PDAs: Reviews

CNET: CNet.com says it doesn't consider PDAs obsolete and still updates this top-five list.

PCMag.com: PC Magazine gives an Editors' Choice award to the Palm TX with the major negative being stingy battery life (tested at four hours with the Wi-Fi off). Otherwise, there's a large screen, a good browser and reasonable price.

MobileTechReview.com: These thorough reviews are based on hands-on use and raise good questions like why Palm won't make the battery user-replaceable (because the PDA would have to be larger). Lisa Gade's review gives the Palm TX a score of four out of five, praising the display and ease of use.

ConsumerReports.org: Although Consumer Reports bases its ratings on hands-on tests, just 10 PDAs are rated.

Amazon.com: Well over 650 owner reviews combine to give the Palm TX a good average score; more than two-thirds rate it four or the maximum five stars.

CNET: On this top-five list (with links to full reviews), the Palm Tungsten E2 is highly rated.

PCMag.com: PC Magazine's Sascha Segan says the Palm Tungsten E2 is a "good choice for a basic business PDA" that looks good and has battery life of nearly eight hours.

MobileTechReview.com: Reviews here are very thorough and based on hands-on testing, including battery life (good). The Palm Tungsten E2 gets an Editor's Choice award as a "midrange PDA selling at a near-bargain price," but the review makes it clear it's "not for power users who crave the very fastest processors."

ConsumerReports.org: The Palm Tungsten E2 is one of just 10 PDAs rated at Consumer Reports, but within that limitation, coverage is good.

Amazon.com: More than 350 owner reviews posted to Amazon.com give the Palm Tungsten E2 a good combined score, but the ratings are all over the map.

PCMag.com: Although PC Magazine's Jamie Lendino believes that the PDA market is dead, Lendino recommends the iPAQ 210 for those consumers who still want a standalone PDA without phone features.

MobileTechReview.com: MobileTechReview.com's anonymous reviewer Tanker Bob says, "the HP iPAQ 200-series returns us to the strength of a powerful PDA" and "raises the pocket laptop to a new level for road warriors."

Brighthand.com: Brighthand's Adama Brown is completely won over by the iPAQ. "The iPAQ is hard to beatÉ provides more power and flexibility than pretty much anything else its size, and it does so with style." Brown acknowledges that it's possible to purchase an ultra-mini notebook for less than the cost of the iPAQ 210, but adds that "what you can't do with them is slip them in your pocket."

Amazon.com: The HP iPAQ 210/211 is one of the five top-selling PDAs on Amazon.com with 40 user reviews and an excellent four-star average rating.