Nice Review :)

I decided to get an HP1945 Pocket PC. I have to say that I think I use it more as a newspaper (AvantGo) and gaming machine than I do to take notes and write down appointments 8).

I have always found that taking notes on PDA's is a bit cumbersome, although I haven't done it with the newer version of the Graffiti writing language. I am a big fan of Avantgo too, next best thing to having an internet enabled device.

I have been hovering for over a week trying to decide whether to buy this. Then I stumbled across this review on Google. Giving the good and bad points clearly and non-techie, it has given me the confidence to buy from Amazon.co.uk without going to a local shop to examine it (if they let you). The reviewer really knew his/her stuff.This review really 'opened the box' for me. I wanted an item that would save me carrying my laptop on occasion. This is the one. Thanks very much. I'm off to 'Add to basket' at Amazon now.

Keyboard Purchase? Thanks for comment back, would welcome review comment on best keyboard to go with this model which I have now ordered thanks to Rich's Review.

great tool

thanks for the review. I don't venture often into the tech world so it was very helpful. I see that the Tungsten E includes a software called RealOne for MP3 listening (which I also see that you have to buy an expansion card for, blah). Is there a handheld which uses Palm software which also includes iTunes and is of good sound quality for MP3 listening? Maybe I don't want to get a new handheld AND and ipod, wouldn't it be great to just get one...

I just bought one last week and it handled the 256 MB SD card just fine. I downloaded a patch for large cards from the palm site.

I used real player to reduce the quality to 64 kps and they sound awesome..

guess I forgot to put in that the MP3 sounded awesome... I have more than 100 files on there!

I am looking at PDAs and really interested in this one. It does not, however, appear to have a voice recorder. What do you recommend?
Cynthia

After 97 days my Palm Tungsten e battery died and could not be charged eithr by the charger or through the USB cable. Palm wanted $125 to repair it. After a lot of haggling, I got them to repair it under warranty (the warranty is only 90 days) The repaired unit they sent me did not work. I sent it back and I am on my 3rd unit. It looks like it does not work either.

I am very disappointed with the reliability of thee units and not impressed that the user cannot replace the battery. I guess I will continue to use my Palm III for a while longer. It has been going for over 5 years without a problem.

Jim

I was interested in buying a Tungsten E for my boyfriend but am unsure if I should go with that palm pilot or the very similar (atleast to me) Sony Clie PEGTJ27/UKIT1. My boyfriend said he wanted one from either brand, and I want it to be a little bit of a surprise and not ask him too many questions about the 2. If you know anything about the Sony Clie, which do u think is better, which one would work better for a college student and do they both surf the net as well as take pictures? Thanks

Well, Rich I want to thank you. You have helped me decide which PDA to buy. Not only that, but i have found it at an unheard of price. I won't mention it here because (A) know one else can buy from this source again and (B) i'm happy and i'd like to stay that way.

One question though, I realize i'm going to need some additional memory. I really don't know much about the cards and there seem to be a few different types. Sony has the Memory Stick and SanDisk has Memory, Compact Flash and Secure Digital Cards. What are the differences? Which one is usable w/my PDA? And which is a more reliable, quality inexpensive card in say 256MB - aside from the PalmOne Brand cards?

If the price difference is insignificant and the quality is substandard, i'd rather pay extra for the Palm Brand.

Great website and keep up the good work.

Rich, when you say "no cradle" for the Tungsten E, does that mean that a cradle didn't come WITH the model, or that there is NO cradle designed for this model? I like what I am reading about the Tungsten E, but I have really enjoyed the cradle with other Palm handhelds. Let me know!

ps. Any suggestions for websites with more screenshots, esp, the calendar and address book functions? Palm has a few, but not as many as I'd like to see. Thanks!

Does anyone have information about software that makes word perfect work on a Tungsten E Thanks Bob Salzman

Rich, I'm interested to know if you've given up the "All Mighty Handspring" for something else? If so what is it?
I've been running a Visor Deluxe for many years and was just given the Tungsten E as a gift.. so far so good, except I can't charge it up when travelling (like popping out the batteries one at a time) and the screen makes a strange humming sound. I also miss the cradle!

