PDA Advice for the Technophobe

[BubbleBobble]

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I posted this about two weeks ago in the Lounge, so I thought I would revive it here for anyone who was interested.

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Welcome to PDAs 101. 🙂

The following guide assumes two things:
1) You are a technophobe, and therefore want things as clearly stated as possible (all jargon explained).
1a) As such, I will keep my recommendations towards Palm PDAs, and not PocketPCs. I find that Palm is much simpler for those starting out, but will write a similar guide if anyone is interested.
2) You know what your needs are, or at least what they might be.

All PDAs can:
- keep track of addresses
- keep track of notes that you input
- keep to-do lists
- store email, assuming you download it to your PDA from your computer everyday
- "synchronize" the contents of the above with your desktop/laptop computer
- play basic games
- store electronic books/documents

And on the whole:
- more expensive -> more features
- more features -> larger/heavier/lower battery life

Let's start at the bottom.

For ~$50, the "starter" Palm handheld is the
Zire.
What you get:
- Black & White, low-resolution (180x180 pixel) screen
- 2 MB memory, which is sufficient for addresses, to-do lists, and notes.

For ~$90, the upgraded Zire 21 is the basic Zire package, plus:
+ 6 MB (for a total of 8 MB) memory
+ increased processor speed, which makes things load faster

For ~$150, the brand-new Zire 31 is everything that the Zire 21 is, plus:
+ 8 MB (for a total of 16 MB) memory
+ Color, low-resolution (180x180 pixel) screen
+ Secure Digital expansion slot for adding more memory
+ MP3 playback (expansion card required)

For ~$200, the Tungsten E includes everything that the Zire 31 has, plus:
+ 16 MB (for a total of 32 MB) memory
+ High-resolution (320x320 pixel) screen
+ Documents-To-Go, which is somewhat like Microsoft Office for the Palm - it does a fair job of allowing the user to display and edit Office documents

For ~$300, the Zire 72 has everything the Tungsten E has, plus:
+ integrated 1.2 megapixel camera
+ Bluetooth, a short-distance communication radio that allows your PDA to print wirelessly (with a Bluetooth printer), attach Bluetooth keyboards, and surf the internet wirelessly (with a Bluetooth cell phone)
+ further increased processor speed

For ~$400, there are two choices. The first is the Tungsten T3, which has everything the Tungsten E (note: *not* Zire 72!) has, plus:
+ further increased processor speed
+ "sliding" mechanism, allowing for either high-resolution (320x320 pixel) or high-ex-resolution (320x480 pixel)
+ Bluetooth, a short-distance communication radio that allows your PDA to print wirelessly (with a Bluetooth printer), attach Bluetooth keyboards, and surf the internet wirelessly (with a Bluetooth cell phone)

The other choice is the Tungsten C, which has everything the Tungsten E (note: *not* Zire 72!) has, plus:
+ further increased processor speed
+ vastly increased battery life
+ Wi-Fi, a medium-range communication radio that allows your PDA to access the internet from Wi-Fi "hotspots" found at most universities and some coffeeshops
+ integrated thumb keyboard, which serves as an alternative input method

My personal recommendations:
For life in the clinic, I would recommend either the Tungsten E unless you need a camera (Zire 72) or Wi-Fi (Tungsten C). This is a well-priced handheld that will do everything except take pictures and go online. For basic purposes, I would suggest either the Zire 31 or the Tungsten E. Color makes a pretty big difference.

I hope this guide was useful to you in your PDA ownership journey. 🙂

 

[Papking]

I am writing this message using wireless internet and my new pocketpc. i did some research before i bought and i found that the best product for its class is the HP IPAQ 4300 series. It has wireless plus a keyboard, which makes writing notes very simple. i was able to write down names and telephone numbers the other day during a conversation. Even the people who are good at using the handwriting software will not be able to write as fast without errors.

 

[Spacedman]

which of the above options do you think would be the *cheapest* way to carry around basic clinically useful programs, like pharm reference, mosby's, harrison's etc. i'm just looking for a cheap-ish way to avoid carrying around the books! (i don't really need a day planner or email etc etc etc).




thanks
spaced

 

[Gauss]

which of the above options do you think would be the *cheapest* way to carry around basic clinically useful programs, like pharm reference, mosby's, harrison's etc. i'm just looking for a cheap-ish way to avoid carrying around the books! (i don't really need a day planner or email etc etc etc).

There really is no cheap way with a pda. If you really want cheap just get the books. Otherwise your looking at least $200 for pda and then maybe another $100 for good programs. There are free ones, but you need something like 5mcc2004.

 

[Spacedman]

even used slightly older models? i seem to remember people having all those software goodies a couple years ago already... i just have no idea what used models would have enough power to be worth buying (like ~$100).

 

[BubbleBobble]

My own personal PDA is a Sony Clie SJ22. It's the cheapest PDA you can get that still has high-res (320x320) and color. I got it in December last year for about $50, but that was an unusual deal.

For brand new PDAs, without any type of holiday special, you can pick up the Zire 31 for about $140. You can pick up a refurbished SJ22 right now for under $100

 

[mikedc813]

Has anyone heard good/bad things about the Dell Axium X30? And for that matter, any decent pda should work for the clinic right? I'm going to be a 1st year and want to get a pda now for organizational purposes (my old one was lost last year) and just don't want to buy something only to later be told I need something else for school.

 

[bosky]

I was all set to buy a Sony Clie TJ37 (supposedly compatible with our hospitalsystem or something), but have heard that they're about to discontinue it - should I get something else? Thanks

 

[BubbleBobble]

Has anyone heard good/bad things about the Dell Axium X30? And for that matter, any decent pda should work for the clinic right? I'm going to be a 1st year and want to get a pda now for organizational purposes (my old one was lost last year) and just don't want to buy something only to later be told I need something else for school.

Axim X30s come in multiple flavors, ranging from ones with wireless to ones without. On the whole, they're well-priced for what they can do. I personally think they're a little pricey ($200+), but that's up to you.

 

[BubbleBobble]

I was all set to buy a Sony Clie TJ37 (supposedly compatible with our hospitalsystem or something), but have heard that they're about to discontinue it - should I get something else? Thanks

Sony Clies are being discontinued in the United States. I really like the TJ37, and would consider getting it regardless, but if you are afraid of being able to transfer everything from your new PDA to a future one, I would think about Palms or PocketPCs.

 

[Jaded Soul]

In my opinion, technophobes shouldn't even invest in PDAs. You'll know if you'll be inclined to use one regularly before you even buy it. A lot of my classmates went out and bought $200+ PDAs at the beginning of Year 3 thinking they would be at a disadvantage for having one. What do they use them for now? Games. Oh, and the calander--but not for it's scheduling capabilities, just to look up dates.

Otherwise, a nice little introductory guide to PDA ownership. 🙂

 

[IlianaSedai]

In my opinion, technophobes shouldn't even invest in PDAs. You'll know if you'll be inclined to use one regularly before you even buy it. A lot of my classmates went out and bought $200+ PDAs at the beginning of Year 3 thinking they would be at a disadvantage for having one. 🙂

Totally agree! I'd never have gotten myself one, but my bf gave me one for Christmas. I'm enough of a techie to enjoy using it and I use it regularly, but even though I DIDN'T BUY THE PDA, it is still costing me 2-3x AS MUCH MONEY to carry the pda on the wards than it would to buy a bunch of small books. And that's WITHOUT me actually buying the pda to start with. I'm grateful and I like it (and would be a helluva lot more disorganized without it), but it's expensive.