Customer Reviews

PalmOne Zire 21 Handheld

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(15)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(7)
1 star:		(40)

 

 

The new Zire Palm 21 is essentially an updated version of the original Zire, itself an update of the lowly m100, with the following changes:
* 8MB of Ram (still not upgradeable) vs. hobbled 2MB.
* A better battery.
* A slightly better processor. (This is largely irrelevant, because most Palm functions are nearly instantaneous anyway).

All of the other limitations of the original Zire still exist, chief among them the small, dim dark-grey on light-grey (so very 1979) screen and the utter lack of expandability.
Believe me, screen size matters when you are pointing and clicking on a tiny keyboard on your Palm. This is by far the smallest, dimmest screen you can buy.
The 8MB allows for only relatively basic address and scheduling functions, but is a big improvement from 2MB.
It's intended to be a starter model with limitations that will have you thirsting to upgrade, and often comes free with new computers.
The three PALM programs that I consider essential would come close to overwhelming this puppy. They are: Mapopolis (a mapping program from Mapopopolis.com with keyword-searchable street maps), Avantgo (an online news service that downloads articles to your palm) and Vindigo (a restaurant, movie and city guide).
To me, this model is only for those misguided and poor folks who would have bought the now-discontinued original Zire model but want 8MB. There are far better models out there for only a few more bucks. You can find some of the excellent Handspring Visor or Palm's own Vx/m500/m515 models used for far cheaper, which feature larger, brighter grey screens and 8 MB. Sony's B/W CLIE line of Palm OS handhelds are also better, for a few more bucks.
If you can afford it, I'd definitely trade up to the Tungsten E -- which features 32MB, a brilliant hi-res color screen, expandability, MP3 and a slick form factor. It costs twice as much and is worth every penny.

Here's a basic PALM product guide:

Zire/Zire 21/Palm m100: Bottom of the line. Designed to suck you in but leave you wanting more. Think of this as the Chevy Chevette of Palms. Plagued by skimpy, dim screens.
Palm m505: Discontinued color model features horrible washed out color screen. AVOID AT ALL COSTS.
Palm TUNGSTEN TE: The new standard for low-priced, high-value color palms. Features 320x320 brilliant screen, 32MB Ram, MP3 capability with headphone jack, high quality battery and slick, shirt-pocketable form factor.
Palm Zire 71: Excellent, but expensive model features a low-res digital camera that is Okay only for small web page photos or email.
Tungsten T2: Expensive model features drop down graffiti screen. Not worth the extra cash over the TE, unless you need/want Bluetooth.
Tungsten T3: Longer, 320x480 screen. Otherwise, similar to T2. Expensive.

For competitors, check out the Handspring Treo models, which feature thumbpads and a small form factor (some with phones).
But I've heard Sony's customer service is weak compared to Palm's easy-as-pie returns. These things do break from time to time, so keep that in mind.

Also compare to PocketPCs, which have started to come down into the two-hundred smacker price range, but still can't beat Palm's small form factor and ease of use...

If you haven't bought a Palm yet, now's a great time to try it. It's basically an extension and backup for your brain, and who doesn't need that?

Enjoy!

the zire 21 is palm's new entry-level handheld has more memory and a faster processor than its predecessor. if your expectations of the zire 21 are in line with it's low price, you won't be disappointed.

pros:
- very good value - under a hundred bucks for a solid (if basic) PDA.
- runs Palm's latest OS 5.2.
- 8MB of memory instead of just 2MB in the old Zire - 8MP is plenty for the intended use of this PDA.
- faster processor than original Zire
- great battery life.
- pocketable at 4.4 x 2.9 x 0.6 weighing 3.8oz.
- feels solid.
- USB support.

cons:
- no backlight.
- no expansion capability.
- 160x160 monochrome screen.
- only the older Address Book and Schedule apps are included rather than the new, more full-featured Contact and Calendar programs that ship with Palm's latest tungsten models.
- no multimedia support.

if you are looking for a basic PDA (mainly to-do lists, contacts, and calendar) at a good price, consider the zire 21. it's a good value and will get the job done for you. just don't expect all the multimedia bells and whistles that come with a lot of the PDAs sold today.

the zire 21 will face competition from sony's clié SJ20. the sony has a better monochrome display, 16MB of RAM, and a memory stick slot. but the sony is also more expensive. between the two, i'd go with the zire 21 myself.

if you have extra cash and want more capabilities, consider palm's tungsten E. it has a color, hi-res screen, a SD slot, MP3 and multimedia support, and a much better software bundle.

i hope this helps you with your purchasing decision. peace.

