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Smartphone or Palm?

R

Ruffian829

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Jun 17, 2008
319
2
I am a brand new mac user.
I am thinking of getting a smart phone or a palm piolet... I want something that I can get email on and have a good calender and contacts on the go...
I initially wanted to get a palm piolet only because I didnt like the super huge smart phones- I want something that can fit in my pocket- but since they are a lot smaller now I'm leaning in that direction.

Since I'm new to Mac, but loving it, I want something that can sync up with a mac and that has some sort of a Mac feel to it?
Unfortunately, the iPhone ranks on the "too big" scale for me... and i'm not a huge fan of the iTouch (I have a nano, I dont want both! LOL)

does anyone have any suggestions for a phone or even palm os that will work nicely with a mac? a palm or pda that doesn't use windows?

Thanks!
 
I'm not really sure what you're looking for if the iPhone is to big......its one of the small smartphones to date.

Palm's Centro(which is shorter, but a good deal fatter)

(Sprint, AT&T and Verizon in the US)
Good device, syncs with OS X, a bit dated OS, but still functions

Palm T/X
Just a PDA, and Palm looks to be dropping PDAs, but still funtions(personal I'd look towards a smartphones)
I believe its taller and fatter then an iPhone.

Nokia's E71 looks to be good...idk about syncing with OS X, but I'd guess its be good(doesn't run WM, so thats a plus when syncing with OS X)


Honestly if you think the iPhone is to big, you're really limiting what you can buy.
 
I know you said you didnt want the iPhone.. But I just want to recommend it. I am syncing an iPhone with my imac and macbook and it all works perfectly with .mac (soon to be mobileme).
I do have to connect the phone to one of the macs and it syncs automatically. Its also really easy to check email and browse online with it.

Its a bit big but you get used to it quickly and it does have a very nice look.

I think it will be even better with MobileMe coming out with push email, ical etc so you dont have to connect it to a computer. Obviously nothing with sync betting with a mac than iphone ;)
 
I know, obviously, an iphone would work the best as far as syncing, but I carry my phone in my pocket 99% of the time and I know my friend has to carry a purse if she wants to bring her phone because her iphone wont fit in her jeans pocket...
and would one be safe in a pocket? I feel like if it was in a back pocket, and I bent over, it would break (or my pants would rip! LOL)
but seriously, I work with animals so I never have a purse with me or anything, and so I need something smaller...

would something like a blackberry pearl work? or the LG Rumor?
 
Wow....Hmmm...

Ruffian829 said:
I know, obviously, an iphone would work the best as far as syncing, but I carry my phone in my pocket 99% of the time and I know my friend has to carry a purse if she wants to bring her phone because her iphone wont fit in her jeans pocket...
and would one be safe in a pocket? I feel like if it was in a back pocket, and I bent over, it would break (or my pants would rip! LOL)
but seriously, I work with animals so I never have a purse with me or anything, and so I need something smaller...

would something like a blackberry pearl work? or the LG Rumor?
Click to expand...

The iPhone is by far one of the smallest Smartphone / PDA / Phones out there in terms of thickness. Totally syncs with Mac... Anything in your back pocket is a mistake imho...

I've had a Treo, an all in one device. I've carried both a palm pilot and a small phone. Carried just a small phone, iPod and a Palm Pilot together, not enough pockets for sure, and the juggling of the 3 devices just plain sucks... and for a "DOES IT ALL" Device... the BB Pearl is nice... small for sure. But, I'm thinkin' the iPhone is the way to go... that's my vote. You could also get a bluetooth device where the location of the phone is less critical when a call comes in and you're working.

Lots of choices out there... good luck.
 
I think you are confused about the physical size of the iPhone. I'm not sure that there are ANY Smartphones/PDA's that are smaller than the iPhone. Maybe the Palm Centro?

I carry my iPhone in my front jeans pocket all the time, and it is fine. I just put my keys, etc, in the other pocket. I guess it would depend on how tight your jeans are (LOL), but it works for me. If your friend said her iPhone won't fit in her pocket, I am surprised any phone would fit.

I don't think it would work well in your back pocket, because I would be worried about sitting on it all the time.
 
I'm actually purchasing a pearl this Sunday, and the mac syncing software seems to be fine. After speaking to both male and female friends who have the phone, it seems to have no problem fitting in your pocket, and at least the 8110 comes with a protective case.

The keyboard takes some getting used to though, haha.
 
