Handheld Reviews

I returned this unit because of an inaccurate trip odometer and will probably replace it with the Garmin GPSMap. The accuracy of the odometer on my Sportrak was off by about 20% at walking speeds. Try the following test: drive a one mile course away from and back to your home with the unit on the car dashboard. You will find quite close agreement (within a couple of percent) of the odometer reading on your car and the Sportrak. Now walk the same course holding the unit in your hand. My unit would record approximately 0.8 miles on the odometer on the same 1 mile course. I have conducted this experiment with a Garmin unit (the Foretrex 201) and found this unit to have the same accuracy at walking speeds as at highway speeds. Since I wish to use the system for mostly walking speed trips the Sportrak was unacceptable to me.

I just received my Magellan SporTrak Pro GPS unit, and after about three hours of non-stop twiddling with it, I can safely say "WOW!" I powered up the unit for the first time INSIDE my house, and it started acquiring satellites. Pretty amazing.

Highlights:

- Easy to use
- Dead accurate
- Surprisingly detailed base map
- Well worth the money

The only Down Sides I've noted are:

- PC cable securing screw has a small, floppy D-ring-type handle on it, which makes securing the PC cable to the GPS somewhat finicky. The same type D-ring is used for the lanyard loop/battery compartment screw. It's OK, but nothing I'd design.

- Magellan doesn't make a carrying case for it, but a slightly modified Nokia 5160 leather case works very well!

- The backlight makes an annoying hum. It is barely noticeable at the Low setting, but on High, it sounds like a mosquito. Good thing I detest backlights to begin with.

If you want a GPS, go buy this unit. Don't mess with the "toy" GPS systems that only use "patch" antennas. The quad helix on the Magellan systems is FAR superior.

After lots of research, I finally decided to purchase this Magellan over the Garmin Legend. The decision was based mostly on other websites and reviews questioning the sensitivity of the Garmin. I can't say anything about that, but I know I can usually get enough signal on the 1st floor of my 2 floor house (and I'm away from any windows). In the open, I can usually get 100% signal from 6 satellites and a little from a 7th (it only needs sufficient signal from 3). It's a little bigger than the Garmin, but being an RF engineer, I know that generally, the larger the better the antenna performance. I can't wait to take mine on a hike. FYI The unit comes programmed with fairly detailed maps of the US and very general maps of the rest of the world. If you want more, I guess you have to buy the CD.

Update: I compared my unit to my friend's Garmin Legend and from the window at work, the Magellan did seem to perform better.
I managed to lock on to 3 satellites, while the Garmin only two.

I bought my Palm Vx to beep at me so I won't miss appointments. For this to work, I have to carry it with me at all times. With the Palm slim leather case I could carry my handheld in most shirt pockets, but I don't always wear shirts with pockets. I usually wear a belt, but the Palm belt case is awkward to use (you must remove the Palm from the case to use it, leaving it completely unprotected from the inevitable clumsy drop) and not terribly stylish. So, after a friend told me that the belt case made me "look like an even bigger geek than usual," I bought the Rhinoskin molded hardcase.

This case is rigid enough to let me carry my Palm in my back pocket, even with jeans. Although I try to avoid "plopping down" on the floor or hard benches, it does not interfere with normal sitting at my desk or in a car. It adds only minimal bulk to the Palm, being only slightly larger than the Palm with its provided flap. And it LOOKS cool (although it might look even nicer with an internal hinge design).

Like others have noted, it IS difficult to remove the stylus without lifting the Palm, a design flaw made even more frustrating by its obviousness. ... Its smooth surface makes it tricky to open; I'm thinking about knurling the sides of the case near the clasp to correct this. And, although the edges ARE a bit uneven, it would be hard to make a more "finished" edge without using a thicker material and adding bulk to the case. I have no trouble using the cradle while the case is attached; I just prop the cradle on a small box (save your AC transformer box for this purpose). Since I keep it in my back pocket most of the time, I have not yet had any trouble with the case getting scratched.

