Enough to beat the rest of the PDA pack? Hardly...
Written: Apr 16 '01
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Thin form factor, expandable springboard slot, Palm OS, 33MHz processor
Cons: IR placement, design hit or miss, bulky with Springboard modules, cost
The Bottom Line: Keeps Handspring competitive with Palm, but the overall design is very hit or miss. There are a few factors to consider.
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| yusakugo's Full Review: Handspring Visor Edge Handheld |
The latest offering from Handspring seeks to capitalize on the thin aspect/form factor dominated currently by the Palm V and Palm Vx PDAs. Although I am more of a fan of the look of Palm's PDAs, Handspring own innovations with the springboard slot give their PDAs a slight edge in the expansion department. My brother has been a bigger fan of the Handspring PDAs while I purchased Palm's PDAs. Recently, my brother got a Visor Edge and I wondered if it was better than my Palm Vx and the Palm m500s my friends had received for review purposes.
First Impressions and Design Overview
From afar, the Edge is a thin looking PDA. It definitely looks thinner than the Vx from afar and has a nice look. However, the design from closer inspection made me think otherwise. The unit had anodized aluminum front, back, and cover that comes in three colors (silver, blue, and red... I think the red is available only from handspring.com). There is a clear plastic border around the aluminum plates and the unit close up looks like a sandwich of aluminum plates for the bread and the clear plastic for the middle. This design is definitely very hit or miss. I particularly didn't like it.
However, the Edge has a fairly large LCD screen comparing to models like the Palm m100 and m105 PDAs and also compares nicely to the other Handspring models and Palm III and V series PDAs. You won't be straining your eyes very much on the Edge. The backlight feature is the reverse backlighting used in the more recent Palm III models. This means great nighttime viewing and questionable bright sunlight viewing. Problems the Palm IIIx and IIIxe had. Also note that the display is a greyscale (i.e. B&W) display.
A disappointing feature was the Infrared port. It is located on the lower third of the PDA which makes it very cumbersome to use without putting the PDA down. At least other Handspring models had the port on the upper left corner of the unit.
The stylus lies on the outside of the unit, but I didn't feel it made any significant impact on the look or design of the unit. The stylus did match the color of the plates of the Edge unit, which is a nice touch.
If you're familiar with the Palm units, you know that almost all PDAs running the Palm OS have 4 fast application buttons. 2 each to the left and right of the 2 scroll keys. All the buttons are on the bottom 1/6-1/5 of the unit below the LCD screen. The buttons are easy to depress with your stylus, but I found that the buttons were rather difficult to depress with my fingers... whether this is inherit to the thin design of the Edge or done on purpose, I'm not sure. It is annoying to me since I prefer using my fingers.
The power button is in the right lower corner and is made of the same clear plastic translucent material as most of the unit is. The top right corner contains an LED for alerts and alarms. Supposedly, there is a vibrate function for alarms that I didn't get a chance to play with yet.
Features?
The Edge utilizes a Motorola DragonBall 33 MHz processor like the Visor Platinum and Palm m500 and m505 PDAs. This means that you have the fastest Palm OS processor available to date. How useful this is depends on what you run on your Palm... I think it is fairly safe to say that the majority of users will never notice a difference since few Palm apps are that processor intensive!
The Edge lacks the Flash memory utilized by the higher end Palm units for upgrading the Palm OS. However, this matters little since the Edge runs on Palm OS 3.5.2H, which is extremely stable. Almost all current Palm application will run on 3.5.2H so as of now, there is no problem! It could crop up in the future though!
You get 8 MB of memory. Standard memory amount for the high end PDA! Nothing to complain about overall.
The programs on the Edge are the standard Handspring fare... nothing really new or notable in this catagory.
Springboard? Diving into uncertainty
This is where the Edge becomes questionable. The springboard slot is undoubtable the strength of the Visor units. In the Edge, it represents both a strength and a weakness.
The springboard is a strength in that there is expansion capabilities for the Edge (and all the other Visor PDAs). The springboard allows for a broad based expandability for the Visor PDAs. Only in the last year and a half have useful springboard modules popped up for consumers. Modules from flash memory, backup units, MP3 players, GPS add ons, modems, cameras, and even PowerPoint presentation units. This is one area where Handspring is firmly ahead of the rest of the competition. Palm units have had a much more limited expansion options and Pocket PC are based mostly on Compact Flash type cards or PC Cards. Any old springboard module for the older Visors can fit into the Edge PDA.
What is the weakness then? For the Edge, the springboard slot isn't a true part of the PDA. The springboard modules attach to the Edge via an external Springboard connector. This connector attaches to the top half of the Edge on the back... and it more than doubles the thickness of the Edge PDA. This connector makes the Edge very bulky and even unwieldy with many springboard modules. The thinness of the Edge sacrifices any elegent solution of adding the springboard backpacks onto the Edge. Some modules, like the VisorPhone, make the Edge so unwieldy to operate and handle. In the case of the VisorPhone, the top half of the Edge triples in thickness. To me, I find this implementation of the springboard modules unacceptable for many users.
The future could prove different since the springboard connector fits into a thin slot that may be the new format for thin springboard modules... plans have yet to be announced so only time will tell. Another option is the 12 pin desktop cradle connection. This is bigger than most Visor's 8 pin connector to the desktop cradle. It could also lead to accessories that attached similar to the Palm III series and Palm V series.
Final Thoughts
For $399, the Edge with its advantages and drawbacks fits a select crowd. To some, the design may be very eye pleasing. To others, it may seems cheap looking. This is a matter of personal taste. However, there is no denying that the unit will satisfy more Handspring users who desired a thin elegent unit. The Edge does deliver that with some major compromises.
The Edge is meant for those who don't utilize a springboard module often when taking the PDA out of the house or office. The springboard connector and some springboard modules make the unit very top heavy and bulky... which rob the Edge of the elegence that many users bought it for. If you need to attach a module to your Visor unit most of the time then you probably don't want the Edge. The connector gives the top half of the Edge a thickness between the Platinum and the Prism. Those who make rare to occassional use of the springboard modules will be happier with their Edge PDAs.
If you require the use of springboard modules, I would recommend looking at the Visor Deluxe and Visor Platinum. The Deluxe has a slower processor and is thicker than the Edge (without springboard connector) but costs $249 ($199 with mail-in rebate expiring 4/30/01) and likely to drop to $199. The Platinum's only difference lies in the outward design and thickness of the unit versus the Edge. Otherwise, everything else is the same! The Platinum costs only $299. You save $100 which can be spend on a Springboard module. If you have no need for a Springboard module or expandibility, then consider the Palm m105 and Palm Vx units. The Palm m105 runs the same OS as the Edge with 8 Megs of memory. The m105 has a smaller screen, much slower processor, and little expandibility however. The m105 costs $199. The Palm Vx also contains a slower processor and limited expandibility but does have a stylish exterior. There are useful accessories for the Palm V series although not in the broad range that the Springboard modules offer. The Palm Vx costs $299.
If you know what you want from your PDA, then you can decide on a unit that won't disappoint you. The Edge is a good PDA overall, but not for everyone.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 359
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yusakugo
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Member: Rich Go
Location: Somewhere in the NorthEast
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Losing Sleep and Lacking Time... sigh...
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