Handheld Reviews

I'm a student journalist who tends to rely on tape recorders for interviews, preferring them for accuracy's sake. I bought this one about a year ago, and it's given me nothing but trouble ever since. Playback is atrocious, especially in really quiet settings, where all it seems to pick up is the horrible white noise of nothingness ...

This was bought to use for meetings, seminars, etc. We tried it at home and it barely picked up our voices in the living room, much less a larger hall. The playback was barely audible, if at all. It would probably be ok if you speak directly in to it. Hope they will take it back.

I bought this recorder in January of 2000 and i really like it. I was a great price and it works great for all my needs. I am a college student and whenever there is a class i just record it and listen to it. The little gadget picks up all the information i need. This is a great recorder for anyone who needs one. A great price, too!

This case for the iPAQ 36xx Pocket PC will be suitable only for those that carry their iPAQ completely naked -- no CF expansion pack, no PC Card exapansion pack.

There have been reports of some iPAQ owners managing to stretch the leather enough to use it with the CF expansion pack, but others have reported that the increased pressure on the iPAQ itself has resulted in problems with the screen. If you do decide to use this with a CF pack, be sure you use something other than your iPAQ to stretch it. Of course, once you've done this, you can't use it to hold a pack-less device.

Overall quality of the case is pretty good. This gets a lower rating because it doesn't work with most iPAQ accessories - cradle, expansion packs, etc.

It is loose for the iPaq unit by itself. You cannot put the unit with expansion pack in it. Also You must take the iPaq in and out to charge and sync with cradle. Unless you have the sync cable which does not come with the iPaq, it is so troublesome to use it. It does not offer any more protection, e.g. drop or rain, on the iPaq unit than the pouch the iPaq comes with. So, why (...) [purchase] it, I did and I still don't know.

It's good, but not great, but then it's fairly cheap for a good quality leather case. It will NOT work with the CF or PC Card expansion pack installed, no way. I found a few things I didn't like about it. The cut away sleeve that the iPaq slides into hold it very securely, but it makes the power button very hard to reach, and the cursor pad hard to use. I finally gave up and cut out the pocket, leaving a folded leather outer cover that I velcro attached the slim "style pak" into. It hold very securely and leaves all buttons more accessible. I used a small piece of velcro tape to allow the top strap to still secure the unit from slipping out.

One possibly major problem: I use screen protectors (Fellowes 98026 Writeright for Pocket PC, available right here, buy some now-you need them) to keep the screen from scratching. Every time I put my iPaq in my pocket for a long period of time, the coarse inner lining of this case scuffs the protector so badly I have to replace it. It may or may not do the same thing to an unprotected screen, I don't know and I'm not going to find out. If this was lined with a soft flannel it would be much better.

The case need to be removed either using a leather or metal case. So if you want to protect your Visor Edge, it is the same no matter which case you use.

The metal case is solid and does its job well. However, it has the following major CONs:
1. Block half of the IR port.
2. Hard to push out when removing and ofter leave black marks on the back of the unit.
3. Need to remove the flip cover when using the metal case.

It is a good product compare to any generic case. But as a Viso edge owner, I'll go with the leather case.

This case is not completely aluminum, so the inside and hinge are plastic ( a little disappointing.)

It's not as protective as some of the zippered vinyl or leather cases for sale, but it beats the cover that comes with the edge. For one thing, it won't fly off if you drop the Edge. I also like the little window in front that allows you to see the silent alarm go off. You can beam synchronize easily, just by opening the cover flat (took me a while to figure that out though.)

On the other hand, you have to slide it up a bit to use the regular charger, or even the travel charger. But I don't see how that's much different from other cases, where you still have to take the Edge out to charge. Because the Edge snaps into the case, it takes a little force with your thumbs to slide the case up and down, and yes, it could shoot off suddenly if you apply too much force. I also wish there were a case that could accommodate the module!

The main thing about this case is that it looks pretty sexy and goes well with the Sumdex silver padded case, which is also matte metallic with dots. I have put some velcro on the back of this case, attaching it to the inside of the sumdex. This way there's both rigid support and padding, and I don't have to get the velcro adhesive gummed onto the back of my Edge.

I had my Palm Visor for just under 2 months. After I bought this Aluminum case, I had a tendency to drop and bruise it a lot more. Thank goodness I was prepared. This thing takes a beating, and protects the palm from scratches and 3 foot free falls. I recommend it to anyone who carries their PDA around from 9-5.

The go-vox is distributed by Landware but produced by Shinei, a Singapore based company. I have Palm IIIc and decided to shop on Shinei's on-line shop since they sell a product specifically for the IIIC. What a mistake. I purchased the product on 19 Jan 01, my credit card charged on 5 Feb 01. I still have not recieved the product. I have sent many e-mails to Shinei requesting assistance but have only received one response in more than 2 months stating that they may have problems shipping the product. I have sent 3 e-mail addresses to contact me and 2 mailing addresses.I would definitely stay away from this product.

