Registered: Dec 2002
Location: New York City
Posts: 3

Visor is NOT dead

And Visor will never be dead!

Just because Handspring abandoned it doesn't mean it wasn't a good product to begin with. Compared to newer PDA's coming out now, Visors are still the best around.

Think of it, up to 2 months battery life on AAA batteries with a Visor......whereas a modern day Palm M130 barely gets 1 week of life on a single charge? That's pathetic.

Also, many newer PDA color screens are practically unreadable in outdoor and sunlight situations.....the basic Visor screen can be fully used in these situations.

Visors have MUCH larger screens than the newer Palms You need a magnifying glass to see Palm Mxx screens.....every friend of mine who owns a Palm Mxx, when they see my Visor Deluxe, drool over the fact that my screen is way larger than their PDA

And of course I could bring up the springboard concept....but that's pretty self-evident.

Bottomline is that the Visor is not dead, and never will be. Future PDA's should really incorporate many aspects which Visor had. I'm totally not buying a new PDA to replace my Visor Deluxe until they make the battery life, screen size/clarity and expandability at the same level of a Visor. Until Palm or Sony does that, Visors are still the way to go

Registered: Feb 2000
Location: Moved to Clie Land
Posts: 331

D*E*N*I*A*L

It's a wonderful state. Remember, technology marches on for a reason

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"Stupid Handspring."

Registered: Jul 2002
Location:
Posts: 120

I'll Say It Again ...

There is absolutely nothing that compares to the Visor Neo for book reading. (should change my screen name to "repeat").

However, few seem to be concerned, other than other Visor users.

Even THE pre-eminent PDA library - Memoware features reviews on devices that do not say one word about reading books. I do find it strange, to say the least, that this whole "function" (pda as book reading device) is largely ignored.

But, then again, perhaps I repeat myself

Registered: Dec 2002
Location: New York City
Posts: 3

quote:

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Originally posted by MIKE STH
D*E*N*I*A*L

It's a wonderful state. Remember, technology marches on for a reason

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Registered: Jun 2001
Location: Tucson, AZ
Posts: 108

If the Visor is the greatest PDA in the world, why do you have a Tungsten T as your Avatar???

(Current Visor Prism and Treo 90 User)

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Registered: Feb 2000
Location: Moved to Clie Land
Posts: 331

quote:

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Originally posted by hypachris


Clie...... poor MP3 player

~

PDA's should be PDA's, they shouldn't have to pretend to be entertainment units.

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__________________
"Stupid Handspring."

Registered: May 2002
Location: sweet NJ
Posts: 64

quote:

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Originally posted by hypachris


You think technology marches on for Sony Clie's? LOL. It's more like marching in the wrong direction......backwards...

Clie......horrible battery life which lasts merely hours, poor MP3 player, PROPRIETARY memory slot which uses memory sticks only Sony products can use, PROPRIETARY 320x320 resolution technology which is incredibly hard for programmers to make use of, etc

PDA's should be PDA's, they shouldn't have to pretend to be entertainment units. That's what TV's with surround sound are for.

There is no denial, my Visor is way better than your Clie. It does its job as an organizer..

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Current setup: palmOne Tungsten|T3 and Nokia 3650

Editor-In-Chief at: www.pocketloft.com

Registered: Aug 2002
Location:
Posts: 67

the end is near

well, i think the end is near for Handspring... it's only a matter of time. I love my Prism, however I have been contemplating buying a Sony NX70v and will probably leave the visor message board for good, I only view periodically as it is. I guess I am as frustrated w/ Handspring as most of you, I mean they were number 1 for a short time in the PDA business, why abandon that status and go somewhere near the bottom of the barrel in the cell phone business? Have you seen the other brands of cell phones? The ones that run games, take photos, and keep addresses/emails,etc., and datebook??? -They are blowing the Treo's out of the water! Handspring had it right when they first came out with the Visor line a few years ago, what happened? Nothing they have created since the Visors have been as exciting.. I don't see the Treo's going anywhere... I guess like Handspring is done with us I am done with them!

