Customer Reviews

PalmOne m515 Color Handheld

5 star:		(57)
4 star:		(31)
3 star:		(11)
2 star:		(10)
1 star:		(31)

 

 

I slammed the earlier version of this device (the m505) for its horrible color screen, but adding active TFT and 16 MB standard makes this a near-perfect PDA. It's nice to know that Palm can learn from their mistakes.

This is functionally identical to the m130, which is cheaper, but you get what you pay for. The m515 has a significantly larger screen and far less bulk than the m130, easily justifying the higher price. With the built-in difficulty of pointing and clicking on a Palm device, size matters.
The life of the lithium-polymer rechargeable battery takes a hit with the new vibrant color screen, but you can still use your m515 fairly heavily for days before you need a recharge.
The only other compromise is the screen is low-res at 160 x 160 pixels. If you want photo-realism, you can buy a Sony Clie with 320 x 320, but those models have worse battery life and cost much more, so it's your choice.
The 515, quite simply, is the slimmest and lightest full-featured color PDA.

Here's a basic product guide:
Palm m100/Handspring Visor -- Bargain basement models with 2 MB of Ram. Good
starter models for the price. Distinguishing characteristics: Visor has significantly larger
screen/expansion slot and fast USB cradle. Palm has slower serial.
Palm m105/Visor Deluxe/Visor Neo -- Workhorse models with 8 MB of Ram (plenty for
monochrome models). Visor has bigger screen/USB/expansion slot. Neo has faster
processor.
Palm m125/Visor Platinum/Visor Pro -- Upper middle class models. Visor has larger
screen. Both have USB/expansion slot.
Palm Vx -- A discontinued classic, not significantly expandable. Smallest full-function PDA with lithium
rechargeable battery. Sharp, full-size mono screen. Slow serial port.
Visor Edge/Clie slimline -- ultraslim mono models sell at a premium, but have durability questions.
Palm m130 -- Fills consumer color niche. Compare to color Clie models, Visor Prism.
Small, bright screen, rechargeable battery, expandable.
Palm m515 -- top of the line. Screen is now brighter, 16 mb included, now we want
higher resolution. Still, a great improvement over the horrible washed-out color on the
Palm m505. Compare with top Sony models/iPaq.
Enjoy!

I'm a huge fan of the m500 series. Despite the reprehensible screen of the m505 after a few weeks of use, it really isn't that bad. Many people don't realize that the m505 stayed true to the PALM philosophy of mobility and battery life. Being a former Vx user I was spoiled with low battery consumption. Crossing over to color with the Clie N760 the first thing I noticed (after the absolutely amazing screen) was that I had to re-charge a little more often then I was use to. Although it wasn't a daily activity, recharging happened more frequently then before. Similarly that was also the case for the Clie T615. It's really no big deal for me, and to many people but I can see how it can be disconcerting. Expectedly the m515 inherits the long battery life of the m505. Fortunately for PALM they finally found a winner in the m515, unfortunately, the m515 was what the m505 should have been.

The only real reason why anyone would pick the m505 over the m515 is the price. The M515 has a better, brighter screen, and twice as much memory. If you were particular about bundled software the m515 naturally has a better selection.

...

With all things considered the real rival of the m515 is the CLIE T615C. Many real fans of PDA's will tell you that there is no clear winner when comparing the m515 and the T615C. It's a virtual deadlock. To the untrained eye the T615 may be the winner with its dazzling screen but one really has to consider many things, not just the screen when it comes to PDA's. Other then the screen when you consider price, battery life, form factor, and even accessories it's really a VIRTUALLY deadlock. It really comes down to preference. Many times reviews are written with preferences in mind not an objective overview. Generalizations like, "The m515 is the BEST, or the T615 is BEST!" is simply not true. It really comes down to personal preference. Although I value battery life tremendously, I still prefer a better screen and at the end of the day at the very last possible second of the last hour, I would pick the T615 over the m515. I still think the m515 is a great product and would highly recommend it.

I guess the best way to determine what is best for you is really to read a lot of reviews. Read reviews of many different units to get a general overview of what is available. Amazon has a great selection of PALM OS units, read about all of them!! Also go to down to your electronics store and compare the units side by side to get a first hand look.

Bottom line is, there is a GREAT selection of PDA's which appeal to practically everyone. Gone are the days when PDA's were merely toys for computer super geeks (like myself). Everyone gets a PDA and that's the best part of it all.

