Can anyone subtract a phone from a PDAPhone and give me what's left over?

April 14, 2006 5:15 PM

I'm looking for a PDA like this only without the cellphone capibilities, and for a similar price (better yet: lower price!). As always, there is

I'm pretty stoked about that iPaq. The only thing is no cell providers in my area (least of all the one with my current contract) takes a sim card cell phone. Do'h! So, I figure that if I take the cell out of the equation, I should be able to get something of similar functionality for less cash (maybe $200 total or so). The biggies for me are running a version of window's moble that's .NET friendly (at least, I think this one can do that), SD slot, Infrared port, Bluetooth, WiFi, and handwriting recognition. Oh, and enough RAM to install a couple of programs wouldn't hurt. :) Bonus points if anyone can do all this for $180 after shipping! :D

Thanks, everyone!

posted by TrueVox to Technology (8 answers total)

This might be a good place to start. Here would be worth checking out as well.

If money were no object, i'd go with the OQO. Sadly, money is an object so i'll probably always just lust over it from afar.
posted by quin at 5:25 PM on April 14, 2006

Response by poster: God, I would love that thing... But sadly, yes. Money is an issue. Any other, specific recomendations you may offer regarding other, less costly choices?

Thanks for the quick reply, by the way.
posted by TrueVox at 5:46 PM on April 14, 2006

I don't really understand the question; the h6315 is a pretty bog-standard Windows Mobile 2003 device (albeit with a slower processor) if you take the phone out of it. (I had one for a week - the echo you get off the device when you use it as an actual phone made me return it.) the only difference I can really see between it and a regular Windows Mobile PDA is that it comes with a thumbboard and the processor isn't the usual Intel XScale. (it's a TI OMAP that runs around 200MHz - current PDAs run XScale processors at 416+MHz.) and all the things you want are usually standard features on PDAs nowadays - handwriting recognition is part of Windows Mobile, and even some of my ancient Windows CE 2 devices have it. can't tell you much about .NET support though. later PDAs usually have BT and/or WiFi built in, but you should be careful about reading the specs. and you're just about guarenteed to get either SD or Compact Flash or both (again, pay attention to the specs).

that said, I recommend the x50 or x51 Dell Axims, mainly because I like the one I have pretty well, but I don't use it very often. (the x50 is the old version, running Windows Mobile 2003, and may be availble cheaper than you can get an x51 new. mostly same features, though.) or, even an Axim x30, which is a good bit older, but still has everything you want. HP also makes pretty good PDAs too. you're really not asking for anything special.. my recommendation would be to browse something like NewEgg and pick something out you like and google for reviews on it.
posted by mrg at 5:57 PM on April 14, 2006

Response by poster: I wouldn't think I was looking for something special, either. But for the life of me, I can't find something that meets my requirements:

1: Infrared, Bluetooth, and Wifi REQUIRED

2: Expandable with SD

3: Windows Mobile

4: Hand Writing Recognition

I can find plenty of things that do this, but they're all over powered/priced. I'm looking for something slower, and cheaper, and for the life of me, I CAN'T FIND IT!!! :D I donno why, though. I've honestly been looking for most of the day (not to mention on and off for the last 2 weeks).
posted by TrueVox at 6:13 PM on April 14, 2006

Acer n50? Axim X51?

You can certainly do it without the WiFi - and if you find something which has everything apart from WiFi but includes an SDiO slot then you can add the WiFi at a later date.

Handwriting recognition is standard on all Windows Mobile devices, I think.
posted by blag at 7:29 PM on April 14, 2006

does it have to be new? (i'm guessing no, as the TigerDirect link is to a refurbished product.) a lot of those Axim x30s meet your requirements (be careful with the wifi though, the base model didn't come with it) and a froogle search brought up $250 for one of the more higher-end models with WiFi and BT. you may have better luck searching for a used model on eBay.
posted by mrg at 7:35 PM on April 14, 2006

Response by poster: I realize I could get Wifi with an SDiO, but 1: That's just more money, and 2: I'd really like it all to be as integrated as possible. However, I'll look into the Axim's to see if any of the series fits the bill.

Thanks gang, and keep the good ideas flowing!

Oh, and referb. is fine. New is a non-requirement (though gravy if the price is right).
posted by TrueVox at 5:54 AM on April 15, 2006

You can probably find an older iPaq for cheap online somewhere. I have an rx3115 that fits the bill. They don't sell them anymore, but I'm sure someone has refurbs out there somewhere.
posted by tiamat at 8:43 AM on April 15, 2006