545x or 555x if cost is an issue?

[CAPreppy]

I'm in the market for a new PPC. I've got an ancient Palm that has served me well, but it's time to move into future as opposed to living in the past.

I see refurbished 5455's on HP's website for 404 (after rebate). I'm trying to keep costs of the PPC down so I can afford additional peripherals (SD & CF Card, software, & other niceties). Is it worth purchasing a refurbished 5455 or should I get a new 5455? Should I wait for the 5555? Or buy a new 5455 AFTER the 5555 comes out? Am I really going to get that much out of the 5555 as opposed to the 5455?

Any advice would be much appreciated.

Tom

[pocketpcdude1024]

If cost is an issue then I suggest you get the 545x. It has almost everything the 555x series has except the new Pocket PC 2003 operating system (minor bug fixes; 2002 is just fine :wink:), more RAM (you can just get a big SD or CF card) and a different processor that matches the new OS. :wink:

Oh, BTW - buy new. PDAs have a relatively short life (a few years) and you should get the most out of your purchase by buying new. :D

[Crystal Eitle]

If you're looking for a good price/value ratio, you might want to check out the Dell Axim as well.

[jt3]

If cost is REALLY an issue, you might want to think about what you want in a PDA. The only things the 5400 series really has over the 3900 series are the 802.11b and the biometrics (oh... and the removable battery). If you don't need either of them, then the 3900 series will serve you well... for quite a bit less. Crystal Eitle mentioned a Dell, which is another option, but remember, only Compaq has such a wide variety of expansion options, via the sleeves (of course, others have built in CF, so that's a point to the other side).

Assuming that you've already decided on Compaq, and that you've decided AGAINST the lil'Paqs (19xx, 22xx), then I'd choose the 3950/55...

...unless you want bluetooth, then I'd go for a 3970/75...

...unless you want wireless and/or biometric and/or removable-battery support, then (assuming the standard warranty applies) I'd go for a refurbished 5450/55 (or new, if you're willing to wait for the price drop that's sure to follow the release of the 5550/55... Don't pay US$650+ for this, when the 5555 pre-order is selling for US$599)...

...unless you want 128MB RAM and/or PPC2003, then I'd go for the 5550/55.

That about cover it?

[Chris Spera]

...unless you want bluetooth, then I'd go for a 3970/75...

...unless you want wireless and/or biometric and/or removable-battery support...

...unless you want 128MB RAM and/or PPC2003, then I'd go for the 5550/55...

JT3 mentions a lot here, but he misses one point. If you want 128MB of RAM and save $$ on a refurbished or discounted 5400 after the 5500 intro, then you could get the 5400 and an upgrade from PPC Techs.

The 5400 should be upgradeable to the new PPC 2003 OS. With the extra storage in the upgraded device, the upgraded OS (when available) and the native removable battery, the only difference will be the PXA255 processor...

This is an alternative; however, you'd have to save more than $180 on the price of your 5400 before you'd break even on the memory upgrade...

What is breaks down to between the 5400 and the 5500 is your patience and your economics. If you can wait and have the $$, get the 5500. If you can wait, but don't have a lot of $$ then go after either a discounted 5400 after the 5500 is released. If you can't wait, and don't have a lot of $$, then get a refurbished 5400.

These are questions only you can answer. Let us know what you decide; but in the end, you may only be out the newer processor. You can pick up everything else as either part of the original device (removable battery) or as an upgrade (RAM and PPC 2003).


Kind Regards,


Christopher Spera

[Palmguy]

I agree with JT. If you don't need wifi, or only need it at home, look at the 3900 series iPAQs.

Do remember that with the upgrade to 128 megs on the 5400, that is NOT the same as the 128 megs of the 5500. That upgrade gives you basically a built-in high speed memory card. It is not usable for Program Memory, only storage.


Of course not everyone needs 128 megs of memory, so this may not even be an issue!

BTW, I may just have a iPAQ 3950 for sale very soon! :wink: