Registered: Jan 2001
Location: Bowling Green, Kentucky
Posts: 34

Upgrade from a Deluxe

Hi,

I currently use a Deluxe, and am thinking of upgrading to a Plat or Prism. I'm a high school student and will be typing a crap load on my Visor for AP U.S. History and our states lovely writing portfolio requirement. I love my Dlx. but the one thing I hate about it is the screen. I really cant stand typing for very long with it staring at black text against greenish gray. I am just trying to decide if i should upgrade to the Platinum (with the better gray scale screen) or the Prism with the pretty color - or if I should wait and see what Handspring comes out with in the next few months. Thanks.

Registered: Jan 2001
Location:
Posts: 278

I say wait. The Platinum the screen is the same and the programs use the same grey they don't fully take advantage of the 16 bit grey just 2 bit like the VDX. And the Prism is getting less expensive but it is big, I don't know if that matters to you, but when I am at school I like being able to slip my VDX into my pocket and not have it be intrusive.

--David

Registered: Mar 2001
Location:
Posts: 347

Just my .02...

I KNOW the Prism is bigger but it's still small. I can easily put it in my back pocket, even with the slipcase on (the one that came with the Prism). I'm not saying that you should go out and upgrade right away, but size is not really that big of an issue you know?

Registered: Feb 2001
Location: Them Twin Cities
Posts: 1758

Another .02 (Man, I'm here way to often today)

Since Josh is thinking of the Prism or Plat instead of something smaller (i.e. Edge, 505, etc), size must not be that much of an issue for him. In that case, get the Prism. From Experience, the rush of excitement from moving from a VDX to a Plat drains away in a day or two: it's just not that much of an upgrade. Prism isn't much bigger, and color, baby, color.

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Registered: Nov 1999
Location: Greenwood, IN
Posts: 125

I am in a similar boat. I have a Deluxe that I enjoy very much and use for a variety of things, but I can see an upgrade coming. After playing with the Prism and seeing some of the color apps out there, I agree with dietrichbohn that color is an essential in the next unit. PalmOS 3.1 will probably dwindle away soon as 4.0 comes into the market along with the better processors. I use my Visor for a lot of teaching-related things (e.g. Quicksheet for grade management) and a faster machine is desirable for me.

My game plan is this: I am holding out to see what Handspring releases next. It will almost certainly be a color unit with high-res screen like the Prism and a slimmer form factor. However, if I am wrong about that, I will go for either the Prism (pretty cheap these days and that color is incredible!) or the non-MP3 color Clie (610?). I only have three Visor-specific accessories (the Stowaway and a couple of modules) so jumping to another manufacturer is an option. However, I have liked Handspring's products and service and so I am inclined to stick with them. Plus, data storage is becoming an issue for me, and in the absence of an industry standard for storage (compact flash, MMC, SD, ad infinitum) I think the springboard concept is the best choice for the near future since it seems that eventually there will be a module for pretty much any storage medium out there. (As for the Clie, it seems to be a very nice unit although I have not played with it, and some have said it feels cheap when you use it.)

The best thing is, my Deluxe performs perfectly well for what I need and so I am not forced to upgrade when I don't really know what's coming. If need be I can just use the Deluxe until it falls apart (although, there has been a crack growing underneath the power button ever so slowly for several months now...). In fact, the original plan with the deluxe was to get a handheld that I will use for 3-4 years and then upgrade. Hey, at least I made it through *one* year.

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BertBert
Mark 12:28-31

Registered: Aug 2000
Location:
Posts: 107

I still have a VDx as well. There really is no unit available (yet) that warrants an upgrade for me. I don't play games or look at pictures on my Visor. I don't want to play MP3's either. If I want multimedia I'd possibly go PPC. My Visor is nothing but a PDA and that's what I use it for. Granted it's more than a PDA with all the database, spreadsheet, outline, document, and other apps I have installed but it's sole purpose for me is easy access to info and the ability to process and edit that info as I please whenever I please. Sure I do think colour is an amazing idea but the cons (battery life, cost) in my case outweigh the pros (pretty, colour coded info is a big plus) at this particular moment in time.

I certainly don't mean to knock the colour devices or thier owners. Had I been looking to buy my first PDA today it would likely be a Prism. Like I said, to me right yet it doesn't warrant an upgrade. The VDx is a relatively cheap, expandable, fully functional PDA and that is what I want. I do however edge closer and closer to upgradesville when I see another app developed that is only for PalmOS 3.5 or above... Or an app developed solely for colour. The moment I see an app that I really want that I cannot run, I'll be on that bandwagon in a flash.

