annoying first post...... which PDA for me????

[georgiemd]

I apologise for posting this usual question...NOT! I am a complete PDA novice but I need a device that will fit the following description....

I have multibrand retail fashion stores. I need a PDA to take with me when I order clothing from suppliers. I need to be able to take digital photos and correspond them to an excel spread sheet in real time. So it needs to...

1) be small and very portable

2) run excel (i am planning on doing spreadsheets of my orders so I can stick to a budget)

3) sync with both Mac and PC

4) have a digital camera (and I can add text to an image as i take it) and be able to embed an image into excel??? can that be done?

5) wi-fi enabled. it will be my internet connection when I am away from home.

i have looked at the Palm range... they look great but NO digi camera!

any suggestions please. I don't want to carry 2 devices and sync them via cables or Bluetooth. I have to minimise my gadgets!

yours in desparation

george d (copenhagen, denmark)

[Dale Daniels]

I recommend the AT&T 8525. It has a bit better camera but it is still limited to 2mp. The standard seems to be 1.3 mp. It has wifi Bluetooth and is 3G capable. It also lets you edit Excel which many Smartphones do not.

[georgiemd]

thanks dale

i'll check it out.... i'm not sure if AT&T is available in europe though.

george

[Dale Daniels]

HTC is the manufacturer of these phones. Look for an unlocked HTC Hermes and that should do the trick.

[Nurhisham Hussein]

Look for an unlocked HTC Hermes and that should do the trick.

In Europe, it would be called the HTC TyTn.

[Darius Wey]

George, bear in mind that the aforementioned suggestion is a phone-enabled PDA, although it's still usable without a SIM installed.

On the matter of #3, syncing with both PCs and Macs shouldn't be a problem. Microsoft ActiveSync (for Windows XP) or the Windows Mobile Device Center (for Windows Vista) handles PC syncing. Third-party The Missing Sync (http://www.markspace.com/) is what you'll want for Macs. Alternatively, you can skip The Missing Sync and set up ActiveSync/WMDC in a VM if you're into the current Parallels/VMware Fusion craze.

[Nurhisham Hussein]

George, bear in mind that the aforementioned suggestion is a phone-enabled PDA, although it's still usable without a SIM installed.

Quite right, I should've thought to mention it. TBH, I can't recall any recent standalone PDAs with cameras, except for some of the industrial types.

[yvilla]

I think an answer depends on how small is "small" for you. Because the HTC Advantage 7500/7501 has a 5" VGA display, superior for both images and for working with excel, not to mention for internet browsing, ebook reading, etc. Plus, the camera is 3 mp.

It's also got both wifi and quad band phone/data; good for around the world.

It may be too big for many, but for me that's not a problem at all since I've always carried my PPC in a case with a shoulder strap anyway (currently the Tosh e800). Can you tell that I'm so anxiously awaiting my pre-ordered from Amazon 7501 to arrive? :lol:

[Dale Daniels]

yvilla,

I want one of the WM6 models so bad I can taste it. I would happily deal with the larger size to get all the advantages (pun) that it offers. When I first read about it I was very impressed. It is definitely the device for a power user like me.