Again, PalmOne proves Tungsten E is disposable crap...

[sceptre]

According to a post on Palminfocenter
(http://www.palminfocenter.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=24293&sid=0d0f12daa02e5e1fdef0dd4fb55b08e6),
PalmOne is officially charging Tungsten E users US $135 for battery
replacement service.

NO ONE in their right mind will do this because the cost of TE itself
was $200! PalmOne is forcing its users to throw out TE, and buy their
latest model! When the Li-ion battery wears out after 3 years from
first using the TE, you have to inevitably throw out the device.
Sorry, but putting $200 hard earned dollars into something you throw
out 3 years down the road is simply unacceptable.

It just proves Tungsten E was meant to be disposable. It was their
greed based masterplan afterall; using an internal battery that's hard
to change in their products, and then overpricing battery service
charges, forcing users to buy their latest crap model.

Buying a new TE battery from a battery store for $40 (e.g.
gethightech.com) is possible, but requires soldering skills to solder
the battery on. The average person cannot make use of this deal,
obviously.

Again, why would anyone want to buy a Palm these days with PalmOne
treating its customers like this?? It just simply amazes me how PDA's
like Dell Axim have features like removable battery, which its users
take for granted. Not only that, but it has better specs for your
money..

Dell Axim X30 Handheld is selling for $262 shipped. (w/ dell coupons
found in google searches) The specs include 624 MHz WMMX XScale
Processor w/ Integrated 802.11b + Bluetooth Wireless, 64MB SDRAM, 64MB
ROM, and removable battery.

The rumored Tungsten T5 specs won't even have half of this (read: NO
WI-FI) and will only have a permanent internal battery for $400. T5
will be another disposable product. Sorry but I, for one, am not
stupid to buy a Tungsten T5. Especially if it will cost TE users $135
one day when their permanent internal battery dies out on them one
day.

[ccastiglia]

With progress coming so fast these days, I cannot imagine being "stuck" with a handheld that is 4, 5, or six years old (assuming you could replace the battery in your "E" after three years at a reasonable cost).

Think of it as palmOne doing you a favor - "Honey, I hate having to spend our money on a new (faster/better/brighter) handheld but it just doesn't make sense paying $135 to put a battery in a device that only cost me $200 to begin with, does it?" :D

Carmine Castiglia
Area of a triangle with sides 3.250, 2.125, 6.562? (http://www.infosystemspro.com/palmosapps.htm)

[palmdoc88]

Great excuse ccastiglia. Gotta try out this one on the missus ;)

[sdsdsd]

Dell Axim X30 Handheld is selling for $262 shipped. (w/ dell coupons
found in google searches) The specs include 624 MHz WMMX XScale
Processor w/ Integrated 802.11b + Bluetooth Wireless, 64MB SDRAM, 64MB
ROM, and removable battery.

The rumored Tungsten T5 specs won't even have half of this (read: NO
WI-FI) and will only have a permanent internal battery for $400. T5
will be another disposable product. Sorry but I, for one, am not
stupid to buy a Tungsten T5. Especially if it will cost TE users $135
one day when their permanent internal battery dies out on them one
day.

So buy the Dell. You'll be stuck with a PocketPC device (not as usable as Palm OS, but it looks great on paper). Don't think for a minute that Dell won't drop Axim like a rock if they can't make the money they want on it. Or that they won't forget about the X30 when new Axims are introduced.

As for the T5, no one has a real grip on what it will offer, so to declare it poorly-featured and disposable at this point is a sheer guess. Besides, at $400, a battery replacement charge of even $135 does not make the product absolutely disposable. Steep, yes. And no doubt there will be better Palms out there, but probably not for the cost of battery replacement. Depending on your investment in software and peripherals, being able to replace the battery and keep on using the same device (rather than migrate to something else) might just be worth it.