I purchased this Personal Digital Assistant (PDA) as a christmas gift for my wife. This is not the most advanced, or feature-rich PDA on the market, but I wouldn't buy an HP iPAQ 5555 to my wife just because it's better.
My wife is uninitiaded in the PDA arena, and I couldn't overwhelm her with dozens of features she, as a newbie would never use. The Zire 21 has all the basic capabilities for someone to get organized; Address Book, Calendar, Notes, you can even jot down handwritten notes using the Zire as a paper notepad. It's small, thin, light, fits perfectly almost anywhere and it does the job, period. Another plus is the internal battery, no need to buy AAAs or AAs anymore, there's a battery charger included and it only takes 2-3 hours to recharge completely.

A CD is also included; it has the Palm Desktop software and the necessary drivers for the PC (or Mac) operating system to recognize the palm when you connect it using the USB cable. This software allows you to:

1- Enter the data on the PC instead of the PDA.
2- Transfer data between the PC and the PDA and synchronize both
3- It makes your PC act as a backup repository for your data. If for some reason your Palm data is erased, you may recover by re-sycnhronizing with the PC data.
4- It allows you to install 3rd party software that you download from the Internet.

You don't need to have a PC or Mac to use the Zire, but it is strongly recommended to have one.

I think the Palm Zire has the best value for the price, it's simple to operate and it looks nice (and this sentence rhymes).

Good purchase

Original Zire was a ground breaking product because of its low price. But a year later Palm is still trying to sell the same small screen with no backlight for same price?

Pro's,
1. Its price.
2. Has latest stable Palm OS version 5.
3. Looks very good, doesn't feel cheap (so you can gift it).
4. Comes with rechargeable battery and standard USB cable.
5. Fast ARM processor, good stylus and infrared port.

Con's,
1. Still no backlight on screen (uesless in dark or medium light).
2. Screen is B&W and only 160x160 pixels, again the worst you will find on a 2003 handheld.
3. No mp3, mpeg, jpeg support. Without the multimedia features the gift receiver doesn't get much excited.
4. No expansion slot and only 8MB memory.
5. 90 day warranty.
6. Processor & OS are new but rest of hardware is pathetic, new OS is not put to any use.

With Tungsten E selling for well below 199 mark, I would strongly recommend getting T|E instead of Zire 21. You will get so much for a few more $$. Or you might as well get original Zire for half the cost. Zire 21 is good only as a gift to your mother-in-law, not recommended for personal use.

I gave my hardly used Sony Clie T615C to my fiancée and was using my old Palm III until I bought the Zire 21. I realized after owning a Palm III, Handspring Visor, Palm Vx, Sony Clie T615C, that all I really need a PDA for is addresses, notes, and scheduling. I don't need a camera, mp3 player, video player, web browser, etc. So the Zire 21's features and even lack of, were a good match for my needs, especially at the $99 price point.

True, the display is black and white and the 160x160 resolution is inferior to a B&W Clie. But what does that really mean? I have NO problems reading text on the display. It is infinitely better than my old Palm III's screen. The only major drawback to the screen is the lack of a backlit option. Impossible to see in the dark or dimly lit room.

Considering I'm only storing addresses, notes and appointments, 8MB is PLENTY with room for a few extra applications and games. No expansion possibilty however.

The lack of color display vastly improves the battery life of the built-in lithium ion battery. I should be able to go nearly a month or more on a full charge. My color Clie couldn't go an entire week. The USB hotsync cable also acts as a trickle charger. My only complaint here is I wish they would've figured out a way to put the charging cable and hotsync cable into a single cable. Because of the lack of a cradle, I have to deal with two separate cables. However, this is a benefit for traveling. I used to have to take my Clie's cradle and giant power brick with me on trips.

