If you've ever traveled by plane, you probably know that the most expensive seats in first class, and the cheapest - in the economy (charter flights I did not take into account:). You need an exquisite dinner or drinks during the flight, and you're willing to pay for it - perhaps in the first class, and if you have more modest needs - your place in the economy class. There service is worse, and the menu is not as varied as in the first, but is not the case. The main thing is that you, as well as first class passengers, flying on the same plane and, finally, safely reach their destination. Likewise is the case with handhelds. The company makes different Palm PDAs. For those who want a faster processor, more memory and wireless communication interface is the Tungsten T3 (TT3), for the more modest needs - cost-effective solution - Tungsten E (hereinafter - TE). But the "budget" does not mean bad. Remember about the plane? The main thing that you fly:)
Design
Cost-effective solution series Tungsten, PDA with index E, unlike its more expensive counterparts does not have overtaken the gate and looks a lot like PDAs Palm 500 series. Remember the 505 and 515 models? Only the style of a modern - smooth lines and no sharp corners.
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Housing new items made of silver material and feels very much like aluminum. However, I have a great suspicion that, as a composite material of plastic stands, however, a very high quality and durable. But that inserts on the upper and lower ends of the casing are made of plastic, no doubt. The dimensions of this handheld little more than everyone else in the series Tungsten - 115mm long and 79mm in width, but the thickness of the smallest in the family - just 12.7mm. Weight in this case is 131g. Just as computers are 500-series machine sits in your hand as poured, although slightly worse than the T2 or T3. On the front panel, directly below the display is a physical area of graffiti. And just below it four application buttons and a navigation key, is almost the same as the T3, just a little smaller and pokvadratney.
On the top panel is a slot for SD / MMC card with support for SDIO, so you can use peripherals that format.
There is also the IR port, headphone jack and power button. At the ends of the PDA is not placed in any government. On the right side by "integrated stylus holder, and the left - to mount a protective cover.
Perot Tungsten E, unlike other PDA stylus in this series is not telescopic (sliding) design and a little shorter. Its upper part unscrew it, and underneath is a thin plastic needle to press the reset button, which can be found on the rear panel. There's also placed the speaker.
Hole for the reset button could be done and more. It is clear that during normal use need to overload does not occur too often, however, during testing, is fraught with all sorts of surprises, the procedure of untwisting / twisting of the stylus is tiring.
Protective removable cover that covers the screen news, obviously borrowed from the good-old models of the 500-series. Just made it in black and gray in tone with the body. Actually, you should recognize that the Tungsten E has inherited much from the legendary "ancestors". However, there was his "relationship" with the later TT and TT2.
But such a permanent attribute of Palm-like computers Universal Palm Connector can not look - it really is not. Stead TE cnabzhen connector standard mini-USB, as well as a port for connecting a network adapter. Cheated model and cradle. True, to worry about it not particularly worthwhile. Although those for whom the TE will not be the first machine may periodically have a desire to "hot-Sinco to determine the CPC to" crib "...
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This is the second computer is a family of Palm, which is equipped with standard USB-connector. The first was the Sony UX50. Likely to be caused by such a move savings. But it seems to me that here we can speak about the trend: vendors move to ordinary USB-connector, having forgotten about the special Palm or Sony connectors. Decision is likely correct, a PDA - it is the same external device, camera and peripherals can be connected via USB and wirelessly. Only here the wireless interface (besides the usual infrared, of course) from Tungsten E, because of its budget, no.
Most convincingly about the "social class," says packing CCP, which is a plastic blister, like the first Zire - camyh inexpensive handhelds in PDA history. The package includes TE AC adapter, USB cable, 2 CD ROM with software for both Mac and Windows, the protective cap and paper description.
Iron
Processor
Budget model - the budget processor. True, not Motorola, but one of a family of Texas Instruments - OMAP 311 clocked at 126MGts.
Memory
Computer is equipped with 32MB SDRAM-memory, from which the user is available only 28.8 MB. Increase may be due to SD-card format, which supports the Tungsten E.
Display
Y TE beautiful high-contrast display with transflective backlit. Others seem to already do.According to the magazine "Consumer: computers and software, which has developed a special, original method of measuring the quality of displays, handheld computers, the maximum brightness of the matrix Tungsten E was 86.5 cd/m2. This is 10% brighter than the recently tested T3. For comparison, the closest in brightness to the Tungsten E are the HP iPAQ h1945 and Sony PEG-NZ90. This is certainly commendable that the display of the budget Palm'a such as bright as that of supernavorochennoy Conki, but it is not clear why. In fact, the brighter the display, the less battery life, and this PDA is created in order to work, work and work ... As with all the latest models from Palm, backlit display our hero does not turn off. Her minimum level of brightness quite high - 21.5 cd/m2 (= Rover PC P3). This level is quite enough for comfortable operation in any ambient light. The display provides high contrast image, as in the office or on public transport or on the street. Typically, a transflective display with the work on the street, the situation is not very good, but Tungsten E in this regard was a pleasant exception - a contrast with the strong sunlight of about 3.5, which is even better than the TT3. Yes, yes, the display Tungsten E is more suitable for outdoor use than the matrix naneshney flagship model. And it is frankly happy:)
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The brightness changes in 16 "steps."
