Each serves their own market
You've all talked about how all Palm users are "fanboys" and how there really is no comparison - Windows Mobile is superior.
I hate to say it, but you're all fanboys yourselves. That's not an insult, but just a natural role we end up taking. No one wants to say that the device their using isn't the best. Everyone naturally justifies their purchase and overlooks the flaws.
As one poster said, you also get comfortable with what you're used to.
As a supplier of both PocketPC and Palm to the medical profession, I've had to play with both, and current ones.
BOTH have their own flaws, and they don't suit the same type of user.
PocketPCs suit most of you because they are more powerful, and, more importantly, more configurable.
But that's not for everyone. 95% of the customers I serve aren't after power and bragging rights. They just want to get the job done. In the case of most of the medicos, that means access to medical resources and basic PIM functionality.
Very few of them are willing to sacrifice battery life and size for poweruser features like 640 x 480 resolution.
Palm devices are simpler to use, and, contrary to what one poster here has said, don't crash 6-9 times a day. They also launch faster and are less complicated (wow you can actually quit applications when you say quit!) The downside is a less pretty interface and less features - Wifi is only built into the lifedrive. There is also alot less choice. For the record, I setup and use the whole range, ie Zire, T5, LifeDrive, E, E2, Treo 650.
Windows mobile machines are definitely more extensible, the OS is prettier, there are more devices covering a wider range of options, and there are PDAs to satisfy the heaviest power user.
But it also has it's downsides. Activesync isn't exactly the best syncing software. Windows mobile is a real pain when something goes wrong, just like a pc. Spewing multiple little files everywhere doesn't make for an easy fix. I wouldn't exactly call it easy to use either. I've never got around the idea of quitting something but not actually quitting it. There are ways to quit, but this should be something that needs to be done separately. The machines that I play with are the HP range, particularly the rx3417, and the O2 XDA Mini/IIs.
Both devices have their own market. I still consider Palm to be more user friendly, and the customer base that I serve is consistent with this. I definitely agree, palm is lagging behind. But the fact that devices like the treo 650 are doing so well implies that there is still something in PalmOS.
it will be interesting to see if the HP hw6500 does a better job at converged devices than the treo - if so, that puts palm one step closer to the grave.
choyboy
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