Customer Reviews

PalmOne Tungsten T3 Handheld

5 star:		(50)
4 star:		(25)
3 star:		(11)
2 star:		(13)
1 star:		(13)

 

 

I purchased my Palm Tungsten T3 last week after doing much research on line, reading many, many reviews and listening to both the pros and cons about this work of art, I decided it was time to make a purchase. The first one came the day after I ordered it by Fedex (I was shocked), as I was waiting with much anticipation for its delivery. This is my fourth Palm (3xe, M505, Tungsten T) so I am quite familiar with the setup process. However, after my first hotsync I couldnot get any applications to open. I was receiving a launch error sign. I sent it back after several hard resets proved unsuccessful. My second T3 arrived last week and I have had absolutely no problems. I very much enjoy using this machine and have become quite attached to it. I have outfitted it with several cases and am just learning everything it will do. Of course the brilliant display screen and stretch ability are as advertised. I really don't mind the short battery life as a trade off, I just purchased a "power to go" battery pack which helps tremendously with that issue. I am however waiting before I purchase any third party applications, as I want to learn the native apps. first. There have been some significant changes added to the Address Book, now known as "Contacts" and the Date Book know called "Calendar". I can landscape and view the entire year or a single month, I love it! The software bundle that comes with it is more than impressive (good work Palm Source!), Docs to Go (for creating word and excel documents), Kinoma (video viewing), Realone Player for listening to Mp3 audio in fantastic stereo with a good pair of earbuds, Palmreader (like putting a book in your pocket) and Photos. These are my favorite apps. So for me, the trade offs are more than worth it. I don't really need WiFi, and Bluetooth I hardly ever use, but its good to have if you need it. I would say if you are considering this PDA, think about what your willing to trade off and then make your decision. Pam hasn't got it perfect yet, but they are getting closer with the T3. Good work PalmOne, keep listening to your customers. And lastly, Customer Service outsourcing to the Phillippines is not working. You are losing customers. Get back your customer service that was originally your strongest selling point. Bring the jobs back to the U.S.A.
Peace!!!

one of palm's newest PDAs is the tungsten T3. palm has given the T3 a huge, hi-res screen and the ability to switch from portrait to landscape orientation.

pros:
- bright, transflective TFT 320x480 display is stunning and easy to read even in daylight.
- uses the same sliding design as previous palm PDAs but in this model, instead of exposing a graffiti area, the case opens up to show more screen.
- and to take advantage of that bigger screen, you can tap one button and the display switches from traditional portrait orientation to landscape. very cool.
- built-in bluetooth.
- 400MHz processor.
- 64MB of RAM, 52MB of which is available to the user
- MP3 and multimedia support.
- pocketable at 4.3 (closed) x 3.0 x 0.66" weighing in at 5.5oz.
- strong software bundle - now includes the new Contacts and Calendar applications (with Contacts, you can finally store multiple addresses for each contact)
- uses the same cradle as the T2.
- expansion slot supports SD, SDIO, MMC.

cons:
- no built-in Wi-Fi (although you can use the expansion slot for an add-in).
- battery not replaceable.

this is a solid PDA. i'd trade the bluetooth functionality with Wi-Fi though. as mentioned above, you can use the expansion slot to install a Wi-Fi add-in so there's a work-around for this limitation. if you MUST have built-in Wi-Fi, consider the tungsten C. going the other way, if you can live with a more traditional sized screen and bluetooth is not essential, consider the tungsten E and save some money.

i hope this helps you in your buying decision. peace.

Gee I thought the T2 was cool, the T3 takes what made the original Tungsten and the follow-up T2 great and simply improved upon all of that in a really HUGE way. It isn't without some flaws, however and I'll address those here as well. First off the PROS:

The Screen! As I write this you simply cannot buy a better handheld device (Pocket PC or otherwise) that gives you a better screen. PERIOD. You just won't believe how the screen looks in the extended position, especially when looking at downloaded pictures. Outstanding. You can view them upright or simply at the touch of the stylus you can turn the screen sideways and voila! the picture rotates into a panoramic view. Bravo to Palm for instituting this program!

