Convincing Parents...

[brian728s]

First, some background. I am in high school (but should be in middle school). I want to convince my parents to let me buy myself an axim. I want to cite grades (A average), and also need to give them some reason why I should have it.

Any tips?

[kewlerthanu182]

Well i'm 13 and my parents say get one if you want seeing it's your money even though they don't see what i would use it for so i can't help ya there. Well maybe said ou could take notes with it and put tests and quizes in it to organize ur self. I dunno i think of more later

[mirkazemisaman]

well I am 16 and I had a Palm before getting an Axim, my parents wouldn't have let me buy one if I didn't get it for free. Yes I won a Clie in a contest, then they (my parents) started actually liking it, since i created a large database of all the phone numbers of people we knew and they would ask once in a while someone's phone number and I would have it "in the palm of my hand" right away. Fortunately the Clie broke after about 2 years and now buying a new handheld of some sort didn't seem unreasonable to them. So I bought the Axim and my parents also bought THEMSELVES a couple of Palms AND payed half of my Axim. Unbelievable...
Don't get me wrong, i don't have the type of parents who just give their sons money to buy "mini computers" as they call it. I barely ever get to spend money on something like this. So bottom line: basically parents (in my case) don't realize how usefull a handheld can be, which is why they don't let us buy them... just tell them: "It only costs as much as that pair of new shoes you bought mom!?!?!" or "Dad, If I die today, aren't you gonna be sad you didn't let me buy "it"..."

[seanturner]

just tell them: "It only costs as much as that pair of new shoes you bought mom!?!?!" or "Dad, If I die today, aren't you gonna be sad you didn't let me buy "it"..."

That would make me die laughing....


I think the main issue is that most non computerl literate people don't really see the value in a PDA and what it can be used for. Their logic is one of I get through life without a PDA, why does x need one?

I think that is what you need to answer, not issues of cost.

[ipaq38vette]

I say good grades are the most convincing.

My iPaq has been great in organizing my messy life, especially Tasks and getting things done. If you are a sloppy person you can use the above. But if you manage to get something like straight As, maybe your parents will even chip in. :D

[pro_worm]

....If, on the other hand, good grades in high school have managed to win you nothing in life - ever - except sleepless nights, then no worries. I feel your pain 8O But it pays off when you have what to stick in those college apps :twisted:

Tell them a new PDA would:
1) Let you take notes in class without having to break your back carrying a huge laptop, assuming you can find a stowaway/foldable keyboard for the device (this was the main way I used my PDA in high school)
2) Let the family/you watch near-DVD quality movies on airplane flights through DIVX and a Compactflash card
3)Make sure you never forgot to do chores or household work through its ever refreshing and changing interactive magical "tasks" list
4) Save paper by allowing you to correct essays and homework assignments on the PDA rather than printing out copies and taking up the old red pen.
5) Ensure you never forget your [insert family member name]'s birthday ever again, because it would be in your calendar waiting every year.

If these don't work, just get a $%@&$@* credit card, go to dell.com, and buy one :twisted:

[dean_shan]

What you should do is tell you parents all the things you can do with a pocket pc. Make sure the reasons you give your parents are education related, don't tell them upfront that you can play lots of fun games and listen to music. Also you should take your parents to pocketpc.com (http://www.pocketpc.com) and show them the demo that they have there. That's what I did with my parents and it worked.

[jimski]

Hey future Dell dude, just tell them you are investing in the future. 8) If no one ever wrapped their arms around technology, you and your family would still be sitting in front of the radio on Saturday nights listening to the latest serial thriller 8O (way before your an my time). BTW - Hope I didn't offend anyone with that last statement. :oops: Just may still be doing this somewhere in Middle America.

PDA's are just one of many steps towards a future where all PC's will have touch screens, use voice commands and be as thin and light as a picture frame. You are just getting a head start on what is to come.

Having the ability to carry half the power and resources of a desktop PC is not such a bad thing either. Even the most organized person will find that a PDA helps them to become better organized.

And BTW, :idea: someone who has skipped at least one grade and is achieving straight "A"'s MUST have just a little bit of "geek" in them. Just tell them you are trying to find your inner geek.

Or, just tap a wealthy relative to give you an early (or late) birthday gift. :D How can your parents let you turn that down. I know what my nephew is getting for his birthday, a Dell.

[AndrewLubinus89]

Well, I'm thirteen and I have a Visor Edge (want an axim) and I didn't need to convince my parents because and in fact my dad suggested that I buy it. But anyways I would tell them all the things you could do with it. PIM, Music, video, you could write notes in school, you could use avantgo, you can do a lot with it. Good grades sounds good to me to. I have a b average so I could never do that. lol.
By the way it is nice to see that other teenagers use palms because all my freinds think I'm weird :-)

[spursdude]

By the way it is nice to see that other teenagers use palms because all my freinds think I'm weird :-)

Gah! Pocket PC! Pocket PC! Not all handhelds are Palms!

:D (i am just playing with you, please take no serious heed to this)

[Rirath]

Could always tell em that by the time you're in college, and most of your professional life, you'll most likely live or die by your notes and schedule. Why not learn now? Compare the price to a low end laptop, the advantages of the small size, and the major uses.

