Palm-Powered Proficiency at a Popular Price
Written: Dec 23 '02 (Updated Dec 23 '02)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Inexpensive, Palm-powered, packed with extra features and programs
Cons: Uses AAA batteries, stylus is small and unwieldy, monochrome screen
The Bottom Line: Palm-powered, Microsoft Office compatible, stylish and inexpensive, this PDA would make an excellent choice or gift.
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| lap0530's Full Review: Sony CLIE® PEG-SL10 Handheld |
The Sony CLIÉ™ PEG-SL10 is a Palm-Powered™ (Palm OS v.4.1) PDA with a 320 x 320 backlit monochrome screen. In contrast to the monochrome iPAQ’s (see my review), the CLIÉ’s screen provides high resolution, excellent visibility, and adaptability to most ambient lighting conditions. Expansion is provided by Sony’s Memory Stick® media slot, allowing almost unlimited storage and a variety of peripherals. Connectivity and synchronization are accomplished via a standard USB slot with included cable (though not a cradle). Additionally, the PEG-SL10 includes an IrDA port to share information with other Palm devices.
My department chair is conducting research in which student volunteers carry a CLIÉ for a week. Three times each day, the CLIÉ alerts the user, who then responds to a series of prompts concerning his or her moods at the particular time. At the end of the week, the students return the CLIÉ, and the repeated measures data are ported to a Microsoft Access database for statistical analysis. For this purpose, the researchers needed a compact (4.13"x2.88"x0.66", 4.9 oz.), durable, and inexpensive PDA. The PEG-SL10 fit the bill nicely at $149 retail (about $110 street price today).
Student volunteers are also told to “play with” the CLIÉ for the week and to report their impressions of its usefulness, reliability, and functionality. As expected, the PEG-SL10 comes with all the standard Palm features—memo pad, calculator, to do list, address book, calendar, and e-mail capability. As a byproduct of my interest in collaborating in the research, I was given a PEG-SL10 to play with as well. While students’ anecdotal reports on the CLIÉ had been overwhelmingly positive, I was unprepared for the quality of the product until I got one in my own hands.
In the PEG-SL10, which is incidentally targeted to the student market, Sony has done an excellent job in producing a PDA that combines Palm-powered proficiency with a reasonable price. The PEG-SL10 has the Palm OS, 8 MB of RAM, and some excellent application software. Using the included DataViz’s Documents to Go®, the user can view and edit both Microsoft Excel and Microsoft Word files.
In addition to its word-processing and spreadsheet capability, the PEG-SL10 comes with Franklin’s MobiPocket Reader software for reading eBooks. Also, in keeping with its personal entertainment rubric for its PDAs, Sony included image viewing capabilities with its own PictureGear Pocket software. Monochrome images appear very sharp. Sony also provides a Memory Stick® digital camera attachment for the PEG. Other programs that ship with the PEG-SL10 include full versions of Generic Media’s gMovie and Rand-McNally’s Street Finder. Trial versions of several useful programs and games are included as well.
One of the most useful features of the SL10 is its jog-dial navigator wheel, which allows one-handed menu navigation and selection. A back button allows the user to return to the previous screen. The built-in Graffiti handwriting recognition software works very well as it does on all Palm devices. The built-in flip cover protects the screen, and makes a carrying case unnecessary.
As mentioned in other reviews, the stylus is somewhat small and unwieldy. While the more expensive SJ20 has built-in rechargeable batteries, power for the SL10 is provided by two AAA batteries, which is both a pro and a con. One could, of course, use rechargeable batteries, but that would involve the expense of a charger. Disposable alkaline batteries are inexpensive and easy to find, but of course must be discarded periodically. My PEG is still going strong on the first set of batteries, so I cannot comment on the expected life of the batteries.
For users who want Palm power, Microsoft Office compatibility, and a stylish and inexpensive PDA and can live without a color screen, The PEG-SL10 would make an excellent choice or gift.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 110
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lap0530
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Location: Anderson, SC
Reviews written: 122
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Psychology and management professor and business consultant
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