opinions on e355 for ppc newbie

[intouch99]

hello,

i noticed that amazon has the e355 for $179 after rebate here:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B00009K7ET/ref%3Dnosim/10108121979-20/104-6892352-8538361

i am new to ppc and was wondering if this would be a good deal or if i should wait for new models. i dont need wireless or blue tooth, so i thought this was a good model. any thoughts?

greg

[powder2000]

You could wait on the new low end Dell, due out this year. It has roughly the same specs and will cost in the sub-200 range without rebates. Another option would be to go for the ipaq 1935( I think this is the model) without bluetooth. This is an excellent value pocket pc and is $250 with a $50 rebait. I have seen it at 230 without the rebate around the web. Do a pricegrabber search.

[moonlights]

I own a Toshiba 355, and I love it. The exapansion capabilities are wonderful and the battery life is pretty good (granted, I used to own a Palm 7x and anything is better than that!). I actually use it instead of a laptop to take notes in class. Pocket PC's were a wonderful invention. I have a few mobile Toshiba products and all are great. I even dropped (oops) my toshiba laptop (by accident of course) and it still runs great. Toshiba makes a good product.

I also briefly owned not one, but two Dell Axims and I would seriously suggest that you not purchase a dell. Both of them had the same problem (one that randomly changes settings and deletes files is one thing, but TWO??) and fighting with Dell to get a refund is a pain in the a$$. Turns out they lost my shipment back to them. . . and credited MY CREDIT to someone else. . . but I'm not bitter.

Also, one of my good friends has a low end IPAQ and that's treated her pretty well.

I hope this helps you decide (also, $179 is a good deal for the 355)

[jaded]

I bought the 355 from amazon a couple of months ago, and I'm relatively happy with the purchase. One feature I do enjoy is the USB host connection, which allows me to hook up CF cards, hard drives, and my cell phone via USB. Most other PPCs don't have this feature (note that you need a $20 cable to do this w/ the toshibas).

If there are any complaints, it's just echoing what others have said in the reviews -- especially that it doesn't have a user replaceable battery, and that you'll probably find more accessories available for the HP handhelds.

[spikedrabbit]

The e355 was my first PPC and I love it. I honestly don't know how I lived without it. I havn't had any problems with it. I recommend it. I wrote a review here... http://tech.schiesty.org/old/2003/09/18/000003.php

[tanalasta]

Yeah, the toshi's are decent pocketpc's but you'll find that almost all of them on the market at the moment are quite good. If you find one at a price you can afford - score! Personally, I think the HP 1910 and 2215 are better machines (although the 1910's performance ain't great you really won't notice unless you play a heap of games/video).

Either way enjoy your pocketpc! But expect to pay quite a bit for those "essential" little programs to spiff up the toshi coz it doesn't have a great software bundle. E.g. I've got batterypack, all the resco programs, pocketbackup plus and isilo on mine plus a lot of random things to keep me occupied ;)

[benca1]

The e355 is 180 with a 20 dollar mail in rebate rendering it 160 (only at amazon). People say to get the iPaq 19** but never mention the 2.5 mm stereo head jack! C'mon! If you plan installing a FAT SD card and having a poor mans mp3 player, or enjoying downloads from audible.com, then forget the iPaqs... unless you plan on ordering extra 2.5mm to 3.5mm adapters.

Yes, I'm very annoyed because they're such nice machines. But HP totally screwed up and I'm shocked to see so many fans write off such a serious shortcoming.

With the e355 you get better processing power then the iPaq 19**, you get more memory too. You pay LESS. Its thinner if a half inch longer. You get a cradle. You get a standard stereo jack for godsakes. The question is, why in heck would you actually buy a iPaq 19**? You also get about triple the warranty. Buying a iPaq 19** instead of a FAR more affordable e355 is an exercise of <insult something here>. :wink:

I wanted the 2215, but it's over twice as much. 160 versus 400? That's okay, I'll get my use out of the e355 and can comfortably jettison it when the technology doubles.