TH55 vs. T3

[Anzoth]

I´m trying to decide between the Palm T3 and the TH55. I need to synchronize with Outllok (my corporate standard) as well as use spreadsheets and Word docs. I also like to read e-books and play LOTS of MP3 files (I use MusicMatch jukebox on my PC and a Lyra MP3 player to play MP3 pro files). Any input on SD cards vs. memory sticks?.

Any advice will be appreciated.

:confused:

[Moose Man]

I've ordered a TH55 and currently use a T3. The T3 has several issues which PalmOne has not yet fully resolved. It's turns on automatically if you set a reminder for a Birthday that's more than 5 days in advance of that event. It does support nearly all of the Outlook fields and uses a proprietary conduit to do so - therefore if you use someother PIM program besides the core PalmOne apps then most of them do not support these additional fields.

The landscape mode is great for spreadsheets and of course Documents to Go is bundled into the ROM of the T3. Now here is where it gets stupid, IMHO, the wireless keyboard that can be used with the T3 and in landscape mode can only be done in Left Hand Mode - This LHM is a function of the T3 whereby you can choose if your left or right handed and the buttons are there fore placed accordingly but the vast majority of people in the world are right handed so using the keyboard in left hand mode is a problem.

Regarding SD cards versus MS cards - I plan on not using any SanDisk cards because of their lack of quality control. I've had bad luck with them and they did cause PalmOne to have to issue an immediate update to their SD drivers that came with the initial shipments of the T3 due to some loss of data issues.

The T3 can not (without additional software) use the SD card as a "mounted drive" with your PC. The files that you share with the SD card must be in a Palm format. Sony has an advantage here where by the MS stick is mounted as another drive of your PC and can thus exchange files in just about any format. The only downside is that it's proprietary in it's design. But if you use everything else with a Sony brand you can start carrying/exchanging stuff with other Sony devices.

Now I'm by no means in expert on the Sony Clie's but I do consider myself pretty vearsed with Palms and I've owned a T615 and T665 so there is a little bit of history. If the TH55 lives up to my expectations with regards to the PIM applications - the T3 will be relegated to the scrap heap.

[orol]

not to mention TH55 can play mp3z for almost 25 hours!! compared to just 5 on T3 .. simply put the battery stamina is WAY better on TH55

[Cyker]

Good post Moose - very informative :)

As for the TH55 vs T3 question, in your case I'd go for the T3 - To get the most out of the TH55 it looks like we'll have to use Sony's own PIM proggy - If we use Palm Desktop or Outlook a lot of stuff will only be accessible on the TH55 only because Palm Desktop and Outlook don't support them.

The TH55 does not have built-in landscape support, and at this time I do not know whether DTG has implemented their own specific support for landscape on a TH55.

MP3s is no problem - Both can play them, although the TH55's better batterylife will let it play for longer :)

SD vs MS - nothing in it really. They both do the same thing, and since it's likely you'll only use them with the PDA it makes no difference either way.

Personally I think SD is better designed (Didn't have a silly 128MB limit like MS, which Sony had to workaround with MS Pro and break the standard in the process!), but I like the shape of MS' better. *shrug* Horses for courses as the saying goes :)

[Moose Man]

Thanks Cyker :)

Also to note: WiFi versus Bluetooth may have an issue on your corporate network. If you use WiFi at work then your only option is of course the TH55 which had some influence on my decision due to home office situation. The T3 when purchased, I was using a SonyE T615 phone then my company went to Sprint and the Bluetooth quickly became unusable in my particular situation.


You could add a BT card (when available) to the TH55 but the MS cover on the Clie may prevent or cause some issues with any MS device other than just memory.

I'm starting to think that since Cobalt (OS6) has been announced by PalmSource that it will be primarily used on smart phones then we might all be better off waiting (not) for the ultimate converged device if we want all the bells and whistles.

I plan on using the WiFi at home for portability and syncing without the cradle and not much else.

But when your deciding about T3 verus Th55 - this difference needs to be considered even if neither is applicable to your company's platforms.

[Domhnull]

I thought about this too. Things I didn't like about the T3:
- slider!!
- battery life
- lack of wi-fi
- Documents to Go in ROM

I'm sure it would work fine for someone else but those features were big drawbacks for me.

The TH55 has a camera I don't really need but I'll probably snap quick shots with it since it's there. Otherwise it's pretty much exactly what I want for me needs.

[Cyker]

The main thing I hate about the TH55 is that it has no up-down buttons or d-pad :)

[Moose Man]

Domhnull:

The slider is a bigger pain then many may realize. You need to open it to input in most cases although the T3 does have the ability to graffiti input anywhere on screen but after you load the typical TextPlus or other inputting accelerator - you typically have to have VG screen available.

Virtual Fitaly is great but won't work unless the screen is maxmized.

The 320 X 480 screen, the PIM, and WiFi are just some of the reasons for the "buy". It also helped that I had a waiting purchaser of the T3 who will convert from PPC Axim mode back to Palm OS.