Multimedia
Microphone in our guinea unavailable. Of all the multimedia widgets, there is only a headphone jack, but mono speaker on the rear panel. The speaker is, frankly, so-so, aesthetes immediately recommended to buy headphones. Included software has a player Kinoma Player 2.0, and RealOne MP3 Player, so listen to music and watch video on a typewriter can be.
Keypad Lock
This PDA has a function key lock. About it, we talked in some detail in the review of T3. One has only to note that when the keypad is locked the display is switched off and the computer stops working. So no book to read or listen to music.
Communication capabilities
According to the communications part of the new computer does not cilen. Because the model budget, then about any Bluetooth or Wi-Fi adapters are not talking. And because the computer is denied and the Universal Palm Connector'a (palmovy modem is now not connected), the only way a wireless connection - it was a good slow-IR. Not a lot, but "what do you want for 30 cents":) However, the slot PDA that supports SDIO, you can connect a Bluetooth-module on the card, but it's going to cost some money.
Runtime
As is the case with TT3, it is impossible to understand the TE been charged or not. True, the situation is even worse than the T3. If he still has a no indicator, our hero is nothing like a trace. Understand the charges whether your computer can only turn the display back and look at the battery icon. A small recommendation - put the CPC on the night of charging. Then in the morning you just put it in his pocket ready to everything fresh TE. Real-time charging - about 2,5 hours. Battery life was measured by a standard technique in several modes:
- In read MobiPocket Reader software with automatic scrolling at a rate of 26-28 characters per second
- During playback of mp3 files from the memory card program RealOne Player (display off)
- In a video playback program Kinoma Player (320x320) test movie with a flow 640Kbit / s of memory. While working in all modes was measured before the first warning. According to the charging indicator first warning about battery power is supplied at 20% capacity.
When compared to the more expensive model, the average price level, TT2, while audio at our hero a little higher, but the scrolling and video work in read mode with a maximum illumination - below. At a minimum the same CPC lives almost as much. Of bright lights, we have already said, so modest 2 hours of video and 2 hours and 40 minutes of reading at the maximum - results are not surprising.
Performance
Productivity at work was measured with a video already have become the standard method using Kinoma Player 1.5.1. More information can be found in our recent review of the TT3.
Performance Tungsten E is not much lower than that of TT2, which, in general, and not by accident - 144 MHz processor is still faster than 126MGts.
Benchmark 2.0 "appreciates" TE to 217%.
Software
The operating system version is the same as in T2 - Palm OS 5.2.1, although with slight modifications. The new system of handwriting "Graffiti 2", which has acquired a current version palmovoy OSes, allows use by typing the entire surface of the screen. So that developers could and remove the standard physical area of graffiti, making your computer through this a little less or by increasing the size of the display.
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Changed set of software, stitched into the ROM, and PIM-yourself applications have changed considerably. To be precise, it changed the whole concept of PIM (contacts, calendar, tasks, memos) - they are strongly reminiscent of the corresponding utility for Pocket PC. Again, for details we refer you to a relevant part of the review of TT3. However, the major news - it's the ability to synchronize PIM-applications with Outlook directly after the installation of utilities Microsoft Outlook Conduits. Powerful office suite Documents-to-Go, which comes bundled with a PDA, can now work with Microsoft Office documents without any additional conversion (full native file support). The files can be obtained by mail wirelessly or read from the memory card. In Rom Sewn:
Main - Quick Tour 2.0
- Calculator 4.5.1P
- Calendar 1.0
- Contacts 1.0.1
- Expense 4.5.1P
- Memos 1.0
- Note Pad 2.2.1
- Tasks 1.0
- Word Clock 1.0.2
System - Card Info 4.5.1P
- HotSync 5.0P
- Preferences 1.3
Additional software - Adobe Reader
- Documents-to-go 6.002
- PowerOne Calculator
- Handmark Mobile DB
- Handmark PDA Money
- Versa Mail 2.6
- Telephony / SMS
- Phone Link
- Palm Dialer
- RealOne Player
- Kinoma Player 2.0
- Kinoma Producer 2.0
- Handmark Magic Dog
- Palm Reader
- Photos
Russification
Our guinea started the "master" Russian, thanks to a system of national localization MacCentre PaPiRus 2003, which enables you to work with the Russian language, adapting the system settings for the CCP and Russia supported the Russian handwriting recognition.In addition, the current version for the TE was first implemented Russification of the virtual keyboard. True, the test sample was installed lightweight version of localization without interface translation, and embedded applications, but now appear on our site full version of localization under the number 1.05.
Price
The network of shops "computer in the palm" computer Palm Tungsten E for $ 235.
Conclusions
Doing work on the bugs as an example Zire and Zire 71, summing all the needs of users, Palm created a new cost-effective computer with excellent high-contrast color display, a relatively fast processor (this is not 66MHz Motorola!), Large (for the palm-computers) RAM , the possibility of playing audio and video, and rich set of fresh software. Unfortunately, the need to stay within budget stripped model integrated Bluetooth and a digital voice recorder. But for those who do it to anything, but desperately needed an inexpensive handheld computer with multimedia capabilities, high-quality applications and PIM-readable screen, Tungsten E is an ideal investment. Do you know many PDAs with the same rich functionality for $ 240? To date, there is only one competitor, and he is in the camp of the Pocket PC. This is largely similar model HP iPAQ h1930/35. It turns out that fans of the budget decisions based on the Palm - pick one. It was Palm Tungsten E. Well, enjoy your flight!:) The authors, translation:
Dr. Pocket
