I bought my Palm m515 because my previous Palm device (a Palm III) broke after four years of continuous use.
My two key requirements are flash memory (instead of ROM, so the sytem software can be upgraded) and a color display. At the time of my purchase, this meant either the m505 (discontinued but still in some stores), the m515 or the Tungsten.
Although I like the Tungsten's features, its price at the time ($500) was too expensive. The m505 has 8M of memory, whereas the m515 has 16M. So I chose to get the m515.
I ordered my m515 from CompUSA's web site, because they had it for $300 ($250 after a mail-in rebate). It took longer than expected to receive my order in the mail, but I did receive it.
The first difference from my old III is that it is rechargeable. So I put it on the supplied cradle. After only a few minutes, I was able to turn it on and use it. After about 2-3 hours, the battery was fully charged.
The color display is very clear and bright. It uses a reflective technology for the display. This means light from the room shines off of a reflective surface in the display to light it up. The internal backlight is actually a "frontlight" that shines on the display from above. The big advantage of this over systems with a non-reflective display (like the Sonys and some older Palms) is that you get a good-looking display without the backlight when you're outdoors or in a brightly lit room.
In terms of performance, I don't have too much of a basis for comparison. The m515 is definitely faster than my III was, but that stands to reason, since it's a faster processor. But this doesn't matter much to me - most of what I do with my Palm is low-power anyway - address book, calendar, notepad, etc.
The rechargeable battery is both a plus and a minus. It's nice that I don't have to replace the batteries all the time, but it's bad that I have to remember to place it on the charger/cradle every night to keep it fully charged. The batteries last about two weeks if I don't use the backlight, or about 2-3 days if I do.
I bought a travel charger so I can plug it in on my nightstand at night. (The cradle's attached to my computer in another room, which is inconvenient.) I also use this charger when I travel.
I have not yet bought an MMC card, so I haven't been able to try this out. I plan on loading a photo album of JPEGs onto a card in order to carry them with me wherever I go. I plan on also using it to store eBooks. Both of these are too large to keep in internal main memory for an extended period of time.
One bad feature is the leather flap that comes with the m515 to protect the screen. It's not strong enough to properly protect the unit. It bends enough that the buttons get pushed through it when the unit is in my pocket.
I tried the official Palm hard-case, but it doesn't quite fit. The case is designed for the V/m500/505. But the m515 is slightly thicker. The result is that the power button gets pressed whenever the case is closed.
I eventually went with the Fellowes aluminum case. It works OK, but isn't really what I want either.
What I would like (and can't find from any vendor) is a simple hard-plastic cover that clips on to the side-rail and protects the display and buttons from accidental contact while in my pocket. Similar to the cover that comes standard with my old III and the newer m100/105 series.
My overall rating is that I like the m515 a lot. It doesn't have some of the features of the newer Tungsten model, but it also doesn't cost as much. What it does do, it does well.
Palm organization and style at an affordable price Easy to learn and use--even if you've never used a handheld before Mini-USB connector allows easy t...More at Amazon Marketplace
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