I upgraded from a Palm m130 when the m515 price dropped recently. The m515 has a larger screen. The amount of text you see on the screen is the same, but all the letters are larger making it much easier to read. I find this a big plus.

The m515 is nearly 50% thinner (0.5 vs. 0.9 inch) and is lighter (4.9 vs. 5.4 oz) which makes a world of difference if you want to carry it around in your pocket. I found I was always leaving my m130 somewhere due to the bulk, then the annoying task of hunting around to find it - and eventually likely to lose it that way.

I compared m515 vs. Sony PEG SJ33, to my mind its closest competitor and priced the same. Palm wins on the form factor, although the Sony has higher resolution, faster processor and more features. But Sony is thicker (0.9 inch) and heavier (6.1 oz). Caution on this comparison, though: Sony data may include its flip cover, whereas Palm data excludes its leather cover.

By the way, Palm doesnt say much about that cover - it comes with the product - no need to buy a special cover, in my view. This one works fine. Easy on-off if you don't need it and want ultra-slim for the shirt pocket.

The m515 is a very pleasing product to have and to hold (literally). But I would suggest anyone do a close comparison with the SJ33 and see which one fits your own comfort level better.

Just like all of my other reviews, I am as honest as possible. I owned a Palm V (the 2 meg version, not Vx) for almost 4 years now, and decided it was about time to upgrade. I had originally purchased the palm V for its ruggedness and small size. I, like many of you need a small PDA else it will not be used. The Palm V is still in perfect condition, but I've always wanted a color PDA since I first saw the Palm IIIc (which was big and bulky and had an awkward looking screen).

After much research, I spent the extra bucks on an m515 because of the horrid reviews of the m505. This palm is truly amazing. It has three levels of brightness, off, low and high. To start, I'm a college student and have found that no backlighting (the off setting) due to the reflective screen that palm used works rather well under the flourescent lighting. Incandescent lights? -- backlighting on low works best. High is too bright, although works great as a flashlight.

Like the Palm V, the m515 is rugged, sleek and perhaps even better built. It comes with PalmOS 4.1 including notepad and memopad - so now you can scribble quick notes on the screen for "translation" later ;-). Some large perks were the vibration alerts and blinking light alert for reminders HOWEVER the vibration is dull at best. Granted, I can feel it in my pocket, but it doesn't compare to some cell phone vibrators out there.

I instantly outfitted my m515 with a hardcase from iconcepts (because it was smaller/sleeker than the palm brand case -- and VERY sturdy, and WriteRights. Get those two items, and your palm will last years like my old V did :-).

The screen is gorgeous, and I don't care about hires 320x320 vs 160x160 (which this palm has) because all I wanted was a splash of color in my life, and here it is! Silverscreen (a launcher) works/looks great, and I have no complaints whatsoever. Anyone thinking of upgrading from a V, its truly worth it. Finally, as a side note, it is a tiny bit heavier than the V, but within the first week I have become acustomed to it. Hopefully this review will help your decision, happy Palming!

The m515 is the first Palm I've owned and it's a nice unit. But it's not the only way to go. After I purchased the m515, I purchased the Palm m130 (also a color unit) for my wife. Though the m515 is the supeior unit, it's not worth the...price difference. Yes, the screen is slightly larger but really not that much a consideration. The casing of the m515 is much stronger and it's much thinner than the m130, but other than that, not a whole lot of difference though. Yes, the 8 megs of extra RAM is nice, but I ended up buying SD Mem cards for both units anyway. To summarize: If you are the techno dude who needs the best Palm has to offer-go with the m515. But if you need to save the money-go with the m130. Use the money you save to buy all those other Palm goodies you'll need and want. I like my m515, but looking back, I wish that's the way I'd gone...

The largest problem facing the Palm OS world is satisfying the users who demand color AND room for apps AND long battery life AND simplicity. The 515 does a pretty good job of balancing these issues and produces a serviceable handheld, but it still falls short for power users.

The 515's color display is a big jump compared to the 505, but only having 160 x 160 pixels really limits the device. I'm getting older and Palm's shrinking displays are getting tougher to deal with. The larger display on the Pocket PCs are much easier to deal with. However, this (and the battery life) is the only real gripe I have with the 515.

With 16mb of RAM on board, it has plently of room for apps and data, so much so that I have never really needed to use the SD expansion. It runs fast, and does everything one would want a Palm to do. The Palm OS is still far superior to Pocket PC for contact management, todo lists and appointments but users who are heavily reliant upon Outlook may want to look at the cheaper Pocket PC models (Toshiba especially) as they are still a better fit for Outlook users at almost the same price.

