

I had a Palm III back in 98 or 99, but I never used it much and gave it away to a friend. I never thought that I would have the need for another PDA, but this year that all changed.

Why did I pick the Palm M130?

After researching the various PDAs, I decided that I didn't want the cheapest nor the most expensive. I eventually narrowed it down to the Palms and the Sony Clies. I was this close to getting the Sony Clie PEG-T615C because it was also color, I liked its looks (from what I could see on the Internet), and it had 16MB of memory. The final test came to holding an actual model in Best Buy and I much preferred the Palm M130 to the Clie. It felt more comfortable and it seemed to be a little more stylish with its slightly curved shape and its blue, black, and silver design. I also liked the fact that it had a flip cover. This was important since it would spending a lot of time in my purse and I didn't want the screen to get scratched up.

So what does the Palm M130 look like?

The unit is 7.9 cm x 2.3 cm x 12.2 cm. It has a black flip cover with two cutouts for the screen and one that enables you to press a small button which quickly brings up the time which you can see in the other cutout. The faceplate is a dark blue. When you flip open the cover you are greeted with a silver unit with six buttons at the bottom. They are:

1. The datebook button.
2. The addressbook button.
3. 2 directional buttons.
4. To do list button.
5. Note pad button.

On the actual screen you will see a small box that is the Grafitti writing area. Grafitti is the writing method used for most PDAs. Within this box are areas where you can bring up a traditional keyboard (in case you don't want to use grafitti), the clock, and an option to adjust the contrast. Also on the screen are a Home icon, an icon that brings up the upper toolbar, a calculator icon, and a find icon.

At the top of the unit, you have the power button. Press once and the unit will power on and off. Hold it down for about two seconds and you can adjust the brightness of the screen. Also at the top is your IR port, which is used to beam data to other Palm OS devices. On the side, you have the expansion card slot which allows you to use either a Secure Digital or MultiMediaCard expansion card to store various software programs or data on your PDA.

What can you do with this thing?

There are endless uses for this PDA. The following applications are the standard items that are included with the Palm M130:

1. Address Book - you can use this to keep all your names, addresses, telephone numbers, email addresses, etc. You have the option of filing these under various categories.

2. Calculator

3. Date Book - use this feature to keep track of all your appointments and activities. This is one of the most used features on my M130. You can set an alarm to go off a different intervals to remind you of an impending appointment.

4. Memo Pad - this is just an area where you can store various items in. This also allows you to file in different categories.

5. Note Pad - this is a new feature that wasn't offered in my old Palm. If you don't like to use Grafitti, you can write notes in your own handwriting and save it with this feature. This is great if you are on the phone and want to quickly jot something down.

6. To Do List

The following are some of the software programs that were included free with the Palm M130.

1. Palm Reader - this allows you to read e-books. I have purchased about four e-books and read them on this PDA. I read these books in bed when my boyfriend is sleeping and the lights are off, when I'm on a long car ride, or even when I'm just sitting on the couch. Two ebooks are included.

2. DataViz Documents to Go - this allows you to use Word, Excel, and Powerpoint documents. I've saved Word documents, created Excel documents and have had absolutely no problems.

3. MGI PhotoSuite Mobile Edition - this allows you to view, store, and share media files on your Palm. I haven't used this feature yet.

4. Mobile Connectivity Software and MultiMail SE - these programs require modems to send and receive email and browse your favorite websites.

5. Hotsync Mail for Windows - this allows you to perform a Hotsync and get all your email and compose responses or new messages and then once you hotsync again you can send those emails from your desktop.

6. Avantgo Mobile Internet Service - this is one of my favorite programs. This program allows you to download Internet "clippings" from your favorite websites to your Palm. I perform a Hotsync* every morning and night and it allows me to catch up on the news, entertainment, sports, and any other clippings that I have picked from Avantgo. You just go to Avantgo.com, set up a FREE account and pick your favorite website.

* Hotsync is the operation in which you update the data between your computer and your PDA. Palm Desktop has all the PDA programs, but they are on your computer. This enables you to input all your data on your computer, Hotsync it, and it automatically transfers it to your PDA. This works vice-versa for the computer as well. This operation is performed by putting the PDA in the USB cradle provided and pressing the Hotsync button.

Pros

1. Color screen - Even though this isn't the most dynamic color PDA available, it was the most affordable at the time of my purchase. It is 16 bit (64,000 colors). The colors are quite "colorful" in my opinion and I never have trouble distinguishing them from each other.

2. Backlit screen - This option allows me to adjust the screen lighting in different situations.

3. Price - I was able to purchase this for well under $200 when all was said and done (combination of coupons, ebates, and website discount). This is an excellent price for a color PDA that had a retail price of $279 at the time of my purchase (I believe it is now at $249.)

4. Lithium Ion battery - I really liked the fact that I wouldn't have to buy AA batteries. When the battery gets low, I just stick it on the USB cradle and let it recharge. Not having to run around the house "borrowing" batteries from various remotes is a relief.

5. Expansion slot - this is a great option because I'm already starting to run a little low on memory.

Cons

1. USB cradle - I love the fact that a cradle was included, but I often have a hard time actually getting the M130 into the cradle. You have to sort of tilt the unit to get it into its slot. It's sort of annoying because sometimes you feel like you might be breaking something down there.

Conclusion

As you can see from my Pros and Cons, I am very satisfied with this product. It has helped me tremendously in getting organized and provided me with entertainment along with the way in the form of books and games. If you're looking for a dependable color PDA, I wouldn't hesitate to recommend the Palm M130.

Product Information

Palm OS Software v. 4.1
8MB of internal memory
Backlit color display with support for more than 65,000 colors
Palm Expansion Card Slot
Palm Universal Connector
Infrared Port
Rechargeable Lithium Ion Battery

Supported Desktop Systems

PC running Windows 95/98/NT 4.0/2000/Me/XP
or
Mac running Mac OS 8.6 to 9x.

One available USB port. If you don't have a USB port, you can purchase the Palm HotSync Serial Cradle.

UPDATE: Here is an email that I received from Palm.com in regards to the difference in the actual color combination vs. the formerly described color combination:

We hope you are delighted with your Palm m130 handheld - which has received outstanding reviews for its vivid color screen as well as its versatile functionality at a great price. But because we are updating our statements on the m130 handheld's color capability, we want to apologize and to let you know of choices we are offering.

The facts: Upon introducing the Palm™ m130 handheld in March 2002, we described the handheld as having support for more than 65,000 colors. But upon recent testing, we have learned it delivers 58,621 color combinations, an approximate 11 percent difference.

How do we figure 58,621 color combinations? We use two techniques for text and images. Frame-rate control turns pixels off or on to deliver a specific shade of color. Dithering uses a group of adjacent pixels to convey a composite color. The Palm m130 handheld still offers the widest range of color combinations among color STN (super-twisted nematic) handhelds made by brand-name companies.

The email went on to offer a free software download of a popular game that retails at $29.95 or the option to return the unit for the full purchase price and tax.

Since I am very satisfied with this PDA, I will opt for the free software download.



Recommended: Yes

Amount Paid (US$): 125.00