Hoping to pick your brains.

[cem21]

Hi--I was hoping I could get some opinions from you guys. I am a medical resident who loves PDAs who is in desperate need of upgrading and willing to pay for it. I would like a big screen, wireless capability, good ergonomics, decent performance. I will have to carry this around in my pocket all day. I am drooling over the VZ90, but am wondering if it is too much of a brick and too much of a pain to change the Japanese UI. I am also looking at the Tapwave Zodiac. Can anyone with experience with either/both devices offer me any advice? Thanks so much.

CMag

[DaVinci's Palm]

Hi,

I'm not a VZ user but I thought I would chime in here. you mentioned that you are into PDAs, but didn't mention what you are upgrading from. I'm a ux user and would strongly suggest one if they were still readily available, maybe you could find one on ebay. (Seems to fit your requirments.)

I know a couple of docs that use palms in their practices and the main concern for them is being able to run huge med databases. The Zodiac may be a good choice for you as it has tonnes of memory and a nice screen. Might be a little "unprofessional" looking if you need to use it in front of patients. (Not sure I would want my doctor taking notes on a game machine...)

The T5 could be a good choice for you also. No wifi though, although you could make due with a bluetooth cell phone.

VZ is a very cool handheld, but may require more hacking to get as functional as a palmOne handheld out of the box.

just my 0.02

[lmame]

The VZ needs indeed a little hacking for english software (preferences and so on), but it's not so hard :)
There are english versions (Cliepet for most of them and JAmerican for media Launcher and Netfront) in VZ and UX forums.

The great thing on VZ is the screen AND the battery, it so so much better than TH55, you can't even imagine the autonomy :)

The cons are the weight (difficult in a pocket) and no keyboard...

The UX would be cool for you as it has a keyboard and very little weight and dimensions, but the screen is a bit little and the autonomy is quite bad...

[CliePet]

> I am a medical resident...
> ...wireless capability, good ergonomics
> I will have to carry this around in my pocket all day.

You don't mention which wireless, but I assume you mean WiFi.
Got too many PDAs myself, but my best advice is:

Winner: TH-55
Long battery life, full screen, professional look (don't flip it open like a StarTrek communicator when in public ;-), portrait orientation, WiFi, memory stick not exposed, voice recorder, ...

Runner up:
UX-50: good alternative. Similar to the TH-55, but battery life is too short (need extended battery), landscape orientation. Has WiFi and BlueTooth and usable keyboard too.

Losers:
VZ-90: too big to carry around (too expensive and may get stolen), no voice recorder
TapWave: short battery life, no Wifi (**), easy to hold in the hand but looks unprofessional (taking notes or playing games?), no voice recorder
palmOne: T3/T5 - no WiFi (**), shorter battery life, no voice recorder in T5

** - WiFi cards are available for the palmOne and Tapwave devices - but they stick out and are not good to have in your pocket.

[Pdaman]

If you will carry your pda all the days in bag or something like that, then VZ-90 is the BEST choice, but if you will carry pda all the time in pocket then Th55 is the winner, because VZ-90 is just toooooo heavy, trust me...

[cem21]

Thanks all--I'd be upgrading from a Palm Tungsten E, which I actually like, but need Wifi. The TH55 looks really nice, but where the heck would I find one?

[SonyStyle]

ebay or expansys