Thanks!
Caro (crazy_caro at hotmail dot com)

I have been using the palm 3x for the last 4 years and want to upgrade. I was a bit concerned that you said the Tungsten e crashed a number of times as this has never happened with my 3x. Also is it simple to transfer all my contacts to the the new palm?

Can the T|E be recharged via the USB connection?

Thanks for your objective reviews Rich. I read both the E and the T3 review and the E definitely looked what the doc ordered. All good so far? Then I bumped into a T3 a colleague has and Im hooked! There is something about holding and using a device that printed matter cannot substitute! Now, Im puzzled. Your review points out some flaws in the E but I also know that I really dont need the big screen or the add-ins enough to pay double the price of an E! Help! What should I buy??!!

Thanks again Rich. On further evaluation of the T3, a definite plus is the expandable memory thru SD cards, something the E doesnt give me. What that means is that I need not worry about more and more getting into my PDA. I know youre gonna remind me that what they give in the PDA is probably good enough for the normal user ...... but still. And what about the ironical tenet of staying at the cutting edge of technology in the fast changing world of technology?!

Thanks for your site, it helped me to choose the Tunsten E as the pda for me. However one week after I bought the unit it quit working. Palm tells me to return it to the retailer that I bought it from but I bought it new in the sealed container off from ebay. Did I just buy a $170 dollar paper weight or is their any way to get this thing replaced? Thanks

How reliable are these things?

Everything I have heard about the T/E is outstanding and just what I want.... except that... once in a while I hear an awful story about how someone's T/E had a catastrophic error within the first four months or so of ownership. If I buy a PDA I would like to have it last at LEAST two years without having to pay $125 to have its battery replaced or to have it repaired! If this *was* the case, you may as well say that the T/E costs over $300.oo.... assuming that it *only* died once during those two years...

IS THERE ANYONE OUT THERE WHO HAS OWNED/USED A TUNGSTEN E FOR MORE THAN SIX MONTHS WITHOUT ANY MAJOR PROBLEMS???

yeh. i have had a tungsten e for about 8 months. i've had the battery go flat on me once, and a "near incident" of the same thing once. i had left it uncharged for about a week unused after the battery indicator was at about 1/3 mark. having used a visor and palm v before, that's just poor in comparison! i am now searching to see if i should be charging often or if my unit is somehow defective with a leak somewhere.

other than that and gripes about how easily the case scratches (even the palm-supplied cover has marred the surface), the t/e is great.

I have a new Tungsten E, but I can't find the calculator! I really like having that....what did I do wrong, and how can I get a calculator? Does this thing even come with one? HELP!

Thanks for the rapid response! However, I am not able to find it, and neither are the guys at Office Max where I bought it. I have used Palm Vx in the past and loved it. Where oh where is the calculator?? Should I erase everything and start over, or just go to another product? I need help...thanks again...please.

My Tungsten E has glitch in the sound every 5 seconds. I have confirmation from Palm that this is a known issue, but they say that since the Tungsten E is an entry-level product, I should be willing to accept this. Apparently not all units have this issue, but many of them do. I was told by corporate customer support that this is not a defect because the presence of sound glitches is not a part of the product performance specification.

the calculator is called "powerOne™ personal calculator"
you install it i think on first hot-sync if you dont have it i can try to help you.

i just found the PRC called "power one_personal.prc"
and it is in my backup directory

well now this sucks no hot link to send a e-mail from this page well i think i have to go use my hush account if i can help e me - maiga1 - @ "auto75634@hush.ai

i'm planning to buy a tungsten e..does it have a usb port that will enable me to use a flash drive memory stick..are there applications that will require faster processor (faster than 126 MHz) which will make my tungsten e useless..pls comment..thanks

I purchased my Tungsten E on ebay for $140 in June. I absolutely loved using it. However, yesterday it died. One minute it worked fine, the next it was dead. I had read about this happening to a few people who had written in to various review sites but I didn't think it would happen to me. I am now contemplating buying another brand new one from Circuit City and buying the protection plan for 29.99. I really don't want to buy another much more expensive pda since this one had everything I really needed. Although if I knew I could get something the same slim size with comparable screen clarity that came with a better chance at longevity I would be willing to go as high $300. Anyone have any suggestions/opinions?

