Archived from groups: comp.sys.palmtops.pilot (More info?)

So I went out looking for a new Palm yesterday to replace my old trusty
M130. I'm less than happy with the results. I ended up buying a Tapwave
Zodiac, which is a great Palm. But it's a little too heavy, I'm afraid. I
am a computer programmer, so I was trying to avoid the Zire 31 because of
the screen and eye strain possibilities (it looked really rough on the
eyes to me). However, now the Zodiac presents all new problems. Gorgeous
screen, but when I'm holding it and inputting data it feels like a brick.
And since it's wide and not tall, it doesn't rest in your palm comfortably
like a standard PDA does.

But that's not the whole story. The whole story is what the he** has
happened to Palm? I looked at the other options, and frankly there are
LESS good quality options for a reasonably priced Palm than there were
just 2 years ago. I'd seriously consider a Pocket PC if there weren't Palm
apps I needed. Main reason? The screen buzzing problem. I read about it on
Amazon.com while doing my research. Read about it while Googling. I didn't
believe it could be that bad.

I went to 4 stores. At every store 3 or more of the high-res Palms had the
screen buzzing problem. Un-freaking-believable. Like clockwork.

What has happened to Palm? Does anyone (save for this ergonomically
questionally Tapwave) make a decent Palm any longer?

Preston

Archived from groups: comp.sys.palmtops.pilot (More info?)

Hi Preston,

Your experience was similar to mine. I had an older Sony Clie that
had a flip cover that fit nicely in my shirt pocket when needed and
was a pleasure to use. My wife decided to get me a nice color Palm
for Christmas and she let me pick out the one I wanted. I looked at
Sony first but I found they were pulling out of the market. I looked
at the Zodiac but decided it was a bit big. I chose the Zire 72 which
was nice except the finish flaked off in the first week. So I
exchanged it and got another one that they swore wouldn't flake. Not
believing them, I bought a hard case which increased the size so it
now won't fit in my pocket. Had I known that, I would have resigned
myself to a larger handheld and tried the Zodiac which looked
interesting. If I have to carry it in my hand anyway, why not? You
mention a screen buzzing problem, which I've not experienced. But I,
like you wonder where all the choices went? I guess the market got a
little too slow for competition.

Bob Kruse

Archived from groups: comp.sys.palmtops.pilot (More info?)

Agreed. I own a T3, and have bought a second as a backup for when this one
dies, because the newer models are less good.
Mick
"Preston Crawford" <me@prestoncrawford.com> wrote in message
news:slrnd4lv9f.jkq.me@serpentor.cobrala...
> So I went out looking for a new Palm yesterday to replace my old trusty
> M130. I'm less than happy with the results. I ended up buying a Tapwave
> Zodiac, which is a great Palm. But it's a little too heavy, I'm afraid. I
> am a computer programmer, so I was trying to avoid the Zire 31 because of
> the screen and eye strain possibilities (it looked really rough on the
> eyes to me). However, now the Zodiac presents all new problems. Gorgeous
> screen, but when I'm holding it and inputting data it feels like a brick.
> And since it's wide and not tall, it doesn't rest in your palm comfortably
> like a standard PDA does.
>
> But that's not the whole story. The whole story is what the he** has
> happened to Palm? I looked at the other options, and frankly there are
> LESS good quality options for a reasonably priced Palm than there were
> just 2 years ago. I'd seriously consider a Pocket PC if there weren't Palm
> apps I needed. Main reason? The screen buzzing problem. I read about it on
> Amazon.com while doing my research. Read about it while Googling. I didn't
> believe it could be that bad.
>
> I went to 4 stores. At every store 3 or more of the high-res Palms had the
> screen buzzing problem. Un-freaking-believable. Like clockwork.
>
> What has happened to Palm? Does anyone (save for this ergonomically
> questionally Tapwave) make a decent Palm any longer?
>
> Preston

Archived from groups: comp.sys.palmtops.pilot (More info?)

Penster wrote:
>
> Agreed. I own a T3, and have bought a second as a backup for when this one
> dies, because the newer models are less good.

"less good"

Is that like "worse?" <g>

Notan

Archived from groups: comp.sys.palmtops.pilot (More info?)

In article <slrnd4lv9f.jkq.me@serpentor.cobrala>,
me@REMOVESPAMBLOCKprestoncrawford.com wrote:

> But that's not the whole story. The whole story is what the he** has
> happened to Palm? I looked at the other options, and frankly there are
> LESS good quality options for a reasonably priced Palm than there were
> just 2 years ago.

