Close your "Palm" and Open Casio!
Written: Dec 05 '01 (Updated Dec 05 '01)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Color screen is super clear and bright. Expansion slot for more memory.
Cons: Few accessories available. Low RAM.
The Bottom Line: Great color screen, and good memory options, for those willing to overlook the shotty manual and patch downloads needed.
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| AtlantaGreg's Full Review: Casio Cassiopeia EM-500 Pocket PC |
INTRO/WHAT TO EXPECT
The Casio EM-500 comes in varied packages, depending on the retail location. I purchased mine for $299.00 at Costco, and this included a 32 megabyte multimedia storage card (talked about below), which is not available in the package in some other retail packages. My package included of course the EM-500 unit, battery charger, software, a stylus pen to peck the screen with, a basic fabric cover for the unit, and the extra memory card.
The unit is a silver-gray, with a darker gray "skin" that covers it. You can also get blue, green, and other colors (leak over iMac trend) to fit your taste. Expect a 5 hour charge on the battery before you can begin using your Casio, to get the included Lithium-ion battery fully charged up. That's your "kit", as it came from Costco, at least.
THE GOOD
The color screen of the EM-500 is incredible. I took mine to a local store and the guys in the electronics department (which only sells "Palm" brands of hand helds) went nuts over the clarity and rich colors this screen displays. I use mine to store digital photos and video clips, and this screen is a real plus for that purpose.
Running on a pocket Windows platform, you have Pocket Word, and Pocket Excel included with the device, as well as an address book, mobile calendar, note and task areas, and more. A basic video and photo viewer is also included. The buttons on the unit's front include a round toggle-wheel (mouse), a menu button which takes you to the main menu selections, and two other "launch" buttons that you can program to start up whatever program you wish. On the side, you have a power button, and a voice recorder button - press it, begin talking, and it will take digital voice reminder notes (though it is an awfully small button). There is a wheel on the side to help you navigate around menus, and an infra-red port for "beaming" info into other Casio devices or your computer, using an optional infra-red port device.
The top of the EM-500 has a slot that hold "multi-media" cards. Think of them almost as half sized Compact Flash memory cards. About the size of a stamp and available in several storage capacities. The EM-500 has 16 megs of built-in memory, which will not go far if you store photos or video on it, so it's recommended that you use these little memory cards to store those types of files. My 32 meg card holds 12 video clips (2 minutes each), 50 small resolution digital photos, and a map program with a few maps on it. Want more? Just pop out the card, insert another, and store more.
The bottom of the unit has a port for connecting a modem for email use (optional purchase), or other accessories, such as the cable to connect to your computer so you can download programs into the Casio (cable included). Note, if you are a Startac cell phone user, you can purchase a cheap cable that will allow you to use your cell phone as a modem to check email (around $40, cheaper than the $150 modem). Unfortunately, there are few accessories available at this time, compared to other units on the market. Example, other Casio models with a compact flash card slot can house a small digital camera that slides into this slot - no such device is made with a multi-media card slot on it, etc.
The EM-500 has 16 megs of RAM (running memory), which is enough to do your included programs, mapping programs, Word, and even showing video - but you have to shut down all programs running in the background during video playback, or you'll get a "not enough memory" message. This is fine for basic applications, but if you're a power PDA user who wants to use a GPS mapping program, or surf the internet, you may wish to look at other units that offer 32 or 64 megs of RAM.
THE BAD
The instruction manual (on C.D.) was not expertly written in my case, and mentioned nothing at all about the multi-media slot, using cards, etc. I figured it out, but a completely new PDA user would have had a hard time with it. There were two sheets of paper in my kit that stressed you download patches into the unit before use, to avoid a mentioned problem with other reviews where the unit drains it's power overnight. One would think if they had time to include these notices in the box, they would have time to have put units with these patches already installed in the box, saving buyers this extra setup time to get it running correctly.
The "Pocket AOL" that is shown on the menu screen is "false" according to America Online reps. They say they do not support this model number, and they were unsure if it would work at all on the EM-500. They were quick to say harsh things about Casio and Palm, saying they're sticking AOL on all of their handhelds, when it will not work correctly on many model numbers (yet). I stuck with it, and using the optional cable connected to my Startac phone, actually was able to get AOL mail working on my unit... after 4 hours of trial and error. This too, would be incredibly frustrating for a new PDA user who doesn't know some of the ropes.
While the specs indicate "up to 7 hours of runtime" on a battery charge, we all know by now that you can cut that in half with any gizmo. The EM-500 ran about 3 1/2 to 4 hours on a charge with my using it for files, photo, and video. Not a "minus", but worth noting it will most likely NOT be 7 hours.
OTHER/MISC
You can purchase screen protectors to keep from scratching your screen. Do not buy generic "Palm" protectors, as they will cause a "Waffling" effect on the Casio. Casio sells screens that slip right on to the front that are designed for color screens, to avoid this effect. It's possible the screen for the color Compaq iPac may also work, but I've not tried them yet. It would have been NICE if Casio had included one screen in the kit, but there were none.
The speaker on the front of the unit plays standard sound, but the speaker jack on top plays stereo, so if you're going to be storing and listening to MP3 music on this device, use the jack and headphones (optional) for the best sound quality.
As an extra note... going to www.mapopolis.com will take you to a site that offers a free map viewing browser, and FREE street maps, based on counties in each state. Nicely done zoomable street maps, too. If you want the ability to look up specific addresses, you need to pay $4.95 per map, but the basic ones are free, and well worth checking out and adding to the Casio.
If you can buy from Costco, this is a great kit to have with the included memory card. If not, newer models are now available in standard retail stores. Getting around the patch download issue, and poorly written C.D. manual, I enjoy the EM-500 for what I intended to use it for. I get compliments on the photos I show people on it every day, and get good use from it. It would make a fine Holiday or birthday gift for those with a bit of computer/PDA knowledge, so go out today and make your techie person happy and buy them one.
Happy Holidays.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 299
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Epinions.com ID:
AtlantaGreg
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Member: Greg
Location: Powder Springs, GA USA
Reviews written: 81
Trusted by: 4 members
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