My tungston e does not have the calculator. I bought it on e-bay. May be some one deleatetd it. But the Pda definitely does not have it now. Is there any way of reinstaling it. Thanks

Thanks for prompt reply. I sure appreciate it. I read previous comments and some one else indeed had the same problem. How would I get back to factory default? I tried resetting the pda. I can only do a soft reset. I guess I do not know how to do a hard reset on Tungten e.
Finally what is this' power one personal prc' and where would I find it. Thanks again.

Thanks I figuered out how to 'hard sink' after realizing that the 'Navigation button' is infact two buttons. It is incredible that I did not relize it before. The outer rim is a diffrent button, the top of which can be used as 'up button'. I did 'hard sink' after hard reset and I still do not have the calculator. Where is this back up directory and how would I get to it. Could some one help me please.

Kurtis Thank you very much for the help and suppport.
I found the calculator. It is diffrent from the default one, but it works the same. It is in the'software essentials' on Tungsten E Cd.It is called 'power one personal'. Thanks again Have a very merry & happy holidays.

Thanks for the interesting review and comments. I have a Tungsten T, but since I purchased it has had an intermittent fault which means I have to reset the pointer every day or two. It has had this fault more or less since I had it, but I fell foul of Palm not having a warranty that lasts the usual 12 months. Now it stops responding to all user input via the screen, every few days or so. I am thinking of throwing away my Tungsten T away, and buying a Tungsten E. But is the E likely to be any more reliable?

I am having problem with Notepad function. Towards the top of the screen, the line appears higher than the stylus actually makes contact. At the bottom of the screen, the line appears lower than my stylus makes contact. Sometimes I get a jagged line appear that I have to "erase". Any ideas? I already tried the digitizer.

I have had my Tungsten E for over a year and have recently experienced major hot sync problems with the datebook (I do not sync with my Outlook account). When I hot sync-ed with "handheld overwrites pc," much of the data from my handheld was removed, and I received a log message saying,"Some handheld records were not copied to your PC. Your computer may be full or you may have reached the maximum allowed records on the desktop. To correct this situation, delete some records and perform a HotSync operation again." However, most of the records are no longer there, so how can it be at max capacity??!! I'd backed up the hh on a memory card, but when I "restore," it says that the version of my back-up is older than the one on the hh, and when I instruct it to overwrite the old with the new, a message explains it can't be done.
At the moment, I'm extremely frustrated because I'm relying on this PDA for my calendar and addresses, and not only are data lost (can someone tell me how to recover lost data??), but it appears that the hotsync operation is malfunctioning. I'm afraid to use it!

I have a Tungsten E. Somehow a button was pushed in my purse causing the light to stay on (apparently) and my power ran out. Dead. I plugged it into the AC charger, and when it powered back up, I realized I had lost anything. Does this mean that if the battery ever runs out again, I will again lose everything? (My checkbook was not backed up to my desktop, so this is a real big problem)

Any advice would be appreciated!

Becky

Does my Tungsten E have a battery level indicator? I see a battery at the top of the screen but it never seems to change, or appear anything but full, and then I'll suddenly get a message that says I'm at low power and may lose my data if i don't recharge. Should I be seeing a level indicator showing 1/2 full or 1full?

Greetings. I need to know if the TungstenE has multilingual options. You know, like setting a language preference, as is possible with a mobile phone. Mine seems to use only English. I have searched the handbook in vain. Can someone assist please?

