[Ed Hansberry]

Originally Posted by amin

Comparing RAM, processor speed, etc between a Palm and a PPC is pointless when you consider how different the two really are.

That may have been true a year or two years ago. Now, Palm as added:
Voice Recording
MP3 something (not capbilitites, but support maybe - Sony is there with software anyway)
Hi res screens
150MHz+ processors
Limited multitasking with apps like AIM and music
Storage cards.

You tell me that isn't playing catch up. Palm and Pocket PC are head to head with many features now.

[Ed Hansberry]

Originally Posted by amin

Comparing RAM, processor speed, etc between a Palm and a PPC is pointless when you consider how different the two really are.

That may have been true a year or two years ago. Now, Palm as added:
Voice Recording
MP3 something (not capbilitites, but support maybe - Sony is there with software anyway)
Hi res screens
150MHz+ processors
Limited multitasking with apps like AIM and music
Storage cards.

You tell me that isn't playing catch up. Palm and Pocket PC are head to head with many features now.

[amin]

Palm has been catching up to PPC in many respects while remaining fundamentally different (not worse) in other respects. Those differences are what for some of us are willing to pay. I see myself having both a high-end Palm and a high-end PPC for the next year or two; they are both worth the money to me.

By the way, I would have thought the whole XScale debacle would change the way so many PPC users blindly compare specs like processor speed.

[mookie123]

Originally Posted by amin

Palm has been catching up to PPC in many respects while remaining fundamentally different (not worse) in other respects. Those differences are what for some of us are willing to pay. I see myself having both a high-end Palm and a high-end PPC for the next year or two; they are both worth the money to me.

By the way, I would have thought the whole XScale debacle would change the way so many PPC users blindly compare specs like processor speed.

ahh semantic games.

The so called 'difference' in some quarters are also called shortcomings and compromise. How many RAM do you have left after you install all your basic software? is there even room for any program that require 2MB to run, let alone your favorite ebook and personal files. And that's only memory aspect alone.


The Xscale debacle,
Compared to OS 5.0's PACE, memory and thread management and file system , the talk of debacle is like comparing pimple to boubonic plague.

[Ed Hansberry]

It is great to disagree and debate, but lets try not to get into denegrating others thought processes or examples, ok? Not aimed at anyone, just a general reminder, self included. :twisted:

Wasn't it Rodney King that said "Can I have cheese with that?" Or something like that anyway. :?

[Newsboy]

Originally Posted by amin

By the way, I would have thought the whole XScale debacle would change the way so many PPC users blindly compare specs like processor speed.

The benefit of XScale is not *just* speed, but also lower power consumption. Granted, it is no faster overall than an ARM device, but battery life is significantly improved.

And there have been (and continue to be) many examples of hardware outpacing software capabilities. Intel's 3 Ghz desktop processor is an example. It can perform hyper-threading, yet no software exists that supports it yet. Is this a good reason *not* to buy it? No.

[brntcrsp]

sorta off topic but I see that you've been quoted in the latest Tech Specialist issue, Ed, regarding this topic. Congrats.

[amin]

I have wasted enough breath. Bash away. I will continue to enjoy both the PPC and Palm OS devices; and when I get some more PDA money allotted by the wife, I will spend it on the Tungsten T, which is as well-priced as any PDA in my opinion.

[ThomasC22]

Originally Posted by amin

I have wasted enough breath. Bash away. I will continue to enjoy both the PPC and Palm OS devices; and when I get some more PDA money allotted by the wife, I will spend it on the Tungsten T, which is as well-priced as any PDA in my opinion.

OK, as one of the resident "try to be fair to both side" guys I have to say I think you're being unreasonable here.

The way I see it you haven't really provided a rebuttle to any of the points that have been given, you've simply restated your own opinion. Then when people disagree you get angry which isn't really fair.

Keep in mind a few points:

1 - BigDaddyJ didn't attack the Palm platform, he simply stated that he thought the Clie was a better deal (which honestly, how could you not).

2 - EdH made the point that because Palm is trying to do many of the same things PocketPCs it is fair to compare them on a common scale. You basically didn't respond to that point (or agreed its hard to tell which)

3 - mookie and newsboy simply pointed out what they felt was the advantage of Xscale processors.

I saw nothing in any of these posts that was really an attack on you or unreasonable on anyone else's part so my question is, what exactly got you so upset?

[amin]

1 - BigDaddyJ didn't attack the Palm platform, he simply stated that he thought the Clie was a better deal (which honestly, how could you not).

Honestly, this is how I could not. What good is a WiFi option with such a weak battery? The form is too large, I prefer my clamshells horizontal, the built-in camera is still weak, the CF slot doesn't have proper driver support for CF memory cards, etc. Just because they packed a bunch of hardware together doesn't make it a value to me.

2 - EdH made the point that because Palm is trying to do many of the same things PocketPCs it is fair to compare them on a common scale. You basically didn't respond to that point (or agreed its hard to tell which)

I addressed this point by saying that there are still too many differences to directlly compare them. Anyone who owns and uses both right now would pretty much understand that...

3 - mookie and newsboy simply pointed out what they felt was the advantage of Xscale processors.

People admit that XScale PPCs showed that more megahertz doesn't = more usable power. Doesn't that weaken the argument put forth that one reason Tungsten is worth less is that it has less megahertz, and presumably therefore less usable power? The fact that Xscale processors are more energy efficient is a side issue; however, if one is going to bring that up, did anyone consider that Palm may have chosen this particular processor for its energy efficiency (adds to value from my point of view).

I saw nothing in any of these posts that was really an attack on you or unreasonable on anyone else's part so my question is, what exactly got you so upset?

I am not upset (frustrated yes, upset no) nor to I feel that I have been attacked. I do feel that the Tungsten is getting attacked and that the very simple concept I am trying to introduce (that two things can be different in a difficult to quantify way and both still be valuable) is lost in these circles. The whole article was written to bash the Tungsten, and I will not waste my time any more trying to open people's minds. I don't feel that they or I need to argue specific points when all I am trying to establish is that what makes something worth a certain amount is simply how desirable it is, not how much "stuff" it can pack in. Would I rather have a Tungsten T than an NX-series CLIE? Yes. Therefore, I would pay more for a TT than an NX. There, isn't that simple? I feel like this article and its supporters feel the NX (or Dell, IPAQ, etc) should cost more just because they pack more features or do more stuff, which doesn't make sense to me. Enjoy the Tungsten bashing... I really cannot put any more effort into explaining something so simple.

[mookie123]

"...something so simple"? This must be involving one of those 'Zen' thing that I never get...

(okay okay..sorry Ed. I can't help myself. I will play nice now.) :lol: