Sony Clié N710C appearing in retail stores

A few readers have wrote in to report that the new Sony Clié N710C is now in stock and available for purchase at some Fry's Electronics stores for $499.99.

The N710 features a front lighted, reflective TFT color screen at 320x320 resolution and a Jog Dial. It has 8 MB of memory and comes with an 8 MB Memory Stick. The 710 also has support for mp3 digital audio and comes with headphones and an audio remote control.

Should anyone spot a new Clié at a retail location, please post it here.

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On the Web: Thanks to Russell Howell & Rich S. for bringing this to our attention

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nXt!

mikecane @ 5/26/2001 2:05:40 PM #
nXt got one of the first. He posted a report at --

http://www.geocities.com/nxtiak/clie710/710review.html

See additional posts at --

http://www.palmblvd.com/boards/SonyClie/

Sorry again to draw everyone away from PIC. But that's where the stuff is. No CLIE at the NYC SonyStyle store last Tuesday. ^%$#@!



RE: nXt!
I.M. Anonymous @ 5/26/2001 4:11:54 PM #
link doesn't work

RE: nXt!
mikecane @ 5/27/2001 1:22:27 PM #
Yahoo/GeoCities deleted his site for some obscure fascist-like reason. The new links are:

http://members.nbci.com/nxt/cliepicture.html

and

http://members.nbci.com/nxt/710review.html



RE: nXt!
mikecane @ 5/27/2001 1:28:04 PM #
Hmmm... even though I just got those in email from nXt himself, they don't seem to work, either! Well, check the PalmBlvd CLIE board for his latest links, if any.

RE: nXt!
I.M. Anonymous @ 5/27/2001 10:35:57 PM #
The links *do* work, but I had to hit the reload button a couple of times before I got them. It seems that NBCi has some sort of serious bandwidth problem.

Stephen

RE: nXt!
mikecane @ 5/28/2001 4:18:51 PM #
nXt had to move his site again. Now it's at:

http://clie.nxtiak.com



RE: nXt! Available CLIEs in Best Buy
I.M. Anonymous @ 5/30/2001 8:54:19 PM #
Just got back from the Best Buy store in West Des Moines, Iowa. 9 (nine) CLIE N710C in stock...now only eight left....
Hurry....


new n710c being talked about

I.M. Anonymous @ 5/26/2001 4:13:41 PM #
I saw it here first, it seems to be a new bulletin board.

http://www.infosync.no/cgi-bin/ultimatebb.cgi

RE: battery life
Cheetah @ 5/28/2001 1:40:04 AM #
interesting charts. Shows 505 with and without backlight on vs. PPC in a battery test.

505 with backlight on has similiar battery life then the other PPC. But without backlight, the 505 has over TWICE the battery life.

This is exactly the point! 505 does not need backlight on all the time (not in direct sunlight and in good indoor light) therefore the battery life is much better then PPC in the practical world.

I love my 505 and only use backlight when in poor lighting. In the office the screen is fine without the backlight.

I would also say that the 505 with the backlight on in a dark room (e.g. movie theater) is 1000% better then the reverse backlight of the Palm Vx.

Clie N710C availability

I.M. Anonymous @ 5/26/2001 5:11:04 PM #
As of 05/26 1:10 PM

Sunnyvale -- Out (confirmed by sale person)
Palo Alto -- Out (confirmed by sale person)
San Jose -- around 6 in the shelf (they have 12 in stock originally)

RE: Clie N710C availability
CarlJ @ 5/26/2001 9:52:09 PM #
As of 05/26 around noon, San Diego Frys:

I believe there were four in stock when I first walked past the shelf to go look at the demo model; when I came back to pick up a box there were three left (including the one I took), then when I walked past 30 minutes later before getting in the checkout line, the shelf was bare :-)

RE: Clie N710C availability
I.M. Anonymous @ 5/28/2001 5:42:53 AM #
The Fremont Fry's is also carrying them, however when you call them and ask to see if they are in stock they won't know what you are talking about. Try giving them the item number: 3011669 they can look it up in their computers that way.

They do have it on display for those who want to compare the m505 screen and the Clie screen. I must admit, I've been playing with mine for several hours and it rocks. :)

Great Photos

I.M. Anonymous @ 5/26/2001 7:27:01 PM #
Check these out!!

These are comparing the IPAQ, CLIE, and Palm m505

http://briefcase.yahoo.com/dreamwave6


Clie is 2x thickness of m505.
I.M. Anonymous @ 5/26/2001 8:23:27 PM #
RE: Great Photos
I.M. Anonymous @ 5/27/2001 11:08:56 AM #
The Clie is twice as thick as the m505, but it's not as wide. It actually fits in the typical jeans pocket BETTER.

