5600 vs Dell3Xi

[kevbpsych]

Ok I have a decision to make:

My uses for a handheld are:

PIM, sync with outlook
Wi-Fi at home with mp3 and web browsing
Wi-Fi @ borders maybe web/email
portable MP3
a few games
possible spread sheet and text input to forms, in the future.

I now have a new 5600 with the 255 proc, unopened as of yet. Sending back a defective 5600 with the 250 proc.

In the middle of the night after looking @ all the PPC options, I found the Axim x3i for the same price that I have into the 5600, so I ordered it thinking amazon would send me back another 250 and I would e-bay it and keep the Dell.

The Dell has a transreflective screen, 64 ram and 64 rom plus built in wi-fi and an sd slot.

Obviously, the 5600 has alot of great advantages but I am worried about not using it to it\'s potential and the limited amount of software for it compared to the PPC, and the possibility of me getting in over my head and bricking the 5600 out of my own ignorance. Financially it is a wash and will make out OK selling one or the other.  I am a social worker with a minor in CIS and have not written any code in a looooooooong time, and that was only java and cobol.

What do people think?

Thanks in advance...

Kevin :roll:

[CoreyC]

I\'ve always wanted a x3i, but I ended up buying a sl5600 with the false assumption that the possibilites were endless.

If I had to do it over again I\'d go for the axim.  Not that I don\'t love my zaurus, but it seems that everything that I want to do with it is only supported by the 5500 or c7XX series.  At least with the axim you know that whatever pocketpc software you want to use will work on it.  That\'s my only beef with the 5600 though, software support.  Everything else is great.

The one thing I would really miss from my 5600 is the linux console and the built in keyboard.  I\'d probably eventually miss the CF slot too (not that I ever get to use mine with the wfi card always inserted).

You may get more money for that sl5600 if you sell it here since it has the pxa-255.

If you end up with the axim, let me know how it goes.  When my c760 gets here I\'ll be selling my 5600 and will either get a 5500 or an axim x3i.

[kevbpsych]

Thanks for the feedback, I was thinking of getting a 5500 at some point to be able to dig into and have fun with. The zaurus keyboard is a huge plus! The X3i should be in Friday, it is going to be a difficult decision.

[kevbpsych]

Can people tell me why they think I should keep the 5600 and sell the Dell?

[Mitch]

If you are going to sell the loser on Ebay, why not use each one for a few days, to get a feel for them and to see which suits your needs the most?

[Ethereal]

Can people tell me why they think I should keep the 5600 and sell the Dell?

OK, having just eBayed an iPaq 4350 and picked up a 5600/PXA255, I\'ll tell you why I made the switch: flexibility, stability, and transparency.  My experience with the iPaq reminded me of what I went through back in the day with Win95--crashes, spontaneously corrupted configurations, and lock-step \"you\'ll-do-it-our-way-and-like-it\" setup (Bluetooth pairing alone probably took 10 years off my life expectancy).

I have the same concerns regarding software availability you do, but there is a bright side: in the PPC world, everything you add (including a popular applet called \"PIE plus,\" which does nothing but fix the broken behaviours of Pocket IE) will cost money; in the Linux world, nearly all the software is free.

I also share your concerns about \"bricking\" the device, but remember: Sharp designed this thing for the mass market (sort of), not the Linux geek.  You can tinker as much, or as little, as you want.  The terminal client isn\'t even installed on the device by default, so you never have to descend into command-line hell if you don\'t want to.  OTOH, there is a whole universe of stuff you can do with this device precisely because you can change almost everything about it, and from what I\'ve seen here, there are plenty of very capable Linux geeks who will happily lend us newbies their expertise.

Linux--even on something as (relatively) simple as a PDA--may mean having to \"work under the hood\" occasionally, but at least you can get under the hood.  My PPC experience was like buying a car with the hood welded shut--when steam starts pouring out the grille, you may as well just pull off the road, get out, and start walking...

[jchung]

If $$ is not an issue then I would wait until the SL-6000 comes out, if you\'re going to go with traditional (tablet) design.

If your only choices are the 5600 or the axim, IMO, you should test out both of them like Mitch said. Get a feel of each before sticking with one.

PIM sync - axim would be the better choice. I dont use my Z as a PIM..
WiFi - zaurus
MP3 - either would do well
games - I think there\'s more support for PPC for games, but the Z has a good selection.. i think both can have emulation..
spreadsheet, text input - without a doubt the Z w/ it\'s keyboard would be choice for me. I wont go back to a pda w/o a keyboard (unless it had handwriting directly on PIM apps etc.. like Tablet PC style)