PDA Price Points: $100 - $300
From budget to middle of the road
Palmtop devices today can entertain with MP3s and full-motion video in 64K colors on a wafer-thin, high-resolution LCD display. They give a competitive edge in business with powerful desktop applications like the mobile Office Suite you can use on the road. Stay connected with wi-fi and you can be a click away from any Virtual Private Network. Bluetooth opens the door to an array of peripherals like headsets, keyboards and printers to make your palm top experience as convenient as it is enjoyable.
Wireless mobile networks are at your fingertips with today's Smart Phones, Blackberry and Palm Treo. Any GSM/GPRS network-compatible handheld brings the world to you, wherever you might find yourself. Access and reply to your email, send instant messages and accept or decline appointments from your calendar, browse the web or even call the office.
How much are you expected to spend for these features? Let's examine handheld electronics price points.
$99/$129Low-end standalone handheld organizers.
Palm Zire 21
Palm Zire 31
The Zire 21 is a throwback to Palm's original handheld organizers - this one has only 8M storage capacity. Here you'll find all the tools that made Palm famous - Datebook, Notepad, Tasklist, Address Book. The biggest strength of the Palm is the wealth of third-party specialty tools and applications, more than anyone could possibly view in one lifetime. If the Zire 21 looks like it might fill your needs you might want to look for an old Palm III for sale used.
For $30 more, you can step up to the Zire 31. The added features are color display, photo viewer and MP3 player. The biggest advantage to the 31 is the Secure Digital card slot for expandable RAM storage so you're not limited to the unit's 14M storage capacity.
Connectivity for both models is limited to synchronization with your PC.
$200-$250Palm Tungsten E
Dell Axim x30
Blackberry 7100
The most popular Palm device today is available at this price point, the Tungsten E. This price point also brings you into the lower-end Pocket PCs like the Dell Axim x30. Both Tungsten and Axim have 65K color 320x320 3.5" transflective screens. Both have SD expansion slots so you can add storage. Both devices are reviewed well for their class but the Tungsten is getting a little long on the tooth as a handheld - expect to see price drops or real world price bargains on this device soon. These Palm organizers allow no connectivity options save for synchronization with your PC. The Axim on the other hand is a Pocket PC that runs Windows Mobile and is both Wi-Fi and Bluetooth compatible. For the same price as a Tungsten E, one might have to seriously consider the Dell Pocket PC.
The Blackberry 7100g brings an even more powerful connectivity option with real-time email messaging. With subscription to a wireless voice/data service such as GSM/GPRS you have telephone, email and web browsing from anywhere. The Blackberry also has key organizer features like the calendar, tasks, memo pad. The 240x260 pixel display doesn't have the graphical finesse of the other options in this range. Although it supports Bluetooth peripherals, the Blackberry 7100g doesn't have wi-fi.