RE: Great Photos
I.M. Anonymous @ 5/27/2001 12:44:57 PM #
Its thinker, yes, but not TWICE as think! The clie is thinner then two m505 stacked on each other.
m505 .5" Clie .66" [505 x 2 = 1 INCH]

RE: Clie is 2x thickness of m505.
CarlJ @ 5/29/2001 6:54:04 PM #
The Clie is 5/8 inch thick, the m505 is 1/2 inch. That's a difference of 1/8 inch, or 25 PERCENT, not "twice as thick". The m505 is also about 1/8 inch shorter, and 3/8 inch WIDER than the Clie.

I pre-ordered the m505 (the night before they were announced); I cancelled when they started showing up in the stores and I saw first-hand how dim the screen was. I went to see the new Clie on Saturday, not intending to buy it, just to look... and ended up plunking down my money and taking one home (this, after comparing the "floor model" extensively against the m505 sitting next to it; I had a friend with me, she wanted to know where the brightness control was on the m505).

The Clie is smaller than my old Palm IIIx (a teensy bit shorter, 3/8 inch narrower, the same thickness), and has by far the best screen ever seen on a PalmOS handheld. I'm running with the backlight at about 25 percent -- at 100 percent, you could use it as a flashlight. At 320x320, the screen is simply breathtaking, and at 160x160, there is _no_ trace of the dreaded "black grid".

If the m505 had the Clie's backlight (I'm not talking about the hi-res screen, mind you, just the bright, adjustable, backlight), I would have gotten the m505 instead (weeks ago) -- I *like* the m505, it's sleek and sexy, and will no doubt be more widely supported. But, to me, the whole point of color is to make the information on the screen easier to read, and I found the m505's dim screen to be an impediment, not a benefit.

Folks, it's time to stop all the bickering; wait until you have a chance to compare the Clie and m505 side-by-side in a store somewhere, and *then* decide which is best for *you*.

RE: Great Photos
I.M. Anonymous @ 5/30/2001 1:04:56 AM #
If we bicker the only one who wins is Bill Gates.

The new Sony

Edd @ 5/26/2001 8:05:14 PM #
Hi, I just went to Fry's in Manhattan Beach to see the new color Clie and when we were there, we beamed the Photosuite and some pictures from our M505 just so we can compare them side by side. The resolution on the new Sony is awesome, not only the fonts look smoother on the Sony but also the pictures. There are no jagged edges on the fonts (not that I can see). The only thing is Sony can only display 256 colors and the Palm has more (16 bits).

When comparing side by side you can clearly see the Palm has more richer color display (but dimmer). Supposedly, the Japanese version of the Clie has more features than the one imported here. :(

Hey Edd,
I.M. Anonymous @ 5/26/2001 8:54:11 PM #
quote from Edd: "Supposedly, the Japanese version of the Clie has more features than the one imported here. :("

What features are you talking about?

RE: The new Sony
Edd @ 5/26/2001 9:31:27 PM #
According to this Sony website in Japan http://www.sony.co.jp/sd/ProductsPark/Consumer/PEG/PEG-N700C/tv.html You're supposed to be able to download and watch TV on your Clie. I didn't see that mention anywhere on the USA box at Fry's.

RE: The new Sony
I.M. Anonymous @ 5/26/2001 9:36:29 PM #
Go to www.genericmedia.com and download the app that Sony is packaging with it's Japanese CLIE. Get the Palm movie player and their movie maker. If you already have a TV-tuner card and WinVCR or something like that, you should be able to do it. Of course, you could just go buy this VAIO desktop from Sony specifically designed to record television programs instead of using your own TV-tuner card and WinVCR: http://www.sonystyle.com/vaio/digitalstudio/index.html

RE: The new Sony
I.M. Anonymous @ 5/26/2001 9:41:40 PM #
Here ya' go...direct link: http://www.genericmedia.com/news_pr09.html

RE: The new Sony
Edd @ 5/26/2001 9:49:40 PM #
Thanks. Now let me go return my M505 :) while it still within 14 days return period at Staples.

