Comments on: New Visors Debut on Monday

InfoWorld is quoting "company sources" who say the Handspring will launch the two latest Visors during a press conference in Tokyo on Monday, October 16.

Information on the new PDAs was leaked to the press last month. The $449 Visor Prism will have a 16-bit color screen (65,536 colors) and will be pushed as a game player. It will utilize a 30 MHz Dragonball processor, a rechargeable lithium-ion battery, and 8 MB of RAM. The second new device will be called the Visor Platinum and will cost $299 and also features the 30 MHz chip, 8 MBs, and a monochrome display.

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Picture of Prism

I.M. Anonymous @ 10/11/2000 5:30:50 PM #

There is a picture of the Visor Prism in the latest version of Yahoo Life
running Sim City in color. It looks exactly like the Deluxe, except for the
color screen.

RE: Picture of Prism

I.M. Anonymous @ 10/11/2000 7:57:15 PM #

Is this nothing more than a PALM 3c? Were is the next level of design? Palm and Handspring must not be looking at the design of the IPAQ?

The Palm 3C is only missing the sprinboard. What the deal!! I am very diappointed.

Not just a IIIc

I.M. Anonymous @ 10/12/2000 1:19:35 AM #

IIIc 8bit - Prism 16bit - that's a major difference if true - 256 colors vs 65536 colors
IIIc 20Mhz - Prism 30MHz - 150% speed

Both have a Li-Ion batteries and 8MB RAM.

Most importantly, the IIIc is not quite the same form factor as the rest of the III family,
so only some of the III accessories work with it. Novatel just cancelled the Minstreal
wireless unit for the IIIc.

While the Prism has the Springboard slot - which immediately gives it access to more
expansion than the IIIc. Multiple wireless options either shipping or announced, MP3
players, backup, modems, etc. The IIIc lacks any expansion, aside from the serial
port.

The features definitely put it out ahead overall. Once I can see one for myself, and if
the reports are true, I may upgrade my Visor Deluxe to a Prism. And if my cell provider
offers the CDMA phone module I'll buy that the first day on the street - it'll still cost me
less than my digital StarTac did, which I also bought the first day out ($500). And the
StarTac isn't as cool or flexible.

-MZ

Tha picture is fake

I.M. Anonymous @ 10/12/2000 8:23:59 AM #

If you can't tell that picture is faked, you should have your eyes tested immediately.

RE: Picture of Prism Online

Ed @ 10/12/2000 8:37:58 AM #

Judge for yourself. This is a link to a Palm user's site who has a scan of the Prism from Yahoo:

http://staff.pop3now.com/alee/visorprism.html

---
Plenipotentiary
Palm Infocenter

RE: Picture of Prism

I.M. Anonymous @ 10/13/2000 10:54:51 PM #

Looking carefully at this picture you see a couple of problems, the on/off button is on the wrong side, and there are two (2) microphone holes. Also the case is reversed from left to right. They may be on the verge of releasing a color palm, but this picture is not it.

Ugh. Too many choices

EGarrido @ 10/11/2000 7:59:24 PM #

I'm all for many, many choices. Choices are good. Many choices are better than none...

But many choices can create indecision. I'm not sure whether to get the Prism or wait and get the new Palm V models coming out sometime soon. I want wireless or color and I'm a huge V sereis fan (I LOVE my V).

I am confused.

Eric

RE: Ugh. Too many choices

PFloyd @ 10/12/2000 5:41:21 PM #

Here's my two cents. Upgrade to a Prism now. Sell the Vx for a fair price. When the new V's come out in the spring (with a new name, color, and SD, etc.) sell the Prism. Use WriteRight's or whatever so the screen stays pretty and you can get a good price. I've had really good luck with this. My desk drawer does look like a used Palm supply store though ;-). I've got spare cases, etc. for models I haven't had for some time. I take good care of my Palms and send 'em back in warranty if they blink. I'm crazy about my Vx but I'm not going to "wait by the phone" for Palm.

16bit?

I.M. Anonymous @ 10/12/2000 4:43:13 AM #

does palm os support 16 bit color?