Sorry for not answering your question joshmcgown and I hope I didn't make your decision harder. I just thought it was relevent for some obscure reason.

Cheers,

Arker.

Registered: Jan 2001
Location: Bowling Green, Kentucky
Posts: 34

Thanks for all your help - I guess I'll just wait and see what they come out with in the next few months.

Thanks again,

Josh McGown

Registered: Apr 2000
Location: Houston, TX, USA
Posts: 13

I'd just like a higher resolution screen (b&w would be fine).

Registered: Feb 2001
Location: Them Twin Cities
Posts: 1758

quote:

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Originally posted by briareus
I'd just like a higher resolution screen (b&w would be fine).

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Registered: Oct 1999
Location: Kansas City, MO
Posts: 295

briareus, I second the HandEra suggestion: www.handera.com

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<><

Registered: Dec 1999
Location:
Posts: 30

If you do a lot of writing and typing, why not consider a mini-notebook computer? (And pardon me for suggesting such a thing in this forum.)

-calp

Registered: Nov 1999
Location: Greenwood, IN
Posts: 125

Just took a look at the HandEra site given in LanMan's post, and that is a pretty cool device! I like having the CF, SD, and MMC built-in, and the landscape display option is very useful for spreadsheets. (I got a chuckle out of the Boston Globe's review which said the screen could "be rotated 360 degrees"... isn't that a feature on all handhelds? )

I wonder if there's any chance they will come out with a color unit?

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BertBert
Mark 12:28-31

Registered: Oct 2000
Location: Aberdeen, SD
Posts: 2531

The handera is an impressive (and impressively ugly) device.

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-Joshua
Abortion: Darwinism at its finest.

Registered: Sep 2000
Location: Seattle, WA
Posts: 501

Yet Another Visor Deluxe Owner Wanting Upgrade. And, like you and many others, I'm waiting to see what HandSpring will come up with.

I'm holding out for high-res (and I think color (16-bit) is now a must-have, after seeing what WordSmith 2.0 can do with a color display). I bought and returned a Clie N710C -- nice unit, but I wasn't satisfied with the feel of it (buttons and jog dial), the screen size (a touch small) and the English high-res fonts Sony uses. In short, just not enthusiastic about it, personally.

I'd look at the Handera more, but I feel that it's method of high-res (whether it's a better, worse or equivalent than Sony's) is not going to catch on beyond Handera. This is only a gut feel, from some of the articles by various Palm developers.

So, we'll see what we'll see! Here's hoping Handspring handles hi-res. (H'ahem.)

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Jeff Meyer

"And he died like he lived: with his mouth wide open."

Registered: Sep 2000
Location: Seattle, WA
Posts: 501

quote:

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Originally posted by dick-richardson
The handera is an impressive (and impressively ugly) device.

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Which I like about it. It's so un-hip, so not-small-and-thin. It's like those old honkin' Proctor-Silex mixers from the 50s -- big 'n metal-ly.

It's something that says, "I'm not a yuppie marketing dweeb; I'm a guy/gal who uses tools to get real work done."

Hmmm, I'm talking myself into one...

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Jeff Meyer

"And he died like he lived: with his mouth wide open."

Registered: Oct 2000
Location: Aberdeen, SD
Posts: 2531

bookrats, for the first time I feel ashamed for owning an edge.

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-Joshua
Abortion: Darwinism at its finest.

Registered: Sep 2000
Location: Seattle, WA
Posts: 501

quote:

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Originally posted by dick-richardson
bookrats, for the first time I feel ashamed for owning an edge.

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Nah... an Edge may not be retro in style, but it seems to be one tough little mutha. It's the only PDA that I've ever considered whether it might stop a bullet. (A small caliber bullet, mind you, fired by a small feminine pistol. )

If someone could make a thin (i.e., Edge-specific) CF springboard module for it, it'd be my favorite low-res B&W PDA.

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Jeff Meyer

"And he died like he lived: with his mouth wide open."

Registered: Oct 2000
Location: Aberdeen, SD
Posts: 2531

quote:

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Originally posted by bookrats
...fired by a small feminine pistol...

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-Joshua
Abortion: Darwinism at its finest.