I used to scoff at PDA users until I got one...
Written: Jun 10 '01
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Has a serious cool factor with good expandability, light weight, small form factor and more.
Cons: Backlight is a joke, as is some of Palm's mentalities towards their product line.
The Bottom Line: The Palm Vx made me a believer. I used to laugh at PDAs, but the Palm combined with two killer apps - keyboard and WordSmith, make all the difference.
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| Coffee_Kid's Full Review: Palm Vx Handheld |
The Palm Vx made me a believer in PDAs. I have tried many previous models, from the brick-like Newton to the clamshell HP models, and all were just not quite there. Some say that their attempts to be a PC is what killed those devices, and the Palm tries to supplement your PC instead of replacing it - and that is it's appeal. I agree, but there have two "killer apps" that have made my Palm Vx a PC replacement, and that is what really sold me on this device more than anything else. To wit:
Cool Factor
Let's get this one out of the way fast. Yes the Palm Vx is cool. It impresses. It intrigues. It gets people talking. It sets an image when you whip it out in a business meeting. At first this kind of irked me, but I've come to enjoy it. To this day, the Palm Vx form factor has to be one of the most elegant and refined designs in the computer world - if it isn't sitting in the New York Metropolitan Museum of Art, it's a damned shame. But I bet it is.
These days with other people in the meetings using their thumb-powered BlackBerrys and their Sony Clies and their Compaq iPaqs, the Vx's cool factor is lessened... at least until I pull out of one the regular accessories I use with my Palm - one of its "killer apps". More on that below.
Form Meets Function
As you may have guessed, I really do appreciate form and design in a product. In fact, I study industrial design as a hobby. And the Palm's form factor is, as mentioned above, the best in the biz.
But there's another thing about me - I have not a second of the day for a product that is all about form, and little about function. I lose respect for the product, and it quickly falls off my radar. I'll admit my first decision in buying the Vx was because of the cool factors and the form, but it was the function that kept me around.
The Palm Vx is much more than a pretty face. A lot of the design factors aid in its usability. In daylight, the screen is always readable. The shape of the product fits my hand like a glove. It disapears in my pocket, which is a huge plus - I don't want to look like I got a brick in my pocket. When I can forget that the product is "on" me, I like it. I can't say the same thing for my notebook computer (IBM ThinkPad 570) even if it is an ultralight. Buttons are well placed, with one caveat - they are too easily pressed when you close the flipcover and leave the Palm on (more on that below). I find it intuitive to reach for both the power button and the pen, which fits ergonomically into either side slot on the Palm, accomodating poor lefties like myself.
The weight is just about perfect. Any lighter, and I think I would like it less. Any heavier, and I think I would notice it too much. And the Palm Vx is built tough - that brushed metal exterior is just that - metal. Very little plastic on this Palm, except where it is necessary.
Usability
Another hobby of mine, both professionally and personally, is the usability of things - websites, products, life, you name it. I wasn't convinced that the Palm Vx was gonna rock my world, but it did. I can't imagine how I lived without it.
First, the main input method - grafitti. I find it extremely intuitive - maybe even too much so - I find my traditional pen writing sometimes lapses into "grafitti-ese". I can input about 15-18 words a minute in grafitti, which is not too bad for quick jot about meetings, schedules, and the like. Some people have problems with grafitti, but for people like that, there are alternatives, like Jot, which will allow you to use "natural" writing.
Next, the installed Apps. I liked them, and the Vx ships with a semi-killer app for the Palm - Avant Go (more on that below). The built in scheduler, address book, memo pad, email client, and other programs are adequate, even good for many. There are better options out there, but therein lies one of the beauties of the Palm - so many applications out there to use.
Syncing the Palm is more easy than I thought it would be. I use Eudora for my email on my desktop, but Palm's Hotsync seamlessly allows you to add third party applications for syncing... like Eudora. At any given time I have 100 emails from my inbox on my Palm, ready to write back if I choose, or just for reference. I use Palm's Version 4 Desktop software, which is a huge improvement over 3.0, and I manage my schedule with it. However, if you're an affirmed Outlook user, the Palm handles it flawlessly right out of the gate. Bottom line on Syncing is, it works. Well.
Lastly, I'll discuss the display a bit, as it is part of usability. The display in daytime is awesome - I've never had a situation where I couldn't read it clearly. But dusk, medium-low light? Florescent light? There's a big problem. And the backlight doesn't help - in fact, it hinders. There's this median point between backlight mode and regular mode where it looks identical in certain lighting conditions, and I seem to run into those lighting conditions often.
