It Collects Dust Nicely!

[Jon Westfall]

It's tempting. You see a nice new accessory or device, and fall in tech-love. It has everything you want, everything you need, seems perfect for you. So you buy it.<br /><br />And end up never using it.<br /><br />Maybe it's its fault - the product didn't live up to the claims about it. Or maybe you misgauged how much you'd use it. Or maybe it was something else. Personally I have a multitude of PPC cases that I thought would be great but just ended up being annoying. The result? My PPC ends up caseless a lot, and I have a drawer filled with the little black &amp; metal things. And don't get me started about how easy it is to break belt clips...<br /><br />So my question, awesome PPCT readers, is what devices or accessories have you purchased and failed to actually use anywhere near as much as you believed you would? Perhaps we can help others steer clear of "impulse" buying with our stories &amp; poll results!

[surur]

Jon, its not too late. Please add NONE to that poll list. I hate seeing unfilled polls on the front page.

Surur

[Iznot Gold]

Other: Bluetooth Headset

Cheers

David

[delfuhd]

Bluetooth headphones. Used them a couple times in the gym, but still haven't used 100 dollars worth out of them... I think they're going up on ebay soon.

[Jon Westfall]

Jon, its not too late. Please add NONE to that poll list. I hate seeing unfilled polls on the front page.

Surur

Everyone's A Critic... ;) Alright, I'll add "None" if you can truly say you've used everything you've every bought!

[Jason Dunn]

Holy mega-poll Batman! 8O

I selected a folding keyboard. If I was still in school I'm sure I'd use it all the time, but I find now that if I'm planning on doing some work, I'll bring along my little laptop rather than my folding keyboard. With both batteries in, I can get 9-11 hours of battery life, and it's light and small enough (4 pounds) that it's not a big hassle to carry with me when I need it.

[Jon Westfall]

Holy mega-poll Batman! 8O

My goal was to make this a thread that people could quickly glance at for poll results when making an accessory purchase, and read the posts when they had time. Therefore, multiple poll items were needed.

And we haven't had a mega-poll in awhile :)

[surur]

Everyone's A Critic... ;) Alright, I'll add "None" if you can truly say you've used everything you've every bought!

I honestly cant think of anything I have bought and not used. I don't buy many things accessories however. People who have bought no accessories at all would have been excluded also.

Surur

[Jereboam]

The extra battery I bought for my iPaq 5450. They sold it without a charger, and the cradle couldn't take a spare battery, so I either had to fully charge the iPaq, take out and replace the battery with the spare, then fully charge it again, taking up to four hours for both, or as most usually happened, just not bother...

They wanted to charge me another £60 or something for the spare battery charger...after spending £60 on the battery itself.

Colour me an idiot for that one.

And I must confess to not using my BT GPS much anymore now I have Audi's builtin satnav, but when I had my old Rangy I used it with TomTom all the time. Progress you see...

But I have to say I select all my purchases so carefully it is extremely rare I don't get exactly what I want/need which means almost everything gets used.

[thenikjones]

I've got a bluetooth keyboard which I rarely use (on those few occaisions I want to, it connects about half the time). I also have BT GPS which I rarely use, although that's because I use Dell x50v with extended battery and getting a car holder in the UK is NOT easy. Still, bought them thinking BT is universal so hope to use them eventually.

Main redundant toy is the Dell VGA-out cable. Went to huge lengths to get it (from US, God forbid Dell UK would sell it) and not even opened it. One day, though, one day...

[Jereboam]

thenikjones, if you have not got a car mount I really recommend RAM mounts which you can get from the UK here (http://www.ram-mount-uk.com/index.htm) - good guys and helpful if you give them a buzz.

These things are solid as you like.

J'bm

[Darius Wey]

Don't get me started on my laser pointer / lamp / pen / stylus thingy-ma-jig. :roll:

[Paundskumm]

I honestly cant think of anything I have bought and not used. I don't buy many things accessories however. People who have bought no accessories at all would have been excluded also.

Actually, I think the key test is not whether you have used it ever in your life but whether you have used it as much as you thought you would. I would think I would have wanted to tick a couple of those boxes but could only tick one.

Keyboard... yeah, I've used it a couple of times but not as much as I thought I would. Turns out I'd either go laptop or find a terminal at one of my offices if I was travelling. The most use I got was one weekend stuck in Paris and had to write a long article but other than that... dust city.

Spare batteries... yeah, on the occasional 14 hour flight but I guess I could have watched the inflight movies instead.

Bluetooth... found out the hard way you couldn't listen to MP3 with them (may be changing now) but also sucks batteries like crazy so I've stucked to my little wires and stereo earbuds for calls and MP3.

CF camera (before they were being integrated)... well, I'm sure most of us use the built in cameras pretty rarely (even mega-pixel camera phones) so you can guess how much use I got out of this one. CF modem also falls into this category... before the days of wifi and gprs.

