Why Would I Buy One If I Couldn't Recommend It?
Written: Sep 01 '01
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Product Rating:
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Pros: speed, great screen, battery life, expandability
Cons: screen isn't color, but that's pretty
much all
The Bottom Line: Unless you want color, this is your model.
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| davekris's Full Review: Handspring Visor Platinum Handheld |
This is my second device with the Palm OS. I purchased
a Palm Pilot Professional in 1997, and it had lasted me
until now. So I definitely wanted a winner for my second
purchase.
Actually, the reason I had to upgrade was because I am
programming wireless applications and web sites for viewing
on devices running the Palm OS. I choose the Platinum over
the over Palm OS devices for several reasons:
(1) Price - It was $200 direct from Handspring. Prices
are very similar all around. Actually, I started
paying attention to this device once Handspring
announced their price drop this summer.
(2) Speed - The Platinum has a 33mhz processor. Many
Palm OS devices just a little bit cheaper run the
slower 20mhz model. (I think all of the 16mhz models
are discontinued.)
(3) Screen - The Platinum has 16 shades of gray. Why
was this important to me? Wireless web and photos.
If you have a gray-scale photograph, it's going to
look a ton better at 16 shades of gray than at 2 or
4 shades. Likewise with web graphics.
(4) Expandability -
(a) Memory - A week before I purchased this
device, I found an adapter called the Memplug. If
you buy the Memplug for around $50, you can use
either industry-standard SmartMedia or Compact
Flash memory in your
Handspring. It appears fairly simple to be able
to add 64MB or 128MB memory to this device with
the Memplug adapters. (Please note: There are
two different Memplug adapters. If you buy
the CF version, you cannot use the SM cards in it,
and if you buy the SM version, you cannot use CF
versions in it. Of course, for around $100 you
could buy one Memplug of each, and then you'd
be all set regardless of which memory you choose!)
(b) Wireless LAN - Xircom released an 802.11b
Wi-Fi adapter for the Visor line, so I can connect
to my campus's wireless network if I buy this
adapter. 802.11b is the standard for most local
wireless networks.
(c) Tons more! There are dozens of good add-ons
for the Springboard slot.
(5) Native USB Cradle - The cradle that comes with
the Handsprings use USB, which is a heck of a lot
faster than the old serial model I used to work
with. Instead of spending minutes performing a
HotSync, I now spend only a few seconds!
(6) Customer Service - Handspring's sales support
team typically answered the phone within three
minutes. They don't seem to be nearly as scripted
as the people at Palm. I felt really comfortable
asking them questions, and they seemed to always
know the correct answers.
There's one negative to the Platinum...
Okay, I'll admit I'm a total geek. I bought a serial
cradle to connect my Handspring to my cell phone's
modem cable. Sometimes when I remove the Platinum
from the serial cradle after surfing the web wirelessly
the little battery cover pops off. It's not a big deal
at all, unless you plan to surf the web wireless on
one of those open-grate bridges. So if you're surfing
the web wirelessly on an open-grate bridge with twelve
feet of cable please be careful not to loose your
plastic battery cover. I don't think losing the
battery cover is covered under warranty. Of course,
you could just buy VisorPhone, which would solve
the problem completely. Oh wait, they are giving
those away free, too. (At the time of writing, at
least.)
Why did I pick the Platinum over the other Handspring
devices? The Edge appears to be only thinner (oh yeah,
and it has a rechargeable battery... yippee...) and
the Prism, although in color, is nearly twice the price.
The decision was easy. I was buying a Platinum.
...And I've definitely made the right decision. :)
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 199
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Epinions.com ID:
davekris
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Member: Dave Kristula
Location: Reading, PA
Reviews written: 7
Trusted by: 2 members
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