Rating: 
Summary: Awesome product, but larger memory of the Palm Vx is welcome
Review: I've had my Palm V since June 1st. To my brother, wife & parents who conspired for my birthday: THANK YOU!!!!! Within two weeks I abandoned my Franklin Planner, and regretted not having had a Palm device 15 years ago. OK, that was impossible - but it has dramatically changed my life for the better, and I can't imagine ever going without it. In the last several months I have grown to be a very definite power user, and the corporate resource person for Palm-platform PDA's. Our guys have tried several others and are convinced that the Palm platform is the best and most flexible. I am very heavily into 3rd-party software evaluation (& some accessories), preparing recommendations for high-efficiency Palm device/software packages for company-staff issue. Eventually I may put together my own personal web-site, and post some evaluations and recommendations for software/accessories for Palm users. Having said all that, here's an engineer's (my)perspective on the Palm V: Visors will be great, and Palm IIIx's are just fine, but the Palm V package size is definitely worth a lot to me. Forget the sexy appearance - it's great, but the superior Form Factor rules. Yes, I would prefer that the Vx cost is about what the standard V discounts for now, but since it will ALWAYS fit in my shirt pocket (without changing my shirt wardrobe) I ALWAYS have it with me (in a place that's probably least susceptible to being damaged or lost) - and that's what it's for. Though I prefer to use the slim padded 3COM case, I frequently slip the original leather flap-cover on for small shirt pockets, & thus can still carry a separate pen/pencil/stylus device. A big plus with those covers that I've never seen in a review: the soft "grabby" texture of the rubber-like spine flex keeps the Palm from sliding, even if you do toe-touches. Ta-dah... it doesn't fall out on the floor!!!! (Very big benefit since the cover isn't a padded case.) Likes: I like being able to keep synced with both my office laptop and my home desktop (with the included MS Outlook Conduit)... autocharging in the docking cradle... a battery that's never gotten below a half-charge... nice screen... the size. I really like the unit overall - a truly great device. Any problems? Yep. I did have to get the updated e-mail patch from the Chapura site to avoid some lock-ups when synching e-mail. Also, I highly recommend TealScript (the custom-tailorable graffitti add-on) for it's ability to help you tune up your handwriting speed/recognition - and it visually showed up a mysterious problem with the screen occasionally screwing up handwriting by adding a horizontal line: 3-COM quickly replaced it under warranty, and it's been fine. Memory space? The average user probably will have no problem for a couple of years - I've met people with III's that are using less than 1k... a year after they get it: they've seen & use very few aftermarket programs. However, I've got more programs in there than will fit: launcher, datebook, calc & memo replacements, travel programs, doc reader, picture viewer, several clocks, a dozen utility and security programs, over a dozen Hackmaster hacks, and a few games. Since FlashPro gave me the extra 800k memory room (awesome), I found I probably had enough that I could otherwise get by fine without deleting rarely-used fluff programs - except that I use it heavily for work & software evaluation. The memory room of the Vx would be heaven - the perfect device, I think. It'd be handy to carry a lot of maps, but my current standard P5 doesn't have the memory room without deleting, say, my picture viewer. (Oh, the screen? It's great! Yes folks, it IS a 16 greyscale display!) Probably I'll upgrade to the Vx & give my wife my standard V (P5) unit: she thought it was no big deal when I got it, but has fallen in love with the capabilities and wants her own Palm device. Bottom line is that if you're a minimalist, the 2k of P5 memory is fine. But if you like to carry a Gerber/Leatherman/Swiss-Army device (like I do) because a pocketknife leaves you unprepared... better get a Vx or get the 8mb upgrade on your P5. Price? When Handspring comes out with something to compete with a Vx, the price world will probably be great. Yeh, P5's are expensive compared to some of the lesser PDA's - but compare the price to a palmtop computer, and they look like a great deal... especially considering the impact on your lifestyle. Can I mention my essential add-on programs list? Tough area, but currently I wouldn't give up these - listed in order of descending requirement: UnDupe (get it!), TealScript, Travel Clock, Hackmaster, (SwitchHack, StayOffHack, PalmV hack, Invert Hack & Invert, FindHack, CatHack), DateBK3 (& dbScan), BackupBuddy, IDPalm, FlashPro, a good launcher - either Commander or LaunchEm have too many great enhancements to do without. Must-have accessories: WriteRight screen covers, Throttle Stylus/pen. I regard the PalmV hack and StayOff hack as absolute essentials for Palm V users, and Invert with InvertHack give proper screen display when the backlight's on. In-depth info? O'Reilly's "Palmpilot: The Ultimate Guide" is a fantastic reference for ALL Palm owners.
Rating: 
Summary: Persist for a month.
Review: I really didn't get organized at first, but after installing the Franklin Covey applications (Task List, Goals, etc.), everything has clicked and worked - I am much more productive! One word about the backlight: the newer Palm V's have a MUCH more usable backlight -- it's still the strange "reverse backlight" but unlike the early stock of Palm V's, the new backlight is actually quite good and usable, even in mid light conditions.