The Voice Memo feature is unbelievably useful. I tend to do a LOT of thinking and planning while driving around and my biggest problem is that when something truly great suddenly pops into my head, I just cannot stop and write it down while in traffic -- however with the convenience of the voice memo on my T3 I can record my thoughts on-the-go with one-handed operation. Easier than answering my cell phone, too. I was incredibly surprised to see just how ground breaking this feature was for me personally. Sure, the quality isn't all that fantastic, but for the purpose it serves, it does GREAT.

Memory: A whopping 64mb! 'Course you can only use around 59 of that, but still, finally a Palm device that can compete with a Pocket PC for memory storage! I remember thinking I'll NEVER need more than 8mb on my handheld -- well I currently have well over 32 used at the moment and I have plenty more I am planning to install.

Expansion: I guess there are two kinds of people who fall into this category, you either like and appreciate what expansion can do or you hate it. Personally I really LOVE this particular ability of most the Palm's I have owned. I have loaded the RealOne player onto my card and use it to play mp3 files, which can be seamlessly copied from my cd collection within minutes. The connection, thanks to the lightning fast processor makes access to my expansion card almost immediate.

Some have noticed that the T3 is slightly taller than the T2 and at first I thought that might be a problem, but the advantages of what the T3 can do far outweigh ANY kinds of problems the extra size may cause. At first I was NOT happy with the new navigational button at the bottom center of all the Tungsten models -- at FIRST. I was SO familiar with my older Palm models that I was very skeptical that it was an actual improvement, and more a cosmetic upgrade to make the device more streamlined. Well, yes it IS a nice looking addition, but after some initial getting used to, I can whole-heartedly endorse this improvement 100%.

The free software that came with my T3 was absolutely invaluable. I have used the Adobe Reader almost instantly when I finished downloading it to my desktop. Documents to Go is also a MUST in today's business world. I never would have thought that I would or even COULD use any of these, and yet as the world has technologically progressed right on by me, I have had to adapt -- or be left behind. The T3 has allowed me to keep right up with everyone else in this techno-savvy world.

The Bluetooth connectivity may be a major plus down the road, but my particular area hasn't been blessed with a lot of Bluetooth compatibility -- for the moment. However down the road I can definitely see myself making my next mobile phone purchase based upon the carrier's Bluetooth ability. I know many who are die-hard Wi-Fi users (and you can buy a Tungsten that will work specifically for that, too) and still others who will never stray from their trusty down-right ancient-looking Blackberry's out there, but for me, I'll be perfectly satisfied with what mine already has. This IS one thing you ought to look into before you make a purchase just to be sure.

Now for the CON'S: it has been noted that the battery life isn't exactly stellar -- and this pretty much sums it up in nutshell. Even my (much) older m130 had at least twice the battery life. Sure, this screen is quite a bit bigger and subsequently sucks more life from your batteries than usual, and this is something you need to consider when weighing in on battery strength, but even so, it seemed to disappear much quicker than I expected. One way to help minimize this I have found, is to lower the backlight to the lowest setting. You'd be surprised how much extra life you can squeeze just by doing this one thing, and it doesn't harm the clarity of the screen by doing so by much, if at all.

Other than this one single problem, I can see my T3 being (at the moment anyway) the absolute best Palm OS item on the market today -- and since I have become so familiar with Palm vs. the Pocket PC, and after sitting down with a PC for a few hours attempting to figure it out, I can state emphatically that the Palm platform is MUCH simpler and user friendly -- at least it was for ME. There are just as many out there who believe the opposite, which is just fine. A large part of purchasing this kind of item is personal preference, and I hope that I have been able to say my peace in enough detail to help others in making their PDA decision. Good luck and remember: the MOST important thing to consider when buying one is the MORE you know, the BETTER. Examine them side-by-side and if you cannot get any practical hands-on use out of one, maybe you ought to look elsewhere to buy your next product.