Registered: Aug 2001
Location: ILLINOIS
Posts: 227

Referring to the above post by eric2002 -- It is amazing that they (HS Management) used the logic that they wished to be number one in the "cummunicator market" and it is obvious they are starting out behind-- via price, size, convienance and technology--Go figure-- That was their given reason for dropping the Visor line---
(aside -- Freudian slip I intially typed "Treason" instead of "reason above-- )

BUT--
There is still plenty of current tech available within the existing Visor line--
IE---The visors are all more technologicaly advanced than the "NEW" Palm Zire--

Palm Zire---2meg -- no expansion slots -- no backlight
HS Visor ---8 meg -- Spring board and SD/MMC, SM, CF, Mem Stick expansion through SB adapters--and also Bluetooth and Wifi through the SB adapters.

The visor is not going to be significantly enhanced, but the line will be technolgically stable enough to out live the "brand new" Zire.

It will do what I need well into the next generation of PDA's.

Bu then probably most of what is available and new today will be near as useless as our antiquated visors.

Registered: Feb 2001
Location: Atlantic Rim
Posts: 570

Let the Module Hording Begin!

My VPL is getting further from death with each passing week. Over the holiday season I purchased a MiniJam for $11, and added a 128MB MMC card, picked up a Franklin 5 language translation module for $15, and am hot on the heals of a sub-$20 Targus Total Recall voice recorder. I picked up a Tiger Woods module for $5 a while back too.

Handspring, with their choice of wireless service providers, has effectively foresaken my business with the Treo line (the Treo 90 means nothing to me) so I have decided instead to live my life on the cutting edge of the year 2001 (for now).

Registered: Oct 1999
Location: I'm not sure, but I see lots of lights everywhere.
Posts: 1287

Well, you can still get plenty of use out a common everyday Visor...even the old Deluxe series. But going forward, this road clearly leads to a dead end. SB development has ceased, and you can buy PalmOS devices that are far more competitive (high resolution displays). Even Pocket PCs are getting attractively cheaper.

The bigger issue is that Handspring itself is dead. Internally, HS gives itself a 60% chance of survival. By the end of 2003, or early 2004, Handspring will be taken over by another major vendor in the wireless space. Qualcomm, Kyocera, Palm, or perhaps even Apple may grab them.

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My blog: Pocketfactory

Registered: Jul 2002
Location:
Posts: 120

Last minute opportunities

It has become part of my regular routine to drop in at the HS website. $99 Neos, plats, and deluxes are a great deal.

Grab a Neo for the best text screen around.

Hey, they're AAA battery devices that won't get stale. (Sorry, but hi-res is a liability when it comes to text reading. Sony is multimedia, of course, that's who they are, so it should be no surprise.)

Pocket PC's - pricey, corporate, commercial book machines - no thanks.

Just get a Visor or two now and you'll be good to go for some time to come.

Too bad HS blew it, they happen to have the only decent book reading device and it doesn't look like anybody else is moving in that direction.

Funny, Memoware.com and Project Gutenberg are growing by leaps and bounds. Hmmm.

Registered: Oct 1999
Location: I'm not sure, but I see lots of lights everywhere.
Posts: 1287

Re: Last minute opportunities

quote:

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Pocket PC's - pricey

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My blog: Pocketfactory

Registered: Oct 2002
Location:
Posts: 36

As much as I hate to admit it. Pocket PC is stepping up to the plate with cheaper devices. Dell Amix for $199. The Tungsten is nice but for half the price you can do the same (if not more) with a HP1910 that is the size of a Palm Vx. Personally I am using my M505 less and my Casio EM-500 more and more.

Registered: Jan 2000
Location:
Posts: 391

Re: Re: Last minute opportunities

quote:

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Originally posted by foo fighter


Not anymore. $199 is the starting point, with $299 becoming the mainstay. The new low-cost PPCs are very competitive in terms of features and price.

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Rev. Peter da Silva, ULC<br>
<a href=http://www.taronga.com/~peter/>Ar rug t� barr�g ar do mhact�re inniu?</a>

Registered: Oct 1999
Location: I'm not sure, but I see lots of lights everywhere.
Posts: 1287

Re: Re: Re: Last minute opportunities

quote:

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Originally posted by argent
The Del Axim is $249, not $199. You can't depend on the "rebated" price... that's why companies do it, they know that people end up not bothering, losing the receipt, or otherwise making a mistake... and not getting the rebates after all.

