How is the screen on the Zire 31, better than m130?

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

I think the screen on the Zire31 is exactly the same as the one on the
m130. I had a Z31 for about 2 weeks, then realized I needed something
different, and settled on a Tungsten E. The T|E screen is WAY easier
to see in direct sunlight.

The Z31 has a really good price, really good Speed, and a good amount
of ram. It has a nice loud speaker, and will play MP3s no problem.

One thing that put me off of the Zire 31 was that it was missing a
couple of buttons, and some of my legacy games needed them. I don't
play a LOT of games, but I would like the few that I have to work.

I see the Zodiac as a game machine only. It just wouldn't seem
professional to jot down some contact info on it.

It depends on what you would use it for. If you are a game-a-holic,
you would be happier with the Zodiac. If not, go with the Zire.


On Tue, 29 Mar 2005 14:01:57 -0600, Preston Crawford
<me@prestoncrawford.com> wrote:

>I'm trying to decide whether to get the Zire 31 or spend the extra $100
>and get a Tapwave Zodiac. I don't have much money to spend. Really only
>what I just mentioned. My biggest concern, though, as a computer
>programmer, is finding a Palm that is as easy on the eyes as possible. I
>saw a Zire 31 the other day and it looked okay, but in some ways it looked
>worse than my old m130 I used to own. It looked a little too bright, not
>sharp enough. I couldn't place my finger on it. Any opinions on this?
>
>Preston


Remove the BALONEY from my email address.
-----------------------------------------------------
Matthew Fries Minneapolis, MN USA
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"Quit eating all my *STUFF*!" - The Tick

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

On 2005-03-30, Matthew Fries <Nobody@home.com> wrote:
> I think the screen on the Zire31 is exactly the same as the one on the
> m130. I had a Z31 for about 2 weeks, then realized I needed something
> different, and settled on a Tungsten E. The T|E screen is WAY easier
> to see in direct sunlight.

I think it looks worse, personally. I've owned an M130. My wife now owns
the Zire 31. I think the Zire 31 looks terrible compared to it. Maybe it's
because it displays more colors with the same screen. Or because it
attempts sharper graphics with the same exact screen. I can't put my
finger on it, but it's harder on my eyes.

> The Z31 has a really good price, really good Speed, and a good amount
> of ram. It has a nice loud speaker, and will play MP3s no problem.

I agree with all of that. Unfortunately for me, screen quality is very
important. And from what I've heard, every other Palm made by Palm has
screen whine. I personally went into 3 different stores today and listened
to screen whine emenating from 10 different devices. That clinched it for
me that a Tungsten E or something like that wasn't going to work.

> I see the Zodiac as a game machine only. It just wouldn't seem
> professional to jot down some contact info on it.

How so?

> It depends on what you would use it for. If you are a game-a-holic,
> you would be happier with the Zodiac. If not, go with the Zire.

Why don't you picture it as a usable PDA? I'm confused.

Preston

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

>> I see the Zodiac as a game machine only. It just wouldn't seem
>> professional to jot down some contact info on it.
>
>How so?
>> It depends on what you would use it for. If you are a game-a-holic,
>> you would be happier with the Zodiac. If not, go with the Zire.
>
>Why don't you picture it as a usable PDA? I'm confused.

Must be just my personal preference. Maybe it's the fact that it's in
landscape mode. Every other handheld device that I have seen in
landscape mode was a game device (nokia n-gage, sony PSP, etc.). Maybe
it was just a little too curvy. Also, it looks like it's mostly a
two-hand device (both hands on the PDA).

Plus, I guess I'm just a little Jealous. I always see really cool
games for palmOS (Doom II, racing games) on the shelves at the stores,
but upon closer inspection, it says they only are for the Zod.

I Just read in a different thread that you decided on the Zod over the
zire. Good luck with that. Let us know if the screen buzzes.



Remove the BALONEY from my email address.
-----------------------------------------------------
Matthew Fries Minneapolis, MN USA
freeze@baloneyvisi.com

"Quit eating all my *STUFF*!" - The Tick

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

Matthew Fries <Nobody@home.com> wrote:

>One thing you might want to note - The zire 31 has a cheap plastic
>single-piece stylus. If it locks up, and you need to reset it, the
>manual actually says "Use a paper clip".

Same problem with the m100 series and several Palm models going back to the
beginning. You had to occasionally go looking for a paper clip to reset the
unit. When my m125 became my main machine a few years back I got tired of the
paper clip hunts. So I just removed the m125's back (requires a Torx 5 wrench)
and drilled out the reset hole to accommodate the size of the point of the
supplied stylus. Have never had another paper clip hunt. That probably would not
be too hard to do on the Z31 either...