Rating: 
Summary: Palm m500
Review: The Palm m500 is very similar to the very versatile Palm Vx in many ways. Palm has added some features that make this model even better. The interface with the PC and hotsync tasking is flawless.The response time and speed of this unit is very much improved as is it's overall functionality given the software package. Coming with Documents to go, AOL and Power One, the software just keeps getting better. Now I can take my important documents and spreadsheets with me. It has a nice greyscale screen and is much lighter than the Vx model. Eight MB of RAM might not be enough, but it can be expanded through the use of memory cards. I've backed up all of my data, e-books, databses and applications on one card which [are fairly inexpensive]. I highly recommend the Palm m500 for professional uses. It's wide variety of supplementary accessories also makes this model a plus. My only criticism is that the power button does protrude more than the Vx model. In the Palm hard case, the power button does turn on inadvertently at times. Hopefully better hard cases will become available for those, who like me insist on such accessories. Overall, a very responsive, high quality unit.
Rating: 
Summary: Great little organizer
Review: I like my Palm. I'm not nuts about it, like so many people get, but it's a very useful device for what it does. You hear a lot about what Palm does well. Well, I agree, and that's why I gave it four stars. Why not five? Hotsyncing is cumbersome, and some of the 'conduits' to help merge Palm apps with Windows apps are a bit buggy. If I want to maintain the same information on my desktop as my palm, it gets a little tricky. I'd rather that it was more seamless, to take the extra work out of maintaining and organizer.
Rating: 
Summary: Get A Sony
Review: No matter what Palm Os you get, always get a sony CLie, it is always better and has more value, better for begginners, more professional for professionals. ALWAYS GET A SONY
Rating: 
Summary: So Where's the Stylus
Review: Purchased from Amazon 2001 in Florida. My Palm m505 arrived shortly after I ordered it, however there was no stylus as advertised and the software was pirated from the original on a used CD in a dirty case - did you think I wouldn't notice the "M505 driver" handwritten across the CD in magic marker? Also this Palm arrived dead as a doornail and had to be recharged. So nice of you to send the cradle you promised. Now I'm off to buy a stylus and a manual, since the software contains nothing in the way of startup and care instructions for this thing.
Rating:
Summary: My first PDA
Review: I recieved this PDA for my birthday. I work in a health care setting and this palm pilot does what I want. I put a ton of pharmacy info in it. I also keep my calendar on it also which is very handy since I work multiple shifts as well as I have 2 children in school. I would like a little more memory but I have to say it is much easier to keep my professional & personal information in 1 place then scattered everywhere. If you want color and all the bells & whistles look elsewhere, but if you are looking for a workhorse then this is it.
Rating:
Summary: Fine little PDA, works well with a Mac
Review: I use a Mac, and first had a Newton. The m500 is much better integrated with the Mac OS, and now the desktop software is OS X native. Really works well. I use a PowerBook G4 with an IR port. The PDA syncs easily using the IR port, which is very convenient. I use the cradle just for charging and hot sync over IR. The cradle hotsync work well also, which I used before I upgraded to the OS X native Palm desktop, which is needed to use the IR port. The PDA charges quickly. I haven't done any testing to see the minimum time to charge, but I've had the PDA in the cradle a few times for less than an hour and the PDA came out fully charged. If you don't have a Palm yet you can still use the desktop software to great advantage. The software is great for keeping a calendar and phone book. When you get your Palm PDA you just plug it in and you are ready to go. I did that for 6 months before I got the m500 and when I hotsynced the first time I had a fully loaded PDA with all the contact information I had accumulated. It made the PDA immediately useful. Only 4 stars due to the backlight being a little quirky. It is fine in regular lighting and the backlight works well when it is dark. However in dim light it is very hard to read the screen. Also, lots of details on the interface are not as nice as they were on the Newton, but then the screen is so much smaller on Palms compared to a Newton. However, details like dragging entries in the To Do list, inability to select and move multiple notes, and other interface issues could have been better thought out. What this PDA has over the Microsoft driven PDA's is simplicity. The thing works, hot syncs well, and the USB connection is very nice. Overall I am glad I bought it. The SanDisk 64 meg card works well. Amazing the capacity you now get. (But then I grew up with 8K on a PDP-8).
