Customer Reviews

Handspring Visor Platinum (Graphite)

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Ok...I admit. I'm a brand new PDA user. I came into some money, and bought myself a Handspring Visor Platinum. And I love it.

While I won't say, "I can't figure out how I lived without it." I admit it is great.

I have owned it a week. It took me 20 minutes from walking into my house to entering data in the address book, and most of that time was spent unpacking the box.

Good points: Large memory. 8 megs is a lot. I am a law student and have downloaded alot of the laws that I work with in my classes. I have downloaded a free image viewer and a couple of images. I have 3 or 4 games and other utilities that are just for fun. And I still have about 6 megs of memory left.

Speed. I can't say much to Handspring's claim of "twice as fast as the Deluxe", but it is fast.

Quality. The thing feels good. It has a solid feel, and it has taken a week of my beating on it. The stylus is a joy, although I will get a full sized pen stylus. It would be nice if the plastic cover was a flip cover, but I can take it off the front, and put it on the back of the Platinum.

Springboard. While I haven't gotten to use it, I think it looks like a good idea.

PalmOS. Enough said.

Bad Points: Battery Power. The battery life in the batteries that came with it are probably only going to last another week or week and a half. A rechargable battery would have been a nice addition.

Leather Case. Its good leather, but kinda cheap in its design. I'm buying a new one soon.

No flash ROM. Realistically, I don't think this will be a problem. I talked to a number of PalmOS users who really don't do much upgrading of software, and software patches work well enough. But I figured that for the sake of completeness I'd add this.

I bought the Handspring instead of the Palm models because of the Springboard module. I bought the Platinum for looks and speed. I know, speed isn't so important yet, but I suspect it will be.

Overall, I am now officially addicted to PDAs, PalmOS, and Handspring products. I will never go without one again. :)

I debated the merits of various PDA's for well over a year before settling on this product as my choice. I had previously purchased a Pocket PC, but felt that the technology wasn't there at the time (this was 1 1/2 years ago). So why did I choose a Handspring Platinum? Simple: durability, expandibility, and cost. As an Army officer, I typically beat tech products up - I've destroyed at least a couple of laptops, handheld radios, calculators, and other items during the conduct of my typical duties, and was very hesitant to put my "paper planner" in a desk drawer. Upon receipt of my Platinum, I tossed the complimentary leather case, and purchased a padded neoprene zippered binder for it. The only other item I've purchased so far is the Backup Module, which, according to my Palm-owning coworkers, is the best thing on a PDA they've ever seen (apparently, their Palms keep crashing). Most Palm owners are in disbelief when I show them my Handspring. The Springboard Modules will kill them (check out Handspring's website for a list - it's all-encompassing). The Platinum writes better than a Palm IIIxe or Vx, the screen's MUCH clearer, and it's a heck of a lot more durable (I've probably dropped it at least a dozen times in the last month). The price? ...you won't find a better deal. One more thing - it is true that Handspring is coming out with two new models...one is the "replacement" for the Platinum (but it's nothing more than a simple product rename), and will most likely still carry the [same] price. The other... includes the same processor, along with an additional 8MB on built-in RAM. So what's the bottom-line? This is the best deal going on PDA's - get one, today, and you'll never regret your decision.

I am a Construction Supervisor and have found my Handspring to be invaluable. Because I can customize my contact fields it allows me to have a homeowner, employee, suppliers, sub-contractor and more databases in the address file. The only draw back was the USB cable that was shipped did not work for me and I had to purchase the serial cable to be able to hot sync. Also because I have large hands I need the Targus keyboard for ease of data entry. I would recommend this for anybody that carries a clip board or address book. Remember after you purchase yours to visit the many sites that offer free software for your Handspring.

Have had my Visor Platinum for just 3 weeks now and love it! Added the VisorPhone module from Handspring, placed it in the HotSync cradle and all my Outlook contacts, calender, and notes were instantly integrated into my phone. I have gone from carrying my Franklin Planner, cell phone, and pager to having just one integrated unit on my belt! Note: The VisorPhone module will keep you from being able to use the standard cases for the Visor Platinium. I am using a Neoprene large cell phone case I found at a discount store that works great.