Conversely, the combo pen/stylus I've used all the time (I'm always forgetting to bring a real pen). That has got to be the most used accessory for me.

[surur]

GPS Unit Use mine regularly

Leather Case Regularly

Alluminum Case Haven't got one.

CF Modem Haven't got one - went IR and Bluetooth a long time ago.

CF WIFI Card / SD WIFI Card Got stolen with my HP568

Gear Bag ???

External Keyboard Never got one. Its in the lead for the most dusty gadget.

Fancy Stylus Just got one recently. Very useful

Extended / Extra Battery Never got one.

New PPC Waste a new PPC!! The HORROR! The old one is getting dusty though.

Surur

[jgrnt1]

I have an IR keyboard which I rarely used with my iPAQ 2215. I tried to use it once with my iPAQ 4700. It was such a hassle because of the bottom mounted IR port that I put the keyboard in my computer bag and haven't taken it out since. I tried rotating the screen, so I could get to the IR port, but it was still too much trouble to set up. I keep looking at BT keyboards, but I don't think I would use one enough to justify the purchase, based on my usage with the 2215.

I also have a BT GPS which I have never used. I bought it as part of a package with MS Streets and Trips. I travel a lot for work (by car), so it should be useful, but I'm one of those people with a good sense of direction. I never get lost. &lt;knock on wood>

[njl2016]

Stay away from HP branded carrying cases! There are far better and cheaper ones out there.

[SteveHoward999]

I bought a PocketTop Ir keyboard for my old E750 and never used it because they dragged their feet making drivers, having promised me they would be available, initially, "in a few days". I later bought a Belkin keyboard that the PDA plugged right into and used that a LOT.


Toshiba Expansion pack for E750. Great idea, but I never needed to present a PowerPoint presentation from PDA, and the USB port was mostly useless - I had to search the web like a maniac to find drivers just for external storage. It was cool plugging in a usb keyboard and having it work ...


CF microdrive. Wonderful having 2.2Gb of space, but the battery drain and lag on switching on were just not worth it, and it was too slow to be able to reliable watch movies from. 1 Gb SD and CF cards are so cheap now who cares about a microdrive? I still use it as a file transfer device between PCs, but not for the PDA.

[thenikjones]

thenikjones, if you have not got a car mount I really recommend RAM mounts which you can get from the UK here (http://www.ram-mount-uk.com/index.htm) - good guys and helpful if you give them a buzz.

These things are solid as you like.

J'bm

Hi J'bm,

Thanks for the tip, I'll give them a look.

thenikjones

[Charles Pickrell]

CF VGA video card for presentations. I ended up just using my Tablet PC, it was easier to set up.

[Paragon]

How about "All the above"?

I've bounght enough stuff over the years that I'm sure I have at least one of each category that I have given to the neighbor's dog to chew on. ;)

I will settle on one though....methods of amplifying cellphones in my car. I have spent more time and money on different solutions that never seem to work. Maybe I should have spent more time and money right in the beginning, doing it right, instead of doing it cheap. ;)

Dave

[insaneperson]

I almost voted for external keyboard, but then I remembered that I used my external keyboard all the time before I purchased my laptop a year ago. And so I vote for:

OTHER: $20 stylus with hidden ink pen... I never used that pen, ever. then I lost it a few months back. oops! no harm done.

[rmasinag]

I bought a linksys G WiFi card $99 (gasp) and I only used twice, but it got stolen with my spare hp2210 battery, I dont miss the card somehow, I miss more the spare battery :cry: , my $99 iPod shuffle, and my $130 etys (etymotics)

[volwrath]

My external keryboard would be #1, but a close 2nd would be my bluetooth headset I bought for my phone, but lately I've started using it with my X50v to listen to audiobooks in bed.

[Rod3]

I'm embarrassed to say I have a Creative Zen Portable Media Center that I've never used. I never even set it up but one time, and found it not worth my effort to view the movie on it. I'm going to make a nice present out of it for a good nephew.

[Jereboam]

Rod3, me too. The Zen wasn't bad but...was shortly thereafter given a 40Gb iPod as a gift and have never looked back...iPod and iTunes actually switched me to Mac...

[Rod3]

Rod3, me too. The Zen wasn't bad but...was shortly thereafter given a 40Gb iPod as a gift and have never looked back...iPod and iTunes actually switched me to Mac...

Hope you've got a nice nephew like I have! :wink:

[Jereboam]

Actually it's sitting in it's box because everyone who might have wanted it got a bloody iPod...

J'bm

[Hx4700]

Keyboard - Keyboard - Keyboard - and another Keyboard.
At $30 - $100 each, I really thought I would use the things.
I got one for my first pda - Ipaq 3600.
And for the Jornada 568.
And for the Dell Axim X5.
And some off brand IR thing that was a pain.
But good news for Hx4700 owners. I got a "Old Ipaq to new Ipaq" converter block from Targus for about $10 that works with the first Targus 3600 KB.
I still don't use the KB much, but at least this time it wasn't very expensive.
Ron...

