Help me make a decision... PL720/x50v

[jsnielsen]

Hey guys,

I'm doubting these days. I originally ordered a Dell x50v. Which here in Denmark is about a month late. Because of that, I filed a complaint with Dell, and they offered me a 1Gb card with the deal, free of charge. So far so good.

Before the return-guy from Dell had called me, I'd checked out various vga devices. And the Loox 720 got sweet reviews.

Now I read the vga comparison from mobile-reviews, and I'm very worried about the x50v battery life. I know, buying an extra battery is an option, but come on... would I want to carry that battery with me, all the time ?

So right now, I'm seriously thinking of cancelling my order with Dell, and buying the 720 instead.

What I'm looking for, are real life experiences with both devices. Primarily, I'm going to use my device for:

- Surfing the web
- Messenger
- Mail
- Watching movies
- Listening to MP3's
- The normal PIM stuff
- The occasional gaming, but probably mostly board- and puzzlegames. I have yet to see an action game that's really worth playing, and is actually playable with the controls of a PPC ;)

Now, the mp3 and movie stuff is the most battery demanding tasks of course. I'm spending 3 hours, 2 fridays and sundays a month, travelling to my girlfriend and her son, at the other end of the country (for 4½ months still, then I'm moving there). However, when I move there, I'll be living in an area that's covered in free hotspot access. Århus city is also hotspotted. So needless to say, I'll be using the Wifi part quite often too. In the long run, I'll probably be getting GPS also, when I get a car over there.

Again... juice juice juice ! Which would make the Dell an obvious loser when compared to the 720.

However... do any 720 people have experiences with battery life, performance, and playing full length movies ? In fact, any experiences with any of the things listed above ?

Also, x50v people, any experiences with the above, that you want to share with me ? Is the lousy battery life a pain, or is it something you live with ? If I was to still get the Dell, how is the x50v with the 2200ma battery ? Does it get way big, or is it ok ?

Please... if you have any experiences with any of the above, please share them with me :)

I previously had the Qtek 2020 and an iPaq 2210, now I have an SPV C500. The SPV is excellent at playing MP3's. If any of you have grounds for comparisons with any of my previous devices vs. the 720/x50v, please also share them :)

Thanks in advance !
Jacob

[Menneisyys]

However... do any 720 people have experiences with battery life, performance, and playing full length movies ? In fact, any experiences with any of the things listed above ?

With WI-Fi enabled, with Wi-i power saving disabled, actively surfing the web (in 3-4 concurrent PIE instances at least) and posting posts into various forums with a StowAway Bluetooth keyboard, the PL720, with the lowest (but perfectly usable and, in most cases, just OK) display backlight, eats 25% battery life an hour. I think it's pretty cool, taking into account that both wireless units are used and the Wi-Fi power save mode was completely disabled.

[jsnielsen]

Oh, also... if you have any views on which device is most likely to get a Magneto upgrade, you're welcome to share those views also :)

Menne, thanks so far, that sounds kinda impressive :)

[Menneisyys]

Oh, also... if you have any views on which device is most likely to get a Magneto upgrade, you're welcome to share those views also :)

Menne, thanks so far, that sounds kinda impressive :)

As far as the Magneto upgrade is concerned, nothing is certain yet, exactly as with other PDA's. No PPC manufacturer is 100% dependable on this subject - all of them have pretty bad upgrade records. In a word: you either get it; or not :) Some ppl over at FirstLoox said that F-S engineers told them in informal situations that they will release the Magneto to the PL720, but I'd take it with a bit of salt. Seeing is believing, as stated :)

Some also say that the x50v is likely to get the upgrade too, because of its ROM size and graphics processor. It's not guranteed, however.

[Menneisyys]

As far as the Magneto upgrade is concerned, nothing is certain yet, exactly as with other PDA's. No PPC manufacturer is 100% dependable on this subject - all of them have pretty bad upgrade records.

On this subject, I recommend the thread at http://www.pocketpcmag.com/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=13898

[Rudolf]

Bought a PL720 some months ago: You can get MP3 playing around 10 hours with display turned off (proc in power save mode). I've also tried playing video in a loop on 25% backlight setting. Got almost 6 hours continous playback time (using betaplayer). I'm pretty impressed with the battery life of the device. Compared to my previous HP2210 (which was not that bad either)
I have very few complaints.
Hardware:
- I find the stilus a bit too light (but is still ok... compared to the HP2210 stylus)
- It is too easy to press the power button. I would have preferred a little harder response.
Software:
- The notification and battery chaging led behaves a little funny sometimes. (during charge the led is flashing red (instead of orange?) and when I remove the device from the cradle it starts blinking green) I suspect a programming error here (they switch the blinking of the green led in a wrong way. It should start blinkt the red and the green led together which would give the excepted orange colour...
- If you press your stylus hard against the screen some smearing effect occurs, but I never use so much a force... so it's not an issue for me.
-camera is bad quality (I guess you know this already :) )
But other than these, I found no issues with it which is quite remarkable.
And yes, my bluetooth is also quite stable (not like the HP2210 BT)
Hope this helps.

[Typhoon]

The 720 is probably the best VGA PDA out there. The x50v is only better in ways of speed, way better form factor & buttons, & has a much easier way of turning Wi-Fi Functionality on & off.

I have actually had both PDAs. I had the 720 & Sold it because I thought Sharp C860 would serve me better..but I was wrong. Now I have the X50v because it's cheaper. If wi-fi & internet access is what you want, I would go w/ the loox 720. You can get 6-7 hours w/wi-fi vs. 2 hours on the Dell.