Symbian p800 vs a Palm OS

[jofa]

So I am curious as to what makes the Palm OS better than the Symbian?

The reason I ask is because I am interested in the p800, but am only familiar with the Palm OS.

Thanks for your help!

[GavinSimmons]

One big difference between the Palm OS and Symbian is quantity of users. Much like the difference between Windows and Mac, there are WAAAAAAAAY more consumers who own a Palm OS device than a Symbian device, and therefore develpoers are more likely to make programs for the Palm OS which already has a wealth of titles. [Mac will always be better than Windows Crap though]
The end result.... Symbian has less software, the software is harder to find, and almost no (or totally useless) freeware. The most popular types of programs are definately around though. Not to worry. AND there are many developers out there who think Symbian is the OS of the future.

HOWEVER, if you do not need a whole lot of special software, or already know the programs you need exist for Symbian, the OS is reportedly stabler than Palm OS (like Palms ever crash that much). The interface is quite easy and the p800 is a beautiful phone at a price that makes sence.

I don't like those memory sticks though. The new little ones for the p800 only hold 16mb. The heck am I suppossed to do with that? Four MP3's? No one is really going to use this phone for spreadsheets! The sticks need to hold more stuff so we can watch videos and listen to MP3's on the phone. I suggest looking for a phone with a different type of memory media. I've seen SD's for sale that hold Gigabytes! 16mb? What is this like 6th grade? Are the people at Sony still playing Oregon Trail? Does the phone have a 5 1/4 drive too? If 32mb (16 flash, 16 memory stick) is enough for you, then you do not need to spend so much money on this phone. You need only invest in a small Nokia 5160 and a Palm Zire because this would qualify you as old-skool, Mr 1998.
And please note that I haven't had ANY Sony product last as long as it should..... that goes for earphones, VAIO's, walkmen, etc.. There crap dosen't last.
As for Ericsson.... I once knew a guy named Eric, and I did not like him at all. Draw your own conclusions.
I'm holding on to my i300 until the Motorola Smartphone is released. It uses a Linux based OS!!

[jofa]

HA! Gavin I have a feeling I like you very much.

Thanks for the info, very informative. Honestly I don't see needing much more software than what comes with the p800, so the stability of the Symbian seems just fine to me.

It's funny but I have only had good experiences with Sony, I have a TV, stereo components, walkman etc. all made by Sony and they have been more than satisfactory thus far. I even own a walkman that plays cassettes!!?!! Imagine that... it's true! And it still works.

Motorola is a good phone but I just like the the p800 a bit more, it's already going through the paces over seas so it should be ready by the time it gets here. I have one reserved at the SE site already so I'm in for the long haul.

Would you say Linux is better than Symbian? (Or just more popular?)

edit: Meant to say that I am almost positive that you can upgrade the phone to ~128 MB with cards.