Design plusses include the high rigidity, low added bulk, and sleek styling that I've already discussed. The silo mounting pin holds the Palm very securely, and the neoprene lining is thick enough to keep the Palm from rattling in the case. When properly installed, the Palm is spaced slightly away from all sides of the case, which also provides some shock protection. Finally, the clasp is simple and functions well.

I'll give it five stars when they fix the stylus access problem and lower the price by ($-$)

I constantly receive compliments on the aesthetics of this case -- I haven't dropped it, so I'm not sure if the protection is great or not -- I assume, however, that it is; it looks and feels to be of high quality.

With this case I can take my Palm Vx just about everywhere with me. Its small size, shape (slightly tapered), smoothness, and rigidity let me easily slip it into my front pants pocket along with my wallet (sitting isn't a problem). Since I usually wear pants, I usually have my Palm with me. As other reviewers have noted, it is inconvenient to remove the stylus. However, I mostly use my Palm at my desk at work or home, and I keep a spare stylus at each desk. Because the case is so smooth, I occasionally have difficulty opening the case. And, after about six months of use, the padding seems to have shrunk. I stuck a small piece of felt on the back of my Palm to stop it from rattling inside the case. And it is somewhat inconvenient to place the Palm on the cradle-you can't just drop it in. However, despite these minor drawbacks, being able to safely and conveniently have my PDA with me all the time easily justifies the cost of this case for me. If you've ever found yourself without your Palm because it was inconvenient to take it with you, this case may be a solution for you.

I'll be the party pooper here and say that I am a little disappointed with the m100 Palmglove. On the plus side it looks great, feels great and will protect your beloved Palm from practically anything short of a direct nuclear strike. Unfortunately I do find that it adds a considerable bulk to the m100. Without the glove the m100 slips nicely into my breast pocket or trousers pocket, but when it is gloved it becomes very cumbersome and awkward whichever pocket I put it in.

Regarding the flip cover & the glove relationship I find that the glove somehow causes the flip cover to detach from the Palm all by itself numerous times a day, this became intolerable after a while. So, whenever I use the glove I would take the flip cover off. Nowadays I only use the glove when I carry the Palm in my briefcase. If I venture outdoors without any hand baggage I tend to just take the Palm and leave the glove at home.

Since I had a gift certificate for Amazon.com, I decided on a whim to buy this case for my Palm m100. I was under the impression that it would be rugged and durable, yet slim and sleek. When I received the package and I saw it for the first time, my first thought was "Wow, this is bulky!" While not much was added to the width of the Palm, its thickness practically doubled. It seems to hold up well; I've dropped it with the Glove on and it works.

PROS:
- durable
- waterproof
- holds the Palm in place well
- cover stays shut by being snapped in place
- this snap helps protect the gaping hole for the HotSync cable
- four buttons don't press while in your pocket as easily
- good replacement for the flimsy m100 cover

CONS:
- bulky
- adds weight
- difficult to get stylus out
- difficult to get the time by pressing the button
- harder to get in and out of pocket

Overall Impression: If you want durability, buy this, but if you don't need it, look elsewhere.

After owning the m100 for almost a week, and even futzing around with some IIIs, I find that a case is pretty much a necessity. That plastic banging against a desk just worries me for some reason =)

Anyways, the case is *very* protective, and looks cool to boot. If I *had* to complain about it, the pen is more difficult to reach, but that's really Palm's fault for putting it on the back of the unit instead of the side or something. Any case will give you that problem.

I like how it buttons shut in the back as well. It does add bulk to the unit, but that's the price you pay for better protection. It still fits in my pocket, but then again, I wear slightly baggy jeans most of the time ;)

The only clearly bad thing is that there is no available belt-strap. For some, it won't fit in the pocket after the case, so it would be nice if there was a belt clip for it. Since the case looks so cool, I wouldn't mind carrying it there ;)

Enjoy!

I recently purchased the GoType keyboard for the Handspring Visor directly from the Landware website, and unfortunately have found it to be, for me, an almost completely unusable product.