This thread - and the Review that started it off - seem so full of good sense, I hope you won't mind if I ask for some advice.
I'm probably one of the last people in the world to still be using a Psion 3c, but this is now getting extremely old and vulnerable and I probably need to buy a PDA before decades of contacts etc simply disappear (yes, they are backed up, but I doubt whether anything other than a Psion can play a Psion flashcard).
So - which PDA ? As a Mac owner, it looks like a Palm's the best (only ?) choice - but should it be the Tungsten E or T3 ? Is it worth waiting for the E2 ? Or the Zire 31/71/72 ?
Generally speaking, I use my Psion for it's diary function, plus contacts and the spread sheets and calculator. The 'World' function (listing telephone codes) is pretty useful, but I rarely use the Word or Jotter functions.
I think Bluetooth would be useful to transfer info to my PowerBook. Or is a USB HotSynch adequate ?
Actually...checking the Psion as I write this, it actually IS pretty well specced !
I don't want to spend more than £200 (that's around $350).
So many questions - but any ideas anybody ?
Thanks in advance
David (from England)

I just pick one up for use with my job at work. (Will use for addresses, phone #'s, scheduling, etc.)

Those are worth every penny. :P

For the price, the Tungsten E can't be beat. Now thier other PDA's, that is another story.

I like this BatteryGraph program (Shareware) for monitoring battery status on a Palm OS compatible device. When ever you switch on or off your PDA the program will log the current battery status.

Is that something you have to install or does it come on the Palms?

It's shareware, you must download and install it.

Office Depot has a $100 rebate on the Tungsten E right now (for 3 days) if anybody is interested.

I bought my wife one for Christmas but had no idea that this was as finicky as it is. Battery now dead and she sits with a piece of s... and some expensive nursing programs. Should have visited this board sooner.

Hey,

I got a new Tungsten E with a hard case and NoviiRemote bundled from best buy in Canada for 254 and change. It was an open item, and it was funny because when I got it was still charged and had someones contacts still in it, but I performed a Hard Reset to clear it and reset the HotSync ID, blah blah blah.

I got it March 10th and have so far had no real problems that weren't my fault (old programs, buggy freeware). However, I have crashed it several times and recently when I tried to open a PDOC (which is the 911 Commission reported I downloaded and it is about 1.1 megs) in WordToGo and it proceeded to stall halfway through opening the file. I did have only about 2 megs of free space which I initially though may have caused the crash but I was able to repeat the problem with a fresh install of only WordToGo after a hard reset.

What was worse was the only thing I could do after waiting an hour for it to move one pixel in the progress bar was reset with the pin hole. After the reset however, I found that my memory was comepletely reset (as if I had hard reset by holding the power button down and then pressing up). Nasy bug that I figure has something to with the way DatViz is creating a working copy of a file to edit in WordToGo.

Also I've noticed that reducing the screen brightness can greatly increase the battery time as well as plugging in the charger unit whenever you can or even the USB which can "trickle charge" the batteries when you turn the power off. Useful in the car with the mobility kit I also purchased which has a 12volt car adapter that uses the USB port (interesting).

Beware of old applications since many, even OS4 programs, can possibly be incompatible, otherwise there are tons of great OS5 apps available. The WIFI card is awesome and using my LAN, I have been able to use Email, WebBrowser, FTP program, ICQ chat program, telnet, SSH, portscanner, all working fast and perfectly through the WIFI connection.

I noticed several comments in reviews on the web, not specifically this one, that the Infra Red port is apparently weak. I mentioned my unit came bundled with the awesome program NoviiRemote. This program almost sold me on the unit when I saw it in the store. This program can learn any remote there is that uses Infra Red, which means most any remote. I tell you, being able walk into bars and change the channels or stores displays, peoples satellites receiver, and PVR's, or A/V stereo's. If a template for a remote doesn't exist yet, all you need is the remote itself and you can one-by-one program every funtion to a button in NoviiRemote. Truly great software.

And as far as Infra Red strength is concerned I have no problem controlling most devices at a distance of about 3 metres or 15 feet. Some devices are "less receptive" than others and I have been unable to program only one remote function, the power button on some RCA remotes. This may have to do with the way NoviiRemote learns IR signals but it generally works great.