RE: The new Sony
I.M. Anonymous @ 5/26/2001 9:59:30 PM #
Remember, to have the Japanese have with their CLIE's, you'll have to have a large harddrive to capture a 1-hour long TV show or a really big one to capture a 2-hour long movie, then you'll have to have a much higher capacity Memory Stick than the 8MB one that comes with the CLIE. The 64MB Memory Stick goes for around $100 on eBay and the newer 128MB Memory Sticks go for around $200. These prices will come down eventually but as you can see it is going to be an expensive proposition to make the CLIE a portable movie player, which is EXACTLY what I plan to use mine for :)

RE: The new Sony
I.M. Anonymous @ 5/26/2001 10:26:24 PM #
Try this out !!!

Using a program called HRCapt (DA Program)
located at:
http://www.ne.jp/asahi/fairy/chimer...OthersPalm.html
(it's in japanese),
I made several screen captures of my N710C Clie in various modes and pictures.
THe program captures Hi resolution as well as low, i've posted the pictures at:

http://members.nbci.com/nxt/clie710...0screencap.html

and yes, this IS a REAL screen capture from n710c

RE: The new Sony
I.M. Anonymous @ 5/26/2001 10:44:38 PM #
Can't get your page up

RE: The new Sony
I.M. Anonymous @ 5/26/2001 10:44:38 PM #
Can't get your page up

RE: The new Sony
I.M. Anonymous @ 5/27/2001 11:10:31 AM #
Also, the nipponese clie doesn't play MP3. The American one does.

MP3
Edd @ 5/27/2001 11:56:46 AM #
Hmm.. I thought it does according to this page:

http://www.sony.co.jp/sd/ProductsPark/Consumer/PEG/PEG-N700C/music.html

RE: The new Sony
I.M. Anonymous @ 5/27/2001 8:23:55 PM #
I realize the Sony has Mp3, Attrac, etc. play back; however, will these movies be encoded with sound via gMovie Maker and can they be played back with sound on gMovie Player?

RE: The new Sony
I.M. Anonymous @ 5/27/2001 8:25:44 PM #
One other question, how big would say an hour long show encoded in MPEG-1 wind up. In other words, how much could you fit on a 128 meg memory stick?

RE: The new Sony
I.M. Anonymous @ 5/27/2001 8:44:45 PM #
I saw the new Sony at a local Fry's and was impressed. The size and weight between the 505 and the N710c were comparable, one's a little wider, the other a little thicker. The screen was obviously sharper on the Sony, but when comparing the color, the Palm was actually richer. I was surprised. The brightness is great on the Clie, but the colors look washed out. Is there any way of increasing the contrast?

RE: The new Sony
I.M. Anonymous @ 5/27/2001 9:00:01 PM #
Nope!

RE: 1-hr mpeg
vgz @ 5/28/2001 1:12:37 AM #
>>One other question, how big would say an hour long show encoded in MPEG-1 wind up. In other words, how much could you fit on a 128 meg memory stick?

It would depend on the frame rate but I have several mpeg files and a 50minute 17 sec mpeg is 489.6 MB. Good luck getting that on a memorystick.


Matt

RE: The new Sony
I.M. Anonymous @ 5/28/2001 3:07:02 PM #
The Japanese 700 plays ONLY ATRAC3 format on white copy-protection memory sticks.

The American 710 plays ATRAC3 (bleah!) or MP3, and it can store MP3s on the cheaper, non-encrypted blue sticks.

Matt...gMovie Maker converts PC video files to gMovie format
I.M. Anonymous @ 5/28/2001 7:49:34 PM #
with sound. The gMovie Maker reformats the video to 320x320 resolution. A decent quality picture at a decent frame rate will get you about 1 minute of video with sound for every 1MB on the MS. Thus, a 128MB MS will let you watch a 2-hour movie.

RE: The new Sony
eipangan @ 5/28/2001 9:27:04 PM #
Starting June 18, users of the Japanese model can now download MediaPlayer 2.0, which can play MP3 off the blue stick. The download is priced at 2,000 yen but is on sale for the first few months - 1,500 yen.

Screenshots? Bah!
I.M. Anonymous @ 5/29/2001 6:54:51 PM #
Ummm... You could put a bullet through the front of the Clie and the screenshots would look the same. Those do not show what the Clie's display does, it shows us what our computer moniors do.

M505 crashed, gonna try Sony
Roy @ 6/6/2001 2:12:16 PM #
M505 decided it will not hotsynch anymore. palms going to send a new one, but for the 2 days I have without my Palm, I will cheat and try the Sony. Going to Circuit City tonight, if they have one, will try it out for a day or so. Then I will return it if I don't loke it. Question is....will I like it? Will I finally ditch my M505? It's actually kind of nice, getting used to the screen. Hmmmm

I hope Circuit City will take it back if I don't like it.

Any thoughts?



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