This isn't to say that it's a BAD product, however. For a lot of people, it's no doubt extremely useful. The keyboard itself is very well uilt and fully functional, with nicely laid out keys. Though a bit bigger than the Stowaway when not in use, it's still pretty compact, and can easily fit inside a bookbag. And while the outer casing can get a bit scratched and dinged, it does a good job of keeping the keyboard itself safe from damage.

But now the bad part. If you have large hands, and especially if you hunt and peck, this keyboard is very difficult to use. The keys are just too close together, and have a very low profile, requiring you to press them down firmly right in the middle of the key to register the keystroke. Using the GoType, while still faster than graffiti, has cut my typing speed down to less than half of normal (and I'm not that quick to begin with), and long term typing leaves my wrists sore. In a lot of cases I'm actualy faster using the stylus and the onscreen keyboard on my Visor, and can actually type faster using a thumbboard.

To make matters worse, the keyboard did not come with the promised bundled software (TakeNote and WordSleuth). The Landware website I bought it from was advertising a free bundle with Blue Nomad's excellent Wordsmith program, but even that was a bit misleading: I had to email their support department to discover that the software is not "bundled" with the keyboard, you have to download it, then email them for the serial number, then email Blue Nomad for the registration key (none of this is ever explained in the documentation or their website; I only discovered any of this after emailing technical support; to their credit, they did respond very promptly to the email, though I still don't have TakeNote or WordSleuth as promised).

All in all, the GoType hasn't been a good experience for me. If you have smaller hands it might very well be a great buy, but for my money it just doesn't cut it.

Like a lot of other new PDA owners, I found myself desperate for an alternative to Graffiti within two days of picking up the stylus of my Visor Neo for the first time. I didn't mind the (slow, aggravating, inaccurate) handwriting system for quick functions like jotting down assignments or contacts, but when it came to typing notes in class, I simply couldn't keep up.

That's when I started looking at the GoType and Stowaway keyboards. I liked the small storage and large full foldout size of the Stowaway, but ultimately decided on the GoType because of its lower cost and sturdier design. Many of my classes are held in lecture halls with those tiny, barely-adequate fold-away writing desks, and I also find myself wanting to type up documents on my lap when I'm travelling or not at a desk. In these situations, the one-piece construction of the GoType excels over the Stowaway. What's the point of getting the compact Stowaway if you have to carry a 14" sheet of plywood around with you to stabilize it?

I toss this keyboard without any additional protection into a backpack stuffed with books, keys, and art supplies several times a day without any concern for its safety, and haven't noticed any wear and tear on it since I bought it 4 months ago. Since buying the GoType, I've completely replaced my laptop with my Visor at school and on the road. Using either the bundled text software or Documents to Go, I've typed reams of notes, completed homework assignments, answered long emails, and written entire papers on my Visor, things that would have taken me an eternity to do with Graffiti. This keyboard has made it possible for me to go pretty much paperless at college, with the added benefit of weighing at least 5 pounds less (Visor included) than the Toshiba Satellite laptop I used to lug to campus.

Other features I like are the foldback panel that allows you to keep your bulky Springboard modules plugged in (very handy when I want to use my Visorphone for wireless Internet access), and the USB Hotsync cable.

Only one negative: As others have mentioned, the keyboard *IS* rather small, especially for men, and may take some getting used to. The problem is not so much with the width of the keyboard, which is only a bit more narrow than the average laptop, but with the height of each key, which honestly appears to be only 2/3 the measurement of a normal key, making it very easy to accidentally type "3" instead of "e" or something similar. (Regular keys=square; GoType keys=rectangle with 3/8" height) If you are concerned about this, I recommend heading to a Best Buy or CompUSA nearby and testing out the GoType for typing comfort before ordering.