Small tangent: Just today in the C# class I'm taking at the local college, everyone arrives with binders and printed lecture notes with ink and highlighter. We're talking professionals in the IT field, 30-40 years old still using binders. I of course have only one thing, the Axim with all the lecture notes for the semester in .pdf format. (Along with my notes, schedule, assignments, and entire life just a click away.)

[AndrewLubinus89]

By the way it is nice to see that other teenagers use palms because all my freinds think I'm weird :-)

Gah! Pocket PC! Pocket PC! Not all handhelds are Palms!

:D (i am just playing with you, please take no serious heed to this)

Lol, PDAS fine, fine, be that way! :roll: lol :-)

[Rirath]

By the way it is nice to see that other teenagers use palms because all my freinds think I'm weird :-)

Gah! Pocket PC! Pocket PC! Not all handhelds are Palms!

:D (i am just playing with you, please take no serious heed to this)

Lol, PDAS fine, fine, be that way! :roll: lol :-)

Still not close enough. :) PDA = Personal Data Assistant which to me usually just means Palm. PPC = Pocket PC.

[brian728s]

Good reasons, but now how to actually ask them. Should I ask when we are strolling down the pda aisle

Me: "You know, I've been wanting one of those"
Parent: "Oh, which one?" Me: "Its not here, but is similar to that one" Parent: "But that one costs $600, you can't spend that much on this kind of thing"
Me: "The one I want costs $200"
Parent: "I see... Its made by one of those el-cheapo companies that you never hear of again. Its always too good to be true..."
Me: "Its made by dell, you know, the people who built the computer you use"
Parent: Ok, well consider it..." (Ponders trip to bank)

-or-

Parent "No, you only want one of those because we are walking by them"





Just so you know, I am on my second visor (first 2mb broke), got deluxe. When I asked for it, my mom thought I wanted a hat.

[alcdroid]

Or you could always just "happen" to enter Dell's website while your parents are around and go "Look at this really neat PDA from Dell...<rest of your pitch>" or something like that. :D

[Rirath]

Or, depending on your parents... you could just dispense with all this planning before hand and just come out and speak your mind? I mean, you obviously know what you're talking about and you're obviously convinced... so go for it.

Personally I find the elaborate planning and structuring of asking about a simple purchase is just over the top. It usually causes even more problems when you've put all this thought into something and they have no idea what on earth your point is, grow impatient, and dismiss it off hand.

Then again I was lucky enough to have grandparents that didn't know a single simple thing about computers, even how to flip the power switch, but never questioned my use. Like I said, depends on your parents I guess.

At any rate... welcome to the forums. :)

[AndrewLubinus89]

Or, depending on your parents... you could just dispense with all this planning before hand and just come out and speak your mind?

yeah, that is what I would do. I would say "Dad I was thinking about buying and axim and I was wondering if I could?" And then he would say "Ok, if you've thought about it you can". The truth is oftent the best.

[AndrewLubinus89]

By the way it is nice to see that other teenagers use palms because all my freinds think I'm weird :-)

Gah! Pocket PC! Pocket PC! Not all handhelds are Palms!

:D (i am just playing with you, please take no serious heed to this)

Lol, PDAS fine, fine, be that way! :roll: lol :-)

Still not close enough. :) PDA = Personal Data Assistant which to me usually just means Palm. PPC = Pocket PC.

Yeah, but see, I have a palm, you guys have ppcs, I can't say either without being wrong so I have to say PDA because there really isn't anything closer. :D

[jd4science]

Yeah, I;m 13 and just ordered my Axim. I had the same problem as you but finnaly convinced them, it was, afterall, my money. Just stick with it. :D

[blusparkles]

Do any of your friends have a Pocket PC? It might help if you could bring one home and actually show them (and demonstrate its use), rather than going on and on about how it will help you with school.

[seanturner]

Do any of your friends have a Pocket PC? It might help if you could bring one home and actually show them (and demonstrate its use), rather than going on and on about how it will help you with school.

Would have to be a pretty good friend to loan you a ppc overnight...

[pro_worm]

By the way it is nice to see that other teenagers use palms because all my freinds think I'm weird :-)

Gah! Pocket PC! Pocket PC! Not all handhelds are Palms!

:D (i am just playing with you, please take no serious heed to this)

Lol, PDAS fine, fine, be that way! :roll: lol :-)

Still not close enough. :) PDA = Personal Data Assistant which to me usually just means Palm. PPC = Pocket PC.

Yeah, but see, I have a palm, you guys have ppcs, I can't say either without being wrong so I have to say PDA because there really isn't anything closer. :D

[keanu reeves] whoa [/keanu reaves] vertigo.

[szamot]

well I am 16 and I had a Palm before getting an Axim, my parents wouldn't have let me buy one if I didn't get it for free. Yes I won a Clie in a contest, then they (my parents) started actually liking it, since i created a large database of all the phone numbers of people we knew and they would ask once in a while someone's phone number and I would have it "in the palm of my hand" right away. "..."

...why not just use the Datebook, but if they did not know the difference - good for you.

[Ekkie Tepsupornchai]

Hah... this is one of the more original threads I've seen in quite a while.

Someone else raised the point that b/c many "adults" have never used such devices, they won't see the rationale on why you need it... I think that's a great point. Even harder if you father happens to be a Palm addict and likes to lecture people on why PPCs are bloated devices.

My parents were always of the belief that computers were the future, so even though PPCs didn't exist then, they had no issues investing in technology if I asked for it.