[ctmagnus]

I have seven cases for my iPaq 5550. I use only two of them on a regular basis. Yet every time I think it's time to eBay one of the other five, I look at them and see at least one feature in each that I can't live without.

[OSUKid7]

I honestly cant think of anything I have bought and not used. I don't buy many things accessories however. People who have bought no accessories at all would have been excluded also.
Yep, thats me too. I don't have too many accessories for my Pocket PC (heck, I sometimes consider my Pocket PC an accessory to my computer), so I really use every accessory that I own.

One thing I gained from this poll was not to buy an external keyboard. I am a student, so maybe it would be helpful though. Hmm.

[surur]

One thing I gained from this poll was not to buy an external keyboard.

Thats what I gained too. I've always suspected it. Makes sense though. It doesn't really go with being mobile, having to sit down to use it.

Surur

[griph]

So my question, awesome PPCT readers, is what devices or accessories have you purchased and failed to actually use anywhere near as much as you believed you would?

I could do with being able to vote for several items in that list. The external keyboard was definitely such an item. But the NAVMAN 3000 jacket for my 3650 was by far the most expensive dust collector - in fact I still have it, having since had a 3870, XDA 2210 and now an MDA Compact.

I used it twice - it failed to continue to track the satellite 4 times in a single journey just when I was relying on it and I ended up missing my route!! Also it was such a brick that it kept dropping off the windscreen, with the whole lot dropping onto the floor under the brake peddle and nearly killing me and the whole family!!! Why didn't I just send it back? Don't ask me! :roll:

[Paragon]

Speaking of fiascoes...errr...dust collectors, what about the Compaq GSM sleeve. What a nasty bit of news that was. :twisted:

[BUMP THAT]

My SENA Leather Case has been collecting some dust lately. :P

[ventivent]

Wow...I'm glad I'm not alone.

Biggest suprise for me: Bluetooth headset. I bought a Bluetrek G2 two years ago when I first got a Sony Ericsson T610. I never used it. To me there was no advantage of putting the headset in your ear, hitting the button and talking, over just picking the phone up, hitting "talk" and talking.

Also:
Aluminum Rhinoskin for Axim X5 - turned a brick into a cinder block.
Palm V Keyboard
Pockettop IR Keyboard
HP 4155 Keyboard
CF Wifi for X5 (yes, I felt the need to surf on the can)
Sandisk 256 Wifi for i-mate JAM (don't know why I didn't learn the first time)
Belkin Bluetooth GPS (too many pieces to play around with while driving)

It's sad that it took me three keyboards to realize that a PDA is still no substitute for a laptop.

This is a great thread.

[gt24]

My CF Modem is on the list... Most useful thing ever if I am ever in a dial-up situation... and if I will ever have a CF pocket pc device. That CF Modem served me well, especially for being $10... but it is obsolete now...

Pocket PC keyboards, IR and bluetooth, have too much lag for me, they drive me NUTS, luckly I never bought one. As nice as it would be to type documents on the pocket pc, there isn't a huge need. I probibally should obtain a laptop someday anyways...

I might doom a Palm device to this list someday. I have a new Palm Tungsten E2 that I am competing with my Dell Axim X30, I needed the Palm for a programming class and the Dell was leasure. However, I'm still figuring out the finer points of carrying around TWO devices, however there is a chance that one of them will see dust someday. Ah well...

[milo]

External keyboard for me. I haven't actually used it, I have only played around with it since I got it. It is still cool to have though.

My ruggedised case doesn't see much use but when it does there is nothing else that will do the job. Same goes for the extended battery.

[dMores]

i had total remote, a software for remote controlling anything that uses IR remotes.
it had a nifty dongle you plugged into your audio jack so you could control things from a distance (unlike the on-board IR which only works within a meter or so).

i fiddled with it, but then i never really needed it.

[Radimus]

CF Lan Adapter.

I had illusions of using my PDA as a line test device etc... only to find the software basic or far too expensive, and whenever I'd need it, the adapter would be somewhere not convenient to get to

[Ekkie Tepsupornchai]

Great topic for discussion, Jon! As I've gotten older and busier, I've had to be much more discriminating over what I buy. Before, I'd start twitching over every new W?BIC! type of device. Now I have to make sure that my need dictates my purchase and not the other way around.

That said, I bought one of those rubbery Javo cases for my hx4700 and then didn't use it because I prefer cradelling my PPC at home as opposed to using a cable. I also have a BT keyboard that I don't use much, mostly b/c I don't travel nearly as often as I used to.

GPS is probably my next major purchase and I'm gauging myself now to see how many situations actually come up where I'd use one.