I love this little gadget! The person working in a library should learn graffiti, not downgrade the rating on a product because he demands stealth mode! I like the beeps, because sometimes I will accidentally tap the buttons through my pocket and hear the recording beep. I also put a short "buffer" note in that I make the active note so that a tap to the delete button doesn't erase important data. Mine outlasted both my Palm III and a HandEra 330. I wish there was one available for the Palm m505, which is what I just got!

If you contact me, I may be persuaded to sell mine, but don't count on it! I still use it, even tho it doesn't fit my new Palm!

Adding this cover/voice recorder is the best addition that I've made to my Palm Pilot. Now instead of carrying 2 devices, one for voice recording and the other being my Palm Pilot, I carry only one that handles both functions. The Palm can now be used for recording directions or phone numbers when I am on the phone in the car by simply repeating them as they are relayed to me. Also, since the Palm is always kept in a handy spot, so is my digital recorder. I did file off nubs so that lid closes like old one. Great concept, great product.

I too read the reviews and took the risk; and I too, am sorry I did. My pen will be back on it's way tomorrow for a semi-refund. I was extremely disappointed with the IRIS Pen Express. Not only can you NOT scan text that is single spaced, but when you do, it suddenly creates a new language that resembles something like a child who just came up and started punching keys on the keyboard. You can use a piece of paper to cover the next line down, but I still got errors. Scanning is not new to me either, nor are electronics in general. I work with them for a living, so I am confident the error is on the half of IRIS Pen. I gave myself an easy two hours trying to train myself to holding it right, etc. No luck. Speaking of which, it's also hard to hold the pen at exactly the right angle... it won't work right if you don't. You also have to scan in a perfectly straight line almost; easier said than done, trust me. I was using the pen on a desk, on a flat surface... I even used their "test sheet" and couldn't get it to input the right words more than 50% of the time... it was just gibberish. It takes longer to correct the mistakes in the middle of a sentence than it does to type the whole thing out. The application does input data directly to Word as promised... but data doesn't mean "correct data"... it just sorta puts in whatever it thinks you scanned. I would guess my overall accuracy rate was not better than 40-50%.

This is actually my first real negative review. I took a risk, and I payed the price. I should have listened to the other reviews here. Hopefully I along with some of these other folks will spare you the trouble of this device. Don't waste your time or money. You can buy a larger scanner, and scan faster with OCR, or heck, even type, that use this device successfully. Hopefully they'll eventually produce a more accurate product.

I purchased the Iris pen scanner because it was one of the few reasonably-priced scanners that claimed to be Mac compatible -- all the way up to OS 10.3 no less! Sure enough, the software installed without a hitch, and all I needed to do was perform a quick calibration of the pen (no problem), open Word, and start scanning. This scanner works like a dream -- it is designed to scan at the correct angle, and automatically begins scanning as soon as you press down on the page. So far, it has given me 100% accuracy on just about everything I have scanned.

I am so tired of having to deal with the "workarounds" that make peripherals barely usable on my iBook, and I am really pleased to be able to recommend this product whole heartedly!

The IRISPen Express saves me time and energy! I no longer have to type paperwork into the computer because I can scan it in to any of the applications I use on my PC. The pen works great and so far has scanned everything I've tried. I would highly recommend this product.

I ended up sending this pocket pc back five times and I had to replace it twice! The service is poor compared to other companies. The device is extremely fragile and takes up time on easy tasks with the hardware. I would stay away from this company and recommend "hp." If you want to buy a good priced Pocket PC that has Wi-Fi and has a high quantity of memory, purchase the hp 1945 Pocket PC. Other then the support from Toshiba, the operating system software (Windows 2003 Pocket PC Edition) is easy to use and gets my jobs done without working at my desk all day long.

The Toshiba 75x has an impressive array of features and the dual card support is extremely important as you can use the SD slot for memory and the CF slot for more unique expansion cards. On the surface the unit has extreme promise. Unfortunately Toshiba support is maddening. Be very sure you are happy with what you get, because history (e740) is that it will never change. Toshiba's standard fix is to come out with a new unit and drop early adopters like a rock. A prospective buyer owes it to himself or herself to take a look at some of the PDA user groups before purchase.

(Note: The only difference between the e750 and e755 is that the latter e755 comes with a photo viewer software title on the companion CD. In fact, the machine in the e755 packaging says "e750".)

Featuring a new mobile processor, the most internal memory of any PDA (64MB RAM plus 64MB non-RAM for a total of 128MB), built-in 802.11b wi-fi, the best PDA screen from Toshiba so far. and good battery life, the e750/e755 is close to being perfect. The compact (0.6 inches thin) and attractive form factor is a huge plus, as well.

