Indispensable, but could use a little work on execution.
Written: May 21 '01
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Integration with MS Office / Outlook. Color display, Neat dictaphone feature, pretty rugged.
Cons: A little heavy. Problems experienced with screen.
The Bottom Line: It'll change your life.
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| cfalk's Full Review: Hewlett Packard Jornada 545 Pocket PC |
I've had the Jornada 545 for the past 6 months, and I haven't regretted spending $700 on it yet. All the little things that I used to wish I had handy - Internet ID's and passwords, list of insurance policies and their contact names, expenses, address book, etc. etc. etc. that you simply cannot haul around unless you carry a big agenda, which is fine when you are at the office or at home, but what of when you are anywhere else? I do a lot of photography, and keep a database on the Jornada as to what pictures I shot, settings used, when and where taken, and so on. Carrying 30 different post-its in your wallet is not much of a solution either. This little device has helped me organize my life tremendously, mainly because it can do most of the things a full size PC can, but fits in the pocket of your pants.
I used to have a difficult time keeping any agenda. Using an electronic agenda on your office PC is only good if you are in your office. Same thing for the PC at home, and those little pocket electronic agendas are just too limited. A book-type agenda doesn't ring when you forget something, and is bulky to carry around. Now I use Outlook rigorously for all my time planning, at home, at the office, and using my Jornada to keep the 2 PCs synchronized as well as ringing me when I'm away from a PC. I never miss an appointment anymore.
I never use a notepad anymore either. When I am in a meeting, I use the Jornada to take notes directly into MS Word. This allows me to have, in my pocket, the minutes of every meeting I have attended in the past 6 months. Right after a meeting, if something important was decided, I can send the file by e-mail as a meeting summary. I have also found an excellent use of the dictaphone feature. If someone makes me a promise or commitment, I'll hit the little red button on the side of the Jornada, which activates the built-in microphone and records Wave files of up to 20 or 30 seconds in length. When someone later tells me "That's not what I committed to you", I've been known to e-mail the wave file with their own words filing the speakers with the contrary. As with a dictaphone, I also use this feature to record little notes to myself in the car, on the street, wherever.
Carrying this thing does have a price. It's fairly heavy (more than a cell phone). But considering the color screen, memory capacity, programs and functionality, I find it amazing that they got it down to this size, so I won't complain too loudly on that score.
I've dropped this thing on hard floors several times. The casing looks badly battered and dented. Nobody can look at it and tell me it's a nice toy which I keep in my drawer. But it still works as well as the day I took it out of the box.
Which brings me to one complaint. As soon as I got it, I noticed that there was a loose connector in the screen. The screen sometimes goes completely dark, and I have to tap or twist or squeeze the casing to get the connection back. I should have gotten it repaired long ago, but the thought of going without it for a few days or even weeks is too horrible to contemplate. All my banging it around has not made it any better, but neither is it any worse.
Another complaint I have is the screen brightness. When you switch it on, it comes on at about 50% intensity, and brightens up to full intensity over the space of 30 seconds or a minute. In the outdoors, you have to wait until it brightens up to be able to see anything on the screen. And if you are in sunlight, forget it. I know it would be a bad power drain to have a color screen readable in sunlight, but still... Maybe a model black/white LCD screen like the early Palms is a better choice if you plan to use this a lot out of doors.
The screen is definitely a weak point of any such device. I used mine for about 2 weeks without any protective film over the screen, and quickly saw permanent scratches on the screen form from all my writing. HP should include screen overlays as a standard part of the kit. By the way, HP's own overlays (sold separately) suck. They don't stick, they just fit into place (badly) and move around when you are using the stylus. The self-adhesive film system works much better. ConceptKitchen sells a "PDA Survival Kit" which is perfect fo the job. It includes about a year's supply of films which you replace about once a month, along with cleaning products, styluses, etc.
Apart from a little work to be done on the screen in terms of connection integrity and screen protection inclusion, and maybe making it a little bit lighter, it's a tool you won't want to be without once you have tried it out. Well worth the money.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 700
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Epinions.com ID:
cfalk
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Reviews written: 5
Trusted by: 0 members
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