As every product review arises from the unique preferences and tastes of a particular individual, I begin with the following disclosures. (a) I'm a medical professional and I think that the volume of medical references and tools available for PDAs, and especially palms, is transforming the medical professions for the better. (b) I do research and I use Windows laptops, and UNIX workstations, regularly, almost all day. (c) Scheduling and reminder notices are a key part of my work and
personal life.

More on (a): It follows that I'm partial to the Palm platform and the medical software for PalmOS that I've accumulated over the years. The medical software available for Palms makes continuing medical education a pleasure for me. In a few free moments, or even as a break from the work routine, I like to read up on medical subjects from 5MCC or Harrisons' or epocrates. In casual interactions with other medical professionals, or while reading the newspaper, or looking over
content.nejm.org, sometimes I want to look up some quick information to refresh my memory. Medical information on a Palm is often at the perfect level of detail. It's key, however, that the Palm be accessible, that it be in my pocket with my wallet or in my labcoat. If it takes me more
than 20 seconds to find the information I am wondering about, often, the information may not be worth tracking down. The T|T3 has a near ideal size, the size of a wallet. I would think that the T|T5, the T|Es and the Sony TH55 would be very comparable, but the T|T3 is still smaller. The upcoming LifeDrive looks too large and heavy. Many of my medical programs want to reside in
volatile RAM; that argues against the 16MB limit of the TH55 and, perhaps, the 32MB limits of the T|Es. The T|C appears to be an important contender, but I prefer the security of short-range Bluetooth to 802.11b WiFi without WPA-PSK/AES. Also, it is likely that unencrypted 802.11b violates HIPAA.

More on (b): For research work, there is a clear separation from the heavy-weight computing tasks for which I need a workstation, the medium-weight tasks for which I need a luggable laptop, and light-weight scheduling, quick notes, reminders, etc. that a PDA does well. I don't want my PDA to
be a database or have the feature sets of office productivity suites. Still, adding research info. management to medical info. management increases demand on volatile and non-volatile storage. This argues for the T|Ts, the T|C and the LifeDrive.

More on (c): I want my PDA apps to be useful day-to-day, quick to launch and nimble to use. Keeping this in mind, I was disappointed that PalmOne did away with voice recording on the T|T5. I like the idea of using voice recordings for quick memos while driving or just before going to bed or adding voice-over notes on calendar and to-do apps. The T|C will do voice recording, but with the hassle of an external mic. Unfortunately, that little hassle could be too large a barrier to my using a voice-memo feature regularly. That takes me back to the T|T3.

The Treo 650 would be a reasonable contender. But I like my PDA to be available for scheduling and note-taking while I am talking on a cell-phone. So for me, the two should be separated. Besides, I've recently signed up for another two years with Nextel. That excludes the Treos. In the back of my mind is also the fact that cell phones aren't compatible/safe with many hospital wards. Unfortunately, as of today, there precious few sources of new, warrantied T|T3 available in the US. Amazon & associates just sold the last of the warrantied OEMs; I squeaked by and managed to get one of these. Ebay may be the only remaining source. I bought a spare T|T3 and some spare parts from ebay last week and I've been happy with this route.

To conclude, I assert the T|T3 is still a great PDA as of May 2005.

I recently upgraded from M500 to T3. I wanted a better and larger screen, better handling of e-mail and syncing with Outlook, as wel as handling Word attachments. I am really satisfied with all of the above. Synchronisation by cradle and IR on my mobile phone work very well, both as regards Docs to Go and AvantGo. My old portable keyboard works as well after installing a new driver from the Palm website.

Three problems, though:
1. the old "Mail" application is no longer used and replaced by VersaMail. Versamail, however, is difficult to install on network PCs because it only installs as part of the software package on the CD ROM. I have still not managed to do that. In the mean time I use versamail to sync by IR wireless with Yahoo, which works great.
2. Battery life is SHORT, about 2 hours, so you really need a charger when travelling.
3. The T3 doesn't have a Wlan card built in, and I still haven't seen an expansion card available at web shops. Hopefully it will be available soon.