At night, the backlight is okay, giving off a green glow, but I use a Hackmaster hack to reverse the backlighting. Without the hack, the letters are bright, the background "black". I prefer a bright background and black lettering.
Applications
What can I say about Palm apps that hasn't already been said. One huge selling point for the Palm is the literally 10s of thousands of applications, games, hacks, accessories, add ons, and other tools available. Visit www.palmgear.com for the scoop.
After about 8 months with the Palm Vx, I now use the following Apps regularly: Avant Go (comes with the Palm Vx), a powerful web clipping service that gives you your favourite web pages while on the go (no wireless modem required); DateBk 4 (replacement for the Palm's built in To Do, Addresses and Scheduling software) - DateBk 4 might be getting some raps online about having too much stuff, but I like all the options and "ways of doing things" that it offers. I use it every day, almost every time I have my Palm on; MemoLok (security software) - I use this to store my passwords for, well, everything on my Palm. Pretty much impossible to crack in a short time, it is much more powerful and versatile than the Palm's built in (and anemic) security software.
Killer Apps
As far as I'm concerned, there are two killer apps for the Palm Vx. The first is the Palm folding keyboard. This keyboard is about the same tactile quality as my ThinkPad's keyboard (high praise), but folds up into a small package. I love the feel of the keyboard, and it works great with the Palm - every application loves it.
The other killer app is a program called WordSmith. It is a memo pad replacement, but also a powerful word processor for the Palm. It syncs and manages Word documents flawlessly, and in tandem with the Palm keyboard, is a godsend. There are other word processors out there for the Palm, including Documents 2 Go (included with the new M505), but WordSmith kicks those other programs off the map. Why? One simple reason - WordSmith can handle my typing speed (about 80wpm). Docs2Go cannot. In fact, Docs2Go lags so bad behind my typing speed that after maybe 2, 3 minutes of typing, I'm already a full screen behind.
These two "apps" (I know, a keyboard isn't an app...) are what sold me most on the Palm Vx. They gave me the option to stop taking my ultralight notebook to meetings. These days, I usually wip out my Vx and my keyboard, zip zip set up, and ready to go. And my face isn't hidden behind the notebook screen. And I have to admit, this jacks up the "cool factor" exponentially. People are always amazed at the keyboard and Vx combo.
I've written huge documents on my Palm, including chapters for a book I'm working on. I find it very easy to use, and the portability for this kind of tool can't be beat.
Negatives
There are a few... otherwise I wouldn't have rated it 4 out of 5.
I guess the Palm Vx is still overpriced for what you get. Or at least it was when I bought mine. Today's price is much more attractive, and the new M500 isn't worth the price difference, in my opinion.
The screen problems I mentioned above are a hassle you have to work around, especially in medium or low light situations where the backlight does no good whatsoever.
I would have liked to have a 320x320 pixel screen instead of the 160x160. And it looks like M500 and M505 buyers get no relief from this. I feel there's no excuse for this - the technology is out there, but Palm hedges and just gives us the bare minimum we'll accept with each new model.
Speaking of Palm - as a company, I have some problems with them and their corporate attitude. It is mainly about what they provide. Handspring, Sony and others can provide a 320 screen, but Palm can't? Palm could have easily put 16 mb in the M505, but they didn't. Palm was extremely innovative with the original Pilot, but it seems like these days, they just want to give out bare minimal upgrades with each new model. And don't get me started on the connector - the main reason why I'm not upgrading to a M505 is because I cannot use any of the accessories I bought for the Vx with the new model - they lost a sale because of this.
Speaking of the connector, the lack of USB for the Vx is a serious ommission, and probably the biggest reason why I'm not giving them 5 out of 5.
Overall
I really like this tool a lot. It is a tool for me, and a damned near indispensable one at that. I write books and articles on it all the time. I schedule my life with it. I play games on it (amusement park is addictive). I read the web on it. I read books on it all the time. It has changed my life a little bit - I am seriously more organized because of the Palm, and this, along with the word processing ability, is probably the main reason why I'm such a big fan.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 290
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Epinions.com ID:
Coffee_Kid
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Location: Vancouver, BC
Reviews written: 7
Trusted by: 4 members
About Me:
Hey, I may be the CoffeeKid, but I have other interests as well... :-)
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