DPUG Mobile Edition

Which Handheld Should I Buy?

Like most computer-related questions, the answer to "which handheld should I buy?" is, of course, "it depends" :-). Depends on what's important to you and how much money you want to spend.

Our primary recommendation is to go with an 8 MB device. This rules out:

• Palm m100
• Palm IIIe
• Palm V
• Palm VII
• Handspring Visor

If you have your heart set on one of the above devices, by all means, go ahead and get it. They are less expensive and can be a great way to get started on using a handheld organizer. If you really become a handheld enthusiast, we're betting you'll be wishing you had followed our advice, and you'll be upgrading to a device with more memory and even expandability in the near future.

If you're still with us, the first question we have for you is how important is a color screen to you? If that's a must, then consider any of the following:

If color is not that important to you, but memory is, then we recommend not only an 8MB device, but a device that has removable memory, such as:

Next question--do you feel you need wireless Internet access? If so, go with the Palm VIIx, but expect to pay anywhere from $9.99-$44.99 per month for PalmNet wireless communication service. The Palm VIIx lists for $199, and through December 31 you can get a $100 rebate if you sign up for one year of Palm.Net service.

If a color screen and wireless Internet access are not important to you, then the next question is how important is rechargable batteries? The Palm m500, Palm Vx, and the Visor Edge have a thinner, sleeker look and use rechargeable lithium-ion batteries. The hot sync cradle acts as a charger for the batteries so you don't have to fool with buying/replacing batteries. The Palm Vx lists for $199; the Visor Edge lists for $249; and the Palm m500 lists for $329.

So Palm or Handspring or Sony? They both run pretty much the same operating system, but there are three differences worth mentioning between Palm brand handhelds and Handspring handhelds:

• Handspring models have an expansion slot for Springboard Modules. When Visors first came out, it wasn't a huge advantage because there just weren't that many Springboard Modules. But now, with something like 30 Springboard Modules available that can turn your Visor into a telephone, GPS, MP3 player, Digital Voice recorder, Digital camera, and more, Handspring Visor's are becoming a popular solution. The new Palm m500 and Palm m505 have slots as well, but so far there aren't a great deal of useful modules out there for them.
• Another difference between Palm and Handspring products is that Handspring Products don't have Flash ROM. What does that mean to you? It means you won't be able to upgrade the Palm Operating System. Most people never update the Operating System on their handhelds, so this may not be an issue for you.
• The third difference is that a true USB cradle comes standard with Handspring products . Palm models come with a cradle that connects through a serial port, and they sell a USB adapter for $40. However, if you want a serial cradle from Handspring you have to buy it separately, at a cost of $30. USB cradles sync faster, and don't tie up a serial port. However, if you're running Windows 95 or Windows NT you won't be able to take advantage of a USB cradle.

On a final, frugal note--don't pay list price! There are always promotional offers that will allow you to save sometimes up to $100 on the list price of a Palm OS handheld. Check out our "Best Deals" section for more information about current promotions and deals.

If you're curious what DPUG members own, go to this page on our web site. This gives you an idea of the most popular models among our members. Remember though that the Palm III, Palm IIIx, and Palm IIIxe are no longer available. Palm has a web page that compares all their models and their features, as does Handspring.