Monday, October 4, 2004
PalmOne Releases Tungsten T5
Posted by Ed Hansberry in "THE COMPETITION" @ 12:00 PM
http://www.palmone.com/us/products/handhelds/tungsten-t5/
PalmOne has released the latest version of their flagship PDA, the Tungsten T5. The first thing you'll notice about it is it is a fixed size rather than having the sliding base that extended the screen from a 320X320 to 320X480 screen.
Some of the key features that may be of interest to Pocket PC users:
• It is priced at $399. For comparison, this is in the same range as the iPAQ 4000 line and the 624Mhz Axim X30.
• It comes with 256MB of memory (215MB user accessible), though it isn't as simple as that. 55MB is in the same PalmOS configuration that they have always had, meaning it is not a file system but a database and only certain files can be placed there. The remaining 160MB can be used as an external storage card. The 55MB of RAM won't be wiped out if the T5 loses all battery power either. The RAM will hold its memory until the T5 is plugged in and recharged.
• It can act as an external USB flash drive for your PC. This is pretty cool and something that all PDAs should be able to do. Microsoft, are you listening?
• The universal connector is gone. This is a blow to users with existing Tungsten accessories, but a fact of life in the world of PDAs. Manufacturers make too much money off of peripherals not to use this tactic of getting users to repurchase items like external keyboards and spare cradles. :|
• Bluetooth is standard but there is no WiFi radio.
• It includes an SDIO/MMC slot, a 416Mhz processor and a screen capable of 64K colors.
• Update: Even though this product won't be ready to ship until November, it still won't have the new Cobalt (OS 6.1) OS from PalmSource that was released on September 28, 2004. No word on upgradability. It comes with OS 5.4.
Ahhh yes.... I recall when we were told we didn't need more than 16MB of RAM, storage cards were complex and unnecessary, no one supposedly wanted to work with MS Office files on that tiny screen, and all of those Pocket PC OEMs were just loading up their hardware with battery draining features, features that today are considered mandatory for any serious player. :wink: Brighthand has written a more complete preview at their site.
PalmOne has released the latest version of their flagship PDA, the Tungsten T5. The first thing you'll notice about it is it is a fixed size rather than having the sliding base that extended the screen from a 320X320 to 320X480 screen.
Some of the key features that may be of interest to Pocket PC users:
• It is priced at $399. For comparison, this is in the same range as the iPAQ 4000 line and the 624Mhz Axim X30.
• It comes with 256MB of memory (215MB user accessible), though it isn't as simple as that. 55MB is in the same PalmOS configuration that they have always had, meaning it is not a file system but a database and only certain files can be placed there. The remaining 160MB can be used as an external storage card. The 55MB of RAM won't be wiped out if the T5 loses all battery power either. The RAM will hold its memory until the T5 is plugged in and recharged.
• It can act as an external USB flash drive for your PC. This is pretty cool and something that all PDAs should be able to do. Microsoft, are you listening?
• The universal connector is gone. This is a blow to users with existing Tungsten accessories, but a fact of life in the world of PDAs. Manufacturers make too much money off of peripherals not to use this tactic of getting users to repurchase items like external keyboards and spare cradles. :|
• Bluetooth is standard but there is no WiFi radio.
• It includes an SDIO/MMC slot, a 416Mhz processor and a screen capable of 64K colors.
• Update: Even though this product won't be ready to ship until November, it still won't have the new Cobalt (OS 6.1) OS from PalmSource that was released on September 28, 2004. No word on upgradability. It comes with OS 5.4.
Ahhh yes.... I recall when we were told we didn't need more than 16MB of RAM, storage cards were complex and unnecessary, no one supposedly wanted to work with MS Office files on that tiny screen, and all of those Pocket PC OEMs were just loading up their hardware with battery draining features, features that today are considered mandatory for any serious player. :wink: Brighthand has written a more complete preview at their site.
