Author Topic: Dilemma: iPhone3G vs. New Palm (Read 2928 times)

MamaMoose · « **on:** January 23, 2009, 09:18:49 PM »

Palm recently announced a new PDA with a touch screen that seems to equal that of the iPhone. It is also a true PDA. I now have a Pam Treo 680 which is also a true PDA and I use the address, notes, and WiFi features. I had just about decided to switch to the iPhone but now hesitate because 1) I can immediately transfer my 600 contacts to the new Palm. I could do the same in going from the Treo to the iPhone however not all the info in a given contact would transfer properly;2) I wont have to struggle with using the miniature keyboard Edith my ft fingers; and 3) I am worried about the ability of the Palm Co. to stay in business.

My question is whether the seamless address book transfer and the PDA capabilities of the Palm outweigh the simplicity and capability of the iPhone 3G. Note, I mobile phone ISP is ATT so I will have all the problems that the network has with either phone.

I would like to here from my TS brethren and sistren (that doesn't sound right) about their thoughts about the iPhone especially its PDA capabilities.

Thanks, MamaMoose

Mayo · « **Reply #1 on:** January 23, 2009, 09:36:14 PM »

Some comparisons/reviews, but the Palm Pre is going to be available via Sprint, not ATT; are you referring to another Palm phone?

http://www.pcworld.com/businesscenter/arti...s_palm_pre.html

http://i.gizmodo.com/5126870/in-a-nutshell...vs-iphone-vs-g1

http://reviews.cnet.com/smartphones/palm-p...erColumnArea1.1

http://www.macworld.com/article/138117/iphonevspre.html

sandbox · « **Reply #2 on:** January 24, 2009, 05:47:27 AM »

yo mama,

The Pre has a lot of neat options in it and I doubt they'll be going out of business anytime soon.

It will be a Sprint only option though. If Sprint is a better network in your area go for it. It comes down to the network in the end.

MamaMoose · « **Reply #3 on:** January 24, 2009, 06:04:23 AM »

Thanks all for the heads up. I would prefer Sprint over ATT. Since the Palm Pre won't be out until later this year, I will wait and see if a newer version of the iPhone appears that is more like a PDA.

MM

Xairbusdriver · « **Reply #4 on:** January 24, 2009, 09:41:03 AM »

I don't even think of the iPhone as a phone. That's just extra. To me, it's a portable and very usable computer with new and useful apps coming every day. It's almost total integration with the same apps on my home computer seem unequaled by any other "smart" phone I've heard of. But that's just my opinion (even if shred by some others). I would very much encourage you to wait for more definitive and actual usage reports on the Pre, all we know from Palm is PR, although there are several reports from some developers with much more technical knowledge who dispute that there is anything new in the hardware and especially the software. Apparently, the "multi-apps-at-once" is similar to the Widgets on a Mac, not actual apps that are doing anything in the background as the multiple processes on a Mac and basically the same as on the iPhone. But, aside from that, the real test is what is developed for it and how well it actually works. Not being a 'texter' I am still amazed at those who tout the tiny keyboards many of these phones provide. But it is curious that the Pre also includes a touch screen keyboard, although it operates in only one orientation.

In what I've read, and I have no personal experience, at all, it sounds like the basic Palm functions with a new interface. If those functions serve you well now, I see no reason to change hardware.

As for the companies long-term survival, there are many differing opinions and many see this as the last attempt to stop the erosion of their dwindling market share. For the sake of competition and the livelihood of their employees, I hope the Pre is a great success!

Mayo · « **Reply #5 on:** January 24, 2009, 06:46:55 PM »

The main difference between the iPhone and Palm Pre that makes me select the iPhone is that the Pre is a CDMA phone, while the iPhone is GSM. GSM will work pretty much anywhere outside the U.S., while CDMA will not. So if you plan on using your cell phone while traveling in Europe or elsewhere a GSM phone is the one to choose...

MamaMoose · « **Reply #6 on:** January 25, 2009, 12:06:47 AM »

Thanks everyone. I am going to wait and see. I really do not have to make a decision until late 2009 and who knows what goodies Apple will come up with by then.

MM

krissel · « **Reply #7 on:** January 28, 2009, 03:46:17 AM »

Palm may be facing some grief from Apple's patents.

http://biz.yahoo.com/cnbc/090127/28879787.html?.v=16

http://patft.uspto.gov/netacgi/nph-Parser?...mp;RS=7,479,949

Paddy · « **Reply #8 on:** January 28, 2009, 08:01:52 AM »

I wouldn't make any judgements based on the reviews that have been posted so far - those were from people who were allowed to look at and handle the Pre while surrounded by Palm employees...and are based on a few minutes, not hours of taking the thing through its paces. So far, I've not read of anyone who has actually made a phone call on one of them either. It does look pretty impressive - but it's still maybe 6 months from actual release.

RHPConsult · « **Reply #9 on:** February 03, 2009, 10:45:21 AM »

Tom:

I don't know how many TeeEssers beside you and I are/were Palm-sters. . . . from the beginning.

I bought my first PalmPilot in the late 80s (in an undergound shopping mall in Toronto during a wintertime client visit!). Used it faithfully for at least 15 years, through 3-4 variants, including a HandSpring. Several years ago, I even sprang for Palm's GPS attachments. Waste o' money . . . real money.

It finally drove me krazy with

failed syncing
regular demands for resets (hard and soft), mostly on-the-road
etc.
etc.

Still it was better than the BOSS pda that preceded it. I even switched to that highly-touted Sync utility from an entrepreneuria Los Gatos company that was supposed to be the perfect-solution-to-absolutely-everything. Don't believe it.

Don't worry your aging head about moving your key data. "Seamless" was how I initially/cuatiously moved all my contacts and calendars from the Palm file/folder into OSX's AddressBook and Calendar and, 2 years ago the incorporation (super-seamless, of course) of both into my iPhone. Nothing could have been easier/trouble-free. Interestingly, even Palm's "categories" came along for the ride. No longer useful, but there they are in Comments, in AddressBook.

Remember: it ain't a phone, it's a Mac that's also a phone.

MamaMoose · « **Reply #10 on:** February 04, 2009, 12:11:26 AM »

Dick how did you do the syncing? Please expound.

Thanks,

an Aging MamaMoose

RHPConsult · « **Reply #11 on:** February 04, 2009, 12:56:15 AM »

Palm<––>Mac?

Palm––>AddressBook?

AddressBook ––>iPhone?

MobileMe––>Mac(s)/iPhone?

Which?

News:

Author Topic: Dilemma: iPhone3G vs. New Palm (Read 2928 times)