Complete Newbie...What PocketPC is the best value?

[bathman123]

Hi,

I am just getting interested in the PocketPC and I am wondering what ones are the best value for the money. Being a recent college grad I dont have much to spare. :lol: Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks alot!!

[Brad Adrian]

That's always a kind of tough question to answer, because people's needs and preferences vary so much. Can you let us know a little about how you plan to use the Pocket PC, and what kind of functionality you need?

Listen to music?
Carry and use large documents or e-books?
Connect to the Internet wirelessly?
Importance of size/weight?
Desire for certain peripherals, like external keyboards?

Not to pass the buck, but this will help us frame response. I look forward to hearing back from you.

[jconaway99]

I really enjoy my Audiovox Maestro that I got for under $300. It has PocketPC2002, two expansion slots, standard software and what I consider a nice color screen. Thought I would give you my opinion. :)

[bathman123]

Thanks guys!

My main reason for looking into a pocketPC is I am thinking of selling my laptop to get a better desktop. I still want to have some mobile capabilities such as email and smaller text documents as well as some mobile entertainment such as music and games. That is what I am looking for in a PocketPC.

Thanks for any more info!!

[Gallivant]

Provided that you don't need a hyperportable full-size keyboard like the Targus Stowaway, the Toshiba e310 is perfect for you. The Maestro's nice, but its battery life sucks. The 310 doesn't have a CompactFlash slot, but it's otherwise equivilant, and lasts a good long while.

Alternately, the Jornada 568 and 565 (and their internet-retailer bretheren, the 567 and 564) are a bit bulky, but have Stowaways available; in addition, they use CF instead of the Toshiba's Secure Digital slot for additional storage space.

[Thinkingmandavid]

The maestro is nice, maybe less battery life, but then again it all depends onyou. For sure if you get a car charger then big deal. anway, the e310 is a good deal but limited to only secure digital so no compact flash. you can try for an older ipaq or a jornada. jornada a good choice. thinking of where to go for good prices.anyway.......

[ECOslin]

I think the Palm Pilot/Handspring is the most economical PDA to purchase. I'll admit I don't own one now, I sold my Palmpro years ago.

They are the cheapest to buy new, there is a very wide stable of existing software. You can even get them with a color screen.

Check Pricewatch.com, you can imagine your own shipping costs.

The benefits of WinCE are native compatibility with the basic windows desktop functions like Word and Excel. Windows-like operation.
The benefits of Palm, is a lean OS, built to the machine with many native applications built in.

The downside of a palm is that files created have to be translated to windows applications. And the software to do that, probably, does it better now.

I like the bigger screen of the CE type and Native document handling.
Edward

[Jason Dunn]

I think the Palm Pilot/Handspring is the most economical PDA to purchase. I'll admit I don't own one now, I sold my Palmpro years ago. They are the cheapest to buy new, there is a very wide stable of existing software. You can even get them with a color screen.

But he was asking about a Pocket PC! Come on, don't pimp Palms here... :wink:

[BTS]

Although Palms offer you a better price I think that you would be more happy with the PocketPC. I have found that Palm's support for e-mail attachments is terrible and the thought of having to convert my wordprocessing document on the desktop just was not desireable.

The Pocket PC will allow you to do attachments and save your Word/Excel files in a native format. Although outdated if you want a cheap Pocket PC you may wish to try a Casio E-125. It's a good machine, uses compact flash, and there are plenty of accessories still available for it.
:D

[Brad Adrian]

If what you're looking for is a PC accessory that lets you work while away from your desktop, you definitely need a Pocket PC (not a Palm). If you plan on doing a lot of e-mail, I would recommend getting a model with a Stowaway keyboard available; writing e-mail can be done with the on-screen methods, but anything longer than a few lines can get very tiresome.

If you want to listen to music or use other multi-media functions, I'd get something with a built-in compact flash (CF) slot. That type of memory is cheaper per megabyte than secure digital cards and the card sizes are plenty large.

If you like games, like RPGs, that really work best with very crisp screens, I'd definitely get something with 64k colors (as opposed to the inexpensive Jornada 525).

All in all, with my limited understanding of your needs, I'd say the Jornada 568 would get you where you're going. Of course, there are plenty of other combinations that could serve you well, but I'm very familiar with the 568 and really like it.

Anyway, those are my opinions. If you have any other specific questions about these choices, please feel free to post them here. There are plenty of people eager to help.

[ECOslin]

I'm a student as well, and I'm quite aware of the money I'm sinking to bring an older Casio Cassiopeia E105 up to modern standards.
152.50 with shipping and handling to buy the device.
82.50 to buy an updated Pocket PC 2000(CE3.0) rom.
7.75 for a Rhino sport case.(lucky ebay bid)
$242.75
And there is a fair amount of recommended software I'd like to buy.

My advice is don't do this by inches.
Research the heck out of what unit you should buy.
Use Pricewatch.com to find the best price.
Don't dally with Ebay or any auction service, too many people want the same thing you do.
Whatever you spend on the unit, figure the total cost as double, cause you're going to have to buy software, a carry pack, screen protectors, replacement stylus, and etc.

I'm not pimping Palms, I just think that they are more on the level of a 'student' machine, 'training wheels', 'a learning device'.

Edward

[web docta]

Another vote for the Maestro! It has two card slots which is very convenient to have.

BTW, you can build a really nice computer yourself with a little research! Check out the AMD forums in my sig.

[dcharles18]

ECOslin, for $50 more you could have had a PPC 2002 device. As time passes it will begin to get more difficult to find new software for that MIPS processor. You do have that great HAST display though.