Portable keyboards?

[andychuck]

Hey all, I'm going to college, and my dad gave me a hand-me-down Dell Axim X5. I was thinking that if I got a portable keyboard, I might be able to take notes on that, and then buy a desktop for my room and transfer my notes onto that. I was wondering if anyone had any input on whether that would be a stupid idea, or the best keyboard to get for the purpose, etc...really any input would be greatly appreciated. Thanks a lot.

[AggieJon]

Well, I don't have a Dell, so I couldn't tell you what the best keyboard option for you is. I am, however, a student and I can say that taking notes on your PPC is a GREAT idea. :way to go:

It's very handy and whenever I see someone else typing on a PPC we always get to look at each other with that knowing look of triumph. You know, the one that says, "Look at all these suckers wearing out their hands trying to write or having to lug around a big laptop. How primitive."

So, yeah, plan on taking notes with your PPC. The built in Pocket Word app works really good. I've actually gone ahead and bought a couple of programs from Phatware (http://www.phatware.com/) called Phatnotes (http://www.phatware.com/phatnotes/) and Phatpad (http://www.phatware.com/phatpad.html) to further enhance my note taking experience. Phatnotes Standard lets you categorize the notes well and sync them to Outlook, and Phatnotes is great for when you want to actually write (with the stylus) some notes on the PPC.

Which college are you going to?

[David Prahl]

Not a bad idea at all! I'm going off to college with my Axim X5 this fall. It was my plan to just have a really sweet desktop and bring my PPC to class. Haven't bought a keyboard yet, though.

We X5 owners (: rock on dude! : ) have five choices when it comes to KBs.

A quick Google for any of these will return reviews, I should think.

1.) Infrared keyboards. Usually pretty cheap ($30), but pretty small and sometimes awkward. Uses infrared port on top of X5.
2.) Dell foldable keyboard. This is what I think I'll get, probably from eBay. They connect to the port on the bottom of your X5.
3.) Dell Thumb Keyboard. Kind of rare, but might work for shorter notes. Connects to bottom of X5.
4.) Bluetooth Keyboard (card needed). You would need to buy a Bluetooth CompactFlash wireless card and the new Bluetooth Keyboard from ThinkOutside. Expensive, but cool.
5.) Laser Keyboard. Announced, but not released. $150

I'd consider getting the Dell foldable keyboard. You might also try using the built-in microphone to record lectures - something I did with great success this past year.