All in all I have had a great experience so far with my Palm Tungsten E. The included software is excellent, and the available software on the Internet and on SD cards is another big purchase point. I can't see why someone wouldn't recommend the Tungsten E unless you really want to use it as a cellphone then you may consider more expensive Palm offerings. But at 299 retail in Canada this buy is a steal.

Note I purchased from Palm Store a WIFI SDIO card which was pretty pricey (about $175), and a 512 MB SD card (about $150), so bear in mind that upgrades aren't exactly cheap.

Chris M
cm@earthshiprecords.com

Update to my previous comments:

Well,

It seem sPalm has just introduced a new Tungsten|E2...

Damnit, I just boouht the E!!!

Oh well, I may see if I can return this one and get the newer T|E2 since it has flash meory now and will not lose your data when it runs out of power. Swee-eet!

And it has built in bluetooth as well as the newer Palm OS 5.4 instead of 5.2. And the price is the same. Way to go Palm for updgrading there best handheld, in my opinion, while not raising the price point.

I have a list of software and hardware I am using and recommend to Palm Tungsten|E users:

I use the built in Palm apps for what they are for especially the Datebook and Addres book. Versamail is awesome I think. I don't need a aprogram that puts them all together since the built in apps are fairly well integrated.

If your lucky enough to have bought a Tungsten|E with a hard case and NoviiRemote included then you already know how how cool NoviiRemote is and how vital having a hard case is.

A SD Card is absolutely necessary once you want to start really using the T|E for more than just the built in functionality. You need an SD card to do some things like listen to MP3's.

A WiFi card is useful if you have wireless network at home or work.

The mobility kit - 12 Volt car adapter, great for car trips.

Plucker - For viewing offline webpages, pdfs, pictures, docs, etc on my SD Card. Freeware.

DiddleBug - Cool notepad replacement. Freeware.

IdeaPad - Neat flow chart like program. Freeware.

DioPlayer - Plays MP3's and Wav's off the SD Card. A replacement for the included RealPalyer. I dont't like RealPlayer on my Windblow$ PC.

PilotDB - Database program. Freeware.

CryptoPad - Good encrypted memopad replacement. Freeware.

TexT - DOC editor, limited to 64k files but still useful. Freeware.

CardTXT - Edits TXT files on the SD Card. Freeware.

BigClock - Nice alarm clock and stopwatch. Freeware.

Calcul-8 - Fairly robust simple Calculator. Freeware.

SC-103PU - Another really robust Calculator. Freeware.

ChemTable - Periodic Table of Elements reference. Freeware.

Planetarium - Very good astronomy tool. Shareware.

Flags - World country flag reference. Freeware.

RJ45 - Network cable reference. Freeware.

FlyZip - Save space on the handheld using compression. Shareware.

FlyBackup - Like restore points in windows this simple program will back up your handheld to the SD Card on a schedule you set. Simple and easy to use. Shareware.

ZLauncher - Full Palm launcher replacement with many features. My personal favourite although it uses a perhaps a bit much resources. Well worth 20 dollars. Shareware.

Hi-Launcher - tried out a few launchers and found this one to be the most useful for me. Has a completely self designed menu that can be accessed from any program with an assigned hard key, silk screen button, or graffiti stroke. Shareware.

AutoExec - launches ZLauncher after a reset. Freeware.

Sleuth - Find shortcut in any program. Freeware.

Khroma - Lets you change the Palm system colors. Freeware.

Speedy - Measures the Handhelds relative performance. Freeware.

PocketC - Have't actually used it yet. Freeware.

Games - Mostly freeware but I will say I bought Bejeweled2 because I wanted something that shows off my handhelds graphics, but now I am actually addicted to the game. Other good freeware games are:

Vexed
Prison
SolFree
Bla ckJack
Giraffe - Good for learning Graffiti

For networking I have used mostly:

TriConnect
TuSSH
WifFi

Chris M
cm@earthshiprecords.com

Comments I made for this product review:

It seems Palm has just introduced a new Tungsten|E2...

Damnit, I just boouht the E!!!

Oh well, I may see if I can return this one and get the newer T|E2 since it has flash meory now and will not lose your data when it runs out of power. Swee-eet!

