Should I?

[RMCF]

Hmm, last chance to own a proper Sony Japan Clie?
Saw one on eBay for around 500 USD and though to myself maybe...

What do you think, worth the money?
Anything to be aware of, any unexpected problems (apart from the Japanese language)?

[dragonsgames]

Mine has had problems (I have the only one that has had them, doubt if you will) and I have seen two or three with CF issues... besides that, the screen and battery life is incredible :eek:

[Seymour]

RMCF, yep. You should go for it. I would recommend it - without hesitation. I can't explain (understand) the problems that Dragonsgames has had, all I know is that I've owned a large range of Sony CLIEs and they've all been terrific units with the VZ-90 no different. It's a fantastic unit.

CS

[RMCF]

I am a bit worried about the eBay though. The item is in Australia and that would be a nightmare if something was wrong with it.

Also, as I understand the unit has this black POS theme going on and some programs are incompatible. Are there any solutions to this?

[lmame]

I am a bit worried about the eBay though. The item is in Australia and that would be a nightmare if something was wrong with it.

Also, as I understand the unit has this black POS theme going on and some programs are incompatible. Are there any solutions to this?
I did not find some "VZ special" program problems... The black theme gives some issues to some software which are thinking all Palm OS devices have some "light" color background (who said white? :p ). This is the case of Filez, Mc File and some others.
So there are some "reading" issues, still, you can change the black theme, or in the Palm Preferences like any other Palm device, or using Palm Revolt for example.
Another issue is that... It is in... Japanese ;) , there are some translations (preferences, menus, Media Player, Netfront) but adding more and more programs eats RAM (but the VZ has quite some).

Another thing is that the VZ is not bluetooth inside (it can but you have to buy a dongle).
Another last thing is that the Wifi is only WEP... No WPA for example.

After that... it's heavier than a UX-50, but has a far better battery and a screen to die for ;)

[RMCF]

Japanese only in the default apps though? Say my iSilo is going to have English menus right?

If that is the case, there is no problem. I love Japanese only electronics, I even bough some obscure Sony remote control for my 5 year old laptop...

[lmame]

Japanese only in the default apps though? Say my iSilo is going to have English menus right?

If that is the case, there is no problem. I love Japanese only electronics, I even bough some obscure Sony remote control for my 5 year old laptop...


Yes Japanese in default apps ;)

[hope]

Mine had the CF issue. Well, it still has it but other than that its been flawless. It also randomly shut completely off once and the reason I believe was the battery became diconnected :confused:, go figure? Something became loose and it probably happened during shipping or the jarring I put it through.

Despite, I whole heartily recommend the device and would buy another one in a heart beat. Actually, I debated trying to sell it on Ebay and get another one. But, it might be easier to have Chris Short fix her up. Best of luck to you.

I too have had many a Clie's and they have been nothing but reliable. This is actually my very first problem with a Clie. Their made quite well and feel better in the hand compared to anything Palm has made as far as materials and construction.

[Seymour]

RMCF, I'm not the bloke in Australia selling it by the way... ;)

[bdhu2001]

I'm not as techno-savvy as the other users, but I say go for it. As far as e-bay, I'd probably try through the site outie found and spend a few more bucks. I'd hate to be penny-wise, pound-foolish. I brought up a lot of the software issues and most of them were resolved or has any on board alternative.

I use my VZ90 as an everyday device and the only drawback I have is the weight and no bluetooth. Everything else had a fix that worked w/o additional cost. Some of my fixes, such as using an earlier version of Doc To Go to work w/ Text Plus, I don't think would be needed if I played around with the various versions to find a good match. Some of the software that I previously ran from the card, I now run from the Palm, but I have more space and I'm sure that if I fiddled and tweaked some of those would still operate from the card.

I did a lot of experimenting with my previous UX to get programs to operate from MS and/ or internal media and I don't recall all the steps. If my system gets slow or I start running out of memory, I'll search the forum for the previous fixes. Basically, I'm happy as a lark and invite you to come and play!