What is the best Pocket PC Phone edition on the market?

[tallnbballn]

I am looking to get a device for biz & personal which I can use as a:

Organizer/PDA, Cellphone, MP3 player (with expandable memory, enough for a bunch of mp3s), and pocket pc.

I saw the Samsung SPH i700 and it seemed to do many of these if not all of them.

What do you think is the best Pocket PC/Phone combo device?

[Chris Spera]

The i700 is one of the best on the market, but if you're a power user, you may find it frustrating. There isn't a WM2003 upgrade for it yet. The internal RAM cannot be upgraded. It doesn't have BlueTooth, and the USB/ Serial connections are proprietary. It is very difficult to use standard peripherals with this device. Most everything is proprietary. However phone coverage is the BEST there is, and the calls are very clear. Mine are rarely dripped.

The MDA2/XDa2/i-Mate Phone Edition is a good device, but I hear that BlueToothi is a bit flakey on it. As it is a GSM/GPRS phone (whiere the i700 is CDMA) network coverage in the States isn't that great. I haven't used GSM/GPRS service so can't tell you how bad it might be.

The i700 can be anywhere from $500 to $700 depending on how and where you get it.

The MDA2/XDa2/i-Mate Phone Edition isn't carried by anyone here in the States (tho you can use it on T-Mobile or AT&T), so its rather pricey at nearly $1000, because you have to import it.

Hope this helps. Just my 2 cents...

[dorelse]

I have really been impressed with the new Audiovox 4100PPC (AT&T Wireless). Its currently priced at $349.00 and operates on their GSM network.

Its nice and small (relatively speaking) and seems to be a good compromise of features. You don't get built-in bluetooth or wi-fi...but it has an SDIO slot...so I'll probably pick up a SD WiFi/256 MB combo card and just leave it in.

I liked the i700, but Verizon is expensive...(and so is the i700)...so I'm going with the Audiovox 4100. I rarely use the d-pad, so won't miss it with the included jog dial.

I hope to pick it up in a week or so. I'll be migrating back from my T3...I'm tired of 2 devices, and the Treo's 160x160 screen ain't gonna cut it.

[nosmohtac]

You don't get built-in bluetooth or wi-fi...but it has an SDIO slot...so I'll probably pick up a SD WiFi/256 MB combo card and just leave it in.


Have you seen a SD WiFi/256MB combo card? I don't think you'll want to leave it in. From what I can tell, the card sticks out almost as much as it goes in. I would think that it would be fairly easy to break it off if left in, and bumped against something, whether it's in your breast pocket or on a belt clip.

[substring]

I have really been impressed with the new Audiovox 4100PPC (AT&T Wireless). Its currently priced at $349.00 and operates on their GSM network.

Its nice and small (relatively speaking) and seems to be a good compromise of features. You don't get built-in bluetooth or wi-fi...but it has an SDIO slot...so I'll probably pick up a SD WiFi/256 MB combo card and just leave it in.

I liked the i700, but Verizon is expensive...(and so is the i700)...so I'm going with the Audiovox 4100. I rarely use the d-pad, so won't miss it with the included jog dial.

I hope to pick it up in a week or so. I'll be migrating back from my T3...I'm tired of 2 devices, and the Treo's 160x160 screen ain't gonna cut it.dorelse, I am a current user of the SX56 and thinking of switching to PPC4100. The only thing that is holding me back is the concern on the quality, since the device is made by Taiwanese company (in contrary of other devices like the i700 which is made by Korean company and they have higher standard in quality).

Do you feel the PPC4100 has good quality and reliability? How is the reception? Do you have good signal strength with their 850MHz spectrum?

I like to get more information before I commit myself. Thanks.

[dorelse]

I can't comment on signal strength yet...I've only played with one at the ATT Wireless store. My initial impressions on quality were that it was solidly made. I was amazed at how light it was...not sure what I was expecting, but it was much lighter than the Treo 600.

I was also impressed with the belt clip case. It has a piece of metal inside the case's flip cover, which when closed, snaps down and keeps the case closed without magnets or snaps.

Mine is arriving either this week or early next. I'll be sure to post my comments back here when I'm up and running...can't wait to get rid of 2 devices for just the one!

Oh, and I should mention that I got the 4100 for $385.00-$50.00 rebate...so $335.00 net...pretty decent price I thought.

[Ryan Joseph]

I'll cast my vote for the i-mate/XDAII. It's a little expensive, but it's a really sweet device.

It's got 128MB RAM, more than any other Phone Edition, it's got Bluetooth, and it's got a built in camera.

Plus, it doesn't have an antenna sticking out of the top. I didn't realize how much I'd like that until I had it. It's very nice!

And GPRS seems faster on it than my last Phone Edition device...but maybe that's just me. It gets great reception and the calls are clear.

I've had a little trouble getting it to pair with a BT headset, but I'll keep working on it.

Really, I can't say enough good things about it. I love it!

[dorelse]

Actually, I can't have a camera on my phone or pda at my place of business...so that really restricts my options. (And I'm not sure I'd want one...)

[substring]

Actually, I can't have a camera on my phone or pda at my place of business...so that really restricts my options. (And I'm not sure I'd want one...)Neither do I. Many places do not allow camera phone.

And I got the feeling that more places will ban it as more people are abusing it, just like more and more cities are banning people to use cell phones while driving.

[dorelse]

Honestly, my biggest concern about the Audivox 4100 will be learning to live w/o the d-pad.

I'm thinking the jog dial will be ok, and I'll be tapping a lot with my finger...I've already ordered a new Martin Fields Overlay for it (I bought a Toshiba e805 one, and will trim it to fit.)

The biggest thing will be games...I won't be able to play certain games that assume there's a d-pad....which is probably a lot of them.

[sxt1173]

The new ipaq may be what you are looking for. There is a version of the I-mate PPC that doesnt have the camera in it but it is a little bit rarer ( talk to saudi distis!!! )

The Ipaq G - the official release name of the 6300 series is coming out at the end of july. It has bluetooth, wifi, gsm / gprs and is a quad band device. If you can wait the other one to perhaps wait for is the Motorola MPX, but I think from memory that has a camera attached.

There are some brief details available on the Ipaq from www.pdagold.com or you can pre-order from

www.agbglobal.com