Rating: 
Summary: Simply the Cadillac of handheld devices -- for now anyway...
Review: Gee I thought the T2 was cool, the T3 takes what made the original Tungsten and the follow-up T2 great and simply improved upon all of that in a really HUGE way. It isn't without some flaws, however and I'll address those here as well. First off the PROS:The Screen! As I write this you simply cannot buy a better handheld device (Pocket PC or otherwise) that gives you a better screen. PERIOD. You just won't believe how the screen looks in the extended position, especially when looking at downloaded pictures. Outstanding. You can view them upright or simply at the touch of the stylus you can turn the screen sideways and voila! the picture rotates into a panoramic view. Bravo to Palm for instituting this program! The Voice Memo feature is unbelievably useful. I tend to do a LOT of thinking and planning while driving around and my biggest problem is that when something truly great suddenly pops into my head, I just cannot stop and write it down while in traffic -- however with the convenience of the voice memo on my T3 I can record my thoughts on-the-go with one-handed operation. Easier than answering my cell phone, too. I was incredibly surprised to see just how ground breaking this feature was for me personally. Sure, the quality isn't all that fantastic, but for the purpose it serves, it does GREAT. Memory: A whopping 64mb! 'Course you can only use around 59 of that, but still, finally a Palm device that can compete with a Pocket PC for memory storage! I remember thinking I'll NEVER need more than 8mb on my handheld -- well I currently have well over 32 used at the moment and I have plenty more I am planning to install. Expansion: I guess there are two kinds of people who fall into this category, you either like and appreciate what expansion can do or you hate it. Personally I really LOVE this particular ability of most the Palm's I have owned. I have loaded the RealOne player onto my card and use it to play mp3 files, which can be seamlessly copied from my cd collection within minutes. The connection, thanks to the lightning fast processor makes access to my expansion card almost immediate. Some have noticed that the T3 is slightly taller than the T2 and at first I thought that might be a problem, but the advantages of what the T3 can do far outweigh ANY kinds of problems the extra size may cause. At first I was NOT happy with the new navigational button at the bottom center of all the Tungsten models -- at FIRST. I was SO familiar with my older Palm models that I was very skeptical that it was an actual improvement, and more a cosmetic upgrade to make the device more streamlined. Well, yes it IS a nice looking addition, but after some initial getting used to, I can whole-heartedly endorse this improvement 100%. The free software that came with my T3 was absolutely invaluable. I have used the Adobe Reader almost instantly when I finished downloading it to my desktop. Documents to Go is also a MUST in today's business world. I never would have thought that I would or even COULD use any of these, and yet as the world has technologically progressed right on by me, I have had to adapt -- or be left behind. The T3 has allowed me to keep right up with everyone else in this techno-savvy world. The Bluetooth connectivity may be a major plus down the road, but my particular area hasn't been blessed with a lot of Bluetooth compatibility -- for the moment. However down the road I can definitely see myself making my next mobile phone purchase based upon the carrier's Bluetooth ability. I know many who are die-hard Wi-Fi users (and you can buy a Tungsten that will work specifically for that, too) and still others who will never stray from their trusty down-right ancient-looking Blackberry's out there, but for me, I'll be perfectly satisfied with what mine already has. This IS one thing you ought to look into before you make a purchase just to be sure. Now for the CON'S: it has been noted that the battery life isn't exactly stellar -- and this pretty much sums it up in nutshell. Even my (much) older m130 had at least twice the battery life. Sure, this screen is quite a bit bigger and subsequently sucks more life from your batteries than usual, and this is something you need to consider when weighing in on battery strength, but even so, it seemed to disappear much quicker than I expected. One way to help minimize this I have found, is to lower the backlight to the lowest setting. You'd be surprised how much extra life you can squeeze just by doing this one thing, and it doesn't harm the clarity of the screen by doing so by much, if at all. Other than this one single problem, I can see my T3 being (at the moment anyway) the absolute best Palm OS item on the market today -- and since I have become so familiar with Palm vs. the Pocket PC, and after sitting down with a PC for a few hours attempting to figure it out, I can state emphatically that the Palm platform is MUCH simpler and user friendly -- at least it was for ME. There are just as many out there who believe the opposite, which is just fine. A large part of purchasing this kind of item is personal preference, and I hope that I have been able to say my peace in enough detail to help others in making their PDA decision. Good luck and remember: the MOST important thing to consider when buying one is the MORE you know, the BETTER. Examine them side-by-side and if you cannot get any practical hands-on use out of one, maybe you ought to look elsewhere to buy your next product.
Rating: 
Summary: Nearly there...