[Tuma]

I also have T3 and preorder TH thru BB. The only thing I really like is the landscape mode on T3. I will miss that feature on TH though, but TH's features really outshine T3... not to mention mp3 really sounds better on Clie. I can't listen to mp3 on T3 with Real player... very low bass response. Just my 2 cents.

[enderenya]

yeah, hopefully Sony's proprietary audio is still on the TH55 along with the PalmOS audio. I don't think Sony would go with bad-sounding audio quality.

Anyone's thoughts comparing an NX or TG with a UX on audio quality? Any noticeable differences?

Anzoth, I think the TH55 would be ideal for ebooks and mp3 playing. I'm really excited to get one. Hopefully it won't be too long.

[depret]

Anzoth et al: The T3 issues are good information. I am sure TH55 issues are coming but it will have to be a trade off versus personnel needs.

I have great expectation regarding the TH55. Hopefully, I can read all the issues on the TH55 which should soften the blow.

[joejoe]

My issues were the battery life (beyond dreadful for my needs) & the slider which eventually caused digitizer issues. Since I always input with graffiti, the latter problem was no small matter. Without those two problems, I would have already purchased a T|3 for its feature set was quite appealing for its price point & Sony appeared to be dragging its feet on releasing a comparable unit.

It's highly *unlikely* that the TH55, by virtue of all its features & the ground-breaking Clie Organizer, will not have problems of its own. For example, who would have thought the TJ35, on paper a much simpler PDA, would have critical backlight issues?

We should all know within a couple of weeks of its release in the US what the weak spots are. Until that time, we can only make educated guesses based on the first reviewers experiences.

[ssulux]

since i could get the europe version of the th55 so bt would not be an issue for me, thus th55 is better since it has a built in wifi.

what i concern is power.
it seems to me that the th55 will be very slow for spreadsheet while t3 is excelent in this area. yes, it is true that t3 battery life is sucks and th55 would have a good batt life, but i think i could manage the t3 by recharging it on daily basis (and the car charger as a guardian angel ... :)).

for now, i find myself carrying the t3 (with the se t630 + se hbh35) in my pocket while keeping the nx80 in my briefcase (incl. the cf modem, cf wifi, 1gb cf card and msbt).

also 1gb sd card is cheper than 1gb ms pro.
so let's see how the sony handheld engine will perform.
new clie organizer is attractive but i don't think it will be a killer app for me.
the th55 almost a perfect pda for me but the power??????

[enderenya]

<laugh> POWER!!!!! The quest for Power goes on.

[hotweiss]

I'm having the same problem when making this decision, but I think I'll have to go with the TH55. The main reason is the battery life. The 3 hours that the T3 provides just isn't enough; I heard some people say that it is as low as 2 hours.

[evangel]

Originally posted by Cyker
As for the TH55 vs T3 question, in your case I'd go for the T3 - To get the most out of the TH55 it looks like we'll have to use Sony's own PIM proggy - If we use Palm Desktop or Outlook a lot of stuff will only be accessible on the TH55 only because Palm Desktop and Outlook don't support them.

Not necessarily... check out THIS (http://www.cliesource.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=42122) post as it has some updated information on this (for some) critical issue.

It's not the perfect solution, but it does mean that we can use the new features in the Sony PIM when we choose to, but still maintain all of our data in Outlook for the corporate environment.

[Cyker]

Yeah that's what I meant: The 'Standard' PalmOS Sync stuff will still be shared with HotSync+PalmDesktop or IntelliSync+Outlook or MissingSync or ColdSync or whatever, but all the TH55+ClieOrganiser specific stuff won't be transferred :)

[little-man]

Originally posted by Moose Man
the T3 will be relegated to the scrap heap.

How 'bout you just give it to me instead ;)

[jhintonh]

Good Evening-

This is a no-brainer for me as I have entirely too much "Sony-Only-Stuff" (i.e. Memory Sticks, keyboards, etc.). It was the defining factor for me when the T3 arrived. I was very tempted, but I had faith in Sony. It appears they may have finally come through for me. However, I will hold my judgment until such time as I can "put mitts" on it (hold it). If it feels like a heavy HP calculator then I will probably swing to the T3 myself.

-Jhintonh

[Moose Man]

Originally posted by little-man


How 'bout you just give it to me instead ;)

Sorry - it's already spoken for. :(

[Anzoth]

Thx for all the valuable input guys. Guess we´ll have to wait for the first reviews from owners once they ship a good number of units. On paper Sony seems to be the way go.

[madmaxmedia]

I'm suprised no one has mentioned this- the T3 is DECIDEDLY inferior in sound quality to the Sony CLIE's. It has nothing to do with the sound API's, it has to do with the hardware. It's not easy to pack in all those electronics and not have sound quality affected.

I've owned a N760 in the past, used a T3 and Zire 71, and now own a TG50. There is a clear difference when listening to headphones. Without headphones it doesn't matter since you're listening to a small, crappy mono speaker.

[little-man]

well, to me it doesn't matter which one is better. I'm waiting for cobalt (formerly OS 6) as I see no point in buying a PDA that will be obsolete in a matter of months.