To Buy or Not To Buy, That is the Question

[cpoole]

Hi

I have used an IPAQ 3670 for almost 3 years now. I am ready to move to something newer. The 805 seems to match exactly what I am looking for... it has the hi res screen, cf & cd card support, lots of ram and rom, great looking screen, jog, WiFi....

But I am a little shy on whether to go for it or not. I have a few reservations...

1) The high resolution patch is not something supported by Toshiba... will this patch continue to be usable in the future or will they do somthing to disable the patch in a future O/S upgrade?

2) There seems to be some uncertainly about whether Toshiba is going to stay inthe PDA market... I used my IPAQ for almost 3 years, I expect the same of my next PDA. Will I get the same support for the next 3 years.

3) There was some concerns about some of the 7xx models not getting the 2003 O/S upgrade... will this be a problem with this machine as well?

4) I am not sure about Bluetooth, I have not needed it yet but I am not sure about the need in the future.

5) I keep reading that the expected battery life is 4 hours, I can run my IPAQ for most of the weekend, I am running 2 batteries, one in the IPAQ and one in the expansion pack... it is a brick but man it sure runs a long time.

6) Has anyone had experience with their "Toshiba 3 Year Next Business Day Exchange" program. I have used th IPAQ 3 year plan coverage and it was excellent.

Comments???

[baker]

I have a little e310. My problems I believe were more software related conflicts. It's been running great for quite some time after a tough learning curve. The initial product support was not good in terms of expertise and Toshiba seems to be less inclined to provide updates as the others. The only hardware problem I've had is the SD card slot would not keep the card in the slot. I sent it back and they "repaired" it (they sent me another unit). That led to "This isn't your PPC" when I called support. And, they still don't have it right. I feel sorry for the person that received my original because he or she is experiencing the same.

[yvilla]

Don't buy it expecting the upgrade to WM2004, but buy it! :lol:

In all seriousness, I'm enchanted by mine, and its VGA capabilities. I previously had an e750 and loved that one too. While there are all sorts of complaints about Toshiba support out there, of course, its not an issue if you don't need support is it?

As for battery life, you can't compare out of the box battery life to your current situation using a sled and a second battery. A better comparison would be using the extended battery available for the Tosh. I'd venture to say that even with it, the e805 will be slimmer and less like a brick than your Ipaq plus sled. I've got one, and its nicely contoured, much better than the extended battery for the e740/750 line.

I keep mine in QVGA for everyday apps, but switch to VGA for ebook reading and web browsing. For those two things alone, the e805 is worth every penny in my book. But sometimes I switch just to look at how gorgeous a VGA Today screen theme is! Other e800 owners seem to use VGA 100% of the time. I think that's a matter of personal preference, app usage, and probably eyesight too (while the apps like ebook readers that matter to me all have easily configurable font sizes, the system fonts in VGA are teeny!)

[cpoole]

Don't buy it expecting the upgrade to WM2004, but buy it! :lol:

In all seriousness, I'm enchanted by mine, and its VGA capabilities. I previously had an e750 and loved that one too. While there are all sorts of complaints about Toshiba support out there, of course, its not an issue if you don't need support is it?

As for battery life, you can't compare out of the box battery life to your current situation using a sled and a second battery. A better comparison would be using the extended battery available for the Tosh. I'd venture to say that even with it, the e805 will be slimmer and less like a brick than your Ipaq plus sled. I've got one, and its nicely contoured, much better than the extended battery for the e740/750 line.

I keep mine in QVGA for everyday apps, but switch to VGA for ebook reading and web browsing. For those two things alone, the e805 is worth every penny in my book. But sometimes I switch just to look at how gorgeous a VGA Today screen theme is! Other e800 owners seem to use VGA 100% of the time. I think that's a matter of personal preference, app usage, and probably eyesight too (while the apps like ebook readers that matter to me all have easily configurable font sizes, the system fonts in VGA are teeny!)

Thanks for the info...

I too susected that the e805 would not make it to an upgrade to WM2004... my old IPAQ did get a WM2002 upgrade but by the time the WM2003 upgrade came out, it was well off the supported list. I have been working just fine with 2002. I expect that 3 years with WM2003 would not be out of the question.

I too read a lot of ebooks. I have been using uBook and I expect that it would be great with the VGA screen. I also use Pocket Informant a lot and some of the VGA screen shots look incredible.

