Palm pair go into battle with Windows

The Palm TX

There's a lot of activity in the Palm camp as the maker of handheld computers battles renewed competition from rival devices based on Windows Mobile 5.0 software. A reorganisation of Palm's product range has seen the company strengthen its popular Treo smartphone line, do away with the Tungsten and Zire handhelds, and strike a deal to put Microsoft software on some models of the Treo from next year. It's a fight for survival, but the new devices should keep Palm aficionados loyal.

The TX becomes Palm's flagship handheld computer, a 149g sleek black device with a 3.8-inch screen that is ideal for viewing pictures, surfing websites or watching video clips. But the resolution is just 320 by 480 pixels, lagging behind the 640 by 480 screens of many of the new Pocket PC devices.

Palm's devices have traditionally been good as personal organisers and productivity tools rather than multimedia devices, but the TX also does the latter well. Websites look particularly good in the TX's browser with the screen in landscape mode.

The TX has 100 megabytes of usable, non-volatile (meaning it won't be wiped if the battery runs flat) onboard memory. That's enough to store a good number of documents, photos, and a handful of songs or video clips. There's also an SD card slot for additional storage.

Pocket Tunes acts as a fairly basic music player capable of running mp3, wma and ogg audio files. A media viewer is included for playing video clips and viewing pictures.

The Graffiti writing tool is easy to use and the writing box can be brought up easily.

The rest of the TX's software covers the basics of contacts, calendar and Note Pad. Documents To Go can be used for viewing and editing Word and Excel documents and, as it is based on the Palm operating system, there is a huge range of downloadable applications to suit the user's needs.

The TX excels in the wireless connectivity department. I soon had it connected to my Wi-Fi home network. Bluetooth is included so the phone can act as a modem for an internet connection, and infra-red is also built in.

It's hard to know what to make of the Z22. While the usefulness of the multi-faceted TX is apparent, the Z22 seems like it should be built into a mobile phone. After all, most mid-range phones do everything the Z22 does and usually more. There's no digital camera, no media player, no memory to speak of for storing songs and video clips. So why would you bother?

The idea with the Z22 is that it acts as a fairly simple electronic contact book and planner, something a remarkable number of phones do quite poorly.

The Z22's design is similar to a compact, which gives the impression that it might be geared towards women. The front consists of a chunky iPod-inspired white curved case. Bizarrely, the back of the Z22 is coated in some semi-transparent plastic that displays the inner workings of the PDA. It's a sturdy little gadget, designed to withstand being jostled around in a handbag or briefcase.

It is pretty simple to use. There's a directional pad that you can navigate with your thumb, and a button on either side to get into the calendar and contacts quickly.

The Z22 also has an infra-red port for beaming contacts and transferring files. A USB port allows for syncing with a PC.

Palm Desktop is useful software that allows for syncing calendars and contacts with Outlook Express, which means that collected contact details can be entered into the Z22 without having to manually do so with the stylus.

The Z22 is powered by a 200 megahertz processor and has 32 megabytes of memory, 20MB of which is available for contacts, documents and third-party programs.

It has a back-lit 160 by 160 pixel colour screen that does a decent job of displaying the regularly used icons, but it doesn't really do pictures justice.

I can see the Z22's appeal for busy people who need instant access to contact details. But all of the women I showed the Z22 to said they couldn't be bothered carrying it and a mobile phone around with them.

It seems like either an accompaniment to a cheap phone or something that should be by-passed in favour of one of the smartphones on the market.

Palm TX

Pros: Good connectivity; strong software set.
Cons: Average screen quality.
Price: $599
Herald Rating: 7/10

Palm Z22

Pros: Lightweight; sturdy; easy to use.
Cons: Limited functionality.
Price: $199
Herald Rating: 6/10