Over all this is a great PDA, I travel a lot and use it instead of a notebook PC. Hopefully in a couple of years Palm will throw in a GSM phone as well.

I have owned my T3 since Christmas 2003. Initially I was completely enthralled. It is fast, has a great diplay and plenty of memory. I was disappointed with the battery life. I was upgrading from a Clie' 710C. I am able to listen to music and read books for an entire travel day with my Clie..not the T3. I simply purchased a seperate MP3 player...no big deal. Then, 1 week ago I started having strange problems. Programs that were working fine had started locking up, forcing a hard reset! I started trying to track down the individual program that was causing the problem. I would install a single 3rd party program and attempt to run it. Most would lock up. However the internal programs (address book, calendar, etc...) continued to work. I finally broke down and contacted customer support via e-mail. I explained in detail the steps I had gone through. They replied that it sounded like a hardware issue and told me to call in for a return authorization. When I did this, they wanted to go through the entire process again. On top of it they seemed clueless. As a matter of fact, they were so clueless, that I ended up completely frustrated and thanking them for their time and hanging up! Later I called back hoping for another support tech. It appears that the phone support is offshore which led to communication problems both times. However we were able to overcome these and I did receive a SRO.

I am writing all of this to reinforce other reviews. The T3 is a great PDA, but it does appear to suffer from some quality issues. It doesn't have a great battery life (when are they going to wise up and put in removeable batteries?) and the customer service seems to have gone to the toilet!

There was a time when i felt that Palm was losing the fight against Pocket PC and even other Palm powered PDAs such as the Sony's due to their breakthrough in multimedia capabilities, however, the wait was worth it. Now, we all can enjoy magnificent PDAs such as my brand new Tungsten T3 handheld that allows me to do everything, from playing games and listening to music till serious work such as recording important business meetings. The best of it all is the compatibility with existing accessories such as the Palm Modem or the keyboard, not to mention this new and impressive high resolution screen that can be enlarged up to 320x480 pixels and to use it in sideways mode. As a software developer for Palm powered devices, i strongly recommend this PDA to everybody.. cheaper than PocketPCs yet equally (or more) powerful, fully featured and easy to use.

This is my fourth PDA in about eight years. I had the original Palm Pilot, then the Palm IIIxe, and then the Palm m515, and now the Tungsten T3. The previous three performed admirably until they were dropped, zapped by static electricity, etc.

I've been using it for almost one year now and I have to say that the Tungsten T3 is exceptional. Gone is the silkscreen Graffiti surface and now you can expand the screen for an even wider view. It's great for working with documents and if your day planner is crazy like mine, you can see just how maddening your day will be. Great bundled software include: Documents To Go (Word, Excel, & PowerPoint -- PowerPoint is a viewer only, but the other two are fully functional), WebPro, VersaMail, Kinoma video player, Voice Recorder, and RealOne for listening to mp3s. It's also Bluetooth compatible and as of September 2004 it's WiFi capable thanks to the new PalmOne SDIO Wifi Card.

Battery life is not entirely the best, averaging between two and five hours, depending upon what you're doing. Working with the base applications like Memopad or RealOne won't suck up battery life, but Documents To Go does use a lot of juice. There are a few shareware programs out there though where you can adjust the clock speed and save a little power. (For great freeware for the T3, check out www.freewarepalm.com. I've found neat little programs there for business use, education, entertainment, etc. All free!)

Video and mp3 playback are extremely smooth thanks to the ARM processor. Pictures look very crisp and clear.

I actually think this is better than a laptop at times. I have a folding keyboard (from my old m515) and I can sit on a plane and listen to mp3s and work on Documents To Go at the same time and still have a lot of room left on my seat tray for munchies and a drink, while the poor guy or gal next to me has a laptop that takes up the whole tray and has no room for anything. I have a small travel charger to take with me on business trips or short road trips. Also recommended are screen protectors (this is a must), some extra styli, LEXAR or Kingston SD cards (there are great deals now on 512 MB cards) and a good case like the Rhinoskin T3 aluminum case.