The new Intel processor (PXA255 running at 400Mhz) is without doubt the star of the new line-up. It's an updated version of the first-gen Xscalar processor, which wasn't getting good reviews due to lack of optimization options. The e750/e755 *is* optimized for the new processor, which results in speedy application launches and operations. Nothing gives a Pocket PC user more pleasure than seeing his/her favorite app come up instantly. The e750 also allows you to switch between two speeds, hence you can choose between higher speed or better battery life. Even at the lower speed, PPC apps feel quick and responsive. The LiIon battery is user replaceable, and an optional "extended" battery is available now from Toshiba.

What's left to improve for Toshiba is their lackluster customer support. Because their PPCs are made by an OEM in Taiwan rather than in their own plants in Japan, the build quality is still a bit lacking, but the e750/e755 seems to be better made than the e740, which was getting a lot of complaints.

Update with more details:

The e750 is indeed a joyful PDA! The high price and the lack of a built-in camera aside -- but who really needs the latter, right? -- it really comes close to being a master-of-all-trades device. I haven't tested the wireless features as much as I had hoped, due to the fact there just aren't many free hot spots around these days. But I'll update this review when I get more hands-on experience in this area.

In terms of everyday use this is a true workhorse. I'll talk more about the specs below, but the numbers don't really reveal how pleasant using the e750 is. The hundreds of annoyances that plagued the e740, its older cousin, have been fixed. There are far fewer crashes and syncs go more smoothly. At just 6.5 ounces, while not the lightest Pocket PC, you get something very close to a handheld computer, especially when you get the foldable keyboard!

The e750 has a total of 128MB of RAM, 32 of which is ROM, 32 is flash-ROM (which means content stored on it won't go away even if the battery is completely dead... think of it as a small hard disk without moving parts), and the rest 64 is true user-accessible RAM. Having a real 64MB to play with is a bliss, especially for someone like me who started out with 16MB on the Casio EM-500 and last saw 46MB on the HP iPaq 1910. The extra 18MB makes a big difference. Now I can play Doom and Quake at the same time!

Given the thin form factor of the e750, it still amazes me how it can feature both a Type I/II CompactFlash (CF) slot as well as a Secure Digital (SD) slot. Since wi-fi is already built-in, both can happily be used solely for storage expansion. The highest capacity for SD right now (as of April 2003) is 512MB, but that costs a small fortune. The best value belongs to 256MB cards, and I highly recommend the one from Lexar (see my review there). If you put in a 512MB SD and a 512MB CF, you'll get 1GB of extra storage for under one-hundred-fifty dolrs! The CF slot can probably be used for other peripherals; but the situation is not clear right now as to which CF peripherals will be supported in the e750.

The 3.8-inch (measured diagonally) screen is the largest among Pocket PCs on the market today, and the best from Toshiba so far. I personally like the screens on the iPaq 1910 and Viewsonic V35 better, but this screen is more than "good." The resolution is still PPC's standard 240x320, so it would be nice to see someday PPC manufacturers would go higher than that. I'd love a PPC the size of the e750 but with a 4" screen and 320x480 resolution!

There are a lot of optional accessories you can get for the e750, including the foldable keyboard and extended battery mentioned above. This is truly an exciting newcomer to the PPC family... one that looks and performs like a winner.

I had so expected this item to be the answer to carrying my PalmPilot and incidentials. But alas, it was not to be. The case I bought was supposed to fit any III series, and I have a IIIC. It does NOT fit! Bummer!

I use this case as my wallet because it holds all my essentials -- cards, cash, change, and my Palm III. My Palm has never once fallen out of it, and I'm not the world's most careful person. I ordered mine directly from Palm and I got a wrist strap for it as well -- don't remember if it came with it or if I bought it separately. I love knowing that I can just grab my wallet and go and have all the basic stuff and information I need with me at all times.

The size of the wallet isn't a problem for me, since I don't seem to wear the kinds of clothes that have big enough pockets for even a slim PDA anyway. It fits in briefcases and in all but the tiniest of purses, so it's small enough for me. After close to 4 years of daily use and overstuffing, it's finally starting to wear out, so I'm on the lookout for a new one for myself and one for a family member who also has a Palm III.

I like to travel light!...and so am just now replacing my old, but loved, Palm III Deluxe case, after three years of hard service. I attached a wrist strap (from one of my cellphones) to it, for ease of carrying and for security, and put a velcor patch inside the palm pocket to prevent any possibility of the palm pilot slipping or accidentally being knocked out. Also bought a Pilot Pentopia pen. Gone now is the need to carry my purse or briefcase on those quick shopping trips. I can click my car keys onto the strap, slip my hand through, and away I go! I have everything with me (Palm, credit cards, cash and a note pad). It's great! I hope that this little case is still around in three years when I'll probably be needing another!