This thing is really great! I got my Visor Prism a good while ago, and since I'm finally back in school I started looking at keyboards. Of course you all know that the choices for a full size keyboard are the Gotype! and the stowaway. In almost any case I'm willing to sacrafice compactness for functionality. Which perfectly matches the scenario of the Gotype! vs. Stowaway. All my friends that have Visors(3) thought that the stowaway was the best by far just because it folds down to pocket size. But I was wishing on the Gotype! to be the best. It has shortcut keys programmable for up to 18 different functions. The keys aren't that small, they are actually better than keys on a full size keyboard. Although, I must admit, after using the Gotype! for a while, when I went back to a full size keyboard it seemed huge. The typing is so great I even typed up a whole paper on the palm os. With the portability compared to a normal keyboard, as I was typing my paper, I was able to take the keyboard all over the house with me. The absolute ONLY problem I had was when the keyboard wouldn't respond I had to do a soft reset, and this only happened twice. The first day I brought it to school my friends were amazed. All day they were begging me to try it. I even used it for an interview for our school paper. This makes any typing application perform ten times better. And this also works with AOL Mail for IMing and checking mail. My friends are insane for this keyboard, I will be using this for as long as I have my Visor Prism.

I bought this three days ago and have had nothing but problems. It is going back tomorrow and I will never buy another iPAQ. I had an older model iPAQ (3800 series) that I had gotten used in December. I had started having major problems with it crashing on me about two months ago. I debated over getting a new iPAQ after those problems and the bad reviews on Amazon for HP's in general. I had decided to go with Dell but my husband took me shopping for our anniversary and all we could find was this HP. It was so pretty and cool that I forgot my plans and bought it because I just had to have it NOW! What a mistake.

The machine itself works great, it was when I started trying to install the software that the problems started. Active Sync would not install properly and ended up crashing the first computer I tried installing it on. (Putting the computer in permanent Safe mode.)I thought at first that it was a problem with my computer so I tried loading it on my other, newer one. Same problems with Active Sync only this time I was getting a message saying that the software was not compatable with Windows XP and might mess up my computer if I continued to try syncing it. This was strange since on the box it says it IS compatable.

I contacted HP today and yes, their customer service IS as bad as I've heard. They of course denied that it could possibly be a problem with their machine or software - BOTH of my computers must have messed up at the same time, coincidentally when I got the PPC! They were basically no help at all.

My husband spent 5-6 hours after work getting the first computer fixed, quite a job since he's not a computer expert. He finally got it done and I started over. Well, guess what - I got the software loaded, well only Active Sync - Outlook wouldn't load so I stuck with the version I already have on there. But of course when I tried to sync the computer could not detect the PDA, just like yesterday before my PC crashed. I tried it over and over, even using a cord from my old PDA. Then tried it all on the other computer. NO, it does not work at all and yes, I did get a message AGAIN about incompatible device drivers for XP like I got yesterday. (And the HP support people swore this is impossible.) There is supposed to be a Logo on the product box that says XP compatible, which there is not.

So I have this very expensive calendar/phone book/calculator/To DO list and that's about it. I can't download e-mails or add programs or anything if I can't connect to my computer. It basically useless. I'm so didgusted I want to throw it as hard as I can. Now I have to drive one hour each way and waste all that gas money and time to return this stupid thing. I have six children - I don't have time for this garbage! I just want to cry and HP could care less. I told them all of this and they just said, "See your vendor." Who's going to repay my husband and me for our wasted time and money dealing with the problems this machine has created???

I am taking this back. I might get a Dell but honestly I'm so disgusted that I may just forget PDA's entirely and stick with old-fashioned pen and paper. It's not fancy and may not be as easy to carry around but at least it's reliable and if it does get lost or messed up it's not that expensive to replace.

This is a pretty cool PDA. I got it for my third year of medical school and I haven't been disappointed. It's lightning fast, and the OS seems pretty stable. The only thing I'd do differently is not place as much importance on having a physical keyboard. I initially thought that the keyboard would be a great plus, but I rarely use it. For the times I do use it (typing passwords on web forms when I don't trust my scribbling), I could easily use the pop-up screen keyboard.