First, I have experience with WinCE since I owned a Philips unit (the one before the Nino came out). But let's face it folks: you don't use a PDA to replace your PC -- you use it as a supplement that works hand in hand with it. I never once used the built in keyboard in anykind of serious fashion on that device.

My excuse for buying the Visor Platinum was a program called DietLog for PalmOS (not available on WinCE). My dietician recommended it (I'm trying to lower my HDL cholesterol level -- that program on a PalmOS device makes it kinda fun I guess).

Other reasons for buying a PDA: if your hard drive has ever crashed, you know how frustrating it is having to cull all your personal contact info. again and typing it in. But with it all backed up on your PalmOS device, you can simply reinstall the Palm HotSync software, sync the device and there is all your old info!

Travel alarm clock: I use an application that turns the Visor into an alarm clock (also, the DateBook+ app can function like this).

Offline web browsing: I use AvantGo's offline web browser to take web sites with me to read on the go.
Vindigo also makes a cool web-like application to find restraunts, movies, and shoppping places wherever you are (it downloads the latest info from its servers).

These are just a few cool and useful applications of the Handspring Visor Platinum. I know the extra memory will come in handy (I learned this when I had a WinCE device -- even if you don't think you'll need the extra memory, you'll be glad you got it later).

Also, if you want a wireless connection and you own a cell phone with a wireless web capability, you can buy a cord that attached your cell phone to the Visor so the cell phone acts like a modem for the Visor. These connecting cords are available from several online retailers(...). I've not tried this yet, but it's a cheaper alternative to buying the expensive module that allows wireless access.

Overall, I'm happy with the unit and agree with what most reviewers have posted here. However, I have two concerns/complaints:

1) the glittery silver finish looks painted on to me, so it'll probably start to wear off after two years of use (though conventional wisdom is that if you get 3 or more years out of a PDA, you got your money's worth).
2) the backlight is a joke -- you can't really use this in the dark.

I still recommend the product. The PalmOS is just more intuitive than WinCE.

I have been using my new graphite Visor Platnium for two days now. I had had a Visor Deluxe for 6 months but some of the modules I have been getting required a little bit of extra umph and OS 3.5 to really be used to their potential. The Visor Platinum was in my price range so I purchased that. Now that I have it, the Platinum does every thing I was hoping it would do and more. I especially like the 4-bit greyscale, compared to the 2-bit greyscale of the Deluxe. I also like the added speed which makes my games run faster and the frame rate of my eyemodule 2 even better.

Thank you Handspring for a great product.

I ordered the Visor platinum based on speed, memory and expandabilty. I'm not disappointed in any of these criteria. However, in synching to MS outlook, it deleted my entire address book and calendar on my laptop. It was not recoverable. On top of this, I was only getting 4 - 6 days battery life even when it was used very little. I emailed Handspring requesting help but never heard from them.

I returned the Handspring and ordered a Palm Vx. I anticipate it will perform as well as the Handspring but do look forward to longer battery life. I also don't anticipate any need for things like the Handspring expansion modules so expandability is no longer important.

Everyone should be lucky enough to own this PDA. Keeps my (...) straight!!!

If you use handheld just to manage database like I do, this product is a good choice. The price is reasonable, and the silver case is impressive. 8M is quite enough as long as I don't install a big dictionary. Still, here are some concerns I want to share with you:
*the battery only lasts for two weeks instead of two months stated by Handspring (I am not a heavy user!). I got to get rechargeable AAA otherwise the bill for battery is unthinkable.
*the screen got scratch easily. I only use it for two weeks and several scratches are found. I had to get WriteRight sticker to protect it.
*the backlight doesn't function as good as Palm M500 series. If you need to use backlight function alot, don't take this one.

Overall, it's a good product with reasonable price.

This Visor has been a good product that has serviced me well. As I have noted in my review of my cellphone, I use my cellphone for communications, and my Visor for organization. I wonder how long that separation will last. This Visor is the current state of the art. The Edge is just thinner. This one will do everything you need it to do. I personally have not had a problem with battery life. If you need color, look elsewhere, but be careful about the quality of the screen view. I found the quality horrible when I shopped. If you expect phones and organizers to converge quickly, perhaps you should wait. If not, this is the organizer to go with (By the way, I don't view the VisorPhone as convergence, just a step in the right direction.)