Don't know what you're talking about. Care to elaborate?

>I'd seriously consider a Pocket PC if there weren't Palm
> apps I needed. Main reason? The screen buzzing problem. I read about it on
> Amazon.com while doing my research. Read about it while Googling. I didn't
> believe it could be that bad.

My Tungsten E doesn't have a screen buzzing problem. BTW, the screen
technology is the reason *some* people have this problem, and it's the
same screen technology in PPCs.

> I went to 4 stores. At every store 3 or more of the high-res Palms had the
> screen buzzing problem. Un-freaking-believable. Like clockwork.

Display models are very poor representatives of the quality of any device
or machine.

Archived from groups: comp.sys.palmtops.pilot (More info?)

On 2005-03-30, Guy Bannis <guy@ether.net> wrote:
> In article <slrnd4lv9f.jkq.me@serpentor.cobrala>,
> me@REMOVESPAMBLOCKprestoncrawford.com wrote:
>
>> But that's not the whole story. The whole story is what the he** has
>> happened to Palm? I looked at the other options, and frankly there are
>> LESS good quality options for a reasonably priced Palm than there were
>> just 2 years ago.
>
> Don't know what you're talking about. Care to elaborate?

I did below.

>>I'd seriously consider a Pocket PC if there weren't Palm
>> apps I needed. Main reason? The screen buzzing problem. I read about it on
>> Amazon.com while doing my research. Read about it while Googling. I didn't
>> believe it could be that bad.
>
> My Tungsten E doesn't have a screen buzzing problem. BTW, the screen
> technology is the reason *some* people have this problem, and it's the
> same screen technology in PPCs.

I owned Pocket PCs, a Zaurus, Handheld PCs, all kinds of Windows devices
for years before buying my beloved m130 2 years ago. The only device that
ever buzzed was an iPaq. This is a known problem with the PalmOne lineup.
Do a Google search or browse the Amazon.com comments and you'll find TONS
of people mentioning this as a known problem.

>> I went to 4 stores. At every store 3 or more of the high-res Palms had the
>> screen buzzing problem. Un-freaking-believable. Like clockwork.
>
> Display models are very poor representatives of the quality of any device
> or machine.

Of course. But buzzing screens don't come from poor handling. They come
from the device just being defective. And that's a high defective rate in
my book. It just makes me sad, because I want to stick with Palm, but
there aren't any options.

Preston

Archived from groups: comp.sys.palmtops.pilot (More info?)

It is like worse but less good.
Mick
"Notan" <notan@ddress.com> wrote in message
news:424B0A81.1087EA02@ddress.com...
> Penster wrote:
> >
> > Agreed. I own a T3, and have bought a second as a backup for when this
one
> > dies, because the newer models are less good.
>
> "less good"
>
> Is that like "worse?" <g>
>
> Notan

Archived from groups: comp.sys.palmtops.pilot (More info?)

Thanks for the clarification! <g>

Notan

Penster wrote:
>
> It is like worse but less good.
> Mick
> "Notan" <notan@ddress.com> wrote in message
> news:424B0A81.1087EA02@ddress.com...
> > Penster wrote:
> > >
> > > Agreed. I own a T3, and have bought a second as a backup for when this
> one
> > > dies, because the newer models are less good.
> >
> > "less good"
> >
> > Is that like "worse?" <g>
> >
> > Notan

Archived from groups: comp.sys.palmtops.pilot (More info?)

Preston Crawford <me@prestoncrawford.com> writes:

> I went to 4 stores. At every store 3 or more of the high-res Palms had the
> screen buzzing problem. Un-freaking-believable. Like clockwork.

I have a Garmin iQue 3600, and it has no screen buzzing. Love it
(but it probably has more features than you'll need, which probably
makes the cost too high for you). You'll have to pry mine out of my
cold, dead hands.

[ However, the iQue 3600 battery life may be an issue for you. ]

--
Darryl Okahata
darrylo@soco.agilent.com

DISCLAIMER: this message is the author's personal opinion and does not
constitute the support, opinion, or policy of Agilent Technologies, or
of the little green men that have been following him all day.

Archived from groups: comp.sys.palmtops.pilot (More info?)