Another issue, which has been raised here before, is its wireless capabilities. The thing only supports the older WEP authentication, and not the newer WPA (which is more secure). I had set up my home network with WPA, but I had to downgrade it to WEP to use the iPAQ. This is annoying, not to mention puzzling. I mean, it's 2004 and they still haven't implemented 802.11g?

I guess this is partly the fault of the OS, which superficially resembles Windows XP. A problem I've had with the OS is that when you hit the 'x' in the upper right of the window (x=close, one would think), it only minimizes the program (it seems to stay on in memory and you have to shut it down in memory). This is retarded. A minus sign would be a more accurate representation.

A word about HP support. Their online knowledgebase is almost useless (I was searching to see if the iPAQ had 802.11g support), and no matter what you do, don't use their online chat support. The chat tech support guy I had was completely clueless, took 5 minutes to answer each message I sent, and didn't even bother acknowledging his ignorance. He just sent me a word document and told me to read it. The only thing he was good for was giving me the HP supprt phone number (which was wrong, but they automatically transferred me). Get their phone number (it's supposedly hidden deep somewhere) and call them. The phone tech support guy I talked to (after a long wait) was professional, helpful, polite, and knowledgeable.

Finally, if anyone else is using this for medical school, note that your friends will probably have Palms. They'll be beaming their cool programs to each other (for free), while you stand idly by with your incompatible iPAQ. On the other hand, our school has moved their records electronic, and they've chosen iPAQs. Take a look at what your colleagues and schools are using before you spend the big bucks.

I have had my 4355 for approximately a month now, and I am blown away by it's set of features.It literally has everything one could want from a handheld. The built in WiFi effortlessly recognized our home network, I bought a BT GPS receiver on ebay, which gives me wireless GPS navigation, while leaving the SD slot free for my memory cards.
I, personally love the keyboard. I have never been a fan of handwriting recognition, and I have larger than average hands, so the size is actually perfect for me. While it's a bit longer because of the keyboard (1 inch longer than the 4150), the device itself is very thin. My girlfriend bought the 4150, which aside from the keyboard, and a slightly smaller battery has the same features.
Battery life is better than average, although like every other device, heavy WiFi use drains it pretty quickly. Simply buying an additional battery for emergencies would suffice for just about anyone's usage.
The keyboard is a good size, making thumb typing very easy. If it has a drawback, it's that there aren't stand alone number keys, so typing alot of numbers is a bit of a hassle at times. But that's really nitpicking. Overall, I can't really find anything not to like about this handheld. Except the terrible case that HP gives you with it. I'm still waiting for others to hit the stores so I can replace it.

This little gadget does away with the biggest complaint most folks have with a Palm - you can enter data quickly without Graffiti. I learned the aforementioned curse of data input back on a Newton MessagePad, so I'm very used to it and rarely hit a wrong stroke. But I still love having this as an option for jotting down quick thoughts, whether it's at the table in the breakfast room while listening to support voicemail, or on a ferry to the Outer Banks for a few days off, I have carried and typed lots of data with this little guy, in places that a laptop or the larger fold-out keyboard would not be as easy to use. Sure, the keys are smaller (duh!) and the layout is not exactly the same as a desktop 105-key. And my Corolla is not an SUV! For what it's intended to be, this gadget is tops. As a desktop replacement, well, we'll just have to wait!

This is an excellent keyboard for the Palm III and VII series.

It's well constructed -- much better constructed than those flimsy Palm keyboards that fold into something roughly the size of a Palm III. It's definitely not the smallest Palm keyboard out there. It is, however, a keyboard you can actually type on. I have thin fingers and even I have trouble typing on the smaller Palm keyboards. In my opinion, LandWare hit a near perfect comprimise between size and utility with this product.

The keyboard requires a driver, which is provided, to run on the Palm but this does not seem to get in the way. It also allows you to assign functions to the six function keys along the top of the keyboard. Despite the driver and lack of separate battery power for the keyboard, LandWare claims to have designed this product to have low battery drain. I have noticed an increase in battery drain since I started using the keyboard but, to be fair, I am also using my Palm at least 50% more than I used to.

