bruceb news

I’ve used a Treo 650 for a few months now. The Treo 650 is one of the most popular devices combining cell phone and organizer functions, and all of the major cell carriers are now offering their own versions of the Treo 650. Here’s a few notes for anyone considering them.

• On the whole, I’m very impressed. It’s reasonably comfortable to use and most functions have worked reliably. It has successfully taken the place of my separate cell phone and Pocket PC. The keyboard is surprisingly usable.
• Mine has been troublefree, but there are a disturbing number of people complaining online that they’ve had to return defective units.

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Palm and PocketPC devices have been fading in the last couple of years. Sony dropped out of the market, Palm has had financial struggles, and there’s been no buzz for new features because almost no one uses the devices for anything except address book and calendar functions. There’s been increasing demand for devices that also display e-mail on the road; many PDAs began to incorporate 802.11 wireless networking, but that means the device is only updated when an open network is nearby. The Blackberry has been very successful for mobile e-mail access but it typically doesn’t include phone or PDA functions. […] continued

The last few months have been slow for e-mail hoaxes. DId you get any of the messages last week about registering your cell phone numbers with the national “Do Not Call” list to avoid waves of telemarketers? I got a few from well-meaning friends. It was a hoax. No deadline, no telemarketers getting lists of cell phone numbers, no worries.

You’re now able to retain your phone number when you switch cell phone providers. The FCC mandate went nationwide last week. Theoretically you can even move your landline number around – transfer it to your cell phone, for example.

It’s a decidedly mixed blessing. If you’re considering a switch, read this article about number portability. Here’s some of its points:

- You probably can’t use the same phone when switching carriers.

- Contracts still exist and are expensive to break.

- Additional fees may apply.

- Phones sold on auction sites aren’t always a great deal.

- New deals on service have more catches.

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Yesterday Sony unexpectedly announced that it was dropping development of its line of Clie handheld PDAs in the United States for the foreseeable future. It will continue to support existing customers and let existing stock sell out.

Analysts are warning that sales of conventional PDAs without built-in phones will nosedive soon, after being flat for the last two years. Devices built on Microsoft’s PocketPC system have now pulled even in sales with devices using the Palm OS, and Sony apparently decided it didn’t have a viable niche in the market.

For what it’s worth, I prefer PocketPC devices over Palms for three reasons:

- Fewer people have had syncing problems with PocketPCs in my experience.

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The handheld market slumped this year. Prices are down, speed and usability are up, but not very many people are buying.

After a few buyouts and burnouts, Palm and Sony are the only companies still making handhelds based on the Palm operating system. Palm has sexy new models hitting the market. The Zire 21 is bland but only $99. The Tungsten E has a pretty color screen at $199, and the Tungsten T3 has a stunningly beautiful color screen and lots of other good stuff at $399. Sony also has some new models, although The New York Times dismissed them with a sniff when it wrote a love note about the new Palm lineup recently (free registration required). […] continued

My new Dell Axim PocketPC looks just great. Although the $199 version would be just fine for everyday use, many people will appreciate the extra memory in the $299 version (64Mb instead of 32Mb) – and the $299 model includes the cradle to sit on the desk for syncing and recharging the battery. The cheaper one includes cables to do the same thing, nowhere near as elegant as the cradle, which looks very space-agey and has a cool blue Dell logo on the front that lights up when the Axim is inserted.

Dell has single-handed thrown the handheld market into disarray. […] continued

A great new buzz word has turned up. You’ve heard about “time shifting,” in which you use a video-recording device – a VCR or a TIVO – to delay the viewing of live content, such as TV shows.

This year will see the introduction of a wealth of portable video devices. Microsoft previewed Media2Go yesterday , a handheld multimedia device that plays videos, music, and photo slideshows. Media2Go is the size of a thick paperback book, with a 320 x 240 color screen and a 20GB hard disk. The interface, which is based on Windows XP Media Center Edition, allows simple navigation with menu choices such as My Music, My Videos, My TV Shows, and My Pictures. […] continued

As expected, Dell announced two new Pocket PC handhelds, breaking new ground for low prices at $199 and $299. Each has comparatively generous amounts of memory, built-in slots for CompactFlash and Secure Digital/MMC cards, and all the usual features that go along with Pocket PC systems. Very appealing – I hope the reviews don’t uncover some weakness, because these could turn the handheld market around.

By the way, don’t forget – if you install the software at home and office and buy an extra cradle, then the Pocket PCs can be a handy way to carry files from one place to another, and keep the address books and calendar in sync in two copies of Outlook. […] continued

You may not realize it, but Palm is struggling for its life, and many analysts don’t expect it to be in the handheld market for much longer – perhaps a few years, no more.

I think the devices running Microsoft PocketPC software are far superior to Palms – significantly better displays, and I’ve had far more luck making them work reliably with applications on a desktop computer. (Trust me – when Palms decide they don’t want to sync any more, they’re really annoying and hateful.)

But PocketPC devices have been wildly expensive. Toshiba has driven down the price recently, and Dell will be on the market later this fall with two models at $199 and $299, which might spark a freefall in prices. […] continued