Finally, it seems to me that the battery just doesn't last as long in the 515 as it did in the 505, the price one pays for being able to read the screen. This is only a minor issue but it can be annoying at times.

The Palm m515 is everything the m505 should have been... And should have been a year ago. Now, however, in light of other, more advanced PDA's by competing companies (I think you can name at least two), the m515 just seems outdated and too little, too late.

Let's start with the screen. It certainly is not high res and certainly holds nothing on Sony's models. The vertical black grids are very annoying after continuous usage, something that you wouldnt have on a Sony 615 or NR70, or even Palm's lower end color model, the m130. The screen isnt bad at displaying colors, in fact, it has very good color definition. But that is cancelled out by the blocky pixels and gridlines that you should not have on an [expensive]PDA. Im still wondering why Palm chose only three viewing abilities for it's backlight (none, low, and high) versus a regular bar that lets you control viewability. Low seems a little too low, and high, although its very bright, wears down the batteries fast. The 'none' setting is all but worthless unless you are outside using it, which I never am.

Also, another question mark is the lack of a simple jog dial. I have a low-end Sony S320 (since discontinued) that has a jog dial and it is wonderful. All Sony's have this but for some reason, the top of the line Palm does not. It is simply a mystery, especially when other companies such as Handspring include jog dials on some of their new models.

On the plus side, this PDA looks real nice and professional. If it only had a jog dial the form would be the best. Its not a very good PDA, especially for the price, and it should have been what the m505 wasnt. But since its Palm, it will sell, even though it is inferior compared with all Sony models and a couple Handspring (Treo series).

Not bad, but save your money until the fall when OS5 handhelds are out, or get a Clie now because it has most of the features OS5 will have only without the ARM processor.

I have had my new Palm m515 for just over a week now and it is truly outstanding and a significant improvement over my old Palm Vx (this is my third palm). It handles the basics with the classic Palm efficiency and as a business professional, my ability to access a 3000 plus contact list as well as schedule is my top priority. I was concerned about the screen visibility based upon reviews I read but these proved baseless in my opinion. In all lighting conditions (office, car, outdoors...) the screen is clearly legible, although I do set mine to high brightness. Noticeable is the considerably increased speed over the Vx. I am also using the Dictionary-Thesaurus Expansion Card that is a welcome addition and is already getting significant use. The only draw back is with the color display, battery time has decreased substantially and it needs to spend more time in the cradle, a hassle when traveling. Note to Palm: increase the battery capacity!

All in all the m515 maintains Palms position as near and dear to my heart as the best PDA out there.

I previously owned a palm Vx, which I ruined by dropping in water. I replaced it with the 515 and am very pleased. I use my palm constantly in my real estate business and can't live with out it!

I love the color screen. It is much easier to read than the black and white screen on my old palm. I also like the expansion card capability. The eBook reader is a HUGE plus. I have downloaded quite a few best selling books...and love having a book to read on my palm. I can catch up on reading anywhere and can even read the lighted screen in the middle of the night with the lights off so as not to disturb my husband.

I have not had any of the hot sync issues that other reviewers have mentioned. I sync almost every single day and have not had one problem. My main criticism of the 515 is the battery life. With my old Vx I could use it every day for almost a week before I would have to recharge it. With the 515, I need to recharge it almost every day. I think it is the lighted color screen that is eating up all of the power. You can switch off the "light", but then it is nearly impossible to view. Turning off the beaming function will save additional battery power.

I recommend purchasing a car charger so you can power the palm on the go. I also am pleased with the hard case that I bought which keeps it from turning on and getting scratched up in my purse. Lastly you MUST buy the plastic screen protector sheets made by WrightRight. I scratched the heck out of my screen on my last palm and the protector sheets are worth every penny!

The Palm M515 is an excellent PDA (especially with the current price reduction)except for one very important way, the HotSync with USB often does not work as advertised. After 6 weeks of faultless functioning, the Handheld started to intermittently not HotSync via the USB cable/cradle. Palm support was unable to correct the issue and stated that it most likely was a Handheld and not a software problem. This took two weeks of telephone consultations. The solution is a "new" refurbished Handheld. Three weeks later, the replacement has not arrived because it is on back order for parts. They refuse to refund my money or send me a "New" one that I know is readily available. Hence, Don't purchase the M515 because of the hardware problem inherent in some PDA's which is a well known issue and is discussed on listserves, and because Palm is not interested in rectifying the problem in a timely manner.