This is a very convenient product. You can type in any Palm application that requires data entry. This goes for any native Palm application as well as the bonus applications that come with the keyboard. Don't expect frills from the word processor. It's very spartan. It does, however, allow you to read and edit text and Palm DOC files easily. It's actually a capable little DOC reader. And there is a conduit to convert TEXT documents on your PC to DOC files on your Palm. This is a very thoughtful feature. I think LandWare has done an excellent job here.

I give this product my highest possible technical nod. Within a week, it's become the most used (and certainly the neatest) Palm peripheral I have. It allows me to use my Palm as a direct replacement of my desktop PC for raw word processing -- and for short money, too.

I love it.

When I won a PalmVIx in a raffle, I was determined to make the most of it. As an author, I had been frustrated with my lack of mobile computing capability and this seemed to be a godsend. However, for any extensive writing, the stylus soon made my hand cramp and reduced the usefulness of the handheld.

All this changed after I bought the keyboard. It's large enough to touch-type at a speed almost matching that of my desktop machine, so I'm now able to write whole chapters on the Palm while I'm on the go, and come home to put them on my desktop machine.

As a longtime user of the Sangean DT-300VW radio, I needed to
purchase another radio and didn't need the weather band. I have
been extremely satisfied with the DT-300VW except that the coating
on the metal faceplate wears off very quickly (the radio does not
age gracefully).

I received the DT-210V only eight days ago and had similarly high
expectations. I am extremely disappointed and am planning
to return this radio as I write this review.

My disappointment concerns the method of using the memory presets.
Incredibly, the memory presets are not the default method of tuning
for this radio. The user must depress the recall button on the side
of the radio in order to place the radio in memory preset selection
mode. An "M" on the display begins to flash allowing you to select
the presets for a short period of time. The radio then returns to
manual tuning mode automatically. On my radio, the recall button
is also very imprecise making it difficult to ensure you are in memory
preset tuning mode without holding the button down for an extended
period of time.

This is an incredible engineering error by Sangean! How many
car radios (or any radios) do you know that do not have memory
preset tuning as the default or allow you to select that default.
I even wonder if Sangean only found this error at the last minute
and didn't want to recall the radios in the distribution pipeline. I
mention this because the photo on the back of the DT-210V's box
shows the graphic "SEL" adjacent to the button instead on
the term "RECALL" that is on the actual radio. A select function
would make more sense allowing the user to select either
manual tuning or memory preset tuning.

In my opinion, this is a grievous engineering error and I would
not recommend this radio in any circumstance (at least
until Sangean corrects the problem).

I've had a Sangean DT-110 radio for the past year (under the Radio Shack brand) which I thought was very good, except I wanted one w/a speaker, and wanted to try and get better AM reception (since I'd heard so much about the DT200). I ended up getting the DT210 which I'm quite happy with. I love listening to distant AM stations and in actuality this one isn't that much different on AM than the 110 is (but is still far better than any other pocket radio). I also wanted better FM reception, b/c the 110 has TERRIBLE station separation and bleed-through (strong stations are picked up on weaker frequencies all over the dial). Well, the DT210 is only SLIGHTLY better with that.

What should be noted, is regarding the presets. You can preset 10 (count `em.. 10) AM - FM and TV stations. The box says 15 for FM, but that's NOT for THIS model!!!! (go figure) I like the quality of the radio, it's slim design and it's speaker. It has the same features as the DT110 and the belt clip is great too.

Overall, a very good unit.

I walk a lot in an urban setting, and like to spend the time listening to the radio, including some weak FM stations. All of the radios I've tried had difficulty getting the weak stations. Setting the DX/Local switch to local helped, but there were parts of my walk where I just couldn't get the stations I want.

This radio has solved that problem. The reception is rock-solid on both AM and FM (even without a DX/local switch). It's much better than the four or five other radios that I've tried. (I can actually get some AM stations inside a public bus in an underground station! Beat that!)