Please tell me you're not going to buy a Palm Pilot...:eek:

They're buggy, and will eventually break. I think the iPhone is similar in size to the Tungsten, or whatever they have now, plus it's a phone too. And media player, etc. The PP is nothing but a glorified PDA, and those are fast becoming extinct in favor of smartphones, etc...
 
Ruffian829 said:
I am a brand new mac user.
I am thinking of getting a smart phone or a palm piolet... I want something that I can get email on and have a good calender and contacts on the go...
I initially wanted to get a palm piolet only because I didnt like the super huge smart phones- I want something that can fit in my pocket- but since they are a lot smaller now I'm leaning in that direction.

Since I'm new to Mac, but loving it, I want something that can sync up with a mac and that has some sort of a Mac feel to it?
Unfortunately, the iPhone ranks on the "too big" scale for me... and i'm not a huge fan of the iTouch (I have a nano, I dont want both! LOL)

does anyone have any suggestions for a phone or even palm os that will work nicely with a mac? a palm or pda that doesn't use windows?

Thanks!
Click to expand...

You don't want you iPod nano?? May I suggest you donate it, say, to me??? :D
 
Blackberry Pearl sounds right up your alley. Good organizer (once you get used to the keyboard), GPS on the new models too. If you don't like the iPhone's size, I would say this is one of your better options.
 
The Centro is a pretty good size. I'd say wear something you'd normally wear to a store and get the feeling of the phones. Radio Shack carries both Sprint and at&t, so that might be a good option if you want to get a look at the physical feel. You might have to visit a carrier specific store to see if the device would fit in your pocket.
 
Thanks for the replies...
right now I have a simple flip phone that fits in, basically, any pocket- and I have no trouble or worries about it in my back pocket. I realize that this is not the case with any smartphone, but I'd like it as small as I could get it...

I'm going to take a look at the pearl and the iphone- the pearl is slightly smaller... but I love the new moblie me technology that the Iphone is coming out with (although, I hate the thought of switching to AT&T...)

My brother has the LG Rumor, although I'm not sure it is totally web capiable, it is a lot smaller with a slide out keyboard...
 
In term of size occupied, the difference between iphone and pearl is 2%
4.5 x 2.4 x 0.48 inches
4.2 x 2 x 0.6 inches

But the iPhone should be smaller because of the tapered design. (The iPhone measurement is of the thickest point)
 
I recommend the Sprint (not AT&T) Palm Centro. It's not as sexy as an iphone, but it's much cheaper, has 3G data, and does just about everything the iphone does except multitouch and playing DRM'ed iTunes music.

Also it's smaller than the iPhone, much more durable (I carry mine in a pocket with my office badge, have dropped it many times, still looks and works great), and you can install whatever programs you want - many of them free.

The iphone's a better media player (though the Centro can play internet radio - e.g. shoutcast streams - out of the box) and web browser, but I actually think the centro is more useful for communications - email, sms, im, phone contacts management. Plus it's usable one-handed.
 
vga4life said:
I recommend the Sprint (not AT&T) Palm Centro. It's not as sexy as an iphone, but it's much cheaper, has 3G data, and does just about everything the iphone does except multitouch and playing DRM'ed iTunes music.

Also it's smaller than the iPhone, much more durable (I carry mine in a pocket with my office badge, have dropped it many times, still looks and works great), and you can install whatever programs you want - many of them free.

The iphone's a better media player (though the Centro can play internet radio - e.g. shoutcast streams - out of the box) and web browser, but I actually think the centro is more useful for communications - email, sms, im, phone contacts management. Plus it's usable one-handed.
Click to expand...

I use my iPhone one-handed.

But iPhone aside, if the iPhone didn't exist I'd get a Centro 100%.
 
Right now, i'm looking at the BB pearl and the Palm Centro.
The iPhone, as I originally said, is a bit bigger, the touch screen worries me along with the size because I need it to be durable (IE: it needs to be able to go in my pocket while I'm riding) and I dont want to go with AT&T.
The Pearl seems to be the perfect size, but the Centro seems a bit easier to use with the full keyboard. So... I'll have to think about it... but I dont think the iPhone is right for me (like I tried to state originally, lol)
 
j26 said:
Missing Sync from Markspace does a good job of syncing Palm with a Mac.
Click to expand...

It does an OK job, but it's far from reliable.

My wife uses Missing Sync along with a Palm, and it pretty consistently messes-up syncing if you enter data from the mac. She has resorted to using her Palm for data entry, and only backing-up to the mac.

I'll be buying her an iphone soon, specificly so I can dump Missing Sync and the plam, and make her life easier (and a little more fun).
 
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