PDA phone combo

i have been using a treo300 for 2 years and am anxiously awaiting the new 600 or 610 or whatever that is supposed to include bluetooth. we probably will not know until it comes out and is tested with the prius

 

The web site www.phonescoop.com provides info on all current and proposed phones. Unfortunately there doesn't seem to be a PDA/bluetooth/phone combo that has been officially announced. The Palm 610, if at all, seems to be a ways in the future.

I simply have my Kyocera 7135 Palm/phone combo that I carry with me all the time and then a separate account that shares minutes with a Siemens bluetooth phone that I keep in my car. Its a bit of a pain but the 7135 is so useful I won't give it up for just a phone with BT.

 

i agree, danny. i have been active there for probably 2 years. not as much any more because i'm still on my original treo300. but i still check the site daily for new info, and info i got there helped me with developing ringtones for the treo300 and 600 which i have now sold on the web for 18 months or so...

it's the treo equivalent of priuschat! :mrgreen:

 

If you don't mind getting a both a phone and a PDA, which is something I'd actually recommend over a Treo for various reasons, I'd recommend a Siemens S56 (can be had for around 50, maybe less) and a Palm Tungsten T2 (you can find them now on closeout for around 220).

Both are Bluetooth devices, and I have my T2 configured to surf the web using the phone as it's modem. It's not the fastest thing in the world, but it does work.

The Siemens S56 is just a great lil phone. It's not a flip phone, but I had one of those and after sitting on it and snapping the antenna a few times, I decided a flip was not for me. The quality of the BT thru the Prius is fantastic.

Just my .02

 

The s56 is an incredible phone and I use it with my iPAQ 4155. I look forward to the iPAQ 6300 which will be BT - WI-FI and GSM. It should be out later this year but until then the S56 is incredible.

Peace,

Fr. Bill

 

as we say at treocentral.com, no keyboard, no deal... it seems like folks either feel that way, or couldn't care less about the keyboard. i will have more of a decision to make when i get my prius and give up onstar with personal calling, which i like a lot.

 

I am getting the HP h6315 when it comes out...bluetooth, WiFi, and GSM...here is a pic from "pdaphonehome.com"...

 

yeah, i saw this at gizmodo.com. pretty neat. will have to see if it works with the prius. the other neat one coming out sometime is the motorola mpx.

 

most pda and phone cameras hare neat for capturing a well-lit (outside is best) shot that you would have otherwise missed, but not as a substitute for a regular digital camera, though that is not far away at this point. some phones in the pipeline are up to 2 megapixels.

as for video, remember that video is just a series of rapidly taken stills, typically 30 frames per second, 60 on better cameras. but that adds up to a lot of memory space compared to what is in most phones/pda's. so again, maybe 10 seconds of motion that you might have otherwise missed, but not a big deal in the grand scheme.

as always, some individuals get great use out of these features because they fit in well with their needs. so it depends. i have had my treo300 for 2 years now, still love it, and hope it lasts a while longer though i am probably pushing it on the life of the battery pack, which is not user replaceable.

however, now that camera resolutions are getting decent, i am starting to get hot for some of the really new stuff, particularly the motorola MPX, due in the fall.

http://www.brighthand.com/article/Motorola...rst_Impressions

 

Re: PDA

If you don't mind losing the extra sliding screen space, I'd recommend the Palm Tungsten T2. It's on closeout for around 200 now, and altho I paid a bit more for mine, I'm very happy with it.

 

Unfortunately, at this time the iPAQ 6315 does not work with the Prius BT system. If anyone figures out how to make it work please let me know.

Peace,

Fr. Bill

 

Correction:

THE IPAQ DOES WORK WITH MY BELOVED PRIUS. You cannot use the built in phonebook or dialer (yet) but the handsfree works better than my s56. I can actually dial using my pocket PC speed dial and regular dial padwhile moving down the road( Safety is always first). I may even be able to use voice command. I will post more info and pictures when I get a chance.
:clap:

 

I've been reading through this and related threads, and have gone to Brighthand.com, but I'm still a bit confused. I'm hoping someone can help me figure out what to get.

First off, I'm a serious Mac user. I have a G4 dual processor, and a 2-year old Titanium powerbook. I also have 2 iPods, one of which I plan to keep in my new Prius (when it finally arrives!) so I can listen to books and music while driving.

I'd like to keep a list of contacts and a calendar in the new device I'm planning to buy. A high priority for me is the ability to sync it up with my Mac addressbook and calendar.

My current cell phone is 2 years old. I rarely use it more than 80 minutes a month. I don't chat on the phone while driving. If I use it while driving, it's to call and say I'm late, or some other 1 minute or less conversation. (I'm very concerned about the dangers of driving and talking on the phone.) I like the idea of using the phone hands free in my new Prius.

I have to travel a bit for business, and would love to have access to my e-mail (I use the Mac mail program at home, and Comcast webmail away from home) without having to lug my laptop with me.

I have two digital cameras; I keep the older one in the car for "emergencies." It might be nice to be able to take pictures with the new device, but it's not essential.

I'd like to keep a list of contacts and a calendar in the new device I'm planning to buy.

Oh, and it has to be small enough to fit in the tiny purse I carry.

I live in Los Angeles (in terms of phone reception).

Okay ... can anyone recommend a device that will meet my needs? And not cost a huge fortune?

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(ggalanti\";p=\"52970)</div>

This is pretty easy. A bluetooth equipped phone will do everything you've outlined above. The only catch is to make sure your powerbook has bluetooth on it. If it doesn't, you can pick up an inexpensive bluetooth adapter from ebay for under $20 (I got mine for $10).

I use my bluetooth phone to do pretty much everything you've described above. I keep my desktop and palm synced to it. I use it as a modem for my palm (and theoretically my laptop, but I find I don't use that as much). And it also does the handsfree in the prius.

The only catch here is if you plan to use it as a wireless modem extensively, make sure your plan supports data! My Cingular plan is 1.99/mo for data, and the minutes come out of my regular plan minutes. My data usage tends to come in spurts, so it isn't so bad once you factor in rollover minutes.

You can get a nice bluetooth phone for around $100. Cingular has 2 in the 100-130 range, both of which are camera phones. Cingular, unlike verizon, doesn't cripple their bluetooth phones so any pictures you take you will be able to pull from your camera using your computer.



Hope this helps...

-jon