I took away one star because the controls could be better designed. The volume control knob is too small, making it overly sensitive and hard to work with gloves on. And to use preset stations, you have to push a button before you can browse through the presets. After a short time, it resets to manual, so you have to push the button again to change stations again. It's annoying for station-flippers.

Despite these minor annoyances, I heartily recommend this radio to anyone looking for really good reception in an urban area. I haven't used it to get weak signals out in the boondocks, but I bet it would be good at that too.

Summary: If all you need is a charger, there is a cheaper product out there for you.

More info: I bought this Travel kit mainly because I would go on trips and my Palm would run out of batteries. Rather than lug around those two bricks - the power adapter and the hot sync cradle, I got this thing because of the standalone, one-piece charger. I didn't really need the international adapters or the portable hot-sync cradle, but they came with the package.

And the charger works fine. But the extra hot-sync cradle and other things are just gathering dust...

And now I've realized I could have saved money with another product, the Belkin "Palm V Travel/Home Charger".

It's about twenty-five percent cheaper, and it is just the one-piece power cord, but that's really all I need. And if you're like me, it may be all that you need.

Hopefully you will be able to save some money.

Being able to recharge the Palm is great, but my kit did not come with instructions. How do you start the hotsync process, since the hotsync cable (unlike the normal nontravel hotsync cradle) does not have a hotsync button??

the sync cable is very low profile. the charger is separate so you can bring just the sync cable for short trips or the charger for longer trips (the tranformer adjusts to different voltage and comes with adapters plugs for use in other countries).

i find this kit very useful... more so than my cradle since this is more flexible in usage; i wish they would also sell the sync cable by itself. my biggest complaint (and yes, i agree it is more expensive than it should be) is that the sync cable connector (the piece that is inserted into the Palm) is exposed and does not come with a sleeve/protector.

I will admit, that this is a very nice package. The unit is a good weight and it looks wonderful... BUT...( and that's a big but).. this unit is proprietary! You can not convert .html, .txt, or anything else, into the .rb format. The software does not allow it and there are (according to customer support) no plans to create such software. This means you can not use your own content on this unit.

If you're going to buy something, do NOT look at this unit.

I kinda wish they'd put this stuff on the box (supports MMM filetypes) so I wouldn't have wasted my time buying it. Now I'll have to trek back to the store where I purchased it, to return it... and start looking all over again.

This is excellent if you like to read but don't want to carry around a bunch of books - excellent for long business trips. I don't know what mood I'll be in, so I bring a variety of books on my ebook.
Because it's backlit, there is never an issue of enough light to read by - excellent for when I'm in a poorly lit restaurant.
I don't worry about shelf space at home anymore. I just order the books and then have them on my web-bookshelf.
The books available are growing every day. Lots of current fiction and also older titles. It's a great way to get Seabiscuit, and your Charles Dickens collection into your reading list.
Big thick books aren't a problem, because you can easily hold the device in on-hand. I carry a 700 page book of anecdotes for "light" reading, along with the other books I carry.
Excellent device. I recommend it to everyone.

I love my rca ebook. I've had it for a little over a month and I wouldn't go back to a hard cover now. I love that it is back lit so I can read in the dark without disturbing my partner. Registering was a breeze, as was ordering my first book. They even had a x-mas promotional on where I was able to download over $300 worth of magazines and books (of my choice) for FREE. I love reading Time and Newsweek magazine on this format. One thing to remember is that if you can't find the book you are looking for on gemstar, you can search for it on your pc (following the instructions on CD rom that came with ebook). There are at least three other ebook stores (one is Barnes & Noble) that carry ebooks for this device.
To sum up, love it, glad I bought it, would buy again and recommend to friends. I hope this machine will really take off as I love that I don't have all these books in my house!
One more thing if you are ordering this in Canada, the warranty will not cover you but if you buy from Future Shop they will give you a 30 day return or exchange policy also you can buy a two or three year extended warranty for around $50 and have no worries at all.