Rating:
Summary: Solid PDA for the money
Review: Most of the other reviews have covered the basics so I'll just list my pros/cons:
Pros:
-Relatively slim and light, metal front
-Alarm/vibrate
-Excellent battery life (goes days without needing to recharge)
-Does what a PDA should do, without the fancy bells & whistles (that will ultimately define a PDA in the future)
-Palm software is easy to use; installing apps not a problem.
-Graffiti writing reasonably effective Cons:
-Does not seem to like syncing via USB (serial is fine). Keeps breaking connections esp. while syncing conduits like AvantGo.
-Too easy to turn on. If you keep this in your pocket or leather case it will depress one of the front buttons and screen, and drain the battery and leave garbled text. A solution is a shareware or freeware hack app (StayOffHack is what I use) that requires you to hold down the Pg Down button while pressing one of the on buttons to turn the unit on. Palm should've included this feature in the OS.
-I bought a 64MB SD card for this unit, and while it works fine, it seems a majority of large apps won't even work running off the card. One of the few exceptions was Acrobat Reader, but the Word reader I use won't (have to use handheld memory to store .doc files). I couldn't even store my documents on the card. Thus the 8MB memory is still a limiting factor. I still think this is an excellent PDA. It seems to be one of the last B&W ones, but color, watching movies, and listening to music isn't what I was looking for in a PDA. I was mainly looking for an organizer and something to store class notes, which is much easier to carry than a notebook (though scrolling text through a little screen is no fun). Also, the Palm keyboard for it is expensive (the same keyboard for older models can be bought for 1/4 the price), but it is the only decent one made for this model, unfortunately, unless typing with your thumbs appeals to you.
Rating:
Summary: Sleek Sleek Sleek
Review: I bought a Palm Vx and the IR port kept failing on me. Although my confidence in Palm's quality control was wavering, I took a risk and paid more money to upgrade to m500. It was a good decision which I made more than 1 yr ago. After some usage, I have the following Pros and Cons:
Pros
1. Lighter weight than the all aluminum Vx
2. Longer battery life
3. Faster processing speed when launching applications
4. great storage. I stored 2 translations (NIV and NASB)old and new testament of the Bible and it still has a lot of unused memory
5. now the price has gone down a bit so it is a good deal.
6. Sleek and light design. I personally prefers the all aluminium casing, but the plastic backing has been fine so far
7. you can use the graffitti and keyboard mode at the same time Cons:
1. expensive/hard to find accessories e.g. camera attachment, memory backup card, external memory storage card
2. some of the free games available through the Palm community web site might cause this m500 to crash, so download cautiously
Rating:
Summary: Worked very well for me.
Review: I wonder if I'd bought the same product as the other people on this reviews page? Granted, this was the only palm pilot I've ever owned so I have no basis for comparison, and I don't really challenge my unit with complicated software and options, but my m500 has worked marvellously for me so far. It's proven to be lightweight, reliable, easy to use with an intuitative interface, and equipped with more than enough features for my purposes. As far as durability, I've been using this thing for nearly a year with no problems to speak of, either hardware- or software-wise. My only complaint is that the HotSync cradle provided is unwieldy, featuring a cable that is an awkward hybrid of USB and power source, and the Y-split is, inexplicably, positioned on the USB jack side of the cable. Clumsy, especially for travel purposes -- who needs the USB connection when travelling? But other than that, I like this product a lot.
Rating:
Summary: Great design, poor quality
Review: The M500 is compact, attractively designed PDA with all the great Palm features. However, when it comes to reliability it is less than satisfactory. I bought my M500 in August 2001 and have had 3 replacement units since then and now the 4th replacment unit is failing. Palm Support (after you get by the $.../call threat) has been good, but who needs the inconvenience of the lost time while obtaining and setting up a replacement unit and the frustration of not being able to count on you PDA when you need it? Problems have included locking up, screen turning cloudy, touch screen frequently losing allignment, and battery completely and mysteriously discharging right after recharge. It is also a challenge to initially set up Hotsynch with Windows XP.
If the M500 was dependable, it would deserve 5 stars but based on the number of units I've gone through, 2 stars is probably too generous.
| 