Highly recommended. If I'm on travel for a week, I'll take this with me and can work on documents, listen to mp3s, and even surf the internet. I call it my secretary. Without it, I'd be totally lost and disorganized...

I am very happy with this new Palm. I've gone through three different Pocket PC devices and have never been happy with them. I have always been happy with Palm. And this one seems to have everything I've ever wanted from a Palm.

I have had the T3 almost a week now, and have had zero problems with it. I charged it overnight when I first got it, loaded all my Palm programs on it (a high-end calculator, "City Time," a few games including "Scrabble," a dictionary, and "Splash ID"), and have used it as I typically do: I turn it on 10 - 20 times a day, do my business, and turn it off. I have not re-charged it or synced since last Friday, and I still have 20% left in my battery. I will let it completely deplete before I re-charge to help condition the battery. I do not use it for any wireless functions, though I'm sure I will when a Wi-Fi card comes out, or I get a Bluetooth adapter for my desktop PC. I keep my screen brightness just below 50%.

And the new screen is absolutely stunning. I got a 256 Mb Lexar SD card, loaded about 25 Mb of photos on it, and they look great. I suggest shrinking your photos before loading them - you will not need high resolutions at all. A 75 kilobyte picture looks as good as a 1 megabyte picture, and loads instantly. I do have some trouble seeing the screen in sunlight - I have to tilt it until it is just right.

This T3 is replacing a Pocket PC I got as a test device. The Pocket PC replaced a Palm 515, which I gave to my wife. (She loves my old 515.) There is a marked increase in the speed between the T3 and the 515, and accessing programs now seems virtually instantaneous.

I rarely extend the device to access the Virtual Graffiti area. I love having everything I need in the non-extended layout. I am having some trouble getting used to Graffiti 2. It definitely takes practice. I still use the typewriter function for symbols and some punctuation marks (which means having to extend the device). I'm sure I'll get used to it, just as I did with the original Graffiti.

All in all, I highly recommend the T3. Highest marks for Palm.

This is my 5th PDA, if you count that Newton MessagePad 120 I started with back whenever. The Tungsten T3 has impressed me for a few reasons, not the least of which has been it's all-around usefulness. Stuffing a powerful processor, a voice recorder, SD card slot, big display in a collapsible shell, and Bluetooth have all been key to having the Tungsten survive well beyond the usual 1-2 year usable lifespan of the other PDA's I've had before.

The one gripe I do have with the Tungsten T3 is its battery life. Perhaps because of its supercharged processor (which manages to even run video smoothly -- google for TCPMP, which is a free & open source media player) it guzzles down the battery. Though it's a standard battery, between the display and the processor needs, I only get maybe 3-4 hours continuous use, though to be fair, that's with Bluetooth running. That's been upped by an hour or so by using another utility called "FullPower", which allows me to turn off the battery warnings until a lower voltage, but it's a risky proposition -- too low, and all the memory gets lost.

But the display is really quite nice and bright, and I've used this PDA now as 1) a medial textbook reference, 2) a way to read web sites offline with Plucker & AvantGo, 3) a voice recorder, 4) a GPS navigation device with the NavMan 4460 (see my other review), 5) an mp3 player, with the bundled RealPlayer, 6) a movie player, with TCPMP, 7) a portable email/web access device, using my Bluetooth connection to my GPRS-enabled cell phone with T-mobile, 8) an automatic podcast catcher/mp3 player, using QuickNews from Standalone software, 9) a Word/Excel document editor, using the built-in/bundled Documents-To-Go application (made easier with a Palm Portable Keyboard), and 10) oh yeah -- a handy datebook, contacts, notes, and to-do manager.

Sure, WiFi or a built-in camera would have been neat to have -- but the unit, as is, packs in more than enough functionality for most users. That, and everything seems to have a low-quality built-in camera these days. I bet even cameras will have built-in cameras some day soon.