I was a firm believer in writing things down on paper - My dayrunner was always with me and worked well for me for many years... I took the step a few years ago to a PDA, my husband bought it for me for xmas, and it was amazing how much i learned to rely on it and use it!

Excellent way to keep track of addresses, phone numbers, and organize your busy schedule (both professional and personal).

Unfortunately, there are some drawbacks to this unit that I would like to share with you, and when i get a new one (I think this xmas i'll be upgrading!) I will know what is important to me in a PDA --

No backlight, this is annoying when you can not see your screen in a car or somewhere else, a backlight would be great.

Not compatible with my MAC - i have a PC at home, but at work we are on MACs, and i can not synchronize my schedule electronically at work, nor can I hotsync at work.

When your battery runs out, all of your information is lost, forever! This was a shocker! I had hotsynched a few months ago, so i was able to reload my old, out of date information back to my clie, but it was pretty awful, since all of the new appointments were not in the PDA, nor were updated phone numbers and addresses.

The buttons get pressed when it is in my purse, since the stick up slightly, they get pressed when in my purse, and then it runs the battery down.

It locks up - i would say it will freeze up and lock up about once every 2 months. that is frustrating and has no apparent reason for doing this.

I try to charge the battery every few days, so that helps with the memory loss.

I have found I really do enjoy having all of my information at my fingertips at all times, and this helps me manage my many meetings and events at work and home - and now that i know i will actually use and enjoy this device, it is time to upgrade to color, backlit display and MAC compatible software! I'm looking at the Zire 71 (it has a digital camera!).

The CLIE S320 was my third PDA in the sub $... price range and in terms of features and performance, it stands head and shoulders above the competition.

The main thing that makes the S320 such an attractive buy is that it is one of the few (if not the only) PDA in this price range to feature a rechargeable lithium battery. Second, although the display appears to be slightly smaller than on a 100 series Palm, it is easier to read and features a much more usable backlight. Third, it is expandable. The lowest priced expandable PDA made by Palm is the M125, which typically sells for about $... more and does not have rechargeable batteres. Fourth, the jog dial makes it much easier to navigate through the desktop than using the stylus, although it admittedly takes some getting used to.

The only negatives about the S320 is that it does not come with a hotsync cradle, although it does come with a separate sync cable and battery charger. I don't find this to be much more than a minor inconvenience. The display to me appears to be slightly smaller than that of a Palm, but the fact that it is much easier to read and features a better backlight than the Palm more than makes up for it.

I have had only a brief opportunity to compare the S320 to the Handspring Visor series, which I also think is a good buy for the money. To me, the CLIE has a more contemporary look than the Visor's cheap "plastic calculator" look, although they are similar in performance, depending on the Visor model (I'm speaking about the Neo series here).

Overall, Sony has managed to provide a number of good and useful features in the S320 for its price. It can be bought almost anywhere for approximately $.... This one is well worth a look. Unfortunately, I'm selling mine because my wife bought me a Palm M500 for Christmas, a PDA which is only slightly better than the CLIE but costs twice as much.

I originally ordered a Palm m105, but after I read the reviews on this little jem, I sent the Palm right back to Amazon!

Let me tell you, this PDA is incredible. The best one you can buy for the $150 - $300 price range, and I have seen almost every Palm based PDA and this is tops. Amazing reliability and battery life. I constantly use the backlight for various things when I am in low light areas, and it is a very cool, indigo type color that is extremely easy to look at. The screen is sharpest I have seen for 160x160, and the screen size itself is larger then the m105 and m125, both palm products.

Another thing which makes this a top PDA is its expandability. Sony has jumped on the market with better planning then any other company, releasing addons, upgrades, and peripherals at a steadier pace then any other company selling Palm powered devices.

Slot for memory stick gives this virtually unlimited memory if you buy the sticks, which are not too pricey.

Reliability has been great, with no problems at all. Had to do two hard resets because of bad software, but it was not the fault of the Clie.

Recommendations could not be stronger, everything about this PDA is outstanding. And for the people who need to get second glances, the looks of this are tops for any handheld device using the Palm OS.