I have not had any of the same problems described by other reviewers regarding random resets, as of yet. And the 90 day warranty is pretty skimpy for an electronics product and reminds me of Sony. It'd be nice if they would stand behind their products, even if it is their entry-level product. Still, the Zire 21 is a very elegant and simple PDA and an excellent choice for those who are looking for a basic Palm powered device. With the upgraded memory, OS and processor, it is much more attractive than the original Zire at the same price point.

I've been wanting to switch over to a PDA for last couple months basically to get rid of the bulk & the hassle of carrying around a paper planner. When this product was released I knew it was exactly what I needed, the original Zire lacked the memory I wanted to be able to install some 3rd party software, such as games. With this new model I have more than enough room for a few games to play in between classes as well as the standard datebook & address software.

I basically use my Zire 21 to keep track of appointments, homework, and telephone numbers, but the expense software included seems like a great program if you are interested in keeping track of that information on your Palm.

Overall this is perfect for organizing my sometimes hectic college career and I expect once I graduate it will be just as helpful in keeping my organinzed and on time.

The only feature I think would be a nice addition would be a backlight. The screen is easy to view in normal and even some low light, but in the dark is useless. A backlight would ensure it would be viewable at all times. I primarily use mine during the day in light conditions though, so this isn't really a problem, but I can see some people using a backlight frequently.

I read the reviews on Amazon and several other places before deciding to risk the bad reviews and buy this PDA. I was not dissapointed at all. For my purposes, it works great. I did not find the screen too small or dim, even though my primary use for it is reading eBooks. 8MB of RAM is plenty for me, since I can hold a few good-sized books plus some other software. I don't really need expansion, since I don't expect to play MP3s or hold the atlas and encyclopediae in my handheld. If you want to do that, then buy something better for a lot more money. However, if you want to read eBooks and you don't have bad eyesight, then get the Zire 21. I also use it for graphing functions in my math classes, and it works much faster than my dedicated graphing calculator does. I personally think that this handheld is underrated. I have had absolutely no problems with it since I purchased it several months ago, unlike people who had problems with resetting. I think that is a specific problem to the handheld only when it is near certain cell phones, and I don't use or own a cell phone, so I don't experience that problem. Battery life is excellent, and I can usually get by charging the battery for about 30 minutes once a week if I use it about 30-40 minutes a day. So I really have no big complaints.

**Update**: I still have my Zire, and after about 5 months of use, it is still working perfectly. Never died, never reset, and no scratches on the screen! Either people are using it wrong, or there was a defective set made by Palm, of which mine was not part.

What a drag. After having my faithful Palm IIIe for seven or eight years, I finally dropped it and it died. I decided to replace it with the low-end Zire 21, no longer available through Amazon, but I saw it at Office Depot for sixty bucks. I checked out the reviews here AFTER I bought my Palm, and was disconcerted by the large number of negative ratings, but I thought I'd see how it worked for me.

At first, I was perfectly happy with it -- I mainly use my Palm for alarms and phone numbers, and the Zire 21 handles those things well. Yeah, the screen is small without a backlight, but I could read it just fine.

Unfortunately, even though I've had it just over a month, twice now I've turned it on and it's completely reset itself -- it's lost every bit of data I put on it and acts as if it's a brand-new Palm Pilot. I need to do a HotSync to restore my data, and then reset the time and date. So far this has only happened to me when I'm close to my computer, but if it ever happens when I'm on the road and need the data, I'll be very upset.

I'm going to see if it's not too late to return this thing and get something better. Too bad that Palm has not lived up to it's earlier promise.

The Zire 21 regularly resets itself if it is placed near a cell phone. Palm support states that this is the only model they have which has this problem. However, they refuse to accept this is a defect and offer solutions. Their only solution is to keep the Zire 3 feet away from your cell phone. Yeah, right!

This is the third Zire 21 in 2 months and they were brand new! Palm admits the major bug: it resets itself and erases all data for no apparent reason. The inconvenience of this is unimaginable. Palm refuses to upgrade another machine and don't know when they will fix this bug. They said this bug occurs when you place the Zire near cellphones, which is ludicrously inconvenient! I've had it reset when charging on the cradle next to my computer. Don't buy this machine or you are stuck with it!