Thinking Of Getting An N800 Options

[ArchiMark]

Well, I decided to take the plunge today and got a N800....

So far, it's great and having fun with it....

Very nice display and easy to use!

Will see how I feel a week from now after using it some more...

As others have said, it's a different animal than the Z but still has that Linux feel to it....

[adf]

looking forward to what you can tell us

[chyang]

I was tempted to buy a N800, mainly for it's large LCD.
But it is only available in US and Europe, I will wait for my friends to help get one, hopefully in the end of April.
I have a C3200, and have used 5500,C3000, Z is great, but Sharp doesn't seem to continue its development, so we may switch to other alternatives.

[ArchiMark]

looking forward to what you can tell us

Well, adf, in the short time that I've had N800 I've really enjoyed it....

As I said before, definitely, different animal than the Z....but even though they have different feel to them, having used Z's has really helped me get productive on the N800 quickly...

I really love the display on the N800, it's a bit larger than the Z and higher res so that really helps when surfing the web, etc....very crisp, sharp, and bright display!!

One thing that has pleasantly surprised me is how little I miss having a built-in physical keyboard on the N800. Thought that this would really be something I'd end up seeing as a negative. Yet, the on-screen keyboard works very well and is quite intelligent as to when it pops-up automatically at bottom of display when needed...very nice touch (no pun intended....).

I am thinking of getting either a Nokia or Stowaway BT keyboard for heavier inputting...but don't feel any big rush right now....

Another nice touch is the built-in folding stand that has 2 positions. Very useful.

Also, what is nice I've found is the way the N800 feels in your hand holding it. Didn't realize before I actually got it and held it that the profile is thicker at the top than at the bottom. This is a nice touch when I lay it 'flat' on my desk, etc...as it just slightly tilts the N800 towards you, minimizes a bit reflections and easier to see.

N800 is quite slim and trim device, even with the cheapie sleeve that comes with it...fits nicely in my shirt pocket, better than Z....

Device navigation is good once you use it for awhile and get used to where things are....a bit unclear at first, but quickly figure things out...

WiFi implementation is excellent and elegantly done!!...probably best I've seen on any device...it just works!....

Software installs are easy once you figure out the way it works..similar to pdaXrom with feeds (called repositories...). Only thing that is funky is that there are multiple feeds around, so takes awhile to figure out what's where.....

There's not quite as many apps available as for Z yet, but list is growing steadily it seems for the N800/770....N800 can usually use apps compiled for 770, so that adds to the list...But as I understand it, 770 users can't use apps compiled for N800 as it has newer OS....

N800 has 2 SD card slots, one internal and one external...supposedly 4GB max card each...so can have plenty of storage....

I've purposely used N800 most of the time the past week instead of my 3200 so that I'd get used to it and see how I like it....

As to which is better, probably in the end depends....meaning depends on what is really important to you as the user....

The Z is the way to go if you like the mini-workstation aspect of the Z with pdaXrom....

The N800 is probably the way to go if you want a shirt-pocketable device that has built-in WiFi/BT and you want to surf the web/check and send emails wherever you go, and do other light tasks such as reading books, docs, etc...

Anyway, that's the report for now....hope this helps a bit....

Can try and answer some questions if I can....

[adf]

Sounds like the n800 is a kind of "next step" past my 6000/sharprom. Interesting, thanks.

[BarryW]

I ordered one this morning. At the moment MacMall has them the cheapest. I like having a pda that is still supported. It took me about two months to find the forums after the last "hiccup". PDAXrom's site is taking a crap now. Depending on weather I like the Nokia, my 3100 may be for sale in a month or two.

[mdanehart]

Excellent device with great battery life. Found mine on Ebay for 295.00 never opened!

[rickh]

Just want to give an update...

I´m currently traveling with the device (and working with it as well). Initially, I was concerned that I wouldn't be able to properly work. I´m a translator, and most of the documents I translate need their formatting preserved.

So I found Abiword and figured it wouldn´t be too much hassle. Well, I´m able to actually complete work on the device, but I have to use a workaround of sorts. Note that I´m using a bluetooth keyboard, so text input is quite easy.

The version of Abiword that runs decently is 2.2.4, ancient, really. It reads .doc files fine, but has trouble saving to that format. The menu options give you the choice to save in various formats, but it really doesn´t. Here´s where my workaround comes into play. I have a linux server hanging out on the internet, so I uploaded the file to the server, then used Abiword (a more recent version) on the server in command line mode to convert the file to Word format. It worked fine, the client was happy. I don´t really like having to do that extra step, but it works for me.

I used Textmaker on the Zaurus all the time, and I gotta say, if they were to port it to the n800, it would rock.

For net access, I purchased a linksys travel router and that has worked flawlessly. I keep it plugged in in my hotel room, which has wired access and carry the n800 pretty much everywhere. There are plenty of wireless access points here (Madrid), so I´ve not had trouble finding access outside the hotel.

Anyway, I´m quite happy with it so far. I wouldn´t trade it for anything else at the moment.

R.
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[ArchiMark]

Update

FWIW, I thought I'd give a quick update on my earlier N800 post....

For a variety of reasons I decided to return the N800 about 2 weeks ago and really haven't missed it....

It's a nice device but compared to the Z it felt like something was missing...and not just the keyboard...after using it for a while it felt more and more like it was not a mature device yet compared to the Z...With the Z you have a much more mature OS and other OS choices and a much larger pool of devs and apps....

So after the initial novelty of a new toy wore off I just found myself wondering why I needed it...especially since I found the reality of being connected wirelessly everywhere really didn't work that way even in places where I thought I should be able to get connected....

Anyway, just my 2¢....

[Fushnchupsh]

tis a shame mark, but thanks. I was sincerely thinking about trading in my z for a n800. Guess that idea is nixxed. I love the mini laptop platform (not really the form factor, just the POWER!)

--Fish

[zmiq2]

So you are getting rid of both N800 and C3200 ?

Man. your wife must be really happy ... ;-)

[BarryW]

I'm digging mine so far. I haven't even turned on the Z since I got it.

[ArchiMark]

So you are getting rid of both N800 and C3200 ?

Man. your wife must be really happy ... ;-)

zmiq2, you got that right....

[ArchiMark]

Clarification of Previous Update...

Just for the record, not saying that N800 isn't a nice lil' unit....it is...

Just that found that for me the novelty wore off pretty quickly and that certain places that I thought I'd be able to surf the internet with it didn't work well...so then I felt like what do I really need this thing for....

HTH,

Mark

[rickh]

...especially since I found the reality of being connected wirelessly everywhere really didn't work that way even in places where I thought I should be able to get connected....

Back home now...

Just curious, but what exactly were the problems? My experience has been quite positive WRT wireless access. In my experience it's been much more seemless than it ever was with the Zaurus.

R.
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