Choice, not Tolerance

Carl Brooks @ 10/12/2000 7:24:14 AM #

I challenge all Palm device OEM to stop nickel & diming us with these minor upgrades. MP3 players, the size of a tictac box, has 32meg RAM. Where's the RAM? Color is manditory for new devices (provided that the screen is designed to operate in sunlight better). I believe that mobile access must be availabe. The consumer's mobile choice should be whether to activate or not (or which provider to choose). OEMs must make us a small, color, internet PDA with storage of no less than 32MB.
What do you think?

RE: Choice, not Tolerance

I.M. Anonymous @ 10/12/2000 11:33:12 PM #

The truth is, the Palm OS is very WEAK!! Palm calls it simplicity... well I call it lazy and lack of intuitive. Palms release of the limited 2 megibyte m100 is a true example of this. It has sticky notes, ( which you can download "bug me" to do the same thing) and a smaller screen...what gives... HERE ME NOW... It is only because of the massive amount of third party programs avalible to the Palm that makes this platform or PDA worth of any value. In fact..the CEO for Palm should try using a Palm with 2 megs of ram, load no third partysoftware and then try to customize his life.... If so..he would find the Palm a little more then a $12.00 digital organizer and very boring to use.

I commend Visor for being bold to brake the mold.... attempting to make a better platform, ( even though I think more could be done to the Palm OS and memory limitiations to make this a device for today, instead of throughing yesterdays technology at us)

IIIc vs IPAQ

BillFugina @ 10/12/2000 9:16:46 AM #

I've seen several posts over the past few days touting the IPAQ over the IIIc, some of them outright trashing the IIIc. Since all of these comments were posted anonymously, I don’t know whether to address this to someone in particular or to everyone in general. Anyway, here it goes:

Let me begin by saying that I love my IIIc. It does everything I want and need it to do and it does it well.

It does everything EXCEPT for wireless internet access. Also, it looks unlikely that it ever will do wireless internet access.

So, my question is: Can I get everything I have now with my IIIc, including color, AND get wireless internet access? Can the IPAQ do that? Can anything else?

Please don’t beat me over the head with all of the “cool things” (if any) the IPAQ can do. Also, please don’t tell me all of the things my IIIc can’t do (unless it involves wireless internet). I simply want to know if it can do wireless internet access and how. If you can, please tell me the average cost of everything I will need, including the IPAQ itself, any expansion add-ons and the wireless modem. Also, if the add-ons and modem are not available form Compaq, please tell me where I can get them. Finally, if you could, please tell how much monthly wireless access will cost me.

I am seriously considering getting an IPAQ, but I won’t get one simply because several anonymous people (or a single one) say that it better. I need to know if it can do what I want and how much it will cost me.

Thank you.

RE: IIIc vs IPAQ

I.M. Anonymous @ 10/12/2000 9:45:53 AM #

I go to Carnegie Mellon University, which has wireless Ethernet throughout all academic buildings. Recently I saw someone with an iPaq handheld, PCMCIA card jacket, and wireless WaveLAN (Orinoco) card. The whole solution let him surf the Internet wirelessly, although it was somewhat bulky and very expensive (easily over $800). Last year, students in one chemistry class were lent HP Jornada 830 handhelds that have PCMCIA slots built in. Total retail cost of the handheld and wireless card: over $1,000. Ouch.

RE: IIIc vs IPAQ (wireless ethernet)

BillFugina @ 10/12/2000 9:55:14 AM #

Thanks for the info, but (until every major city gets a wireless ethernet) wireless ethernet is not the same as wireless internet.

I'm much more insterested in something like:
Palm Vx with OmniSky PLUS COLOR
or
Palm IIIc PLUS OMNISKY.

RE: IIIc vs IPAQ

I.M. Anonymous @ 10/12/2000 10:07:44 AM #

Hi... While I have had a Palm (everyghing from III to Vx to IIIc), I have recently switched to an IPaq. The reasons? They are listed below:
1.) the screen is magnificent inside and outside
2.) CF expandability via the compact flash sleev
(I like to cary alot of books, tech manuals)
3.) Performance and sound is incredible
4.) Handwriting is much easier
5.) While I have had and still do have MANY MANY
programs for the Palm and it is true, there are
not as many available for the PalmPC YET, I
have been able to find an equivelant Palm PC
Program to handle this for me. check out
iliumsoft.com for some excellent flexible
examples.