Rating: 
Summary: Nice, but better is available
Review: This is a cool gadget, but if you want a more serious machine, go with a Psion 5MX. It has a better design, better software and is a true pocket substitute for your computer.
Rating:
Summary: HotSyncing between Home and Office
Review: I've had my Palm V for two days now, and I've found out that they don't like to be sync'ed on two different computers. I originally installed my Palm V at the office, and when I brought it home (after buying an extra cradle,) the hotsync failed during the mail sync'ing. When I emailed 3Com, with the all the information regarding software/hardware, they sent me an email back asking questions that I had already answered. Other than that... it's great!
Rating: 
Summary: Run away. Do not look back.
Review: When they sell these things for $75 (what all of my engineer-geek friends and I believe them to be worth) then I will gladly endorse them. As it is, we ordered half a dozen just to try out at work (Boeing Aerospace), and a third of them were dead out of the box. Of the other four, one was freezing on a daily basis, so it got sent back as well. . . That leaves 3. No wait, the hot sync quit working on one, so we had to reinstall the system software. . .TWICE. Gave up. Sent it packin'. This has been over 5 weeks ago. About 2 weeks ago we scrapped the whole idea and went back to our Newtons. When this all started 3 years ago, I hated the idea of using an APPLE product to do REAL work, but I have to admit that the Newtons have been the ONLY piece of computer equipment that we can actually rely upon to WORK (as opposed to NOT) in a consistent manner. Heck, they're more reliable than our servers. Given the time and money that 3COM put into the PALM upgrades, we really expected a helluva' lot more machine for the money. There are just waaaaay too many bugs for a $400 pocket toy. The handwriting recgnition is nowhere near the quality that we're used to, but then we use Newtons, so it's not really a fair comparison. Like I said in the summary, Run away, don't look back. And if you can find a used Newton, BUY IT INSTEAD!! There are still dozens of software producers pumping out apps left and right. . .
Rating:
Summary: It's the cats' meow!
Review: I'm more of a business user than an electonic toy fan so basic utility and functionality are vital, frills and extensions are just 'nice to have'. Digital organisers can be more work than they are worth. I've used a few other pocket organisers in the past and the Palm V wipes the floor with them. After a day's use and the graffiti (pen script) comes fluently; the organiser elements are easy to use and the synchronisation is effortless. Fabulous design - light, elegant, robust. The available freeware/shareware makes the functionality all I need. Most importantly, it's as easy to carry as a paper diary. My previous keyboard-based organisers were big and clunky by comparison. If you use the Palm V in a meeting, you don't look as if you are making a big deal of pulling out the organiser. Personally, I wish I'd got a USB connection for the cradle as my PC serial port is heavily used and inaccessible. If you're buying, think about it.
Rating:
Summary: A great tool for busy people
Review: I only had my Palm V for a couple of days, but believe me, it's great. What surprised me was the utter genius of the original design by Jeff Hawkins et el: every colleague I showed it could use it after about 3 minutes of getting used to, and they went totally gaga over it. The backlight is great, 2 megs seems enough... Definitely try TealPhone, a Contacts replacement, it's swell. One last comment: DopeWars is a great freeware game, and a very addictive one!
Rating:
Summary: IIIx and Palm V compared
Review: I had a PalmPilot Pro (the 1 MB version) and was ready to upgraded to the IIIx. My wife got one at work so I had a chance to play with it. I ended up with the Palm V. The display on the V IS better than the IIIx. The contrast is electronic not manual and is MUCH easier to adjust. The form factor of the V is smaller (in all three dimensions) which makes it much easier to put in a shirt or other pocket. The alarm on the V is significantly louder. I've come to totally appreciate the rechargeable battery (with a third emergency kit available that recharges the Li ION battery from a standard 9 volt battery). There is also an 8M third party upgrade available (TRG maybe???) for the V -- I don't recall the price). I found a utility FlashPro that works with any III and up (don't know about the VII) that allows use of extra Flash RAM (824K in the IIIx and V). As a result I have about 1.7 Mb of stuff in my Palm V and still have over 1Mb free RAM. HackMaster and the PalmVHack solved the problem of pressure on the cover inadvertently turning the unit on. Given the street price difference the Palm V is difinitely worth the price over the IIIx.
Rating:
Summary: Strong but Sensitive
Review: I am thrilled with the capabilities of the Palm V and love the easy synchronization with my P.C. I have only one complaint that the folks at Palm Computing Group must consider- please re-engineer the on/off switch so it does not turn on and tick with such high sensitivity. I can't move my briefcase without accidently turning this thing on!
Rating:
Summary: Longer to install with Win NT 4.0 But Not Impossible
Review: Just to correct what I wrote on Aug 25. My office systems people were able to install the palm desktop after modifying win NT. It just takes a bit longer. The Palm is much better than the $100 organiser I used earlier- being able to synchronise my handheld with my office computer has simplified my life hugely. I've finally been able to throw away the dozens of post-its on my workstation! Strongly recommended. 3Com should issue a more useful/detailed user guide with it, though.
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