[Ripper014]

I didn't know that you could even purchase a 803 in canada... I'm in Vancouver and have just seen the 400 series a few days ago... well kinda, the 2 display models I saw at 2 stores were both broken. Hmmm they look kinda nice though..

But these are definitely working machines, they were not made for gamers...

[cpoole]

I didn't know that you could even purchase a 803 in canada... I'm in Vancouver and have just seen the 400 series a few days ago... well kinda, the 2 display models I saw at 2 stores were both broken. Hmmm they look kinda nice though..

But these are definitely working machines, they were not made for gamers...

I tried a 400 at London Drugs. Future Shop lists it online so I assume that they will get them soon. I am not sure about availability of the 800... it will only be a matter of time... if it does not show up in Canada soon then all I can do is wait to see what the next gen Ipaq will offer.

[nosmohtac]

I'm a big Ubook fan as well, and it works great with the e805. I had to change the font size to extra large. It is very readable in VGA, and even though the font size is set to the largest, it is a much better reading experience. The book I'm reading now, was set on mediup font size, in QVGA and showed 2700+ pages. When I went to VGA mode and increased the font size to X-large, it paginated to 1057 pages.

[kabkbak]

) Has anyone had experience with their "Toshiba 3 Year Next Business Day Exchange" program. I have used th IPAQ 3 year plan coverage and it was excellent.
I had my E-740 for a year in that time I had two hi-cap batteries
and one standared replace under standered service for free
they were recalled but still worked fine they sent them to me
next day air and i got to keep the old ones so now i have 6 batts

i bought the 3 year next day replacement plan from toshiba
and retured the device 3 mounths ago they send the new unit
to you next day air and then you send the old one back in the box
no questions asked no fees

just picked up anE-805 luve it :D but bought the bestbuy
2 year replacement plan from the store for $69
they swear if i come in with a defective unit they will swop it out
with a new device on the spot hope i did not make a mistake

yes toshiba did not support upgrades for the 740
but they have the best customer service i have ever delt with ever

[JTEK]

just picked up anE-805 luve it :D but bought the bestbuy 2 year replacement plan from the store for $69
they swear if i come in with a defective unit they will swop it out
with a new device on the spot hope i did not make a mistake

Having just ordered my e805 over the weekend, I got the 2-year replacement plan as well. Other than warrantying the screen (BestBuy will not replace the unit if the screen is broken/cracked, etc.), it's pretty much a no-brainer if any problems occur.

[cpoole]

Well...

I have a price and will likely order it in the morning. I am in Canada and our computer store does have a listing for it... I do not know what delivery time I am looking at yet.

I think that I will order it with the 3 year next day exchange warranty. I have used the IPAQ 3 year warranty once getting 3 problems fixed - battery - power switch and stylus holder. I will be using it again for another battery and screen digitizer problems - much more than the $150 (cdn) that the contract cost me.

I will also order the extended battery and sync cable. The screen protectors are not available in Canada yet.

[JTEK]

I will also order the extended battery and sync cable. The screen protectors are not available in Canada yet.

I, too, am thinking of getting the extended battery but -- as this is my first PPC having migrated over from Palms -- I think I'll wait and review my usage for a few weeks or so.

What is the sync cable used for that the cradle isn't?

[Brad Adrian]

The sync cables are used for synching/charging without the bulky cradles. In fact, I like these kinds of cables so much that I haven't used a cradle for over a year.

[JTEK]

The sync cables are used for synching/charging without the bulky cradles. In fact, I like these kinds of cables so much that I haven't used a cradle for over a year.

Thanks a lot for that info. I thought that, perhaps, like the Palm sync cables, you couldn't use them for charging. I think I'll look into that as well for use at work.

Thanks again!

[cpoole]

I will also order the extended battery and sync cable. The screen protectors are not available in Canada yet.

I, too, am thinking of getting the extended battery but -- as this is my first PPC having migrated over from Palms -- I think I'll wait and review my usage for a few weeks or so.

What is the sync cable used for that the cradle isn't?

I have used my IPAQ with the expansion pack battery so I am spoiled with the longer run times. Some people have commented on the extra bulk with the extended battery but it probably does not even come close to the size of my IPAQ with the expansion pack.

I leave the cradle at work and use the sync cable at home.