The Palm TX: possibly the last Palm OS PDA

Originally published in GP magazine .

Written for GP magazine around 2006. This is the version I submitted - the published article may have been edited.

For years you have either been in the Palm or the Microsoft camp. Palms were cheaper, had better battery life, lots of free software, and were generally considered to be for home users. Palm has now struck a deal with Microsoft and may start shipping devices with Microsoft software on, so the Palm TX may be the last Palm OS-based PDA. I recently reviewed the Vodafone VPA compact, a Microsoft-based smartphone which I own. When asked if I wanted to review the new Palm TX, I jumped at the chance. I wanted to see if I would be jealous of it or if I was happy with my choice.

The TX is a solid-feeling machine which measures 5 by 3 by 0.5 inches, and might be a squeeze in a trouser pocket but fine for coat or bag. It comes with a front cover which is removable and protects the screen. There are several smallish buttons on the bottom which allow direct access to your calendar, contacts, home page and web with the touch of a button. The large 4-inch screen supports more than 65,000 colours and a 320x480-pixel resolution. Text and images are sharp and crisp, though considering how much Palm are advertising the screen I didn’t feel it was significantly better than my VPA. Once on, there is a small menu that allows you to switch between landscape and portrait mode, bring up the tap-on-screen keyboard, and turn on the Bluetooth with a tap.

On top is an expansion slot, a 3.5mm headphone jack, a power button, and the hole for the stylus. Unfortunately, the battery is not user-replaceable, and I consider this to be a mistake. My old Tungsten C got to the stage where I had to charge it every few hours; replacement batteries are cheap and easy to fit, and would help prolong the life and value of the TX.

The TX is powered by a 312MHz Intel processor and comes with 128MB of non-volatile flash memory, of which 100MB is available to use. This is a decent size, and being non-volatile means that if you run out of power you don’t lose all your data. If you are planning on having lots of music files and photos, it would be best to invest in some SD memory that could be plugged in via the expansion slot.

Syncing the TX with your computer is just a matter of plugging in the USB cable and pressing the HotSync button. The HotSync software is very good; the only problem is that the software has to translate the data stored in Outlook on your PC into the software on the Palm. Although it does this very well, there are some limitations, and indeed several third-party companies provide software to enhance this function at added cost.

One of the TX’s strengths is that it has all the different communication forms. It can connect to Wi-Fi networks either at home, work or in Starbucks. Numerous hotels and train stations and airports also have Wi-Fi access points, though some cost. I tried accessing my home network and this worked like a dream. Surfing the web on the Palm is just about doable. The ability to switch into landscape mode really helps when viewing web pages, though for other than brief surfing I would soon get fed up. It also has Bluetooth, so you can connect to your mobile phone and access the internet that way. I tried this and it worked fine, though you have to have a GPRS contract on your phone, which can be expensive.

Also worth mentioning is that the TX comes with a piece of software called Pocket Tunes that allows you to play music like an iPod, though this uses up battery life quicker - you can expect up to 10 hours on a full charge, which isn’t bad. Overall the TX is an excellent Palm with a great screen, and comes fully loaded with software and connectivity. So should you get one?

For me, none of the features make me regret buying my VPA compact, which includes a phone. I also tend to use more Microsoft software, so again the Palm holds no pull. If I needed to use a Palm because I was using software that only worked on Palm, e.g. Pocket EMIS, then the TX is certainly a fine PDA, though at £200 it isn’t that cheap. Your decision needs to be based on which operating system you need, which features you need, e.g. Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, how important a big screen is, and how much you want to spend. If you just want something to keep addresses in, then there are much cheaper Palms that may suit better, but if you like go-anywhere connectivity and don’t want the hassle that comes with a Microsoft Pocket PC, this could be for you.