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Yeah, it's the classic bait and switch tactic. But if you don't lose the receipt, and you remember to fill it out and send it in, you can have the Axim for $199. I got mine for $175 just for being a "loyal" Dell customer. Heck of a deal....but I bet I'll be waiting a hell of a long time before I see that $50 check in the mail.

quote:

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And the $249 Axim doesn't have enough RAM. 32M is marginal for a Pocket PC... adequate units start at $300.

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32MB is just barely enough. I have a 128mb SD card, so that's where I store most of my apps and media. But even with just the bare essentials installed I've used up about two thirds system memory.

quote:

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But I agree with you on the prognosis for Handspring....[snip]...It's a shame, but there you have it.

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Yep. It really is sad. Handspring looked so promising to us back in 99 and 2000. Now they are a pale shadow of their former self. In some ways I blame Hawkins. Springboard was a great concept, but beyond that he didn't prove to be the great innovator I believed him to be. SONY outmaneuvered him with truly brilliant hardware, and made improvements to the platform that we have needed for so long...like HIGH RESOLUTION screens. That in particular is sore spot with me. I remember back watching a smug Hawkins at PC Expo 2000, deliving his keynote, saying that higher resolution displays were unnecessary and served useful only for viewing photos. Shameful.

quote:

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In the meantime, I haven't found another Palm that's good enough to make me want to replace my Visor Prism. If Handspring made a color Pro with a modern screen, though, I'd be on it in a flash.

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Yeah, I've fallen back to my old M505 as my primary PDA (since returning my TT). But I desperately want an OS5/ARM based T-series style device with virtual graffiti. Sony will most likely be the first to offer that, I doubt Palm will.

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My blog: Pocketfactory

Last edited by foo fighter on 01-06-2003 at 02:00 AM

Registered: Mar 2001
Location: Nebraska- the Good life
Posts: 695

I find it pretty hilarious that the Handspring Visor Neo can stand so well on its own as a basic PDA against so many of the new offerings by both Palm and Sony, except for the OS version and a few other features.

I think that if Handspring would have re-engineered the Neo a bit (newer and/or flash OS, included memory-expansion Springboard module, updated case (possibly metal), and kept the price down), it would have siezed the market that the Zire and Sony SLs are going after- low end pricing/beginning or budget users.

Color and hi-res are great selling points, but I think most beginners would swap them for other features, such as better memory, customizability, simplicity, etc.- especially if HS took the time to create good Point fo Sale displays and informative brochures.

Also, being the leader in the low end of a product line is great becasue when it is time to trade up, a good percentage of customers will stick to the brand/system they know and have bought into (a good reason for including a Springboard module with the purchase! It also helps tie the customer to that product line!)

(... of course, this assumes that HS has something to 'trade-up' to! Right now, I don't think they do- I am still not massively impressed with the Treo 90, and a lot of places still can't use the Treo phones.)

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Do what you can, with what you have, where you are at!

Registered: Jul 2002
Location:
Posts: 120

Update

Here's an update of an article posted earlier. Hope it is helpful. If you like it, feel free to pass it along.

PPC simply has no good book reading soft(free)ware. Many people have come back to Palm (esp. Visors) because they cannot get a program like CSpotRun for reading text. I rather doubt that will happen because it simply is not a way to generate any $$.

It is entirely possible some folks will have a couple of different kinds of handhelds rather than one multimedia device that does everything but nothing well.

Here's the new article:

The New Joy of Reading - January 2003

Registered: Jan 2000
Location:
Posts: 391

Re: Update

quote:

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Originally posted by alight
PPC simply has no good book reading soft(free)ware. Many people have come back to Palm (esp. Visors) because they cannot get a program like CSpotRun for reading text.

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Rev. Peter da Silva, ULC<br>
<a href=http://www.taronga.com/~peter/>Ar rug t� barr�g ar do mhact�re inniu?</a>

Registered: Aug 2001
Location: ILLINOIS
Posts: 227

Mobipocket---Great but bloated--

Mobipocket is a great reader and free--
But it approaches 500k with all the accompanying files to run it--
As opposed to30k for C-Spotrun

I used Mobipocket happily for a year untill I needed the space---