Thanks
Tony
acollet@yahoo.com

RE: IIIc vs IPAQ

I.M. Anonymous @ 10/13/2000 10:07:52 AM #

I agree with Tony, 3rd times a charm w/ MS... I sold my Palm Vx+OmniSky combo for an iPaq w/ PC Card Sleeve and IBM 1GB MicroDrive (where I keep a ton of maps, mp3's, pics, sample movies, and pdf files [this is wild, i print out my itineraries w/ adobe acrobat and then just drop them into the microdrive when travelling, I use a program called ansyr primer to view them and they come out perfectly, no conversion needed)... I still miss my Palm Vx b/c of its size, but until Palm gives me color+multimedia, memory, and expandability for *my* choice of communications method in one unit vs having to choose from 3 different core lines, they lost me as a customer... With the iPaq I have the choice of using CDPD, Richochet, BlueTooth, or CDMA communications *today*... I'm tired of being jerked around by Palm w/ their incremental upgrades (remember their "we will bring wireless to all palms" announcement, which in the end turned out to be no more than a cellphone cable and an os v3.5 cd when we were hoping for a sled to allow palm v's to access palm.net?)

RE: IIIc vs IPAQ

hauseda @ 10/13/2000 10:37:52 AM #

Im really surprised that nobody has mentioned this yet so here goes. I have successfully connected wirelessly with both my Palm Vx and my Palm IIIc by utilizing the Palm IR port and my Ericson CF888 cell phone. This phone has both IR and built in PCMCIA capability. Although I do have to ensure that the IR port of both the Palm and CF888 are pointing properly and at the correct distance I have had no difficulty in browsing the web and sending and recieving e-mail. You can also purchase a clip on unit for the IIIc to connect properly to your cell phone if it does not have a built in modem. I must admit that the IPAQ is cool, however, its battery life and operating system is still not as simple to use as the Palm O/S.

RE: IIIc vs IPAQ

I.M. Anonymous @ 10/13/2000 7:58:14 PM #

Personally, I love my IIIc. Why? It connects to the Mac and I can live through the day without surfing the web and checking my E-mail. The web and my E-mail still be there when I get home and can view it on a decent sized monitor.

Internet access is NOT a prerequisite for a PDA. Not EVERYBODY wants it.

Palm failures to match

I.M. Anonymous @ 10/14/2000 2:51:33 AM #

It's about time thst Palm brought out models with decent colour like the Visor offerings........

Still only 8mb, what gives?

I.M. Anonymous @ 10/14/2000 12:42:24 PM #

Memory limitation? NOPE...

With a little bit of work and less than $60 in parts a Springboard to Compactflash module can be made. With such a module a Visor can be upgraded to over 32mb of memory.

Obviously these units can control the memory effectively. So why do they come with so little? Whats more, why does an additional 6mb come at a $100 premium ?

RE: Still only 8mb, what gives?

I.M. Anonymous @ 10/15/2000 1:02:30 AM #

Hi,I agree with you about not enough memory,what can I
do about it? How do I or someone else gain 32mb's. eg

wireless internet

Merrill Guice @ 10/15/2000 9:15:47 AM #

Here is how I do wireless internet with my Palm IIIxe. I use a Sprint PCS internet enabled phone (CDMA) by Samsung (model 3500 it's $150). I also use the internet connect kit which has a phone to serial cord & software for my laptop (also by Samsung $99). For $50 a month I have 1000 minutes to use for voice or web. In return for an agreement I got Wireless Web for free.

Using Palm OS 3.5, I set up a modem config for the phone and a network config for my ISP.

I hot-synch to Avantgo for web content and also use Avantgo's browser. Cost is $0.00 for software. I use Eudora's beta for email. Since I don't use the Windows conduit that software is free, too.

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