Need a vs. clie comparison

[asdfff]

As with many med students, I'm on a shoestring budget. Recently I've been consider a Sony Clie SJ20 or SJ22 off eBay-- both are very entry-level, have 16 megs and are expandable, and the Palm OS loaded on there isn't out of date (yet). It's either barebones clie or all-the-way Tungsten.


They certainly aren't as pretty as the Zires but it saves the premium I would otherwise drop for the pretty chassis...


I'm asking for input from ppl on this board who have used clies--is the Memory Stick very troublesome? If, for example, I wanted to move some of Docs to Go's program files on a memory stick...or load ebooks on the Stick...run programs off the Stick...or basically do what I normally can with MMCs in Palmone PDAs, are there notorious issues I should be aware of?


Also, any other buyer-beware information for the SJ20/22? I was looking at S320/360 earlier but people have been telling me that the On/Off button dies very easily.

[dwinget]

I have not owned a Clie before. However, I have observed the following differences between the SJ series Clie and the Tungsten:

1. The SJ series run Palm OS 4.xx . The Tungsten devices have Palm OS 5.xx.
2. The SJ series lack the 5 way navigation buttons.
3. The SJ series have really good battery life.
4. The SJ20 does not have multimedia support. There is no headphone jack nor microphone. It is a very basic organizer.
5. As a student on a shoestring budget, I think you find SD cards to cost less than Memory Stick.
5. Tungsten T2, T3, and T5 have a lot more internal memory than the SJ Clie devices. In my opinion, 16MB is not enough memory for installing programs.
6. The SJ Clie does not have bluetooth.
7. The OS on the SJ series is not upgradeable since the rom chip cannot be flashed.

Conclusion:

If you need a big screen, lots of memory, bluetooth, and want to avoid Memory Stick, then the Tungsten devices would be the better choice.

As a very entry level device without bluetooth, the Tungsten TE would probably offer as much, if not more, than what the Sony Clie SJ series have to offer. Out of curiosity, how much money is being asked for the SJ20? You might consider which PDA gives you the most bang for the buck.

Ultimately, you need to decide what features are important to you and then make a decision. Good luck.

[PalmTealLover]

1. Displays on Clies tend to be very nice indeed.
2. I like the controls better on T devices and the TE is a good "lower priced" choice.
3. With either model (Clie or T) you're better off since you'll actually be able to install more than one file at a time during hotsynch - a "feature" apparently missing on the T5 model but one Palm users took for granted a very long time!
4. I too would go with the Palm model (older is ok - T1/T2/T3/TE) since 3 friends of mine had Clies and ALL of them broke.
5. Being able to do things with flash ROM is important (perhaps "later on") - the T5 has a whacked-out pseudo-flash, pseudo-protected data that really isn't flash OR protected, and IMHO a COMPLETE waste of time.

No matter what you choose I think you'll be spending less and getting a BETTER PDA choosing either of the older models - but I think Palm would serve you better now and after you've had it a while and are actively searching for new apps and things to do with it. Older Palms are if nothing else, extremely "tweakable."

[egarc]

I have a Clie TH55 and absolutely love it. That said, my recommendation is to go with a Tungsten.

I agree wholeheartedly with PalmTealLover's post but would like to add that Sony has killed developer support for the Clie. What that means is that if a new developer comes up with a new gotta have whiz-bang application, they will not have the resources to support the Clie. You can expect developer support for any Tungsten model for the foreseeable future.

Good luck!

[dwinget]

I want to add another tip if you want to get a device you want, but can't afford it. I would recommend looking at an "open box" deal from palmOne. There are sometimes free gifts bundled with the open box items such as memory cards, keyboards, etc.

http://store.palmone.com/family/index.jsp?categoryId=1179667&clickid=mainnav_outlet_txt

The highest priced devices listed right now are $199. Most are listed at a lower price. Have fun shopping!

[RodneyCyr]

Having owned three Clie's (NX70 and 2xN760) I have some observations:

1) Both N760's had problems - one had a loose screen, the second had an unresponsive screen and frequent wierd crashes.

2) The NX70 worked fine for several years until it took a bath.

3) I now have two Tungstens - one "E" and one "T5". No problems so far with either one.

Nonetheless, my impression of the Tungsten is that it is not as well made as the Clie. The case and buttons seem flimsy, and the hotsynch/charging cables appear less robust.

Further, the Tungstens come with fewer goodies such as hot-sync cradles than did the Clie's. And the Clie's chargers were dual voltage (100vac to 250) so they work in Europe.

The Tungsten E and some other models come with a USB-only connector, making it difficult or impossible to add many types of third-party accessories. (The connector-type of many Clie models have the same problem.) If you think you might want to add accessories later, do some research first.

Admittedly, all of my Clie's and Tungstens are higher-end models than what you are looking for. I don't know what the SJ models come with.

[dwinget]

The power adaptor bundled with my T3 and most other palmOne devices have dual voltage.

Regarding accessories for the TE, there are not many available which are compatible with the cradle connector. The TE does not have the Universal Connector. Quite a number of the newer accessories rely on wireless connectivity, which means you basically need bluetooth or infrared. Bluetooth is easier to use than infrared. You don't have to keep the ports lined up.

[minzawaung]

No comparison!!

Go for ANY pda with SD/MMC card support
PLease DO NOT buy memory stick products
i.e SONY

Q 1 Could you name ANy PDA Pocket PC or Palm OS use memory stick other than SONY ?? None

Q.2 Could you name any camera /phones use memory stick other than SONY??? None


ALL 99.9% use SD/MMC

The message is SD card is the future proof format .the cheaper ,the more efficient ,smaller and already registered with 800+ companies world wide other than pathetic memeory stick registered with "the one and only "SONY

Sony have lost wars on VHS vs BETAMAX(obsolete)
then minidisc (obsolete)
now memory stick!!!
Now CLIE(withdrawn from pda market) with memory stick
histories repeating itself multiples for SONYsss..


:cool:

[genoahous]

Originally posted by dwinget
The power adaptor bundled with my T3 and most other palmOne devices have dual voltage.The ones in US (Canada?) still ONLY support 120VAC. ARRGH!!

[dwinget]

Here in Hong Kong, most of the PDAs have dual voltage adaptors. The electrical outlets in HK are UK style and have 220V. The adaptor that came with my T3 has a US style plug that folds up. When folded, an attachment can snap into place to change the shape of the connector to a 'T' shape.

You might be able to order one of these international adaptors from palmOne.