Registered: Mar 2001
Location: Alabama, USA
Posts: 92

The VisorPhone is a pretty sweet deal at least based on my experience with it. I looked at the competing wireless springboard modules, but in my area there was no service. That may have been a good thing. It forced me to wait.

Although, I will admit I was about ready to take my VisorPrism back to staples since I was having a hard time finding a wireless solution that worked in my area. As a previous Palm VIIx user, I wasn't going to make do without wireless(PQA's). But I was also torn against losing the color after working with it for about 3 weeks.

The day I was going to return the Prism, Handspring had a press release that they now offer nationwide coverage through several GSM carriers. Powertel just so happened to be one that I could use! So, my Prism never got returned. I haven't looked back.

With the VisorPhone and a Prism, in my own personal opinion, it is the best of both worlds. I can stay in contact by voice or electronically. Coverage has been quite good wherever I've been (including Europe). Actually, the signal strength in Europe was strong anywhere above ground (even in buildings).

Below are some reasons why I prefer this solution and thought it might help others who are considering the VisorPhone:

WHAT I LIKE
1) I signed up for a year contract which gives me 1000 weekend minutes(Powertel). This is where I do my experimentation with new net-enabled applications. During the week, I check e-mail once a day (perhaps more if travelling) and use the PQA's when I need specific info quickly. Remember, you will use cell minutes when accessing your ISP. I am on the 800min/month plan and have yet to go over! In fact, I'm usually only around 500-600 min.
2) I travel world-wide and wanted a phone that will allow me to keep in-touch whereever I go (works in Europe or USA).
3) I don't have the coverage needed in my area for many of the other modules such as YadaYada, Omnisky Minstrel-S, GoAmerica, etc. (I fell in one of those categories, but did have GSM coverage). Now, I don't think I would consider any of these solutions. All of which lack voice. My objective was to consolidate, not expand.
4) I have a dial-up modem access through an Internet service provider for home/work. Using any provider with the VisorPhone appears to work fine. Even used this while travelling in Europe. I could still do e-mail/browse the web, etc. Other devices just can't do this and won't for the forseeable future.
5) You don't mind that badly that the VisorPhone WILL NOT ring outside of the PDA (At first, I had a problem with this. But now, I rarely remove the VisorPhone from my Prism anyway). Although, it would be nice for those times when I'm using another module.
6) You never carry your cellphone with you anyways but always have your PDA. Putting a Phone in the PDA made more sense to me. Now, people can actually reach me The size of the Prism with the VisorPhone is still smaller than having both the Prism and a separate phone as two separate devices.
7) You must have GSM coverage in your area 900/1900Mhz. Check Handsprings site to see if you have coverage.
8) It's a phone. You can Talk and Access the internet information when you need it.
9) Using the MIK (Mobile Internet Kit from Palm) will work with the VisorPhone as well on one of the newer devices (I believe you need a Prism, Platnium or Edge-In general, Palm OS 3.5.x or higher). I can still use all the same PQA's I once used on my Palm VIIx on my VisorPrism / VisorPhone. Nothing to lose and everything to gain.
10) If you need more RAM, there are options out there for the newer devices (http://www.palmpilotupgrade.com plus others!). I had mine upgraded to 16MB. Today, I can pack everything I need while on the road in the Prism and stay connected with the VisorPhone. NOTE-This will void the warranty.
11) I can use programs such as PalmVNC to take control of my home computer (can be setup to go through a router/residential gateway). Keep in touch via e-mail with MultiMailPro. Access the web in FULL COLOR with PalmScape (Blazer 1.1 in the near future-it was FREE for all owners of a VisorPhone). Send/Receive ICQ messages with ICQ for the PalmOS. Connect to FTP servers using LFtp. Download software (PQA's) wirelessly using MyPalm Download section. Access remote Unix machines via pTelnet. Use any PQA out there!
12) SMS messaging can give you the "Instant Messaging" that you need for the phone to act like a pager.

WHAT COULD BE IMPROVED
1) I would prefer for the Internet access to remain on all the time. Instead of having to dial an ISP (Switched connection) I would like the service provider to allow an "Always On" type of service to eliminate the 10-15 second delay while dialing. Also, in a perfect world this would not consume any of my "Voice" minutes
2) The VisorPhone to at least beep if a call is received outside of the module. This way, you would at least know that you need to check your voicemail. Not a BIG deal, but something that could be improved.
3) Handspring offered a PDA with 16MB of RAM. I know it's possible, so what are they waiting for? Hopefully not for Palm

Those are some of my reasons. I'm sure I could think of more. For some the VisorPhone is the perfect communication device. For me, I will never go back to a "Regular" phone. I looked at WAP, and it's true what they say. Plus, I can use WAP if I really wanting to burn some cell minutes from the VisorPhone and the MIK.

How do you use your VisorPhone? Are there any questions that you might have that other VisorPhone owners can answer for you?

Registered: Feb 2001
Location: mass
Posts: 56

Thanks a lot for the carefully considered and clearly stated review. I'm currently contemplating either taking advantage of the OmniSky/MinstrelS deal or a getting a VisorPhone. The Minstrel is free, so it's tough to argue against, but the VisorPhone hardware seems so much better.

Specifically, I don't like that the Minstrel doesn't charge via the Prism/Edge cradle. This capability has been part of the Springboard spec from way back. Novatel should have taken advantage of it.