On 2005-03-30, Darryl Okahata <darrylo@soco.agilent.com> wrote:
> Preston Crawford <me@prestoncrawford.com> writes:
>
>> I went to 4 stores. At every store 3 or more of the high-res Palms had the
>> screen buzzing problem. Un-freaking-believable. Like clockwork.
>
> I have a Garmin iQue 3600, and it has no screen buzzing. Love it
> (but it probably has more features than you'll need, which probably
> makes the cost too high for you). You'll have to pry mine out of my
> cold, dead hands.
>
> [ However, the iQue 3600 battery life may be an issue for you. ]
>

Yeah, I know the other companies still making Palm devices (Tapwave, iQue)
don't have this problem. Just Palm. Unfortunately, as you yourself said,
Palm is pretty much it for the average consumer market now. No Handspring,
no Sony. Your device is a GPS device, right?

Preston

Archived from groups: comp.sys.palmtops.pilot (More info?)

guy@ether.net (Guy Bannis) wrote:

>Display models are very poor representatives of the quality of any device
>or machine.

Oh I don't know, the display models sure seem to show up the quality of the
paint on the blue (make that blue and silver?) Zire72 models...

I'm amazed that they leave those mottled paint challenged models on display but
they sure do in all the stores in my area. After looking at them it makes you
wonder why any customers would buy one??

Archived from groups: comp.sys.palmtops.pilot (More info?)

Preston Crawford <me@prestoncrawford.com> writes:

> Yeah, I know the other companies still making Palm devices (Tapwave, iQue)
> don't have this problem. Just Palm. Unfortunately, as you yourself said,
> Palm is pretty much it for the average consumer market now. No Handspring,
> no Sony. Your device is a GPS device, right?

Yup, although I really don't use it as a GPS device (except for
setting the iQue's clock ;-). I use it for the maps. It's wonderful
for looking up addresses and directions, as well as being able to attach
map locations to items in the address book. I've got a 1GB card with
street-level detail of most of the Western US on it (the maps are only
using around 425MB of the 1GB card, though). However, I don't need
bluetooth or wireless.

[ Yes, I know that I can get maps via other methods, like mapopolis and
others. However, I'm used to Garmin maps -- I know that updates
periodically come out, and I'm happy with the NavTech data. And, if I
get lost, I can just turn on the GPS to figure out where I am, without
having to carry around yet another separate, pod-like device. ;-) ]

--
Darryl Okahata
darrylo@soco.agilent.com

DISCLAIMER: this message is the author's personal opinion and does not
constitute the support, opinion, or policy of Agilent Technologies, or
of the little green men that have been following him all day.

Archived from groups: comp.sys.palmtops.pilot (More info?)

In article <slrnd4m6pv.k84.me@serpentor.cobrala>,
me@REMOVESPAMBLOCKprestoncrawford.com wrote:

> On 2005-03-30, Guy Bannis <guy@ether.net> wrote:
> > In article <slrnd4lv9f.jkq.me@serpentor.cobrala>,
> > me@REMOVESPAMBLOCKprestoncrawford.com wrote:
> >
> >> But that's not the whole story. The whole story is what the he** has
> >> happened to Palm? I looked at the other options, and frankly there are
> >> LESS good quality options for a reasonably priced Palm than there were
> >> just 2 years ago.
> >
> > Don't know what you're talking about. Care to elaborate?
>
> I did below.

No, you didn't. You mention complaints of buzzing problems. Is that it?

> I owned Pocket PCs, a Zaurus, Handheld PCs, all kinds of Windows devices
> for years before buying my beloved m130 2 years ago. The only device that
> ever buzzed was an iPaq. This is a known problem with the PalmOne lineup.
> Do a Google search or browse the Amazon.com comments and you'll find TONS
> of people mentioning this as a known problem.

It's a known problem on some people's devices and you've just admitted
it's also a known problem on PPCs.

What's important here is the percentage of models with a bad enough
buzzing problem. There are just as many accounts from people who don't
have that problem. As I said, my Tungsten E does not have this problem.

> Of course. But buzzing screens don't come from poor handling. They come
> from the device just being defective.

The buzzing is a hardware problem when it occurs. Poor handling definitely
makes hardware problems worse.

Archived from groups: comp.sys.palmtops.pilot (More info?)

In article <egem419rqs1s95jrtheacrqsp5ltnstq00@4ax.com>, AaronJ
<noemail@noemail.com> wrote:

> guy@ether.net (Guy Bannis) wrote:
>
> >Display models are very poor representatives of the quality of any device
> >or machine.
>
> Oh I don't know, the display models sure seem to show up the quality of the
> paint on the blue (make that blue and silver?) Zire72 models...
>
> I'm amazed that they leave those mottled paint challenged models on
display but
> they sure do in all the stores in my area. After looking at them it makes you
> wonder why any customers would buy one??

You must also be amazed by the inkjets that smear their output, the
displays with fuzzy pictures, and the toasters with dents in them.