This product is not suitable for all Palm Tungstens. Although the product claims to be for all "Tungsten series" PDAs, it is too long for the Tungsten C (and probably the Tungsten W.) I bought this product because it was listed as an accessory for the Tungsten C but it is not compatible with the C unless you want to cut it to size.

Palm should be ashamed to sell this cheap product. The film is hard to apply, darkens the screen and scratches up easily.
For a premium brand they should have looked harder to find a better product to complement their PDAs instead of making a quick buck on a cheap product probably made in China.

The newer, brighter screens on the Tungstens and Zire 71 are also softer. They scratch easily. My Tungsten T3 was showing marks on the common areas of the screen within a few weeks. Unfortunately, I didn't get these from the very beginning. At least now it wont get any worse.

A little difficult to apply, but if you carefully apply one edge first and slowly roll it on while smoothing with the included cloth, you can get it on perfectly. It will make the screen slightly less bright and can look poorly when the palm is off, but when the palm is on they are unnoticeable. Believe me. As the owner of at least 8 different Palm models, this is an excellent investment in your $300+ Palm. Get em!

I bought this product with very high expectations. Silly me. No matter how many tries, no matter how much advice and valiant effort from technical support, no matter how many work arounds attempted, my computer and the scanner could not connect; i.e. the USB connection did not work. Shortly after I finally gave up, I installed a new digital camera, also calling for an USB connection (natch) with no problems at all. My suspicion is that the scanner is not at all comfortable with XP, which is on my system. But whatever the reason, the scanner failed to install, I returned the product for a credit, and commented to the technical support that "It simply shouldn't be this hard."

The DocuPen has been very effecient tool for me. I scan lots of receipts and forms and various other financial documents, something that is important to me at times is capturing signatures, which the DocuPen is capable of.

I have used up the one set of batteries already and basically I scanned up to 220 pages which is 20 more pages than what the manual recommends.

The time wasted on driving around to find a photocopying machine or flatbed scanner and actually doing the photocopy can now be eliminated with the DocuPen. Just take the DocuPen and capture your required document on the spot.

Also getting the scanning technique down was not hard at all, as I got the technique down after 5 trial scans on a regular Word file print out. What I like about the DocuPen is that we are actually a part of the scanning mechanism, a really cool idea & concept.

I recently purchased the DocuPen and the product has been fine for me. It connected perfectly fine with Windows XP and to my other computer systems such as Win 98 and Win 2000.

For some people I know that if a product does not work, it may be in part due to something in the computer system itself. Take a look into the system first to see if its compatible with the product, because the product worked wonders for me.

The DocuPen literally took me like 3 scans to get the technique down. And I get very legible scans.

It seems that many expect pure carbon copy duplicates, but that's not really the concept behind the DocuPen, because I really see it as a tool to scan documents and other materials for reference that does not need to be super high quality. If need be, then use a high resolution flatbed scanner. The key difference is in the fact that it is totally portable, something that a flatbed scanner is not.

The free software is also amazing, its called PaperPort from ScanSoft that integrates with various programs from my computer like Outlook, Word, etc...I am also impressed with the OCR feature within PaperPort because it does a very good translation of scanned text image into editable text.

By the way, the technical support staff is superb in assisting with technical needs, because I only had a slight issue but was resolved immediately.

When I bought this case, I thought it would be great because I put a lot of stress on my Palm. I was bitterly disappointed when I found out how heavy it was and how hard it was to adjust the tightness of the case. You basically have to bend the edges against a hard surface to desired fit. Also, the grating sound when sliding the cover on and off will make you clench your teeth. It's like scratching a chalkboard. If you're not careful, the Neoprene on the inside will rip off if you force your Palm in the case. If there was a zero star rating, this product would earn it. My Rhino case is gathering dust...

The case is very bulky, and poorly made. The case does not close properly, and does not provide an easy undamaging way of removing and reinserting the Palm into its case. In addition, it has sharp pointy edges and shows fingerprint and tarnish very easily. Requires constant cleaning, and the foam Palm support is very fragile. It is also difficult to remove the stylus, and to beam items while in the case. Only recommend if you are very hard on items.

In over a year of hard usage I have yet to tear the rubber pads as reported in other reviews. My Palm V has been dropped onto concrete, sat on, and otherwise abused for over a year inside this case with no damage yet. OK, it's heavy... like a tank. But then it's supposed to be armored protection for the Palm V. The other case I tried was a casualty, along with the Palm V inside. This case provides armored protection for hard usage. It lacks refinement, but so do most tanks. If you want light weight, refinement, and aesthetic virtue then this product isn't for you. If you want serious protection from physical damage during hard use then this case is the ticket.