C3000 O C860?

[entius]

I am thinking about buying one of these two (waiting for the new zaurus, but not expecting a big deal), the c3000 or the older c860.
The difference in price is about 140€ (VAT included, duties unknown), and this is a big difference. As i am a victim of new toys, i would buy the c3000, but my mind is not totally lost and i am still able to think about if the difference is too big for the upc i will get.

So, in the practice, what i will find with the c3000 that isn't in the c860?

a ) usb host, definetively this is an attractive point to me, i will be able to use an usb keyboard, but a 140€ keyboard? too expensive

b ) 4Gb of HD, it is attractive, but what will i do with a HD of 4Gb that i cannot do with a CF of 1Gb? I ask seriously, there is something really interesting about having a HD incorporated? The fact of having the CF and SD slots free is not enough for me, as i don't use wifi, and i have no aspirations on GPS or other accessories at all.
Having a HD reminds me more like an ordinarie computer, with HD and RAM, but i don't know if this is stupid and there is no real difference between having storage in HD or in flash.

c ) better keyboard. From what i see in photos, i am loved with c3000 keyboard, that seems better than the 860, but it is not justifying the 140€ difference.

d ) better CPU, ejem, not enough
e ) less RAM, does it implies less speed, or something similar? Are the two devices more or less comparable in terms of performance?
f ) am i forgetting something??



Conclusion, i'd want to know if there is some reason to justify this 140€ of difference between c3000 and c860. The usb host allows to treat the zaurus as a mini-computer, being able to plug an unlimited (?) usb devices.
Is it really true?

What's your opinion about his??

[nathanwms]

If you don't mind switching your CF to have wifi, I would go with the cheaper 860 for now and hope that a later model Zaurus comes out with integrated wifi.  To me the most compelling thing about the 3000 is that I can leave in my wifi card and still have access to the 4GB HD.

[gtJormungand]

The HD in the new Zaurus should make for a better swap device.

a) The USB host alone makes me want to get the 3000, even though I already have an 860.   I'm just waiting a little longer.

e) The 3000 has 64 MB of RAM, the same amount as the 860.  It just has 16 MB of Flash RAM, instead of the 860's 128 MB, but this is just used for the boot process; the harddrive more than replaces this space.

[kahm]

I've been using my 860 since last October, completely replacing my Palm Pilot and MP3 player, and mostly replacing my laptop. The hard drive and USB host of the 3000 have me chomping at the bit to upgrade:

1) The USB host will let me play with an external keyboard as well as mass storage. I've had a few times where I've needed to transfer stuff off of a USB Memory stick or USB hard drive "on the go". Being able to just plug them into my Z would make things so much easier and faster. Not to mention that there are a lot of USB drivers to play with that are just a compile away...

2) The hard drive lets me replace my 1gb SD card. I use my CF for Wi-Fi, so my SD card slot has become my "hard drive", with all sorts of files symlinked onto it, etc. That makes it difficult to use SD to swap stuff in and out of the system - a friend of mine has a Palm, so if I want to grab files off him on the go they'll be on an SD card. Plus 4gb of HD space vs 1gb of Flash memory gives me extra storage space AND a better medium to run a swap file on.

[steliosx]

i agree with these but what about roms? If i buy from pricejapan which rom will be installed?

because in terms of software (roms for a start) I think that c860 is way better!

btw the price difference in pricejapan.com is even less - eur117 (540 over 423 as of today) ...

[entius]

including VAT (16% in Europe), difference is about 140€. Roms really are a problem, but usb host is really attractive.
I am expecting the new release, but i suspect that prices will not drop, something like EPIA mini-itx motherboards, where new releases simply are more expensive, and the old ones keep their prices.

[fordprefect]

Hi Entius,

It's a tough call. Another difference you might want to consider
is size and weight. Being in Japan, I got to play with both before
choosing, and I chose the C860 partly for this reason.

The C3000 is slightly (50g) heavier, and a little more bulky. The
C860 is already a little bulky in a jacket or pants pocket, but useable.
The C3000 feels quite a big bigger. I'm not sure I'd wanna carry it
around that much.

Anyone else find the size and weight to be a problem versus the C860?
Does it really make that much of a difference?

Anyway, here's a summary of pros and cons (ignoring the cost
differences).


C3000 advantages over C860

. 4GB built in storage is handy, plus you free up the CF if that appeals to you.
No need to buy a big card if you need the space, and don't have the cards already.

. Slightly better keyboard

. Screen seems a little brighter

. Looks nicer (subjective opinion)

. Has the new gadget wow factor

. Has flexibility of USB master (maybe handy)


C860 advantages over C3000

. Light enough for a jacket pocket. The slight weight and bulk increase of the
C3000 makes a difference for some people.

. The battery life is a little big longer (reportedly 1 hour?)

. Less chance of it breaking if you drop it (Microdrive has moving parts).

. If size it really important to you, you can use a smaller battery and shrink
the case down (swap back plates), and trade off battery life for size.
You can't do this with the C3000.

. You're using an established platform instead of an experimental one.
ROM choices are currently limited for C3000. This will get better with time of
course, and if you wanna be a pioneer then this might not be an issue.
Depends on how you wanna use your Z. If you just wanna run the Sharp
ROM maybe not too big a deal.

Anyways, hope this helps you make your choice.

Have fun!

Ford

ps: Just joined the forum. Hi everyone!

[ArchiMark]

FWIW, as for the C3000 size/weight issue vs C860....

Having had a C860 before getting the C3000....

I can say that while the C3000 is definitely a bit larger and heavier than the C860, it's not that much different. I found that after using the C3000 a few days, I got used to the difference.

The C3000 will fit in my shirt pocket but it's a bit tight....no room for anything else..

Definitely, like the C3000 overall, love the keyboard, display, and large storage capacity....

HTH,

Mark

[kahm]

i agree with these but what about roms? If i buy from pricejapan which rom will be installed?

because in terms of software (roms for a start) I think that c860 is way better!

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Roms for the 3000 will come. Maslovsky (who does Cacko) is just waiting for a trip to the US to pick up his. I'm getting my 3000 at the end of the month, and I'll be looking into either rolling my own or asking if I can help Maslovsky jumpstart Cacko on it.

The Sharp ROM is pretty useful, as it can run pretty much everything that cacko does - it just isn't as slick or pretty. Putting up with Sharp for a bit until a replacement becomes available isn't an impossibility.