PDA/Phone Hybrid

[Damo1176]

Finally decided on a GPS receiver a BT77 which I have tested and it seems great but I need a PDA/Phone hybrid. I was oing tom stick with a PDA but it seems more sensible to blend phone and PDA.

Any thoughts on whats good and what isn't. Have looked at the O2 XDA's and the Orange phones but desperately seeking positive user experiences.

[mikealder]

Damo, I have used the XDA devices for a while now for the same reasons you state, why carry around two devices?
It just doesn't make sense to me, I am more than happy with my XDAIIs (no longer avail I believe) and my XDA Exec, although the price to pay is that the devices are rather large as a phone, go to your local shop and try one, the Exec is less useful as a phone IMHO (I only use it for very limited calls, most of its use is internet based, the XDAIIs does most of the voice stuff for me)
OK so I have ended up still carying two devices - which rather defeats the original reason for choosing this combo route, but circumstances are down to the individual.
One device to consider is the mini-S, a mate has one at work and its a cracking bit of kit, small for a PDA/ large for a mobile phone but its great in use.
The only real downside to PDA based phones is the size and weight, but this is less than carrying two devices (or in my case three), and the direct connection to GPRS/ 3G (device dependent) is great, internet access on the move (at a price) is so much easier than connecting the phone to the PDA via bluetooth, best of luck with your purchase, but please check out the unit in your hand/ pocket BEFORE you purchase - Mike

[jonajuna]

im the new proud owner of a tmobile mda compact II, sure its got a slow cpu compared to "proper" PPC's but then they cant make calls and run out of power in a day, whereas the MDAC II keeps on going.

does all that any windows PPC can, has BT, GPRS and SD/MMC slot so memory isnt an issue.

two downsides in my view, lack of current WIFI SDIO support, but this is meant to be addressed in the first service patch (overdue ) and lack of 3G, but on the plus side its tiny and still has a 320x240 screen, sure its a bit bigger than a phone, but not significantly more so that the nokia 6230 it has replaced for me.

you can get if for free with a £25ish pm contract complete with CP^ and BTGPS reciever, or if you have the satnav software and reciever already, for approx £15 pm.

i went for the FLEXT35 package (25% off for life) at £26 per month which gives £185 worth pm of voice minutes/text/MMS, with an additional 6MB data package on the side, all in £32 per month for a funky phone/PPC/sat nav and more calls than ill get through

[lbendlin]

the best hybrid still is the iPAQ 6315 - quad band GSM, WiFi, very long battery life. The "slow" processor (168 MHz) is outperforming many a 400 MHz based machines.
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Lutz

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[Skippy]

[peterc10]

I agree with Ibendlin. I have the Ipaq 6340 (UK equivalent) and found it to be excellent. Never misses a beat with TT5. Nice smooth scrolling (as long as you have the POIs hidden).

Why I went for this was because I wanted a phone, a sat nav and a PDA with me most of the time. I did not want to leave any in the car (for obvious reasons) and I did not want to carry all three about in my pocket. The Ipaq is not the smallest of phones but it comes with a good holder that I just have clipped to my belt

Great for phoning contacts - just bring up the list imported from Outlook and tap on the phone number you want from the ones you have listed. Phone does the rest.

I use it with a Parrot CK3300 combined BT car phone kit and sat nav receiver and a Brodit mount. Great combination. I get phone calls and sat nav instructions and camera warnings through the car audio (which automatically mutes), so that means I can adjust the volume using the steering wheel controls. In addition the sat instructions mute when I am on the phone (but they still show on the screen).

Not the cheapest of combinations but I am glad I bought it all.
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Peter
HTC Sensation
Sygic GPS for Europe (No more TT "support"!)
Copilot for USA
Bury CC9060 bluetooth car kit & Brodit mount

[EvilTwin]

2 weeks ago i got the MDA Vario, also known as the XDA mini s, or the HTC Wizard.

Its a cracking phone/PDA combo, with its slide out Qwerty keypad, good battery life, and built in WiFi g.

The size is good too, big enough to be practical, yet small enough to go in a pocket with room for other stuff.

The only thing that lets it down is that it uses a mini SD card instead of a full SD

If you are really interested the website: xda-developers.com covers all the current crop of HTC made PDA/Phones and offers support tools for things like unlocking the phone.
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TT 730

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