Pros: Expansion Capabilities, Palm 4.0 OS, New Apps.
Cons: No Color, Not Compatible With Other Cradles or Handspring Attachments
The Bottom Line: Basically the same unit as the new Palm m505 but with a monochrome screen. Which model you buy will depend on how attached you are to a color screen.
Think Palm Vx revitalized and ready to meet the future and you have the Palm m500. I’ve spent a week with the m500 obtained from retail sources in advance of the release scheduled for later in the month. Virtually everything contained in my m505 review applies to the m500 except for the screen.
Essentially the m500 and m505 are the same except for the monochrome screen on the m500 as compared to the colorized m505. The m500 will save you $50 in your wallet by choosing the “traditional” screen. Ordinarily, $50 additional is not a lot for a color screen and I’d say go for the m505. I still lean that way but read my m505 review first. You’ll see that I was pretty disappointed in the color screen – mostly its brightness. My belief is that Palm priced the two so similarly out of recognition that the m505 color screen isn’t really worthy of a $100 to $200 premium in the price. Extended battery life (for a color screen which is normally quite power hungry) is what you get as a concession to the somewhat muted screen.
As you can see, it’s difficult to write about the m500 without bringing up the m505. I’m not a huge color fan anyway as I’m a PDA “traditionalist” who most appreciates the basic functions for which color may look a little nicer, but does nothing for the functionality. If you want to look at maps, play games or use the enhanced video and still picture viewing capabilities of the m500 series, spend the extra $50 and get the m505. Otherwise save your money and get the m500. If color is THE most important consideration in your decision, consider a Compaq iPaq or Handspring Visor Prism. These have knock-your-socks-off color screens.
EDITORIAL COMMENT: Be sure to read the excellent reviews by other Epinioners. Always read as many Epinions as you can for something you are considering purchasing. Remember, these are our OPINIONS, and to really get a well rounded viewpoint read, read, read! What’s important or bothersome to one may not matter to the next person. You’ll find yourself relating to one more than the other and will be more confident in your buying decision. I recently considered the purchase of DirecTV and my first source of information was Epinions. I read dozens of reviews and they really helped.
The reason I no longer go into great technical detail with all the specs in my PDA reviews is that the websites do this far better and have comparison charts of the different PDAs as well. Almost all are excellent but the Palm site (www.palm.com) knocks my socks off with model comparisons, specs, software applications, support, FAQs, etc. To show you what a swell company they are they will even sell you their stuff there! What a company! Seriously though, if you’re interested in a Palm spend some time at their site.
Another particularly good site is www.handspring.com. Be sure to check out the new Handspring Visor Edge while you’re there. It’s my second favorite to the Palm m500/505 duo.
The first and best thing Palm did with these new models was to keep the look of their top of the line V and Vx. The Palm V, Vx, m500 and m505 are the best looking PDAs on the market. Why mess with the success of its world class looks. When I recently reviewed the new Handspring Visor Edge one of the few shortcomings I noted (in my opinion) was that although it was indeed slim, it just didn’t have the looks of the Palm V and Vx.
While the specs indicate that the Palm m series is a little smaller, the differences in size and weight as compared to the V and Vx were insignificant to the eye.
It was difficult to test the battery life in a week’s time but I expect this to more than sufficient and a non issue.
Improved security options are part of the new package and long overdue. The thought of losing my Palm with basically my life stored inside something smaller than a pack of cigarettes is quite scary.
Palm has belatedly recognized the USB port. Better late than never. Hot Synchs went much faster than with my old Palm IIIxe – no surprise here. Not a big deal, but with exactly the same information stored on each, the Palm m500 synched just a bit faster than the m505. Due to lack of color perhaps?
Upgraded Palm 4.0 OS software is utilized. The intent is to allow more efficient navigation. I guess it will but like with any software change I found myself saying, “where is such and such” and “why did they change this and that.” I tried to look at it like a first time user and came to the conclusion that it indeed is cleaner and better. It just takes a little getting used to for users of earlier versions.
New software includes Palm MultiMail which, with the new Mobile Connectivity software allows me access to my Earthlink email . You have to connect via a modem, of course. This I did not have available to me but will be available through Novatel Wireless, Inc. I will update this review after I’ve had an opportunity to test drive the wireless capabilities. There will also be available an attachment to connect to your cell phone. I will try this when it’s available as well.
Also included (finally!) is Documents To Go allowing for viewing and editing of Excel and Word documents. I paid $40 to download this as an option on my Palm IIIxe but it’s included with the Palm m500 and m505. While I don’t want to spend a lot of time editing documents on a small screen, the ability to download and view documents from your desktop is invaluable.
My second favorite new software application is Palm Reader. I love having a book to read when I’m stuck somewhere and if you have your Palm with you, you’ll always have a book to read.. I tried a number of after market applications on my IIIxe and none worked as well as this.
Another app is AvantGo, a free download anyway but conveniently included here. It’s the best reason to always make sure to but a PDA with 8 MB of memory. I update 18 web sites content daily and it eats up over 1/3 of my memory.
On my desktop I have MGI PhotoSuite and included here is the Mobile Edition. This is one area where, if you plan to use this a lot you may want to consider the m505’s color screen instead. You can carry a photo album of your kids or pictures of houses for sale if you’re a realtor etc. It was certainly usable on the m500 but the color screen of the m505 is much better suited for pictures and (as noted above) for maps, graphs and games. If these are your priorities move up to the m505.
The big news, of course is the Expansion Card slot using new technology. No, it’s not compatible with the Handspring Springboard modules which is the bad news. Might not it have been better for Palm to duplicate or license the technology from Handspring like Handspring did with the Palm OS? Obviously Palm feels their technology is better. Palm promises to support this for some time to come. We’ll see given how fast the technology is advancing.
In the short run there will be few software and storage cards to choose from. But you saw how many companies came along to add modules, games, cameras etc. for the Handspring. Palm is still the market leader and I would imagine that as this is written there is a rather phenomenal array of software and hardware being designed for the new Palm Secure Digital (SD) card. One thing I appreciate is being able to back up my data on a storage card. I feel more secure knowing I have a card holding my data which is independent of any computer.
The biggest advantage to the SD is the rapid data transfer rate (very noticeable), security features and reduced size. We’ll have to rely on Palm’s reputation to see what comes down the road in available options. I’m not worried.
If you balked at the price of a Palm Vx, you win! You now have the option of buying the Vx at a reduced price of $299 which is a great deal or getting some better software and expansion capability with the m500 for $100 more. Is it worth the additional cash outlay? I think so but you’ll have to carefully consider your own likes and needs first.
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