I also don't like that the Omnisky doesn't allow FileMover-type access to any portion of the 2MB of Flash memory on the Minstrel. Worse yet, apparently they insist on installing the apps into ram rather than executing in place on the module.

Do you know if the VisorPhone allows access to any Flash memory? Do you know if it installs a lot of software into RAM when it's inserted?

Thanks again.

Registered: Mar 2001
Location:
Posts: 2

hard keys & answering/rejecting calls?

Thanks for your review. I had a question that I haven't seen answered yet:

when a call comes in, how can you accept/reject the call? I know you can tap on the accept/reject buttons on the screen with the stylus, but is there a way to do this with the hard keys? It seems to me that it would be a pain to have to dig out the stylus every time you wanted to take or ignore a call. Surely some mechanism must exist to do this with the standard hard keys?

Can anyone confirm/deny this?

Registered: Feb 2000
Location: El Segundo,CA
Posts: 374

You can press the phone button to accept but not any other.

__________________
My Treo has more memory than I do.

Registered: Feb 2000
Location:
Posts: 70

The VisorPhone is my first wireless computing device, and even though it was expensive compared to a regular cell phone, I can see that it elevates my visor after a week of usage.

I guess my main complaint is coverage. I too use Powertel, and coming from ATT's wireless service the coverage is not as good.

I find that I like being able to access my phone book from my v-phone so much, I have to stop myself from using it while at home!

The headset is adequate, but not the ideal solution. I can usually hear pretty clearly, but my voice sounds fuzzy on the receiving end, and sometimes when I am outside, a moderate breeze can make it almost impossible to hear me. I like using the v-phone more with the headset, and I wish handspring would offer some sort of premium headset so that I could utilize it more efficiently. There is nothing like being able to use your Visor while talking on the phone!

I like leaving the phone in most of the time & because of this, I am thinking of buying a platinum to access my other modules when I need more than 1 function (ie phone & gps etc...)

I haven't started using pqa's yet but look forward to doing so in the near future.

It would be nice to have fax functionality, but given the other advantages, I can live without it. I do wonder if the feature could be added to the device via update from HS.

On my wish list is:

downloadable ring tones.
color interface
better battery life
a car charger

The battery life seems very short & I haven't seen a car charger for the prism yet. HS should address this soon!

I really like that I can send an SMS message while I talk on the phone! If only SMS worked regardless of cell carrier so that I could exchange messages with my non powertel using friends.

Well, so much for my first impressions, and great job on the review jonecool

__________________
tuffy

Registered: Feb 2000
Location: El Segundo,CA
Posts: 374

Check here for car charger
http://cgi.ebay.com/aw-cgi/eBayISAP...item=1239053001
and here for fax SW http://www.markspace.com/fax.html

__________________
My Treo has more memory than I do.

Registered: Dec 2000
Location: June 10, 2001 San Clemente Pier , CA
Posts: 211

Also see talestuff.com for prism car charger. They also have an emergency prism charger that uses batteries, plus travel ac charger for prism.

http://www.talestuff.com

jonecool-what charging method do you use for visorphone/prism while traveling?

__________________
"I cannot live without books." Thomas Jefferson

Registered: Mar 2001
Location: Alabama, USA
Posts: 92

A few questions Answered

I appologize for not getting back to this thread. I saw that it had moved but it didn't show any posts "-". Anyways, I see that there are some

When travelling, I use the Emergency travel charger and the auto charger. Both available through http://www.talestuff.com. This works pretty good for me, although I've noticed that the emergency charger will typically max the battery meeter to about 83-84% rather than 100%. Not a big deal really, but just something I've noticed.

In Europe, the VisorPhone charger will work for both the Phone/Prism but you will need the appropriate adapter to adapt the plug from American/European outlets (not a converter box, just a small adapter 2-prong comes with most any travel power kits).

Another question was if the VisorPhone had any Flash memory. The answer (I believe) is No. There is no file mover application to move apps from RAM to the VisorPhone. All applications must exist in RAM.

The other Question "I know you can tap on the accept/reject buttons on the screen with the stylus, but is there a way to do this with the hard keys? " is that yes/no. You can use the Phone button on the VisorPhone to accept an incoming call. However, I don't believe you can Ignore a call without looking at the Visor Screen.

At present there is no fax software for the VisorPhone. From what I understand (by contacting Markspace) is that the VisorPhone supports Class 1 fax. This class requires much more processing on the side of the device and their excellent "Fax" software solution does not "Yet" support class 1 faxing devices such as the VisorPhone. However, I did see it on their list of things to be added in the future. Keep an eye on http://www.markspace.com/fax.html if you are interested in faxing from you VisorPhone. It may be possible in the near future (from their site: Support for Class 1 Fax Modems (Class 2 and Class 2.0 already supported).

I hope this answers some of the above questions. If you have any more, please post 'em. If I know the answer or can find it for you I will.

Thanks,

Jon

Registered: Apr 2001
Location:
Posts: 22

PQA?

Could someone please explain what is PQA?
The post above mentions it and I cant figure out what its referring to.

Registered: May 2000
Location: Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
Posts: 163

Palm Query Application

It's a method for accessing and downloading web content onto a palm OS device. Beyond that, I know nada.
There's a thread somewhere here answering this question, though. It's just a matter of searching the discussions.

Registered: Mar 2001
Location: Alabama, USA
Posts: 92

PQA's

PQA's are Palm Query apps. They are small applications which are used for acquiring web-content through internet devices. The Palm VII/VIIx's were the first to begin using PQA's (wireless applications).