And it has built in bluetooth as well as the newer Palm OS 5.4 instead of 5.2. And the price is the same. Way to go Palm for updgrading there best handheld, in my opinion, while not raising the price point.

I have a list of software and hardware I am using and recommend to Palm Tungsten|E users:

I use the built in Palm apps for what they are for especially the Datebook and Addres book. Versamail is awesome I think. I don't need a aprogram that puts them all together since the built in apps are fairly well integrated.

If your lucky enough to have bought a Tungsten|E with a hard case and NoviiRemote included then you already know how how cool NoviiRemote is and how vital having a hard case is.

A SD Card is absolutely necessary once you want to start really using the T|E for more than just the built in functionality. You need an SD card to do some things like listen to MP3's.

A WiFi card is useful if you have wireless network at home or work.

The mobility kit - 12 Volt car adapter, great for car trips.

Plucker - For viewing offline webpages, pdfs, pictures, docs, etc on my SD Card. Freeware.

DiddleBug - Cool notepad replacement. Freeware.

IdeaPad - Neat flow chart like program. Freeware.

DioPlayer - Plays MP3's and Wav's off the SD Card. A replacement for the included RealPalyer. I dont't like RealPlayer on my Windblow$ PC.

PilotDB - Database program. Freeware.

CryptoPad - Good encrypted memopad replacement. Freeware.

TexT - DOC editor, limited to 64k files but still useful. Freeware.

CardTXT - Edits TXT files on the SD Card. Freeware.

BigClock - Nice alarm clock and stopwatch. Freeware.

Calcul-8 - Fairly robust simple Calculator. Freeware.

SC-103PU - Another really robust Calculator. Freeware.

ChemTable - Periodic Table of Elements reference. Freeware.

Planetarium - Very good astronomy tool. Shareware.

Flags - World country flag reference. Freeware.

RJ45 - Network cable reference. Freeware.

FlyZip - Save space on the handheld using compression. Shareware.

FlyBackup - Like restore points in windows this simple program will back up your handheld to the SD Card on a schedule you set. Simple and easy to use. Shareware.

ZLauncher - Full Palm launcher replacement with many features. My personal favourite although it uses a perhaps a bit much resources. Well worth 20 dollars. Shareware.

Hi-Launcher - tried out a few launchers and found this one to be the most useful for me. Has a completely self designed menu that can be accessed from any program with an assigned hard key, silk screen button, or graffiti stroke. Shareware.

AutoExec - launches ZLauncher after a reset. Freeware.

Sleuth - Find shortcut in any program. Freeware.

Khroma - Lets you change the Palm system colors. Freeware.

Speedy - Measures the Handhelds relative performance. Freeware.

PocketC - Have't actually used it yet. Freeware.

Games - Mostly freeware but I will say I bought Bejeweled2 because I wanted something that shows off my handhelds graphics, but now I am actually addicted to the game. Other good freeware games are:

Vexed
Prison
SolFree
Bla ckJack
Giraffe - Good for learning Graffiti

For networking I have used mostly:

TriConnect
TuSSH
WifFi

Previous Comment:

I got a new Tungsten E with a hard case and NoviiRemote bundled from best buy in Canada for 254 and change. It was an open item, and it was funny because when I got it was still charged and had someones contacts still in it, but I performed a Hard Reset to clear it and reset the HotSync ID, blah blah blah.

I got it March 10th and have so far had no real problems that weren't my fault (old programs, buggy freeware). However, I have crashed it several times and recently when I tried to open a PDOC (which is the 911 Commission reported I downloaded and it is about 1.1 megs) in WordToGo and it proceeded to stall halfway through opening the file. I did have only about 2 megs of free space which I initially though may have caused the crash but I was able to repeat the problem with a fresh install of only WordToGo after a hard reset.

What was worse was the only thing I could do after waiting an hour for it to move one pixel in the progress bar was reset with the pin hole. After the reset however, I found that my memory was comepletely reset (as if I had hard reset by holding the power button down and then pressing up). Nasy bug that I figure has something to with the way DatViz is creating a working copy of a file to edit in WordToGo.

