PDA advice?

I'm planning on investing in a PDA, and am wondering if anyone has advice/recommendations?  Has there been any previous advice posted (I looked but didn't see anything)?

I need it primarily for phone and email - I have a laptop and am unlikely to want to use the PDA to surf the net or any major work on documents.  And, being in Vermont, I need to be able to connect via cell, rather than wireless.

Thanks so much, Christine

Hi Christine,

Your best options are probably getting either a Windows Mobile smartphone, a BlackBerry smartphone or a Palm smartphone.  The term "smartphone" (rather than PDA) is more commonly used nowadays to better describe the all-inclusive and more advanced features that come included in these newer devices.

If you want to use it for emails and for surfing the Web, you may need to buy a data plan from your cell phone provider.  But if you get a phone that has WiFi capability built-in, which enables you to use it to connect wirelessly to the Net from any wireless network ("hotspot") located in your area (office, coffee shop, home, etc.), then you may not need a data plan because many WiFi hotspots are free.  Plus, WiFi connections are often faster and there's no bandwidth cap (e.g., no limit to how much you can surf the Web, send emails, download stuff, etc.).

Myself, I personally own an HTC Excalibur S620 (Windows Mobile) phone that comes equipped with a WiFi connection.  I occasionally use it to surf the Web and access my emails.  It's an older smartphone, but a great device that has a pretty loyal user base out there.  Nice keyboard, lots of features and good support for it.  These days you can get one off eBay for about $150 (brand new) or less.  Plus I like phones that run on the Windows Mobile operating system because they have the familiar look and feel to Windows Vista/XP.  Good phone for my basic needs.

Yann

If you don't want the telephone in your PDA, you are going to have to look for a used Palm  (I'd suggest a T|X -- NOT a lifedrive) or windows PDA's as they are not made new anymore.  Another option is one of the Netbooks which really is a laptop with a smaller screen.

I'm using the PALM T|X and will cry if it breaks.

Dave

Personally, I'd recommend against a Windows Mobile smartphone.  I've used most of the major smartphone platforms available in the US.  Palm OS, Windows Mobile, iPhone, Blackberry (haven't tried the new Palm Pre yet).  Windows Mobile has been in my experience the worst of all these (I've used it on multiple hardware platforms and multiple versions: HTC, Palm, Motorola).  For what you're looking for, I'd recommend a Blackberry Curve.  It has a full keyboard, does email and telephone very well.  You can install additional applications on it (like Evernote and Google Mobile Apps), and most telephone carriers have a $30/mo data plan (plus whatever you need for the telephone plan) that will work with it.

Before you choose which one to use, however, check with your IT support to see which ones they would recommend to work best with your email system.  Some phones might incur an additional cost in order to make this happen (for example, the Blackberry might need to be upgraded to a more expensive data plan and also purchase a license for a server if you use Microsoft Exchange as your email server - but the iPhone and Windows Mobile don't require these).

Most cell phones allow to you to surf the web and get email (not just smart phones). So you will have lots of choices.

The big issues for you are what cell provider do you want. You are limited to AT&T and Verizon. If you travel to Canada or another country often get AT&T otherwise I prefer Verizon.

Screen size. You can go from  1.25 inches to about 7 inches. What is it you need to read. Personally I like being able to control pic/text size but that in mostly found in upper level cell phones (Apple, HTC).  You should consider getting a camera with you phone. I write stuff on boards, sheets of paper,  or just want to remember a meeting taking a quick pic makes things easy.

What ever phone you choice get it used,  hundreds sell on ebay everyday. Samsung Blackjacks, Motorola Q or Blackberry Curve 8310, If you do not need a camera get the Blackberry 8703. All these phones (I think) can be had for $100 or less on ebay.