[lapchinj]

Jon, its not too late. Please add NONE to that poll list. I hate seeing unfilled polls on the front page.

Surur

Everyone's A Critic... ;) Alright, I'll add "None" if you can truly say you've used everything you've every bought!
Sounds like he's making a joke. That's impossible :rotfl:

I mean I've bought the greatest and most usefull accessory anyone could have imagined (a bluetooth keyboard). I dragged it around for months and I just never used it. So it can't be that anyone can enter none.

Jeff-

[Jonathon Watkins]

Don't get me started on my laser pointer / lamp / pen / stylus thingy-ma-jig. :roll:

Why? I really like mine. Do you not use yours?

[Jonathon Watkins]

One thing I gained from this poll was not to buy an external keyboard. I am a student, so maybe it would be helpful though. Hmm.

I also thought I would use my IR keyboard a lot more than I actually did. :? When I got my laptop it sealed the keyboard's fate really.

[peppzilla]

See, my problem is that I have to use everything I get. Since my wife hates my Pocket PC, she looks down on everything I get. If I get something that doesn't quite work the way I wanted it to (case), I have to use it anyway so I can say, "see, I'm using it! It wasn't a waste!" Consequently, I don't have many accessories.

[Jonathon Watkins]

GPS is probably my next major purchase and I'm gauging myself now to see how many situations actually come up where I'd use one.

Snap. I borrowed a friend's BT GPS receiver and it's fun, but the X50v's battery is the limiting factor for longer walks etc. :? It was certainly very useful when I got lost, but then again that does not happen too much. :lol:

[Hx4700]

GPS is probably my next major purchase and I'm gauging myself now to see how many situations actually come up where I'd use one.
I do not use my GPS as an everyday item, but it does come in handy for trips out of town.
Also, it is one item that can actually pay for itself - I flew out of town last week and had a rental car in an unfamilar area. The car co would have charged $10 (probably $12 with taxes) a day for their GPS add-on. Not only did my GPS with window stickon holder work great to find tourist places, but also in the room for finding restraunts at night around the hotel.
Ron...

[Ekkie Tepsupornchai]

It was certainly very useful when I got lost, but then again that does not happen too much. :lol:
Yeah... I bet! ;) There's been quite a few instances the past month of so where I've had to drive to new areas and having the GPS would have been much easier than looking up the address, copying down directions, and then trying to decipher my directions while driving (all the while hoping I don't accidently pass a turn that I didn't see).

Also, it is one item that can actually pay for itself - I flew out of town last week and had a rental car in an unfamilar area.
I still occasionally travel for business and I could see this device being helpful for the same reasons you mentioned... finding restaurants, etc.

I think the overall case for buying a GPS is pretty strong, I just want to make sure b/c I certainly don't need another dust-collecting device! :P

[elrondo23]

Actually it's sitting in it's box because everyone who might have wanted it got a bloody iPod...

J'bm

*acts excited* hey uncle Jereboam!

:devilboy:

[Steve Jordan]

I've never had that problem with hardware. With me, it's software... like a financial app, or an HTML editor, or an English-to-Swahili translator, that seemed like a great idea at the time, but which I never find a real use for. I have lots of PPC SW that I never use.

[Aitch]

LOL !! And I thought I was the only one with a Useless Software addiction !!
I can't help keeping like 1000 different programs on my PPC/SD Card - no matter whether I use them or not !! Guess it must make my PPC better/cooler than yours :)

I went through about half a dozen cases before settling on one which I use every day now - maybe if I had a local store which kept all these cases in stock and which I could test out, it would have saved me ordering over the internet and then realising its not quite right !

Apart from that, almost all the other accessories I've bought I'd consider are essentials :-

Screen Shield - the more expensive the better !
Pen/Stylus - amazing how often I need a pen but never have one to hand !
SD Card(s) - 1Gb right now but soon to be 2Gb :)
Better Earphones - goodbye Ipod ! :D
BlueTooth GPS - hello TomTom Navigator 5 :)

I wish the manufacturers actually supplied better quality gear instead of bundling cheap crap into the box :(

Here they are producing some of the most sophisticated electronic equipment in the world ..... and they can't make a decent quality headset to go with it !!

Does it really take a genius to make a Stylus with a Pen inside !! Would it cost a billion dollars in investment to make it possible !!

Wouldn't it make sense to actually supply a few Screen Shields with the PPC at a minimal cost price (maybe even having one pre-fitted!) instead of getting your customers to fork out another £30 to buy 3 of them with the money going to some firm in China/Taiwan/Korea/Japan ??

Oh wait - I just remembered ..... its good ol' Capitalism where companies don't give a **** about their products/services/customers ..... all they care about is maximising PROFIT !! i.e. deliberately forcing everyone to spend more money on stuff that SHOULD be included !!!!!!