Also I've noticed that reducing the screen brightness can greatly increase the battery time as well as plugging in the charger unit whenever you can or even the USB which can "trickle charge" the batteries when you turn the power off. Useful in the car with the mobility kit I also purchased which has a 12volt car adapter that uses the USB port (interesting).

Beware of old applications since many, even OS4 programs, can possibly be incompatible, otherwise there are tons of great OS5 apps available. The WIFI card is awesome and using my LAN, I have been able to use Email, WebBrowser, FTP program, ICQ chat program, telnet, SSH, portscanner, all working fast and perfectly through the WIFI connection.

I noticed several comments in reviews on the web, not specifically this one, that the Infra Red port is apparently weak. I mentioned my unit came bundled with the awesome program NoviiRemote. This program almost sold me on the unit when I saw it in the store. This program can learn any remote there is that uses Infra Red, which means most any remote. I tell you, being able walk into bars and change the channels or stores displays, peoples satellites receiver, and PVR's, or A/V stereo's. If a template for a remote doesn't exist yet, all you need is the remote itself and you can one-by-one program every funtion to a button in NoviiRemote. Truly great software.

And as far as Infra Red strength is concerned I have no problem controlling most devices at a distance of about 3 metres or 15 feet. Some devices are "less receptive" than others and I have been unable to program only one remote function, the power button on some RCA remotes. This may have to do with the way NoviiRemote learns IR signals but it generally works great.

All in all I have had a great experience so far with my Palm Tungsten E. The included software is excellent, and the available software on the Internet and on SD cards is another big purchase point. I can't see why someone wouldn't recommend the Tungsten E unless you really want to use it as a cellphone then you may consider more expensive Palm offerings. But at 299 retail in Canada this buy is a steal.

Note I purchased from Palm Store a WIFI SDIO card which was pretty pricey (about $175), and a 512 MB SD card (about $150), so bear in mind that upgrades aren't exactly cheap.

Further Comments:

Buy one if you don't want to spend too much, It's a great handheld for the price. Otherwise the T|5 or the Treo 650 may be a better choice although much more expensive.

I have a Tungsten E which I use in my classroom. Myself and another teacher use ours everyday 5 periods a day. What we have found is our on button is worn out, we have to use the other buttons on the front. Is this common could this be fixed?
Elizabeth, PA

I got a Tungsten e about a year ago, and it went belly-up after an overnight refresh on the charger. Won't turn on.
After hearing about others with battery problems and unrelaibility, I won't buy another, and I'm hesitant to get a newer Palm model.

-sigh.

SteveB,

Mine has been great, no issues with reliability for me except that as the guest above mentioned, my power button broke too. I was able to get the mainboard replaced and now it's like a new device again. I think I like it even better than the newer E2, which I had bought but brought back after I got back my repaired TE.

Edit: Silly me, I forgot the simplest question. Have you tried a soft-reset (http://kb.palmone.com/SRVS/CGI-BIN/WEBCGI.EXE?New,...))?

If that doesn't get it to turn on then yu may have a serious hardware or even still possibly a software issue beyond your control.

If your still within the first year since you purchased it then it's likely still covered by the Palm warranty, I would call them.

PalmOne, Inc. Customer Service:

Tech Support: 877 226-2326 - I would start here
Sales & Service: 866 260-2178 - In case you need it

support@palmone.com
- they will just email back and tell you to call them BTW, but it starts the support process going in "the system" at Palm.

Good luck wth it!

Okay, I had all of my notes in my palm pilot, but not hot synched with my computer. My battery ran dead after leaving the divice at school for three days. I lost all of my power causing it to lose all of my programs and all of my notes.
Could someone please tell me if it is possible to restore my files?
(remember they ARENT hot synched)

Thanx!

Kirstan

Nope... with Palms you have to synch them to make sure you have a hard copy of your data. Once the battery dies on a Palm you lose everything. This has changed with some of the newer ones, at least with the Palm Treo 650 the battery can die and I don't lose anything. Sorry. :(