Review: I have owned my T3 since Christmas 2003. Initially I was completely enthralled. It is fast, has a great diplay and plenty of memory. I was disappointed with the battery life. I was upgrading from a Clie' 710C. I am able to listen to music and read books for an entire travel day with my Clie..not the T3. I simply purchased a seperate MP3 player...no big deal. Then, 1 week ago I started having strange problems. Programs that were working fine had started locking up, forcing a hard reset! I started trying to track down the individual program that was causing the problem. I would install a single 3rd party program and attempt to run it. Most would lock up. However the internal programs (address book, calendar, etc...) continued to work. I finally broke down and contacted customer support via e-mail. I explained in detail the steps I had gone through. They replied that it sounded like a hardware issue and told me to call in for a return authorization. When I did this, they wanted to go through the entire process again. On top of it they seemed clueless. As a matter of fact, they were so clueless, that I ended up completely frustrated and thanking them for their time and hanging up! Later I called back hoping for another support tech. It appears that the phone support is offshore which led to communication problems both times. However we were able to overcome these and I did receive a SRO. I am writing all of this to reinforce other reviews. The T3 is a great PDA, but it does appear to suffer from some quality issues. It doesn't have a great battery life (when are they going to wise up and put in removeable batteries?) and the customer service seems to have gone to the toilet!
Rating: 
Summary: Best Palm handheld to date!!!
Review: I purchased my Palm Tungsten T3 last week after doing much research on line, reading many, many reviews and listening to both the pros and cons about this work of art, I decided it was time to make a purchase. The first one came the day after I ordered it by Fedex (I was shocked), as I was waiting with much anticipation for its delivery. This is my fourth Palm (3xe, M505, Tungsten T) so I am quite familiar with the setup process. However, after my first hotsync I couldnot get any applications to open. I was receiving a launch error sign. I sent it back after several hard resets proved unsuccessful. My second T3 arrived last week and I have had absolutely no problems. I very much enjoy using this machine and have become quite attached to it. I have outfitted it with several cases and am just learning everything it will do. Of course the brilliant display screen and stretch ability are as advertised. I really don't mind the short battery life as a trade off, I just purchased a "power to go" battery pack which helps tremendously with that issue. I am however waiting before I purchase any third party applications, as I want to learn the native apps. first. There have been some significant changes added to the Address Book, now known as "Contacts" and the Date Book know called "Calendar". I can landscape and view the entire year or a single month, I love it! The software bundle that comes with it is more than impressive (good work Palm Source!), Docs to Go (for creating word and excel documents), Kinoma (video viewing), Realone Player for listening to Mp3 audio in fantastic stereo with a good pair of earbuds, Palmreader (like putting a book in your pocket) and Photos. These are my favorite apps. So for me, the trade offs are more than worth it. I don't really need WiFi, and Bluetooth I hardly ever use, but its good to have if you need it. I would say if you are considering this PDA, think about what your willing to trade off and then make your decision. Pam hasn't got it perfect yet, but they are getting closer with the T3. Good work PalmOne, keep listening to your customers. And lastly, Customer Service outsourcing to the Phillippines is not working. You are losing customers. Get back your customer service that was originally your strongest selling point. Bring the jobs back to the U.S.A.
Peace!!!
Rating:
Summary: Very nice device!! I'm very happy... only miss WI-FI
Review: It s a very nice PDA, nice screen, functions... It is just what I expect, only has two contr. Doesn't come with built-in WI-FI and batt lasts for 2 and a half hours of use.... the wi-fi problem I can be solved by buying Scandisc's SD card.... and Batt problem (for travelers specially) can be outcome with power to go... this does not worse the VERY GOOD things that this PDA has.... I do LOVE it and recommend
Rating: 
Summary: Problems with the T3
Review: Got a nice T3 for X-mas from my wonderful wife. Impressive looking. Love the landscape view and slider. Unfortunately it doesn't work well. I had numerous resets for no reason. Finally after 3 months battery would not hold a charge and lost all the data. Re-charged again and then synched with my computer. Overwrote everything in computer i.e. wiped it out. Sent it back to Palm who could not track my return, then they sent it back with no explanation. Working with their customer support in India, Philippines, etc. is very difficult. Even after 10 emails they could never answer any questions. Always the same response "thank you for contacting PalmOne....". Finally had to call main office in CA to find someone who could help. I had an extended warranty that said I get a replacement machine if something goes wrong. Never even offered replacement or would acknowledge that I had such a warranty. Do not buy this device. If something goes wrong Palm is not there to help. Poorest customer service I have ever seen.
Rating:
Summary: Finally, they put it all together
Review: I've been using PalmOS machines for a long time, and the T3 finally brings together all the things I've wanted in one box: Very sharp color screen; the extra space and the ability to rotate it sideways are great. Picture display is pretty good; I'm glad they didn't try to cram in a camera, I want a *good* standalone camera. MP3 record and play are wonderful. The 64MB of main memory means I can load all the ebooks I want, and the integrated SD/MM card slot makes it truly unlimited. The processor is fast, and PalmOS 5 is quite nice (but expect to take a day or so to get used to some changes if you know earlier Graffitti). 2 things to be careful of: some older programs (especially games) will hang or reset the machine. Also, the battery can go down fast esp. if you're doing audio. Buy a "microSync" retractable USB sync & charge cable to go with it, and a couple of SD/MM cards for music -- perfect for travel.
