I have wanted a palmtop computer for a while. I researched and decided on a Psion 5, but ended up with an Osaris. Here's why : As palm computers/PDAs go, the Osaris is cheap. It retails at around £150, whereas its nearest rival, the Psion 5, is nearer £400. So what's the difference? Surprisingly, not much. The Osaris is basically a very good clone of the Psion 5. If you are unfamiliar with palms/PDAs, they are little computers. Some don’t have keyboards and used with a stylus pen (you write on the screen). This one does have a keyboard, and you can type directly into it. There are electronic organisers out there for around £20, but ...  Read the complete review

The PDA market, once more or less exclusively dominated by Psion, firstly with their Series 3 Organisers (and the Siena) and then with the Series 5 (and Revo). The Series 7 is possibly off the top end of the PDA market, being just that bit too big to be a viable option for an out and out PDA. Of course Ericsson and Nokia have been players from the Mobile Phone/PDA markets for a while now, and the market also boasts other players, with Palm, Handspring (using Palm OS), HP, Compaq and Casio in the fray. Gone are the days of the pocket databanks of 32k memory, and the hefty Casio organisers with little connectivity. With a wide range of products, and an equally ...  Read the complete review

As any good sales person knows, one of the first questions you should ask a customer is "what will you be doing with the product". It is surprising how many £300 PDAs are being bought by people who simply want to store names and addresses. My tip, save your money buy a cheap £30 Casio or Sharp databank and take a nice holiday. However if your needs are a little more detailed read on. The first thing you notice is the vast array of terms used by the industry. PDA, PALM top, LAP top, POCKET PC. All these terms just make us sales people feel more important they mean very little to the every day user. I will call them organisers. You may ...  Read the complete review

I thought that when I saw PDA’s advertised in the PC magazines, I thought just another gadget, which probably does nothing special. I think that with the PDA’s I have not totally been proved wrong although I think that they are useful if you are a busy executive who needs their every appointment throughout the day categorised and written down, but isn’t that what a paper diary is for? OK so you can synchronise your e-mail’s, that still has to be done while you are at your desk, might as well read them while you are there. The company I work for have just brought in a load of PDA’s for the sales people to use, most of them ...  Read the complete review

PDA's are very useful devices for the purpose they are designed for. However, it is a serious investment of your money, so choose carefully to gain full benefit. There are three main options, a Palm Pilot, a Psion or a generic PDA (Handsprung units etc.). I would suggest either the Palm or Psion for several reasons: They are form a series of previous models, and so have been refined. Many of the newer models on the market are new, and therefore, have not had 5-6 years of usage experience behind them. Also, the availability of software and add-ons for Palm/Psion is incredible, thanks to the net. There are many support sites for both brands, ...  Read the complete review