Palm Page

Information

November 2003

hmm, time for my yearly hardware update I guess. A Sony UX50 this time. Very nice unit and I am enjoying it very much so far!

It's quite compact and a bit lighter than the NR70. Much more 'pocketable'. Doesn't seem to want to jump out once placed into a pocket either. A good thing! It has a swivel screen similar to the NR70 but is used in landscape mode. It seemed a bit odd at first, but I have now adjusted to it and am busy looking for programs that make use of this format (which works real nice for book reading i.e. Palm Reader and TiBR). ZLauncher has now become my launcher of choice. The latest DateBk5 supports landscape as does HandyShopper and MemoPlus.

Also has a lo-res built in camera (will also record short movies!) and an MP3 player and voice recorder. And, a very usable keyboard (lights up!) and built-in bluetooth and wi-fi.

I have now added a wi-fi router to my mini network and so can Hotsync without hooking up the silly cable.
This also makes it nice for portable quick email checking and short web browsing sessions. The small screen size is a bit of a drawback for that though. Also, wi-fi seems to use up the battery real quickly.

Have also tried Telnet (works fine but, again, the screen size makes it a bit of a chore) and PalmVNC (very cool though maybe not TOO useful.

Just tried connecting to the free wi-fi at a local library today. No problem connecting. Pretty cool. Unable to send email though. Something about SMPT authorization (or somesuch).

On to the negatives:

The afore mentioned Hotsync cable. Yes, you get a charging cradle, but still have to plug in a seperate cable to Hotsync. :-(
The mini toothpick/stylus.
Only three buttons and mis-placed (IMHO) jog-dial/back button and on/off switch.
Small screen. But, I guess it couldn't be too much larger without making the whole thing bigger. Fonts4UX helps a lot here!
Price. I see it came down shortly after I bought one though. sigh.

Some Pictures taken with my UX50 here

History of this page here

General Palm Info

Handheld Media Group: Home of Handheld Computing Magazine
Calvin's PalmPilot FAQ: Everything you need to know about the PalmPilot
High Flyin' Pilot Tips: Exellent PalmPilot tips and tricks site
HelpHand Not so FAQ's: Solving Not so common Palm Problems

Palm Hardware Links

Palm, Inc.: Palmone and Palmsource Web Sites.
Sony Clie Handheld: Info on Sony's Clie PDAs
Handspring: The people that designed the original PalmPilot. Now part of the Palmone family again.
Visor Central: Good site for Visor info.
Amiga PDA: Connect Your Palm Organizer to your Amiga.

Palm Software

PalmGearHQ: Great source for Palm software
FreewarePalm: Freeware Palm software
Pimlico Software: DateBK5 a must have!
TealPoint Software: Home of TealGlance, TealPaint, TealPhone, TealAuto, etc.
Blue Nomad Software: Wordsmith. Check it out.
Smartlist To Go: Formally ThinkDB. Good little database program. Needs landscape support.
Astra Ware: Look here for some great color games. Don't miss Bejeweled and InsaneAquariun!
Palm Digital Media: eBooks for the Palm
Palm Classics: Classic stories formated for your Palm.

And, of course, the competition.

Micosofts PalmPilot Home Page: Info on wince devices
Psion: Makers of cool handhelds
Sharp: Check out the Zaurus

This Page Last updated: November 26, 2003