Rating:
Summary: An ideal business companion
Review: (...)BR>Nobody can accuse Palm of dragging its heels when it comes to upgrading its PDAs, and this is especially true of the Tungsten range. The T2 was only just beginning to feel comfortable in my hands, yet now I have the sequel, the T3. Any comparisons with the Arnold Schwarzenegger movies should be resisted at all costs, apart from the necessary observation that the Tungsten T3 is essentially the same as its predecessor but with a few more funky effects. Being a similar price to the Tungsten T2 at its launch, you will want to know what's new, what remains the same and is it worth upgrading? The first improvement you'll notice is the extra wide screen; it now spans 320 by 480 pixels, which is 50% greater than any other Palm handheld, plus it supports 65,536 colours. In addition, at the touch of a button you can now rotate the picture to work in landscape as well as portrait mode, which is especially helpful if you want to examine your spreadsheets in more detail or enjoy the latest widescreen movie trailers. The PDA itself is thinner, sleeker and sexier than its forebears and the slider is easier to operate. The extra good news is that it's no longer essential to open the slider to reveal the main functions; the interface has been revamped so there's now a Status Bar that appears at the bottom of the screen and allows you to access the most popular applications. The other major boost is to the amount of power available. While the Tungsten T2 had 32MB RAM (doubling that of its predecessor), the Tungsten T3 has matched that by doubling again to 64MB, driven by a 400MHz Intel XScale processor. Additional memory can be supplied in the form of MultiMediaCard and SD expansion cards. The operating system is the latest Palm OS 5.2.1. Software improvements include a new agenda view, colour-coded calendars, more flexible scheduling, enlarged contact information and more space for memos and notes, plus advanced Microsoft Outlook compatibility and Grafitti 2 for writing. Familiar sights from before include Documents To Go 6.0, which allows you to create and edit Word, Excel and PowerPoint documents; Palm Photos and Kinoma Player for storing and playing back stills and videos; and the voice memo facility. MP3s can still be played back via headphone or speaker (and the quality and volume of the speaker has been greatly enhanced), while Bluetooth wireless connectivity remains. Although some early customers have complained about variable brightness quality of the screen, and the cradle is still the preferred method of recharging the battery, overall it seems likely that the Tungsten T3 will find a steady stream of aficionados. Verdict: If you already own the Tungsten T2, you may pause before considering a hefty layout for its successor, but if you have yet to get your hands on a PDA, this is an ideal business companion.
Rating:
Summary: Palm Tungsten T3
Review: I recently upgraded from M500 to T3. I wanted a better and larger screen, better handling of e-mail and syncing with Outlook, as wel as handling Word attachments. I am really satisfied with all of the above. Synchronisation by cradle and IR on my mobile phone work very well, both as regards Docs to Go and AvantGo. My old portable keyboard works as well after installing a new driver from the Palm website. Three problems, though:
1. the old "Mail" application is no longer used and replaced by VersaMail. Versamail, however, is difficult to install on network PCs because it only installs as part of the software package on the CD ROM. I have still not managed to do that. In the mean time I use versamail to sync by IR wireless with Yahoo, which works great.
2. Battery life is SHORT, about 2 hours, so you really need a charger when travelling.
3. The T3 doesn't have a Wlan card built in, and I still haven't seen an expansion card available at web shops. Hopefully it will be available soon. Over all this is a great PDA, I travel a lot and use it instead of a notebook PC. Hopefully in a couple of years Palm will throw in a GSM phone as well.
Rating: 
Summary: Marginal product from a World Class disaster of a company
Review: This is my 4th palm product in 6 years. I like the PDA, it is quite good however I have had problems with it locking up. I called palm for assistance and their attitude towards me and my problem was "unconcerned" and at times bordering on "rude". They told me that my new palm was not working properly and they would send me a reconditioned Palm T3 to replace my 1 week old Palm T3. I took it back to the store where I bought it and got my money back. Then I waited a week and bought a new one. After 2 weeks of seemingly continually dying batteries (they have to fix that) this one started siezing up too. Again, Palm offered to send me a reconditioned unit (for the new one). I do not accept this level of customer service from companies that I buy other items from (for a lot less money) so why the heck should I waste my time with Palm. If you are willing to put up with really poor customer service, go for it! Their products I have owned so far were great when they work. If not, look at the Sony (and I hate their memory cards but their customer service makes up for it tenfold). One of these days Palm will wake up and smell the roses.
Rating:
Summary: Awesome PDA
Review: I love this PDA! I bought the T3 after my DISASTER with the sony clie TJ35 and this one has served me well for about 6 months without crashes or memory loss. It's reliable and powerful. Plus
- fast processor
- nice screen with bright colors. I love the ability to extend the screen, but unfortunately many programs can't use this feature. I guess it's most useful when viewing pictures on the PDA
- very customizable
- improved graffiti feature with more intuitive writing recognition... much better than Sony's
- comes with a cradle
- voice recorder is good with an intuitive record button of the side of the PDA, great for quick reminders
- comes with blue tooth capability but I have an older computer and haven't had a chance to use this feature yet Minus
- expensive... well worth it if you use it everyday but I feel that palm should have included the case
- drains batteries quickly, it really needs to be recharged daily After my debacle with the sony clie's I almost gave up on PDAs and went back to pencil and paper... this PDA renewed my faith in technology. Great piece of equipment.
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