The review title literally means, should I go here or, should I go there. That is the$100-$700 question.
**Handhelds 101**
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1. Both Palm and Windows CE are operating systems(OS) for the Personal Digital Assistant(PDA) and the Pocket PC respectively.
2. Palm OS is from a company called Palm - DUH! and Windows CE - you guessed it, is from Billy Boy.
3. The latest version of Palm OS is 5.0 and the Windows CE is now called as PocketPC OS.
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**Palm Handheld(Palm) vs Pocket PC(Windows CE)**
1. The Palm handhelds do the basic functions of contact information(names, addresses, telephone numbers etc) and keeping track of appointments / schedules etc whereas the Pocket PC are a smaller, mobile version of a laptop computer.
2. The line between Palm handheld and Pocket PC is getting blurred and it is almost like a continuum - it is like drawing a line in sand.
3. From a cost point of view - the Palm handhelds are between$100 to$350 and the Pocket PC’s are between$300(the BE Manager from Cassiopeia) to about$700(the iPAQ from Compaq)
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**Fatcat’s recommendation**
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*I would recommend a Palm Handheld because:*
It is not worth spending about$700 on a Pocket PC. Add a couple of hundred dollars more then we can get one of those sleek laptops which are more sturdy and have better functionality.
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**PALM is the winner**
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Having recommended a Palm Handheld, following is a comparison of the various Palm models:
**Basic Functions**
The basic function in any Palm PDA is as follows:
* maintaining contact information(addresses etc)
* maintaining schedules / appointments
* keeping notes(small write ups, like MS Reviews)
* keeping a to-do list of movies to watch, books to read etc
**Extras**
* The ability to read/write MS word documents and MS Excel
* The ability to synchronize with a computer using a cradle
* Games for fun
**Models**
The various models of PDA using Palm OS are:
* From Palm itself - starting from m100 to m515. These come in both monochrome(black and white) and color
* Various models from Visor
* The Clie series from Sony
**Power supply**
There are two options
* Rechargeable batteries
* AAA cells(disposable)
**Costs**
All the models cost between$100 to$350- the color ones being the more expensive ones.
*
In order to decide which model to buy, the following is a useful checklist:
- cost
- monochrome or color
- rechargeable battery or AAA cell
*
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**Sony Clie da jawab nahin **
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- My price range was between$150 to$200,
- I did not want color(it does not add any value, besides it drains the batteries) and,
- wanted a rechargeable battery so that I need not bother about replacing dead AAA cells.
I finally purchased a SONY Clie for$130. The model is S360(a discontinued model and hence got it at a discount from BestBuy)